After Hours
Sakura didn't even know what to say as she entered the warmth of the superior doctor's house. Luxury house, she noted in the back of her mind; whoever was paying Tsunade was paying her well. It was an honest shame that this stranger was bleeding over her neat entryway.
Tsunade had been as surprised as she was, at least that's what Sakura had gathered from the expression on her face as she opened the door. The blonde doctor's honey eyes flashed from surprise, to concern, and then eventually anger. Not towards her, but towards the tall dark stranger that had gotten her into this mess in the first place.
She had rushed them towards what seemed like a guest bedroom on the first floor, yet as they entered the room Sakura could see that it was some kind of in-home medical suite. There were a few medical storage cabinets filled with supplies, and Tsunade was in the process of pulling a surgical light out of the closet located on the far wall. What. The. Fuck. Sakura mouthed to herself. She wouldn't be surprised if she woke up right now and found that this was all just a fever dream.
"Put him there" the blonde doctor motioned towards the bed as she yanked the cord connected to the light, plugging it into the wall and illuminating the room. Sasuke and Sakura obeyed, laying Naruto down on the top of the comforter. Sakura manipulated herself along the side of the bed, still pressing on his wound with her hand after all this time. While using the bottom half of his T-shirt had been practical for their short drive, blood was now flowing freely through her fingers. She was able to see gauze in one of the medical cabinets just across from them. Sasuke looked up as he felt her fingers tap his forearm; her green eyes were focused on something behind him. Saskue
"What happened?" Tsunade asked, back turned as she busied herself with finding miscellaneous tools around the room
"Well, he got shot" Sasuke said. He was mindful not to divulge too much information as he pulled open the cabinet, grabbing a fist full of gauze.
"Obviously" Tsunade seethed with an edge in her voice; instruments clanked as she dropped them on a stainless-steel tray, moving too quick to place them with care.
Sakura was quick to take the gauze from him once he had stepped back towards the bed. She bunched the gaze with quick motions and pressed it hard on Naruto's abdomen, stopping the blood flow.
"Leave so I can clean up your mess" the blonde doctor snapped as she walked over to the bed with both a tray of instruments and a vital signs monitor in tow.
Sasuke only nodded and moved to walk out of the room, and Sakura, not knowing what to do at this point, glanced at the doorway.
"Not you, Sakura" Tsunade drawled, as if stating the obvious. "Wash your hands and put some gloves on."
"Where—"
"The bathroom is over there. You'll find gloves in the cabinet"
Sasuke closed the door as he stepped out of the room, dragging a stressed hand through his black locks. He knew that Naruto was in capable hands; he paid the doctor well enough to be prepared for this sort of situation. Tsunade had saved them from trouble many times; and how strange it was that they had found Sakura at the club. Though, she kind of found us, he thought to himself.
He sulked as he walked down the hallway; shoulders hunched over in exhaustion and anxiety. He considered Naruto to be his most loyal friend, and no matter how tough he claimed to be getting shot really fucking hurts. Although the younger doctor had insisted otherwise, he knew that this was best case scenario. An ambulance would have taken twice as long, and Naruto could have bled out. Although he had cursed it in the beginning, Sasuke was grateful that Orochimaru had chosen that club. The situation may have taken a grim turn had the trio turned up at any other place in New York that night.
Sasuke glided into Tsunade's living room, looking for any surface he could lay horizontally on. Even the floor looked like a decent option at this point. Lucky for him, Tsunade had two loveseats in her living room separated by a dark polished coffee table. Shikamaru was stretched across one loveseat, and he lifted his hand from his eyes to glance at Sasuke.
"I think they know each other." Sasuke stated as he plopped down on the opposite couch, rubbing his eyes with the palm of his hands.
"All doctors know each other." Shikamaru remarked, exhausted and adjusting himself as he failed to get comfortable.
"is that true?"
"I don't know, man. I just want to sleep." Shikamaru said as he turned over, facing his back to Sasuke.
Sleep. sounds good. Sasuke thought as the weariness seeped into his eyelids. The adrenaline of the night was finally fading from his bloodstream. He could almost hear his body rejoice as he laid down on the sofa and he let out a sigh as he rested his forearm across his eyes to block out the light. It had been a long two days.
Just a few rooms down, Tsunade and Sakura got to work. The senior doctor of course had Naruto's blood type on hand, and many wires and IV's dangled around them as they worked. Sakura, for the thousandth time that night, couldn't believe her eyes. The bullet had shot almost clean through his side and had just stopped short of his kidneys. Minus the bleeding, the injury didn't involve any vital organs. After few small incisions and some digging, they were able to find the bullet and get out most of the fragments. Stitching him back together took a while, but it was easier with the two of them.
As they neared the end of the procedure, Sakura realized they hadn't spoken yet about the circumstances surrounding their impromptu surgery. Tsunade just had spent the last few hours ordering her around, and both of them were focused on the task at hand. However, all was quiet now and the only sound was the consistent beeping of the vitals monitor.
"How did you wind up in this mess?" Tsunade finally asked, breaking the silence.
"I don't know—it just happened, I heard the shot and saw he was hurt and I knew I had to help, so—"
"Well, you've certainly made an impression."
Sakura stopped what she was doing then, looking up at her mentor in confusion.
"On who, exactly?" She asked.
"Mis-ter U-chi-ha" Tsunade mocked, over-exaggerating each syllable. She laughed softly to herself, and Sakura felt like she was missing out on some kind of inside joke—
The dots connected in Sakura's head then, and her eyebrows raised as she focused suddenly on her hands. It made sense now, the VIP section, the G-Wagon, and Tsunade's West Village townhome.
"Like…the airline company?" She asked, just making sure she was getting this right. Sakura vaguely remembered the article she had breezed past earlier this morning. Despite the youngest sons most recent legal troubles…
Tsunade chuckled breathily. "Yeah, like the airline company."
Sakura grimaced in confusion as more questions popped into her mind.
"Oh. What was he doing there anyway? And why would somebody want to hurt his friend?"
Sakura asked, questions flowing as she glanced at Naruto's sleeping face. Tsunade began stitching the last of the wound, needle and black thread piercing through tan skin in a consistent rhythm.
"People with that much money have enemies I guess." Tsunade sighed, being purposely ambiguous was never her strong point.
"Then why did…" Sakura paused, suddenly realizing he didn't know his first name, "Mr. Uchiha say they had no health insurance?"
Tsunade's eye's widened and her head tipped back as she let out a roaring laugh. "No health insurance!" she guffawed, "is that what he told you?"
Sakura only nodded, failing to see the humor in the situation. She watched as Tsunade's laugher died down to a light smile on her face, a light gleam in her eyes.
"Hospitals create records. Records aren't good for someone who always has poking around in their shit."
"Oh" Sakura breathed, not wanting to admit her confusion. Who was poking around in whose shit? Was she supposed to get it? For a person who was typically so direct, the way Tsunade danced around the subject only served to confuse Sakura further.
Questions rattled around the pink haired doctor's head as she decided to busy herself with cleaning up. They were nearing the end of the procedure and Sakura wanted to leave the suturing to the more experienced doctor.
Silence fell upon the room now, the methodical beeping of the heart monitor feeling a little out of place. The ground was littered with bloody gauze and the blonde's ripped clothes, which Tsunade and Sakura had to cut off of him. Such a shame, she thought. As she was cutting his clothes off before starting surgery, she could feel the luxury of the fabric beneath her fingers. Now, he was only covered with a white sheet for the purpose of modesty. She watched his breathing; his chest rose and fell in a consistently rhythm. So lucky…
The blonde doctor sighed, the clank of the instruments hitting the table echoing throughout the room. Sakura watched as she ripped her gloves off and began to disconnect some IV's.
"I'm taking him off the sedative. He should be waking up soon." Tsunade stated, and Sakura nodded.
"This has all been very confusing" Sakura admitted, finally mustering up the courage to confront her mentor.
"Probably best to stay confused." Tsunade sighed in irritation then, turning around to look Sakura in the eyes. "Don't get involved. It's a messy situation." She warned, expression serious.
"Okay" Sakura said, nodding. Whatever that means… "Speaking of messy, I'm going to take a shower." Tsunade grimaced as she removed her blood-stained white coat, everything was covered. Sakura looked down at her clothing; her outfit was totally ruined.
"Do me a favor and clean up" Tsunade said as she walked towards the door, bloodied coat resting on her arm. "And feel free to use the shower in the guest bathroom, Sakura. There are fresh towels and some scrubs in the cabinet. They might not fit, but they're better than what you have now." Sakura stared indignantly at the doorway after Tsunade had rushed out of the room, eager to leave her with the burden of cleaning up.
Finding the trash bin at the corner of the room, Sakura began to throw away the gauze, bandages, and anything else that was disposable. She felt slightly bad for Tsunade, her guest bedroom was completely trashed. The bed was definitely headed for the dumpster; the comforter was covered in blood that had no doubt soaked through to the mattress.
As she continued her mindless task of tidying up, the events of the night began spinning in her head. It felt fuzzy now. The adrenaline had helped her perform in the moment, but recalling specific memories or images was proving difficult. What she did remember was Mr. U-chi-ha, as her mentor had put it. Who was he, and why was he involved in such illicit activities? She had known a few "trust fund babies" in her time in medical school. They spent their time wasting their parent's money on parties and slacking off on their schoolwork, not dragging their bloodied friends out of night clubs and endangering their lives by driving them to a doctor's house.
Sakura rolled her eyes as she grabbed the steel tray Tsunade had left by the bed and brought it into the bathroom. As the put the tray down on the sink to begin the process of washing, she heard the bedroom door open. She peered around the door, had Tsunade returned so soon?
Sasuke had stepped into the room having only slept for a few hours. His hair was a casual jumble, still messed from his most recent REM cycle. Sakura stepped from the bathroom then, making sure to make some noise as to not startle him. Sensing another presence in the room, he looked over at her. Sakura's heart beat a little faster at the sight of his evaluative gaze.
"Where is Dr. Senju?" He asked then, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.
"She left to take a shower." Sakura stated, "I'm just cleaning up."
"And… Everything is…?" He really looked at her then, eyes piercing and serious, eager for her to answer.
Sakura, forgetting how to talk to humans of the male variety again, only raised her eyebrows and took a deep inhale in response.
"Oh, yes. Everything is fine." She assured him after a beat, "He just needs time to recover, obviously. He just went through a major surgery and lost a lot of blood. He's really lucky, though."
She could see him relax then as he sighed and closed his eyes, running a hand through his messy black hair. Her heart started beating a little faster. Keep it together, she reminded herself, this guy is obviously bad news.
"When will he be awake?" Sasuke asked, returning to his aloof disposition.
"Not for a bit," she mused, "Perhaps in the next hour or so."
He nodded and went silent then, retreating into his thoughts. Now that he could see for himself that the danger had passed, and the fog had cleared from his mind from his nap, he began thinking about the possible consequences of what occurred this night. Kabuto wasn't going to bother them again; they had kicked his shit in and left him on the floor of the club to choke on his own blood like he deserved. Orochimaru had 24 hours to deliver on his demands before he would have to pay him another visit. His father and brother were expecting to hear from him… But what would he say?
The only other things that could cause an issue were possible witnesses (which he doubted there were) and this girl. She had helped him save his best friends' life, but what will she do now? Will she go to the police? Did anyone see her? Will she tell her friends...Who has she told already?
Sasuke's new goal was to ensure that none of those situations could be possibilities.
"Thank you" He started, turning towards her. "For helping take care of him. He is very important to me."
Sakura raised her eyebrows in surprise, this was the first time he had said more than a few words to her. "You're welcome" She said, a light smile gracing her lips. "I could never turn away from someone who needs help…If I knew I could make a difference."
"You're a good doctor" He said, turning his full attention to her. He tilted his head down then stepped just a half an inch closer, and Sakura's heart nearly stopped. He looked straight out one of those Gucci advertisements from the magazines Ino always had laying around the apartment. Dark strands his hair fell into his eyes in a messy-but-trying way. Thick tattoos wound up his arms, disappearing under the fabric of his black t-shirt which stretched across his well-built torso.
You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, Sasuke thought to himself as he attempted to emulate a somewhat pleasant human being.
"I need to know something though," He started again, snapping Sakura from her thoughts. "For personal reasons."
That made Sakura's left eyebrow raise slightly in questioning. a cute quirk, Sasuke thought to himself before he could stop the musing from entering the front of his mind.
"Were you with anybody tonight? Anybody that knows where you are right now?"
Sakura's eyes widened and she breathed in, chest tightening as she suddenly remembered, Shizue and Ino! She brought her palm up to her face in distress as she peeked up at him. She needed to call Ino immediately.
"I was with friends" She said, crossing her arms in front of her. "But I lost my phone, and then the lights went out, and I wasn't able to find them. Can I please use your phone?" She said, holding out her palm in a quick motion.
Sasuke nodded at her, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out his device. He unlocked it and pulled up the phone app but paused before handing it over.
"Are they looking for you?"
"I don't know, probably?" Sakura asked in irritation, eyes glancing towards his phone.
"Would there be anybody else they could have contacted? Your parents, or your boyfriend? Husband?"
"Is there a reason you need to be knowing all of this?" She said, blushing and reaching for his phone. He pulled it back from her reach and her eyebrows furrowed in anger and confusion.
"Please," he said, urging her with a serious look. "I need to know."
"No." Sakura admitted "I only live with my friend who was at the club with me."
Sasuke placed the device in her hand, squeezing it so she couldn't take it away just yet.
"Tell her you're safe, that you're here with Dr. Senju, and that you'll be home soon. Just that." He ordered firmly, releasing the phone into her grip "Please and thank you." Honey.
Sakura narrowed her eyes, still jaded from the line of questioning she had to go through just to be able to use his phone. Her fingers dialed quickly as she stepped away from him, but he followed, eager to oversee the conversation.
"Hello?" a familiar voice came through the phone.
"Ino!" Sakura said a little too loudly, "It's Sakura."
"Sakura!" Ino screeched, almost in disbelief. "Where are you?! What happened?!"
Sakura had to pull the phone away from her ear, afraid that Ino's high pitched screaming would damage her hearing.
"I'm fine, Ino. I'm at Tsunade's house"
"How on earth did you get there? What happened?"
Sakura sighed, not sure of what to say.
"I lost my phone in the bathroom, and then lights went out—" Sakura stopped as Sasuke flashed her a look, a warning not to divulge too much information.
"It's a long story…"
"We were looking for you! Why didn't you call earlier? It's been hours."
Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose; she was never good at lying or keeping the truth from others.
"I'll just have to tell you when I get home. I'll be there soon, promise."
"You're acting so weird. This is so weird."
"It's not, Ino." Sakura said, "I'm just tired. I'll be home soon, okay?"
"I'll wait up then"
"Okay, mom" Sakura said, trying to lighten the mood a little bit.
"Seriously Sak, you scared us. We thought you were dead! Or kidnapped! Or hurt!"
"Well, clearly I'm not dead or any of those other things. I'll see you when I get home, okay?"
"Okay…"
"Oh, wait one more thing. Can you leave the doors unlocked? I lost my keys."
"Oh Jesus, Sakura. Okay."
"Thanks. See you soon" Sakura said as she pulled the phone away from her face, pressing the end call button.
Sakura moved to turn around, but he was already there to pluck the phone from her fingers. Her eyebrows furrowed at the absence of weight, digits curling into a loose fist.
"Do you have a change of clothes?" He asked her as he slid his phone back into his pocket. Although she was wearing black clothing, he could see the dark brown stains of dried blood all over her shirt and pants.
Sakura glanced back towards the bathroom, nodding.
"Yes, Tsunade is lending me some of her scrubs."
"Good. We can leave as soon as you're ready."
"We?" She asked, head whipping around to look at him. Her voice was breathy with disbelief. "Please don't go out of your way, I don't mind calling a cab."
"No need" Sasuke insisted, "Your roommate sounded worried. You should get home as soon as possible."
Sakura couldn't argue with that logic. It would be faster to just get in his car and drive to her apartment rather than waiting for a cab or taking the subway.
"I suppose so, if you truly don't mind."
"I don't" he said a little too quickly, as if he anticipated her hesitation. "And," he added, "I still have some more questions for you… If you don't mind."
Sakura was beginning to get frustrated. She was tired, hungry, and her body was beginning to get sore from not being able to sit for many hours. Being bossed around by this random dude was, despite his good looks and efforts to be charming, getting on her nerves.
"Sure" she said, her inner frustration leaking into reality through the harsh tone in her voice. Sasuke was used to dealing with people who are often times less than happy with him. However, he felt a twinge of guilt at hearing the edge in her tone. She was truly an innocent bystander in all of this, simply caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"I'm sorry" he said before he could stop himself, "This probably isn't the way you planned your night to go."
"Definitely not what I had in mind, but I'm glad everyone is okay."
Sasuke nodded in agreement, guilt still lingering in his chest. He found himself hoping to make it up to her somehow.
.
.
.
It wasn't difficult for Sakura to see that Tsunade was less than pleased to hear that Sasuke decided to drive her home. The way her eyebrows drew together and her eyes glared when Sasuke had mentioned it set off alarm bells in Sakura's head. Her reaction had made Sakura regret her decision. She had hoped that Tsunade would say something, but she didn't and now Sakura found herself, many hours after their arrival, stepping out of Tsunade's house into the cold.
Eager to get into the vehicle, Sakura began moving double time. The scrubs Tsunade had lent her had short sleeves, and the winter cold crept along her upper arms and she shivered. Sasuke trailed behind her, watching as she shuffled down the pathway and across the street to his car. He would have offered her his jacket, but he was afraid that by the time he mentioned it she'd already be in the car. He barely had time to open the door for her before she climbed in, and he was quick to turn on the heat as soon as he turned the key in his ignition.
"So" he started, flicking the thermostat up to the highest setting, "Where exactly are we headed?"
"Bergen street in Brooklyn. Here," she said, putting her palm out, "I can pull up the directions on your phone."
Sasuke nodded, handing over his phone. This is dangerous he thought as he watched her thumbs type across his screen. Maybe he had misjudged her. Did she really know exactly who it was she was giving her address to?
He scanned the route on his screen once she had handed it back and was thankful that the drive was only about 45 minutes. It was early in the hours of the morning and the rush hour traffic was light. It wasn't long until they were on the road and Sakura was watching the reflection of Tsunade's town home disappear in the side mirror.
"So, how long have you lived here?" Sasuke asked, eager to break the silence between them.
"Here, like in the city?" Sakura replied.
"You're from out of state then?"
"No, not out of state. I was born upstate, but we only lived there during the school year. I spent the summers in the city…"
As enchanting as it was to watch her talk, Sasuke just couldn't get one thing out of his mind. During the school year he repeated in his head; Either she had spent time with a relative, or her parents had deep pockets and owned a property both upstate and in the city.
"Eventually I just moved here." Sakura finished.
"You went to school up North then?"
"Uh-huh." Sakura said as a wave of exhaustion hit her and she yawned again, covering her mouth politely with her hand. "Ugh, need to stay awake" She mumbled to herself through the yawn. She took a deep breath and then sighed, pressing her cold fingers to her cheeks in the hopes it would wake her up.
As they drove along the highway, the streetlights streaked across her face. He watched as a beam of light moved from her chin, across her smooth lips, and then illuminated her stunning eyes. Sensing she was being watched, her gaze flickered to his and Sasuke decided to focus on the road then, finding the white lines that dotted the road suddenly interesting.
"School was boring, then?" Sasuke said, trying to keep the line of questioning going; he was eager to figure her out.
Sakura laughed, and Sasuke looked at her again with confusion in his features.
"I went to an all-girls boarding school. Private. Things were never boring."
"Ah" Sasuke said, nodding in understanding. He knew exactly what it was like to attend a same sex private boarding school.
2 properties, 12 year of an expensive boarding school upstate, and more than 8 years of college, Sasuke recounted to himself, grip tightening on the steering wheel. Expensive.
Rich parents meant good lawyers. Good lawyers were always bad news. He needed to get to the bottom of this.
"And your parents? Are they important?"
"Important? To me?"
Sakura chose that moment to be suddenly irritated at his line of questioning, clicking her tongue in irritation at yet another question.
"This doesn't really seem very fair" Sakura said. Sasuke's eyes flashed towards her, sensing he had hit a nerve. "I've done nothing but answer your questions about my life, for whatever reason—yet I don't even know your first name" she admitted, words flowing out of her mouth fast and sharp.
And for the second time that night this woman had made Sasuke feel bad. It wasn't often that he dealt with people who were actually decent human beings. Perhaps I should rethink my strategy here, he thought to himself.
"I apologize, again." He started after a beat of silence, "I've barely slept in over 48 hours. I'm not usually this much of a dick."
"My name is Sasuke Uchiha" he continued, not giving her a chance to react to his turn in mood. Taking his right hand off the steering wheel to extend it towards her, he fixed his gaze on hers.
"Sakura Haruno" she replied out of habit as she shook his hand. His grip was strong, and despite many mood swings, he also seemed to be genuine in his intentions. Sakura felt herself missing the warmth of his skin as his grip loosened and she pulled her hand away. His gaze returned to watching the road.
"It's been a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Haruno."
"Oh please," Sakura breathed as she put her hand up for emphasis, "Just Sakura is fine!" It's true that medical school was hard, and she was proud of her honorific, but it was too formal for most situations. She often found herself feeling sheepish when those outside of the hospital referred to her as doctor.
"Sakura" Sasuke tested as he nodded. There was something funny about the way he felt as her name fell out of his mouth. I need to go to sleep, he thought.
"Sasuke Uchiha" Sakura replied, "Like the…"
"Airline company, yes."
It sounded like he had heard that same question all too many times. Sensing the apathy and his tone, Sakura gave him a curious look.
"Is that situation difficult for you?"
"I guess it gets me into trouble sometimes."
It began raining then and it wasn't long before the rain turned to sleet, the frigidness of the air turning the rain into a slushy mess. Thick frozen raindrops plunked on the windshield and Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows, vaguely remembering the weather report he had watched the day before. And to think I thought I'd be sleeping before the bad weather started Sasuke groaned inside his head. Just another reminder that things would have been a lot less difficult if everything had gone according to plan.
"Oh, this weather is just the worst" Sakura complained. She felt a chill along her arms at the thought of having to go outside again, even if it was for a short amount of time. She leaned forwards into the heat blowing out of the vents off the dash and rubbed her arms with her hands, trying to absorb as much heat into her skin as possible.
"You can wear my jacket. I don't mind."
Sakura, not one to turn down the opportunity for extra warmth, accepted his offer. Sasuke shrugged out of his black parka, which proved to be an awkward process as he was trying not to crash the car and kill them both. The jacket was large on her, which she expected as he was much taller than she was. The sleeves were too long and they swallowed her hands, which was fine for Sakura as she didn't have a pair of gloves handy.
They were getting closer to their destination, and time was running out, yet Sasuke battled in his mind how best to continue their earlier conversation. After some back and forth thinking inside his head, Sasuke figured that perhaps this didn't need to be handled immediately. She didn't seem like the kind to try to exploit others; and after all, it wasn't the first time he'd told his father and brother the half-truth in order to avoid unnecessary complications or panic. Sasuke decided that Sakura being involved in tonight's plan would be something he kept to himself. And now, he could try to be a genuine human being for once.
"I heard this snowstorm is supposed to be bad." The sound of her voice pulled Sasuke out of his thoughts, and he was surprised that she was the one to speak first. "Will you make it back home okay? Is it a far drive?"
Sasuke smirked, he found her worries to be endearing.
"Luckily, I picked the right car to drive today. Four-wheel drive."
"Ah" Sakura said as she nodded. Although it was getting progressively harder to see, they drove along smoothy. "You'll be fine then."
Sasuke nodded in agreement, and the two fell into a comfortable silence as they drove along. Sakura gazed out the window at the falling sleet; it was beginning to turn into snow. Sasuke had turned off the highway at this point, and rows of tightly packed row homes passed by. A few windows glowed with light, early risers no doubt. But the sky was still dark and the traffic still scarce, which was fortunate for Sakura who was dying to get home to her bed.
Though, Ino was guaranteed to ask a billion and a half questions. Sakura found herself dreading to face her. Explaining every detail about the night she had was the exact opposite of what she wanted to be doing when she finally arrived home. Sakura sighed deeply and rested her forehead on the window, beginning to plot out exactly what she would tell her blonde roommate.
"Are you really that upset about the snow?"
Sakura laughed, pulling her knees up to her chest, "No, it doesn't really bother me. I just hate being cold. And," She added, turning her head to face him, "I'm not really quite sure what I'm going to tell my roommate when I get home. I'm tired and I don't feel like dealing with it."
"We can sneak you through the window. Then you won't have to tell her anything."
"Oh my god, that would be ridiculous" Sakura laughed, viridian eyes twinkling with humor, "like high schoolers."
Sasuke decided that he liked that look in her eyes.
"Well, I don't know what you were doing in high school, but I was never such a delinquent."
"Oh please," Sakura drawled, rolling her eyes. "Every adolescent has a hormone fueled delinquent phase— even if it you won't admit it."
"Mm. Not me."
"Liar" Sakura said confidently. "Even my most well-behaved friends did one or two things they definitely weren't supposed to."
"I went to military school" He admitted, "There wasn't much room to disobey authority. Though, my delinquent phase seems to be coming at a much later stage in life."
Sakura nodded, not sure of what to say next. She wasn't always one to judge, but he certainly did look the part. The way he carried himself, reacted to danger, and ordered others around was indicative of someone who had been through some shit. As a doctor she hoped that everybody would live their lives healthily and away from violence and danger, but as she watched the snow fall outside the moving car, she knew that would never be a possibility.
"Do you find yourself in these types of situations often?"
"Not by choice."
Sakura's eyebrows furrowed then as she looked out the window again. During her tenure at the ER, she'd seen more gunshot victims than she wanted to remember.
"Many of the people who come into the ER have gunshot wounds. And well… Many of them don't get to leave." Sakura warned, tone serious. He glanced at her then, fearing he had made her upset. But her expression was smooth and clear of any negative emotion despite her warning. She must be incredibly desensitized to this kind of thing, Sasuke thought to himself, remembering the way she so expertly took care of Naruto without hesitation.
"I make sure to avoid the danger when possible," Sasuke quipped, eager to return to a more light-hearted discourse, "But, I can't always control everything unfortunately."
Sakura shrugged. From her point of view she didn't exactly want to enforce or encourage living that type of life, but ultimately decided to be humble and not quick to judge others.
"If you say so" She responded coolly.
Still, Sasuke found her response to be infuriating. Annoying, he thought as his eyes returned to the road, are women always like this? Despite his frustration, he secretly appreciated her concern.
It was snowing consistently now; big white fluffy dots floated down from the sky and coated the sidewalks. Luckily the roads were just wet but that would quickly turn into ice. Sasuke glanced down at this phone located in the cupholder. They were only a few minutes away. Eventually the townhomes that lined the streets turned into businesses. Delis, clothing shops, small family restaurants, laundromats and all manner of other kinds of storefront businesses. Only a few were open at this time in the morning.
He slowed down as he watched the blue dot on his GPS get closer.
"You can pull up to that hair salon just up there" Sakura said, leaning forwards and pointing out the location to him.
"You live… In a hair salon?"
Sakura looked at him like he had 4 heads—he couldn't be this dumb.
"What? No. I live above it." Sakura said slightly giggling. She pointed to the windows located above the hair salon.
"Oh" Sasuke said, a little surprised. Now he felt dumb.
"That was a stupid question wasn't it?" He asked her, a crooked grin spreading along his lips.
Sakura couldn't help but laugh at him. It was a light and pleasing sound, and Sasuke couldn't help but stare as the soprano tunes of her laughter filled the car. Not one to deny the facts, he admitted to himself that he liked hearing her laugh, just like he liked to see her smile and the joy blossom on her features.
"That's what happens when you don't sleep. You get dumber" Sakura teased, offering him a joking grin.
"Right. Makes sense." He said as he rolled his eyes, smiling.
Sasuke made sure to put the hazard lights on before exiting the car as he was parked in the middle of the street. He walked around to her side and pulled the door open, waiting patiently as she slid out of the passenger side. Reminded once again that it was freezing cold out, she hugged his loose jacket closer around her body to preserve warmth.
"Right. Well," Sakura said, tilting her head slightly to look up at him, "Thanks for the ride."
"Of course," Sasuke muttered, his standard serious look returning to his features. They stood there awkwardly for a second before he realized that she was waiting for him to leave.
"My mother wouldn't be very happy with me if she knew I didn't walk a lady to her door" Sasuke admitted, eyes flashing over to the hair salon she had pointed out a few minutes' prior.
Sakura gave him a surprised look as she brushed the snow from her hair. "I can't remember the last time someone walked me to my door" she mentioned as they walked along, frost flowing from her mouth like smoke. "It might have been senior prom, but only because my date was deathly afraid of my father."
"Well, I hope you can keep better male company."
The snow continued to fall consistently, and the salt that was sprinkled over the sidewalk crunched under their feet as they walked. The pair came to stop at a door that stood right next to the entrance of the salon. It had a charming, weathered look to it, the light blue paint was chipped in some places and the faded gold numbers were just a bit uneven.
An unsettling feeling found its way into Sasuke's chest then. Disappointment. This was the end of their time together. Sakura wasn't rushing inside just yet, unsure of how to part ways. Minus the whole shooting and 200-million questions, Sakura had enjoyed his company. He was endearing when he felt like being so, and certainly easy to look at. Although his face seemed to be permanently frozen into a stoic expression, Sakura caught him having actual human emotions more than once tonight.
The wind blew then, sending flurries into a fury around them. Sakura groaned and hugged his jacket closer to her skin.
"Okay, I'm going to go inside and get some sleep. And warmth." Sakura said, peering at him through the damp pink strands that fell over her eyes. "Thanks again for the ride"
"Of course. Thanks again for your help."
"Of course" Sakura replied, offering him a small smile. She moved to go inside, turning the cold doorknob and pushing the door open slightly. She stopped when she felt a hand rest on her shoulder.
"And I would really really appreciate it" Sasuke started, already feeling bad for having to say it, "if you didn't say anything to anyone about this. It could cause a lot of trouble on my end." She was halfway into the doorway now, nodding slowly at his request as his hand slipped from her shoulder.
"Sure. Whatever you need."
With a smile and another short thanks, Sakura closed the door. There seemed to be something significant about finally returning to the musty hallway entrance of her apartment. It made her feel as though none of it had really happened, as if she could forget tonight's events and move on with her life. Though, that would be like living a lie. She found herself, as she ascended the stairway, afraid to forget the look in his eyes when she had caught him staring at her more than once on the ride to her apartment.
Oh fuck Sakura thought as she reached the top of the stairs, his jacket.
.
.
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A/N
I try to write every day and I have been consistently working on this story. It's my fun little side project, no matter how busy I get! It's been a few months since the last post, but have faith in me, I love writing this story :)
See you next chapter!
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