Gaara stood out side the locker rooms with Naruto and the rest of the people he hung out with regularly. Sakura had been in the locker room for a while when three girls came running out laughing and grinning evilly. 'i wonder what they're up to..' he thought. "Geeze! Whats taking her so long?" Naruto complained. "She's a girl Naruto, she can take as long as she likes." Ino stated. "But its taking foreveeeeeer!" Naruto whined, then his sister hit him across the head. "Shut up idiot, why don't the rest of us go on ahead while one of us waits on her?" she smartly suggested. The group nodded in agreement. "but who's gonna wait on her?" Kiba asked. "It has to be either Naruto or Gaara, since she doesn't know the rest of us." said Shikamaru while he stifled a yawn. "Well it's N-n-n-naruto- kuns house we're going to." came Hinatas shy voice. "Shes right, it would be awkward for all of us to be there alone with that perv Jiraya." said Ino. "Then its settled!" yelled Naruto. "Gaara will wait here!" before he had a chance to argue they all ran off to Temari's car. '*sigh* that idiot..'
Gaara started to worry more and more when Sakura had still not come out, it had been two hours since class let out. 'Even if she is a girl.. she would not take this long.' He pushed open the door to the girls locker room, and saw ropes and pink hair strewn across the floor. 'What happened here?' he heard a quiet crying comming from the shower. He walked over and saw her curled in the corner, her once beautifully long hair cut short. He noticed the shower was on and quietly turned it off. She looked up at him, and her eyes where so filled with pain it made his heart clench. 'Sakura...' He bent down and picked her up. He walked over to the bench in the locker room and sat her down. He began to dry her off with a towel and he wrapped it around her shoulders. She was still crying, but she made no sound at all, she didn't move, didn't blink just stared at the floor. Gaara noticed she was shivering so he sat down behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders in an attempt to warm her up. He placed his chin on her shoulder. "Sakura..." He said. This seemed to draw her out of her trance, she looked at him and the tears stopped. "Who did this to you?" He asked gently. She didn't answer. "Was it the three girls we saw running out of here earlier?" He asked. Her lip quivered and she wrapped her arms around his neck and nodded into his chest. He could tell that she was stopping herself from letting out the emotions because she didn't want him to see her cry. He gently rocked her back and forth and began to sing to her, hoping it would help to calm her down.
You were standing in the wake of devastation
And you were waiting on the edge of the unknown
And with the cataclysm raining down
Insides crying "Save me now"
You were there, impossibly alone
Do you feel cold and lost in desperation?
You build up hope, but failure's all you've known
Remember all the sadness and frustration
And let it go. Let it go
And in a burst of light that blinded every angel
As if the sky had blown the heavens into stars
You felt the gravity of tempered grace
Falling into empty space
No one there to catch you in their arms
Do you feel cold and lost in desperation?
You build up hope, but failure's all you've known
Remember all the sadness and frustration
And let it go. Let it go
Soon her breathing became even and normal. She looked up at him. "Thank you..." She simply said.
Sakura couldn't believe that Gaara of all people was sitting there hold her, singing to her, and comforting her. She also couldn't believe how impossibly right it felt to be in his arms, and how amazingly good his voice sounded. His eyes where soft and the expression he was giving her told her that he was doing this out of concern rather than pitty.
'I told you this one was diffrent'
'So? doesn't mean he won't leave me in the end.. i can't afford to get any more emotionally attached to him..' She suddenly became aware of just how cold she was. She began shivering violently.
"Take off your shirt." Gaara said.
"WHAT?" She would have never thought of Gaara as a pervert!
"Your shirt is wet and cold, take it off and you can wear my hoddie." he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Oh.." was her brilliant reply. He took off his hoddie and turned around so she could change into it. She loved the way it felt on her, it was soft and warm. It smell like cinnamon, sort of sandy and something else she couldn't put a name on. His smell, she realized. She put it on and they began to walk out to the parking lot. "Do you just want to go home?" he asked. "Yes...but... i guess everyone can come over to my house if they want..." she said. She didn't want to be alone. Suddenly she was lifted off of the ground and found that she was on Gaaras back. "W-what are you doing?" she asked completely taken off guard. "Carrying you." he stated simply.
The walk to her house was silent, but pleasant. Gaara stopped at her door so she could pull out her key and let them in. It was the first time anyone but herself was in her house. "Theres food in the kitchen.. just help your self, i'm going to take a shower and change clothes." She walked into her room and grabbed her black skinny jeans and red tank top. She took a quick warm shower and thanked god that the steam had caused the mirror to fog up so she wouldn't see her hair and break down all over again. She dressed and went into her room. Where she would probably spend most of the night. She walked over to her window and stared at the moon. She felt the tears threaten to fall again, and she didn't stop them. She had learned to be a silent crier when she noticed how much worse it made her father feel if she sobbed out loud. A knock sounded at the door. "Its unlocked" She said. Gaara entered, but she kept her back turned still determined not to let him see her cry.
Gaara entered the silent room to see Sakura staring out her window and up at the sky. She kept her back to him, he knew she was crying again. Her hair was now just above her shoulders, and she had not yet fixed the horrid cut job. But to him.. she was still just as beautiful.
'I'm telling you boy... go for her, you know you're basically in love with her at this point..' His inner voice said
'if... if i am going to allow myself to admit it... it will only be to myself, and not to her. She's had enough pain, if something ever happend... i would not want that guilt on my shoulders.' he replied. 'so you're admiting you have feelings for her?'..yes...' 'Good. now then boy, what are you going to do?' Gaara thought about it. 'I'm going to ensure that nothing ever causes her pain ever again.'
He walked over to her and took a short strand of her soft pink hair in his hand, he twirled it around his fingers. She turned to him and he cupped her cheek with his hand. He stared into her astonishing emerald eyes. He felt his heart speed up when he saw her face. Even while crying she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.
She stood there for what seemed like forever staring into Gaaras jade eyes. They where smooth and where hiding the emotion behind them. She couldn't tell what he was thinking or feeling but standing here with his hand on her cheek was making her emotions go haywire. She was unsure of how to process them all at once, she wasn't even sure on what exactly she was feeling. She felt happy, and giddy with a mixture of longing and bliss. It was the best she'd felt in a very long time.. 'thats love..' her inner voice 'what? impossible! no no no! I-' 'would you just shut up? we both know how badly we need love, and here someone is making us feel like all those bad memories never happend to us and you just shut down! Take a risk! Just this once take a risk!' She had never heard her inner voice be so stern and so... 'wise?' Her inner put in. "Sakura.." Gaaras voice brought her out of her thoughts. It was deep and husky. He leaned in and their foreheads where touching. His eyes where hooded and his lips partially open with a slight smile. Their noses touched next, She could feel his warm breath on her lips. He put an arm around her waist and pulled her against him and his lips where just a little bit away from her own, he was about to-DING-DONG!- The door bell broke them out of the magicall spell. Gaara pulled her into a hug before going down to get the door. Disapointed she sat on her bed and place her fingers to her lips. 'He really was going to kiss me wasn't he?' This made her smile but she knew better than to hope for the same miracle to happen again. Gaara was a man of few words and even fewer actions, if he did something, he more than likely wouldn't do it again.
'that stupid blonde idiot...' He had just been about to kiss Sakura, which in itself was not a good idea... he knew that if he did that, it would only be a matter of time before he told her how he really felt. He didn't want to end up hurting her, but he didn't know how long he could keep up the act of friendship without it becoming painful. He had called Naruto and told him about moving the night to Sakuras'. He also told him what had happened in the locker room (minus him singing and comforting her) and Naruto in turn told everyone in the gang. He had hoped that Naruto also had the sense to tell them not to mention anything about her parents as well. He sighed before opening the door. "ALLLRIGHT! LETS HAVE A GOOD TIME!" Narutos obnoxious voice drifted through the door before he even got it partially opened. Suddenly the door was slammed opened, if it wern't for Gaaras almost ninja like reaction skills, he would have been smashed between the door and the wall. As everyone began to file in Gaara took the moment to hit Naruto over the head. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" The idiotic blonde asked. "Because." 'you left me alone to wait for her, which caused me to admit to myself how i feel about her, which lead to me almost kissing her, which YOU interupted' He silently added on. "Hey Gaara? Wheres Sakura?" Ino asked. He could see concern on all three girls faces. 'Sakura has friends she doesn't even know about..' "Shes up in her room." "Thanks!" Ino charged up the stairs and rushed into the only room up there.
Sakura sat silently in her room. She had never spent any time around so many people besides the times she was at school. She decided to just say in her safe little room away from everyone. She heard a quiet click and looked up to see Ino standing in the door way. She eyed the girl warily, hopeing she wasn't the type to be nice in front of other people, but a total controlling bitch when in private. Inos face lit up in surprise and disgust when she saw the sad state Sakuras hair was in. "Wow.. Those bitches really did a number on you huh?" Sakura just stared at her. "Here, let me help you fix it. I promise i won't make it any shorter, i'll just fix it so you don't look like you where attacked by a lawn mower." Inos face softened as Sakura slowly nodded. Ino sat on her bed as she took some of her hair into her hand and began to brush it out. "You must love your hair a lot, its so soft and healthy." "Hn.." She couldn't risk letting the emotion slipping into her voice, but she was happy with the compliment. Ino worked over her hair for about 15 mins and when she was done, she got the courage to look into the mirror. Her hair was brushing lightly on top of her shoulders, as Ino promised it wasn't any shorter, it was just styled. "Thank you..." she said. Then Ino did the one thing she least expected, she hugged her. "I know for someone who cares for their hair as much as you do, they have a reason. And i'm gonna show those bitches just how little their hair means to them." Ino evily smirked before she gestured for Sakura to follow her downstairs. '*sigh*... here goes nothing...' Sakura thought before following the blonde girl down the stairs.
End 'o' Chapter
Well? what do you think? personally i think its total crap.. but then again it IS 2 a.m -_- *sigh* oh well... if its that crazy bad, i'll just fix it later.