Last Chapter!!! I can't believe that my loyal readers would actually believe for a mere SECOND that GaaSaku wasn't going to happen! I hate those stories with sad endings… Enjoy and I'm finally finished!

"Gaara man," Naruto tried desperately.

"I don't want to hear it Naruto," Gaara said as he stood in front of the Konoha gates, waiting for Temari who had stalled and just started packing at the time they should have left. The Elders had no problem spending that time roaming Konoha enthusiastically for they had been cooped up in Tsunade's office signing paperwork for most of the week.

"She doesn't want to come with me," Gaara whispered.

Last night at the Hokage Tower, after Sakura had rejected his offer, she had kicked her wedges off and made a dash through the door. Gaara was left in such a state of shock that he couldn't move, chase after her, and he was left crying silent tears on the roof of his hotel.

"You should at least talk to her," Naruto said seriously. Gaara flinched at the tone of his voice, and stared at him through the corner of his eye.

"Why?" he asked in a monotone.

"Because, there are always two sides to the story, right?" Naruto asked smartly, "What about your event with Matsuri, eh Gaara? You didn't listen to her then… If you don't listen to her now, then you'll just end up regretting it and destroying something that could have been beautiful."

Walking away with his hands in his pockets, Gaara was left looking glum at his first friend.

"I hate when that orange blob is right," he murmured. Disappearing in a wave of sand, he looked for his love interest.

xxXWith SakuraXxx

"Why did you reject him?" Temari cried, her still unpacked luggage forgotten at her hotel room.

"I have my reasons," Sakura said wearily, walking Temari out from the market where she had tracked her back to the hotel room.

"What are they?" Temari whined.

"Shouldn't you be more worried about Shikamaru?" Sakura snapped, hands on hips.

"What?" Temari asked, trying to sound dumbfounded.

"The lazy bastard still hasn't proposed…I should be bugging you about that!" Sakura exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air.

"He…I'll see him eventually," Temari said, staring at an empty space hopelessly.

"You should confront him about it," Sakura murmured, staring at the hotel in the background. Picking up her pace, Temari scurried to keep up with her.

"If he's not ready, then I'm not going to push it," Temari whispered.

"You're the dominant one Temari," Sakura joked, "you need to take things in your own hands or else you'll never get anywhere…"

Temari's lips were pursed together. She gave Sakura a tight and long hug before slumping into her hotel. Sakura stared at the top, imperial room before turning on her heel and making her way back to her apartment. The lease was almost up, Sakura tried to distract herself, so she should see the landlord soon…

Watching her feet uselessly kick pebbles out of her way, she didn't notice the brunette she knocked into.

"Sorry," Sakura murmured. At the familiar phrase of "Troublesome…" Sakura's ears perked up and she smiled slightly at the Nara prodigy.

"Hey Shikamaru," Sakura said mildly.

"Hey Sakura," he waved slightly.

"So Temari's going today," Sakura said softly, eyes like hawks trying to search his eyes, facial expression, anything to notify her that he cared. The slight stiffness of his shoulders and tensing of his jaw made Sakura smile grow.

"Yeah, I know… It's troublesome," Shikamaru murmured, ruffling his ponytail.

"You should do something," Sakura said quietly.

"Like what?" he asked stiffly.

"Ask her to stay," Sakura said nonchalantly.

"Yeah, that worked so well for Gaara," Shikamaru snapped, eyes blazing and slightly misting as he searched Sakura for any response. The tug of her lips into a bitter smile alarmed him.

"He should have seen it coming."

Shikamaru's eyes widened, lips frowning. He tilted her head, staring into her emerald eyes for anything.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Her eyes showed sadness, regret, bitterness…

"He told me he liked me."

"And?"

"Why should I leave my village, my family, my friends just for someone who likes me?"

Shikamaru let his hand drop. Sakura's tilted face followed.

"Tell her you love her."

"I already did," Shikamaru asked deadpanned.

"Just once, ask her to stay," Sakura said, gracefully dancing away, "I know everything about you two. You deserve a happy ending…"

"You do too," his faint call made Sakura smile slightly. She danced off to her apartment, in a sad dance her mother had taught her when she was a child. Villagers paid little attention to her.

As she finished with a graceful twirl, Sakura turned the corner of her street, this time walking normally towards her apartment. She stopped in her tracks when she saw a familiar head of red sitting up on the rail outside of her apartment.

'Gaara' she mouthed incredulously, walking up the stairs slowly.

"Sakura," he acknowledged.

"Gaara," she nodded; she looked over at Naruto's apartment and smiled slightly at him, "Are you waiting for Naruto?"

With a shake of his head, Sakura frowned wondering what he was doing here.

"Why did you reject me?" he asked abruptly, breaking Sakura out of her ponderings.

Sakura looked away in shame, before he forcefully grabbed her face. He cupped her chin in his hand and looked at her with a pleading and gentle look in his eyes.

"You should have seen it coming," it felt like her conversation with Shikamaru.

"What?!"

Sakura flinched at the tone of his face. She lowered her eyes bitterly. Once again, her conversation with Shikamaru.

"Why should I leave behind everything important to me, my family, my friends, my life for someone who only likes me?!" Sakura shouted suddenly, all of her emotions she had cooped up suddenly bursting out of her, "I'm in love with you Gaara, but that isn't enough if you don't even return the feeling…" Sakura added bitterly.

When he froze, Sakura ripped her face out of his gentle embrace and slammed her apartment door open. Locking it behind her, she slid down the door and clasped her face in her hands, crying silent tears.

xxXOne Hour LaterXxx

"It's time for us to leave," Kankuro said quietly, looking at Gaara and Temari.

"Yeah," Temari said, looking at the empty space where the Nara prodigy should have been.

Gaara was silent, searching the crowd for any sign of pink.

"Let's go," he said abruptly. Temari hugged Tenten, Hinata, and Ino one last time, before turning around. Kankuro opened his mouth to say something, but Gaara stopped him with a cold glare. Kankuro shut it smartly. The Suna Elders looked at the lush forests of Konoha one more time, before following their respectful Kazekage.

"Wait," a voice stopped them. Gaara's neck snapped, looking hopefully at the source of the voice. Frowning at himself for his foolish mistake, for the voice had been masculine. When a flash of pink was seen from his third eye, Gaara turned around swiftly, gaping uncharacteristically at the sight of Sakura. She was dressed in her usual training outfit, the red tank top with the white circle on the back, black shorts and knee high boots, and pink medical skirt and elbow warmers, standing on the top of a rooftop, but he couldn't believe that she had shown up.

Next to her was Shikamaru in a green dress shirt and white slacks.

"Temari," he called out. Temari stilled, slowly turning around. Shikamaru jumped down from the rooftop, with Sakura by his side. He strode towards Temari, cupping her face in his hands, oblivious to the crowd surrounding them in a circle. Planting a deep and passionate kiss on her lips, Temari's knees nearly buckled. Propping her up, Shikamaru took out a velvet black case from his back pocket.

"Temari," he said, drawl forgotten in his voice, "I love you… no matter how troublesome it is. I don't care about anything more than I do for you, and I want you to know it…" He opened the case. Temari and the girls, except for Sakura, gasped with shock. The ring had a silver band with a traditional diamond the size of a rock on top of it.

"Will you marry me?"

Temari let the pools of tears fall out of her eyes as she nodded furiously. Shikamaru delicately placed the ring on her fourth finger, and this time she kissed him.

"Sakura."

Sakura looked up in the familiar jade eyes she loved so much.

"Yes?" she asked in a soft tone.

"I… Shikamaru gave me inspiration… Sakura, I'm scared," Gaara admitted, after taking her to a private spot in the forests, away from everyone else, "I'm scared about being in love… I'm scared I'm going to hurt you, I'm scared that I might not be able to stop myself from hurting you or letting anyone else hurt you… I'm scared that you'll find out that there are others better than me and leave me for them… I'm scared of being a monster…"

Sakura felt her own tears pooling in her eyes as she stared into the misting jade eyes of Gaara. She stroked his love kanji affectionately, before whispering in his ear, "Then don't be scared… Don't wonder 'what if', just let me in and never let me go…"

"I love you."

Sakura crashed her lips eagerly onto his. He pressed her gently against the tree behind them, kissing her lips softly. He kissed her nose, cheeks, chin, forehead, eyelids, her face.

"I love you so much Sakura," Gaara whispered.

Sakura smiled a small smile, kissing his love kanji, "What was that you were asking me about earlier?"

"Will you come with me to Suna?"

"Yes… I love you more than everything Gaara… If we're together, then I would give up everything just to keep it that way…"

Temari stayed with Shikamaru in Konoha, while Sakura took the already packed suitcases the girls had prepared for her. After teary departures, Sakura left with Gaara, standing with an enormous victory smirk next to the fuming Matsuri.

Before they left, as Sakura hugged Naruto tightly before lightly hugging Kakashi. She didn't like the mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"Well, Sakura, Gaara, I know that the first time is rough," Kakashi tsked playfully. Sakura felt her face go beet red and even saw Gaara's ears twink pink, "but Gaara, be gentle. And did you know that sand can be used as a kinky tool?" Naruto clamped his hands over his ears, singing 'la la la' loudly. Hinata fainted, Shikamaru's neck started to heat up, Ino glared at Sakura, muttering 'lucky Forehead…' and Sakura slammed her hand over Kakashi's masked mouth.

"Alright Kakashi-sensei," Sakura said loudly, "that's enough!" She felt his lips quirk up in a smirk slash smile. Groaning, Sakura walked off to grab her travel bag. As she reached down, Kakashi pulled Gaara over by the arm, and Gaara felt something being slipped into his back pocket.

Standing next to Sakura with a familiar orange book hidden in his pants made Gaara very uncomfortable.

Slowly scooting over towards her with more confidence, Gaara pulled out a gold chain with a pink cherry blossom pendent with a black outline of a raccoon in it, "Here, for everyone to know that your mine…"

"Everything is getting better," Sakura whispered into his ear as they left Konoha for their new home.

Alright, I'm finished!!! I had so much fun bashing Matsuri! I'm thinking about writing a sequel next… It was even in my mind as I wrote the last sentence in this chapter. It'll probably be called 'When Everything Was Getting Better'! Here's a sneak peek summary:

Summary: Everything was finally falling in place, Gaara and Sakura were dating, most of the fangirls laid off, and Temari and Shikamaru invited the two of them to come back to Konoha for the wedding. When they arrive, they meet up with a blast from the past. Gaara is called back to the village for a couple of Mist Ninja had attacked them and he was needed back home. Meanwhile at home, Gaara's new secretary tries to make the move on him…and what's this??? He feels a slight attraction to her??? Sakura and Gaara are both afraid of losing each other to jealous fangirls and sneaky Uchihas. Will their love still be enough?

Well anyways, thank you's to everyone who stuck with this story till the end and reviewed! Keep in touch for my new story, and can't wait to hear from you guys again!