A/N: This is going to be a looong author's note, so brace yourselves! But please, do read.

Okay, to clear a couple of aspects up. A lot of you have claimed Sakura to have been a heartless bitch when she said her child might have been meant to die. That's not what she would have wanted for it to sound like, and she said that herself. That she is trying to come to terms with the fact that she's lost her child? That doesn't mean she doesn't care about him. What she meant was that maybe there was nothing she could have done to stop that accident. She doesn't want to blame herself and she doesn't want to blame Sasuke. She wasn't in control of the situation, things didn't turn out the way she would have wanted them to turn out, so why should she torment herself on the matter? It's her way of coping with everything. Does she really deserve to be judged for trying to move on? I don't think so. So for those of you who've claimed to hate her for this, if you're still reading, try to see it that way, too.

About Sakura liking it when Sasuke was possessive, she cleared that up herself in chapter twenty-six. He was practically growling at every male that approached her, even at those who he had known for a long time, at those who were his colleagues – people he was supposed to trust. He didn't do it out of love, because he didn't even know he loved her at that point. He did it because he wanted to keep her by his side at the very least until he sorted out the mess in his head and in his heart. That was selfish. And not only that, but he showed distrust towards Sakura in the process –and that was something she would not take, not when she hadn't given him a single reason for him to doubt her, not when she hadn't cheated on him once since they became husband and wife.

Some of you also said you don't like the Sakura I portrayed. That she's a feminist, that she's too childish, that she's spoiled, selfish, and even controlling. I suppose that if more than one of you felt that way, then it's my own fault. But Sasuke isn't letting himself be controlled by her. He's only trying to gather his bearings and regain his footing. He doesn't want to screw up again, so until their relationship is more solid, he will surpass aspects of himself that could do it harm. The Sasuke we know and love will come back, but I think it's justified that he acts this way.

I'll be honest with you, right now, it's hard for me to see where some of you are coming from, because in my head, my entire story makes sense, Sakura's none of the things you called her, and Sasuke's… well, Sasuke's Sasuke. Now, if I failed to transmit that, I'm sorry. I can't well go back and reread the entire story to see where the accusations stem from, because that would take a while, and I'm not sure I'd even be able to do that – not until I detach myself from it first. After I do that… well, I may edit it. But then again, I'm not sure what the purpose of that will be, because you've all have finished reading it by then.

So, just to make this clear, I'm not denying anything you have said that I can't prove. I'm no professional writer. I still have a lot to learn. This is my first multi-chaptered story with somewhat of a thicker plot than anything else I've attempted. I see some of my mistakes even now, as early as it is. I wasn't as organized as I should have been, as I now am when planning. There were aspects that changed between one chapter and the next, and maybe that hasn't always been for the better. I was distracted sometimes. I'm not really the type of person to focus solely on one project for, what? – two whole years. I'm not trying to make excuses right now, but I feel that you all deserve explanations, and this is the truth.

There is one thing that you can't accuse me of, though, that I won't let you accuse me of, and that's that I don't put heart into what I write. I want to finish this story, yes, but that doesn't mean I'm making up chapters just for the heck of it. I love writing, and I love writing my stories. Updates sometimes take as long as they do exactly because of that – because I want to be in the mood to write a certain topic so that it turns out alright. Things may seem rushed now because the story is coming to an end, the action has wound down, and I see no reason to draw out the scenes when the essential has already been said.

And now that I'm finally done rambling, let's get on with this chapter.

Incomplete
By The Terrorist

Chapter Thirty-Seven
Here for You

She was dressed in a blue, long-sleeved blouse when he came downstairs that morning, with black pants and light-grey, high-heeled booties. Her pink hair was loose, falling down her back in natural waves, and her green eyes were only slightly enhanced. She was curled up on the couch, with a leg underneath her and a pillow on her lap, watching the images move on the large plasma screen. The remote was in her hand, and there was a steaming cup of tea on the coffee table.

He ran a hand over the back of her neck to make her aware of his presence, and she turned her head to look at him, smiling widely.

"Hey," she greeted as he bent over to press a small kiss to her lips.

"You're up early," he commented as he took a seat on the armchair beside her.

Sakura nodded. "I didn't sleep very well," she admitted.

His frown was concerned. "Are you alright?"

She smiled. "I'm fine. I made pancakes, by the way. They're in the kitchen."

As her husband stood to walk in the direction he had been indicated, she returned her attention to the television; a moment passed, and she turned her head towards the door.

"Sasuke," she called, and nearly smiled as she received a grunt in response. "Do you have something to do today?"

"No," he answered as his form sauntered back into the living room; there was a plate of food in his hands, which he set on the coffee table before retaking his seat. "It's Saturday."

"I want you to come somewhere with me," she told him, gazing into his eyes.

There was nothing about her demeanor that indicated what her actual feelings were towards her own offering, and despite the heavy atmosphere that seemed to descend upon them, that was what squeezed his heart and worried him most.

~•~

She insisted that she drove on the way there, and Sasuke willingly handed over the keys to his precious Aston Martin, not because he was unable to deny her anything, but because he was still unnerved by her attitude. The smile on her face was still there, and it was just as genuine as before, and her laugh also sounded the same. But there was something about her that had changed. Sasuke was unsure what. The air around her had shifted. It was as though something was pressing down on her, bothering her, affecting her no matter how hard she tried to hide it.

The drive took a mere fifteen minutes. She never made it to the highway; she used winding roads to reach the outskirts of the city, before coming to a smooth stop in front of a gate that he – along with other occupants of that part of the town – knew all too well.

She was silent as she unbuckled her seatbelt and slid out of the car, and he wordlessly mimicked her movements. Once outside, she moved to his side and grasped his hand. Sasuke wanted to reprimand her for not having taken her coat along, but bit his tongue. The large, iron gates were soon opened by her hands.

Whatever it was that she had to tell him, it couldn't be easy and it couldn't be pleasant, he realized as she began to lead him through the maze that was the main cemetery. It was an eerie sight. The sky was covered by dark clouds while the ground was covered by blinding snow – much like a monochrome painting. But Sakura dragged on, and he wondered how much about her past there still was for him to learn.

He never had the chance to find an answer to his own question as she came to a stop in front of a particular grave. Her small hand tightened minutely around his, but he was so frozen that he didn't even manage to squeeze it back before she let go and kneeled down in front of the tombstone, ignoring the snow that was due to soak into the material her pants. With shaking fingers, she reached out to wipe the thin layer of loosely packed snowflakes that had gathered over the cold granite, revealing the name he was aching to see.

Haruno Seiji was engraved into the stone, along with two years that revealed him to be no older than eighteen.

"He was my brother," he heard her whisper. Her voice was soft and quiet, with an underlying hint of sadness, of desperation, of heartbreaking sorrow that he loathed so much.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. She had never talked about him before, and he wondered whether it was her lack of trust in their relationship that had stopped her, or her own inner fears. Was it a mixture of them both?

"You know…" she started, interrupting his train of thought, "I used to be jealous of you."

He frowned.

She smiled sadly as she looked up at him. "Your mother was everything. Hell, she was more than I had ever even dared to dream about. She was… incredible. Your father cared about you. He actually spared you a second glace; he listened to what you had to say. And you still had your brother. And you – like the cocky bastard I fell in love with – pushed them all away, like you didn't need them, like you didn't want them."

Sasuke sighed. Shrugging his coat off his shoulders, he draped it over her own and crouched down beside her. "I took a lot of things for granted," he admitted. His tone clearly implied that he had changed, and she smiled. He was the man she had always known to be inside of him – the man she had always secretly wanted.

"I love you," she told him, adoration shining in her green eyes.

"I love you, too," he answered without reservations.

Her gaze lowered, and her fingers skimmed over the engraved name of her elder brother once more. "He was eighteen when he died," she confessed. "I was sixteen. He… had just bought his first car… and I bugged him to take me for a ride. I was young. I was reckless. He was more calculated; he must have known it was not a good idea. It was cold and snowing and everything told us not to, but I refused to budge… and he loved me. God, he loved me so much, Sasuke. There was nothing he wouldn't have done for me."

"Car accident," he reasoned.

She nodded. "It was horrible. When I woke up alone in that hospital… When the doctor told me he had no made it… I wanted to die, I swear. Everyone blamed me – my parents blamed me. For a long time, I blamed myself, too."

"It was not your fault," he interrupted firmly, resolutely.

"I know," she answered, sniffling. "I realized that not too long ago. The trip to New York has made me aware of a lot of things. I had time to think… and I came to the conclusion that it couldn't have been my fault. I loved him, Sasuke," she whispered, looking at him. "He was… he was everything – everything. He was the only one who loved me, the only one who cared about me, the only one who was willing to protect me. There was nothing that I needed when I had him by my side – he made sure I had everything. He was the only one who wanted to see me happy, Sasuke… How could that accident have been my fault, when all I wanted was to be dead in his place?"

"It wasn't your fault," he assured her, his hand rubbing comforting circles on her back, fingers tangled in her pink locks. "You know that. He knows that. I know that. Nobody else matters."

"You know, I never told anybody about this. Sure, Naruto knows, but that's because he used to be his best friend… But I never told him all the details, either. I was afraid that talking about him would somehow diminish the intensity my memories, make them fade… and the simple thought of that was terrifying, because he was my brother and the only person who ever loved me and I couldn't accept the fact that he was no longer with me," she confessed, her voice small and chocked.

Sasuke sighed. "You need to let him go," he murmured.

"I think I already did," she confessed, wiping her tears away. "Getting all of this out is a huge step for me. But I will never forget him."

"No one says you should," he reassured her gently. "He will always be your brother."

"And he will always watch over me," she finished, her tone hopeful, as though begging him to agree, to confirm that.

Sasuke nodded. "And I will take care of you for him," he supplied.

Mulling over the newly acquired information, the Uchiha wondered whether her brother would have approved of their relationship. He supposed not. He supposed, had he been alive, their relationship would have actually never even existed. He would have kept her away from him, away from this unwanted marriage, for sure. She would have never had to endure everything she had endured by his side.

A part of him wished that had been real, wished her brother had been alive – wished he had stopped their parents from treating her so cruelly. Maybe the same treatment had been applied to him by his own father, but Sasuke knew it was different. Had Fugaku doubted, even for a second, that Sakura was perfect for him, he would have never forced her on him. He was good at reading people; he had been certain that she could win his heart just like Mikoto had won his, even though their situation couldn't have been more different.

Satoru was another story altogether. Sasuke could bet on his entire family heritage that he had not given their marriage a second thought. Harsh as it may sound, he didn't care about his daughter. According to her, the only person who had ever cared about her had been her brother, and after witnessing what he had, he believed every word of that.

He briefly wondered how horrible it was of him to be selfish and be glad that she had been led to him, even by such unfortunate circumstances. He pushed the thought away. Things had happened the way they had, and the monster in him was happy, but he knew that if there was something he could do to ease her pain, to go back in time and stop life from breaking her, he would do it without hesitation.

A small smile on her face, Sakura allowed him to cradle her to his chest. "Next month… next month is his birthday," she whispered.

"Sakura…" he murmured, words lacking, with his lips pressed against her hair.

"You know… I'm actually glad that we'll be away by then. It will be easier for me to deal with the pain." She looked up at him. "I love my hometown. I do. But all the bad things in my life happened here, and there are times – times like these – when it becomes too much… Sometimes, I wish I could leave everything behind and just go – away. With you."

He kissed her temple, and with a sigh, stood up, coaxing her to mimic his movements. "Come on," he said. "Let's go home."

Sakura heaved a sigh. Touching her lips to her fingers, she let them graze the surface of the tombstone once more, before standing up. Sasuke wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and she leaned into him, loving the comfort and reassurance his simple presence offered her so selflessly.

"You know what I want?" she asked in a small voice. He thought she sounded like a child. "I want some hot chocolate."

"Hn," he grunted. A smirk worked its way past his façade; bringing chocolate into discussion could only mean one thing – she was alright again. "I told you to take a coat."

"Your coat keeps me warmer," she argued. "I just want chocolate."

He smirked, and with one last kiss to her pink locks, continued to lead her back to the car.

~•~

Later that day, as the little sunlight that had broken through the clouds once they left the cemetery began to dip over the horizon, they curled up on the couch, in the library – Sakura with a cup of hot chocolate in her hands and a soft blanket wrapped around her shoulders, and Sasuke with his conservative cup of tea. The wind had picked up again, and snow fell heavily outside as flames roared in the fireplace, lighting up the otherwise darkened room.

"Tell me about Itachi," the pinkette encouraged, green eyes warm as they bored into his onyx ones.

Sasuke hesitated. "Sakura…" he murmured, unsure of whether taking the step she was asking him to take was a good idea after witnessing what he had witnessed and finding out what he had found out that morning.

"Come on, tell me," she pressed, shifting closer to him. "I want to know what he was like when you were little."

Her smile convinced him, but even so, enough time passed until he gathered his courage to speak. "He was… he was everything, once," he confessed, and swallowed. Despite the fact that their relationship had been repaired down to every last fissure, Sasuke doubted he had gotten over the fact that he had disappointed his elder brother on such a high level; but he was on the right way to recovery. "I was always following him around, wanting to be like him… He didn't always have time for me, but when he did…"

"He made it worthwhile, didn't he?" she cut in with a knowing smile.

Sasuke nodded. He still had trouble sharing bits and pieces of his life and mind and even heart with somebody else. He was a man of a few words, and if he was willing to make the effort to open up more than he was comfortable with, it was for her and her only. He would never be able to completely change that essential part of his being, that piece of his construction, but Sakura seemed content with him exactly the way he was – and for that, he was thankful.

"It was easier for us," she murmured, and although, physically, she was there, with him, her mind seemed to have delved far away in the past. "We attended the same high-school, so I was always with him, whether he wanted it or not." She laughed lightly, but her eyes were glassy and pained. "I didn't even have normal friends—like, girlfriends, because I wasn't like them. I couldn't have sleepovers, I couldn't…" She stopped and shook her head. "But I didn't care, because I had him."

Placing his mug of tea on the coffee table, he reached out to cup her face within his hands, gently wiping the unbidden tears that had unknowingly escaped her eyes away with his thumbs. "Sakura, you don't have to talk about this if you don't want to," he told her.

"I do want to," she answered, her small hands coming to rest on his wrists. "It hurts, but… but it feels good at the same time. Because I know… it can't get any worse. It can only get better. And it will, because you're here now. I'm not alone anymore."

He kissed her forehead, then her temple, and then tugged her into his arms. She immediately curled herself against him, resting her cheek on his shoulder and allowing his strong embrace to engulf her whole. A few tears leaked from her eyes, but save for the occasional sniffle, she remained silent.

"Itachi was never meant to marry you," he decided to say, to change the course of the conversation and chase her demons away.

"What?" she breathed, pulling away with a furrow between her brows. "That means that… all this time…"

"Aa," he sighed. Although the news had impacted him quite a lot when they had been delivered to him, Sasuke had, by then, been past the stage where he would start judging people immediately. With twenty-twenty hindsight, he knew perfectly well how much of a prick he had been; he had reacted much more badly than he had had the right to. But with his life the way it was now, he didn't want to think of reasons and analyze situations anymore. He simply wanted to leave everything behind; accept the truth and move on, like he should have done from the very beginning.

"We need to find a way to thank Itachi, Sasuke," she whispered, capturing his attention. "Everything he did… I never felt as though he was doing it out of obligation, but still, the reasoning was there, in the back of my mind. But now that we know that he didn't do it out of guilt, but because he cared about both of us…" she left her sentence unfinished as she shook her head.

He did not need to hear the rest, though. Stroking her cheek, he tugged her closer and kissed her gently, her lips sweet and tainted with the scent of chocolate. When they pulled apart, she rested her head back on his chest, cuddling close to his warmth, while Sasuke reached for the blanket to tug it up her small back for added comfort.

A switch seemed to have been turned on in the darkness that was her past, and he finally felt that he could understand her better. A lot of things made sense now; her insecurity, her pain, the sadness that had always been hidden in the depths of her eyes. But for a while now, ever since she returned from New York, there had been a flickering light in them that was giving him hope – hope that it was not only them that would be alright, but also her.

"Why did your father lie to you?" she asked from her comfortable spot in his arms.

Stroking her hair with one hand, Sasuke shrugged slowly. "I suppose he wasn't sure how to handle my reaction. He's… like me; not very good with feelings. But he knew – he knew, Sakura – I would be happy with you. He wouldn't have done it otherwise."

As she shifted on his chest, he was able to see her soft – and somewhat sad – smile. "I know," she whispered, reaching up to trace his cheek. "That's why you have to appreciate him. To appreciate his presence in your life and everything he has done for you. He means you well."

"I do appreciate him," he answered, grasping her hand into his larger one. "You've taught me that."

~•~

On their first date she wore a simple, red wrap-dress, with a rather conservative length, but what could only be described as a plunging neckline. Her eyes were smoky and her lips were shiny, and her long hair had never looked softer. The man who attended to them actually had to do a double-take – which did not go unnoticed by Sasuke.

For a moment, as his protective instincts awakened after so long of lying dormant in a dark corner inside of him, he almost growled. But he managed to contain himself at the last minute, and merely tightened his grip on her hand; he also stepped in front of her in an effort to conceal her from his sight.

The knowing smile she had on her face as they were led towards their assigned table had him realizing that his possessiveness had not been as subtle as he had wished for it to be – but also that he had not unknowingly crossed any boundaries again.

As they were looking over their menu, Sakura found herself smiling at her husband from across the table. Sasuke felt her stare and raised his head, an inquisitive look in his dark eyes.

"You know… Had someone told me a year ago that I would be here, with you, now…" She grinned sheepishly. "I would have either burst into tears or slapped them."

He seemed amused as he considered the situation. "I would have punched them," he confirmed after a moment, making her laugh.

A sweet smile on her face, she reached for his hand; albeit somewhat confused, the Uchiha gave it to her and watched as she intertwined their fingers lovingly.

"We've been through a lot," she said, her voice smaller; as she looked up at him, her eyes seemed tired yet full of life at the same time. "But now… now I feel like it's all been worth it. Despite all the painful situations and the hurtful words… I have you now, and everything suddenly matters less."

His tongue tied, Sasuke never had the chance to answer as the waiter returned to take their orders. Once he snapped out of his daze, his response was brief and to the point. When Sakura ordered, she looked up and sent him a dazzling smile that almost had him tripping over his own feet. Sasuke glared all the way after him, and by the time his gaze returned to the woman sitting before him, she was laughing silently behind her hand.

He threw her an exasperated look as she fought to regain control of herself, and that seemed to be enough to make her take in a deep breath and straighten her spine, gazing down at the table.

"I guess you'll have to lock me up in the house from now on," she claimed, before silent giggles took over her body once again.

Sasuke glared. That she seemed to be unaffected by his possessiveness and that he was relieved because of that was one thing. That she was making fun of him on the matter was another.

While his protective nature had been a problem in the past, the young Uchiha could clearly see the difference now – he could see the proverbial line. What he was feeling was not jealousy anymore; but he wasn't about to allow men to ogle his wife, either, and that – that was alright; understandable, even.

"Who can understand you men?" she continued. "You all want to marry the most beautiful women, but you don't want to deal with the consequences." Her chin was resting on the palm of her hand as she spoke in a teasing tone and her eyes were twinkling with mischief.

He would have responded to her dare, but he saw exactly when her expression changed. He raised an eyebrow.

Clearing her throat, her mood seemed to suddenly become somber. "Don't turn around," she said. "I don't think you're going to like the sight."

Sasuke didn't listen, and when he realized what she was talking about, he had the feeling that she never even thought he would.

"Do you want to leave?" he asked as he leaned back in his seat, watching her intently.

She shook her head with such firmness it surprised him. "No. I'm not going to live my life around them," she said, eyes gazing in the distance at the two persons that gave her life – the two persons that were supposed to have loved and protected her, but that barely spared her a second glance, even now. "They don't want me and they've made that clear. You can't force someone to love you."

"Were they always like this?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered with a shrug. "From what I remember, yes. They weren't abusive or mean or horrible. They gave us everything. But that didn't mean they loved us. They loved Seiji, I think. Or maybe they didn't, but it was definitely something more there, between them. I was more like an unwanted bonus." She huffed an amused breath, and he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "But they were never… they were never parents. We were never a family – like you were."

"You're part of it now," he reminded her gently.

She smiled. "Your mother told me the same thing." She shook her head. "She's really amazing."

"She is," he agreed.

"You know," she began, leaning forward and reaching for his hand once again. "One day, I hope I'll be as good of a mother as she is."

For a moment, he could hardly breathe. But then he snapped out of his daze. Swallowing, he cradled her hand in his and raised it to his lips, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.

His answer, when it came, was the most reassuring whisper she had ever heard. "You will."

~•~

Naruto had his wedding in the dead middle of winter. Sakura was ecstatic because that would guarantee a gorgeous scenery. Sasuke was sullen because that would mean it would be cold.

It was a small wedding, contrary to expectations, with only the closest friends and extended family, but that didn't make it any less special. It turned out to be quite a memorable event, but much to the Uchiha's pleasure, that wasn't due to his relatively new friend's exuberant personality, but due to his wife's-to-be gentle and calm demeanor – not to mention good taste.

The cold still bothered him, though. He was clearly upset as he stood with his hands in his pockets outside the church where the wedding ceremony was to be completed, glaring at TenTen, who seemed to find it particularly amusing that he was discomforted and discontented about something as simple as the weather. To which she added that she had never imagined he was a man who enjoyed staying indoors and cuddling on cold winter days.

"Where's Sakura, anyway?" the brunette complained.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "How am I supposed to know?"

"She went out the door with me," she reasoned. "She never told me she had something else to do, so – oh, never mind," she said, and before the Uchiha could demand further explanations, a small hand crept over his back and pink appeared in his peripheral vision.

As he turned his head to look at her, only one thought circled his head: she was gorgeous. Sakura wore a simple blue dress, made of the softest material he had ever touched, and tall beige heels. Her green eyes were brought out by heavy make-up and her hair was pulled in a messy up-do.

"Sorry," he heard her say as his ears began to tune in to the world around him once again. She was rolling her eyes, and seemed to show a mixture of both amusement and exasperation as she talked to TenTen. He slipped an arm around her shoulders. "I had to make sure Naruto wouldn't do something stupid, like wear an orange suit. It's my duty as his friend."

Before he knew what he was doing, Sasuke snorted. "And you thought you should make sure now?" What was she about to do, strip him bare and send him to his wedding in a business suit he wasn't sure he even owned?

Sakura directed a playful glare towards him. "Hey, don't judge." Her gaze was directed elsewhere before he could think of a reply, and she smiled and waved at a clearly deliriously happy Naruto.

The Uchiha almost rolled his eyes as he noticed his bright orange tie – apparently, the pinkette couldn't work wonders as he had become accustomed. From the entrance of the church, he saw the blond opening his mouth and he cringed in anticipation, but much to his surprise, he remained quiet. He turned to see his wife hushing him with a finger over her lips and a stern look in her eyes, and he changed his opinion in an instant.

As Naruto grinned, his blue eyes seemed to shine with mischief, and Sasuke suddenly knew why Sakura had tried to control him even when she would usually allow him to do everything he wanted. He had been witness to a lot of their stupid conversations. At first, he had been surprised to see his wife acting the way she was, doing so many childish things without caring, but then he remembered that Naruto had known her for a much longer time than he had, and he could use their encounters to know her a bit better. She would never act in his presence the way she acted in the presence of her best friend, and that was alright, because their relationship was different.

But it was nice to see a side of her past that wasn't painful – and that side was reflected in their friendship. It was clear to him that Sakura had begun to see in Naruto the elder brother she had lost, considering the fact that the three of them had been inseparable, according to her recollections, and he was content with that, because he was sure that the blond, as much of an idiot as he was, would never hurt her.

Ignoring her advice, he seemed to insist that he needed to say something, but a red-haired woman grasped his arm and captured his attention. They entered the church after a moment, followed by a vaguely familiar blond-haired man that smiled warmly at Sakura before disappearing inside.

TenTen turned a frown towards them. "Where have I seen him before?" she asked.

"He's his father," Sakura answered.

"And the woman he entered with –" the brunette concluded by herself, and she completed with a nod.

"His mother. They're so nice; I'll introduce them to you later on, but now we should move inside." Turning to him, she grinned. "They said they particularly want to meet you, by the way."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

She smiled. "Of course, I knew you love introductions and small talk, so I knew you would be thrilled to hear that."

With that bright smile on her full lips and those green, green eyes, Sasuke couldn't even bring himself to muster a glare.

~•~

She was tipsy by the end of the night.

Naruto's and Hianta's was the first wedding they attended without any tension whatsoever between them – and, essentially, as a real couple – and whether it was because of that or because the time she had spent in New York had helped her shed all of her restrictions and insecurities, the pinkette had made sure to enjoy it to the fullest. When she was not beside him, she was either with the newlyweds, with their parents – and Sasuke had not been surprised at all when he realized that she had managed to win over even Hinata's father – or with her friends.

As cup after cup of champagne was drowned, she tended to stick more to his side and laugh. She loved laughing. She laughed the entire way home, actually, including while he rounded the car to open the door for her. No matter how much he insisted, she blatantly refused to put her coat on, claiming that she was hot – and with how much she had been moving inside the car, Sasuke did not doubt that in the least.

"Hey, hey," she said, catching his attention as he closed the door behind her. "Did you see the bow?" The next moment, she was raising her leg in the air so that he could notice the detail on her high-heeled shoes.

He almost laughed, but there was definitely a smile on his face as he slipped his arms around her and picked her up, ignoring her as she aww'ed and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

With all the doors and his busy hands, it took him a bit longer than usual to reach his bedroom. Once he did, he let his still laughing wife to tumble down onto the bed, fighting another smile at the scene. He wasn't sure she herself knew what exactly she was finding so funny.

Turning his back on her so that he could lock the front door, something he had neglected to do with her clinging to his neck, he was certain he would have to endure more of her drunken amusement before he had the chance to close his eyes. He took a small detour to the kitchen on his way, from where he got a bottle of water, seeing as one of his wife's silly sleeping habits was to always have something to drink on the nightstand, in case she woke up thirsty in the middle of the night.

By the time he arrived back into his bedroom, however, she was already asleep, curled up on his side of the bed with her head buried in his pillow. She looked so calm and peaceful – downright angelic – that this time, Sasuke consciously let his smile break through. He didn't bother to wake her up so that he could wrestle the sheets from underneath her, so he resumed at grabbing a blanket from the closet and covering her small body with it, though not before having taken off her shoes.

Moving curly locks of pink hair away from her face, he bent down to kiss her forehead; she didn't even stir. Shaking his head with a smirk on his face, he contemplated taking a shower. But then he changed his mind, and lied down beside her. She was far too tired to feel the mattress dip slightly with his weight or even cuddle close to his warmth as she would do when sober.

But Sasuke didn't mind. Having her next to him was enough.

~•~

The front door burst open, banged against the wall, and then slammed closed so hard the entire frame vibrated.

Two sets of heavy footsteps resounded angrily through the foyer and into the living room, where they suddenly stopped as a masculine voice called out, "You're being irrational!"

Pink hair flew around a heart-shaped face to rest on its owner's shoulders as she turned to gape at her husband. "I'm being irrational?" she demanded. "Well if I'm being irrational, then I'm sorry, Sasuke, but you're being the biggest drama queen the world has ever seen!"

"I'm dramatic?" he countered, pointing to himself in indignation. "Sakura, burst out of your bubble!"

"My bubble?" she shrieked, shocked. In that moment, she could hardly see anything other than red in front of her eyes. She resisted the urge to let out a frustrated roar. Instead, she settled for screaming her mind out loud. "You know what? You're such a selfish bastard that I wonder what I've seen in you!"

Sasuke scoffed. "You think I don't wonder what I've seen in you?"

Clenching her jaw, she grabbed a pillow from the nearest armchair and chucked it right at his face. The fact that he caught it before it could even touch him, reached out and snatched it out of thin air in his own annoyance, only served to further fuel her anger. "Ugh, I can't fucking stand you sometimes!" Promptly turning her back to him, she marched out of the room without another glance.

Sasuke's glare followed her up the stairs. The last he saw of her was her pink hair as she angrily rounded the corner at the top of the staircase; the door of her bedroom slamming behind her was the last thing he heard.

So, naturally, he responded by storming into his office and slamming his own door shut.

~•~

Night had fallen by the time Sakura exited her bedroom and started down the hallway that would lead her to what had originally been her husband's. Pushing the door open without knocking, she was surprised to see him in the middle of the room, dressed in only a pair of sweatpants and with a towel around his shoulders, spiky hair damp from what she could only guess had been a recent shower. Wherever he had been heading, he had stopped now, gazing at her with a furrow between his brows and confused, slightly wider than usual eyes.

For a long moment, all they did was stare at each other. Then she sighed and looked down, twisting her hands together.

"You didn't mean that you said to me, did you?" she asked in a small voice, peeking at him through the pink locks that had fallen in her eyes.

Sasuke seemed the perfect impersonation of a stuck-up, arrogant spoiled brat whose pride had been wounded. "Hn," he grunted in response.

Raising her head, she tucked her hair behind her ear. "I didn't mean it, either," she admitted. "It's just that…" A groan left her lips as her shoulders slumped. "You can be so frustrating at times, Sasuke."

That caused him to raise an eyebrow. "Says who? You? The stubborn one?"

"You're calling me stubborn when I'm the one who came to apologize?" she countered, fixing him with an exasperated stare.

Pressing his lips together, he refused to answer and simply turned his head away.

Sakura heaved a sigh and approached him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his chest without another word. At first, he remained as stiff as a board. But then, as he let out a heavy breath, all the tension seemed to leave his body, and his arms came to wrap around her small frame as his lips pressed against the top of her head.

"Was this our first fight?" she asked after a minute of silence, her voice muffled against his skin.

"Our first stupid, irrational fight?" he clarified. "Yes."

She resisted the urge to giggle. "What even triggered it?"

He frowned as he rested his chin on the top of her head and tried to find an answer. He came up short. "Who cares?" he eventually said, and bent his head to touch his lips to hers.

"I love you," she murmured in their kiss. "And I'm sorry."

"Aa. Me too."

~•~

It was a cold night in February that Sasuke got the surprise of his life.

He was in his room, sitting on the edge of the bed, looking over a contract he had brought home from the office. A knock resounded against the already opened door, and he gave a small grunt before raising his head – and freezing.

There she was, leaning against the doorframe, dressed in only a short, almost see-through black baby-doll and a pair of matching panties that barely left anything to the imagination.

"Hey," she greeted in a soft tone, smiling almost shyly under his intense stare.

He swallowed thickly as she began to make her way towards him, her posture missing the confident allure it had once had, replaced instead by something akin to submission. Under normal circumstances, that would have distressed him, had it not been for the fact that he happened to realize something of great importance – along with her submission, came the easy calm and comfort they had always wanted, but never managed to find.

She no longer needed to call forward confidence she did not even have in order to mask her insecurities; she was now offering herself to him without the black tendrils of doubt. She rested perfectly safe in the knowledge that he would never hurt her, that they were in this together and that, no matter what happened or what they came across, he would help her in her hardest times, as she would help him.

And beneath that, there was the real confidence an independent woman like her should have. The confidence she had in making the right choice – in giving him everything, in placing all of her trust in him – in her husband, her lover, her best friend – and trusting him to protect it as much as he would protect her. If possible, he fell in love with her even more.

"Sakura…" he murmured as she came to stand in front of him, her fingers waving through the thick strands of his spiky hair. Her nails scratched his scalp softly, and he closed his eyes, both in contentment and in pleasure, trying hard to ignore the reactions she awoke inside of him with a touch as simple as this. He hadn't had a woman in a long time, and he would have been willing to keep it that way; the thought of touching another woman – someone that was not his wife – sounded almost repulsing now, and he knew he would never stoop down to that level again. That didn't mean he didn't miss having sex, though. After all, he was a man and he would lie if he said he hadn't been waiting for this moment ever since Sakura returned. That became especially logical to him when he took into consideration the fact that he had slept by her side every single night since then – and that his wife was not one to wear normal pajamas.

He briefly wondered whether this wasn't another one of his torturous dreams. But then her hand moved again, brushing his bangs away from his face, and he realized that this was real, this was truly happening. Slowly, he opened his eyes, locking gazes with hers. She smiled at him, that sweet smile she reserved only for him, and bent down to kiss him, softly touching her lips to his.

Everything was lost then. The papers in his hands were abandoned and fluttered to the floor in a disorganized heap as his fingers found the soft material that covered her waist. Slowly, he leaned backwards until his back touched the mattress, and she followed him down; the feel of her subtle curves pressing into him and her soft skin on his nearly took his breath away.

When the kiss was broken, he found himself looking up at her while a curtain of silky pink hair isolated them from the rest of the room.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked as he smoothed it away from her face and behind her ears, his breath fanning against her lips.

Sakura nodded. "I am," she answered, her own hands waving through his inky locks. "I know it may seem soon, especially after everything our relationship's been through, but I don't think waiting will do us any good. Do you think that?" she asked, teasing now, her smile molding into a smirk.

Sasuke raised an amused eyebrow. She gazed back into his eyes, daring him with her own raised eyebrow. She was completely unprepared for what he did next: he grasped her waist and flipped her over so that he was now on top, ripping a surprised gasp from her throat and causing her pink hair to spread all over the dark-blue pillows. As he accommodated himself above her significantly smaller body, he – intentionally, she noticed in an instant – ground his hips against hers. She failed to contain another gasp as he did so, her eyes sliding shut at the sensations his simple action had caused. There was no doubt in her mind that this period of abstinence, if it could be called so, had been necessary for their relationship to heal completely, but that didn't mean she hadn't missed the nights spent in his arms. Only now that she had him over her and knowing fully what they were about to do did she realize exactly how much, though.

Bringing his mouth as close to her ear as possible, he whispered huskily, "What do you think?"

It was a while until the pinkette gathered her bearings and was able to speak, and even then, she felt as if she had to make an almost inhuman effort to keep her voice steady. "I know we've both had doubts about being intimate again… I want you to know that mine are gone," she whispered, her forest-green eyes shining strongly with an emotion that had, by now, become oddly familiar to him – love.

It was almost amusing, to be honest. He'd once thought he would never need something as 'stupid' and as 'superficial' as love. And now – now that he had let her in his life… he wasn't sure he could live another day without seeing it in her eyes, without hearing it in her words, without noticing it in her actions. He wasn't sure he could live another day without showing her, with everything he had, that he loved her, that he adored her, that he cared for her like no one had ever done, like no one would ever have a chance to now. She was his – and this time, it was for real; not some pretense he had created because he felt entitled and addicted to the happiness she offered him so selflessly. Now it was real – and it felt far better than in his wildest dreams.

"I knew that," he confessed, gazing back into her eyes with the same intensity, the same emotion, the same unconditional adoration. "You know why? Because, this time, I know you." And he was slowly falling in love with each and every new piece of her that he discovered, step by step.

Touched by his words, the pinkette couldn't contain the happy smile that pulled at the corners of her lips. He was right. Everything was different this time, starting with the fact that they both knew and understood each other; it was only now that they could actually talk about true love – because it was only now that they had managed to become rid of all their façades and open up to one another to the point where they were willing to share every single part of them.

Tugging lightly on his hair, she brought his head down for a passionate kiss, loving the way he eagerly responded.

They kissed for a long time, until their lungs burned for oxygen, their hands exploring each other's bodies. They broke apart panting, slightly dizzy and even disorientated for a moment; Sasuke immediately attacked her neck, kissing and scraping the skin with his teeth, and occasionally sucking when he encountered a particularly sensitive spot. He slowly worked his way down, sensually licking the valley of her breasts while his hands alternated between massaging her thighs to gripping her hips.

All of the while, Sakura panted and writhed underneath him, dizzy with pleasure and completely overwhelmed by his presence. It was as if he were everywhere at once, worshipping her body, and all she could do was pull at his hair and pant and moan breathlessly, trying to make sense of the fact that, no matter what, she would probably never get enough of him.

As time passed, his hands traveled up and down her body, caressing gently, tenderly. Their lips met together time after time. Every breath they took was fed off each other; every moan and groan that fell past their lips was swallowed by the other. Soon, his fingers came to intertwine with hers above her head.

It was everything it should have been that night and wasn't. Sakura couldn't say she regretted having given herself to him that day. She couldn't say she would do things any differently if she were to go back in time. She couldn't say it had been a mistake. But this, now – it was the real deal.

It was physical gratification, there was no way she could deny that, but it was more than that. It was emotional. It was moving. All barriers had been broken down this time around, and if she thought she'd enjoyed it then, there were no words to describe what she was feeling now. She didn't even try to do that. She simply let herself be taken away, let herself feel. It was overwhelming, in a sense, being so close to the man she loved as well as having the certainly that, this time, no one would tear them apart. She had complete trust in him that he wouldn't allow that.

And this – this is how their new lives began.

A/N: Yay, done! I tried my best to have this posted before the 25th, but I failed miserably. Forgive me?

One more chapter to go, and then we have the epilogue (which will be one big ball of fluff)! I plan to finish them both before this summer ends.

As usual, you can find outfits on Flickr and make-up on my blog!

Review for cookies! I really want to hear your opinions and I can't eat all the cookies by myself because then my favorite pair of jeans won't fit me anymore! Logical enough? Haha!