A/N: It didn't take me over two months to update this time, ha! I feel like I could've stretched out this chapter and the story more, but I can't take the suffering anymore. I hope you all can agree.

Chapter 24

The next few days saw her being antsy. When she wasn't head-deep in her work, or hawking over Sarada's nutritional intake to make sure it was meeting the physical and mental demands of the fast-approaching Chuunin Exams, Sakura found herself able to afford the mental capacity to think, worry about other things. Things she knew she shouldn't concern herself with, things that managed to creep into her exhausted mind every night when she was done checking items off the errand list in her head and lied in bed satisfied yet awake.

After all, six months should be enough to forget about a person and move past some unwanted feelings... or what Sakura had hoped was the case, had turned out far from her expectation when she was put to the real test. And she now suspected—but wouldn't admit that those feelings were never unloaded, just pushed aside in exchange for other distractions.

The little lump materialized in her chest and grew, each and every time the universe decided to make entertainment of her heavy awkwardness and the way she involuntarily moved like a living tree stump by summoning Gaara into her vicinity. And before they could establish eye contact, Sakura would have already made a sharp 90 degrees into the nearest corridor adjacent to her or detoured around the neighborhoods to get to her destination half an hour late.

Given her role in the exams and the preceding preparations, it wasn't out of the ordinary that she got more face time with the foreign delegates during her many trips between the Hokage Tower and the hospital. The possibility of having business interactions with Gaara, no matter how self-conscious she felt around him these days as her over-thinking began to take charge of her daily worries again, hasn't made her hesitate an instant when she took on her responsibilities some months ago. She wasn't going to let the past get in the way of her professional duty. But her own brain that'd helped her, with sensible reason and logic, to stay distant before and up to the second she'd seen Gaara in her presentation seemed to have slipped out of discipline.

Emotional detachment. It was easier to practice when he wasn't within accessible proximity and when she already had other stress to preoccupy her mind. The past six months wasn't easy in the least. On top of working taxing shifts at the hospital and getting her medical team ready to support the exams, Sakura had to carefully manage relationships at home while navigating the divorce process. The sensitive news hasn't made its way out of her inner circle, according to her wish.

Naruto asked about her more nowadays and was kind enough to have a courier hand deliver her written intent to her wayfaring spouse, letters after letters that seemed to end up in a black hole when the messenger returned empty-handed every time. Her parents had accepted her decision with pensive sighs. However, she was thankful there was no "told-you-so" from the two elder Haruno who never fully embraced Sasuke as their son-in-law, a sentiment she knew they had long held since the day she stubbornly packed her bags and shut the door on their fiery arguments only to show up a year and a half later at their doorstep with their infant granddaughter in her arms, by herself...

As for her daughter, the younger Uchiha had treated her difficult words to uncharacteristic silence. And Sakura had never felt so helpless, being unable to stop the glum girl from retreating to her room. Though Sarada had re-emerged as her usual self one morning, getting into their routines without any indications that there ever was anything wrong; and even behaved more attentive toward her mother. So Sakura let the surface quiet go unquestioned and undisturbed for the time being, afraid to rattle Sarada's concentrations as the Chuunin Exams drew close; but nevertheless tabled away some intended conversations for after the exams are over.

But now that her EMS team was wholly prepped and well-poised to carry out their portfolio and it was only a matter of the exams starting, now that there was some calm in her schedule, now that she became somewhat resigned to her messages to Sasuke being unanswered, she had the time for her thoughts to drift just as she had the time to catch a resting breath.

Gaara didn't remain stationary in her thoughts, coming and going, but always circling back to her mind in quiet moments to herself. She was anxious; and she couldn't quite understand what it'd meant when she simultaneously wanted to run into him and run away from him, much less the way her heart fluttered every time she stepped into the administration building then for disappointment to saddle it down when she concluded her visit without any glimpses of red hair and maroon overcoat. It was pathetic that she should feel the progress she made come undone at the simplest trigger of his presence. Still, she could hardly suppress her feelings.

So surrendering a sigh into the air, Sakura continued to stare at the dark ceiling of her bedroom, alone and loosely aware of the growing pressure in her chest; and decided she would just have to shame herself later for wondering what Gaara was doing at this very moment, in her village—not thousands of miles apart, possibly walking distance away, reachable...

Her slightly cowardly self that would've been content to do nothing about these agitated feelings hasn't, really, counted on her irrational desires to drive her for action when: Two days later, her feet chose not to take flight as she caught sight of the particular redhead in public. And Sakura debated if it was truly irrational of her to want to approach but was settled that it wasn't.

Because after all, she still thought about him this week, and always arrived at the same nagging conclusion that she didn't want to leave things between them as they were—both now barely on speaking terms, or so she'd made it out to be.

Set up for the in-person registrations of the Chuunin Exams participants, the large tented outdoor area in the administrative district was where Sakura—having just finished her check-in with the other exam coordinators—spotted Gaara, accompanied by a young man outfitted with a strange sort of coat made of black substances. The two of them idled by the registration tables briefly, before ambling away from the groups of local and foreign shinobi clustered around the site. Before the head of crimson could vanish from her vision yet again, her desires overcame her fears, and her one heel began to lift off the ground.

The pace of her steps picked up just as her heart jittered in her ribcage in a way that made her dizzy. Her shaky gait carried her over to the duo's location, where it transitioned to apprehensive steps until she finally stopped to just watch, watch their unturned backs for a moment. Swallowing, Sakura chided herself for her rabbiting heart, as well as reminded herself that she needed to be adult about this.

"Hey..." She squeezed her voice out, before any second thought could pass through her brain.

Two heads turned as expected. A closer look of the youth first had Sakura pay notice to the distinct red markings on his face and the pair of forest green eyes, below the headband carved with the hourglass symbol, that surveyed her curiously and intently. Then she snapped her attention to the older male, her sought out audience, and pressed her lips together for a second before parting them:

"Can we talk?"

She looked up at Gaara, willing her fingers that fidgeted the hem of her blouse in that childish tendency of hers to uncurl. For what felt surely longer than reality, he held her stare. Instead of answering her, he angled his head toward the adolescent beside him.

"Shinki, go join Yodo and Araya. I will see you all later," he instructed.

Sakura too followed his gaze, her eyes landed once again on the boy by the name of Shinki who, she deduced, belonged to the team representing the Hidden Sand in this year's Chuunin Exams—

"Yes, Chichiue."

Fa—Sakura balked, brain stuttering—ther?

"The last time I heard that line—" She pulled her focus back from the direction of the departing boy to find pointed jade eyes on her.

With a tight expression and abrasive tone, the man in front of her spoke, forcing her to forgo her momentary surprise and concentrate on the present. "I was misled to expect a two-sided conversation."

Sakura winced, perhaps more from the grasped truth than the discernible indignation in his words. Memories stirring anew in her mind, belatedly, she realized she'd been self-centered in the same manner that was no different from her selfish wish now to be free of her sentiments, to get her closure—all but an excuse just to see him one more time; and without considering for a moment what he might have to say.

Guilty, she put forth an apologetic smile. "I know... I'm sorry. I..."

Still, she lacked the courage to weather what he could possibly tell her, especially if his sharp-edged words were any signs to his reception of her. More than likely, she foresaw herself tossing her unresolved feelings at Gaara and beating a hasty retreat, leaving him the burden to sort them out. She laughed a mirthless laugh. "...can't promise it will be better this time. But there are things I've been wanting to say but didn't get the chance."

He tilted slightly to his right. "You have my ears." Pausing, he redirected his gaze back at her, and his next addition was enough to cause her minute smile flip upside down. "Five minutes ought to suffice."

Sakura frowned heavily. He sounded upset. If he was angry with how she'd played out things between them, she wouldn't blame him.

Gaara's less than receptive attitude to what she had to offer made her gulp down the suggestion that they should try to find a more private place to talk. Stalling at a corner off the beaten path, she took a quick browse of their surroundings and grimaced at a few curious glances cast their way here and there from passersby whom she didn't necessarily recognize. But their little meeting didn't seem to spark immense interest from the villagers and ninja who mostly continued to mind their own business, weaving through the streets with untold purpose and one by one disappearing from her line of sight. Studying the space between herself and Gaara, Sakura sighed and moved a step closer so she could lower her voice a decibel, not wanting their conversation easily overheard. This would have to do.

"Gaara," she began, eyes trained on him. "If you never want to see or talk to me again," she wished otherwise, despite telling him so, "I understand..."

"But—" Sakura swallowed again, her throat all of a sudden thick with the words she could've told him before he walked away from her that night on top of the Hokage Rock six months ago, the response to that lone question of his that she in truth dwelled on day after day since then, imagining an opportunity in her head that she could deliver her finally coherent message to him one day... Her sincere gratitude to him.

"I want you to know..." And that opportunity was now, no matter what he thought of her after all that's happened. As her script processed through her brain and produced from her mouth, she didn't understand why it was suddenly hard to articulate. Her sentences were coming out in rambling pieces, and her voice trembled a little.

"I am really grateful for you being there for Sarada... and... for me. Thank you for all your help, your support. Because of you..." She felt a knot in her throat. God, was she choking up? Why?

"I... I—" Lashes inexplicably becoming heavy with moisture, Sakura couldn't keep her gaze on him anymore and dropped her head, so afraid that something disgraceful would drip from her eyes.

"I am better..."

That made little sense—why was it so hard to convey that he'd inspired her to move beyond the past and evolve as a person? She should just stop talking.

She still desperately needed practice to be verbal with her feelings, it seemed, which she could never make a habit of in her time with Sasuke. For now, she'd again have to rely on Gaara to comprehend the meaning she herself couldn't construct properly. For now, she needed to shut her mouth before she makes a babbling fool out of herself in front of him.

"So, thank you." She did what she could to lift her eyes back on him and muster a smile, reflecting the genuineness of what she couldn't quite put into words; her vision already too blurred to define his exact facial expression.

"For everything..."

The increasing tightness in her throat was her warning that any more sounds from her would end up unintelligible. The heaviness in her heart at this moment was her realization that she wasn't ready to say goodbye even a second time around. Quickly, she rotated herself, back against him now, facing downward and the path forward and knowing she couldn't be brave enough to see his reaction. Couldn't let the stubborn tears fall. Couldn't go back to the past...

Sakura shook in her place, her feet about to spring. How she wanted to cry, for sure it had nothing to do with the reality that she more than just liked him. Absolutely nothing to do with the possibility that she might love him a little...

There was no good way to make her exit, so she did the only way she knew how. And her foot rose to the first step—

"Wait."

There was a tug at her wrist, and from behind her Sakura felt the firm grasp of a strong hand. Her heart flipped.

"You think you can just go ahead and leave after that speech?" She cringed, caught in her cowardly act, even as Gaara's taut tone from earlier loosened. She sucked on her bottom lip, hesitant to look back, yet unable to push her feet onward.

Having nothing to say, she endured the short silence that followed before a sigh, deep and deflating, streamed into her ears. Then his unexpected question made her eyes a fraction rounder:

"Is it true? You are getting a divorce from Sasuke."

She snapped her head back. His penetrating gaze effortlessly pulled her in, locking her own into an unbroken connection. Sakura stared into fixed turquoise eyes, open-mouthed. He wasn't supposed to know.

"How—how did you know?"

As she regarded him fully now, she saw the pensive fold between his brows, his serious look, one that made her chest ache. Quietly, he told her, without excess, "Naruto told me."

"Naruto..." Sakura said the name to herself, a dozen thoughts arose in her head, as she pondered how and why the blond would divulge her private matters; but in the end could only resign to a sigh when no answers came up. "Always and forever the loudmouth…"

Then it all happened so quickly and suddenly. Secure arms drew her in and wound around her back. Before she could panic about the optics of their contact in public, the old familiar scent of rich spice and musk inundated her senses like fresh memories from yesterday. Startled, confused, she went still but compliant in his embrace, chin resting on his shoulder, feeling her mind turn blank and her own heartbeats pound between two bodies.

With yet another long heavy sigh from Gaara that vibrated through her, Sakura heard the hushed murmur of his voice in her hair.

"I'm truly a hypocrite..."

Sakura blinked, not understanding.

"I couldn't stop thinking. What of... the possibility had I tried to get to know you better back then, before all this… Before—" There was a strained pause.

"…Sasuke."

He finished with a little more than a painful whisper. But it was so very loud and distinct to her, echoing well into her heart...

All at once, her floodgates of emotions opened. The tears that'd receded a bit welled up again, finally spilling from wide eyes down the sides of her face in currents she couldn't control and melting into the fabric of Gaara's shirt.

She understood him there and then.

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut, swallowing hard and holding back the urge to sob. It was infuriating that she should cry like a distressed child. As she stayed pressed into the man whose warmth she realized how much she's missed, she felt rueful over her crumbling resistance and that it was so simple to undo the six months' worth of hard work trying to bury her feelings.

Deep in her mind, she wondered the same possibility that Gaara posed.

Could they have had a different future than now? Together?

But her world used to be all and only Sasuke. She wasn't confident that she would've noticed anyone else in that senseless obsession of hers for one person. Sakura opened her eyes, watery as they were, still. Their journey this far hasn't been easy, but she never regretted things turning out the way they did between Gaara and herself.

Perhaps, it was all meant to be.

With a gentle push, she separated herself from Gaara just enough to be able to look up to his face that was still set in a frown. He appeared watchful as he pored over her. She shook her head, as her hands brushed down his arms and found his pair. She linked their fingers together.

"Gaara..."

His focus traveled down to their joined hands and back up to her, question in his solemn expression. Cheeks warm with a little bit of embarrassment, Sakura sniffled away the last of her tears and smiled softly, wanting to smooth the wrinkle from between his brows.

She breathed, delicately, reciting the words he'd offered her as encouragement once upon a time—the ones she's always held on to closely. "You said so yourself. We have to accept the past in order to move forward."

The red-haired man before her gave a slow batting of eyes. His forehead gradually unknitted, as the slightest lift of the corners of his lips came into view—the way Sakura wanted.

Her smile stayed with her, growing bigger, as she recognized the promise in his eyes that yes, they would talk and sort things out.

It wasn't that he delighted in the way her face contorted from how he'd received her; but the dull anger that was coming alive inside him made Gaara open his mouth, and biting words continued. It was the kind of anger that'd lingered in the depth of his heart; boiled, the more he dwelled on the cause, who, had the audacity to reach out to him again.

He was beside himself, feeling his control and calm wane as he cast a disdainful look at the woman in front of him. She wouldn't know what she made him experience in these past pathetic six months of surrounding himself with work—all in an effort to distract his mind from the emotions he concealed from the world. But the ample paperwork, endless meetings, and rigorous training sessions with Shinki and his team miraculously didn't fill all his time, and when night fell, he was solitary. And it was a terrible feeling again, eerily familiar, that brought him back to his childhood.

There was no more division between being alone and being lonely. It'd become one and the same, loneliness at the worst degree, all because he'd tasted companionship of a certain kind for the first time.

Of course, she would have no idea, otherwise she wouldn't be standing in front of him under the pretext to "talk" and to deliver an important message. What purpose she had to come before him now, when she'd rejected him and turned them effectively into strangers to one another? As that recent piece of revelation from Naruto about her flitted across his head, Gaara couldn't find in himself any inclination to give her the benefit of the doubt. Things she claimed to want to tell him but didn't have the chance? It all seemed so very disingenuous.

Yet, a part of him inevitably craved that set of words from her admitting mistake and confessing to a change of mind, the bitter and indignant part of him that desired to bask in her acknowledgment then to crush it in return... —Because, he refused to be her afterthought, and what was worse to stomach, second to someone like Sasuke.

With disgust and excitement, he honed his eyes on her lips that didn't move fast enough; and he could but think himself a degenerate, aching for the lies that would bring him sweet relief, soothe his emotional pain...

Say them. He lusted from within.

"It's you. It should've been you."

Tell the deceit that would feed his vanity, fuel his contempt... silently, he urged.

"I want you back." —

"Thank you..."

Her actual line deviated so far from his unsound imagination, from what he had himself prepared for. The airy whisper grew softer and softer, but it pierced through his anger. The moment it took for his brain to begin to absorb her words, he felt the buildup of hot air inside him drain like a punctured balloon.

Suddenly, the glimmering eyes and the gentle smile that made up the image of her dampened his fury to wariness. He surveyed the woman before him carefully, his angry red filter just about fading into oblivion.

The sight of her met his vision more clearly, and Gaara took in every detail. The thinner outline of her face was a difference he'd noticed when he saw her for the first time in their meeting some days ago, a change in her that he observed with dismay. Strands of pastel hair fell slightly into her eyes from where she'd tucked them behind her ear, but not completely obscuring those spring-like orbs swimming with silvery waters. The faint, pretty smile that grew from her rose bud lips drew his attention, and unexpected warmth coursed through him, his upset forgotten.

There it was, the certain genuineness and tenderness of spirit to Sakura Uchiha that touched him like no other...

"For everything..."

...that reminded him why he'd become attracted to her in the first place, why he still pined after her all this time...

As Gaara thoughtfully considered the meaning of her message, he circled back to that single narrative he never wanted to abandon no matter how many times he'd tried to rationalize it away in their time apart:

"Sakura-chan really cares about you."

His friend's voice looped around and around in his head, and he really should be so foolish to be drawn to his account. Yet the "second chance" that Naruto spoke of flashed across his mind on impulse the instant he was faced with Sakura's back and not any more of her smiling visage. Something stirred deep inside him, and he knew he couldn't stand to watch her walk away from him.

He reached for her, no hesitation or doubt. When she didn't object to his contact and she wasn't insisting on going anywhere, relief settled in him. Then with her delicate frame in his arms, he was reliving his fondest memories. Sinking into the heat of her body, drinking in her sweet scent like these last six months had been years long, he gave in, too tired and defeated in the uphill battle with his own feelings.

He was beginning to understand, Gaara thought, the pain in his chest that he couldn't explain initially, as he made himself vulnerable in front of Sakura. He no longer cared if he sacrificed his pride to reveal the truth, letting her know the same question he kept returning to every night he spent not in her presence like the hypocrite he was, unable to budge from the past…

The small amount of panic that swelled within him, as Sakura gently nudged them separate, was momentarily reassured when she instead hooked their hands together and smiled so freely that light blossomed in her expression. The peek of pink glowed in her cheeks, yet the wet streaks against her skin made his heart heavy.

It was when she called him that he realized he'd missed the sound of his name on her lips. Then to his surprise, it was his own advice that was prescribed to him in that dulcet voice of hers, and he found some humor in it.

He was given anticipation and hope in this notion of them moving forward. The weight in him lifted, and he relaxed. Mouth stretched up, Gaara met her gaze with the conviction that there would have to come a time soon for a conversation that merited openness and honesty from both of them...

"Hey, wait a second!" Their harmony was temporarily interrupted. Along with Sakura's abrupt exclamation, there was pressure below from a squeeze of his hands.

Gaara directed a puzzling look at her. Her eyebrows pinched, and emerald eyes peered up at him from under dewy lashes.

"You have a son?"