TEN YEARS AGO
"Sasuke! Oh Sasuke!"
A bubbly mass of teetering fan girls barraged the Uchiha with questions and desperation. Aiko watched on, seated directly behind her childhood friend, as he ignored them completely. His eyes were distant and dark—more so than usual—and she knew his mind was mulling over that night.
The night Itachi murdered the entire Uchiha clan.
Sitting next to him, Naruto Uzumaki scowled, brooding. He hated that Sasuke got all the attention, especially when it was so clear that he didn't want it. He didn't see what was so special about this moody, dark haired boy. He was determined to be better than him! He was going to become Hokage!
"Naruto!" A pink hair girl whined, "Why are you sitting next to Sasuke?! You're just bothering him! Move somewhere else so I can sit next to him!"
Naruto's eyes were pleading, "Sakura..." he didn't know why she had to be so mean to him. He was certain that he had never done anything in his life to draw her ire.
"Wait a minute Billboard-Brow!" A blonde girl cut in, hands on her hips and a frown on her face, "Why do you get to sit next to Sasuke?! I was here first!"
"Actually, I was here first!" Another girl cut in.
"No, I was! I should get to sit next to Sasuke!" Another.
"What are you talking about?! You just got here and I've been here twenty minutes already!"
"You're a liar!"
The arguing went on, and on, until Aiko couldn't even tell what they were talking about anymore. It was just a mass of high-pitched voices with no way to discern between them. Eventually, Naruto got out of his seat to stand on top of the desk and argue with Sakura about something Aiko couldn't make out. He had a fist raised in front of him, overzealous anger on his face, and enthusiasm that was highly misplaced. Aiko took the opportunity to hop over the long desk that spanned her side of the aisle and slid in next to the Uchiha boy. No one seemed to notice. Yet.
"How do you put up with this?" The Okumura girl asked her long-time friend with a raised eyebrow.
Sasuke had his elbows propped on top of his own desk, hands folded in front of him and covering his mouth. He sighed heavily and shut his eyes but otherwise didn't move, "I just don't give them my attention. I don't want to feed into their stupidity. They're just a bunch of idiots."
"HEY!" A shrill voice cut in. Aiko's head twisted to the side to see Sakura and the blonde, Ino Yamanaka, pointing manicured fingers at her. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" It was Ino who was speaking.
"Sitting next to my best friend?" Aiko's said with confusion.
Ino seemed to hesitate, her hand dropping a little. Sakura took up the podium then, "And what makes you his best friend?!"
"We grew up together?"
Usually, at Sasuke behest, Aiko stayed out of the drama completely while they were in school. She didn't want to deal with it and Sasuke always made an excellent point that if Aiko were to ever be caught near him, his fangirls would go into a bloodlust. But today, Sasuke had looked painfully lonely, and entirely fed up with all these annoying girls, and Aiko wanted to show that she was still there for him.
"Y...You guys grew up together?" Sakura seemed shocked, then she turned towards Ino with watery eyes. "Is this going to ruin our chances to be with Sasuke?!" The two of them wined over the possibility that their master plans were crumbling now, all thought of the red head that was sitting mere feet away from them forgotten. Their voices resonated with devastation and Aiko couldn't help but pull her lips into a tight line and stare off in front of her in disbelief.
With some effort, as they were still screaming only feet away, Aiko pushed the girls from her mind and focused her attention on Sasuke. "That tree in our favorite spot is in bloom," Aiko said with a genuine smile, "I was going to go there after school to pick the fruit that's ripe. Do you want to come with me?"
Sasuke was silent a moment as he pondered this. When finally he turned and faced Aiko's blue, expectant eyes, "I can't," was all he said.
Her smile fell, "Why not?"
Sasuke put his hands down, arms now folded in front of him, "I can't waste time, Aiko. Itachi is still out there, probably killing more innocent people in his quest for power. Just because he can..." He practically hissed the last words and his glare threatened to burn holes past Aiko's shoulder. "I need to become stronger. Then..." He looked back into those ever familiar, sorrowful blue eyes "...we can go from there."
Aiko had to look away, "I know you need this... so, it's okay." She smiled again, but it appeared forced and there was a deep sadness behind it, "I'll always be here for you, no matter how much time passes."
Sasuke smiled too—a small, fake facade, "Thank you, Aiko."