So I'm back! It's been a rough quarter for me and all my friends so this three-week break is much appreciated. And I've noticed that it's just in time for Christmas, so my last chapter fits pretty well! To be honest, I had no inspiration at all in the time I spent studying, but I did my best to provide a chapter!

Sakura twiddled her thumbs, tapping her foot absently on her stool. What could she say to him? She barely wrapped the fact that Sasuke wanted to marry her around her head. Not this bullshit again. It was starting to get very tiresome. But she hadn't told Gaara simply because she was afraid that he wouldn't take it the right way, if there was a right way to take that sort of news.

Gaara turned his attention back to his drink, sipping idly as he waited for her to speak. He had already accepted that the two weren't going to split. In fact, he felt happy for her. There was no way in hell he was going to be happy for the Uchiha, that was a pride issue that he wasn't going to get over because he wanted it to stay that way.

At Sakura's silence, he chuckled over the rim. "I told you I can't get over you."

She sighed, not meaning to. "Gaara…"

"It's all right, Sakura," he interrupted smoothly. "I wanted to congratulate you."

Her eyes bugged. "Really?" she blurted before she could stop her voice from cracking. She smacked her forehead as he laughed at her. He cleared his throat.

"Really. I'm happy for you. Uchiha loves you. You love him. I love you, but you only love me like a friend. It's not fair to you or me if we get back together again." She sighed deeply, staring into her tea mug.

"I've been selfish to you. You've done so much for me and I'm off with Sasuke. But I can't stop loving him," she admitted, smiling softly as she thought about the younger Uchiha.

"I don't expect you to. I did whatever I could for you because you mean a lot to me. You're my friend and I don't expect you to do anything drastic for me in return. You already do a lot for me." He took her hand and smiled gently at her, her heart lifting in relief. "I'd rather have you as a friend than not having you at all."

She had to laugh. This wasn't like him to be so…cheesy.

"I think you need to stop watching so many dramas," she joked lightly. "They're ruining your image."

He smirked. Now they were back on acceptable terms and it felt right that they were friendly instead of loving.

"It's not my fault that's all Ino and Hinata watch." Sakura laughed earnestly and finished the rest of her tea, getting up to place her mug into the sink. Her chest that had felt an overwhelming amount of pressure was now relaxed. Seeing Gaara no longer brought up little innocent feelings of love like she had when they were together years ago. Back then, the two were cautious with their love for one another because they were shy with how to act without scaring the other. Now she had Sasuke, someone who was forward with his feelings for her, she had seen that she didn't have to hold anything back with him. Thinking about marriage with him didn't make her uncertain about the future. She just didn't care as long as it was with him.

Gaara turned his attention back to his water, a bold idea suddenly springing in his mind. A secret smirk formed on his lips as he drank. As Sakura walked past behind him to head to her room, he called out to her.

"Sakura." She turned, a bright smile on her face. His hand reached out and grabbed her wrist, yanking her forward to him. Sakura gasped out his name as she was forced towards him, hand shooting out to catch herself as her face was close to his. His other arm, now healed with just a cast over his arm, was raised so that it rested under her chin, fingers pushed up so her head didn't droop. His forehead rested on hers like they were intimate, his breath mingling with hers. He smirked.

"Sorry. I wanted to try something different," he admitted, letting her go. Sakura's heart hammered in her chest from being so close to him. It wasn't like him to be so rough on her.

"Did it feel right to you?" she asked bitterly, more out of giving her a heart attack than that near-kiss they almost shared. He shook his head and shuddered a little.

"No. It felt like I was taking advantage of you. I'm sorry for that." His face showed regret as he turned away from her. She sighed and smiled a little, giving him a pity hug from behind.

"You could never do that. Good night, Gaara." She squeezed comfortingly and walked upstairs, leaving him feeling glad that he could move on.

~~The Day of the Party~~

Sasori inspected Sakura in the rose-red dress he had made for her, the fabric soft on her skin and folds that looked sophisticated across her breasts and down her legs. Sasori had tied a ribbon right under her chest and formed a bow in the back with a hibiscus diamond brooch on her front.

"You look gorgeous, my diamond blossom," he purred, kissing her cheek and moving to look at her friends. Sakura blushed and looked in the mirror, loving how she looked. Her hair was pulled back and pinned into a neat bun with the stray strands curled around her face.

Hinata joined her at the mirror to add blush on her face, smoothing down her sky blue gown that was accented with shiny pearls with her long hair flowing like her dress. The fabric was bunched up together with pearls like anchors and shone with threads of silver.

Tenten wore a peridot dress with fan-like folds all around that dropped to her ankles. A cream-colored pearl necklace rested around her neck along with a trio of gold bracelets on her wrists. Her signature buns now had little ribbons wrapped around them.

Ino was straightening out her royal purple trumpet dress with diamond sparkles stemming from the top of her right thigh that moved with the crinkles of the skirt. Her long platinum blonde hair was up in a ponytail that glimmered in the light and with complicated curls down her back. She frowned as Sasori drew near with a glare on his face.

"What's with that face?" she demanded. He looked like he wasn't focusing on her, but as if his mind drifted elsewhere.

"Nothing. It doesn't concern you." Sakura pouted, coming up to his side and hugging him.

"What's wrong, Sasori?" she asked quietly. He smiled a little, still trying to cope with the fact that his little cousin no longer needed him now that she had Sasuke taking care of her.

"Nothing, my dove."

They all entered the Akatsuki showroom that was decorated for the party. Everything was silver, snow white and sapphire blue. The ground was white with a brush of snow, the chairs silver, the tablecloths blue. Each table had a vase with silver branches protruding out like a drooping tree, green and red ornaments with shining lights. The dance floor remained in front of a stage where an orchestra was playing.

Itachi and Sasuke stood with their parents greeting the guests. Both brothers were in formal black, but Itachi wore a dark green dress shirt while Sasuke went with red. The Sabaku brothers had gone ahead of Sakura and her friends to greet the Uchihas. Gaara wore a dress shirt similar to Sasuke's while Kankuro went with a dark purple. The older Sabaku shook hands with Fugaku and passed his father's thanks to him and Itachi. Gaara kissed Mikoto's hand, the matriarch wearing a red ruffled gown reminiscent to flower petals and snowflake diamonds sparkling on the skirt and top. Her pashmina covered her shoulders modestly as she moved.

"Mrs. Uchiha. I heard that you planned this entire party. Everything looks perfect," he commented. A ghost of a smile reached her lips.

"How kind of you to say so. Thank you for coming. I hope you enjoy yourselves." He smiled and bowed to them, then locked eyes with Sasuke. The glares were exchanged normally and the brothers left to their table. Mikoto reached up to poke Sasuke in the forehead, smiling when the annoyed glare turned to her.

"Ara, don't make that face or it'll get stuck that way!" she scolded motherly. She giggled. "You could cut that tension with a knife!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes and relaxed visibly as Sakura and her friends came to them. He held his breath as Sakura walked up to him first, looking beautiful in her dress. He leaned forward and kissed her softly on the mouth.

"You look beautiful, Sakura." She smiled as he pulled her to his chest, nuzzling into his neck.

"Thank you." Mikoto watched them and inwardly squealed, grinning at her stone-faced husband. But she quickly cleared her throat to kiss the cheeks of Sakura's friends. Sakura pulled away when Ino grabbed her arm, making their way to their table. Her warmth slid away from Sasuke, the male frowned inwardly as she walked away with a child-like smile on her face.

His mother nudged him playfully. "I expect you to ask her to dance later, Sasuke. You can't let a lady like that be swarmed with men the rest of the night."

Itachi grabbed Sasuke's arm and began to drag him away from their parents. "He knows, Mother."

He turned to Sasuke as they walked away from Mikoto's now-frowning face. "I figured you don't want her bugging you the rest of the night."

He led them to Naruto, Shikamaru and Neji at their table. Neji and Shikamaru wore white dress shirts with their suits while Naruto had on a dark orange shirt with his. The blonde was nervously looking around, sweat mapping his scalp as he rocked in his seat. Sasuke raised a brow at his odd behavior.

"What is wrong with you? You look like a nervous wreck." Shikamaru scowled.

"He's been like that all day. I had to drag his ass here," muttered Shikamaru. Itachi handed Naruto a glass of water off the table. Naruto didn't look at him as he took it, his eyes focusing directly in front of him to where Hinata and Ino were talking and eating snacks.

"Oh, I know now," said Itachi calmly, his eyes shining with amusement. "His ring hasn't been delivered yet and now he can't propose. That's quite a problem."

Sasuke glared at Naruto, who looked like he was going to cry. The blonde glared back at him.

"Don't make fun of me, teme! I'm freaking out right now!" Sasuke growled.

"Then wait for the ring to come in, that's it. This is your fault for waiting too late. Hinata's not going to care about how you propose. Hell, you can give it to her in your apartment and she would be happy about it. Stop killing the mood," barked Sasuke. Naruto sunk further into his chair, the dread building when he realized that he wouldn't be able to pull off his perfect proposal.

"If any of you decide to propose tonight, at least wait until we're done eating so I don't throw up." Sasori walked up to their table, not hiding his boredom and disdain from them. Most of it was aimed at Sasuke, who took a deep breath. He couldn't exactly get into a fight with Sakura's cousin.

"Are you insulting us?" he breathed. Sasori chuckled.

"Yes. Very spot on, Uchiha."

"This motherfucker…" muttered Sasuke and his friends.

Since most of the party was about dancing, Sakura and her friends remained on their feet for most of the night. They danced in their own little circle away from the rest of the couples so that no one would be brave enough to take one of them away.

Naruto was still a jittering pile of bones, stirring his drink while the rest of them talked and ate. His mother and father were sitting at a table with Sasuke, Neji, and Shikamaru's parents. He had wanted it to be special, especially for Hinata with his family watching. She had deserved it because she stuck with him for so long even when her father had rejected their relationship for the first six months. On Christmas, Hyuuga Hiashi had finally let up and accepted their relationship. Kushina was similar to Mikoto in a sense where she wanted Naruto to get married to Hinata soon. Only she would care about how he was going to propose since Minato did for her. Well, he'd just have to wait for it to snow again next week once his ring finally delivers.

Sasuke smiled to himself as he watched Sakura dance in her dress, the biggest grin on her face as she twirled with Tenten. Neji nudged Sasuke's arm, a grim look on his face as he made a move to get up. Shikamaru cursed under his breath as he too got out of his chair.

"We have to dance," said Neji emotionlessly. Sasuke scoffed.

"What do you mean 'we have to dance'?" Neji motioned to their parents' table. Kushina, Mikoto and Yoshino were pinning their sons with warning eyes, pointing to the girls who continued to dance guilelessly. Neji's mother wasn't paying much attention to the girls, but inclined her head to her son to have fun.

The orchestra stopped playing their upbeat song and transitioned to a slower, gentler tune perfect for couples. The girls stopped dancing, looking at each other in confusion.

"Dammit, I knew this would happen," muttered Tenten. "We can't exactly dance together with this music."

"U-umm, we could ask the boys do dance," whispered Hinata. Ino made a face.

"No way. Girls don't ask guys to dance like this. Besides, there's a bigger chance of me turning into a brunette than that lazy ass asking me to dance. I'm just going to go back to our table." Ino let go of Tenten and Hinata and was about to go back to her seat until Shikamaru appeared in front of her with a smirk on his face.

"Do you want to dance with me?" Ino's eyes widened. She was about to say yes until she laughed and turned away.

"Nope! I'm tired!" He twitched.

"Well, too damn bad! It took all I had to get up from my chair." He grabbed her arm and led her away, Ino winked at them and gave them a thumbs up.

Naruto tapped Hinata's shoulder, looking strangely depressed in his girlfriend's eyes.

"A-are you all r-right, Naruto?" she asked, her hand on his cheek. He sighed.

"Not really…" She smiled sympathetically.

"Would a dance cheer you up?" He sniffed.

"I hope so." He took her hand and joined the other couples. Sakura and Tenten waved happily at her. Sasuke and Neji charged forward and grabbed their respective partners and to the dance floor. Tenten smirked at Neji.

"What, no formal-"

"No," interrupted Neji. Tenten rolled her eyes.

"Of course I get the most unromantic guy in the whole building."

Sasuke held Sakura by her waist, his other hand clasped around her right. "May I have this dance?" he asked formally.

Her eyes shimmered with mischief. "What if I say no?" she challenged. He gave her a sly smile, wrapping his arm around further and pulling her forward.

"Then we're going to have to do something later that you can't refuse," he whispered into her ear. He nuzzled her neck and let his tongue slip out for a mere second to lick her neck and nibbled before moving away as if it never happened. Sakura held her breath at their closeness, easing into his arms as they danced slowly.

She rested her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat as they danced. She could fall asleep like this every night, her against him, his warm hands caressing her skin as they moved fluidly through the crowd.

Sasori and Itachi sat with Kisame, Deidara and their other friends from Akatsuki. Sasori had not dropped his scowl for the last hour now. He sipped the third flute of champagne at the table, ignoring the conversations his friends were having. Itachi patted his shoulder.

"Your porcelain angel is in good hands, Sasori. Relax." Sasori narrowed his eyes.

"Oh, she's definitely in hands right now," he replied sarcastically, eyeing the offending appendages the younger Uchiha rubbed all over his little blossom. He finished the champagne when Itachi stood up.

"I'm going to be releasing the snow for the dance floor. I guess it's something romantic for the mood. Want to come?" Sasori sighed tiredly and got up to stretch a bit.

"Fine."

"Remember our first dance, Sasuke?" asked Sakura, looking up at him. He twirled her and pulled her back against him again. How could he forget? That was the first time he thought of her as a girlfriend instead of a summer girl he would let go of once it was a good time to move on. Now he never wanted to let go.

"At my family's summer party almost three years ago. You were wearing white that day," he added. She blinked.

"You remembered that much?"

"I happen to have plenty of pictures from that day," he answered smoothly, deciding it wouldn't be himself to spill his heart out.

"We've had a lot of happy memories, Sasuke. I want to remember this one always." She hugged him as they swayed from side to side. He smirked against her neck. Maybe he would pull out the ring earlier than he first thought. He looked up to the ceiling to see if any snow had released, but instead saw a sprig of mistletoe hanging from red and green ribbons that twisted together with gold glitter dusted on the plant. He smirked. This was obviously his mother's plan.

He stopped their dance, nodding up to the ceiling when she looked confused.

Sakura looked up and couldn't help but giggle girlishly at the sight of the mistletoe. He kept smirking at her, leaning down to kiss her. She immediately responded but flinging herself further into his arms and pressing her mouth to his in a hot kiss.

Snow gently fell from the ceiling to the dance floor, leaving the rest of the guests to admire the scene. Mebuki sighed dreamily as she saw her daughter kissing the boy she was confident would be her son-in-law. The snow coated Sakura's hair and dress just right so it looked romantic as they gazed at each other with loving eyes after their kiss. Well, Sasuke's were harder to notice, but Sakura was practically glowing. Beside her, Kizashi hummed harshly in thought, bringing her out of her thoughts.

"What is it?" she asked, a little put off by the harsh face her husband had. He suddenly grinned.

"Looks a lot like salt!" he said loud enough for Sakura's family to hear. Mebuki growled.

"Was that supposed to be a joke?!" she nearly shouted, whacking his shoulder.

Gaara watched Sakura and Sasuke from his spot at the table, declining anyone who wanted him to dance with them. That deep hatred he once held from seeing them together was now just a weak longing for the love they had for each other. He smiled to himself and lifted his wineglass to his lips. 'What a wedding those two will have.'

Naruto had gotten even more nervous when the snow fell, Hinata shaking her head to get some off the soft flakes off.

"The snow is lovely," she said conversationally as they continued to dance. Naruto looked at Hinata, the snow falling on them reminded him of the night the two became serious. It was a snowy night at the park. Hinata had clung to him for warmth as they walked through the street lamps and that was when Naruto asked her to officially become his girlfriend. Then their dates would have meaning, it was a lot of commitment on his part as that meant he was letting go off his old habits of unserious relationships where he left a string of broken hearts. Seeing Hinata with the perfect snowfall made him struggle to speak.

"I-I…Hinata…" They stopped dancing, Hinata looking at him with concern.

"Naruto? Are you unwell?" He didn't bother answering her. He wanted to tell her that he loved her. But that didn't happen. Oh no. He blabbed out the one thing he swore not to say until the time was right.

"WILL YOU MARRY ME?!" he screamed in her face. She jumped back, her hands flying over her mouth as her heart raced. The music stopped at his outburst. The dancing stopped too. Shikamaru, Neji and Sasuke all thought the same thing. 'That fucking idiot.'

Sakura looked at Tenten and Ino excitedly, all three girls almost gasping. 'No way!'

Kushina, who was chatting with Mikoto, sprang from her seat with the female Uchiha.

"Who said that?!" she whispered breathlessly. Minato withdrew from his conversation with Fugaku at the sound of Naruto's voice.

Naruto ignored the stares he was getting from everyone, focusing only on Hinata. His girlfriend was trembling with fear and happiness, still shaken from his screaming. He grinned at her, scratching the back of his head.

"Uh, I need to do that over!" he announced, getting some chuckles. He got down on one knee, completely ignoring the fact that one needed a ring or something when they planned on proposing. He grabbed Hinata's hand and looked right into her pearl eyes. At her table, Kushina was gushing and grabbing her husband's arm.

"Will you marry me?" asked Naruto. Hinata was already nodding, tearfully saying 'yes' over and over. He quickly got to his feet and kissed her deeply, lifting her off the ground.

"What?!" shouted Mikoto in disbelief, surprised that Naruto was the first of their children to propose.

"YES! My kid first!" squealed Kushina, happily dancing in place while Mikoto sat back in her chair with a jealous scowl. Minato chuckled nervously at the stares they were getting, reaching up to stop her.

"My love-" Kushina's eyes sharpened.

"Not. Now."

As his mother celebrated along with the party continuing, Naruto set Hinata back on her feet. The two were completely ecstatic. Sasuke shook his head.

"That idiot proposed without the ring," he muttered. Sakura broke off from watching the two to him.

"What do you mean?" He dragged her to Naruto and Hinata, the others joining them.

"Congratulations and all, but where's the ring, dobe?" asked Sasuke. Naruto's eyes bugged out of its sockets. He grabbed his hair.

"Aaa-!" Sasuke and Shikamaru covered his mouth with their hands. Ino took a deep breath to keep herself from screaming her head off.

"So…you're telling me that you don't have a ring, Naruto?!" she raged, her curls bouncing as she moved into a tantrum. Naruto sheepishly laughed.

"Heh heh…i-it just came out…" Hinata shook her head.

"I-it's okay! I…I'm really happy!" she said tearfully. Itachi approached them, clapping a hand on Naruto's shoulder.

"Congratulations, Naruto. Here's a gift." Itachi pulled out a small box from his pocket and dropped it in his hand, retreating back to his table. Naruto's eyes watered, heart drumming as he opened the box. The engagement ring he wanted shone brightly in the light, the snow dotting the top of the aquamarine gemstone.

"The ring!" Realization crashed on his shoulders, rage replacing the nervousness from before. "Hey! That means Itachi had my ring the whole time I was waiting! Get back here, you bastard!" he shouted, trying to run after him. Neji held him back by his shoulders.

"Forget him! Don't you want to give something to Hinata?" Naruto raged for another second, steaming down to a sigh.

"Yes…" Hinata waited patiently with a smile on her face, her friends in awe of the pretty ring Naruto had in his hand. Naruto turned to her and plucked the ring out of its case, taking her hand and slipping the ring on her finger.

By the end of the party, Kakashi appeared at Fugaku's side.

"Sir, the car is ready." Fugaku nodded.

"Thank you, Kakashi. We will be going to the Uzumaki mansion tonight and will return home well into the afternoon tomorrow." Mikoto brightened. That meant that their home would be vacant.

"That gives me an idea!" She turned to Itachi, who looked like he was waiting for orders. "Itachi, dear. Why don't you invite Sasuke and his friends to stay at our home? That way the driver won't have to stop at so many houses. We have plenty of room."

Itachi nodded. "If that is what you wish, Mother." Fugaku scoffed.

"What's the point in that?" She turned to him with a sly smile.

"Oh, you'll find out tomorrow."

"Thanks for letting us stay over at your family's house, Itachi!" said Sakura, her friends talking to each other and admiring Hinata's ring. Sasuke stared out the window. What was his mother planning? She hated guests staying over at the house. He looked at Itachi, who was telling Sakura it was no big deal, but his brother was unreadable. Again.

"You all will sleep in the guest rooms. I don't care. I sleep in mine, no one get near my parents'. Sasuke will get his and two of you can share a room each. No one will sleep with their boyfriend or girlfriend, no one wants to hear that at night," said Itachi, opening the front door.

"We're not teenagers, Itachi," muttered Neji. Itachi stared at him with death-like eyes.

"You're all younger than I am and this is technically my house. So if you don't listen, I'll bury you in my garden." Neji growled.

"Fine, fine. Christ…"

Sakura and Hinata picked one of the guest rooms, Hinata curling on her bed and giggling happily. Her ring was still shining in the light.

"I'm getting married," she whispered for the millionth time, wiping her eyes. Sakura grabbed her hand and sighed in content as she looked the ring over.

"The ring is amazing, Hinata. You'll be a beautiful bride." Hinata rolled on the bed and stretched like a cat, sighing dreamily.

"Thank you, Sakura. I can't wait until you get married too!" Sakura's eyes widened, a blush rising to her cheeks.

"I think he's the one," she whispered. Hinata bounced to her side and gave her a sisterly squeeze. How amazing it would be for Sasuke to propose to Sakura. She couldn't help but dream about her friends being happy with their boyfriends like she was with Naruto.

"I think so too."

Ino, Shikamaru, Naruto and Hinata were downstairs watching TV on the couch. Tenten and Neji were having coffee in the kitchen. Itachi was in his room ignoring the others. Sakura didn't see Sasuke anywhere. He must have gone to bed because no one had seen him. But that didn't matter. Her feet were sore from dancing in her heels all night. She had the idea to use the hot spring Mikoto had installed instead of a hot tub. With the herbs and moisturizer in the water, it was perfect for soothing her aching muscles.

Because she had no bathing suit with her and Itachi had only lent her and her friends pajamas and clothes to take for tomorrow, she had only a towel wrapped around her to get into the steaming spring. She dipped one foot in, groaning in content at the warm water in the chilly evening. She jumped right in and let the water slosh onto her shoulders as she relaxed onto the rocks. Mikoto had left a bunch of robes hanging on the wall for her to grab later when she was done.

As she closed her eyes to relax, she suddenly noticed Sasuke gazing up in the sky while lying on a chair of his backyard gazebo. He looked lost in though. Maybe he was thinking about work?

"Sasuke?" she called out. He jerked, sitting up and looking around to see who called him. He smiled at the sight of Sakura in the hot spring. He was thinking about how he was going to give her the ring. Naruto's idea was ingenious. Now he had to think of something for her.

He got up from the chair and walked over to her side by the hot spring.

"Isn't it too cold to be outside with no clothes on?" he teased. She leaned back on the rocks.

"I don't care, I'm sore all over." Sasuke smirked and proceeded to take his shirt off. She jumped back, sliding further into the water.

"W-what are you doing?!" she shouted, quickly lowering her voice so the others wouldn't hear. "You just said it was cold!"

"If I join you, it won't be," he replied smoothly, leaving only his boxers on and sliding into the spring. She made room for him, curling against his side as he put his arm around her. She looked over at the others inside, hoping no one would call them out since coming out in a flimsy towel in the cold wasn't the best idea. Why didn't she think this through?

"Did you enjoy yourself today?" he asked, cutting her out of her thoughts.

"Yeah, I did. Everything was beautiful. And Naruto and Hinata both look so happy." Sasuke had to agree. Naruto deserved it. His dumbass friend was the first to propose and the bravest of his friends to finally make a commitment.

"One day, we'll know exactly how they feel." She shook her head.

"I know how it's like to be with someone I love." She smiled up at him, leaving him speechless. Instead, he kissed her, taking it further this time by gently prying her mouth open and slipping his tongue in. She let out a moan, missing the intimacy they shared months ago. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her forward, his hand tugging at the towel. His other hand slipped past her bum and in between her legs, her heart fluttering. He lifted her up so she was straddling him, the chilly air causing her to shiver along with Sasuke's hot touch.

"I don't care how happy you two are. You are not having sex in my house." They leapt away from each other, slamming their backs on the stones of the hot spring. They hissed in pain, their hearts beating erratically as they quickly looked around to see if anyone was watching them. Sakura dunked her body up to her chin to keep the rest of herself hidden. The voice was coming from inside.

"Get some clothes on," Sasuke said hurriedly, jumping out to grab the robes off the wall. Sakura squeaked from the cold as she got out, the towel clinging to her like a second skin. Sasuke passed her another robe and went red when he saw the towel showing off her curves. She glared.

"Don't look at me like that!" she scolded, taking the robe and covering up. He smirked.

"I've seen you in less." He ran out ahead before she could react.

Itachi had pulled Naruto and Hinata away from each other, who were both making out on the couch. Shikamaru looked appalled.

"Really, guys? Right next to us?" he asked, Ino cackling in his lap. Itachi was disgusted.

"And on my parents' couch no less. Have you no shame? Try this again and you'll be outside." Hinata was bowing her head repeatedly.

"We're sorry! We weren't thinking about that!" she squeaked. Itachi rolled his eyes.

"Of course. Now get off the couch." The couple scrambled off. Sasuke and Sakura were now inside where it was warm, causing Itachi to glare at them next.

"What were you two doing?"

"Hot spring," they said in unison. He was still suspicious, noting that they were both out of breath.

"Were you doing anything in there besides bathing?" he asked slowly. They looked at each other, Sakura praying he wouldn't say anything stupid.

"No!" she said quickly.

"Yes," he said coolly.

"Ooh," said Ino unhelpfully, sticking her tongue out when Sakura fumed. Itachi smirked.

"Trying to lie to me, Sakura? Sasori would be so upset that his cherished pearl is so deceptive." She sighed.

"We weren't doing anything that bad…" she muttered, even though that was a lie. Ino crawled out of Shikamaru's lap and peered over the couch. Her eyes glimmered like they did whenever juicy gossip was around.

"'That bad', huh? Then tell us what you were really doing there, forehead. Or maybe you were doing something like what happened in Shower Sluts 9." Sakura had enough. Seeing red, she lunged forward and grabbed Ino by the hair.

"Ino-pig, you bitch!" she screeched, pulling the curls. Ino screamed back.

"Ow, let go!" Sasuke and Shikamaru grabbed their lovers and pulled them back to stop them. Tenten and Hinata ran to help them, trying to sooth the girls to stop fighting.

Sakura sat on her bed with a pout in her pajamas. Hinata ran a comb through her hair to get her to calm down.

"Were you doing anything with Sasuke?" she asked quietly. Sakura rarely ever lied to Hinata. She sadly looked up to her innocent friend.

"Yes." Hinata smiled.

"Well at least you didn't get caught by Itachi. He can be very strict." Sakura groaned and fell onto the mattress.

"I'm not worried about him. He's gonna tell Sasori and he'll nag me to death…" Hinata giggled.

"But he shouldn't. You and Sasuke are together. It's not like it was anything wrong. Eventually he'll accept it. It's almost Christmas after all." Sakura's eyes widened. Ginchiyo went through her mind. Hinata seemed to read her mind. Ginchiyo had taken care of Sakura and her friends long ago. Her kindness made it impossible for anyone to forget her.

"Another Christmas, another day to remember Grandma Ginchiyo. Don't be sad! Let's celebrate her life instead of thinking about her being gone!" She was right. Sakura hugged Hinata tight.

"Of course!"

Sasuke sat at his computer desk, the ring glowing in its box. How not to sound like an idiot wasn't the problem. How to give it to her was. Naruto was the opposite. There was no way he was going to ask anyone for help. He wasn't going to let that hit his pride.

There was a knock on his door, but he didn't have to wait before Itachi invited himself in. His brother went to his side and picked up the ring.

"Do you need help proposing?" he asked calmly.

"No," said Sasuke too quickly. Itachi shrugged.

"Very well then. But that's not important. It's like you told Naruto. It's not how you give it to her. Sakura would be happy with the thought of you two spending the rest of your lives together." He poked Sasuke's forehead, which didn't have the charm that his mother's had.

"I just want to give it to her in a way that she deserves," he said quietly. Itachi smiled all-knowingly.

"And that's what makes proposals special. But focus on making her feel that way instead of the set up." Sasuke sat back, looking at the ring and out the window. The stars outside glittered beautifully alongside a giant Christmas tree that stood proud. Similar trees were set up all around Konoha. Sasuke smiled to himself.

He had the right plan for this.

Sorry for the late update! Hopefully I can get back to this quickly just so I can wrap up the Christmas part of this story and then to the next! And because I can't paste the entire website to see Hinata's ring, I'm going to have to put spaces in it so it copies all right. If that doesn't work, I'll just paste it on my profile page. Happy holidays, everybody! I hope you all spend it with people you love.

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Next chapter preview:

"I can't believe I forgot to get you a present."

"Did you? Then I have something else you can give me."

"What's that?"