Neighbours

"Sasuke, is something the matter?"

He looked pretty bad... even for Sasuke. The circles beneath his eyes had darkened probably due to the lack of sleep. His skin was pale and moist due to the sweat drops on his forehead.

Raising a bare hand to his forehead, Sakura discovered he had a fever.

"Oh no..." Sakura breathed, worry etched into her features.

He supported himself against the trimming of her door and grunted, "I'm sick."

Sakura bit her inner cheek. "I can see that. You need to lie down right now."

Without warning, the Uchiha promptly intruded in on the rosette's space as she stepped back in surprise. He trudged to her couch and plopped down loosely like a rag doll.

Sakura huffed, "I meant your own house!"

He shielded the light from his eyes with his arm and muttered, "It's too cold and damp down there."

"But you're going to infect my couch!" She inched toward the boy slowly as his body stilled into rest, "…Sasuke?"

The quiet lingered and finally, Sasuke's raspy voice made it to her ears, "You're my nurse, aren't you? You need to take care of me."

"I'll take care of you as soon as you park your butt in your own bed. Come on, I'll help you up."

He groaned and batted her hand away. "I'm too tired."

Sakura was confused at the childish behaviour Sasuke was exhibiting. The classic man-cold made men into babies, it would seem. Regardless, Sakura was completely flabbergasted. Sasuke Uchiha went to her so she could heal him. She cursed beneath her breath. One time was enough. She could handle that. When his pipes burst over a week ago he had gone to her because he had to. There was nowhere else he could go for help. And in her mindset as a twelve year old, she was so sure Sasuke would rather get sit his illness out in the darkness of his own home rather than go to her. She knew that for a fact. And yet…

A slight groan of discomfort left this parted lips.

Sure, maybe it was because she was actually a nurse and that he kind of maybe …trusted her. But wasn't she just an annoyance to him, as he always told her in their youth?

"Are you too sick to move, too?" Sakura smiled wryly.

Sasuke nodded sternly.

"Alright," Clasping her hands together, Sakura innocently announced, "let's get you to a hospital then."

His eyes widened.

"And if you can't walk anymore, I'll just have to call Naruto over to help carry you..."

His voice came out sharply. "Hn. I'm not that sick. I don't need the dobe."

"But sick enough that you can't move two metres to your apartment downstairs?"

If Sakura was looking correctly, she could see that Sasuke had a slight smirk on his face.

Stance wide, hands setting on the bones of her hips, Sakura sighed, "You have got to be kidding me."

He was taking this patient business a little too seriously. Knowing that he wouldn't budge, Sakura dropped her hands to her sides and sighed in defeat, "Fine. But you owe me one, Uchiha."

Sakura took a seat at the edge of her coffee table and began feeling his pulses.

"You're really burning up, you know? How did you get so sick?"

The terrible, terrible aching in his limbs had him groaning again as she palpated his muscles.

"Naruto... that dobe wanted to go for a drunk, late night run in the rain."

"And all the drinking probably didn't help either." Sakura suddenly felt sympathy for the Uchiha. Taking in the account of the last few weeks, Sakura knew it wasn't entirely his fault that he fell ill, "It's my fault too. I shouldn't have let you drink even when you weren't completely healed. I'm sorry."

His eyes were still shielded by his forearm, "It's fine." Sasuke bit out. "I just told you it was the dobe. Not you."

Sakura dropped his limb a little too abruptly. She stood up and felt Sasuke's eyes on her back as she retreated to her room to grab a blanket for him.

"I'll be right back."

He sure was acting strange. Though Sasuke was still rude and straightforward, and very condescending there was something about his attitude that was, dare she say it, playful? No, that wasn't the word. Open? Jesting?

Nonetheless, it was like he was humouring himself.

What gave way to this behaviour? What was putting him in such a mood despite him being as sick as he is?

Sakura thought back to Rokbar last night. After she showed up at his table two beers in hand, one hip dropped as if she was a force not to reckon with, Sakura slid into the seat in front of Sasuke and threw a look to dispel the wall of fan-girls.

They had talked about something. And since when did Sasuke agree to something like late night, drunk running in the rain…?

How much of a delightful mood was he in anyway?

She felt the warm soft covers in her closet on the top shelf. Dragging the sheets off and catching them as they fell, her mind retraced back to last night.

She had been pretty tipsy so the topic at hand was pretty hazy. Sakura focused, hugging the covers to her chest.

"…I'm not so sure if he's right for me."

The rosette's mind started to play the scene like an old VHS tape.

"…Ryuu's nice but…"

"…I'm not feeling it, know what I mean?"

As Sakura probed her memories further, she remembered the Uchiha simply finishing his drink, slamming the bottle on the counter and announcing, "Good. Leave him."

So now she was standing in her living room, watching the Uchiha nestling deeper into her couch. She approached him and unfolded the blanket over him. He seemed to relax upon the gesture.

Sakura smiled to herself, knowing that she warmed the blanket against her body before covering him with it. She was always willing to help others in need; it was a natural instinct for her. She was a healer. And Sasuke, being deprived of care for so long, really made an impact on her as she watched him visibly clutch the blanket and pull it closer to his body.

Sakura ventured over to her cabinet and pulled out a basket of medications. Fishing out an anti-pyretic and a pain killer, Sakura filled a glass of water and left them on the coffee table.

"Sasuke," Sakura whispered, "Are you awake?"

He grunted, an annoyed sound of being disturbed from rest.

"Sit up for a second, Sasuke. I have medication for you to take to feel better."

Sasuke rose slowly, bones protesting in bursts of aches. Sakura watched incredulously, eye brows rising over shining jade eyes.

He snatched the pills from her hand and dry swallowed the pills without taking the water from her other hand. Automatically he was back in his original position, resting on his back with an arm over his eyes.

She would make rice porridge for him. Mom's special recipe. Sakura reached behind her head and pulled her strands into a high messy ponytail.

Knowing that she wouldn't be able to make it for the shopping date with Ino, Tenten and, Hinata, Sakura shrugged her shoulders and began pouring water and rice into a pot.

As the steam rose to meet her face, Sakura basked in the warmth and thought to herself. How funny was it that Sasuke was now willingly turning to her? Had she proved herself as a person or somebody worth while for him to now associate with her? Naruto had his strength, Kakashi had been his mentor but Sakura always found herself assimilating with the rest of the villagers despite being a part of team seven. No, it wasn't fair that he picked and chose where he put her in his life even though she had been such a detrimental part in his young past.

Sakura sighed. But she knew that her feelings toward him had only been fueled by a childish crush. Years now, she did still see him as the same handsome person but she knew to accept that Sasuke was always going to be good looking. She could still look, right?

Soon, the ingredients started to blend. The rice was soft and she had two eggs boiling on the burner next to the pot. She chopped the parsley slowly to not wake him in the next room and soaked the bean sprouts.

A dash of salt and pepper it was almost ready.

Sakura was pretty. She knew she wasn't breathtakingly gorgeous like all the drunk men had told her but there was something unique about her look that drew her attention. But now that she imagined it, the shadow of a partner beside Sasuke began to look less and less like her. She prayed that even though every look he gave her made her heart stop, she would be able to be there supporting him through his future choice in a wife. She knew that woman would be very pretty and poise.

Someone like Sakura, abrupt and hot-headed, would not match Sasuke's tastes. She was bright and obnoxiously pink while he was dark, calm and cool.

The rosette grabbed a face towel and dipped it in a bowl of cold water. When she returned to his side, he seemed to be asleep but his face was molded from pain and discomfort, the sweat rolled off his forehead. She clicked her tongue in disapproval and made a mental note to go kick Naruto in the shin the next time she saw him.

She rung the towel and took a seat next to him on her couch. Her hand reached out to move the midnight strands off his forehead but she paused for a moment, willing herself to concentrate on acting like his nurse and not his lover. She wasn't trying to be affectionate but it was hard caring for a person that was ill especially when that person was an ex-love. Her porcelain features softened.

Sakura willed her fingers to be stern as she brushed the strands off.

Placing the towel upon his forehead, Sasuke let out a long exasperated sigh.

She looked on carefully, thinking about what else she could do to help the pain as she noticed the sinewy marks in arms from clutching the covers tightly.

"Sasuke, can I borrow your hand please?" Twelve year old Sakura would have snatched his hand without warning, winning her a glare from the Uchiha and a blunt remark, but this time she was considerate, "I'm going to use some chakra therapy. Take a deep breath."

She heard the air flow into him as he inhaled. Focusing, Sakura placed her hand on his when a green glow started to seep into his skin.

"Agh." Sasuke hissed, "That feels—"

"Don't be alarmed," Sakura coaxed, "you'll feel a cooling sensation and this will help with the muscle and bone aching."

Sakura concentrated a little bit more, her eyebrows knitted together. "I agreed to be your nurse. I didn't say I'd be gentle." She rubbed the skin on his forearm, pressing into the muscle in a light massage.

"Now, how does that feel?"

He visibly relaxed, letting out another soft sigh that had her redirecting her stare to her toes to withstand the temptation of looking to his face.

She wasn't expecting him to say that it felt good, even though she knew it did. He did, however, send her a slight nod to indicate the pain alleviating.

"Good," Sakura breathed. Leaning to whisper into his ear, the hot air of her breath drifted passed the skin of his cheek. "I'll be back with some porridge."

"I'm not hungry," Came the reply.

"Well, you have to eat something." She stood up and began to walk to the kitchen where the hot porridge was simmering over low heat, when she felt a hand tug stiffly at the hem of her sweater.

In that moment she froze, eyes forward, bright and unexpected. Sasuke had stopped her from moving forward and she spun around and saw him trying to sit up.

"Sakura," His voice made her name sound flawless. The raspy-ness of the sound had her heart palpitating. The sickness, if it was possible, had him sounding sexier. That baritone voice shook her from the inside out, reverberating in her ears.

I hate it when he does that.

"What is it?" She tried her best to sound indifferent but it was difficult when her body shook from nerves.

He was sitting up, one arm propped on her armrest; his hair strategically framed his face as obsidian dark eyes peered out to meet hers.

"Why are you like that?" The vibrating voice met her ears again.

She was about to respond with, "Like what?" When the smarter part of her brain took over she said calmly: "Elaborate, please."

Sasuke's face was still and unreadable as always. "You're…"

He blinked at her. As the sunlight started to break through the grey clouds and pour into her living room, her skin suddenly glowed, as her jade eyes shimmered.

The way she spoke to him. The way she walked. They way she looked at him. It was all different.

She arched an eyebrow anticipating his next words. Standing slender in a pair of cotton shorts, an ACDC loose T and a beige sweater, Sakura adjusted her body posture, waiting expectantly.

He blinked again as the sun blurred his vision.

"…annoying."

He collapsed back into the couch as Sakura blinked back into the present. "I'm so flattered," Sakura spat sarcastically. "If it's anyone who's annoying…" her voice started to fade as she found her way to her kitchen.

"...like a guy who shows up at my door and demands to be cared for. Hmph."

The rosette returned with a bowl of steaming rice porridge and sat next to him. "Now, eat up before I make you."

Sasuke rose a dark eyebrow. He smirked, with only one side of his smile rising. Eyes narrowing, Sakura heard a low growl manifesting from his chest.

"How are you going to make me?"

There were flowers on her desk again. Tulips to be exact. In one swift motion Sakura threw the bouquet into the trash can. The corresponding card sat flatly on her mahogany desk and she picked it and brought it briefly to her attention:

Hey. I had a great time at the movies. That zombie movie was kickass. How about we plan something a little bit more special? Dinner by the docks tonight? I heard the fireflies are brightest by the water

–Ryuu

Sakura ripped the card up and scattered the pieces into the trash can. Sakura tried her best to control her tempter. He was an ANBU member and he couldn't even remember which girl he took to the zombie movie? Sakura was suffering in rage. At LEAST. In the very LEAST he could have taken her to see zombies. But no, he had to take the damn movie deal and make her watch the fucking swan movie.

When she threw open the door, she told the receptionist, "Please let my admirer know that I will meet him at the docks tonight."

She couldn't stop the sneer forming on her face when Kiara dialed him in.

Sakura was going to break it off with Ryuu tonight and was completely not sorry if she accidently punched him out.

The high pitched ding of the elevator awoken her from her thoughts and she stepped in unexpectedly into Lee's presence.

He gasped dramatically, "Sakura! The beautiful flower of Konoha! How are you doing on this fine day?"

Sakura smiled sweetly at Lee and responded, lowly, "I've been well. And you, Lee?"

Just my luck.

Now, Lee was intuitive and he caught the frown that appeared on her face quickly, "I see the petals withering. Is there something the matter?"

Sakura shook her head, shimmering pink strands shaking from the gesture. "I just don't feel well today, Lee."

When the elevator opened, Sakura stepped out into the lobby while Lee followed her stubbornly.

"I must help!" He announced, "Would you like some soup to help you feel better?"

She really tried hard to hide her emotions. But that was something she was never really good at.

"I'm not that kind of sick, Lee." The look of sadness made it to her eyes again, "Plus, I'm a nurse. I can take care of myself. I'll see you later?"

"Ah, yes." Lee straightened up, "If you need some company, you know who to call!"

Sakura let out a brief giggle. "I'm good with company. Sasuke really has me... busy."

She forgot about Sasuke's remark the day before... Being a quick thinker at the time, Sakura had told the Uchiha swifty: "Have you seen how hard I can punch?"

She hadn't planned on being so harsh but was glad when Sasuke calmed the situation with a smirk.

There was something that went off in Lee's head. "My darling Sakura is not well but I can see that she is not sick… Don't tell me Sasuke is the reason for her sadness! That cannot be!"

Lee watched the beautiful flower of Konoha make her way passed the doors of the hospital into the rainy day. Sakura gave a half-hearted wave to the bowl-cut youth but he stood tall and determined.

Lee hardened his resolve: "I must find, Sasuke! I must find out the reason for her sadness!"

;Something is going to happen next chapter, I can feel it!

let me know how ya like it. Thoughts, feelings, sensations? You know what to do!

Autumn letter