White Widow Chapter Nine, a naruto fanfic

Title: White Widow
Chapter: Nine
Author: Blue Rose
Pairing: Sasuke/Sakura
Rating: M (Hard R)
Summary: "Running away was easy; not knowing what to do next was the hard part." - Sakura needed to stop fantasizing about running away to some other life, and start figuring out the one she had. [Sasu/Saku, Modern AU]

Disclaimer: I own nothing, and I damn sure don't make a single red cent for this either. So please, don't sue the Blue.

Huge shout out to my beta - CherryBerry12. Thank you :) 💝

Thank you to everyone for your reviews and kind words! It means a lot, and ya girl really appreciates it :)

As always. if you enjoyed please consider leaving a review. Even if it's just a word or two, I really appreciate any feedback. I welcome emoji's and Lenny Faces too 💙💙💙 (づ ͡° ³ ͡°)づ . Thank you for reading :)

✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧

Chapter Nine

A wave of darkness colored most of the apartment, down throughout the hallway and around the hidden corners. All of the lights were out, sleeping in the shadows, including the industrial-styled overhead light just above the entryway.

The silence was so piercing it nearly created a sound on its own. Double paned windows kept any outside racket at bay, while the drawn curtains tried to shield most of the space from the midday sun.

Everything was surrounded by stillness, disrupted only by the buoyant dust particles dancing through the air. A few, tiny specks floated around and revealed themselves only when sunlight from a nearby window caught their reflection through the crack in the blinds.

That changed with a disturbance at the front door. There was a muted jangle — a distinct sound of metal scraping on metal, before the deadbolt turned. Not a second later, the knob was turned and the inside foyer was flooded with light from the outside hall.

A pair of all black boots managed to step a foot inside before they were yanked back across the threshold.

The pair of retro Jordan's on much larger feet stepped through instead. Silent and cautious, the male figure looked around with his eyes, keeping an ear out for any voices. Deeming it safe, he stepped aside, finally allowing the woman through.

Sakura huffed as she passed him, a little put off at being stopped in the first place.

Sasuke shrugged off her attitude and closed the door behind them, locking it once more. The action was completed the proper way — with him turning the visible latch instead of using the lockpick set he had just stashed back into his pocket.

"Do you always go head first into situations?" Sasuke asked while she turned on a few lights. He still couldn't believe he'd let her talk him into accompanying him. Probably served him right for stupidity mentioning going to Kiba's apartment around her and thinking she wouldn't pester him about it.

Sakura realized her mistake and chided herself for not being a little more cautious as well. Considering where they were and why they were here, it only made sense to be vigilant. Slinking further inside, one of the first things she did was unburden her arms of the dog food she carried, placing it on the island counter. It was the leftover supply Sasuke forgot to give her during Akamaru's hand off. Since they were coming here anyway, it was best just to leave it here. Moving around, Sakura set out to see if anything was out of the ordinary, keeping an eye out for whatever didn't seem quite right.

Sasuke took a similar approach, heading for Kiba's bedroom.

After all this time, he was finally able to come check out the apartment for himself. He'd been here before, but he had only made it halfway inside. He was interrupted last time when a neighbor showed up to move into the building. The hiatus extended when the newly discovered Private Investigator began his stake out. One thing was certain—with this recent influx of activity, people would certainly go snooping, and there were a lot of things that needed to be cleared out first.

Nothing appeared tampered with as Sasuke moved several hanging shirts in the closet out of the way, checking the hidden safe. He searched his phone for the code, looking for the locked memo note that held the combination. The door swung open on silent hinges as he took stock of what was inside. Finding a lonesome burner, stacks of money and the remaining drug stash, Sasuke crossed robbery off of his conspiracy list.

"His passport is still here," Sasuke whispered to himself but left the document be, along with a few other miscellaneous items. Nevertheless, the fake IDs he found were added to the leather backpack he slid from his shoulders. Placing it on the floor, he started removing certain possessions from the steel box before stashing them inside the soft, silk lining interior of the bag.

The small Ruger LCP he picked up had been scrubbed of all identifying marks and shouldn't be traced back to them. Still, it would cause quite the alarm if anyone found it. The same could be said for the large amount of currency and narcotics, and he worked quickly to withdraw them.

"Find anything?" Sasuke asked, returning to the common area.

Sakura looked up and shook her head no.

"You?"

"Nothing."

Sakura resisted the urge to bite her lip in disappointment. Even so, she refused to think of this as a failed trip. She wasn't sure what her expectations were, but maybe this was a good sign? At least they didn't stumble upon a chaotic scene of broken things and blood everywhere… right?

A stiff, absolutely cold chill ran up her body and she crossed her arms at the funny feeling. Shaking it off she frowned, glancing at Sasuke before making one last sweep.

She missed the way his eyes had strayed down, tracing the all black ensemble she wore. The clothes contributed to the excitement of her first ever break-in. Sure, she took all of this seriously but couldn't pass up the chance to play dress-up. The tight fitting dark clothes added to the overall aesthetic of unlawfulness she was aiming for, he conceded, following her fingers as they adjusted the cotton beanie on her head, silk pressed hair falling straight down her back underneath.

Sasuke's eyes made one final move across her frame, flickering back to the contours of her face. Dark mascara outlined her doe-like eyes but otherwise she remained bare faced under the illuminated lights.

Sakura looked every bit the cat burglar, and Sasuke wouldn't have minded if she came along on a heist or two but quickly thought better of it. Too much of a distraction. Her ass looked way too good in just about anything, including the tight black pants she was wearing.

Clearing his throat, Sasuke adjusted the shoulder strap of the backpack he wore. Being the naive, little thing she could be sometimes, she had no idea he was checking her out.

Lost in her own world, her eyes darted around the apartment for anything she may have missed. She idly plucked a few fibers from the folded fleece blanket resting on the back of the recliner.

"I say, it's still a good thing we came, right? We could at least see with our own eyes-"

"Shhh!" He suddenly spoke up, raising up a hand before turning his eyes towards the entryway. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Sakura opened her ears to listen and soon heard muffled voices out in the hallway. She stepped forward but stopped dead in her tracks as her heart dropped all the way down to her ankles when the jingle of keys got louder and louder. There was no time to react.

Sakura froze in place as the voices drew closer, shadows playing underneath the door as someone approached. The door was unlocked a second time, and Sakura briefly panicked just as the door swung open.

"Sakura!" Hana exclaimed, clearly surprised at seeing the pink haired woman right after stepping through the doorway. The older Inuzuka sibling looked just like her maternal parent, but with softer features. Her long brown hair was secured in a low ponytail with twin strands of milk-chocolate framing the curve of her face while she broke out in a smile. The other, second brunette that entered stood slightly shorter than her counterpart — sporting a more petite frame, but her brown eyes held the same questioning stare.

"Hana… Tamaki. Hey, what a surprise," Sakura started nervously, smiling as the duo came closer, and further into the apartment.

"Well, my eyes don't deceive me." Hana chuckled as she came closer for a hug. Though not particularly close, Hana had definitely been a key figure in her early teenage years. Sakura could still recall the first bottle of liquor she'd bought Kiba, Ino, and herself for their freshman skip day in high-school. It certainly wasn't the last time she'd looked out for her little brother and his band of misfit friends.

"I hope you're not here to see Kiba," Hana said. Her younger sibling had skipped town from what she'd heard, but there wasn't too much concern because this was, well… 'Kiba'.

"Uh… well... actually, we had just-"

"'We'?" Tamaki echoed in confusion after locking the door and following Hana deeper inside the apartment. The puzzled look on Kiba's ex-girlfriends face had Sakura looking over her shoulder at the empty living room and dining area, finding no sign of the tall male that had accompanied her.

The three women were alone.

Hana stepped back and circled around the counter, sitting her tote bag on one of the kitchen island barstools.

Sakura cleared her throat. "I mean, yeah... I heard about Kiba." She turned to face Hana. "From your mother actually. I was just stopping by to drop off some keys and-"

'Shit' — she didn't think she'd have to act so quickly on her feet. Her nervous hand moved across the granite surface and brushed against the clear plastic storage tub containing the bag of puppy kibble, still resting there. Hana's eyes brightened as she reached for it.

"Oh! This is one of the reasons we're here. Akamaru is running low and I figured we could get a stash here. That, and Tamaki needed to grab something."

"Yeah, I left my snowboarding jacket here," the shorter woman stated.

"Wait, are you and Kiba back together?"

Tamaki's dark eyes became even cooler, and immediately Sakura felt like she shouldn't have said anything.

But...

Kiba had gotten the place all nice and pretty for dinner that one time… it occurred that it very well could have been for his ex. Only, it seems her presumption was incorrect.

And the following comment all but confirmed it.

"No. Not since last year. We've been talking lately, here and there. But—" Her mouth closed, and she swallowed, throat rippling. "I'm going to go get that coat now. I think I left it in the spare bedroom. Excuse me."

"Damn. Me and my big mouth…" Sakura said after she watched the other girl leave. But she was way more concerned as to who she may come across, and her worried gaze followed.

Hana just shook her head and pulled the plastic bin of dog food closer to her. "Not your fault. She's a little peeved he missed her birthday. And she's pretending not to care. My brother will have a lot of explaining to do when he finally shows up."

"Oh…" Sakura glanced nervously behind them, once again.

"So, what about you? How have you been? I feel like it's been years."

"I've been alright. And yeah, it's been a long time." Sakura toyed with her industrial piercing while folding her other arm across the counter beneath her, leaning more weight on the surface. "How is school going?"

"Aaah, one more year and a few board examinations and I'm home free!" Hana beamed, proud of the progress she'd made in the veterinary field.

"That's really great news." Sakura reached over and patted her forearm, returning her gentle smile.

"Found it! It doesn't have to be dropped off at the cleaners either." Tamaki returned carrying a garment bag. She didn't look any worse for wear and the lack of screaming suggested that she hadn't run into Sasuke.

Hana grinned, before nodding to Sakura.

"We are going to hit the slopes. I can picture it already… fresh mountain air, beautiful views, and of course there's the wine. Lots and lots of wine." Hana sighed dreamily, excited for the upcoming trip.

"Aspen?"

"France," Tamaki answered for them, holding the coat tighter and shifting slightly. She looked between Hana and the door, and Sakura couldn't help to think that the other girl was still upset with her.

The slight tension would have been annoying, but she knew the missing boy must have had some sort of effect on the brunette. She could read it in her eyes and decided not to take her cool demeanor so personally. In fact, Sakura gave Tamaki a kind hearted smile; meek and filled with a hint of apology if her question earlier had saddened her.

Sakura's father used to tell her that her smile could disarm the gods themselves. Something that seemed to be working when Tamaki reluctantly returned the gesture with one of her own while reaching up to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. The brunette still appeared a little down but not nearly as bothered as before.

"Well, that sounds wonderful. I'm sure you guys will have a great time," Sakura offered, looking between the two.

"Yeah. Um... Hana? Maybe we should go? We don't want to miss that place; they're closing soon."

"Right!" Hana pulled out her phone to check the time before gathering her belongings and the puppy chow. "Coming?"

"Yeah…" Sakura trailed off, following behind them while glancing nervously around the dark corners and hallway. She slowed to a stop after the front door was opened and the two brunettes crossed the threshold. The pinkette halted just inside the foyer as Tamaki headed down the stairs, while Hana gave her a questioning look over her shoulder.

"You know what? You guys go ahead. I'm going to use the bathroom before I go."

"Are you sure? We can wait for you."

"No! No, you guys go on, I'll just be a few minutes. Besides, you're running late, right? I wouldn't want to hold you guys up." The smile was a little fake but Sakura hopped from foot to foot, urging the other woman to believe the excuse. The universal 'I really have to pee' dance did the trick and they all exchanged one last goodbye before Sakura quickly shut the door. Locking it, she breathed out a sigh of relief as she heard their voices dim and exit the building.

Wide eyed, Sakura spun around, rushing back to the common area.

"Sasuke?" she whispered, craning her neck to peer down the hallway. Shadowed silence answered her call. Biting her lip, she tried again.

"Sasuke—"

"That was a little too close, don't you think?" His deep voice skirted past her ear and traveled down her spine. Much too close even if she had been expecting it.

She brought a hand to her pounding heart as he moved back and turned to look down the foyer.

What flabbergasted Sakura more than the mini heart attack was the black glock he was arranging into the back of his pants. Toned muscles flashed across the exposed strip of skin as he arranged the firearm back into its hiding spot.

"You brought a gun?" She couldn't contain the shock that laced her question as his shirt and jacket were pulled back down, hiding the weapon from view. Sasuke swung around enough to look at her, brazen eyes answering because stating the obvious was wasted breath.

'Ok, dum-dum. Did you forget who he was? And what he did for a living?' Sakura silently chastised herself.

Well, it should have been a no-brainer that the guy would be packing heat. It just so happened to be overkill, considering who had just left. Still, she wasn't too thrilled about the potential show of force around people she was familiar with. But how could they know who was coming into the apartment from the other side? It still made her feel better when it was hidden away from view.

"Did you hear what his ex said? Kiba wasn't fooling around with her after all."

Sasuke walked over to the living room window, reaching out a finger to gently move the gray curtain out of the way, lifting one of the blinds. He looked down towards the sidewalk, watching as the women loaded up and drove off.

Sakura turned around and brought a hand to her chin in thought. "He definitely was seeing someone, though. Now I wonder who that could be…"

Not particularly interested in Kiba's romantic life, Sasuke turned to lean against the large window sill, following Sakura's movements back and forth. Watching her mind work as she lost herself to inner thoughts was always an event — she had a tendency to mumble to herself and ignore everything around her. There was something kind of hot about her just then, but his thoughts stopped short when she paused mid stride.

Bright pink circled below Sakura's eyes and pooled into a dark tinted blush as their eyes met, and he suddenly realized he may have uttered a few of those words out loud.

Trying to compose herself and act like she wasn't that affected, Sakura reached behind to smooth out some of her hair, trying to take on a confident flare. She grabbed a few locks and brought them over her shoulder, now using both hands to play with the extended length. "Not used to a girl with brains and looks?"

Sasuke didn't want to laugh, but he could feel the pull of muscles stretching. Forcing his mouth to quirk. Managing to suppress any sounds of amusement, he raised a hand and beckoned her closer. Her smile grew as she sashayed closer, coming close to wrap her arms around his neck. Sasuke reached a hand out to curve low on her hip, the other hand gripping her elbow to pull her closer to him as he still leaned upon the wall. They shared a brief kiss after his nose bumped against hers, soft and sweet but firm. Of course with the luck he had lately, it was only fitting to be denied anything deeper because soon after, right when he leaned in for more, she pulled away.

Another full body shiver ran up Sakura's back but it had nothing to do with Sasuke's kisses. That strange feeling had returned all of a sudden and was very effective in killing the mood. Something was off, making her uncomfortable with the idea of staying around any longer. It wasn't a feeling she ever remembered experiencing at her friend's home, but it couldn't be ignored.

Pulling on Sasuke's jacket, she suggested they should head out.

And Sakura would have to remember to bring some sage with her the next time, and help Kiba cleanse the place. Or maybe a few of those little crystals her mother was fond of collecting.

✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧

The turbulence of activity running across the screen caused his brows to lower again and again, straining to follow the information flying by.

"This isn't good…" A few more clicks across the keyboard and his frustration grew thick in the air. "No… no, no—… come on…"

Karashi, aka 'Chef,' was becoming increasingly aggravated at the data flashing back at him and tried digging deeper into the code to figure out exactly what the damn problem was. This was supposed to be the easy part now that the firewall was breached again. Syncing up the correct keys should have been enough to complete what he had wanted to do. Instead, the system revealed another path. and decoding this second level was additional stress and did nothing but anger the teen. He had wanted to put his fist through the screen three times now but with the other person in the room… well, that would be a mistake. He'd already showed his hand but couldn't think about that now. He needed to figure out—

"Son of a bitch…"

"What is it? Did you find something?"

Karashi swallowed hard as the time for procrastinating was over.

"Yeah. The money… it's not there."

"That's why you were hired."

"No, I mean it's gone. The system reconfigured and it's treating it as if it never existed—"

A large hand gripped the wide backrest near Karashi's head and swung the computer chair around swiftly. The base rolled a little on the wheels as a loud creak was heard when it collided with the large computer desk now behind him.

"What the fuck are you going on about?" The tall man had his free hand gripping the fabric of the teen's shirt in absolute fury.

"Wait! Let me explain! It's there, it's just—" Karashi's teeth rattled as the man jerked him against the chair again.

"I'll give you one chance to clarify," the man threatened while loosening his grip.

Karashi tried to catch his breath as he swung back around to point at the screen.

"There! You see that?" He pointed to a line of code. "That's basically the transaction. It's reading it as a new code, so I can't reverse something that didn't exist in the first place. That's what the system is doing. BUT—!"

Karashi could feel the movement beyond his shoulder and tried to stream roll ahead to get his words out. "I can't wire it back. But I can trace it. It's not lost." He grabbed the mouse and clicked onto another open window. Placing the cursor in another black box, he typed out a few more things while rushing to explain. "It's not gone… just moved. With the unique ID attached, I can scan the other database and—"

"Simplify."

Karashi swallowed but looked behind his shoulder at the other man with determination.

"I can get you a name."

Luminous, piercing eyes glanced between the screen and the teen, the deadly intent slowly swirling into curiosity. Karashi pressed forward hurriedly, willing to offer up the nameless fool that was knowingly, or unknowingly roped into all of this now.

"I can get you the name of the person who has your money. I promise."

✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧

"—concludes your weather and traffic report. Make sure to tune in-"

The large SUV pulled up in front of the warehouse and the driver cut the engine after he put it in park. The radio could have been kept on but he powered off everything, reaching for his phone. The windshield wipers had stopped mid-wipe, resting in the middle of the glass as the rain turned into mere sprinkles. As heavy as the rainfall had been it dwindled down to barely anything, the storm passing just as fast as it came. Already the pitter-patter against the glass had lightened significantly in the few minutes since he'd pulled up.

Pocketing his phone, Sasuke exited the truck, picking up the faint sounds in the surrounding industrial district. The area was booming with activity despite the lowering sun. Evening had just settled among the clouds in a beautiful pink hue as a figure exited the large warehouse in front of where he parked.

"Well, well, well. Look who's actually making an appearance around these parts. I almost didn't believe that silver wolf when he said to be expecting you. What's the matter? You never call… you never write. Don't you like us anymore?"

Suigetsu jeered while approaching Sasuke, grinning like a fool. A fang poked from below his upper lip as he got closer.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, wondering why the man had to be so loud. He turned to open the rear passenger door, allowing the other man to retrieve some large bags from his truck and transport them to a non descriptive sedan parked next to them.

"Oh, by the way. The old man wants to see you before you take off. He's inside." Suigetsu closed the trunk after the second trip, twirling his keyring on a finger before hopping in the driver's seat.

Sasuke finally headed inside as Suigetsu drove off, turning down a side street and carrying off the goods he'd brought over. Turning, he headed up the ramp, pulling open the creaky metal door. The front end looked every part of a distillery, but the back was locked away and served as a chop shop. Circling around a few crates, Sasuke approached the back office.

"Hey," Sasuke's knuckles drummed against the open door, eyeing the man ferreting through the double pedestal steel desk. Dark eyes rose in greeting.

"Yo," Kakashi greeted him before he found what he was looking for in one of the drawers. He raised the screwdriver-like tool in elation. "Ah hah! There you are."

Gripping the tool tightly, the white haired man shouldered past the younger male and went back towards the hanger like open space, circling around the expensive car stationed there.

Sasuke looked around a bit, before turning to the other man who had leaned most of his upper body beneath the hood of the car. "So what's up?"

"I don't know, you tell me…" Kakashi's voice was slightly muffled. There was a crack followed by metal scraping. He stood up in pride, beaming as he held a small electronic device in his hand triumphantly. "Ah! There we go… tricky little fucker, aren't you?"

He walked over to a small station, dropping his prize and tools on the surface. Grabbing a rag, he wiped his hands while turning back to Sasuke.

"It was just surprising, dealing with you directly. Usually business is handled through Kiba."

"There's no need to worry, everything is on schedule," Sasuke said, looking at a few hubcaps stacked against the wall.

"You've never disappointed me so far, so I didn't think I needed to." Kakashi raised a hand to snag the cigarette from behind his ear. The hanger-like door behind the car was open enough for some light and fresh air to pass through. Little clicking noises followed the arrival of a small pug that came trotting in from outside, his little nails tapping against the concrete. The little dog searched out the water bowl up against the wall near the office.

"Kiba is missing. That's why I'm handling things today." Sasuke thought briefly of not saying anything but that would lead to unnecessary suspicion. If the information was going to make it back to Kakashi anyway, it was best for it to come directly from him and not whispers in the streets.

Kakashi settled on a black folding chair near Sasuke, lighting up the cigarette. "Picked up?" Wasn't uncommon at all for people to go quiet, only for them to turn up when they were finally able to get a word out through family or friends from the clink.

"No. Highly unlikely." The dog came near their feet, sniffing around before scuttling back outside. Kakashi just exhaled smoke, watching as the remaining daylight slipped away. A silver brow dipped low.

"Is there something going on that I should be worried about? If there is another turf war brewing—"

"No, of course not."

"Hmm."

Sasuke shifted on the crates. "Sounds like I don't need to ask, but you haven't heard from him either?"

Kakashi shook his head. The headband-like scarf he wore kept his silver locks out of his face, while a portion of it cut low on his brow across one eye. "Last I saw him in the flesh was when he helped with that job in Atlanta. He did good work. I may have something else for him coming up soon."

Which would now need to go to another person, it seemed.

"Well, if you could do me a favor and let me know if you hear anything?"

"Sure."

"And… if it's not too much to ask. I would like to keep this between us." Sasuke turned his head to look at the older man, not comfortable asking anything of anyone but—

"I suppose there is nothing to say… especially if no one asks. I take it your higher ups don't know about this yet?"

Sasuke looked away, wondering if his silence was enough of an answer. Ultimately he needed to quell any doubt or unease before it arose when dealing with associates and clients.

"I'm handling it. He was under my brother and I so it's our responsibility. I just don't want gossip and loose talk. You understand how it is…" Of course, there was much more to it than that, but he just needed the other man to agree.

Kakashi stood, dropping the almost finished cigarette and scuffing it out beneath his shoe. "As long as our business is unaffected, I don't see why that would be a problem. I deal with shit directly through you, more than I do with them, lately anyway."

Sasuke nodded in appreciation, standing up to leave. Kakashi made it halfway to his work bench before turning around, stopping Sasuke before he left out the front. "Oi! Maybe check with Suigetsu. Heard a story about him and Kiba fucking some twins a while back."

Sasuke nodded and raised a hand without turning around, heading out of the building and towards his truck. Suigetsu came from around the side of the building, zipping up his thin coat as the temperature dropped.

"Hey," he beckoned over the man before he could escape through the door to the warehouse. "You haven't seen Kiba around, have you?"

Suigetsu got closer and frowned, shaking his head. "No. That fool still owes me from that bet too! His shitty team lost in the playoffs. Tell him to stop ducking and pay the fuck up."

"You two dated twins?"

A salacious grin spread across Suigetsu's face, showing a row of sharp teeth before he frowned. "They were kinda sexy, but a little too coo-coo for my tastes. Not worth the headache."

"What about Kiba. Was he still seeing the other one?"

Suigetsu patted down his pockets before producing a book of matches. The name of a strip joint was printed on the cover. "Don't know, but that's the club they worked at."

Sasuke flipped the matchbook in his palm a few times, murmuring his thanks as he stared at the number and name scribbled under the flap.

✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧

"Yes… oh yes, pl-"

The desperate cry was cut short as a sweaty palm came up to muffle the irritating noise. A few more movements and the strenuous thrusting stopped as both parties reached completion.

With a muted grunt, the man slid off his relaxed partner, sliding an arm behind his head as he pressed back against the pillows. The petite woman slid close to his side after he disposed of the condom. She smiled but was ignored in favor of him reaching for his phone.

"Hmmm… that was amazing," she sighed dreamily, catching her breath as she cuddled under his bent arm.

The man closed out of his emails, opening up social media instead to check a few messages. A little put off at being forgotten, the woman rose from the sheets, taking the knit throw blanket at the end of the bed to wrap around her naked body. She left the room in search of water, leaving the redheaded man to sit alone against the headboard.

The simple timeline view on his screen changed to a variety of new posts before one image made him pause abruptly. Sitting up taller against the pillows, an unnatural intensity built in the man's form just as the woman reappeared.

"Would you like some?" the woman asked after taking a long gulp, teasingly running her fingers across the top of the wrapped blanket barely containing her generous bust.

"No… but you can lock the door on your way out," he replied, quickly scrolling back up on the page, irritation swelling when the page refreshed.

"What…?" The woman put the glass of water on the nightstand in haste, a few drops splashing her fingers. "You're throwing me out?!"

He disregarded her a second time as he searched the screen. There was a flash of unmistakable pink that he knew he'd seen moments ago… now, just where did it go—

"You can't be serious." The woman's affronted voice cut in the air between them before she stopped cold. His rustic eyes swung to her own under sweat kissed bangs dripped in the color of spilt blood. His calculated stare had her moving in part self preservation and part arousal as she quickly snatched up her clothes. He lowered his gaze back to the phone, but the woman kept her eyes on him while dressing.

"You… are completely... unbelievable Sasori," the scorned woman hissed as she slipped on her other heel. Out of spite, she left the bedroom door wide open. It allowed him to hear the front door slam, but his attention was elsewhere.

He finally stumbled onto the photo he was looking for, the thin sheet pooling in his lap over his naked body as he hunched over and clicked on it to bring it up full screen. Dull eyes began to glimmer with an untold light, darting over the photo until his eyes zeroed in on the pink haired woman turned away from the lens. She was standing behind a small group taking the selfie, unmistakable and familiar curves hovering behind the group, completely unaware. Taking a deep breath, he clicked on the profile, hoping to find more images of the elusive pale-haired sprite. The unknown person's page was filled with photos from that night, but no others contained the beautiful woman.

Grunting in frustration, Sasori looked up his cousin's profile, scanning it but not finding any hints of the pinkette either. He started a new search, this time looking into tags from the party. Digging through the results, he finally came upon another photo and spied her in the background once again. She'd been captured mid-laugh while leaning against a wall, her diamond stud earring catching the flash of the camera.

A pale finger traced the screen, locking in the sight of the woman whose presence ran potent through his blood, inescapable and plucking at him with more accuracy than he plucked the strings of his prized violin. He breathed out her name, feeling the stirring of heat beneath the sheet as his thoughts became consumed by her again.

"Sakura…"

✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧✧･ﾟ* : *ﾟ･✧

End Chapter

Thank you for reading :) ✨✨✨