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Spring of 2012

Sakura's phone chimes with a text.

Her bedroom window is open to let the cool air inside. It's a nice night; quiet and comforting. Her parents are asleep, even her mother has forgone her daily phone call to Aunt Guren. All the lights are off, bathing her sheets in silver of the moonlight.

To her, it feels like she's the only person in the world.

When her phone chimes for the second time almost immediately, Sakura crawls towards her bedside table on her stomach, too lazy to bother with proper movements. She had been almost asleep.

Hey

You up?

Sakura's eyes squint to read the screen properly. The fact that it's Itachi is confusing since they had exchanged a few texts earlier before dinner, bidding good night, ending the conversation for that day. But as she blinks at her screen blearily, something about his texts seem off. It's hard to explain, borderline strange to go as far as to think the tone of the text is wrong, except that it is.

She types back.

Hey. What's up?

The reply is instant.

Couldn't sleep. What are you doing?

She hesitates. If she tells him she'd been half-asleep, he'd feel too guilty to continue texting. She rather wants to find out in case something is wrong.

Same. Had a little coffee earlier.

Same.

She knows it's a lie.

Nervous about the test tomorrow?

Not really. Are you?

Not really. Some stuff is repeated.

Yeah.

She waits for another text. It doesn't come even after two to three minutes.

Are you okay?

Itachi takes another two minutes to respond. She frowns, genuine worry crawling up her toes.

No.

What happened?

Just realised we have last few months left.

Not looking forward to graduation?

I am, partly. Will have to leave Sasuke behind.

Sakura smiles at her phone in sympathy.

Just for one year.

That's the mantra.

He'll be fine. Your brother seems sort of invincible.

Hahaha! Sasuke The Superman.

Exactly.

You want to step out for a walk?

Sakura stares at the words. A thrill shoots up her body at the thought of meeting him. She's never snuck out before, though. Her parents might wake up at the noises if she's not too careful. Where will they meet? Neither of them has a car. Itachi can't be seriously thinking of walking all the way here, unless he decides to use Sasuke's bike.

Where will we go?

Who cares?

Sakura buries her face in her pillow, smiling so wide her cheeks hurt.

Okay.

I'll be there in 30.

He's definitely cycling here, she decides. In the meanwhile, Sakura checks her appearance in the mirror, fixes her messy tangles a little, and pulls on a sweater to be on the safer side. She mentally goes over all the scenarios in her head – what if her parents catch her? What if it's her father? What if it's her mother? What will she say? Going for a late night game? That lie will fall through as soon as her mother insists on calling the neighbours to confirm the plan.

She thinks going through the backdoor is the safest option. Even if her parents wake up, she can pretend to be in the kitchen for water, heard some noises, went to check if it's a stray cat.

Feeling a host of varying emotions from nervousness to giddiness to outright anxiety, Sakura's eyes don't stray too far from the time blinking on her phone. When it's 11.54 PM, she begins making her way through the quiet house, slowly, with her heart in her throat, pausing every few moments to ensure her parents are still asleep.

By some miracle, Sakura is able to sneak out the backdoor without raising any alarms. The resulting glee lasts the entire way to the corner of her street, where she sees Itachi leaning against the wall, holding onto a bicycle, dressed in his blue hoodie and black shorts.

He grins tiredly when he sees her. "Nice pants."

Sakura looks down reflexively. It's her pair of white pants with red apples on it. "Thanks."

They look at each other.

"We can go to the park," he suggests softly.

Sakura nods. It's hardly a ten-minute walk from here. Itachi holds on to the handles of the bicycle as they begin to make their way around the corner. Sakura strays to the other side.

"Your parents didn't catch you, did they?" Sakura asks.

"Nah," Itachi says. "Sasuke sneaks out all the time, actually. I think they might be just used to it by now."

Sakura snickers. They walk in relative silence until they reach the gates of the park, firmly shut against humans past scheduled hours.

"From there," Itachi vaguely points to the left.

Sakura follows him to a short bush. Itachi crawls to his knees, bending at the waist to shove his face in the leaves. There's a rustling sound that seems ten times louder than it really is and Sakura twists her fingers nervously, peering around them to ensure no one catches sight of them.

Itachi resurfaces. "It's a bit of a work but we can sneak inside."

Sakura stares. Itachi stares back. "What about your bike?"

"I'll hide it here."

The leaves are denser than she would like but easier to crawl through than she had expected. Itachi offers his hand to pull her up on the other side. When she straightens, he doesn't let go. Neither does she.

They walk to the nearest slide. Itachi climbs up the steps in the back and sits on the top. Sakura waits at the bottom, raising her eyebrows in question when he doesn't slide down.

"Join me."

Sakura eyes the space warily. It's a squeeze but they manage to fit in it. Itachi turns one shoulder behind her to give her arm more room, lightly resting it against her back. She doesn't know why they're at the park past midnight sitting on the same slide without actually sliding down and doesn't find it in herself to question it too seriously.

"What are you thinking about?" Itachi's voice is gentle in her ear.

"Nothing," she replies. "For once, I'm not thinking about anything."

He chuckles.

Sakura watches the shrubbery, silver under the night sky. Half-bloomed flowers line the edge of the park. Absently, she tries to name them from what knowledge Ino has imparted on her but again – the thought dissolves before it can be truly solidified. Maybe she's still half-sleepy or maybe she feels freer than she has in months. Maybe it's the season.

It's a night of freedom. No Aunt Guren past dinner, sneaking out, meeting Itachi, not surrounded by a crowd, feeling the breaths come easier than the last. Even the breeze is clear, unlike the heaviness of winter.

"How come you knew the way to get inside?" Sakura asks. It's not even a serious question. She just wants to talk to him for the sake of talking to him.

"I didn't," he says. "Not really. Just guessed."

"It was a good guess."

"Yeah. I'm sure people sneak inside all the time."

"Why's that?" Sakura says, stifling a yawn.

Itachi doesn't miss it. "We can go back."

"Nah," she rubs her eyes a little to clear them.

There's a brief pause. Then he says, "I think couples come here to have some privacy."

"Oh." Her eyelids are definitely drooping. She blinks a few times.

"Are you sure you don't want to go back?"

"Yes."

The hand behind her back comes to rest around her shoulder. "Sleep on my shoulder, if you want."

"Thanks." She snuggles closer, tucks in her head in the crook of his neck. It's so easy to fall asleep, she thinks. His skin is warm, his sweater is soft; despite clearly being in a place where they shouldn't be at this hour of the day, being worried is the last thing on Sakura's mind.

She doesn't know when she falls asleep entirely. Itachi is nudging her awake and she startles up.

"We should head back."

Sakura's head is still heavy with sleep. "What time is it?"

"A little after one."

"Shit."

"Come on," he removes his hand from around her. "Let's slide down."

She laughs. "Itachi!"

"What?" he smirks. "After you."

Sakura shakes her head in defeat. They wiggle around each other and then Sakura slides down, the cool air, the slight rush of activity jarring her temporarily awake. Itachi follows, grinning the whole way down.

Spring of 2021 – Present Day

There's a knock on the door.

"Come in," Sakura calls out without looking up from the stack of papers.

Sasuke strides inside. He's ditched his blazer and tie for the lunch break, prissily adjusting the wristwatch pointedly.

"Hey Boss," Rin greets him cheerfully. "Having a good day?"

Sasuke rolls his eyes. "How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not the Boss?"

"You are for us," Baji says for the umpteenth time. "You hired us, didn't you?"

"Technically, the company did."

Ebisu exhales on his spectacles and then wipes them off with a spare tissue. "We need more of these," he tells Sasuke, gesturing towards the nearly empty box.

"You're not getting any," Sasuke says dryly. "Pace them up. Or use a goddamn cloth."

"Tut tut," Sakura admonishes lightly. "Language, Mr. HR."

"Bite me," Sasuke snaps.

"Rin – you heard the man."

Rin giggles. The sound is more of bells tinkling than an actual human laugh, and Sakura loves listening to it. It's easy to make her laugh, which is nice, too.

Sakura's team – their department-in-making – consists only of four people, including herself. Baji is the first point of contact for any museum, existing or new client. Ebisu is their fact-check guy, the one who does all the research to ensure authenticity of the artefacts. If no red alarms blare up, Rin steps in to close the deal. As Sasuke had promised, Sakura's role is to manage, overlook, fill in the gaps, and if required, arbitrate the team.

Three weeks into her job, Sakura feels more or less settled. She has a routine again – wake up, get ready, work from nine to five, fill the evenings, weekends off, get paid. Well, the first check is yet to come but still – it counts.

As for her role, she has no complaints so far. Sure, she has to struggle on a daily basis due to lack of prior experience and foundational knowledge regarding museums, but she does have the basic skills required for the job. Knowledge – she can read up or sit with Ebisu.

"Come on, Haruno," Sasuke whines. "I'm hungry."

Sakura rolls her eyes. Ever since her first day, Sasuke has been pestering her for every lunch break, insisting they eat together. Apparently, he used to sit with the upper management to give his employees time to complain about the company freely, but now that Sakura is there – he says he doesn't have to put himself through geriatric torture.

"What about me?" Sakura had demanded, highly affronted. "What if I want to complain about the company, too?"

"I don't care," Sasuke had told her bluntly. "You owe me this much."

"How did you ever become the Head?" Sakura wondered genuinely.

Sasuke ignored her as though the question is too artless to deserve a proper answer. Besides, Sakura didn't put up the complaints for too long. She's glad about having a familiar face. However, ever since the others realised that she is sort of friends with him, they started giving her a huge berth, too.

"They think you'll snitch on them," Sasuke had told her. "No one likes a person who snitches to the HR."

"Wonderful."

Now, Sasuke helps himself to the only empty chair in their small glass cabin. The company has dedicated a space for them on the seventh floor. Large corner windows look out over the work district. Sakura loves it. Every morning, she stands in the sunbeams with a cup of coffee, waiting for the rest of them to slowly show up. Every evening, she admires the yellow lights scurrying under the white dotted sky.

Sakura keeps the stack of papers under a paperweight. She puts her computer on hibernate mode, telling her team members to take their breaks. The three of them leave, arguing whether they should let Baji decide their restaurant for the day.

Sakura sighs. "Where do you want to go?"

Sasuke jumps from the seat. "Finally. Let's go to a café today. I want a light lunch."

Sasuke continues to stare at her pointedly even after finishing his sentence. Sakura knows there's a question she's supposed to ask. She stares back. The silence stretches between them, each waiting for the other to give in.

Sakura holds his gaze steadily. She has practice staring down petulant, stubborn kids from ages five to fifteen. Sasuke is throwing the force of I'm going to make you sweat buckets during this interview at her. In the distance, the elevator door pings.

"I don't mind skipping the break," Sakura remarks coolly. "I have a tonne of work to finish."

Sasuke's jaw clenches. "I got a date tonight."

Sakura blinks.

Before she can ask the obvious question, Sasuke sighs. "With a guy I met online. Dinner at my place."

She knows what that means. "That's good."

Sasuke doesn't seem to think so. "I thought it would make Naruto jealous."

"I thought you said that you gave up. That it's not too serious."

Sasuke is studying the cream coloured wall with an intensity that would put surgeons to shame. "He's not easy to forget."

"Give it time," Sakura says softly.

Sasuke scoffs, turning to her incredulously. "You're the last person who should be saying that to me!"

She tries, she really does, but warm blood pools on her neck and face in two seconds flat. She coughs lightly, messing up the stack of papers just to have something to do, avoiding the man entirely.

"Yeah, well. I did – you know. Move on."

"Technically, yes."

"I did."

"You're the worst person I've met when it comes to moving on," Sasuke tells her, sounding more cheerful now at her expense. "Seriously – you seem to have some stupid notion of One Person For All, which is ridiculous, honestly, you meet like multiple people who are perfect for you in a lifetime."

Sakura glares back at him, forgetting her earlier embarrassment. "Then use your own advice! Naruto already rejected you. You said you can be friends, which is why he's sticking around. He doesn't need some confusing person in his life, Sasuke. What is with you Uchihas!"

"Hey, don't loop me in with Aniki," Sasuke defends in frustration. "My situation is very different."

Sakura crosses her arms under her chest. "Yeah? Explain."

"Look," Sasuke rubs his forehead in distress. "I was never interested in pursuing anyone seriously, okay? I was happy cruising through life having casual relationships. I mean, look at my family, Haruno! My parents are madly in love before my father cheats on my mother – no need to hide it, I know Aniki told you all the gory details. Then my brother falls in love with a girl in school as if it's the end of the fucking world and then makes one terrible decision after another, resulting in a self-imposed suffering for what? Five years? Who wants love if love is so painful?"

Sakura is stunned into silence. She has never seen Sasuke worked up in this manner before. Her mind reminds her that Sasuke was the baby of the family. Is the baby of the family. She has seen how much it bothers Itachi to witness their parents staying together out of a traditional obligation. She never stopped to wonder how it must have affected Sasuke.

But now when he spells it out to her, it makes sense. She wants to tell him that it doesn't matter, that family does not have to be only model you form your world around, wants him to see beyond it, to point out all the healthy and successful relationships in the world, wants to educate him on the power of love – and yet, she doesn't.

Even if she says the words, she'd feel like a hypocrite. She'd feel as if she were cheating him, cheating herself, preaching a thought without practising it herself.

Instead, she takes a steady breath in. "What does that have to do with Naruto?"

Sasuke sags in relief. She wonders if he had been waiting for the exact words she had been thinking about, and is glad not to be hearing them.

"Naruto is … he's not the only one for me or whatever. I know that. But I want to – at least give it a shot. I think it would be – nice. And he's – he's so nice, it's sickening. And he enjoys my company, too. So I asked him out. He said no. Now I don't know what to do. I feel like I'm cheating him by being his friend because I still hope he might change his mind."

"You should tell him this," Sakura says bluntly.

"I know," Sasuke snaps. "And he'll probably tell me he wishes to break all contact just to make it easier for me – or whatever the fuck. He'll find some way to blame himself, apologize to me, and offer to bury his goddamn soul so that he doesn't hurt me in any way. It's a stressful fucking conversation so I'm postponing it as much as possible. In the meanwhile, dinner dates at my place is the last resort, however awful and manipulative it seems to be."

"Is that why you're smoking so much these days?" Sakura's nose scrunches up in disgust of his habit.

"Oh my god," Sasuke exclaims loudly. "That's what you're thinking of right now?"

"It's better than thinking about you all genuinely heartbroken," Sakura shrugs. "But seriously, Naruto doesn't get jealous. He's too innocent for that. If you go on dates, he'll wish you luck."

Sasuke groans. "Stupid, stupid loser!"

"Hey!"

Sasuke stuffs his face with food during lunch.

Sakura throws a prayer to the heavens.

Sakura kills the engine of the car, pulling up the hand break.

The parking lot at the grocery store is half-filled with people having the same idea as hers of picking up stuff on their way home from work. She steps out of the car and immediately studies the light scuffing above the front right wheel. She winces.

Putting the thought on hold for the time being, she enters the store. The aisles are lightly packed with all sorts of people, pushing their carts as the boring instrumental plays on the speakers. Just your typical Thursday, she thinks.

Her pantry is heavily lacking. She realised it during last night's dinner when she couldn't locate her box of pasta and had to pull out all the shelves to take stock. As she walks along the variety of crackers, she picks up a few of boxes of Shrimp Crackers and adds them to the cart.

At the checkout counter, she picks up a few candies to munch on, pulling out her phone to read her messages. There's one from Hinata –

Game this Sunday?

And another from Sai –

Take me to your hometown.

Sakura replies: Go by yourself, you big baby.

The cashier grabs her attention then, and Sakura hastily pockets her phone, smiling sheepishly.

As she cooks her dinner, she plays Blank Space by Taylor Swift, volume turned on high. Only when her neighbours bang on the wall accompanied by angry yelling does she lower it down, shouting an apology in their general direction.

It's almost midnight when she's startled awake.

Itachi is crawling under the covers, lying directly on top of Sakura's back, burying his face in her hair. Sakura huffs out a giggle in her pillow, feeling her body dip in the mattress under her by Itachi's added on weight.

"Hey," he murmurs.

"You're late," she responds.

"One of our clients pushed up the delivery date by a week," he groans softly. "How was your day?"

"The usual," she tells him. "Learned some more horrible dirty secrets of our ancestors, fought with Sasuke during lunch, nearly careened my car against a pillar."

Itachi's chest rumbles with laughter. "The usual," he agrees.

"You're heavy," she finally says, voice muffled.

He rolls off to her side, lying on his back. Sakura climbs on him, curling her upper body on his chest like an animal. Itachi wraps both his arms around her frame.

"Hinata was asking about having a game this Sunday," she mumbles in his T-shirt. "You up for it?"

Itachi hums thoughtfully. "Should be fine."

They lie in relative silence, breathing softly, Sakura adjusting her head from time to time for better comfort.

"Hey, I was thinking …" he begins.

"Yeah?"

"Maybe we could join a class together."

"What type of class?"

"Yoga, maybe," he murmurs. "Or dancing."

"Dancing?" she asks dubiously.

"I'm just saying," he says a little defensively. "Anything that has physical activity. I was going to suggest gym, too, for that matter."

Sakura hums. "Are you trying to comment on my weight?"

"What?" Itachi exclaims, flustered. "Why would I do that? I don't think you need to lose weight. I mean, only if you want to. It's not really up to me, is it? I just meant physical in the general sense! It's nice to look after our health, isn't it? I swear, I wasn't–"

Sakura starts to laugh in his chest. "I was just messing with you. I think it's a good idea to join something. I wouldn't mind trying out yoga. It's supposed to be good for our mental health, too."

"Fuck," he sighs in relief at realising that he hasn't accidentally offended her.

It makes her laugh harder. Itachi pinches her waist in retaliation, making her suddenly yelp in surprise.

"Itachi!"

He rubs his fingers soothingly on her skin. Sakura buries her head further in his neck, allowing her sleepiness to take hold once more. Itachi starts to say something that she doesn't understand. She's under the water, hearing sounds that are incoherent, black pulling from all sides.

The next thing she knows is the sunlight streaming from the balcony doors.

Sakura wakes up alone in her bed, stretching out languidly. There are no other sounds in the apartment. She rubs at her bleary eyes, shaking off the dream from her mind.

The doorbell rings.

Sakura gets up, grabs her phone from the bedside table, starts making her way to the front door. As she walks, she reads the text from Itachi –

Hey, had an early start. Kept a salad sandwich for you in the fridge. Going back to my place after work to pick up more clothes. See you for dinner?

Sakura is smiling as she texts back an affirmative. She pockets her phone and pulls open the door.

Her mother is waiting on the other side.

Please review!

There are 20 chapters in total, as per usual. Will update as soon as possible! :)