It was the first hour of the twenty-second day of the second month and he was staring right into the glowing green eyes of Sakura Haruno. Could eyes even be that brilliant of a shade of green? How was that humanly possible?

Oh, he realized, he should probably say something, shouldn't he like maybe-

"Hello," She laughed and slid into the bar stool next to him. "Did I spook you?"

"Uh," He gulped. "No, I just wasn't expecting… you."

"You know who I am?"

"Yeah."

"That's good, because I know who you are. That could have been awkward, right?" She chuckled. So that's what her voice sounded like...

"You're Sakura Haruno."

"That's Doctor Sakura Haruno to you," She chuckled again, god, he did not mind that sound, "And you're Sasuke Uchiha."

"Detective Sasuke Uchiha." He replied playfully.

Playfully? Since when was Sasuke Uchiha playful?

"Alright, Detective Uchiha," She took a sip from her drink. "It's good to finally meet my best friend's best friend."

Well, shit, what was he supposed to do now?

Sakura knew what was going on. She was trying to postpone the incoming bout of depression and anxiety by keeping herself entirely and fully distracted.

She'd been doing this her whole life. Intrusive thoughts would sneak into her mind and she'd keep them at bay with work, more work, exercise, anything. She'd make up research projects just to keep her mind busy and distracted.

In high school, she maxed out her scheduled, enrolled in every AP class she could, became a tutor, volunteered at the library, joined NHS, Aikido with Naruto, ran track and cross country… She even convinced her parents to let her work weekends at their bakery.

People called her driven or ambitious. They weren't wrong; she had big plans for her future and she was ready to work for it. They'd ask her, 'how do you manage it all?' And that's where the truth almost came out; she wasn't just ambitious. She was afraid. She was just trying to keep her mind busy so she wouldn't have to face that truth.

And that's how she went through her whole life; she committed herself wholly to everything she did, and if that wasn't enough, she found something else.

She dropped out of John Hopkins because it hadn't been enough. Her parents supported her as much as they could, but they owned a small business and could only do so much. Even with her scholarships and aid, she spent most of her second semester of college fretting over loans. How would she pay them off and go to med school? Would she even get approved for loans for the next year? She tried to busy herself to keep her worries at bay, but it didn't work. It ate away at her insides. She worried for her parents; she could see they were struggling to support her and it hurt her.

So when an army recruiter stationed on the campus quad handed her a flyer on her way to class one day, she made the decision to devote herself to something else, at least, for the time being. Something that could take the burden off her parents and make her path to becoming a doctor a little more affordable.

She had been a 'health care specialist,' but combat medic was the colloquial term. She had been on a base stateside for a bit, but then things changed.

She was sent to Iraq first, and then Afghanistan.

She always pushed herself too hard and that led to her discharge.

It had been a simple mission, but an IED threw a wrench in that plan… She can still hear that deafening sound. She didn't even think. She wasn't going to leave a single one of her soldiers behind. She was strong, but that day had taken its toll on her.

There's more to it than that, but...

She had slipped a disk. She never could recall exactly how or when, but the pain she felt in the weeks to follow confirmed it. She ignored it, afraid of leaving her newfound purpose behind… but she knew that plan was doomed. The only treatment for a herniated disk was rest and therapy… It became too much, eventually, she started experiencing muscle weakness. The pain would keep her up at night.

Sure enough, after a CT scan, it was confirmed. Herniated disk.

And she needed surgery.

She had been discharged. Medical. Honorable. None of that meant anything to her then. Her purpose had been stripped from her.

She tried not to think about it now, those months spent being a burden on her parents while she recovered from surgery and went through physical therapy. It had been a low point. Her mind had been allowed to wander and anxiety took over.

But she recovered the same way she always does; she threw herself back into her studies. She finished undergrad in record time. She didn't take a break before medical school.

If she kept her mind busy, she wouldn't think about the soldiers she'd left behind, the lives she didn't save. She stayed on the west coast where bad memories would be less likely to plague her. She had friends, success, a life…

But, she could feel it again. It wasn't enough.

She was lonely.

When she was assigned to her residency in DC, she was ecstatic to be near her family and friends again. But it had been twelve years since she first left.

They were different.

She was different.

She was still lonely.

And yet, in this very moment, she knew it had been the right choice. Yes, as she stared at the bewildered look in those dark eyes in front of her, she knew it was right. A face so familiar, but still strange. So she took a leap, because that's what Sakura Haruno does; she's throws herself into things fully, completely.

She took a sip from her drink. "Alright, Detective Uchiha. It's good to finally meet my best friend's best friend."

And that's all it took.

A/N: DEAR LORD. Y'all, I'm so sorry for not keeping up with my update schedule. Work really picked up a lot more than anticipated, but I'm back. I've learned my lesson. I can't keep to a schedule haha.

So here's a little teaser as an apology while I finish the next chapter. Sakura and Sasuke's wild night out will be up soon! (like sometime this week probs)

Thanks for all the favs and reviews.

i do not own naruto.