Author's Note: I'm so, so sorry for not updating yesterday! I didn't anticipate getting sick, so naturally, contemplating sitting down and writing something cohesive and worthy of your time was not on the top of my priorities. Sickness aside, here I am with the promised chapter! Thank you all for your reviews. They inspire me. All the ensuing fluff is for you!


Melt the Mistletoe


Seven: Gift

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Characters: Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura

Categories: Romance

Rating: K


Sakura awoke to the piercing shrill of her phone ringing. Not entirely the most pleasant way to brave the bitter chill of the morning, and it showed in the extreme curl of displeasure that twisted across her cracked lips. Never the less, Sakura shoved the doona from her warm body, shivering as the cold air seeped into her bones through her pyjamas. Whoever was calling so bloody early had better be bleeding to death or near-comatose, or she would climb through the land-line and make them that way herself.

Shuffling into her fluffy bear slippers, the pinkette made her way down the hallway of her apartment, tugging on her warmest night-robe in the process and sniffling against the frigid air that was currently launching its assault against her senses. In some ways, she really hated the festive season. The snow was great to look at behind a glass wall, but having to endure its mushy chill was more than she could handle on most days.

She had never liked the cold. It was a blatant reminder of the feelings that had taken up residence within her after a certain raven haired Uchiha had effectively defected from her life as she knew it, and as much as she claimed she had moved past it, there were times when the winter wonderland around them served as a niggling reminder of her depression. But these were feelings that only surfaced when she was amidst one of her black moods; it was safe to say that she was pessimistic, but not outright cynical, at this time. Given her untimely awakening, it was to be expected.

Almost stomping when the pitch of her phone's ringing breached an all new decibel, Sakura all but ripped the infernal device from its strategic placement on the wall by her fridge, about to rip a new one out of her thoughtless caller, when a deep, resonant voice crackled through the fragile line between them.

''Sakura.'' She stiffened at the sound of her name from that all too familiar mouth, but the smile that broke across her face brightened her terrible mood instantaneously. He always had this effect on her.

''Sasuke-kun! How are you? Is anything the matter?'' Sakura exclaimed chirpily, her green eyes dancing at the unexpected surprise. Talk about a wake-up call. Sasuke had left on his travels once again, having stopped in to check in on her while he was in the area. He was a thoughtful boyfriend, worrying about her state of health and general wellbeing constantly while he was absent from her life.

Monitoring her aside, he derived a genuine amount of pleasure out of seeing her face light up like a newly lit Christmas tree whenever he strode back through their village's gates. It made the many months away from her side bearable, for as much as he needed closure, he also missed her and the rest of their team greatly.

Not that he would ever admit that to the males of their impromptu family.

No way in hell.

Sakura gnawed on her bottom lip, listening intently as Sasuke responded with a curt ''Nothing really. I just wanted to hear your voice.'' Inner Sakura swooned at the gentle tenor of his voice as it echoed through the headset, and if she knew any better, Sakura swore she could feel his embarrassed blush carrying through the land-line as well.

It was hard to gauge from his voice alone, but Sakura had come to know his gestures and habitual mannerisms very well in the past eighteen months that he had been courting her for. When he was feeling a little shy, his cheeks would become tinged with a light dusting of pink, and he would avert his gaze elsewhere, as if the movement would take away the sting of his humiliation.

Naturally every sweet nothing that he gave her was sincere and from the heart, but his head was still catching up with the rest of his changed aspects, and thus he was prone to becoming awkward when he was attempting to woo her.

Sakura found it incredibly endearing, and she grew more and more besotted with his natural charisma with every waking moment that passed her by. She couldn't have loved anyone more than she loved him, and as she flopped down onto her couch, burying her smile within the soft folds of the cushions that lay discarded up on it, she couldn't have believed it more.

His scent lingered there, slowly fading in the wake of his weeks of absence, but Sakura did not let it bother her too much. He would return long before his groove on her couch had shifted under her weight, and that thought alone motivated her more than anything else in the world.

''What have you been doing lately, Sasuke-kun? Been anywhere interesting?'' Sakura questioned with great interest, doing her best to extend their time together by whatever means she could. As much as she loved his fables and witty recollections of battles and quaint little towns that had yet to be mapped out in their official data logs, all Sakura really cared about was hearing his voice, soothing and quiet and oh so beautiful to her ears.

''I arrived in a small village outside of Hoshigakure last night. The innkeeper was kind enough to give me a room, free of charge, in exchange for my services around the place. Apparently there are nukenin too stubborn to return to their villages causing trouble for him, so I was about to head out and scout the area for their whereabouts.'' Sasuke explained tersely, tone carefully bereft of inflection as he went into the nitty-gritty of his recent travels.

Apparently the snowfall had not touched the land leading through to Hoshi, and so the weather was pleasant enough that he could don his usual ninja garb. Sakura smiled at that. She knew Sasuke could weather most situations without so much as a sound resembling complaining, but she was also aware that he liked feeling free to fight should the need arise. Heavy winter attire did not help in overcoming the enemy, after all.

''I took the opportunity to call you before I leave, since I don't know when I'll be able to gain access to a phone after today.'' It was as clear as day that Sasuke was going to dispatch of the nukenin and then head off to his next destination. A bitter pang tugged at Sakura's heart, but she swallowed it with a smile that was almost crestfallen at the idea of not hearing his voice for a while.

He has more important things to do than just humour my need to hear from him, she thought with a derisive sneer. I should feel blessed that he takes the time at all just to drop by when he's in town.

But even though Sakura believed with all of her heart that she was satisfied with just having him in her life, sometimes the nagging voice in the recesses of her mind would dispute her contentment with a sudden wave of sadness. She missed him terribly, and all the selflessness in her heart could not squash the selfishness that lingered there. She wanted him by her side always.

Logic be damned, she wanted him here, in her living room, lounging on the couch and playing with the ends of her hair while they watched television.

She saw him everywhere she went. He had made an inextricable niche in her comfortable little world, and now her whole universe revolved around his presence. Without him in it, suddenly her world was a little smaller, and a hell of a lot darker.

Sakura shook away her fanciful musings with a pinch to her thigh. There was nothing to gain from her moping over his absence. After all, what mattered most at the end of the day was that he would always come back to her in the end. Always, and without fail.

''...kura? Sakura, are you still there?'' Sasuke's voice was still quiet, but tinged with anxiety. She had been awfully silent for a while now, and perhaps, he thought with an unpleasant start, she was hurt in some way.

Before he could become unhinged with worry, however, Sakura perked up, smiling softly at the open concern lacing his tone as she replied without a shred of her inner turmoil touching her voice.

''Yeah, Sasuke-kun, I'm still here. No need to worry.''

A relieved sigh sounded almost imperceptibly on the other end of the line, and Sakura's heart swelled with love at the sound. He really was too sweet for his own good, even if it was over little things like this. Of course, she was the only one that ever saw this affectionate side of him, which only furthered her feelings for him. No one would ever know the depths of Uchiha Sasuke's love until they were the recipient of it.

''That's good.'' Sasuke stated simply, but there was an underlying emphasis on those two words that had butterflies churning in Sakura's stomach.

''Well, I should probably let you go now...'' Sasuke trailed off, an apologetic nuance to his resonant baritone as he drew to a close their much too short interaction.

Sakura felt a tug deep in her gut, dispelling the butterflies and replacing them with lead. Go figures that she had wasted the precious time on the phone with him lost in thought. She berated herself, digging her fingers into her upper arm until she was sure that angry crescent moons would be left there to bruise starkly against her soft pallor.

Idiot! Moron! Retard!

''Ah, sure, Sasuke-kun. I'll let you go kick some rogue shinobi ass.'' She laughed a little, the sound hollow and lacking the usual verdant cheer that was so implicit in her everyday laughter. Sasuke was as observant as ever, picking up on it without really registering that he had done so to begin with. He had come to know her too well this last year and a half, better than he had ever known anyone, and unease prickled unpleasantly beneath his skin.

He never liked making her unhappy. If he could avoid it, he would never leave her side. But the ever-present darkness inside of his heart would sneak up on him without warning, and then his desire to move on, to explore the world he had helped to rebuild alongside Naruto, would resurface with a vengeance. It was in his blood now. He could not deny its calling.

''Get some sleep, Sakura. I'm sorry I woke you so early.''

''Don't apologise, Sasuke-kun! You're the only person in the world that I would ever ditch sleep for!'' Sakura exclaimed fervently, the spark back in her voice once more. Sasuke smiled. He really couldn't be more smitten with her than he was in that moment.

Sakura inhaled, readying herself for his goodbye. She would hear from him again through messenger summons every now and again, which would fill the hole in her aching heart for a time.

''I'll get in touch with you soon, Sakura.'' Sasuke said, tone gentle.

Matching the placid expression on his face, no doubt, Sakura thought with a genuine smile.

''Yeah, I know, Sasuke-kun. Take care of yourself, okay?'' Sakura murmurmed softly, resting her cheek on her left forearm, which was crossed over the top of one of the colourful cushions that adorned the couch so vibrantly.

''Hn.'' Sasuke returned just as softly, before he paused, as if in thought. It was silent for a while, before Sakura sucked up the courage to bid him adieu. She opened her mouth, intending to say goodbye, but Sasuke beat her to the punch with something that she had never, in her life, anticipated to come from his mouth.

''Rest well, Sakura. I love you.''

Sakura's mouth fell open, flabbergasted from his sudden and sincere confession. They were the three words that every girl dreamed of hearing from their lover, and the pink haired medic was finding it hard to believe that he had just said them with such casual ease that for a moment she honestly believed that she had misheard him.

But before she had the chance to respond to his last words, the line went dead. Go figure that he would hang up before his embarrassment could be registered by the furiously blushing pinkette.

Sakura blinked; once, twice, before she rolled onto her back, pillow clenched in a vice grip as she squealed into it with as much volume as her excited lungs could bear to muster.


*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*


Sakura felt his chakra signal long before he had sidled up to her doorway. It had been six months since she had last seen him up close, and her heart was pounding behind her ribcage with enough force to shatter through the hard bone. He had kept in contact with her, infrequently for her own torture, through letters alone, and she was desperate to hear that wonderful voice of his once more.

She wanted to see him desperately; fold him up in her arms and never let him go again. Sakura bolted down the stairs of her apartment, hitting ground level with a loud 'thump!' from the force of her landing. Without pausing for breath, the pinkette darted towards the rattling doorknob, which unlocked with a definitive 'click!'

And on the other side of that wooden barricade stood her handsome Uchiha lover, decked in thick winter garb and clutching the spare key to her apartment in his gloved hand. His dark eyes were as expressive as always, but she didn't have the chance to look for very long, because she had all but barrelled into his arms, lithe legs wrapped firmly around his waist as she pressed an anxious kiss to his open mouth; which had apparently fallen open in surprise at her impulsive embrace.

He didn't seem to mind her overzealous attack, however, for he merely smiled against her lips, tilting his head to the side so he could receive her frantic kisses with fervent ones of his own. Sakura's stomach dropped into her womb when Sasuke's large hands came to rest upon her bottom, holding her closer and supporting her weight as she wrapped her hands around his neck and played with the ends of his spiky hair.

It had grown longer, and under the weight of it, gravity had decided to do its job, leaving it a little flatter than it usually was. Sakura didn't mind it in the least bit, toying with the soft locks whilst she made short work of getting them both flustered.

Pulling apart for air, Sakura gazed down at him, cheeks heavily flushed under his hooded gaze as she smiled a little shyly at his amused expression.

''Hi.'' Sakura stated dumbly, the coyness lost in favour of embarrassment as she pressed her forehead against his. Sasuke chuckled, the sound warm and sending pleasant shivers down her spine.

''Hi.'' He replied brusquely, his mirth clear in the sparkling obsidian of his irises as he looked up at her with a quirked eyebrow and lips that trembled with a smile.

Sakura bit her slightly puffy lip at the sight of his sweet expression. He was dangerous to her heart, without a doubt. Sasuke shifted her weight in his arms, readjusting his hold on her rear before he stepped in through the threshold of her apartment, kicking the door to a close behind him.

''I missed you.'' Sakura continued, her earlier zest expressed through shy glances from beneath softly fluttering eyelids.

Sasuke hummed in acquiesance, sooty eyelashes brushing against the hollows of his cheeks as he levelled her with a stare so intense that Sakura began to squirm against him. He smirked then, one hand scooping her up against his torso whilst the remaining one―the one made of flesh, bone and warmth―came up to brush the stray strands of hair from Sakura's flushed cheeks.

''I missed you too.''

It was simple, but the words filled her to the very brim with an ocean of love that could not be expressed through words alone, so Sakura merely buried her face in his neck, pressing a kiss against the sweet spot behind his ear and winding her fingers through his hair in the process.

And they were content, in that moment of pure decadence, to remain like that―in each others arms, feeding off of each other's warmth and becoming reacquainted with the feelings that had yet to be expressed.

''Ne, Sasuke-kun?''

''Hm?''

''I love you too.''


*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*


Ending Remarks: I JUST ADORE SASUKE-KUN SO MUCH, AND HIM SAYING I LOVE YOU IS THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY EXISTENCE AS I KNOW IT― /loud flailing/

I hope it was worth the wait guys! Please leave a review! I would definitely love to hear from you all. (:

Until tomorrow!

-x-R i n-x-