!Contains Mature Content!

.

.

.

Disclaimer/Description:

(Sasusaku au. Can Sasuke save her before it's too late?)

Suicidal thoughts WILL be discussed in this fic which is why I'm labeling it as 18+ content; so, if this is a trigger for you OR not something that you like to read about, then please, DO NOT READ THIS ONE!You have been warned now in advance. My somewhat depressed mood is the reason I wrote this... though I myself do not feel suicidal. I apologize if it offends anyone because that is not my intention and I am not making fun of this matter with this snippet! Suicide is a very real thing and if you suffer with thoughts like this, please find someone to talk to and know that you and your life are worth living for; always! Your life does matter and you are never alone!

This snippet is supposed to be an attempt to show what actual bullying can do to people and how you can help others by being there for them and understanding that it just takes a single moment to change someone's life for the better OR worse. I hope this makes sense; I'm not always good with my words.

I want to say thank you to every single one of you for your continued support of me and my writing. It means the world to me; truly. 3

'Forehead girl.'

'Ugly.'

'Useless.'

'Pathetic.'

'Weak.'

Those are just some of the very real... very cruel and heartless... things that Sakura Haruno has been told for nearly 17 years, and she has finally had enough of the vicious mockery; the constant bullying. Full of feelings of complete defeat and utter dejection... Sakura drove herself down a dark and winding road late one night; until she came across a small bridge; it was there when she finally decided to stop. Her mind made up—

Placing her car in park, Sakura decided to leave the engine running; which allowed the headlights to point forwards so that she could see where she was going and she stepped out of the car's comforting warmth and into the chilly fall air. She slipped her jacket from her shoulders and placed it haphazardly in the front seat before grabbing her phone and sending her best friend one final text message. It was only two simple words that held significant meaning; it said... "I'm sorry." Her body moved forward, almost on autopilot, as her mind was now completely numb to all feeling; all the while, Sakura drew closer and closer to the edge of the 200-foot drop.

When she reached it, she leaned over the side and placed her hands on the cold metal railing; peering over the side to the dark water below that looked almost tranquil and... welcoming. She climbed to the top and just stood there for a moment; head tilted upwards as her dulled, darkened gaze narrowed at the twinkling stars above... contempt growing in her heart.

'How it would be nice to be a star; all so alike to one another; nothing unique about them... unlike my own reality.'

With her mind still made up, she felt that she was finally ready to make the leap... Sakura Haruno was prepared to die and as she readied herself for the long free fall that would surely lead to her demise... she heard a deep voice calling out to her frantically; worry and anxiety clearly seeping into the male's rough tone as he called her name. She knew that voice, but couldn't bear to turn to the speaker. It would break her resolve; break her focus, but even still, hearing him calling out to her so urgently made her pause...

'Why is he here... how did he know where to find me... and why can't he just leave me alone...'

"Because he knows how you feel," her inner self pleaded, but she shook her head to clear it. With her gaze still forward, she readied herself once again... until she felt a tight grip on her hand and turned unconsciously to see the one person that she had feared seeing the most. Out of everyone, why did it have to be him that found her? The one person that she knew, who could change her mind easily... the one person who seemed to know her better than anyone else.

Sasuke Uchiha.

.

.

.

When Ino had texted Sasuke that something was wrong with Sakura... he had frantically gotten up from his bed and quickly dressed before raced out of his home; the need to find her had never been more urgent. His large hands were like a vice around the steering wheel of his car as he raced through stop signs and red lights; (leaving angry civilians and drives in his wake) in an attempt to find her. Sasuke's heart was pounding wildly in his chest as he began to fear the worst; that he wouldn't be able to find her in time... that he wouldn't be able to save her from her inner turmoil.

Sasuke should have known because he had been hearing what was being said about her... he just didn't know that Sakura would take it this far. He had no idea that the pink-haired teen had been allowing their cruel and hateful words to get under her skin in such a way because she had seemed to be completely fine with it... taking it all in stride actually (even if he wanted to kill every single one of them for it). There were absolutely zero signs, that he could remember anyway, to indicate the actual pain that she was in.

'If something happens to you... I won't be able to forgive myself. I'm so, so sorry Sakura. I had no idea... that it was this bad. What kind of friend does that make me... what kind of person am I...?'

But then, when all hope seemed lost, Sasuke had finally managed to find her...

... the woman whom he felt the most connection with...

... the woman whom had somehow managed to steal his heart...

...long before they had ever even spoke their first words of greeting to one another...

... as he had admired her from afar until finally plucking up the courage to introduce himself to her.

'Sakura...'

... his short sense of relief had soon turned into complete and utter terror at the sight before him. Sasuke's stomach filled with anxious knots and his heart was ready to burst from his chest as his knuckles turned white; his grip tightening further against the steering wheel.

There she stood, Sakura Haruno, on the ledge of the bridge that overlooked the Konoha river; the sight of which had nearly stopped his heart from beating before sending it into a frenzied rhythm. He slammed on his breaks and threw his car into park behind hers before throwing the door open. Sasuke raced towards her as fast as he could, all the while he had begun to call out to her name frantically; he knew that she heard him because her body had tensed but she didn't acknowledge him by turning around to face him nor did she attempt to speak to him in any way.

The more Sasuke called out to her, the more she seemed to try and ignore his presence altogether until he was directly beside her and he forced her to look at him by grabbing her small hand within his. She was freezing when he found her, her lips the shade of blue, and Sasuke quickly wrapped his arms around her before pulling her down from the top of the bridge. He placed her gently on the ground where she sat in silence, her small frame shaking violently from the cold, before taking his own jacket off when a quick sweep for hers came up empty and then wrapping it around her small body. He crouched down beside Sakura, allowing his strong arms to encircle her as he brushed her long, pink hair gently away from her tired eyes with the rough pads of his long fingers.

Sasuke was extremely thankful that he wasn't too late to save her.

The lights on her car and his illuminated them as they sat there for several minutes; her small body still trembling due to the cold and her sadness. Sakura was crying now and Sasuke allowed her the time that she needed to do so as he chose to simply hold her close to him; silently offering her both his comfort and support... because he knew that she needed to release some of her pent-up emotions... otherwise, she would more than likely only keep spiraling into the pits of darkness that came along with this kind of pain and despair.

Much in the same way that he had... for Sasuke had been in the same boat as Sakura at one time and had been ready to end it all...

... ready to end his existence...

... that is until he met her.

She had changed his life; she had saved him (even if she didn't know it) ...and now it was his turn to return the favor. To help save her.

He swallowed slowly before allowing his hand to run the length of her spine; hoping to sooth away some of the pain with his gentle touch. He had to get Sakura talking... she needed to express her emotions and let them go otherwise she wouldn't get any better. "Sakura... why did you want to do this?"

"Because... b-because it fucking hurts. It h-hurts so damn much, Sasuke..." Sakura grasped onto the fabric of his shirt; her small knuckles turning white against the dark material and the teenager fought back his own emotions as he continued to rub his large palm up and down the full length of her back; his other arm coming to wrap around her more tightly as Sasuke pulled her closer to his muscular chest.

"What does... (he knew) what hurts, Sakura?"

"E-everything does. I just can't take it anymore and I don't know what else to do. I feel... lost..."

Sasuke placed his cheek against the top of her head and closed his black eyes tightly. "Talk to me then, Sakura. I can help you if you just let me in."

"H-how? How c-can you help m-me?" Sakura nuzzled his chest and he heard the deep intake of breath that she pulled into her deprived lungs. She seemed to be taking comfort in his presence and that was a step in the right direction. He just needed to convince her; but how—

"Because... I'm a good listener and I..."

"It doesn't matter," Sakura shrieked suddenly as she attempted to shove at his chest; but Sasuke didn't move away and he didn't release his hold on her. "Nobody cares about me, Sasuke! Not really. They only pretend to and then they go behind my back and say all of those hurtful and mean things. Why should I even bother living anymore!? It's not like anyone would miss me anyway if I was gone!"

Sasuke's chiseled jaw ticked with his irritation at the same time that his muscles tensed and his dark eyes narrowed slightly as her words began to sink in. "That's not true," the male practically growled.

"Yes, it..."

"NO, IT'S NOT!" His voice rose several octaves as he brought her face up with the tips of his fingers so that Sakura was forced to look at him; directly in the eyes. "That's not true! There are plenty of people out there who care about you! There are plenty of people that would miss you terribly if something was to happen to you!" Her gaze was defiant as she glared at him; attempting to pull away from him, but his hold was too strong... she was no match for his strength or determination.

"Like who," she questioned; almost mockingly so. He knew this attitude of hers was most likely just part of Sakura's defense mechanism... all of it stemming from her highly emotional state. He ignored her attempts to flee his grasp and only held her tighter.

'I have to make Sakura see the truth...'

"You're mother for one, and all of your friends. Plus... me." On the last one, his voice wavered as thick emotion forced his throat to close tightly; making it extra hard for him to swallow, let alone breath.

"Ha, that's really funny, Sasuke," Sakura snorted as she rolled her green eyes at his statement; unaware or unwilling to see the truth behind his words. "You don't really care about me. I know better now. So, you don't have to keep pretending all of the time..."

"I'm not pretending, Sakura." His gaze hardened as he held her; watching her expression with an intensity (the likes of which) he had never used on her before. Her eyes slowly softened and then widened as she finally registered what it was that he was trying to get at. His dark irises moved to her throat and he watched her visibly swallow.

"How... h-how do I know that for sure?"

"Because I fucking love you; you crazy woman," he half-breathed, half-yelled at her and felt her body tense as she froze in his arms. She stared at him with a look of utter shock and disbelief.

"You... y-you love... me?"

Sasuke's dark orbs softened drastically while his arms loosened their tight hold; his hand coming up so that his fingertips could brush against the soft flesh of her chilled cheek gently. He silently begged her to understand him, as he looked at her with an earnest countenance. The only thing he could think of to respond to her with, was—

"Hn."

She worried the fabric of his shirt between her fingers and but her bottom lip anxiously. "B-but still, I..."

"Please Sakura," the young teen swallowed; his voice filled with dire intent. "Please, don't do this. Don't... don't kill yourself. I... I wouldn't be able to handle it if I lost you."

"S-Sasuke-Kun..."

"Come. Come home with me, Sakura. Let's make some warm tea and anko dumplings with some umeboshi andwe can sit down and talk. We can talk about things, maybe work it out between just the two of us if you want and if you decide that you don't feel like talking about it, then that's fine too. Just please... I'm begging you to come home with me. It's where you belong; not buried six feet under." There was a hidden meaning behind his words that he hoped she would pick up on.

'Live Sakura. Just live.'

He wanted her to live. Live for him... and live for her. But would she choose to or would she...?

"Sasuke I...," she bit her bottom lip harder as she contemplated his words; her emotions becoming more balanced as she slowly calmed down. Her mind was clearing and she was beginning to see the error in her previous decision to end her life; she truly didn't want to die; she just hadn't seen any other way. But Sasuke, he was showing her that there was another path to take; and Sakura wanted to take it... with him—

"Please, Sakura." Sasuke's voice was calm and soothing; pulling her into him like a moth drawn to a flame.

First it was seconds...

... and then minutes that passed.

Sakura glanced up at Sasuke after making her decision and when their eyes met once again... it was as if time around them stood still. Her heart was racing and her blood was practically pounded in her eardrums.

'I... I can't say no to him. I... I can't do this and leave him. Because deep down... I know that I love him too. I always have... and I always will. I want to live... I don't want to die.'

"...Okay," she finally breathed out and let a soft smile pull at her lips as fresh, hot tears began to streak down her cheeks.

Sasuke's returned smile was the brightest she had ever seen it; it was brighter than any sunlight that she had ever seen. He helped her to her feet and grasped her hands within both of his; their soft gazes still locked as he pressed his forehead against hers.

"Okay."

They would make it through this tragic moment... together; and be better off for it.

Author's Notes:

If any of these sound like your own writing or another you have read I apologize but I didn't copy anyone's work. This is entirely my own writing.