Heart of Ice
Ch. 11
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Pairing: SasuSaku
Author: NightBeast

Sakura had yelled at Saskue, then slammed the door in his face. Why should I listen to him? So he can break my heart again? She marched upstairs to her room. Well, the one she shared with Noroi and Kiko.

She took in her surroundings, noticing all the baby toys thrown all over the floor. She saw the closet that held all of her clothes in it, and all of her shoes stacked neatly on the floor. She saw the cute little dresser where her little girls kept their clothes. Why should I let him come and ruin our safe home we're in?

She sat down on the bed, torn between running back downstairs and throwing herself into Sasuke's arms and the choice of running away from everyone so that she could be completely safe. It's amazing how…different I feel without him. I thought I would be good, but I am not! I feel like an even bigger whole is located where my heart used to be. I feel lost and alone. I want him to come back to me. I really do, but not enough to risk my daughters and their happiness and safety.

She got up and went to Temari's room and knocked on the door. "Temari? Can I come in?"

"Sure!" Temari answered brightly.

Sakura opened the door and was surprised to see Temari still in bed. "Have you not moved from this spot for the past week? Every time I see you, you're in bed!" Sakura joked.

"Well, I have been orderd by my husband to stay in bed." Temari said, smiling.

"Why?" Then a thought struck her. "He's not coming back up here anytime soon, is he? To do anything with you?"

Temari laughed. "No. He won't touch me or do anything physical or intimate with me until nighttime. Too great a risk if the kids come in."

"That makes sense." Sakura said.

"Did you come here for a specific reason?" Temari asked, knowing her friend too well.

"Actually, yes, I did." She looked at Temari, then wanted to know exactly why she was in bed. "You're not sick, are you?"

"Are you trying to distrace me from your problem?" When Sakura just blushed, Temari continued, "I just found out that I'm two months pregnant! Shikamaru wants me in bed so I don't lose the baby. It's happened every time that I've gotten pregnant."

"Have you ever lost a baby before?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, I have." Temari answered calmly.

"Care to share?" Sakura asked politely.

Temari's Story
"Okay, I'll tell you everything if you really want to know.

"Remember how I told you when you first married Sasuke that Shikamaru and I weren't in love when we were married, either? Well, to be completely honest with you, we were enemies. We couldn't stand to even be around the other person for very long.

"Before we became betrothed, we would actually try to kill each other. But once we became engaged, we decided that it would be in the best interest of our villages to try to stop murdering each other, and to try to actually get along. It was what was expected of us. But it definitely didn't stop the murderous glances, or even the hateful glares that I cast him whenever I thought no one else was looking.

"He actually seemed okay with 'getting along. Much more than I was. You see, everything about him annoyed the shit out of me. He was lazy, and whenever we'd fight, he'd be close to beating me. He did actually manage to beat me a couple times. I was very surprised. How could someone so lazy be so strong?

"Soon, I gave up wanting to kill him because I decided that it just wasn't worth it. If he could get along with me, then I could get along with him. I started this game of if Shikamaru could do something, I could do it even better.

"Well, that stupid game almost cost us our lives. You see, on the morning of our wedding, my brother told me what was expected of me. He said, 'Temari, you damn well better produce an heir for Nara by this time next year or else! You need to put aside your pride and your ego and submit to your husband. He's going to have sex with you tonight and any other time he wishes in order to get his heir, so you better get ready and used to it!' When he was done, he just stomped out so that I could finish getting ready. I was startled at Gaara's outburst.

On our wedding night, I decided to be 'better' than Shikamaru when we slept together. As soon as we came together, I was stunned. It was beautiful! Not like anything I could've ever imagined! And the way we fit together! It was amazing! The only problem was that we didn't change that much towards each other. He was kind of trying, but my stupid pride would not let myself change.

"One day, a couple months later, I found out I was pregnant. I wasn't sure what to do next. Did I tell Shikamaru? Did I choose to keep it a secret until I was showing and it was time to tell him? Should I let him think that I've gotten fatter? I didn't know! In the end I chose to wait for a good time to tell him. I could have told him any time, but I didn't.

"Another month went by, and he still hadn't noticed that anything was different with me, and I still hadn't told him about the baby.

"We were sent on a mission during my fourth month. I was so excited to binally be on a mission again that I forgot I was pregnant! I don't know how that happened, but it did! The thought occupying my head were those of proving myself to be a better ninja than my husband.

"It's funny now that I remember this, but on that mission I realized something: I realized that I loved Shikamaru. That I'd loved him for a long time, but I didn't want to admit it to myself.

"As you can quess, we were attacked. Stupid me tried to take on half of them by myself. I was too busy trying to show off to pay attention to what kind of ninja they were or to notice that some were behind me, moving in to attack me from behind.

"Shikamaru screamed, 'Temari! Look out!' He even tried to protect me by trapping them with his shadow, but he wasn't fast enough. The last thing I remember before everything going black was Shikamaru's worried expression as he bent over me to take care of my wounds.

"When I woke up, he said, 'Temari, I love you so you better not scare me like that ever again!' I was confused, and thought I was asleep. I mean, Shikamaru couldn't love me. Then I remembered the baby! I looked down, but my lower body was in pain and covered with blood. He then told me that I had lost a lot of blood from all of my battle wounds. I knew that the baby was gone. I started sobbing uncontrollably and Shikamaru was very worried. I told him about the baby and how sorry I was for not telling him sooner. I even apologized for my bad behavior since the beginning and how much I loved him.

"He just put his arms around me and told me that he was sorry, too, and that we would definitely have more kids. It would also be more special because they would be born to us out of love instead of the hate we had had towards each other. Well, mainly me towards him. He made me promise to tell him as soon as I found out that I was pregnant."

End of Temari's Story
"Temari, I'm so sorry! You must've gone through hell during that time! I didn't think that it was that bad." Sakura said, hugging her friend.

"Yes, I did, but Shikamaru helped me get through it. He grieved, too, and it helped strengthen our love and our newfound bound." Temari answered. "Now, missy, what did you want to talk about?"

"Sasuke's here and wants me to come back to him! I'm so confused! Part of me says yes, but part of me says no! Which part do I listen to? I also feel bad because I slammed the door in his face after yelling at him." Sakura whined, putting her head in her hands.

"I kind of understand how you feel. Part of me loved Shikamaru while the other wanted nothing to do with him. I didn't have exactly your problem because Shikamaru actually tried to get along with me and make our marriage work. The only thing I can do is offer you advice, but I don't know how good it will be. I can't make the decision for you." Temari said, bringing Sakura's head up.

"Why can't you make the decision for me?" Sakura asked even though she knew why.

"Because it's something only you can answer for yourself. How much do you love him? Enough to give him a second chance?" Temari replied.

"Some friend you turn out to be!" Sakura said sarcastically.

"I'm serious. Sometimes people learn the hard way, and they need that second chance to undue everything that they've done the first time around. Trust me, I know. I've been there. I've needed my second chance, or else I wouldn't be where I am today. Maybe Sasuke's sincere. Maybe he's really learned his lesson. If you need to, lay down some ground rules. Tell him how it's going to be. How it needs to be. Don't let him get away, either. If you think he's worth it, and you know that you can trust him again, don't let him go. Maybe you need that second chance with him. Maybe you did some things that you need to correct, or do better. I don't know everything about your relationship with him, but from what you and Shikamaru have told me, I know that there is a lot of work that could be done on both parts."

Before Sakura could reply, the door opened to reveal Shikamaru. "Sakura, Sasuke would like to talk to you. I believe him, and I did question him quite thoroughly. Please, go talk with him. Hear him out. He's in your room. Now go!"

Sakura cast a pleading look at her friend, but she was waving her on. "Scream if you need Shikamaru. He'll come faster than lightning to save you."

Sakura nodded, then left. Okay, Sasuke. Here's your second chance, just like Temari said. Please don't blow it!

Temari looked at Shikamaru. "Do you think she'll be okay?"

"Of course! Do you really think I'd let him talk to her if she wouldn't?" Shikamaru answered, coming to sit on the bed. "Besides, he really does love her."

"No, you wouldn't, but I just had to ask." Temari replied, regarding Shikamaru closely. When he kept coming closer, she asked, "What are you doing, Shikamaru?"

"Showing my wife how much I love her and appreciate her presenting me with another child soon."

"Not for another five to six months!" Temari giggled.

"Sh. Don't ruin the moment." Shikamaru bent down to kiss her, and Temari lost all conscious thought of the two people down the hall in Sakura's room…

To Be Continued…

POLL:

A.-SHOULD SASUKE BEG SAKURA TO COME BACK?

B.-SHOULD I HAVE A SASUKE AND SAKURA MOMENT? WITH LEMON?

PLEASE R&R WITH YOU VOTE AND COMMENTS!

NightBeast