A/N: I am alive! Hopefully I'll stay alive to update! Okay I'm joking, I haven't sped up a lot for updates lately and chapters have been getting shorter. I am in desperate need of inspiration!


Sakura was sitting at her mentor's office, Tsunade going over the notes with a stern look on her face. But she smiled once she reached the end of the paper.

"It looks like those weeks of research paid off. Good job from you and Hinata. The antidotes we have here aren't as strong as this one you've made. Suna plants are considered quick-acting, but with this you may have found a way to mass produce this cheaply without the worry of too much demand. Shizune will go ask the patients suffering symptoms of the poison if they would like to undergo this experimental hybrid. I'll have Shizune contact Uchiha Corps to approve and order the amount we'll start off with." Sakura bowed.

"Thank you, Tsunade!" The head doctor grinned, setting the research aside to stare at her pupil. Her honey colored eyes were mischievous.

"So, I heard about your little tumble off the runway last night." Sakura groaned. Tsunade smirked.

"Ah, she groans! Sit down." She reached under her desk and pulled out a large bottle of sake. Sakura's eyes bugged.

"But it's barely the afternoon…" And she probably had patients to see, was drinking a good idea? Tsunade snorted.

"It's sake. Morning, raining, snowing, it's best whenever. Besides, you look like you need a drink or four." Sakura thought for a minute, shrugging and sitting down as Tsunade poured her a drink.

"What happened anyway? Did the nerves get to you? You said Sasori's a freak so I figured he pushed you to your breaking point." Sakura smirked, shaking her head and gulping down a drink.

"No, Sasuke's crazy ex-girlfriend made me trip and fall." Her eyes narrowed.

"The bitch with the red hair?" Sakura snapped her fingers.

"That one." Tsunade groaned, taking a drink straight from the bottle.

"Never have sex with crazy. You'd think his parents would've told him that." Mikoto and Fugaku were good parents and people. Sasuke and Itachi were both rebellious.

"Neither boy actually cared about that." Tsunade rolled her eyes. She muttered something about corporate assholes before taking a long sip from her bottle. She cleared her throat.

"Can't that girl get over her relationship? Over is over. But I'm glad you're okay. I also heard that Sasuke was the one who caught you." She smiled serenely at her blushing pupil. Sakura giggled, taking a small sip of sake.

"Yeah, he did. I decided to ask him out tonight for dinner." Tsunade almost spat her sake out, coughing and hacking as Sakura flew to smack her back.

"Are you all right, Tsunade?" The blonde doctor managed to inhale oxygen, her eyes watering as she looked up at her.

"You asked him out?" she asked, her voice raspy. Sakura shrugged.

"Why not? He caught me, this is a 'thank you' to him." Tsunade smirked, drinking her sake like water.

"Right," she said sarcastically. Sakura pouted.

"It's true!" The bottle was empty when Tsunade was done.

"Uh-huh."


Sasuke went back to Itachi's office at two, ready to tell him that Tsunade had agreed to allow the medicine to be allowed in her hospital. But once he reached Itachi's office, his brother held a secret smile on his face. He hated that smile. It was like he knew something he didn't. But he decided to approach him carefully.

"Tsunade's allowing the medicine into her hospital. I just got the email from her assistant." His brother nodded.

"Very well." His smile was pissing him off. What did he know?

"I won't be home until late so I arranged for the medicine to be delivered early. We can just send Neji or Shikamaru to make sure it's there by six tonight and sign off on the order." Itachi's eyes sharpened.

"Where will you be?"

"Somewhere else, obviously," Sasuke snapped. "I'm pretty sure you know anyway."

Itachi smirked, closing his eyes calmly. "I'll take a guess then. You'll be going on a date with Sakura."

Sasuke glared at him. "How do you know?"

Itachi turned to his laptop, pressed and clicked away before turning it to show him a camera view of every room in the building. The one highlighted and enlarged was the lobby.

"Cameras. I have to see what goes on in the building and what comes inside when our incompetent doorman can't." Sasuke groaned.

"Then fire him. And why did you happen to check it when she asked me out?" he asked, suspicious and wary. But his brother remained smiling.

"I happened to come across it. What a coincidence." His smile was gone as he looked through the pile of work to be done. "We have a lot of work to finish. Have a team assembled to count the antidotes and make sure that a full set of information about dosage, after-effects and time intervals to re-take. Tsunade doesn't take well to any incompetence and a wide range of our products are used in her hospital. It's critical that we make sure she doesn't contact us for any mislabels or wrong information."

Sasuke knew he said that to avoid the fact that he was spying on him, but he had to agree that they had a ton of work to do before he could go on his time later. He was about to leave until Itachi called out one more time.

"Where are you two going anyway?" Sasuke growled, he was being nosy.

"None of your goddamn business." Itachi faked a smile.

"What an interesting place. Tell me how the food is like." Sasuke slammed the door before he could hear Itachi laugh at his little joke. His humor could match Kizashi's.

Itachi's mood soured, turning back to his laptop to see Karin in the lobby being escorted out the building by Konohamaru and Chouji. She had the complete nerve to disregard his orders. He hated people who were like that. A pissed off Itachi isn't the nicest guy to be around.


Sakura was back in the lab with Hinata, Shikamaru, Ino and Naruto. All of them were doling out the proper amount of dosages and printing out a large packet of information regarding their research. Shikamaru sighed, rubbing his temples as lines and lines of text flashed across the screen.

"These need to be delivered by six so I'll just get Neji to sign off on it. It's strange though," he added, collecting the stacks of paper emerging from the laser printer. "Sasuke usually signs off on these things, but he told me he was busy tonight."

Naruto snorted, not seeing the blush spread on Sakura's face. "Sasuke? Please, he's being really lazy."

Sakura gulped, debating whether to tell them or not. But he was being called something he wasn't…

"I asked him out," she answered quickly. All eyes were on her. A dead silence washed over them, only the faint buzz of the printer sounded off. Then Ino spoke.

"You asked him out?" she asked. Sakura nodded. Naruto's cat-like grin brightened up the mood.

"Really? Sweet! Now I have some blackmail ammo on him! If he tells me to do dumb shit, I'll say 'Hey, at least I wasn't asked out by a girl!' and he's gonna have to cave! Whoo!" They ignored his dance around the room. Ino poked Sakura's shoulder.

"Why'd you ask him?" Sakura shrugged.

"He caught me and saved me from looking like an idiot. I have to thank him somehow, right?" That wasn't the problem in Ino's mind. What would Gaara say? This morning breakfast was casual, but she saw him shooting looks of hurt at Sakura. Something had happened last night, but the two didn't find it important enough to tell them.

Hinata was agreeing with her. "Sakura, it's very good that you thought about thanking him! Where are you two going?"

Sakura grinned. "Samehada."

She had gone there before. The food and sake were great, the owner was even better. Kisame was really awesome to be around. He was a fun version of Itachi when he was happy and a mass murderer with a long sushi knife when he was pissed. She usually got on his good side.

But Shikamaru wasn't smiling. "Wasn't he the same guy who was taking bets on how long it would take for you and Sasuke to get engaged?"

Oh shit. The warm feeling in Sakura stopped like her heart. Kisame had said those things, laughing and teasing them because he knew that she dreamed about getting married to Sasuke one day. He took in bets as Shikamaru said, but she never saw him again after she saw Sasuke…

She just forgave him, she didn't want to think about what happened again. Ino glared at Shikamaru. Sakura was trying to mend up her relationship with Sasuke with a friendship, but her own boyfriend was making it awkward. Fine, she would just have to do the same to him.

"Hey, Shikamaru, didn't Kisame also tease us for making out at a table? He announced to the whole restaurant that he needed to have another room made when people wanted to have sex." Her remark had done what she intended. Shikamaru's face was blazing red with embarrassment, glaring around when they all laughed at him. He scoffed, pushing away the image of him and Ino locked in a tight embrace as Kisame, wearing his blue shark makeup, was laughing like the blue devil.

"Fine, I get it. You could've told me to shut up instead." He turned away and scowled when he heard them laughing again.

Sasuke came down to their lab to check for the order Tsunade had made. He purposefully ignored the little smirk Naruto had on his face to check the antidotes one by one. Even Ino put on a serious face when Sasuke came by.

"So everything's in order?" he asked Sakura. She nodded.

"Yes. We just need to deliver it." Sasuke looked at his watch.

"The men who will deliver this will be here around 5:30 to get it into the van and have it shipped. Neji will arrive at the hospital before the medicine is delivered to sign the sheet for its arrival. Well done. You can all enjoy the rest of the day, it's barely four."

Ino sighed, stretching her muscles and winking at Shikamaru. "I guess I'll see you tonight! I have to go home and get ready." She turned to Sakura and Hinata.

"I'll have the car out by the time you guys are done." They nodded to her, then she disappeared.

Naruto slowly crept behind Hinata. The blue haired girl was placing some stacks of the packaged antidotes in a box before she screamed when Naruto called out her name.

"Please go out with me!" he shouted near her ear. She jumped and almost lost the antidotes.

"Naruto!" she squeaked, setting the antidotes into the box. He didn't look apologetic. Just hopeful.

"Please!" She sighed. Hinata had wanted to go home and relax with her friends. But Tenten had called and said that she was going out and Gaara and Kankuro weren't the best company. At least Naruto was fun to be around. She agreed by nodding.

"Okay, I'll go home and get ready." Naruto cheered and gave her a noisy kiss on the lips, making her blush bright red. With one arm, he carried her away and out the room. Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"Don't carry her home, you idiot. Put her down." He followed them out. Sasuke and Sakura were left alone.

Thankfully she was smiling at him.

"So, I'll meet you at Samehada in a couple hours." Sasuke smirked.

"Of course." He was a little nervous about the date. He didn't want to screw it up with her. If he went off too strong, he would push her away. If he was too subtle, he would push her away. Goddammit.


Once they got home, the girls rushed to get ready for their dates. Gaara and Kankuro weren't home because they were at Uchiha Corps discussing the distribution of the antidote in Suna once it was proved to be successful. But no matter, explaining what they were doing would bring in unwanted questions from Kankuro.

Tenten was gone. She had left a note saying she was at her gym prepping the place for physical therapy for any poison victims. She wasn't going to be home until late, she had written. It was a real shame, she wouldn't know that Sakura would be going on a date with Sasuke. Oh well, they could tell her later.

Sakura changed into a cherry blossom shirt that gave her a faint reminder of the wedding dress Sasori had made her. Sadly, her black dress pants lost the nostalgic feeling as she checked herself in the mirror. Her purse waited for her on her bed. It finally hit her.

She was going on a date with Sasuke. For the first time in weeks. Almost two months of avoiding, crying and anger had past and now she had forgiven him. Did that mean she had to be with him again? No, but he deserved some sort of affection.

Hinata knocked on her door, opening it a bit to tell her that Naruto came to take her on a date. She smiled encouragingly.

"Have fun on your date, Sakura." She used to say that a lot months ago whenever Sakura went out with Sasuke. Sakura smiled at her.

"Thanks, Hinata. Have fun with Naruto." Hinata nodded and turned to leave, but stopped and turned back to her. Ino had left earlier in their white Audi, one of the two cars they had together. Tenten had taken the Bentley. Hinata was being picked up, but how was Sakura going to get to Samehada?

Naruto was walking up the stairs, wearing a black and orange shirt and dark jeans. He looked a little concerned that Hinata was taking her sweet time.

"Hinata? Is everything okay? I've been waiting for a while." She smiled sadly.

"It's Sakura. She doesn't have a ride to Samehada." Sakura, hearing this, hurried out of her room to them. Why didn't anyone tell her that there were no cars in the house? It was almost eight and Sasuke hated waiting.

"Crap! Could you guys give me a quick ride? I'll pay you in ramen!" Naruto grinned.

"I'll drop you off, you don't have to pay me. But if you insist…" He wiggled his eyebrows, prompting Hinata to elbow him.


They dropped her off at Samehada, one of Konoha's busiest restaurants that always had a crowd waiting outside to be called in. Sasuke was waiting for her in a dark blue dress shirt and black pants. Naruto winked at Sakura when she got out.

"Play nice now! Do you think you'll need a ride afterwards?" Sakura was about to agree, not wanting to trouble Sasuke, but the Uchiha heir made his way to them and thumped his fist on Naruto's car door.

"I'll take her home. Worry about your own date." Naruto nodded to him and Hinata peered over to wave goodbye before they drove off. Sakura wrapped the strap of her bag around herself and smiled at Sasuke.

"Let's just go inside." He nodded, opening the crystal door of the place for her. It was pretty loud inside, soft music played through the speakers and continuous movement of the wait staff and customers kept the noise level even. The waiting time for a table ranged from two to three hours, but Sasuke had a reservation and the two were seated immediately in a booth. As they walked to their table, they passed an all too familiar face.

Kisame, the owner wearing his blue shark makeup, gaped when he saw the two pass him by. Didn't the two break up or something? No, he heard they had problems, code for they're going to break up if one of them heard the wrong thing from the other. What were they doing here, on an obvious date? He watched them calmly order food, smiling at each other and making small talk. They looked like they had no problems between each other, though he could sense a little tension in the atmosphere. It wasn't exactly bad either, it was pretty much like a first date between two virgins.

Dammit, why did everyone leave him in the dark about these kinds of things? Not only was he completely left out of Sasori's fashion show, not like he wanted to see that asshole's designs anyway, but he found out about Sasuke and Sakura's problems from Itachi as casual news. Screw this, he was going to call Itachi and sort this shit out. He was probably behind on what was going on. Hell, Sakura might be pregnant with Sasuke's baby and maybe the two got eloped three days ago. He didn't know, no one told him anything!

He left his place at the bar, ordering another bartender to take his place while he went to make a call to the Uchiha bastard who was likely to be sitting his ass on a comfy chair and watching the world as if they were his entertainment. He waited for several rings to pass when his call was received. He spoke quick and to the point.

"Itachi, your brother and Sakura are here. On a date."

"I know. What of it?" He sounded bored, like he knew about this entire engagement. That asshole left him in the dark again! And didn't he know what Kisame liked to do when he messed around?

"Every time I saw them I'd tease him about marrying her and shit! Didn't you say they had problems?" He could see Itachi rolling his eyes.

"Yes, it seems like they're getting over it." Kisame looked out of his little window to Sasuke and Sakura. They were talking again. They kept a distance apart to give off the impression that the two were more of friends than boyfriend and girlfriend. But it was obvious that Sasuke wanted more with the sad puppy eyes he was giving Sakura when she ate.

"How do I talk to them without getting the atmosphere all awkward?" asked Kisame, remembering the last time he talked to them. He had shown Sasuke an ad for a jewelry store with an engagement ring right in front of Sakura. Of course the Uchiha was eternally pissed at him for making it awkward.

"Easy, think this. Make it awkward for them and I'll show everyone why your place means 'shark skin'. It will make use of your shark makeup." Itachi didn't sound very happy. Kisame shuddered, Itachi would go on with his threats as he had done before. He was very protective of Sasuke and Sakura's relationship. When Kisame doubted that the relationship was genuine, Itachi almost threw him out of the highest window of Uchiha Corps.

"Yeah, sure thing. That will make me work on keeping it cool," he said sarcastically. He hung up when Itachi chuckled. Shit shit shit, how to make this not awkward, but bring them closer together? That's when he had an awesome idea.

Sakura and Sasuke were enjoying themselves, making light conversation. Sasuke missed talking to her, amazed by her fascination in things like business and trying to understand their tactics to getting a good deal even if a meeting goes sour.

"But what about Itachi? He seems really different compared to other guys." Sasuke smirked.

"Itachi has a way. A lot of investors usually agree to him because they think he'll assassinate them." Sakura grinned, scooting closer to lean on his side. Did he not remember what he did to a poor Naruto when he pretended to not agree with merging their businesses together?

"And his ways got passed down to you." Sasuke, still smirking, put his arm around her without thinking. She didn't mind, but her eyes suddenly widened when she realized what she was doing. She slowly backed off, surprising him.

What was she thinking? What if they decided to stay friends? What if she started falling in love with him again and then they wanted to split for good?

Sasuke forgot how to breathe. She had pulled away from him with wide green eyes that glowed with uncertainty. Did she really want to end this? He wanted this relationship again. Did she want to start from scratch and take it slow? Fine, then they could.

Luckily the tension was cut when Kisame came up to them. Flashbacks of him giving Sasuke the ad for an engagement ring filled their minds, praying that he wouldn't say something stupid. But Sasuke didn't tell Kisame that the engagement ring he had at home was the one Kisame had shown him. He had good taste in rings, something Sasuke wasn't sure Kisame knew.

Kisame had his bright blue shark makeup painted on, a thing he liked to do because it was hilarious to use to intimidate other people and it brought in the crowds. He grinned at them, his teeth shaped jaggedly like shark teeth.

"Hey guys! I haven't seen you guys around in a while!" he greeted, taking a seat next to Sakura. Sakura smiled at him. She was happy to see him, honestly. He wasn't there at Sasori's.

"Kisame! I didn't see you at the fashion show!" The shark-faced man shrugged his shoulders. Oh man, Itachi and his friends were going to get it for leaving him out of the dark like this. He wasn't pissed that he didn't go. It would've been nice if he were invited in the first place.

"I would've been bored. How was it anyway?" he asked, waving his hand so a waitress could bring them sake. Sasuke and Sakura looked at each other, Sakura smiling beautifully.

"I was wearing Sasori's masterpiece and fell of the runway." She said it so plainly as if it were a half-assed story. Kisame's eyes bugged out. Why was he left out of this? Itachi could've at least texted him or something!

"What happened after that? Were you embarrassed by people? Fashion people can be bitches." Sakura giggled.

"Nope! Thanks to Sasuke!" She poked her thumb at him, Kisame looking over her to see him wearing a smirk on his face.

"I caught her before she could fall." Kisame involuntarily punched the air. Hell yeah, there was still hope! So why were they acting all friendly with each other? Strike up the fucking romance! Damn kids didn't know how to move forward. They stared at him as if he were crazy. Sakura leaned back onto Sasuke.

"Why did he do that?" she whispered. Sasuke shrugged.

"Maybe he's a fan of cheap romance movies. Catching a girl is pretty cliché." She playfully glared at him.

"Cheap and cliché? Is that what you were thinking when you caught me?" He smirked at her.

"Of course not. I kept thinking that I caught my bride." 'Bride?' she thought wildly. Was he planning on getting married to her so soon? Then she remembered. Oh yeah, she was wearing a wedding dress.

"Haha," she replied flatly. Kisame grinned.

"Well, isn't that just romantic? Did you get laid?" he asked Sasuke. His blood ran cold when they fell silent. Oh shit, he wanted to punch himself. Don't make them uncomfortable, and he did. Oh fuck, Itachi was going to kill him and hang his body up like a banner for the restaurant.

Sakura stared at him, what kind of girl did he think she was? But he meant it as a joke, a sucky joke, but a joke nonetheless. She responded in kind.

"Was the kiss acceptable?" she asked Sasuke, whose face promised Kisame death. He wanted to hang his corpse up while he was still wearing his ridiculous shark makeup. But thankfully Sakura wasn't offended. He nodded.

"I'll take it any day," he answered. She blushed. Kisame inwardly shook his head. Did they not feel their own sexual tension? Well, not sexual, but it was a beginning to a chance to get laid. He turned away from them to find entertainment elsewhere, noticing that the TVs he had hung on every corner of the restaurant were more entertaining. The reporter, a stone-faced man in a sleek suit, spoke as his voice resonated throughout the restaurant as emergency news. The bartender quickly raised the volumes on all the TVs.

Sasuke and Sakura turned to the TVs, her thought processes grinding to a halt when she saw the wreckage on screen.

"The 85 has been closed due to a massive seven car pile-up resulting in several injured people on the way home. Police have reported that the cause of the accident was from texting and not paying attention to the road. We are expecting the freeway to be cleared and available for use tomorrow morning or into the afternoon."

There were groans around the room. The 85 freeway was used all the time and it was hell trying to get anywhere without it. Sakura's heart sank. They had taken the 85 to Samehada. How the hell was she going to get home? Drive in the air? Sasuke's car was nice and expensive, it probably had wings installed and he didn't even know it. Kisame whistled.

"Kids these days don't know how to drive. What's up with her?" he asked, pointing a finger at Sakura. Sasuke knew what was wrong. He had driven Sakura home before and the quickest route was taking that freeway.

"The 85 is her freeway to go home. Can't we take the surface streets?" asked Sasuke. Kisame shook his head. He kept his eyes on the TV, the images flashing to the busy streets that had the freeway exits near them.

"There's no way. All the cars will be taking those routes and you'll be stuck there until morning." She began to whine.

"Where am I supposed to sleep? There's no way of getting home in time." Sasuke, however, didn't have to worry about that. He lived in the other direction without using the 85. Maybe he could…

No, that wouldn't be proper.

Then Kisame had to open his mouth.

"Hey, Sasuke, you don't take the 85. You live about twenty minutes from here, don't you? Take Sakura back with you and give her a place to crash for the night." Great, thanks Kisame. He said it so casually like they were still dating. Sakura's face flashed red.

"N-no way! That's not right!" It wasn't for a date like this, but it wasn't right to leave her like this.

"Where will you stay, Sakura? You can't go home at this rate," said Sasuke gently. She sighed deeply. This was awful. Now she owed Sasuke for this and she didn't know how to repay him. And where was she going to get extra clothes to sleep and change in? Sasuke seemed to read her mind.

"You left clothes at my place. You can wear those." Oh shit, she did? Well granted she did go to get her scrapbook and nothing else. But he was offering so why not?

"Sure, I guess."


"You can use the guest room upstairs next to my room. If you need me just come over." Sasuke kicked off his shoes and started undoing his buttons, heading upstairs to change. And to hide the engagement ring currently shining happily on his computer desk. She sighed again, heading to the guest room to change and wash off any makeup she had on.

She had never slept in the guest room. She always slept with Sasuke in his room and his bed. She was happy that he gave her the guest room, but secretly longed for the warmth of his bed.

Wait a minute…

Did she seriously just think that? Crap, she really did want him back. Maybe it was from the lack of sleep. It was almost midnight. She shot a text to her friends saying she wouldn't be home because of the closed freeway.

Only to find out that they too wouldn't be home. They had all taken the freeway as well. Hinata was going to stay at Naruto's, Ino at Shikamaru's. Tenten had texted that she and Neji were at her gym for the next phase of the project and he offered her a room at his house for the night.

Fun, they were all having separate sleepovers.

In the guest room, Sakura emptied out her bag on the floor in hopes of finding any wipes to remove her makeup. All sorts of crap rained onto the floor. Mascara, chapstick, and some cheap change made clacking noises as they hit the carpet. Some other things fell out too, but she honed in on the baby wipes that slowly sank to the ground. Thank God, she didn't want to smear makeup on the host's pillow. She ignored the stuff that fell out of her bag. She could clean it up in the morning.

By the time she was done cleaning her face, Sasuke walked in with a large shirt for her. He had safely throw the ring box under his bed. He stared at the pile on the floor in disbelief. What had she done to his floor? She smiled.

"I'll clean that up tomorrow morning," she promised. He smirked. He expected her to treat this place like her home, hoping that she would one day live with him again. He handed her the shirt, his brow twitching when she frowned. Was she uncomfortable with the thought of sleeping in his clothes? They were just clothes.

"Is something wrong?" She quickly shook her head.

"No. I'll change. Thanks." He smiled and passed the shirt to her, turning to the bed to see that Naruto had done his best to straighten out the covers when he was last there. To make sure it was all right, Sasuke lifted off the bedspread, whacking himself in the face when he saw what was hidden.

Naruto had made ramen stains on the bed sheets. That asshole. The soup of the ramen had made blotches on the sheets along with bits of the dried vegetables and naruto all over the bed. Great, how was she supposed to sleep in this?

Sakura changed in the bathroom, the roomy shirt reaching the top of her thighs. She left her clothes in a heap on the floor, promising to clean that up too. She came out of the bathroom and almost screamed like she saw a horror movie.

The bed was a horror movie. Who the hell would do this to an innocent bed waiting for people to sleep on it? Then it came to mind. Naruto. She sighed, meeting Sasuke's eyes. There was no way she could sleep on this bed.

"I'll sleep on your couch." His eyes widened. If his mother knew that Sakura slept on his couch, she would ream him and call him improper. Not to mention there was no possible way he would let her sleep on a couch and him on a bed.

"Take my bed. I'll sleep on the couch." She immediately disagreed.

"No way! This is your house." His eyes narrowed.

"I have manners, Sakura," he replied. "It wouldn't be right for me to leave you on the couch."

Her next words were going to throw him through a loop. "Then we'll share the bed. We know each other enough, and we've done that sort of thing before," she added, heading to his room.

She wanted to share his bed with him? This was way too good to be true. But he agreed calmly. He would do his best to not act like a creeper in bed. In the old days they would snuggle up, but for now they were only friendly.


She climbed into the familiar blue bed, sighing when she laid her head on the pillow. His scent was all over the bed, bringing back nostalgic memories of the two lying in bed quietly. She would cuddle into his chest, slightly dozing off and telling him of her exhausting day. Sasuke climbed into bed next to her, pulling the cover over himself to sleep.

Sakura was ready to sleep, but her eyes flashed open in worry. What if he tried something while she slept? What if his sleep pattern was weird now? His bed had like thirty thousand pillows stationed at the head of the bed. He was drifting to sleep as she took the pillows on her side to make an elaborate barrier between them. She was no architect, but it looked good.

He felt her pillows softly hitting his back, sneaking a peek to see the crappy wall of pillows between them. He smirked when he saw how concentrated she was. Destroying it would make her mad, but he took the chance. He rolled onto the wall, the pillows giving way and falling like dominoes.

She gasped, glaring at him. "Uchiha Sasuke! I know you're awake!"

She jumped onto him, grabbing his shirt and thinking she was choking him. He chuckled deeply, making her blush and let go. He smirked at her, seeing that she had him straddled under her.

"Aren't you forward?" he teased. She went red, hitting his chest like a child. But she suddenly stopped. Forward? Her? Please. She smiled flirtatiously.

"I've been forward before, Sasuke." Her voice was suddenly low, the type she had whenever she seduced him into getting whatever she wanted. She leaned down, his breath in his throat when she was close to his lips with hers. "Don't you remember what came after?"

Yeah, he did. But she grinned like a child and sat back up.

"Keep remembering, it's not happening tonight. Good night!" she sang, then flipped her body next to him and stole most of the covers. Sasuke blinked. Did she just…act like how he used to?

Damn, she was good.

Sakura giggled to herself. That was pretty fun to screw around with him like she used to. But did she want to start over again? Who knows? She did know she was tired, and knew that she liked the warmth from his body against her.


Yeah, this chapter took a while to update. I've been trying to update before school starts next week and then I'll barely have time until December hits for the end of finals. But I'm not giving up! Please review!

Next chapter preview:

There was a total mess on the guest room floor from last night. That's what happens when you dump a woman's bag to find stuff. The floor looked like a crime scene with lipstick as the murder weapon. She bent down to collect it all and stuff it back in her bag.

Something shiny caught her eye from under a small notepad. She was smiling until she reached it. Her heart froze in her chest.

It was the spare key to his house. That little key seemed to question her. If she wanted to end it, leave the key on his counter. If she wanted to continue this, tuck it back in her bag and move along.

Shit.