Pairing: SasuSaku

Prompt/theme: Requested under the prompt 'getting into a taxi already occupied'.

"Bye, Ino!" Sakura called, a drunk tremor entering her voice as she collapsed into the cab in a fit of giggles. She hurriedly gave the driver her address, and settled back in her seat. For some reason, the cab took a moment to pull away; the driver seemed to be slightly amused by something.

It was only when the momentum of the car pulling away from the curb caused her to fall slightly to the side, that Sakura realised the cab was already occupied. In the dark setting, her eyes hadn't had time to adjust and make out the, though still fairly hidden in shadow, clearly good looking man by the other door. She gave a tiny gasp of surprise.

"I'm so sorry!" she apologised quickly. A soft chuckle came from the other side of the cab.

"I'm not in a rush anyway." he replied quietly. Sakura noted with some surprise that he sounded younger than she'd imagined - not that she could really see the man in the dim lighting. Her jade eyes could vaguely make out his high cheekbones and dark hair, though she'd imagined him to be in his late twenties. His was the voice of a younger man, closer to her own age. Despite herself, she realised she was blushing, a mix of embarrassment and curiosity lighting up her cheeks.

"I'm Sakura." she introduced herself, holding on to the arm rest as a wave of drunken dizziness swept through her. The man was silent for a moment, and Sakura bit her lip nervously.

"Sasuke." he replied finally. Sakura smiled in the darkness.

"Sorry again about taking your cab." she murmured.

"Like I said, it's fine." Sakura swore she could hear the hint of a smile in his voice. "Are you going to be able to get inside okay, Sakura?"

With some surprise, Sakura realised that the cab had pulled to a halt outside her apartment building.

"Oh!" she exclaimed softly, pushing the door open. She quickly dug into her wallet for some money and handed it to the taxi driver. "Thank you."

As she climbed out on to the curb, she chanced a glance back into the taxi at the dark haired man. Suddenly at a loss for words, she blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"I hope no one else jumps in your cab."

For a moment, there was silence. Then: a soft laugh.

"It wasn't so bad." he murmured.

As the cab pulled away, the ghost of a smile lit Sakura's face.