Guys I honestly don't know when the next chapter is coming but it won't be any time really soon and I'm sorry about that. I've never been this busy and this broke in my entire life, trust me. I hope the idea that everyone keeps beating Sakura up and sending her in the hospital isn't getting too redundant for you. Don't worry, if it is, we've only got like three more instances in the story and the story is going to be like 40 chapters. Sorry about my ramble, READ AND ENJOY!

Title: Natsu no kōrinoFuyu Kasai (winter's fire summer's ice)

Standard Disclaimer Applied

[Chapter Twenty One]

Sakura closed her locker door and almost had a heart attack with Sasuke standing there. He was leaning on the locker looking ahead of him. His position on the locker was a languid one, very passive and smooth. His left foot was propped on the locker he was leaning on with his arms folded.

"You didn't pick up." He said simply, his voice dead.

Sakura shifted her bag and looked at all the other people staring. "I didn't think I should have."

His jaw tightened. "And why is that?" he demanded.

"It's not fair." She whispered.

Then he snapped, his body moved and she was pressed against the locker with him in front of her. Her hands were pinned to her side, his hands placed on both sides of her head. The locker made a loud sound when his hands hit it with force.

"What would you know about fair?" he demanded his tone low so only she could hear. "Do you think I want any of this to happen? You need to cooperate with me," he seethed.

She swallowed and looked down. "S-Sasuke," she whispered, "you have a girlfriend."

"Is it my fault fate didn't take that into fucking consideration when it placed the most important thing to me inside of your weak body?" he demanded. He was breathing hard and his hands balled into a fist. "Now is not the time to be a Good Samaritan, we were doing perfectly fine before. Why do you have to screw everything up now after I tried so hard?" he gritted.

"What do I have for you?" she asked.

"Does it matter?"

"Why are you doing this?" she whispered, her lips trembling.

He took a deep breath as anger racked over him. "Sakura it's not because I want to kill your self esteem, this is just how it is and you know it. Stop fighting this. This is overbearing for me as it is."

"I don't want this! It's wrong!"

"It's already been decided. There is nothing you can do about it!" he roared his patience thinning.

"Whatever I have you can take it, I don't want it Sasuke!" she screamed, ducking under his arm and running down the hall.

"Fuck!" Sasuke swore his fist connecting with the locker beside Sakura's, leaving a huge dent in it, ripping it off the hinges. He pulled his fist out and watched the locker door clink to the floor. "Fuck!" he fumed, red eyes swallowing up the whole entire world.

Sakura ran down the halls and leaned on the locker, harsh tears rushing down her cheeks. She gasped for air and slid to the floor. Her chest tightened and she cried harder, not caring who walked passed her in the halls and saw her.

How long was she going to act like she didn't need him? She felt so flustered and frustrated. She was such a horrible person. He had a girlfriend and she knew that and so did Fate so why was it doing this to her? She didn't want to ruin a good relationship but she was feeling it in the pit of her stomach how much she wished he was hers and how much all she seemed to want was him and him alone.

It had been a long time and she was trying her best to avoid him and to not get sick even though she wished that he would come around regardless but that too she knew was wrong and tried not to encourage. Without him she was feeling so lost and confused; so distant from the world and everything around her. Why was this happening? Why did she feel such a strong pull to be around him so much? He was taken and she couldn't have him and she cried over this a million and one times. She was a very horrible person for doing all of this.

She wished she had some sort of control over this but she didn't and all she was doing was fighting it. She had nightmares that she had never had before at night. The incident with her on that slab and that amount of pain replayed in her head every time she closed her eyes and she would wake up in cold sweat. She knew she needed him and she was fighting with all she had to just stay away.

When she woke up after she went to bed again in his house she realized how comfortable with him she had gotten and they had almost kissed again. She couldn't keep doing that! It wasn't her place. It was hard to truly avoid him but she was trying her best to.

She didn't really know what was between them but she felt like she was suffocating. She felt like she was forcing herself not to breathe because some way, somehow, Sasuke was her oxygen and he wasn't hers to have.

She took deep breaths and rose from the floor. She walked slowly, steadily back down the halls to get back her things. She knew he wouldn't take them up and a cold shiver ran up her spine as a rage she had never known rammed into her. She gasped and bent over, the air being knocked right out of her. She gasped again as blood leaked from the side of her mouth. She wiped it and staggered back.

The rage was like fire, consuming her down to her last cell. She gasped, grabbing for air as the world flipped like a roller coaster. She shook her body and closed her eyes. She didn't want to feel this either, she didn't want to know that she was trying to please everyone else yet he wasn't pleased; that he was this angry with her. It made her feel horrible inside.

She walked, bumping into people who snorted and sneered at her. She reached her locker and looked at the one next to hers on the other side. It was completely opened. She sighed. She didn't want to do this. She wanted to coil away into herself and allow this puppet master to abolish her and find another empty, soulless vessel to play with and please it to its heart content. She couldn't become one with this puppet master; she couldn't swallow him whole and let him control her like she should. She couldn't absorb this puppet master and faint away in his creases and dark lulling sounds like the bottom of a river, flowing between the spaces of rocks. She just couldn't do it.

She bent and picked up her books and went right to the bathroom. She took of her bag and placed them next to the sink. She washed her hands then her face. She washed out her mouth and the rusty, nasty taste of blood and took a mint. This was so weird how she could feel things like this and how it could rapture some unknown part of her and make her shed blood.

The doors banged open and she jumped, hitting her bag off the counter in the process. She bent down and started picking them up before heels came into her view. She looked up and locked eyes with Tami. She sneered and gripped Sakura by the hair and yanked her up. Her bag fell from her hands as Tami harshly dragged her by her hair out of the bathroom.

"You little whoring bitch." she said in calm anger yanking Sakura down the hall as people stared.

Tami harshly pushed her and Sakura hit into the locker, she slid to the floor. Tami turned, tapping her foot loudly with her heels and glared at Hanabi.

"You better be right about this." Tami spat out venomously.

Hanabi rolled her eyes. "Tami I swear I'm telling the truth, I saw it with my own two eyes right here! She was flirting with him and when he told her he didn't want her she fucking flipped out, screaming like some crazy bitch at him. The fucking bitch is trying to step in between the two of you, are you really going to let her?" Hanabi asked.

Tami whipped around to face Sakura. "You little slut!" she screamed. She marched over to Sakura crumpled on the floor. "Do you think my boyfriend is going to come to your lovely rescue like last time? You think I don't know what you've been up to? You don't want to have me as an enemy I swear it to you because I will fucking walk over you a thousand times and string you on the line of losers to show on display." She threatened bending down to come face to face with Sakura on the floor.

People had gathered all over the halls watching the nasty scene around them. Tami smiled and stood looking at her heels. Sakura scrambled to her feet and pressed herself against the locker. Tami looked at her three friends, standing there and shook her head.

"Hanabi, her," Tami said, "Her! As if I'm stupid!" she fumed.

She turned around and before anyone knew what had happened her hand connected with Sakura's face. Sakura's hand flew to her cheek.

"You vindictive whore!" she screamed. "Listen to me you man stealing worthless tramp. Sasuke is my boyfriend, not yours and no anyone else's. He is mine and if I had my way you wouldn't even be breathing the same air as him. Bitch!" she revved slapping Sakura again. "If I even see you looking at him bad things will happen to you and that is a threat. I will put you in the hospital for days, don't mess with me and things that are mine." She said darkly. "I can't believe I missed you sneaking up under my nose!"

"I told you she was trying to take Sasuke from you." A golden haired girl next to Hanabi said.

"I don't know how you didn't notice." Hanabi said. "I wanted to make sure but this morning when I heard her talking about how she was going to go to Sasuke's house this after noon –as if she even knew where it was- and then when I saw this flirting thing happening and when she flipped out I just knew I had to tell you Tami, I knew I had to. I couldn't keep something like that from you."

Tami took a deep breath and looked at Sakura. She smoothed over her hair and smiled. "Well, you better be careful, you don't want to wake up bald one day, now that would just be horrible." She laughed darkly. She looked around at everyone in the halls. "I'm sure you all have somewhere to be!" she screeched. "Scatter!" she ordered.

They shuffled up and about their business instantly, walking away from her yet making way for Tami and her crew to walk all the same. Sakura knelt on her knees, held her head down with her face in her hands. A metallic and hard taste filled her mouth and she trembled. What just happened?

A hand took hers and pulled it from her face. Sakura gasped and pulled her hand away. She backed away and the girl held her hand up and blinked frightened. Her eyes looked extremely big today with their foggy like essence. Sakura swallowed.

"I'm sorry." She whispered.

Sakura looked up and took a deep breath. She held out her hand timidly and Hinata took it quickly, pulling her to her feet. She grabbed Sakura's bags and books from the floor before smoothing her hand around Sakura's waist. Sakura's hand fell around Hinata's shoulders. Hinata was a bit taller that Sakura and her body was a bit more fuller too.

"I should have warned you," she whispered as they headed down the hall.

"I don't…I uh, I don't know what that was about." Sakura sobbed.

"I do, Neji called me a few minutes ago and told me to check on you but I was too late. I'm so sorry."

"What did I do?"

"You didn't do anything except talk to Sasuke." She whispered. "Do you want to go the nurse and get your face checked out?"

"Uh…no."

"Then I'll look after it for you." she insisted. "They're vicious…I'm sorry I didn't come sooner. Are you alright, you're breathing really heavy."

Sakura forced a smile. "I'm fine." She lied. Her stomach felt like something was clawing her and everything inside of her was turning to stone. "I'm sorry I upset her."

Hinata was silent as they headed down the hall. Sakura thought she was done talking when Hinata took her to the foot ball field benches. They sat on the one up top and Hinata handed her bag to her. Hinata started looking through hers before she stopped and looked at Sakura's bleeding lip. She used the tip of her finger to wipe the blood from the corners of her mouth before she looked at her bloody finger tips. She licked them almost nonchalantly. Sakura stared.

"Don't be creep out; I'm sure you've come to terms with worse." She whispered. "You know, you're the first person besides Neji and a few others that I speak to without stuttering?" she asked.

Sakura shook her head.

"I'm socially awkward." She explained. "You can tell why I guess." She said pulling something out of her bag that Sakura had never seen. She turned to Sakura. "Ahh." She said opening her own mouth in demonstration.

Sakura opened her mouth and Hinata giggled. "You're just too cute." she said. "It should be illegal." She said swabbing inside of Sakura's mouth with something that felt like a feather. Hinata pulled out a gum and gave it to her. "Chew it, it'll heal inside your jaw and stop the bleeding." She said with a small smile.

Then silence took them. Hinata sat down, knees together and hands in her lap. Sakura chewed awkwardly. Hinata scratched her head and looked around.

"I uh, I don't really know what to say to you." she admitted.

Sakura looked down and forced a smile. "I kind of figured." She said.

"I want to thank you but I'm sorry…I didn't mean to do what I had the other day." She said. "I just…it's complicated." She explained.

Sakura nodded. "That's ok."

Hinata looked around and pressing her lips together. "I should tell you the truth…you did help me."

Sakura shook her head. "No that's ok, really it is."

"It's not," Hinata said as if she was about to cry, "I shouldn't lie you know, because I can't and I shouldn't keep this from you, you really helped me I mean and I lashed out at you the other day and practically lost my mind." Now she was bawling her poor white eyes out.

Sakura scooted closer when Hinata's head fell in her hands. She wrapped her hand around her shaking body.

"Hey, it's okay I swear." She whispered. "And whatever is bothering you, it's going to be okay I'm sure."

She was shaking her head. "Y-you don't k-know that! Everyth-ing is just s-so bad!" she sobbed, her body going through a series of shivers. "I'm so afraid." She cried.

Sakura sighed. "I'm sure it's going to be better and it can't be as bad as you think."

"How do you know that?"

"I don't but if you keep thinking about the bad things you'll never make yourself feel any better and living in fear of something doesn't help us in life. I'm sure, no matter what it is, there can be good outcome." She said softly.

"W-why a-are you al-always h-h-here when I n-need somebo-body?" she sobbed.

"I don't know, maybe fate thinks you need somebody." She said holding Hinata close.

She took a deep breath before she rested her head on Sakura's lap. Sakura looked down on her as silence took them over again.

"I envy you humans." She whispered crying. "You have it so easy, nothing to worry about except what to wear to the prom and what college to go to, which guy to date and who to hang out with. So many pedestrian things, nothing too serious. You guys have it so easy I wish I was one of you."

Sakura looked away and forced a smile. So easy Sakura had life. She didn't think she did because she's never worried about things like that but maybe she did have it easy compared to others.

"Aren't you one of us?"

Hinata laughed. "No I'm not. Sasuke told me he talked to you already, I'm Kavazwalian."

Sakura nodded. "Oh,"

"You're not afraid of me are you?"

Sakura shook her head. "I don't discriminate." She said softly.

Hinata laughed. "T-that's a nice way to put it." she smiled. "I've never had a friend before." She admitted. "Everything is just bottled up inside of me, I have no one to talk to."

"You can talk to me," Sakura sighed.

Hinata smiled and took Sakura's hand. She closed her eyes and started to breathe deeply. "I'm sorry for you." she whispered compassionately with her eyes closed.

"Why?" she asked confused

"You should stay away from Sasuke." she breathed out. "But you can't and you won't though it's what you should do. He's a bad person with living darkness coiling inside of him."

"I don't believe that."

Hinata chuckled and her voice wasn't the same. It was lighter, more beautiful and sounded colder. Chills ran up her spine and cold bumps rose on her flesh.

"There is a good in everyone right? That's reserved for humans, not for us." She said. "'When the sun comes to rest, shadows shall awaken from the darkest chest and reveal complexity of ice from another, adjoining power to power and losing the life of one that shall fuse with heaven up under the night and the chest of darkness will come to light.'" She said. Released Sakura's hand instantly and jumped away from her. She took a deep breath to steady herself and not fall over the benches. "You're a magnet." She said.

Sakura looked at her, confused. She didn't know what to say since she had no idea what just happened. Why did all the weird things always happen to her? It's not like she asked for any of this. Hinata looked around nervous.

"This is too weird." She whispered.

"What did I do?"

"You didn't do anything, or at least I don't think so."

"What just happened?"

"I just prophesized." She said distantly. Her head wiped around. "He's coming. I'm going to go and leave you two alone." She said getting up instantly and heading down the benches, almost tripping over her own foot.

Sakura looked but didn't see anyone. She kept looking and soon Sasuke came into view. He stood down at the bottom of the benches before making his way up towards her. Sakura looked down and her heart raced when she felt him in front of her.

"Look at me." he said.

She held her head down and he bent down and held her chin firmly. Her eyes darted around, refusing to meet his gaze.

"Look at me." he commanded. Her eyes trailed to his and he held her gaze firmly.

"I can't." she trembled.

"Why?" he asked. "Why are you so afraid of me all of a sudden?" he asked, his voice low and pleading.

"You can feel it can't you?" she asked.

"But I don't know why." he said. "You have to tell me that."

"It's not right. I don't want this between us."

"You're lying."

"I-I," she ripped away from him and slid away on the bench. She took a deep breath and looked at him. "I don't know you and I'm not your girlfriend, I'm even close to who she is so why are you making me feel this way? I don't need any more reason to want to be here! I don't need another reason to be angry with life!" she cried out flustered, her head falling into her lap. "I don't need any more reasons to want to stay here when I can't. It's not fair!"

He sat down next to her. "What do you mean?"

"Don't you get it?" she sobbed. "Sasuke by this time next year I won't be here! I'll be dead! I don't want any of this! I don't want things I can't have."

He was silent for a long time and took a deep breath. "You don't want to talk about this. I know that, but all you have to do is cooperate Sakura, that's all I'm asking."

"I've been trying." She bawled.

"But?"

"I can't anymore." she said strained. "I just can't Sasuke, I can't do it."

"I'm not taking anything from you Sakura."

"It feels that way."

"Because you keep pulling away." he said softly. "You keep trying to get away when you get this far and it doesn't work that way; not with us."

"There is no us,"

"There is and the sooner you accept that, the better." He said coldly. "This isn't a game stop treating it like it is. Just suck up whatever is holding you back and do your part. You're not the only one who hates this."

"I'll pick up next time." she said taking her bag.

He looked up at her, stunned by her sudden change. "Stop lying to me." he said rolling his eyes sadly.

She nodded and headed down the steps and ran off. He watched her go and sighed again. This was just so frustrating.

Sakura wiped the stupid tears from her eyes and took a deep breath. She didn't want this to happen yet it did and she didn't know how to deal with it. She couldn't explain how much inside of her heart cracked at how she had to walk away from him. He had a hold on her that was tearing her fragile heart apart.

Ino was waiting for her out front. Sakura brushed past her and got into the car. Ino went over to her quickly and got in as Sakura buckled her seatbelt.

"Hey, slow down, what's wrong?" she asked.

Sakura sniffed and wiped the tears. "I don't want to talk about it." she whispered.

"But Sakura-"

"Ino please," she teared up, "I just…don't want to talk about it. Please take me home."

Ino nodded and started the engine. Ino took Sakura home and Sakura thanked her and went inside. She took a shower and put on her PJ's before throwing her sobbing body into the bed. She cried until she fell asleep.

The sun was bright, beaming down on her so hard her eyes hurt. She was looking out at clear waters and she shivered. She knew this place. She had been here before hadn't she? She glanced down at herself and realized she was in those same clothes she had been in the last time she was in the tropical heaven.

"You came back." A smooth voice said.

She jumped and feelings ran through her body. She looked down between them to see that they were holding hands. The squeezed his hand in the sand and he squeezed her responded. She felt like she had come home somehow. She turned and looked ahead of her.

"I came back." She confirmed. "What are you looking at?"

"The moon has gone behind a blood cloud…it's the closest thing to heaven as it gets here." he replied. "What are you looking at?"

"The water, it's so pretty here."

He chuckled. "If you want to say that." he responded his voice ice cold chills. "Why are you hiding?" he asked after a moment.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm sure you know." he whispered.

She looked down at her lap. She did know but she couldn't understand how he knew too. He felt like home, everything about him. She felt like she had known him since time began that he too knew her for that long if not longer. She felt like she was shielding her soul from him and it sent guilt welling inside of her. She knew this boy mentally and emotionally, though physically she didn't even know what he looked like.

"I'm afraid of making a mountain of mistakes." She whispered.

"Hiding won't make it go away." he told her.

"I know, I just…don't know what to do. I don't want to come between anyone but even then I still end up messing things up. I'm afraid things are only going to get worse. I don't to get attached to things I can't have, things that aren't mine, I'm trying so hard to not prove everyone who puts me down right and I'm failing." she said, opening up herself to him.

He nodded, his head still aimed at the sky above them. She felt that pull towards him, a pull from inside of her body; deep inside. The wind brushed soothingly against her body, calming any nerves she had before. She felt safe here, comfortable holding his hands, not wanting to let go. He held on tightly to her too, not letting go but not holding on too tight so she couldn't pull her hand away if she wanted to.

"Crush your fear and burn it inside the depths of the hate untouched in your heart then throw the ashes away." he told her. "That is what you must do or you won't move forward."

"I'm scared. I don't want to-"

"You can't please everyone and Heaven is no place for fear and uncertainty." He said coldly.

"I'm not brave, I'm not courageous, it's not that easy." She told him honestly.

"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear." He quoted. "Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain." He told her coldly.

Though his voice was cold and smooth his words though were warm and wrapped around her, comforting her. Why was it that this man who she has never seen knew what to say to her? How did he do something like that? Why were they trapped in two different worlds?

"Why aren't you here with me?" she asked, her voice wavering with emotions.

He turned his head to the opposite side of her as if he had heard something from somewhere. Though they were in different worlds, she couldn't help but look too. She didn't see anything but she hadn't really expected to.

"I am in hell because it is where I belong. I've sent my own soul here." he replied. "I am dark inside of my heart and darkness cannot dwell anywhere else but in hell just as the good is cast aside and thrown on the side of heaven." He said. "I'm evil as you are good."

"Like Ying and Yang?"

"Exactly like that." he confirmed. "Do you like it here?"

"It is nice." She said. "I am sorry that you cannot see what I see."

"So am I but such is the way of the worlds that bind us to ourself." He shrugged. "I want to take you for a walk, you are more than stability to me but I cannot."

"Why not?"

"It is time for you to go." He said.

She frowned and her heart wrenched painfully. "I don't want to go. I want to stay here."

"You can't."

She looked down and her eyes casted teary shadows. "I belong here, not out there where everything is so complicated and all I seem to do is make things worse."

"You belong with reality, not in dream mentality." He said. "You'll come back won't you?"

"I want to, I promise I will. I don't want to leave you."

"And I don't want you to leave me either but, that's just how it is."

"Will you miss me?"

"You are all I think about here." he admitted. "You are all I want here, I need nothing else."

"So why don't you let me stay?"

"Because though you can give me all that I need, I cannot do the same for you and leaving pride aside, you don't know how much I wish I was able to satisfy you. Your life isn't here, you know that. You should go."

"But-"

"You know what to do." he said dismissing her.

She squeezed his hand and everything went blank.

Sakura's body launched up with a start and she was bawling hysterically. She felt like she'd just lost a piece of herself. What was this dream doing to her? After she sat there, crying her eyes out she felt grainy and gritty. She scampered out of bed and looked at her sand covered feet and her bathing suit. The last time this happened, when she came back home from hanging with Sasuke they were gone.

Sasuke. She thought and her throat closed up as a sob got stuck there. She struggled but made way to her bathroom and got cleaned up. Her body wouldn't stop shaking and the painful void inside of her chest seemed to echo with its own emptiness. Had she made a terrible decision by doing this? She didn't want to hurt him and he was trying hard, he had tried so hard to get them where they were.

When she came out of the bathroom and sat on the edge of her bed, her hair tangled behind her with tears falling from her eyes there was loud BANG on her door. She jumped and her room door flung open with a BAM as Atona stormed in her eyes red.

"You slut!" she screeched throwing one of the two champagne bottles she had right into the wall.

It shattered instantly, sending splinters and its liquid flying about. Sakura jumped from her bed quickly, trying to get as far away as possible from Atona. What in the world was this now? She was seething, rage consuming every single part of her. She waved the other bottle around manically as she marched closer. Sakura swallowed, fear clamping her small body in place.

"You mother fucking whoring ass bitch!" she screamed. "I told you, I told you to stay AWAY FROM THEM!" she barked sailing the champagne bottle right into Sakura's abdomen. It shattered there, the splinters embedding into her flesh as the alcoholic substance seeped through her clothes. The force of the full bottle sent her almost flying into the wall.

She screamed painfully as she tumbled to her knees, falling with a hard and painful thud and a sickening crackle from the joints on the fallen splinters. Pain surged through her body, up her spin and her abdomen blazed with the fires of hell. She fell on her back writhing in pain on the floor, the glass shards cutting into her stomach with each minute movement. She didn't even have time to scream, the sudden shock of everything silencing her.

"I'm teaching you a lesson you dumb ass bitch! Do you really think you can take Sasuke from me when I'm so close to getting him? You're fucking sick in your self-centered head! Sasuke is fucking mine and you think I want you trailing him like a love sick puppy, talking up to him in the halls like you know him? You're not even good enough to be the floor he walks on! What makes you think he wants you huh? WHAT MAKES YOU THINK HE WANT'S YOU!?" she screamed like some crazy psycho manic. "I hope you fucking bleed to death right fucking here, teach you to mess with a chick like me." she sneered storming out.

Sakura rolled painfully, muscles clamping around the glass in her body and the ones in her back sinking in. She looked at her red hands and her body shivered. She coughed the pain so intense she couldn't see clearly anymore. The world was spinning like a moving wheel. She felt the darkness and numbness begin to take over and she struggled, she struggled so hard to not let it consume but it was in vain when she went unconscious.

I hope this chapter was good enough for you guys, I hope you enjoyed it and all of that. I hope you guys keep supporting me. I swear, you guys are my backbone sometimes and I want to say thank you to everyone who has supported me this far, reviewed, followed, favorite and alerted and everything else you can suddenly do with this new FF that we've got swinging here

Deep, endless love,

D.V