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Author: Amaya
Editor: Aiko
Rating: Young Adult/Mature (see warnings below)
Characters/Pairing: [Deidara X Sakura H]; Akatsuki; Konoha 12
Themes:Drama, Romance, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship
Warnings: Strong language, possible sexual content/situations and underage drinking
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Chapter Ten | Hero Heroine
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Normal POV-8:28 AM Saturday July 27, 2013—Chamomile Court;
Haruno-Akasuna Residence
Lose the smile; toss your hair from side to side.
Ignore the bite of insecurities.
You are beautiful.
The short, rose quartz ringlets of her hair tangled around Sakura's fingers as she lifted them against her head, and she tilted her head just slightly to the left. She didn't smile this time around, instead opting to lower her lashes over the emeralds of her stare.
Gorgeous
Sakura turned to examine her side; she lifted her shirt above her belly to observe the natural curve of her thinning waist. It still didn't look right. Sakura sucked her breath in as far as possible, straightened her back into an uncomfortable rise, then smiled at how much thinner she had grown. That's what I'm looking for. She moved closer towards the mirror to observe whatever flaws marred her face—a scar beside her nose, her pores were visible—and the urge to cry made Sakura's heartbeat waver. God, she hated herself. A knock startled Sakura into a sudden jump, and she loped away from the mirror to open the door. Sasori was standing there with a bag slung over his shoulder and a curious expression about his face. "Hey, you okay," he asked.
Sakura offered a smile, "Yeah. I just…you know—hangover." In reality, she was beyond exhausted. She was going to fall to slumber where she stood at any given moment, she expected. Her knees were wobbly and pathetically weak, and her limbs felt as if asleep themselves, for they tingled when she moved. She should've stayed asleep, but after she woke up to puke again, she really couldn't find the ability to. She really hated that feeling.
Sasori nodded almost stiffly, as if still a bit suspicious but he didn't bother drag it on. "Anyway, grab your ice skates. We're going to the arena."
Sakura paused, thinking for some excuse out, but found she couldn't come up with an answer Sasori would accept—not like he'd take no for an answer anyway. So she pulled out that fake smile once again. "Alright! Let me go change. I'll meet you downstairs?" She closed the door on him before he could reply, then leant against the door almost as if relieved of his absence. She quickly shed her t-shirt and her sweats, pausing to look her body over the mirror, frowned, then searched her closet for something to wear. Remembering Ino's advice, she picked out a tank top that clung loosely to her body and a pair of jeans, then returned to the mirror again. She really hated her hips; they were so wide. And her thighs were too skinny—guys don't like thin thighs. She puffed out her chest desperately, but then retracted into a slouch as her stomach twisted and moaned.
She really hated to admit it, but she was starving. It's only ten pounds, she told herself, then I can eat again. Shaking her head, Sakura snagged her dusty pair of figure skates from the back of her closet, then slung them over her shoulder along with her hoodie, then moved out the stairs. She cursed in the middle of the stairs as fatigue and vertigo washed upon her, and she clutched the railing tightly as not to fall; day-after sickness really had her. After regaining herself, Sakura descended the stairs at a slower pace and put up that annoying smile for Sasori. He saw through it, of course, but didn't say anything.
Warmth swam over the expanse of Sakura's pale skin, sending shivers of pleasure throughout her entirety, but its intensity was more than hated as it reached her eyes. She all but cringed away with her hand above her eyes as she stepped out, and her headache seemed to increase tenfold in those quick moments of exposure. She moaned loudly, furious and pained in one sweeping sensation; Sasori nearly laughed at her expense. Sakura smiled and looked off into the sky with a soft expression. There was something about Sasori that made Sakura feel so lonely. He was an enigma even when he spoke his thoughts, and even after so many years of living together, Sakura wondered just how well she actually knew him. She respected him so much—loved him so much—and she looked up to him and his actions even when he did something stupid. But his eyes were always so full of—something—that made Sakura just a bit somber.
"You took those aspirin, right," Sasori suddenly inquired. Sakura nodded, a soft smile barely etching about her face. That's just so typical Sasori. For just a while into the morning pass, Sakura and Sasori shared some silence as they basked in the sunlight.
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Pinky Bruiser
Normal POV—1:14 PM Monday July 22, 2013—Ocean Avenue and Seaside;
The Boardwalk; Boomer's Music Store
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A percussion of gentle thimbles belted against the countertop in lethargic succession. A fan sitting just to the left hummed and hissed as it worked its set magic, forcing cold air over Deidara's reddened flesh and taunting his fringe to brush against his cheeks. His blue-gray eyes shifted over towards the guitar-shaped clock residing over his shoulder—one-nineteen PM—and he let out a crestfallen groan. He'd been there ever since seven-thirty, and should've been relieved twenty minutes ago but the bastard kid never showed up. He normally wouldn't have cared, but the hangover he nursed made it all the more difficult to stay awake. The bell above the door chimed once with some new entrance, and Deidara turned his stare towards the adolescent walking in with an almost hopeful expression, but that quickly dimmed away upon recognizing Hidan. Curiosity spread across the blonde's face as he took notice of the ice skates and the bag of gear tossed haphazardly over Hidan's shoulder, however. "Are you off yet, Goldilocks?" Hidan asked as he set his skates atop the counter.
"Does it look like I'm off yet? Dude's late so I'm stuck here until he shows up, yeah." Hidan gave a displeased grunt and leaned against the counter (much to Deidara's disapproval) and the blonde asked, "What are you doing here, anyway? Don't you have better things to do than bother me—like kicking a puppy or some shit?"
Ignoring Deidara's latter comment, Hidan rolled his eyes and gestured towards his gear with the nod of his head. "Go get your shit; we've got drills to run today. Pein says we're getting sloppy or some shit."
Deidara arched a brow to display his skepticism and incredulousness, and asked, "Seriously?"
"Seriously dude. Call your boy so we can get the fuck out of here, man. Tobi is waiting outside."
"Dad took away my truck."
"Obito let Tobi borrow the car."
Sighing (yet with an amused smirk), Deidara snatched his cellphone from his jacket pocket and punched the numbers of his coworker's contact. He glanced at Hidan as he silently counted the ringing tone then said, "I'll be out in ten."
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Pinky Bruiser
Normal POV—1:57 PM Monday July 22, 2013—Colma and Broadway;
Namikaze Ice
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The doors to the skating rink opened with a muted hiss. A cooling rush of air greedily assaulted Sakura's sweat-slickened flesh, forcing her skin to rise within the moment's wake. Sakura shivered delightfully at that exact moment, pausing only to adjust the skates slung over the summit of her bony shoulder. From beside her Sasori gave a strong exhale of pleasured breath and slipped past the portal of the outside world. She could hear people—not many, but some—laughing and yelling as gaily as a premature pup over the music that purred against the concrete. And the anomalous yet familiar scent of freshly paved ice manipulated the senses within Sakura's brain. The place was titanic in size—with five Olympic-sized rinks and a food court, and a restaurant hanging above the viewing deck; appreciation and arousal stirred within the pinkette as she took in the sights and scents of the arctic palace.
The cold did well for her undulating migraine, she quickly observed.
"Not bad," Sasori murmured after his initial glance around. He went to the ticket booths and paid for their time around with only the slightest of smiles in token to the teller-girl, then he went off towards the center rink's stands to lace his boots. His heart pumped wildly inside Sasori's chest as nostalgia flittered around him; the last time he touched the ice had been months (if not a year) before—the day he snapped his collarbone in a bout against South Suna High. Skating was his passion, his mistress in all truth; he loved it so much that there were times he wouldn't leave the ice.
And Sakura loved it for her own reasons, as well.
She loved the way it felt to float. She liked to glide, to hover—to soar above and beyond in her own little Neverland. When she skated, Sakura would let the cruelties of the world melt into the crystals of her imagination, and she'd harness the intensity of her emotions and embody it in how she moved. She wasn't a professional or even taught how to skate, but the beauty of it was her spontaneity. No one could ever skate the way she did, because it wasn't something that could be mimicked. It wasn't a professional entity.
"Do you even remember how to skate," Sakura teased as she let her boot press against the rubber ground. "I mean, it's been so long; I bet you'll fall." Sasori's ocher eyes flickered over towards the pinkette's form, burnishing with amusement as he caught the puckish snicker behind her words.
He offered her a taunting smirk as he playfully pushed her away. "Think you can keep up?"
"I've always been the faster one."
"Not today, with that hangover."
The duo shared a snicker as they took to the ice; it took a moment or two to regain balance but it was mostly second nature to them now. They evaded center ice where the twirl-girls and the graying veterans took their spotlights, instead opting to lap the rink and share arbitrary stories that may or may not have had a true motive. For a moment, there weren't any snot-nosed brats racing for fastest mark or couples passing affection, or even stragglers clinging to the walls of the rink. There was only Sasori and Sakura—siblings on a good day. And when Sasori noticed her body jerk and tumble with the influence of an uneven gap in the ice, he laughed a laugh that was almost unusual for Sakura to hear. It was heartfelt and sincere, never dithering with the stares thrown their way. "You're such a klutz," he teased as he pulled her to her feet, only to flail his arms as she disrupted his balance with her abrupt draw against him. Sasori caught himself then turned to snap, but smirked when he noticed the impish gleam in her eye as she skated away.
He chased after her, moving so quickly that heads turned to watch them (he was sure a safety guard told them to slow down), but just as he caught her, Sakura dug her toe-stops into the ice to stop abruptly then traveled backwards. Sasori jumped and twisted, shaved ice flying as he moved into a snowplow stop, then followed after her. They maneuvered so easily amongst the throng of skaters, twisting and weaving, not even once stumbling or floundering with inelegance—playing tag as if to mock the world of their talent!
How beautiful a sight!
Sakura stumbled again when some kid wandered a bit too close, and Sasori snickered as she fell against the glassed barrier. "That's what you get," he told her, watching as Sakura shakily stood back up. She mumbled something that Sasori couldn't exactly catch because he wasn't even paying attention to her. Instead, Sasori was watching the clan of adolescents sitting along the rising stands. He recognized a vast amount of them from the warehouse some odd days ago—the blonde fucker and his punk-ass friend. They were looking right at them, no doubt gossiping or whatever it was they thought they did. They weren't very secretive about it, really, but it didn't matter to Sasori. He just wanted to get them away from his sister.
"Hey! Hey Sakura! Sasori! Over here!"
The siblings turned on their skates to glance over towards the stands for he who had spoken; Sasori spotted the blonde first and pointed him out as said blonde went on talking shit over the prattle of surrounding skaters. "Oh, its just Naruto," he dryly commented.
Sakura's head went on the swivel at Sasori's lexis (oh, how her head throbbed) and she quickly loped across the ice to meet up with the awaiting teens gathering before the barriers. "What are you guys doing here," she asked as she left the ice. Hinata steadied her when she noticed the inequity behind Sakura's step, then led her towards the bleachers to take a rest.
"We were worried about you from last night," Kiba replied as he took his seat. "Sasori told me he'd keep me posted about you, and invited us over to chill."
Sakura looked over at Sasori almost incredulously. "Aww really," she purred, and Sasori brushed aside her awe with a somewhat pink dust against his nose—he blamed it on the cold, of course. She laughed half-heartedly at Sasor's reaction and blew off his faux-indifference when she noticed Hinata's soft mumblings from just a paw away. "You're really good. I don't think I can ice skate," Hinata commented. Sakura smiled at the timid complement and rested her back against Naruto's knees as she attempted to steady the trembling of her heartbeat and her breath.
"Thanks," she replied, "When I was little, I wanted to try being a figure skater but I never really learned more than basics. Sasori taught me everything I know." Then she set her hand on Hinata's shoulder. "Come out on the ice with me, guys. It'll be fun. Please?" It really wasn't that difficult to convince the three of them to join her, Kiba being the exception. He was just a mule when it came to his obstinacy—it was almost as difficult as convincing Sasori to do just about anything.
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Pinky Bruiser
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Pein's smoky eyes swept over every wash of color that splattered against the ice. Shades of blue and green, a few tones of red, even purple danced across his field of view; but it was a tasteful combination he supposed.
It wasn't even the skaters he was watching actually, but the skaters.
"Is that him," Itachi asked as he nodded his head into Sasori's approximate direction. The redhead was with his sister and the others of their ill-omened past, skating with such fervor and casualty that it seemed almost unreal, almost as if he wasn't even skating at all but walking. It was fascinating just how comfortable Sasori seemed amongst the icy chill of the large arena, but more so when Pein caught the loving glint behind the man's stare. He was always watching his sister, always helping her up when she fell, always had something to say when she opened her mouth—it was almost weird at first.
"Yeah, that's him," Pein replied after a moment. "That's the one who fucked Deidara up."
A weird smirk came from Deidara; it sounded almost like a choke and a laugh in one noise. He looked up as he laced his boots, his expression almost annoyed at Pein's words. "He sucker-punched me," then he sat up fully and picked up his hockey stick. "I swear, him and his little sister are everywhere I go, yeah. Can't we kick them out?"
"No," Madara returned. "But they need to know the order of things around here."
Kisame chortled loudly from behind them, and started the descent down the steps of the bleachers with Hidan directly behind him. "Let's get on it then! "
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Pinky Bruiser
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"Sasori…"
The redhead directed his attention towards Sakura with his curiosity present in his arched brow. Her voice was low and almost tremulous, and her expression was full of apprehension. He followed her gaze with his full body then tensed as he noticed the teens stepping onto the ice. From behind him, Kiba set his hand atop his shoulder as if to keep him back. "Why are they following us," Sasori questioned no one in particular, his stare hardening as the boys made loud cheers upon circling the rink. "Why the fuck are they following us?"
Deidara skated by at intense speeds, nearly knocking Naruto over with his hockey stick, while Hidan all but collided with Hinata. Oh how Sakura wanted to slam him into the glass barrier. Pein and Madara came by at a leisurely pace, throwing the group a look that clearly meant for them to leave, but Sasori had none of it as he approached them. Madara moved in front of Pein and lifted his palms in a gesture of sarcastic greeting. "Oh Sasori! What a surprise!"
"Why are you harassing me and my sister?" Sasori immediately demanded. "Why are you following us?"
"We're not following you," Pein insisted. "Today happened to be a coincidence."
"Like at the skate park the other day?" Pein's own stare hardened and he pushed himself against Sasori in a threatening manner, daring him to raise his voice again. Sasori scoffed and pushed Pein back. "Are you trying to scare me? I've dealt with much, worse than you."
Madara stepped in then, noticing that Pein seemed to toss aside all intentions of chat. "We're not trying to do anything," he assured. "Konoha is a small town. We're bound to run into each other, especially when you're at our practice spot."
"Practice spot?"
"Konoha Central Varsity," Hidan yelled out whilst pounding his fist into his chest.
Sasori made a face and snorted. "You're the varsity team." Then he turned away to lead Sakura off the ice. "At least I know not to sign up, then."
"As if you'd have a chance," Deidara taunted.
At that, Sakura whipped around, her expression one of absolute resentment. "For your information, Sasori was the top enforcer to Suna High's varsity team, you ass-wipe! He was lead enforcer in South Suna High's varsity team, and MVP two seasons in a row. His assist completion rate is eight out of ten, and he's one of the best puck-handlers in the region. You'd be lucky to have him on your shit team. Look him up—Akasuna no Sasori, the Puppet Master." She hadn't meant to call him names—the insult came out all on its own. But since she said it, she couldn't let them have an edge on her, just like Kiba told her. From behind her, Sasori had a severely pleased simper about his face, and he tried hiding it with his hand. Naruto on the other hand, laughed whole heartedly.
Deidara did in fact seemed shocked, either at the information or Sakura's outburst, or maybe even both, for he didn't bother to say anything or even make a face. Feeding off the approving snickers from Kiba and Naruto, and even Sasori, Sakura crossed her arms over her chest and skated past Deidara, making sure to bump into his shoulder along the way. Naruto and Kiba mocked the hockey team with girly-like waves and sardonic laughter, while Sasori only basked in the awe with his shoulders squared and hands in his pockets. Sakura didn't really catch what it was any of those boys said after that because she was just too mortified to comprehend a single thought, but she didn't have much time to ponder as Sasori led her off the ice without so much as a tittering goodbye.
As Sakura stepped off the ice, Sasori gently smacked her shoulder. "You really know how to run your mouth," he commented, but put an arm around her in a half-hearted attempt at a hug. It was the best he could do. "Thanks for having my back, though."
"Of course," Sakura replied. "You've always got mine. It's about time I get yours." She tried really hard to stop herself from looking back at Deidara—it was just so difficult; his eyes were just so alluring.
He was looking back at her, too.
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Pinky Bruiser
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Deidara forced himself to look away from Sakura as she caught his stare, and he forged an expression of annoyance to keep Hidan from running his mouth. Knowing that asshole, he would have laughed and mocked him, should he have seen the flustered way Deidara gazed across the ice or how a smile had crept onto his face. That would have been humiliating.
"Do you think all that is just talk," Itachi asked as he approached.
To Deidara's left, Pein made a sound that conveyed uncertainty as he crossed his arms about his chest. "I doubt it. His skates are professionally padded and all those scuffs—they've been through some intense drilling."
"If he really is this big enforcer, you can't afford to pass him up," Madara mumbled. "You guys need him on the team."
Deidara scoffed incredulously. "We don't need him for anything, yeah. He's not going to join. He said so, himself."
Kakuzu skated towards them, shaved ice spewing over Deidara's legs with his plow-stop. "He's going to join," he declared. "A guy like him won't stay away for too long. He's passionate. So I think you should keep your mouth shut before he swells it up again." Deidara's cheeks burnished with mortification as his friends shared a snicker, and he self-consciously rolled his lip ring between his fingers as he pushed aside the memory of the occurring night. He looked off towards the boardwalls again, but this time to watch the snippet of pink disappear out the door. She moved the way raindrops fell against a window—erratically, smoothly, haphazardly, yet somewhat controlled all throughout. And there was something mesmerizing about her smile—something that he couldn't quite figure out.
He wanted to see that smile up close.
"So what do we do," Zetsu inquired. "He hates Deidara. He basically told the two of you to fuck off, and after the shit Aya pulled the other night I don't think he's going to be willing to talk to any of us."
"What did Aya do now," Pein questioned, quickly whirling around to give Deidara a look. The blonde physically waved his hand to dismiss the subject, his nose scrunched up and a crease forming between his brows. Shaking his head, Pein sighed. "Whatever. The drama needs to stop."
"How," Zetsu asked again.
"Through his sister."
I'm so happy to upload a third chapter
within the same 24-hours.
I decided to change around Sasori and his relationship
with the Akatsuki, rather than
have him accept their apology right away. It makes it more interesting.
Anyway, I just want to spend a moment thanking
everyone who has reviewed and messaged us. Aiko and I
really appreciate it.
Thank you!