with your face and the beautiful eyes / and the conversation with the little white lies / and the faded picture of a beautiful night / you carried me from your car up the stairs / and i broke down crying, was she worth this mess? / after everything and that little black dress / after everything i must confess / i need you
- the other side of the door, taylor swift (fearless platinum edition)
"can you please stop crying already?"
"how can i?! i saw my boyfriend shoving his tongue down someone else's throat! even i didn't experience that from him when we make out!"
he sighed tiredly as he drives her home, "i didn't need to know that."
picking up his best friend in the middle of the night from her supposed-to-be-date wasn't part of his plan for tonight. he just wanted to distract himself by watching anime all night and not think about sakura's date, but now, here he is driving her home after seeing her sitting on the side of the road.
after all, he can never say no to sakura.
seeing her in her disheveled little black dress, hand bruised, and one of her high heels missing almost gave him a heart attack, thinking she was robbed or something. apparently, the pink-haired girl of his dreams punched her now ex-boyfriend and got into a fight with the girl he was cheating her with.
"how can he do this to me?! yeah, it's only been at least two months since we've been together but i was a great girlfriend! was it because her boobs were bigger? i bet those were fake anyway!"
"no, it was because your ex was an asshole."
he sensed her wiping her cheeks, "yeah, he was. god, i can't believe i liked him."
something sparked inside him when he heard it. she said 'liked' only; not loved.
sasuke has liked his best friend sakura haruno since the day she called him a dipshit. he was never good at talking to people outside his family and tight-knit of friends, much less a random person. when she approached him for the first time, he thought he was one of his annoying fangirls that give him chocolate without knowing he hates sweets.
that day was when naruto spilled his juice all over his bag and itachi forgot his promise to call him, so he was very irritated already. that's why he snapped at her when she was about to speak and said, "if you're here to give me some chocolates or profess your undying love to me, i don't have the energy to deal with you. go away."
and he was taken aback when for the first time, a girl snapped back at him for being rude. "and i don't have the energy to deal with a dipshit like you as well, but since i saw your wallet lying around i thought i should give it back." she tossed his wallet back to him and after he caught it, he looked at her blazing green eyes. "you're welcome, dickhead."
she left him there wondering where the hell had she been and when he will see her again.
that was the first day, and today was their 895th day of knowing each other. from random strangers to classmates and lab partners to a comfortable companion up to their current position as best friends. he wanted to take it higher, to go further; but he's a little scared and she's so cool. in her own words—when they watch horror movies and both naruto and he couldn't look properly at the screen—he's a wuss.
when he parked his car outside her house, she was already quiet. it's a little late already and he knows she's tired from all that's happened tonight so he got off the car and went to her side. he opened the door for her and crouched down, offering his back to her.
"this is a one-time deal," he said, hoping she wouldn't see the tips of his ears turning red. "hop on."
"i can walk, sasuke-kun. it's only a shoe, i still have both my feet."
"i know, but you're sleepy already. i don't need you falling on your neck and die. i don't want your death on me."
sasuke heard her laugh a little and after a few moments, he felt her arms loop around his neck and her body pressed against his back. holding her under her knees on both sides of him, sasuke easily stood up to his full height and walked the small distance from their gate to her house.
"you got taller," she whispered against his ear. he felt the hairs of his neck rose up. "you weren't this tall the last time you gave me a piggyback ride."
he coughed subtly, "we were 15 at that time, sakura. that was almost 3 years ago."
sakura hummed as she buried her face on his shoulder, "mhm. we've been together long, huh?"
he stopped in front of her front door as his heart started to beat out of his ribs. in his head, he agreed. it's been too long actually, for her not to see that he is so in love with her.
that he's in love with her ever since she held his hand all night in his room when itachi went away to college. he felt lonely and a little scared that he is now all by himself in their house, but sakura came crashing through his door that night with french fries and ice cream and that smile; and that was it—he was in love.
he entered the house silently knowing her parents were sleeping down the hall. carefully adjusting her sleepy form on his back, he slowly made his way up the stairs to her room. when they got there, sasuke was flooded with the smell of cinnamon and memories.
reaching her bed, he delicately crouched down so he could prop her on it. once he knew she was sitting, he turned around and saw her looking at him sleepily, red-rimmed eyes from crying earlier and her overall exhaustion. she looked around them and mumbled, "oh, we're home."
her words are a punch to the gut that rattles his insides. to hide his nervousness, sasuke pulled her slightly to place her head properly on her pillow. he took off her remaining shoe and placed it gently on the floor, then covered her with her blanket. tucked under her cheek was her bruised hands and he took it gently.
"we'll fix this tomorrow, instead. get some sleep now," he said while holding her hands. he watched her as she nodded and gripped her hand when he heard her speak.
"you know what the bastard told me before i left them and his bitch?"
he fought a smile—ever the nickname provider. "hn?"
sakura smiled and closed her eyes, "she said you're in love with me."
the silence of the night grew inside her moonlit room. there's the small sound of her breathing and the faint snores of her dad downstairs; but in his head, her words ricochet on the corners of his brain, frying it in the process. was it this obvious already? that even her son of a bitch of an ex could see it?
sasuke opened his mouth to speak, "i- i l-..."
he wasn't able to reply because it seems that she's already asleep. sasuke sighed, tenderly put down her hands and put his instead on her head, collecting the stray pink strands that cover her face. once her face was exposed, he took a moment to appreciate the slope of her button nose and the fullness of her lips before he dipped down and planted a kiss on her forehead.
he turned to leave, his chest filled with so much, and completely missed the opening of her eyes.
sasuke heard the soft click of her doorknob when he left her bedroom door. he put his forehead against her pine door closing his eyes. he let out a breath he had been holding for a while and relaxed against the door. would she have reciprocated it once she knew of his true feelings?
she never gave an indication that she feels the same except for the mutual understanding they have between best friends. there was the subtle flirting and the teasing remarks, but he was busy hiding his feelings at the same time, in the fear she wouldn't like it. she's strong, much stronger than he'll ever be, and she would want someone stronger; someone strong enough to admit their own feelings to her.
"yes," he whispered on the other side of the door. "yes, i am in love with you."
he placed his palm against her bedroom door and silently confessed. "i'm in love with you, sakura. is that okay?"
"i knew it," a gasping voice inside her room suddenly said.
startled, sasuke removed his head and hands against the door and stared at it with wide eyes and an open mouth. he saw the doorknob move and was about to turn when he pulled it to prevent it from opening.
"sasuke-kun, move!"
"why are you awake?!" he whisper-screamed at her. they still have to be quiet since her parents are still asleep. "i thought you were already sleeping!"
the knob rattled again, "you think i avoid naruto's ramen adventures just because i say no? he sees me asleep and he would never dare to wake me up. now, take your hands off!"
he quietly groaned and muttered to himself, "i can't believe i fell for it."
"quit yapping over there, i can hear you anyway," her voice a bit strained from her effort to open the door. sasuke held on true to the brass handle as if his life depended on it, and felt the force disappeared after a few heartbeats. sakura finally let go from the inside.
"fine," she exhaled. "but i want to hear what you just said."
sasuke let go of the knob, his cheeks burning even without feeling her powerful gaze. "you said you heard me. why would you make me repeat it, idiot?"
"because i want to know if you're telling the truth, dumbass!"
"as if i have ever lied to you!"
sakura didn't answer but sasuke heard a faint sound that came from her. an intake of breath in time with the words flowing from his mouth as he finally lets it all out, thanking every deity there is that she's on the other side of the door.
"i may have never told you of my feelings, but it's always been here. i have always been honest with you ever since i told you to go away when we first met. what makes you think i'll make this up now? what makes you think that i'd lie to you? what makes you think i wouldn't be in love with you when you're my best friend?!"
his chest was heaving and he felt like he had just run a marathon. he can feel his sweat dripping down his hairline to his jaw and he wiped it with the back of his hand irritatingly. "for someone so smart, you're so annoyingly dense," he breathed out.
time slowed down and the turn of the knob was like in slow motion, then her door was open. it's a look he hasn't seen before and he felt like falling in love over again.
sakura stood there with her little black dress, her green eyes downcast; and from the dim lighting of the second-floor hallway, sakura's cheeks were dusted pink and her bottom lip was between her teeth. she released it and took a breath before meeting his eyes.
"and what makes you think i wouldn't feel the same?"
it's a stand-off, really. it's a confrontation of emotions they have bottled up until now. there they were on opposite sides of her bedroom door, looking at each other like it's the first time. in a sense, they might be. they're now seeing the other in a different light and they both think the same thing as they bask in this realization.
"you're in love with me, too."
sasuke stepped forward as sakura took one step back. he pushed and she pulled until they're finally back on the same space of her bedroom. she looked up at him and he watched as she blushed even harder. from insulting nicknames and rude gestures of go away, here they are with shaking hands and shy but brave confessions of come closer.
in the hallway he left, you will see her bedroom door close gently because finally, after all these years of pining, they're finally on the same page.
finally, there's no one left on the other side of the door.
~fin~