Chapter 25 – A Chilling Encounter

"So." Kankuro grinned wolfishly as Gaara entered the kitchen. "Who was she? Whoever you had in your room last night sure was vocal and here I thought you were still a virgin. I might have to ask for some tips."

He paused and stared with wide eyes at the sight of his two siblings sitting at the table and a moment later, Sakura entered the kitchen, still wearing only Gaara's nightshirt and her lacy boy-cut shorts. Like Gaara, she also froze, especially after hearing Kankuro's comment.

"Y-You?" Kankuro asked in disbelief, looking up at Gaara with shock. "You managed to get Haruno Sakura in your bed when I couldn't?"

Breaking out of his trance, the redhead narrowed his eyes dangerously and at his glare, his brother shuddered and quickly averted his eyes. "Don't speak about her like that," he spat, looking at him with disdain.

"I thought you said they were out?" she mumbled from beside him, her features showing how uncomfortable she felt as she looked at Temari, who was drinking her coffee like she didn't have a care in the world, and Kankuro, who was obviously trying his best not to look at them. "I-I'm sorry," she told them both, surprising them all. "If I had known you were both in, I would have… um… dressed more appropriately?"

The blonde waved a dismissive hand. "It doesn't bother me, so don't worry about it. Besides, Kankuro's ex-girlfriends' walked around in less, so just as long as you have your underwear on and you guys don't end up having sex anywhere other than Gaara's bedroom, I don't care."

Sakura's blush darkened as she fidgeted with the hem of the shirt and seeing her discomfort, Gaara found himself feeling guilty. "I'm sorry, Sakura – I really thought they had left. I heard a car leaving this morning and thought it was them." His words seemed to completely shock Kankuro, but Temari simply smiled as she took another swig of her coffee. "One second," he muttered to her, disappearing for only a moment before he returned. "Put this on."

She looked at the black robe he was handing to her, admiring the blood red kanji on the back, only for her eyes to widen as she recognised it and looked up at him. "It matches the tattoo on your forehead."

Icy blue eyes rolled while he moved further into the kitchen. "It was a gift from Temari. Just put it on."

It was a gift he had never worn before. Temari had thought that she was doing something nice for him, getting a robe custom-made with the kanji on the back, but she had discovered later when she had given him the gift that he hadn't like it. Not one bit. In fact, Gaara had refused to speak to anyone for an entire week after he was given the birthday present. Despite that, though, nobody had thrown it out. It had simply been left on the side, completely ignored and forgotten.

Doing as he said, Sakura quickly covered her body, tying the sash around her waist. She instantly felt more comfortable now that she wasn't half-naked.

"I thought I told you two to keep it down," the blonde suddenly grumbled against her mug as Sakura sat down beside Gaara, her cheeks burning still from their previous comments.

He rolled his eyes again. "That wasn't us."

At his words, Kankuro snorted, but it was Temari who spoke, saying, "Yeah, he and whoever he brought home last night may have been loud, but you two were even louder. I hardly got any sleep last night and now I think I'm scarred for life."

"We didn't have sex," Sakura quickly blurted out, causing Temari to spit out her coffee and Kankuro to choke on his toast while Gaara gave her the 'are-you-stupid' look.

"Gaara…" Kankuro mumbled, seeming utterly shocked before he looked at his brother with a proud expression. "Wow. Man, I don't even know what to say. Well, actually, I think I do." He looked thoughtful for a couple of seconds, as though he was choosing his words carefully before asking, "What did you do to make her scream that loud? Well, unless you guys were trying to compete with me and my date?" He winked at them.

Temari's eyes flashed dangerously a moment before she was slapping him upside the head. "Don't ask such personal questions, especially at breakfast, you pervert."

The brunet winced as he brought his hand to the back of his head, rubbing the tender spot. Then, he grumbled, "I only wanted to know what his secret was."

By now, Sakura's face was the reddest Gaara had ever seen and even he could feel the back of his neck burning. It surprised him because previously, she'd seemed so laid-back about sex, like it wasn't something to be embarrassed about. Was it because they were his siblings?

"So do you guys have any plans for today?" Temari asked suddenly, hoping to change the subject.

Shrugging, Kankuro replied with a, "Beats me."

"No."

"I'm meeting with Itachi."

It seemed the morning was just full of surprises, Temari thought as she looked at her with wide eyes. "You know Uchiha Itachi?"

Sakura frowned, nodding slowly. "Of course I know him. He's like an older brother to me and…" Her eyes caught with Gaara's for a second before shrugging. "He's helped me through quite a lot of crap."

At her words, Gaara sat back in his seat, knowing exactly what 'crap' she meant. So Uchiha Itachi knew of her being bipolar and suicidal? He could recall her mentioning the Uchiha allowing her to stay in his home for a few days until she felt comfortable returning to her own, but at the time, he had thought nothing of it. Did that mean that Itachi also knew about her being raped? If he did, was he doing anything about it? Wait, no. He was the only one who knew and Sakura had never told him what happened to the man who had raped her. Had he been caught? Was he in prison? Was he still out there?

"Oh, well I guess that makes sense." His sister shrugged before looking up at the clock. "If you want, I can drop you off at your house before giving you a ride to his office in about… two hours? I have a meeting with him later today, but I always go early just in case."

She raised an eyebrow and smirked. "And it has nothing to do with the fact that Shikamaru has a part time job there for extra credit?"

"How did you know that?"

Sakura shrugged. "Itachi and I have always told each other everything and when I asked if he still spoke to any of my old friends, he told me that Shikamaru, because of how smart he is, was allowed a part time job at the Uchiha Company as long as it didn't affect his education."

"Wow," Kankuro snorted as he began buttering more toast. "Who would have thought that a stiff bastard like Uchiha Itachi would actually open up and tell people things?"

"Watch your mouth," she suddenly spat, her eyes darkening with her anger. "You don't even know Itachi like I do. His mother was my mom's best friend before she died, which is how I know both him and Sasuke. We always used play together and Itachi has helped me through a lot." Gaara's hand touched her knee, but Sakura was too angry to even feel it. "If it wasn't for him…" She shook her head, her eyes filling with tears. Looking at them all, she once again shook her head before standing. She needed to take her medication. No, it didn't help the instant she took it, but it was around the time she had to take it anyway. "I'm sorry. Please excuse me. I'll be back in a moment."

And just like that, Sakura was gone and running back to Gaara's bedroom.

Kankuro rolled his eyes, not noticing the dark look he was receiving from his younger brother. Temari, however, did notice and hoped that Kankuro would keep his mouth shut.

He didn't.

"Crazy much?" Kankuro shook his head. "Just exploding like that because of one–"

A fist to the face stopped him from saying any more and slammed him to the ground before Gaara was suddenly on top of him, turning Kankuro's face until he was looking up with wide eyes at the sight of his brother. Temari was instantly on her feet, wondering if she should try and get him off Kankuro, but she knew better than to try and touch him when he was angry.

"You don't know Sakura," Gaara muttered darkly, his hold on Kankuro's face tightening to the point where it had the older man grunting with pain. "You don't know anything about her or what she's been through so if I were you," he suddenly spat, his eyes narrowing even further, "I would keep my opinions to myself. I don't care if you're my brother, I will beat the shit out of you if I hear you utter a single word about Sakura or any of her friends. Is that understood?" When he received no answer, Gaara's hold tightened even more and shook his brother's head roughly. "I asked if you understood me."

Kankuro nodded his head the best he could.

There was a gasp a moment before a hand was encircling his wrist, while his free, clenched hand was grabbed by a much smaller one. He looked up with a murderous expression, about to tell Temari to fuck off, but the sight of a wide eyed Sakura caused his anger to lessen, made his eyes soften, especially when he felt something small and round in the hand that was holding back his fist. She hadn't left because Kankuro had upset her. She had left to get her medication. He'd reacted irrationally.

"Gaara," she spoke softly. "Stop. Please."

Sakura shoved her pill into the pocket of his robe as he slowly nodded before releasing Kankuro and standing, the sight of the pink haired teenager managing to calm Gaara causing both siblings to stare in shock as they left the room.

"We need to slow down," Gaara murmured against her lips and caught her hand just as Sakura had reached the waistband of his pants.

She smiled brightly, but the smile seemed a little forced to him. "N-No we don't. It's fine. Gaara, really, I'm okay with this."

After a small pause, he pulled her hand away from his pants rather reluctantly before looking into her worried eyes. "We should wait until the time is right, Sakura," he told her despite the fact he wanted nothing more than to close the little to no distance between their lips. Closing his eyes so that he wouldn't be distracted, Gaara sighed. "Neither of us are sure where our relationship stands, so it would be best if we wait before we do anything like that."

"So…" Sakura murmured with her eyes locked on his lips, "does that mean no more make out sessions like the one last night?"

He had to hold back a groan at the memory of the night before. He was already hard, but the memory of the night before, how they had touched and pleased each other, made his member throb. "Only until you stop detaching your mind, until we know where everyone stands, including Uchiha."

At the mention of his name, she stiffened, causing Gaara to open his eyes to see her reaction. Her features looked pained and seeing this, he closed the distance between their lips, wanting to take the pain away. He didn't regret his words, for they needed to be said, but Gaara didn't like her reaction. It was like her pain caused him pain and he didn't like it at all.

Unlike their previous, heated and passionate kiss, this one was slower, more gentle and filled with emotion, making Sakura close her eyes and sigh against his lips as they moved with hers. His hand was no longer restraining hers, but instead holding it as he entwined their fingers, the movement almost surprising her with the tenderness of his touch. However, instead of showing her shock, she smiled into their kiss before reluctantly pulling away.

"You're right," she whispered softly. "I think we should wait, too. I want our relationship to be different. I want it to be special. I just need some time to think about… about Sasuke and everything else."

He nodded before releasing her hand and cupping her face, making sure she kept her eyes locked with his. "Make sure you think about this properly, Sakura. I don't want you to choose one of us only to realise later that you made the wrong choice. It wouldn't be fair to any of us."

"I know." Sakura sighed and leaned into his touch before pulling him down against her, rolling them over so that she was on top and snuggling into his chest. "I just wish that it wasn't so hard."

She wasn't the only one.

It had to be one of the most awkward car journeys she had ever been on. No, perhaps that was an exaggeration, because Temari honestly wasn't that bad, it was just–

"So are you and Gaara together, then?"

It was because Sakura had been waiting for something like that.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not the type to gossip," she told her, though didn't take her teal eyes off the road for a second. "I'm just curious. By now, I'm guessing you know of Gaara's anger problems." Sakura could tell that Temari wasn't telling her everything about Gaara's problems since he had told her quite a lot the night before. "So you probably know that once something sets him off, it's best to just leave him alone. You definitely never touch him." For a second, the pink haired teenager thought that she was scolding her, but that thought changed a second later. "But somehow, you managed to calm him down and he didn't attack you when you touched him.

"Gaara would never hit a woman," Temari quickly added, her eyes darting over to Sakura and back to the road, "but when he's really pissed, he can hardly tell the difference between friend and foe." There was silence for a moment before she spoke again, murmuring, "Sure, he wasn't that angry this morning, but it was building. Both Kankuro and I could see it, but you was able to calm him down before he exploded. How?"

Sakura bit her lip and looked out of the window, having to think her words over carefully before answering Temari's question. "Honestly? I have no idea. I just… I didn't want him to hurt his brother because of me. I didn't mean to start any arguments this morning, it's just that I get really protective of the few friends I have left. Itachi has never given up on me. Never."

Again, there was another moment of silence before Temari asked, "And that pill that was in your hand?" Her head snapped to the side so that she could look at the blonde with wide eyes, surprised to find a stern look on her face. "I'm not an idiot, Sakura and like you are with your friends, I'm very protective of my brothers, Gaara especially since he has had it much harder than Kankuro and me." Her eyes slid over to hers, the fierce look in them stunning the younger girl. "What was that pill?"

She couldn't lie to Temari, not when she was only concerned for her brother. If the situation was reversed and it looked like somebody had drugs or something of the sort in her house, around Itachi (who was like a brother to her), she would get protective, too. Sighing, Sakura looked back out of the window. "It was my medication."

They had already been to her house and were on their way to Uchiha Headquarters by now. When they had arrived at her house, Sakura had had a quick bite to eat, taken her medication and got changed. She had showered earlier at Gaara's house so that Temari wouldn't have to wait for ages.

"Your medication?" she repeated with a frown on her features. "Are you ill or something?"

"…Not physically."

Temari's eyes widened. "You have a mental illness?"

Once again, Sakura bit her lip. "Yes, but, Temari," She quickly turned her head to face the blonde again, "you can't tell anyone. I don't want pity, especially from those who were supposed to be my friends. I want them to forgive me when they're ready, because they love me."

Slowly, unsurely, Temari nodded once, though she knew it would be hard keeping such a thing from Shikamaru, who had been nothing but honest to her since the moment they met and had genuinely been worried about Sakura. In fact, once or twice, he hadn't been able to sleep and was literally sick because he was so worried about her. "Is that why you left?" Sakura nodded once, but she could see in her eyes that there was more to it and Gaara's earlier words came back to her, when Kankuro had said something about her and it had angered their younger brother. He had said that they didn't know what she had been through. "Do you mind if I ask what mental illness you have?"

"Bipolar," she replied quietly, not willing to say anymore.

Fortunately, by now they had arrived and as they walked into headquarters together, Sakura's eyes fell on a certain figure who was standing near the entrance, one who seemed shocked to see her there, especially with his girlfriend.

"I'll see you around, Temari." Sakura smiled at her. "And thank you for the ride."

Then, she smiled politely at Shikamaru before hurrying over to the elevator.

"Why were you with Sakura?"

Temari looked up at her boyfriend, wanting nothing more than to tell him what she had learned, but out of respect for the girl her younger brother seemed incredibly fond of, she stayed quiet and simply shook her head. "She's friends with Gaara, so I thought it would be nice to get to know her."

He could see right through her lies, but decided not to call her out on it. She had never lied to him before, so he knew she would tell him when she was ready. "Troublesome."

She smiled in return, knowing that he could see right through her, yet grateful that he didn't push any further.

The moment the door opened, Sakura was on her feet, but immediately paused at the sight of two men leaving the room with Itachi behind them and despite his features being composed, she could see the way he was holding himself, could see the tension in his shoulders. It seemed his meeting hadn't gone so well.

As she walked forward, she had to stop herself from shuddering at the looks she received from both men. One had unhealthily pale skin with long dark hair that fell into his golden, snake-like eyes, whereas the other had his silvery-grey hair pulled back into a low ponytail. Unlike Itachi's smooth, straight hair, his looked messy and spiky. Like it had been cut unevenly. She couldn't see his eyes due to the light shining off his glasses, but whatever the look he was giving her, it made her feel uneasy. The way the pair of them were smirking at her, like they knew some big joke about her, made her pause in her footsteps.

"Sakura," Itachi called her name, noticing her unwillingness to walk passed the men. "You're early."

She dragged her eyes away from the two men who had also paused, both eyeing her with some sort of amusement. The stupid smirks on their faces made her want to throw them out of the large floor-to-ceiling window at the end of the hallway. "Um…" she mumbled and as she did, the man with the glasses tilted his head to the side, raising an eyebrow at her like he was assessing her. "I… I was at a friend's house. His sister has a meeting here later so she gave me a lift."

"Very well, I will be free in a moment so come in," he replied, shooting a glance at the two men who had been annoying him and now seemed to be annoying Sakura. "Orochimaru, Kabuto, I asked you both to leave. I do not like repeating myself."

The dark haired man's eyes flashed dangerously and this time, Sakura couldn't help but shudder and tense as her right arm rose ever so slightly, her fist clenching. Beside him, the younger man's eyes were still on her face, his gaze making her feel as though she was some sort of experiment. There was nothing she wanted more than to run right into Itachi's office where she knew she would be safe, but she couldn't, for the life of her, force herself to move. What was happening to her? Yes, they were creepy, but why was she reacting so strongly?

"It was a pleasure to see you, Sakura-san." The darker haired man smirked before turning to his companion. "Come, Kabuto."

His hissed words sent shivers up her spine, especially when he spoke to her like they were old friends. The way he said 'see you' and not 'meet you' seemed to also catch Itachi's notice as his eyes narrowed even further.

Sakura completely stiffened as both men parted to pass her, her being stuck in the middle. The second they were behind her, however, she quickly turned to face them, not liking having her back to people who seemed so… She couldn't even think of a word because she was so scared. When the two finally reached the elevator and disappeared, Sakura all but ran into Itachi's office while he calmly re-entered, shut the door and took a seat at his desk. Taking a deep breath to push aside her unease, she walked further into the office.

"You're the only person I can speak to about this," Sakura mumbled as she threw herself down into the chair in front of his desk, her confident and graceful demeanour vanishing almost instantly with just the simple position she was sitting in. "I know it's going to be awkward… but I really need someone's advice on what I should do."

Frowning, Itachi lowered the papers in front of him and raised an eyebrow. "What is it, Sakura?"

"I need some relationship advice." At his deadpan, Sakura sighed. "I know, I know. You think of me like a little sister, so you don't want to know these things, but please, Itachi. I don't know who else to go to, I don't have anybody else to go to."

Straightening his features, he nodded once, suddenly seeing how down she really looked. "Go on."

She hesitated for a moment before speaking, murmuring, "I met this guy at school… I think I told you about him before, his name's Gaara." When Itachi nodded again, Sakura continued. "Well, last night at the party, we got into an argument, one that was resolved by me telling him about my condition." This obviously surprised him, as his eyes had widened a fraction, but he said nothing. "I'm falling in love with him, Itachi, but I love Sasuke, too and I'm so confused about what to do. Gaara is so patient with me and open minded," Sakura said softly, though her frown deepened as she stared down at Itachi's desk. "…But even though it's nice, it scares me."

Itachi tilted his head slightly to the side as he regarded her before finally saying, "You have always disliked the unknown."

She groaned softly. "It feels so wrong talking about stuff like this with you – you're like my big brother. But I don't… I have nobody else to ask." Her eyes saddened for a moment as she felt a sharp pain in her chest. When she continued, Sakura kept her eyes on his desk and a faint blush tinted her cheeks. "Every guy I've ever been in any type of romantic relationship with, I've always had sex with them, Naruto included. However, Gaara… he's not interested in any of that. He just wants to be with me and I don't… I don't know how to act around him because of that. I don't know what to do with myself."

There was a soft sigh a moment before he spoke, his eyes watching Sakura with a sympathetic gaze. She just looked so lost and confused and it made his gut twist to know that every man or boy she had ever been with had always – in the end – gotten something out of it. Just knowing that her words included his younger brother made Itachi feel incredibly disappointed with him, even though Sasuke couldn't possibly know about Sakura being bipolar or suicidal. "Not all men or boys are the same, Sakura. It seems that Gaara-kun wishes to know you better before you take your relationship to the next level."

"That's just the thing." Sakura raised her voice, only to lower it again when she remembered they were in his office. "Gaara knows more about me than Sasuke or Naruto do and despite that, he isn't judging me or looking at me with pity in his eyes and I just… I don't know what to do."

Her words weren't even making sense anymore, in Itachi's opinion, as Sakura started to speak much faster, her words jumbling together, but he couldn't bring himself to chide her, especially knowing how confused she was. As he stood up, he pocketed his mobile phone as well as anything else he may need before walking around his desk so that he was beside her. "Come. I have an hour for lunch. We can go anywhere you like."

Smiling brightly at his offer, Sakura stood up. "There's this little place that I know," she told him enthusiastically, her bright smile making the twisting feeling in his gut slowly disappear as her fear, confusion and sadness did. "I go there nearly all the time and even though it's not really upper class, they have the best food there. Not to mention I met a little girl there, one who called me 'Princess Sakura'. Turns out she's my English teacher's daughter. I didn't even know Kurenai-sensei was married, let alone a mother."

As Sakura continued to ramble, Itachi guided her over to the elevators, nodding once at his receptionist who nodded in return, knowing that he would be going on his lunch break and didn't want to be disturbed. While they walked to his car, she continued on with her story about how she had been avoiding Sasuke (something he found rather amusing, especially when she got to the part about the six year old girl yelling at him that he was a bully), how she had seen the girl, Azuki, dancing around in a Disney princess's dress, only for everybody except Sakura to ignore her, which led to the girl joining her for lunch. During the drive, Sakura also explained to him about what had happened the night before at the party she had attended, about how Yamanaka Ino had once again tried to humiliate her and everything after that. Then she told him about her staying over at Gaara's and how they had been intimate, though didn't have sex. While discussing this, Sakura grew annoyed and confused again, telling him about how Gaara had told her they needed to slow down, that things were moving too fast for the both of them.

"You mentioned that Gaara-kun isn't used to physical contact," Itachi murmured as he parked the car across the road from the café. "Perhaps that is another reason why he wishes to slow things between you both."

In her opinion, Itachi was pretty great at any sort of advice, since he was smart enough to look beneath everything else that would have others groaning with annoyance, Sakura herself included. A perfect example of that was the fact she had completely forgotten about Gaara's lack of experience with physical contact. Who could really blame her for forgetting, though? Just the memory of the night before had her body tingling and a familiar flame flickering to life within her. However, she didn't mention that part to Itachi because while they were discussing her sex life, she most definitely did not want to go into details with him.

Slapping her hand to her forehead, she shook her head. "I completely forgot about that." Removing her hand, she gave Itachi a pathetic look that made her look unsure and even a little desperate. "You see what I mean? I don't know how to act or think or what to say around him! We've spoken about so much since last night and he listened to my stories without judging me, with so much patience and here am I, forgetting that he also has problems. What sort of person does that make me?" She shook her head again, looking down at the menu. "I feel so selfish."

"Just because–"

"Not just that," Sakura mumbled, her entire demeanour becoming more depressed by the second. "I mean… I finally have Sasuke back in my life, something I've been hoping and wishing for, for so long. We're…" The blush was back as Sakura kept her eyes averted. "We're intimate again but this time… it feels different. Whenever we're together it feels different. At school, unless it's during English class, he doesn't even look at me. And when… when we're… you know… I can't even take my top off around him, so it kind of…"

Itachi sighed, not enjoying the conversation in the slightest, especially now that it included his brother, but seeing the distress on her features made him continue with it. "It cheapens the act?"

She nodded, still looking down at her menu to avoid eye contact. "He doesn't ask questions either, which makes it worse. We used to take our time, Sasuke used to make sure that I was completely comfortable, but now it's… it's almost like it's just a quickie to him. Not once have we done it in a bed, it's like he completely ignores it and chooses for the less emotional way, like against a wall or something like that. He doesn't even look me in the eye before, during or after."

It didn't surprise him, to be honest. Sakura's leaving had upset Sasuke more than she knew and Itachi knew that, despite not even officially being together, Sasuke had not taken another girl to bed since (or even before Sakura). In fact, he was certain his brother barely even noticed the opposite sex anymore, like he was completely ignoring all females. Sadly, it seemed that that also included Sakura. Not entirely, of course, but he wasn't allowing her close enough to hurt him, not again.

"When you left, it hurt him in ways he cannot understand, Sakura," Itachi told her calmly, despite the fact it felt like he was betraying his brother by saying such things. "He was angry for a while, even going as far as to take his anger out on a teacher. I believe it was his way of feeling closer to you, to try and understand you since apparently you attacked teachers before you left." He knew his words had hurt her, but he also knew that he needed to say it, to tell her about his brother's feelings. "He regularly visited your home, but each time he was denied access and told that you didn't want to see him, which hurt him deeply considering how close the two of you were.

"I wouldn't normally interfere with Sasuke's personal life, especially his relationships, but I know that what I'm saying needs to be said and since my younger brother is too foolish to do so himself…" Itachi sighed, pausing briefly as they ordered their meals before continuing. "I'm glad that you're happy, Sakura, but if your feelings for Gaara-kun are stronger than the ones for Sasuke, then you need to tell my brother. I will always be here for you, but I do not want to see Sasuke hurting the way he had again."

Sakura bit down on her lip as a hard lump formed in her throat and her eyes watered. It was because of the latter that she was keeping her head low, so that Itachi couldn't see how deeply his words struck her. She had known that her actions and leaving had hurt Sasuke, but she didn't know that it had been so deeply. Yes, they had been in a sexual relationship, but that was just it. Their relationship had been purely physical, well, except from their friendship. In a way, they had been nothing more than friends with benefits and while it pained her to think of it that way, she knew it was true. "I don't want to hurt either of them," Sakura whispered. "I never… I just…"

Raising his hand, Itachi gently placed it under her chin, lifting her head so that she was looking at him. "Sakura–"

Before he could get his words out, however, she shook her head. "Just tell me what I should do," she whimpered. "I don't know what to do. With Sasuke… there's history there. We've been best friends since before we could even walk. When I returned to school, he wouldn't speak to me – I don't blame him for not wanting to, but it still hurt. We were friends for such a long time and before I left we had been more than friends. I could go to him about anything, but that feeling isn't there anymore, Itachi. He doesn't look at me that way anymore and it hurts! And I feel like… feel like if I choose Gaara, I'm going to lose Sasuke altogether and just the thought makes my heart ache.

"With Gaara, there isn't any history there. Being with him would be like starting over, a chance to actually do something right with my life. When I first met him, he was so cold and angry and so full of hatred, but that was just a front. I know him now and I believe that I've helped him change, even if it's only a little. He understands me, Itachi. He… h-he even said… that he'd understand… if I-I chose Sasuke over him… but… but when he said it… there had been p-pain in his eyes."

Once again, he sighed. "Let's not think about this for now, Sakura. It is stressing you out too much. You're still young, so you have a lot of time to make mistakes and do things right. Perhaps this is one of those situations that you just need to go with, but I must ask that you tell Sasuke about your relationship with Gaara-kun when the time is right."

There was the slight tremble of her lower lip, but after taking a calming breath, Sakura gave him a smile and nodded once.

"I promise."

A/N - Okay so here I was all excited for last week's episode and then just like that, it was cancelled. Ugh!

I hope that in this chapter, you're all starting to understand Sakura a little bit more.

HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED AND DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW! :-)