AN This may come as a surprise to some of you, but I'm going to end this story here for now at least. Every time I write up a continuation it just seems so forced. My sister is getting married in a couple of weeks. So sorry to lay this on you all~ You have all been so great! The reviews, favs, follows, pms, they have meant so much to me. I'll be starting a new short story so keep your eyes peeled! I hope you all enjoyed the ride! I know I damn sure did! You are all so great! I cannot wait to see more of you!
Pixies / Hey
Pedestrian Life: Chapter Fourteen
Waking up was overall an overwhelming sensation. Sakura could tell by her heavy limbs and trembling fingers that she had been under for awhile. It was strange to be on the other side of a situation she was an expert in. The bright fluorescent lights had been replaced by a few low-hanging lamps and the soft beeping of the machines were slowly helping Sakura get a grip on her situation, but the drugs were hindering her ability to think clearly, to recall why she was here. Her tired eyes swept across the room to find it void of life, save for a potted plant at her bedside. Sakura sighed, using all her strength to grip the warm blankets covering her, her knuckles turning white as her brain pieced together her last memories.
Then it hit her. Clarity washed over Sakura like a bucket of freezing water, and the beeping from her heart monitor became rapidly faster with each painful recollection. Hot tears began to sting the corners of her viridian eyes until they fell onto the sheets below, soaking the cloudy fabric to a shade of cobalt. Where is he? How could she be so reckless to just leave him to handle everything? Sakura was no hero, she was a fucking idiot, a romantic swept up in a situation she wasn't even supposed to be involved in. Of course, she really did have complete faith in Kakashi, but watching him die was not an option. He had to have made it out alive, and most likely unscathed if not a tad worst for wear. But if so, then where was he?
Her increased heart-rate must have triggered an alarm, because before Sakura could question any further, her once cozy, quiet hospital room was illuminated with the harsh overhead lights. Sakura heard Tsunade and Shizune approaching, a long stride of heavy steps followed by a hurried set of heels clicking frantically on the linoleum.
"Shizune, check her vitals. Sakura, how are you feeling?" Sakura lifted her arm, allowing Shizune to check her blood pressure and motioned for a glass of water. After a long drink, Sakura spoke her voice raspy and tired.
"I'm fine. My shoulder is stiff, and lifting my arm hurts like hell."
Tsunade nodded, jotting everything down and Shizune flashed a bright light straight into Sakura's pupils. "Any headache, dizziness, nausea, memory-loss, or numbness?" Roseate locks swayed left to right slowly. "Good. I think you're a goddamn idiot for what it's worth. Though it's probably not much. You never listen to anyone's advice. Speaking of which, you owe Kurenai an apology. She is pretty furious with you."
Tsunade tossed Sakura her file, and the pinkette swallowed the guilt as best she could. Sakura loved and respected Kurenai, it was foolish of her to keep something like this from the ravenette. But had anyone asked her opinion, Sakura would probably just as foolishly state that Kakashi was worth the trouble.
Blinking a few times, Sakura's eyes began to absorb the information, and she shuddered with what she saw. She had been in a drug-induced coma for nearly five days after a risky operation and two blood transfusions. This all seemed so dramatic for one gunshot. The shot just nicked her lung, causing her lungs to fill with blood. The bullet literally sliced through her, leaving her an opening and exit wound to bleed out. It was at close-range, she supposed. At least she could leave in a couple of days.
She flipped the page to read the visitor sign in sheet, and her heart clenched painfully when she didn't see Kakashi's name among so many others. Was he not okay?
"What about-"
"Kakashi's fine, but he's not here. Cowardly ass if you ask me." Tsunade cut it, snarling. Sakura frowned, not sure how to feel about him not coming to visit. She was angry, one might say livid, but mostly just worried, intensely worried. "I've got a conference call in a few minutes. Shizune, finish up with Sakura then come to my office."
The buxom Chief disappeared out the door and a feeling of emptiness settled in Sakura's stomach. Tsunade was a cold, direct woman, but something about the exchange didn't sit well with her. She was too detached, like she was trying too hard to not care. A small smile crept up the corners of Sakura's mouth. Tsunade was worried over Sakura's feelings being hurt, and trying desperately to not let it show.
"Sakura, do you need anything else?" the bed dipped as Shizune took a seat beside her.
"Can you tell me what happened to Kakashi? Please?" Sakura grabbed Shizune's hand and gave her a pleading look, one that always worked.
Shizune sighed deeply, shaking her head before speaking. "They brought him in with you, he affronted a sense of calm.. even though we could see he was a wreck. He said he couldn't really remember what happened after you were shot so I questioned his captain, Yamato. They wont know for certain until they watch the security footage, but from what I understand he.." Shizune choked for a moment then cleared her throat to continue, her voice wavering. "He took on the man that shot you first, then the guards outside the door, then five more before back up came and his teammate knocked him out with something."
"When you say he took on.."
"He killed them, Sakura." Shizune stated bluntly, avoiding Sakura's piercing gaze. "We advised he check himself into the hospital, maybe get another psych evaluation, but once he heard of his.. exploits, he cleared out. Sai's been keeping an eye on him, so he's alive, don't worry about that.."
He voice trailed off leaving a heavy silence to fill the air, a thick cloud of tension that smothered Sakura into a state of paralysis. She didn't notice Shizune administer more drugs into her i.v., or the way she silently slipped out of the room, turning down the lights in her wake. Even the hum of medical equipment failed to reach Sakura's ears. She felt suspended in space, floating detached from the Earth below her, where no sounds vibrated to her ears, and no oxygen found her lungs. Faintly, Sakura could hear her inner-voice telling her these were symptoms of shock and that she should call for help, but before her brain could send her body the message, a deep, drug-induced sleep overtook her.
...
Kakashi took another long gulp of his watered down whiskey, polishing off the last remnants before lifting his finger to silently order another. The barkeep sighed but poured another regardless. It wasn't in her nature to refuse such well-paying customers, however Kakashi had been there every night this week and her heart hurt to watch this man drink himself into oblivion.
"Kakashi, I don't mean to be a nag.."
"Then don't." He clipped, his voice betraying the friendly eye-smile he was trying to give her. He regarded her for a moment. Ayame was sweet, Kakashi had been coming to this bar for years, he knew her father personally and witnessed Ayame mature into a beautiful woman.
He could still remember the night she turned twenty-one. He had just gotten of work, it had been a terrible day, and wanted nothing more than to drink until he woke up in Teuchi's spare bedroom upstairs, but the night had gone quite differently when he unknowingly walked into a private all-girl's, unsupervised birthday party. Ayame had looked so pretty, her long, ash-brown hair tumbling down her back, and the way her face became more and more flushed with every drink was driving him wild. Afterwards, they both pretended nothing had happened between them, for which Kakashi was eternally grateful. He got to frequent his favourite bar, and she got to keep her handsome boyfriend to whom she was married eight years now. Everybody won.
"Kakashi stop spacing out and at least hear me out. You can talk to me you know." Kakashi could count on one hand the number of times he'd been drunk enough, or pathetic enough, to spill his guts to Ayame. Even though she no longer hung on his every words with innocent fascination, she was still willing to listen. The infatuation that had once sparkled in her eyes for him had dimmed and matured, growing into concern. She wasn't naive to his life-style, but neither was she judgmental. The blood on his hands didn't scare her away, and when he would slink out of the bar with a pretty, young woman, she held her tongue and merely turned the other direction. Teuchi and Ayame never expected Kakashi to change, instead they treated him like the screw-up cousin the rest of the family abandoned, it was a dynamic he grew to appreciate deeply. Kakashi took a deep breath before downing his beverage and looking at Ayame expectantly. She rolled her eyes and poured him another.
"Is it trouble at work?" She questioned while turning to mix a drink for another patron.
"I quit."
She paused, the cocktail shaker briefly forgotten in her hands. "A woman?" she changed the subject, sensing he didn't want to elaborate on his work situation. She'd heard about his heroics on the news, saving that young, self-sacrifing doctor and exposing Danzou. Ayame waited for the answer as she handed the waiting customer her drink and watched Kakashi's expression closely. He was so hard to read with that mask in place. A memory of him kissing and tasting her through the damp fabric of his mask seized her momentarily before she shrugged it away. Even in the most intimate of setting, he was still so very guarded. Ayame had long since accepted that she was not the one Kakashi would show his face to.
"You could say that." He shrugged.
"Won't you tell me about her?" She poured him another drink, and made one for herself.
Kakashi sent her long, bored look before giving in with a deep sigh of defeat. "She's perfect. Which obviously puts her leagues ahead of me. She almost got herself killed trying to save me." Pausing for a drink, Kakashi caught the look of recognition in Ayame's eyes and waited for her to refill his glass. "I snapped. I just left her there, bleeding, too busy with my murderous rage to think straight." His hand tightened around the glass.
He felt Ayame's soft, warm hand wrap around his own. "Kakashi, none of this is your fault, it's never been your fault. I sat back and watched you blame yourself into suicidal submission, then let you walk out that door. If that person hadn't saved you.. I don't know what I would've done, Kakashi. Regret is a scary thing. I regret not stopping you. I regret not calling you when I found out about it. I regret not noticing you were hurting. But those regrets don't define me. I know you're burdens are heavy, but everyone's are.."
He pulled his hand away and set it in his lap, ignoring the full, sweating glass in front of him. Listening to how he hurt yet another person close to him caused a wave of nauseous guilt to pulse through him, of course he preferred to keep Ayame and Teuchi at arm's length but for him that was pretty close.
"I haven't even gone to see her."
"Good god, Kakashi." She scoffed, almost laughing. "It's like you give yourself opportunities for regret to fester. Stop being so pathetic and go see her. If she's tough enough to deal with your punk-ass, then she must be worth it."
He thought about it for a moment before standing up. "You're right I guess. Can you call me cab?"
"Not that I condone drunk-driving, but what happened to your wheels?"
"Well, I lost my bike, and my license has been suspended, and my only other option is calling my nurse, and I am not willing to deal with that at the moment." She shook her head, chuckling under her breath at how at ease with the situation he seemed.
...
She was sleeping when he arrived, and if not for the soft beeping indicating her heartbeat, he would have assumed her dead. Her lips were pale, her skin lacking that youthful glow he had grown so fond of. Even in such unforgiving conditions, Sakura still managed to posses an air of exotic beauty about her. The serene look on her face caused Kakashi to see the comically stark contrast to the person she was while awake. Brazen, confident, understanding, short-tempered, playful. Now she looked a certain type of refined and graceful Kakashi had only experienced from her during public events.
He threaded his finger through her soft, surprisingly clean hair and traced the line of her jaw before resting his fingertips on her lips. Sighing, Kakashi stole a glance at the clock and winced. It was well past visiting hours and he was in no mood to be escorted out by security should his inebriated self be noticed.
"You are such an idiot." He murmured, lowering his face to kiss the corner of her mouth through his mask. The soft scent of fresh mouthwash invaded his senses. He listened to her heart monitor and noticed the beats were much too fast for someone he'd assumed to be sleeping. He was losing his touch. "And you're a terrible actress."
A smirk spread across her lips and Kakashi watched, amazed as her eyes fluttered open. The ever-changing emerald hues of her eyes never ceased in keeping him mesmerized. He idly wondered how he managed to carry on conversations with a girl whose eyes were so perfectly entrancing.
"I was wondering when you'd notice, Sherlock." She whispered, sitting up to take a drink of water. "I'd only gotten back in bed a few minutes ago." Sakura wrinkled her nose cutely as she caught a whiff of him. "You smell like a brewery. This is a respected place of healing you know."
"I couldn't help myself."
Sakura scoffed. "From what? Drinking or visiting me? God knows it's not the latter."
She was hurt and Kakashi knew he held no powers here and no valid argument to speak of, thus leaving him vulnerable to her attacks. He opened his mouth to apologize, but she spoke first.
"I was worried, Kakashi. You don't necessarily have the best track record for dealing with your emotions, mainly the ones involving me.." She didn't need to say anymore, her heart seized with the mere idea of continuing her train of thought. "I thought we were over this stuff. When are you going to stop running from me?"
Her eyes were were sharp, and full of longing. Longing for him to get over himself. "I could start with now, I guess." He gave her a weak smile and scratched the back of his head, embarrassed with how corny he sounded.
"You guess?" She ignored the stiffness in her shoulder and crossed her arms over her chest, giving him a stern look. He rolled his eyes.
"I know." She smiled widely in return, but not before punching him with her good arm.
"You'll continue with treatment right?" Her tone worried but firm, leaving no room for argument.
"Of course. I'll need to find a new job. Something very boring." She frowned deeply, causing Kakashi to chuckle, a rich and resonant sound that gave Sakura chills of excitement, making her wish she could see the perfect smile that matched his perfect laugh.
"No more uniform?" Sakura pouted, her girlish voice squeaking with disbelief.
Kakashi tilted his head back slightly to laugh whole-heartedly. This was why he loved being in her presence, he realized. Sakura simply made everything else melt away, all his anxiety, pain, and frustration quickly dissipated after just a small taste of her antics.
"I knew you were checking me out." He teased.
She summoned all of her available strength and shoved him. "As if. I was only appreciating. You were the one who couldn't keep his hands to himself!"
Her efforts to push him away only made him scoot closer towards her and her breath caught in her throat as he began to pull down his mask.
...