"Unless you believe, you will not understand."
-Saint Augustine

"What was that for?" he asked, shocked, as he held a hand to his bruising cheek. Sakura glared at him. Old feelings and anxieties from her younger years of the teasing and bullying started to arise in her, taking over her better judgement.

"Why did you start laughing?" she shot back, her anger about ready to burst again. He was supposed to keep an open mind—he said he would.

'Screw you, Itachi—I don't care if I get beat up for this. If he laughs again, I'll make him regret it!' she thought with a promise.

After another chuckle, Sasuke calmed down. The look he gave her basically said that he considered her a freak. He shook his head, sighing. "Seriously, Sakura, what is this all about? If this is the BS that you think might get me to feel sorry for you—"

"Get out."

Sasuke gazed at her. "What?"

"Get out. If you're going to be like that, get out of my apartment and go back home, Sasuke. I don't care if it's practically a blizzard outside, I want you gone," she whispered. There was a sense of hatred in her voice. When Sasuke didn't move, only gave her a look, she went on with her ranting. "Naruto didn't laugh. He actually believed me—that just shows how much of a jerk you are to just sit there and laugh. You could at least have the decency to just say, 'I do not believe you'."

"There's no such thing as ghosts, Sakura. And you can't see them. Go see Tsunade—make sure there's nothing wrong," he said, crossing his arms over his chest, his usual stoic look back. "You're crazy, Sakura."

"Your mother doesn't think so."

Sasuke froze. His face was clean of any emotion. His eyes went out of focus and stared into a distant memory.

This was the first time anyone had brought up his parents since the tragic event. Over the years he had done his best to not think much about his parents, or anything related to better times. He figured that thinking about his mother would bring up questions about what she would think about him now if she saw him now. He'd always thought that she would be disappointed somehow. Thinking about that would make him feel guilty for his way and purpose of living.

And that would hinder the completion of his goal to kill Itachi.

"What did you just say?" he asked quietly, his mood a deadly calm. Sakura started to rethink her next words. His mood had changed so suddenly, it was probably unhealthy for any person. He was just previously the conceited person he normally was, and then in less than an instant he was as quiet and still as a person attending a funeral for a close friend.

Like the peace before the storm.

"Your mother doesn't think I'm crazy," she told him, noticing the change in him.

The young konoichi could only hope that taking this dangerous direction would show him that she really was telling the truth. Sakura already knew that bringing up anything about Sasuke's family or past before the killing was a bad idea. It would be walking on a fine line. She had seen first-hand that when anything of the sort was mentioned, he would become so angry and so quickly.

She watched as his eyes went from a dark cold anger to something . . . different. Something she had never seen in his eyes before. At this point, Sakura knew she had to be careful—any wrong thing said would set Sasuke off again.

"My . . . my mother?"

"Sasuke, I already told you . . . I can speak to the dead. That seal I told you about? I had Riko remove it one day in the hospital after I woke up. I figured I might as well get used to seeing the deceased walking around," she said. Sasuke's face still remained the same, as if in some kind of trance.

"You . . . saw my mom?" Sakura sighed, nodding her head lightly. "Did you see my father?" Sakura looked away before answering.

"No, I haven't. I'm sorry," she whispered. Sasuke's head tilted down, suddenly looking very tired and very old, as if he'd been alive for decades and seen all of the horrors of the world and come to a form of acceptance.

And in a way, he already had.

"I . . . you can really see them?" he asked quietly, like he didn't already know. He wasn't looking at her when he said it. In a way, he was, but his eyes were so out of focus another person might have guessed that he was drunk, drugged, or possibly both.

"Sasuke, are you okay?"

Sakura couldn't help asking. The person that sat before her definitely wasn't the Sasuke Uchiha that she had grown up to know. Whenever she had seen him, he was always so collected—he never said anything spontaneously or without forethought. He had a plan for everything, and always acted with the sense that it was nothing. Nothing ever truly got to him.

But now . . .

When Sakura looked at him now, he almost seemed like a crack-addict without his crack. He wasn't paying full attention; his body was trembling slightly that you'd have to look closely to notice it. He kept swallowing and his breathing was off—a little faster and shorter.

"You're lying . . ." Sakura eyed him carefully. "And if you're not . . ."

A second later another slap was heard, but not out of anger. 'Gosh, he's going into hysterics.' Sakura knew hysteria when she saw it—she had been through it.

Sasuke's head remained in the turned position, facing away from her. Sakura waited as he stopped shaking and his breathing returned to normal. She quickly stood and headed for the kitchen, completely stumped.

'Why is does it always turn into some kind of problem when I try talking to him?' she wondered sadly. She wanted him to know what was going on—it was easier than him not knowing at all. She figured that if things went the way they should, things would get better for all of them. In a way, their troubles would bring them closer together. She knew now that her wish was only a wish—nothing more. Why did things always turn out so—

"Tell me more."

Sakura turned sharply to see Sasuke standing in the doorway of her kitchen. She had been so immersed in her own thoughts, she didn't even hear him come out of the other room—no sound, not even his thoughts got to her. He seemed to look more like himself—just a little shocked. Just a little. Sakura looked at the clock above the stove—it was nearing eleven at night. Sasuke also noticed the time, seeming to understand what she was thinking, even though he wasn't the psychic one.

"I'll tell you more in the morning," she said. A nod was her reply. They were both exhausted—sleep was probably a good idea before anything else.

Sakura stopped Sasuke before he opened the front door. She handed him a brown coat.

"I don't—"

"Take it. You passed out earlier—I'm not hunting you down in the middle of the night to see if you got home okay," she said, teasing yet serious. Sasuke gave her a half-hearted glare before place the coat on his person. He stepped out into the night without another word.

Despite what all happened that night, Sakura had to smirk at his fading back.

'Well, that's Sasuke for you.'

So, this was the last complete chapter that was written when I started this over two years ago (though I have edited it since restarting).

I can't seem to just write like I used to. Now I really have to think and plan ahead for things to be good or make sense. I think it's because I want there to be an actualy progressing with the characters and plot that my mind won't even consider what I would have written had this been two-three years ago. That or I'm losing my touch. (NO)

The next chapter will pretty much be a foil to this one. If you know anything from high school English classes, you'll know exactly what I mean...