Trial and Error – Chapter Six
Huge thanks to redlightmix for allowing me to steal a detail from skinny jeans. She's an amazing author - go check her out. Now.
Standard disclaimer applies.
From: Sasuke
Night. Love you.
Something about that just kills me every time… Slowly, the good night texts have just dissolved into meaningless words and "I love you" has become "love you." Maybe I'm too picky, but… one word makes a world of difference. "Love you" is what you say to a friend, or to a parent when you're hanging up the phone. "Love you" can be flung around casually to anyone. "Love you" is for when you don't really care.
But "I love you" is in a category of its own. "I love you" is special. "I love you" makes it sound like someone actually does care about you more than anyone else on the whole entire planet. And maybe… just maybe… that's the reason he doesn't say it.
Honestly, I don't know how I brought myself to this situation. To get here, to be blunt, means I'm fucking desperate. As in, I would rather spend the next twenty years eating ramen every meal than be right here. Of course, I need some advice and… fucking hell, this is the only thing I can think of.
Every step down the hall is torture. The living room isn't far, but it takes an eon to get there. Maybe because I really don't fucking want to do this. But whatever.
"Otouto." Itachi's sitting on one of the black leather couches. His feet are propped up on the table and he has a Time Magazine open on his lap. Just the sight of him makes me want to punch something – preferably his face.
"Aniki."
"Now, now," he smirks pompously, "That tone doesn't seem appropriate when addressing your favorite older brother."
On any other day, I would have tried knocking the shit out of him already. But today, I need a favor, so holding my temper is necessary. Uchihas must always appear composed, anyway. "How was your trip?"
His eyebrow quirks upwards. He answers slowly, like it's a trick question. "Rather uneventful. I was never a huge fan of England, after all, but it was pleasant enough. We managed to make significant progress with the customer, and a deal for a future partnership is on the table."
"Ah." I sit on the sofa opposite to him. His eyebrow remains raised. "And your flight went smoothly, I assume?"
"Quite – I met the most charming woman on the plane. Now," he smirks again. Not even Naruto can get me to feel violent so easily. Itachi always had a talent for being a pain in my ass, though. "Why don't we skip all these niceties? It's rather unlike your typical behavior."
"Hn." Flat out saying I'm looking for help is something that I would never be able to live down with Itachi. But if I don't just get to the point, he'll just drag out the conversation, knowing that it's one of the last things I want to do.
He didn't used to be so bad. When I was younger, I fucking adored him. Copied pretty much everything he did. He was perfect in our father's eyes. Success would follow him anywhere. No matter how much I tried to be like him, I always fell short. When it was my turn, nothing I did was good enough. I was always going to be in his shadow, and he enjoyed every fucking second of it. Things were supposed to get easier when he moved out, but ever since he began working at Uchiha Co., his name has been repeated a million times over by the media.
"Mom probably told you about what's happened with… Sakura." Getting this over as soon as possible seems like the lesser of two evils.
Instead of breaking into a huge grin like I expect, his face falls into a neutral expression. "A little bit. It's a shame; I thought she was charming. Enough so that I would have asked her–," he eyes my hands which have turned into fists and clears his throat. "But that's neither here nor there." He's just trying to piss me off now. Or get me to reveal something that I don't want him to know.
"I'm trying to fix things."
"Oh? And you've come to me in search of help?" He reclines into the cushions as if he's inspecting me. It's this kind of cockiness that makes my blood boil. "Well, there are the usual chocolates, flowers, promises you don't intend to keep…(1)" He places his hand under his chin as if he's deep in thought. "Some of which don't seem too out of your character, little brother."
"Fuck you." I knew this would be pointless. Getting him to be serious and get off my back for five minutes was way too much to hope for. I managed to take two steps before he stands with both hands up, a sign for peace.
"I apologize; that was rude. But calm down, otouto, there's no need to be so on-edge. Sit." Even though I don't like the way he's ordering me around, I settle down onto the sofa again. "Why come to me?"
"You've had a few… girlfriends." That's a complete understatement. Every time Itachi shows up, there's a different girl slung over his arm – a model, an actress, a producer, or something similar. He even gets mail from desperate fans that proclaim their undying adoration for him. Some would think he's more like a teen heart-throb than a business tycoon.
"Ah, I have…" His eyes look at a something above my head. "But have you considered… none of my relationships have been anything like yours." He's obviously waiting for a response, but I have nothing to say. He sighs. "Have you ever thought of that?"
"No..."
"Foolish little brother," I could get angry again, but he's still speaking. "Sakura isn't just any girl you want to spend time with. She's special – one of your precious people."
"I know that already."
He places the magazine on the coffee table and intertwines his fingers over his lap. "I have never had that kind of relationship with a woman, otouto. But I know one thing for sure… winning a girl like Sakura back will take more than just half-hearted efforts. You need to be willing to throw your whole self into it, with no guarantee that you'll change her mind."
"I can't lose her."
"But what if you have to?"
This is not how I imagined the conversation going. He hasn't been a supreme ass. I haven't stormed out of the room. We're actually… talking. It's too weird. I get up, not because I'm angry, but because there isn't really anything left to say. Just as I get to the doorway, Itachi calls out.
"Sasuke. Try a little honesty. You never know how far it can take you."
"Ah…" As much as I hate to admit it, he just gave me the thing I need. "Thanks."
Ten Things You Never Knew about Uchiha Sasuke
1. When I was younger, Itachi used to make me French braid his hair. I still know how to do it. No one else knows about this. (2)
2. I thought you were the only girl that didn't have cooties when we were in the Academy.
3. I planned on growing up to be a tomato salesman. Somehow, it seemed like the best job in the world when I was three. Didn't outgrow the plan until I was seven. My dad said I was being ridiculous.
4. Naruto said my hair looked like a "chicken butt" the first day at the Academy. I punched him. That's how we started to hang out.
5. I ate all the candy in my house one Halloween. And then proceeded to throw it all up. That's why I don't like sweets.
6. I can name 135 of the 151 original Pokémon off the top of my head.
7. I hate when the power goes out. After watching Insidious, it always feels like something is just waiting in the darkness.
8. I bought red contacts when I was eleven because Itachi always wore them. I thought he was the shit then and copied him.
9. I re-read the Harry Potter books every Christmas. Don't know why. But it's just become like a tradition.
"Give this to Sakura. Don't read it. Please." I hand then note to Ino as I'm walking towards English Lit. She's shocked at first, probably from my bluntness, but recovers quickly and the shouting follows me down the hallway.
"You're such an ass, Uchiha! Who says I'll do you any favors? Rude!" Despite the little tirade, I see her slip the paper into the side pocket of her jacket. I don't blame Nara for calling her troublesome all the time.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura jogs a little bit to catch up to me in the hallway. I'm on my way to the weight room for pre-season training for basketball. It feels weird to see her. For the last few weeks, I've been the one chasing her around. Admittedly, it feels good that she's not against coming up to me anymore.
"Hm?"
She blushes. "Well, Ino gave me the note, and well… You titled it 'Ten Things You Never Knew about Uchiha Sasuke,' but there were only nine things on it…"
I guess I'm lucky she's so observant, in a way. If she hadn't noticed that, I wouldn't have the balls to point it out. Looking into her eyes makes it really confusing to speak. On one hand, I want to be open and tell her everything; on the other, I don't want to mess this up by saying the wrong thing.
An awkward moment passes. Sakura looks sort of like she regrets coming up to me at all. Not good. Guess this is where I have to say the right thing.
"Yeah, well, I wanted to do the last fact in person."
A smile is twitching on her lips, but her eyes are distant and confused, sort of like she's listening to the conversation, but her mind isn't really into it at all.
"Okay. So what would it be?"
I gulp, just like they cartoons characters do when they get nervous. Because this seems even cheesier than giving chocolates and flowers for Valentine's Day. This is the kind of stuff that gets written in a million romance novels.
"There's going to be a party on Saturday. Up at the beach. The dobe's idea. Fact ten about me: I hope to see you there."
Her attention refocuses instantly. There's a question lingering in the air, and I know what it is. But I'm too afraid of the truth, so I pretend like I don't notice the way her mouth is prepared to ask it. I look at her hands instead.
Before we started dating, I never took the time to notice exactly how tiny Sakura is. She's five four, which isn't really that short at all, but everything about her just seems miniature. Especially when I'm around, she looks so fragile. The smallest touch could break her. A gust of wind might blow her away. I guess that's part of the reason I always kept a little bit of distance between us. Sounds pretty fucking stupid in retrospect.
"I'm going to be late for practice…" It's a lame excuse, but the air is suddenly too thick, and I'm so used to avoiding these situations that running away seems like the best option right now.
I get halfway down the hall before she calls out to me. "Sasuke-kun!"
Her body is half turned away, but her face is still visible. A smile's on her lips. "I'll see you there." She flashes a peace sign and winks before heading down the hall. If I was the kind of person to express everything I felt, I probably would have done one of those things where I fist pump and jump into the air and click my heels. Or whatever. But I'm not that type of guy, so smiling's as far as I can go.
Step five - be open: check. And just maybe it'll get me somewhere.
(1) is a movie quote - care to tell me where it's from? (2) is almost a direct quote from skinny jeans. Go check it out now. I'm serious.
Wow. It's been a while, hasn't it? I actually quite liked this chapter when I first wrote it (three months ago) but now, editing it, I'm sort of just like blah. Sasuke's just kind of getting on my nerves, you know?
Anyway... why the sudden burst of writing? I mean, I did just publish a new story yesterday (Most Girls, which, by the way, I love) and an update so soon after? Well, dear reader, I'll tell you why. I was browsing the manga section in my local book store when I see the huge collection for all things Naruto. And I just got a lump in my throat and wanted to have someone to hold me while I cried. -pathetic- I just want to have Sasuke and Sakura together. Why is that not happening? -pathetic x2-
I hope to reach 100+ reviews before this story is over. With only four-ish chapters to go, will you please help me accomplish it?
PS. Go check out redlightmix. I mean it.
PPS. Go check out Most Girls as well (I admit, I'm a shameless self-promoter)
