This past..what? Year? has been hectic. I thought I fell in love, broke up with him, got accepted into college, met a new guy (who actually can see himself with me in the future and vice versa), graduated highschool. I've had a few jobs...

I know it's no excuse, but here is the next chapter: :)

Sakura put down her pen rather angrily. It had taken her most of the class time to finish the test and she was only 99 percent certain of her answers. Sakura is always 100 percent sure of everything, but then Gaara came in and she found herself slowly slipping. This was not acceptable.

She raised her eyes, grasping the thick test in her hand lightly, and stared at the man who plagued her thoughts. Just as she thought – he stared right back, his jade eyes taking in her emerald ones.

The rest of the class had long since finished, even Naruto who seemed a little worried that his usually brainy friend was not already done with the test and already studying for her next semester's classes. It was only Sakura and Gaara in the classroom - Sakura was not comfortable with this idea.

He had stared at her during the test. She could feel it and the hairs on the back of her neck rose in anticipation. She could practically feel his hands, his fingertips, caress her skin, her jeans, as his eyes roamed over her. If it had been anyone else Sakura probably would have jumped over the desk she sat in and pummeled the fool until he ended up in the hospital where she would go to work at and beat him up yet again. However, with Gaara the tension was…sexy.

Oh god. Sakura moaned to herself in frustration at the thought. She was not the rebounding type, having had only two relationships before Sasuke (though she doubted the one in middle school counted for much…). She glanced back down at her test one last time before puckering her lips and standing up. No turning back now, she decided.

She walked quickly to his desk. He watched her walk the entire way, making her speed up. She did not like how his eyes traveled to her swaying hips.

"Done?" He asked, his voice low.

She just nodded and handed him the paper – her intentions to give him the test and run away as fast as she could. But, when she gave him the paper he grabbed her wrist with his other hand. His grip was soft, but his hands were calloused.

"Tonight, at seven." He stated, before letting go of her wrist. His hand brushed hers as she moved away and she almost jumped out of her skin.

Safe to say she got the hell out of that class as soon as possible.

"OHMYGOD OHMYGOD" Sakura pulled the phone away from her ear, cringing as the blonde continued to scream at the top of her lungs. Passersby looked at the loud phone and some even giggled as Sakura's face turned the color of her hair. She was beyond embarrassed and was just about to mute the phone when Ino stopped screaming.

"You done?" Sakura asked with a hint of an attitude and she hesitantly let the phone rest against her face again. She continued to walk down the school hallway, having just come out of Gaara's classroom not five minutes ago.

"Yes!" Ino gasped, Sakura worried (a little happy actually…) for a second that the blonde might have actually partially lost her voice when the blonde began screaming again. This time it was the word yes repeated over and over again.

"Ino! Stop!" Sakura tried yelling over the blonde's screechy voice.

Ino took a deep breath. "Fine, but just know that I must say I told you so!"

"Told me what?"

"That Gaara was smoking hot and you should totally date him and look what happened!" The blonde was speaking so fast Sakura could almost not comprehend what she said. In a way, Sakura wished she couldn't understand her friend at all.

"It's not really a date. It's more of a celebration of the end of the semester?" Sakura cringed at the hesitation in her own voice. She was screwed – a word that made her face grow hot as the memory of her attractive redheaded teacher telling her he was going to "make her scream his name" flashed in her head. "Oh, my god, it's a date isn't it?" She added a second later.

Sakura could practically feel Ino nodded hysterically.

"I'm so happy for you. He's a lot better than that skank what's-his-face."

"His name is Sasuke, Ino. Me and him just broke up like two weeks ago maybe so no need for name calling even if he is a jerk." She added the last part after some thought.

"Doesn't matter what you call that ass, because you-have-a-date!" She sing-songed the last part and Sakura laughed at her friends enthusiasm.

"I don't even know what I'm supposed to do. Is he going to come to my apartment? Am I coming to the school?"

"Good questions, perhaps you should go back to the classroom, take off your clothes, and ask him after some raunchy sex?" Ino asked, sounding completely serious.

"No. Anyways, hear from Naruto – never mind, I see him." Sakura hung up the phone with a click and began chasing her blonde friend down the stairs. She half-tackled him, causing him to hit a wall and cough as the air escaped his lungs.

"Caughtcha!" She screamed. Luckily, there was no one else in the stairway to hear Naruto's rather girlish scream of defeat as Sakura twisted his arm around and up his back.

"You've been avoiding us, blondie." She whispered against his neck. "We don't appreciate it." She said, in a deeper tone.

"I'm sorry!" He yelled.

Sakura pushed him harder against the wall. "Tell us what you know." Naruto had disappeared after Sakura and Ino had told him they wanted him to find out Sasuke's secret plan. No phone calls, text, or even a facebook chat.

"I don't know anything!" Naruto yelled, his screams grew higher pitched as Sakura twisted his arm a little more.

"Fine fine…" He breathed a sigh of relief as Sakura let his arm down a little. Just then the at the top of the stairs swung open and a security guard walked in.

"Are you okay, ma'am? People reported hearing a girl's screams from the hallway."

Sakura laugh, "Yes, sir, we're just joking around." She grabbed Naruto's hand and waved at the guard while slightly dragging her blonde male friend down the stairs.

"So, tell me." Sakura grasped his hand a little rougher as they left the stairwell.

"All Sasuke told me was that he knew dating you would piss off the person he was trying to upset. I don't believe it though."Naruto finished with a laugh, his voice slightly hoarse from his high-pitched screams.

"Why not? Who's the person?" She asked, letting go of Naruto's hand.

"You really won't believe it." Naruto said, turning to look at her seriously.

"Just tell me!" She said with a smile, waiting to get a good laugh by the ridiculousness of it.

"He thought dating you would make Gaara angry." Naruto stated with a large smile.

Sakura's smile dropped immediately. "Oh shit."

Naruto's face grew worried. "What?"

"About that…"

Naruto's slightly girly scream of WHAT?echoed through the hall.