Welcome to the companion piece to Guarded, although I recommend reading it as well for the full picture, you're totally fine enjoying this as a standalone piece. Thanks for reading

I do not own Naruto in any way shape or form

...

Part 1

"You are aware that you're being an idiot, aren't you?" Sakura swirled her mostly empty iced coffee, desperately wishing it would magically refill itself as she felt the weariness of the day settle over her and took a sip of the watered down confection before finally returning her veridian gaze to the handsome man in front of her. Her lips pulled back in a teasing grin and she leaned back to slump further in her seat, crossing one bare leg loosely over the other, absentmindedly picking at her ruined manicure and smoothing down her pencil skirt.

Sasuke flipped to the next page of the report in his hands, using a knuckle to push his glasses up by the bridge while he leaned more comfortably onto the warm metal surface of the table. He left her hanging in silence until he finished inspecting a few numbers more closely on the page, then lowered it just enough to peer at his pink-haired assistant with a withering glare over the dark rim of his glasses. "That's a bit hypocritical, don't you think?" he asked, the slight teasing tone of voice negating whatever effect his stare might have managed to conjure up.

"That is totally different, asshole, and you know it," she allowed to tumble quietly from her lips, a pout taking up residence on her face, though her eyes reflected a hint of exasperated amusement at the expense of both parties present. "He lives with you; I have to go out of my way to find Kakashi in the office and think of an excuse just to be there."

A car rushed past the cafe leisurely on the otherwise quiet street, a few passersby carrying on with shopping bags, strollers, and in one case a rather large dog, who seemed to be ignoring its master in favor of terrorizing a nearby crepe vendor. The two professionals were seated outside of a small coffee shop and bakery; the smell of fresh bread and pastries lingered in the air, overpowering even the freshest brewed coffee being prepared to enjoy alongside them. It was still slightly warm outside despite the sun already moving steadily towards the horizon, but as the shadows continued growing and a cool evening breeze began tickling her bare arms, Sakura found herself wishing she hadn't forgotten her jacket at the office this afternoon.

Sasuke sighed tiredly and moved to begin packing up the folder of information that he'd spread across the table in front of him, neatly folding up his spectacles and tucking them into the front pocket of his shirt; clearly, she wasn't going to let this go. Brows pinched in his customary scowl, he placed both elbows on the now clear surface and focused his attention on the mostly empty street beside them. His voice was biting, but quiet with a tinge of embarrassment when he grit out, "Like that makes it any easier."

She knew this wasn't easy for him, but her eyes cascaded in an annoyed roll anyway at his petulant response. "Listen, I know Naruto is an absolute idiot, but there is almost no doubt that he likes you too. I wouldn't be surprised if he even knows that you like him already, he'd have to be blind not to. You're not as hard to read as you think you are, you know? One of you just needs to man up and do something about it already."

"Take your own advice and apply it to your own personal business, Sakura, and stay out of mine. Or did you forget that you work for me?" He pinched the skin between his eyes, slightly embarrassed at her assessment of his relationship with his bodyguard and turned his dark gaze on the woman in front of him. 'No god damn respect from any of them, I swear.' "You've worked with Hatake for damn near five years and you've still never fessed up that you're practically in love with the man. Don't go calling me pathetic after only six months."

She let out a quiet scoff and scooted her cup around on the surface of the table, watching distractedly as condensation dripped through the grated surface to the sidewalk below. "Like you'd fire me, you love that I'm not afraid to speak my mind." When he only glared at her in response, the teasing grin returned to her face. "Besides, who else would you talk to about this? Itachi?"

Sasuke shuddered at the thought. He knew that his brother knew; of course he knew; Itachi always fucking knew, but that didn't mean he wanted the man to be privy to all of the details regarding his love and sex life, or rather, current lack thereof. He sucked his teeth and crossed his arms, pouting as much as an Uchiha could pout, because deep down inside he knew she was right. Sakura wasn't just his administrative assistant, she was his confidant, and his link to sanity when work went to shit or when his brother's friends invited themselves over, when she wasn't pissed off at least; he supposed that might actually make her his friend, and it wasn't exactly like he had enough of those to be going around cutting them off willy-nilly.

"Hn," he grunted out, unwilling to grace that train of thought with an actual response. The sun dipped lower in the sky behind him, and several fairy lights that were woven through the wooden veranda overhead came to life, twinkling like stars that had managed to rise too soon in the night to join their siblings in the evening sky.

At his monosyllabic response, she victoriously flipped a lock of rose hair over her shoulder and leaned forward, arms crossed so she could rub them slightly for a little warmth. "You know I'm right, boss." She threw in a smirk for good measure, one she must have picked up from working with him over these past six years. She was a meager 27 to his 32, but she had never been afraid to stand her ground against her boss; hell, he was more like a friend she got paid to do paperwork and make phone calls for anyway at this point. If he was honest with himself, he appreciated the hell out of her company; usually.

He snubbed his nose at her and turned away again, although he did pull the suit coat from his shoulders and hold it out to her wordlessly with one balled fist. She took it gratefully and snuggled into the residual, lingering warmth, laughing under her breath slightly when an older couple passed by them and giggled about 'young love' before slowly moving on. 'If only they really knew,' she thought to herself glibly.

He coughed slightly and tried one last time to turn the conversation's focus to her instead to avoid thinking too hard about his favorite blonde. "Well, what's your excuse then?" He raised one thick brow at her and crossed his arms petulantly.

Sakura fumbled for only a moment, heat rising to her face, making it match her hair in the last few minutes of sunlight. "Well…" she petered off, then he saw resilience streak across her face, "Kakashi is a lot more mature than me, he's a really important official with a lot of responsibilities, I'm honestly not even sure he knows I exist since we only talk when you tell me to drop something off down at security, he's got this perfect face and he's just so tall-"

He cut her off, "So you're saying you're intimidated because he's old, busy, and tall, so you've been pining after him and not ever just bothering to invite the man out for dinner for years?"

She stuck her lip out in a pout, "I didn't say he was old."

"The guy is 41, Sakura. That's not old?" She turned her head and clenched her fists to calm her temper, but she could feel a vein starting to pulse in her forehead. Sasuke could see the impending explosion on the horizon, and decided, for once, to reign himself in before he stepped on a landmine. "Okay, okay. Listen, I like the guy. He's got good book recommendations and he runs a damn tight ship with the guards." He sighed and began digging in his pocket for the car keys; he had to get going soon if he wanted to get her dropped off and be over to pick Naruto up from his mother's place on time. Mulling it over for a moment, he finally allowed himself to mutter, "Just so you know, he does remember you. Do you seriously think you've needed to be going all the way down to the basement every week to deliver reports when email exists? He's the one that asked for physical copies in the first place."

She froze, halfway up from her seat, her leather tote only halfway up to her shoulder. Her hair swung as she snapped her head up to look at him. "No way!" A giddy smile crept onto her cheeks, and she moved jerkily to continue gathering her things up, quietly giggling to herself as they started walking the short distance back to where they'd parked the car. When they reached it, Sasuke quickly unlocked it and moved to open his door when she flopped partially onto the hood, her green eyes twinkling mischievously.

"One week."

"What?" He opened the door and threw his briefcase into the back seat, then leaned on it to glare in confusion at her sudden outburst.

"We both have to confess," she said, then quickly amended, "Within the next week."

He reiterated monotonously, "What?"

She only smiled at him then opened her own door, set her bag down on the floorboards of the passenger side, and held one finger up at him pointedly. "One week. Deal?" He rolled his eyes. When she moved to sit down, he followed her and quickly put the key in the ignition. She laughed a little and turned the radio on before fixing her seatbelt to fit comfortably. "If you say nothing, I'm taking that as an agreement."

He side-eyed her, then pulled out onto the empty street, slowing to a stop at the red light a few blocks up. He felt heat rise to his face, but stubbornly refused to look away from the traffic moving in front of them. "Hn."

He denied it vehemently when she pointed out that he was blushing.

…

"Hey Sasuke, how'd everything go with Sakura?" Naruto clambered into the car almost violently and slammed the door behind him with a brief wave back to the porch for his mother who still sat comfortably on the aged rocking chair situated out front.

They pulled away from the curb and headed back to the apartment, Sasuke was really craving some alone time right at that moment. "Hn."

"Nothing happened right?" Naruto dug around in the backpack on the ground, unbothered by the terse response, and located his ancient orange cell phone to check for messages and emails. Sasuke sucked his teeth at the sight of it; the idiot really needed to just let him buy him a new one already.

"You do know I don't get attacked every time you aren't around, right?"

Naruto shot him a quick, knowing smile that shone under the passing overhead streetlights, then turned back to his phone to finish typing something out. "Missed you too, asshole." He completed his message and tossed the phone back into the still-open bag. "And if you're going to keep paying me to be your meat for hire, then I'm going to take it seriously."

Some interesting images flashed through his subconscious, and Sasuke winced, biting out harshly, "Don't say it like that, dumbass." 'I like this idiot?' He looked skyward, 'Help me. Or kill me, whichever is easier at this point.'

"Fine, fine, you win. Shadow." He paused to stick his tongue out at the other man, his hands hanging in the air as he emphasized the word with sarcastic air quotes. "Is that better? Did you at least remember you have that speech and fundraiser event on Friday?"

Sasuke chose not to respond and turned the air down a notch on the dash. He had in fact, not remembered.

"So, I'll take that as a no. Well, I'll need to get something new to wear for that. I, uh, kinda wasn't able to save that shirt and tie from the afterparty last time. They've bit the formal wear dust." The blonde had the presence of mind to at least look a little repentant as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Sasuke remembered that suit and tie combo, and he felt his pulse pick up slightly. He'd been a particular fan of that ensemble, especially when it had made its way to the floor of his living room after the first couple of beers that night. He still had dreams on occasion about that tie with the flame pattern, generally involving it being used for anything other than its intended purpose.

He cleared his throat to derail that train of thought. "Fine. I'll give you my card, get whatever you want." He felt heat rise irritatingly to his face again and reached to turn the inside temperature down another notch.

"Oh yeah," this time it was Naruto's turn to fumble around a blush as he busied himself fiddling with his own hands to stall. "My mom was hoping that after that, we could maybe stop by again for dinner. She said," he paused and let out a nervous chuckle, "She said she's missed you over this last week." He glanced at the blonde, now preoccupied and, blessedly, quiet while staring out the window as they neared the apartment.

Sasuke contemplated it for only a second, before muttering auspiciously, "Sure, Naruto."

"Okay, great." Naruto's smile could have melted gold as he busied himself with changing the radio station, and Sasuke found himself remembering exactly why he'd fallen for the man in the first place. It was quiet between both men for a moment aside from Naruto humming along to some rock song playing through the speakers.

"But I'm not bringing Itachi again."

Naruto laughed exuberantly, wiping moisture from the corner of one eye with the hem of his black t-shirt. "Deal."

Sasuke felt as though he'd made decidedly too many deals for one Monday. He nearly missed his turn, his mind unable to focus on much else aside from the repetition of 'One week' and Naruto saying 'hired meat' that was beating a new pattern on the inside of his skull.

He needed new friends.

…

Sakura stalled as long as she could in the first-floor bathroom, double, and then triple checking the state of her lipstick and hair before deeming that her reflection was as good as it would get for 5pm on a Thursday. She smoothed out a few nonexistent wrinkles on her dove gray pencil skirt and plucked lightly at the ruffled collar that adorned the high-necked emerald blouse she'd chosen this morning. With one last tasteful fluff of the long fringe that lined her eyes, she exited the small restroom and entered the main lobby, a manila folder clutched tightly between her freshly painted nails. She made her way across the recently polished tiled insignia of the Uchiha Corporation that adorned the floor, waving briefly to the front of house reception manager Karin, and entered the one empty elevator still remaining on the current floor, clicking the button to go down to the basement. She hummed nervously as the lift traveled down the three underground floors until the small, reflective space echoed with a ding, signaling that it was time, and that she needed to consciously remind herself to breathe.

Her low heels clicked quietly on the tiled floor as she made her way through the evenly spaced desks of the security office, only a few daytime employees still loitering around before the night shift change took place.

"Hey Sakura! What's up?" An average height brunette jogged up to her, his brown eyes friendly and welcoming despite the dramatic red tattoos that covered a large portion of his cheeks giving off a distinctly tougher vibe.

"Oh, hey Kiba. I didn't know you would still be here this late." She slowed in her walk only slightly, allowing him to catch up to her, though her eyes continued to occasionally flash towards the back corner of the room at the lone door that stood there impatiently.

The boyish security officer rubbed the back of his head nervously, and she was instantly reminded of Naruto. Change a few things around and they could've honestly been long-lost brothers or something. "Yeah, I'm pulling a little overtime today. I needed off early tomorrow night. It was kind of last minute."

She quirked a brow, intrigued. "Oh?" One green-painted nail tapped against the file held delicately in her hands. "Why's that?" She normally spent most of her time on the top floor of the building, so the most interesting office gossip rarely made it to her corner of the world. The best she got was that one girl from customer service, Ino, who somehow managed to know everything, about everyone from the 10th floor down and also had a talent for making it reach the same distance; further if you included Sakura up in the President's office, though she knew personally just how little Sasuke cared about the personal goings-on of his employees.

"Karin asked me to escort her to that Hyuuga thing tomorrow night," he said almost bashfully, slightly elongated canines poking out of his lips in a crooked grin.

'Good for him,' she thought to herself. 'Now if only I can get just the tiniest bit of that luck; then at least I'd be able to rub it in Sasuke's pretty face.' Sakura resisted the urge to laugh at her own train of thought and punched him lightly with one balled fist on the shoulder. "That's awesome, Kiba. I'm really happy for you." He nodded in response, that mildly unsure, but happy look never leaving his face.

The brunette pointed to the folder in her hands, "Want me to drop that off for you?" He cupped one hand over the side of his mouth, and whispered, "I'm pretty sure Kakashi is still in his office, but he's been in one of those moods again today." He dragged a line across his neck, head going slack and eyes rolling backward.

She giggled in response and shook her head, waving him off with one hand. "No worries, I'm not afraid of him." 'Okay, that's a blatant lie. You're absolutely terrified of him,' her subconscious supplied helpfully.

He stepped back towards where his coworkers were still lingering around the coffee machine and put his hands up to the sides of his head. "Your funeral. See you tomorrow!" He waved over on shoulder and went to go grab a cup before the last few minutes of his break ended.

With that, she started back towards the office marked 'Hatake' in proud lettering on the gold placard and hesitated only a moment outside the door. She took a deep breath; it was now or never.

Her knuckles rapped gently against the door twice, and at the quiet noise of acquiescence from inside, she pushed it open on silent hinges, taking only a second to push it shut behind her. It was dim in the small office, lit only by a single table lamp on the desk that overlooked a stack of nearly completed papers and a small window on one wall. The back of the office was lined in bookshelves that ran from the floor all the way to the ceiling, and it smelled strongly of parchment and something vaguely spicy. Aside from the cluttered desk space, the room was extremely tidy, almost militarily so. All she could see, though, was the shock of silver hair that always seemed to defy gravity settled over hunched, weary shoulders as one hand continued scribbling away on whatever assignment it had been previously occupied with.

"What is it?" Kakashi's normally dulcet tone was dulled by an edge of irritation in his voice as he spoke without looking up from his work.

Sakura gently cleared her throat, and he sat up suddenly in his seat, mood dissipating instantly, meeting her amused gaze with his own mildly sheepish and shocked expression. She approached his desk, and held out the folder to him. Hurriedly shoving his rolling chair back to stand, he took it from her and immediately placed it down on the desk without opening it, splaying one hand across the smooth surface.

"Everything alright?" She grasped her hands behind her to keep them from visibly shaking, glancing up at the tall man through her eyelashes. Even in her low heels, he still towered over her. The sleeves of his black uniform shirt were messily pulled up to the elbows and the top two buttons had been undone revealing the smooth plane of a deceptively muscular chest, despite his willowy figure. She could detect just the slightest hint of stubble on his face, and she briefly wondered if he'd been sleeping okay at the sight of the faint purple smudges that hugged his eyes.

Kakashi seemed unable to take his eyes off of her, glancing quickly back and forth between her and the disorganized jumble of papers, as he fumbled to organize all of the documents scattered across his desk. He scratched quickly at his jaw once finished and quirked a small, lopsided smile at her. "Yeah, yeah. Everything's good." He stood up straight and tucked his hands into his pockets. "How've you been, Sakura? Sasuke treating you okay?"

She felt a small laugh bubble out of her, and his nervous smile widened a few centimeters, even though he attempted to hide the reaction behind one large hand. "Same as usual, still an asshole, but harmless as far as those go. Naruto's good too, he said you'd still be down here even though it's a little late in the day." She reached out to brush one of the leaves of a small potted plant sitting on the edge of the oak desk- she briefly noted it was the same one she'd helped Sasuke pick out as a gift for the man for Christmas over two years ago.

He glanced around at some of the stuff in piles in front of him and nodded sagely. "Yeah, Hyuuga's men are handling the fundraiser tomorrow, but they asked for my input on a few last-minute details regarding the perimeter security so I'm stuck here for a bit longer tonight unfortunately."

Sakura moved to sit in the small green office chair in front of the desk, smoothing her skirt down as she crossed her legs at the ankles. He sank into his own seat and clasped his hands together in front of him, the motion tugging his shirt taught across his forearms and chest. She struggled not to stare.

"Do they have you working the event?" Her delicate fingers plucked at nonexistent lint on her knee, and she caught his eyes following the movement. She uncrossed and recrossed her legs, and he glanced quickly off to the side. Her lips attempted to pull into a small smirk, but she resisted the urge. This interaction was much easier now that she actually knew he was the reason she made these trips down here; that he'd made the request so he could see her.

"Thankfully no, just helping out with the plans."

Her confidence overrode the insecure voice in her mind telling her not to push her luck. "So, you won't be coming?" She paused to look him over and bit her lip slightly. "I was hoping to see you there."

If he was shocked by her admission, he didn't show it. Leaning back in his seat, he appraised her slowly and seemed to come to some kind of conclusion within himself. That smile was back in place on his face, a few perfect teeth peeking out from between his thin, but shapely, lips. "Yeah? I think I can make that happen then."

A little flustered that he'd called her bluff and upped the ante, she collected herself and moved to stand, twirling a few strands of her silky hair around one finger, a tinge of pink working to disguise the scattered freckles that decorated her cheeks and nose. Digging the toe of one heel slightly into the carpet, she met his dark gaze where he sat and returned it with a shy smile of her own. "I'd like that, Kakashi." Something unfamiliar flashed through his eyes at his name, and Sakura felt excitement pulse through her abdomen.

He picked the pen back up from his desk, thumb idly stroking down the length of it, his gray eyes far away. "I'll see you tomorrow then." It wasn't a question.

She turned and began walking back towards the office door, giving a slight wave over her shoulder as she agreed and turned the knob. "Tomorrow."

Once back in the elevator alone, she pumped one fist and let out an excited squeal. "Victory!" She froze. "Oh god, what the hell am I going to wear?"

…

Itachi looked up from his book at the sound of the front door unlocking, only mildly surprised when Sakura entered the apartment. He was marginally more surprised when he realized that she wasn't going to go and wake up Sasuke or Naruto and instead moved as if to join him, but this only resulted in the slightest raise of one eyebrow in question and the marking in place of the page he'd been reading.

She looked him up and down quickly, noting how comfortable he seemed tucked up amongst the pillows in black basketball shorts and a plain white shirt, dark hair tied up in a messy bun on top of his head, while he set his book down on the loveseat beside him. She answered his unasked question easily, "You're lucky I speak Uchiha-ese. Sasuke gave me some of the morning off to run some personal errands." She ushered herself over to the couch located across the coffee table from where he sat and plopped herself down gracelessly on the comfortable cushions with a sigh. "I was actually hoping to ask for your help with something."

In pure Uchiha fashion, Itachi stood wordlessly and moved to putter around the open kitchen nearby, quickly filling the kettle with purified water from the sink and setting it on the stove to boil. She didn't bother following him, instead taking the moment to kick her heels off onto the rug and tuck her legs comfortably up under her. When he returned, he handed her a steaming mug and sat once again on the edge of the loveseat in front of her, blowing gently on his own tea momentarily before taking a sip and setting his dark gaze on her.

When he set the cup down on the table between them, Sakura took that as a sign to speak, fidgeting with the warm mug in her hands. "So, I'm trying to impress an older man tonight, and I don't really know what I should wear that would be good enough. I was sort of hoping you could give me some advice or something. I can't exactly ask Sasuke, and the only thing Naruto said was something orange, which I really don't think is this guy's taste." She chuckled wryly and brought the tea to her lips, giving him the chance to respond before she could continue rambling.

Itachi mulled it over for a moment before responding, "Are you asking me because I'm one of the only straight men you know well, or because I'm old?" The slight upward tilt of his lips let her know he was joking, but she still choked slightly and began sputtering out an incoherently rushed response. He stilled her with a low rumbling laugh from his chest and an upheld hand. "I agree with you; Naruto is an idiot and Sasuke would be even less helpful than that. If orange isn't this man's taste, what exactly do you suppose it would be?" He leaned back and rested one arm along the back of his seat, crossing one leg at the ankle over his knee comfortably.

She shrugged her shoulders, at a loss, and began to idly braid a few strands of her hair together.

He placed his chin in one hand, thinking in silence for only a moment before reaching into his pocket for his cell phone. She took another sip of tea- it really was delicious, she needed to find out the blend so she could get some for herself at some point -and watched silently as he dialed a number from memory and placed the receiver to one ear.

There was a quiet ringing for a few seconds before the other end of the line picked up and a loud, bubbly voice came through. "Hey 'Tachi, what's up? I thought we said 8, am I running late?"

"No, it's actually something else, Deidara. I think we'll need to reschedule for this morning, I've got a friend that needs a favor." Sakura raised one perfectly curated pink brow in question, but otherwise didn't respond. He held one finger up to her with a gentle smile, then spoke again, "How do you feel about a shopping trip?"

Sakura felt a grin pulling at her lips at the exuberant and incoherent response on the other end of the line. Itachi hung the call up without a goodbye, his eyes warm with internal laughter. "He'll be here in 10 minutes."

She fought down the urge to hug the reserved man and instead set her empty cup down on the coffee table and moved to slip her shoes back on. "I could kiss you, Itachi. Thank you."

He chuckled in response and waved her off, standing with a large, satisfying stretch that popped his back in several places when she quietly shut the front door behind her. He needed to get his easel and paints set up, then go wake up Naruto. It seemed as though his model would be otherwise indisposed for the rest of the morning, and he really needed to get started on this next painting. The deadline for his client was in a week.

…

Sakura had barely managed to make it down to her car to switch into the pair of more comfortable white sneakers she usually left in her trunk for emergencies when the roar of a motorcycle rumbling into the bottom floor of the apartment garage alerted her that her knight in shining armor had arrived. Deidara ambled over to her and pulled into an open parking spot beside her car, letting the bike idle for a moment before switching it off and kicking down the stand. He stood and pulled the helmet from his head, long blonde hair flowing freely down his back in slight waves, an excited grin already painted across his face. His blue eyes glittered as he stowed the helmet and scurried over to where she was waiting for him- and maybe it was just her, but was he almost skipping?

She leaned back against the driver's side door of her vehicle and let herself laugh at him a little; the man was like a golden retriever off leash. Or maybe Naruto on crack was a better description. She looked him up and down, "So, you ready?"

"Hell yeah, Pinky! We've got some serious damage to do, yeah." The loud blonde slid over the hood of her car and quickly slung himself into the passenger seat, tossing his riding jacket onto the floorboards in the back. Once he settled and she began to pull back out onto the street, heading towards the shopping district, he finally seemed to collect himself enough to contain some of his excited energy. "So, not that I'll ever complain about getting to spend some Uchiha money, but wanna tell me what this is all about? You don't really seem like the type to take off work to go dress shopping, yeah."

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye and turned left, navigating towards an open parking spot a little further down the road. "I'm buying it, Deidara. Not Sasuke," she said, evading giving him an answer to the question he'd really asked.

He rolled his eyes, smile still plastered across his face as they pulled up and parked. "I know that Pinky, but he pays you, so even if you're buying it's still technically coming out of Sasukin's wallet, which makes Deidara very happy." They climbed out of the vehicle and he began leading them along the sidewalk toward a small boutique. "Anyway, don't avoid the question kiddo. I know I'm not the brightest crayon in the box, but you'll have to try harder than that, yeah."

He opened the door with a quiet tinkle of the overhead bell, waving when an employee welcomed them in, then held it open for her.

Sakura followed him inside of the shop, glancing around at the multitude of dresses ranging from casual sundresses to long, satiny formal wear, that lined the wall of one corner, in every color imaginable. She fixed him with a pointed stare, even as he immediately began looking through one of the nearest racks. "Deidara, if you were a crayon, you would literally be neon yellow. Can't get much brighter than that." She held up a pale pink cotton dress with thin straps and a small ribbon around the waist, but quickly set it back on the rack with an eye roll at the fake gag he mimed to her. Perusing idly through a few more choices, she rubbed her neck nervously. "I'm going to the fundraiser tonight, and I might have a guy I want to look good for is all."

He lifted another gown up, eyeing it in front of her, one eye closed tight and his tongue poking out from between his teeth. Seemingly satisfied, he laid it across his arm and continued looking. "And this guy, yeah. What's he like?"

Sakura felt her face flush and wrapped her arms loosely around herself, rubbing her bare shoulders gently. She shrugged once but decided that if she really wanted this she might as well give him as much information as she could. Deidara was one of Itachi's more eccentric friends, but he knew what he was doing when it came to women's wear; he was a fashion consultant after all, might as well paint him a full picture.

"He's really just kind of sweet, but also serious and focused." She rubbed at her nose and took the couple of options that Deidara had already picked out for her, scanning the boutique for a dressing area. "I guess I'm just a little intimidated, I've never fallen for someone like this before. He's so mature, but I think it's really cute when he gets all flustered." She located the dressing rooms and began slowly wandering in that direction. "He does this thing where he kind of laughs a little bit and covers his mouth with his hand to hide it, but he has the most adorable dimples when he forgets to. And his eyes, god his eyes. They're the most interesting shade of gray, I just want to fall into them and never climb out."

Deidara ushered her into a room and pulled the curtain shut behind her, standing impatiently outside. A slightly cocky tinge creeped into his accented voice, and he spoke loudly enough that she could hear him from where he stood beside the 360 mirror outside of the fitting rooms, "And you need my opinion because I'm just the best at helping sexy women get laid by the hot zaddy security head, yeah?"

She poked her head out of the dressing room, clutching the curtain to her chest, her face incredulous. "Who told you?" Their eyes met, and without him having to respond, her expression felt flat. "Itachi?"

His eyes had that mischievous sparkle again. "Who else?"

Sakura let out a small groan as her eyes rolled skyward, returning to pulling a long, red dress over her head. "How does he even know?" She pulled the curtain aside and stepped out onto the dais, doing a small spin as instructed by his twirling, outstretched finger hovering in the air. At the slight shake of his head, she moved back into the room, tugging the dress off over her head and pulling the next, short, pastel green option on, zipping it up the side.

"How does Itachi know anything, un?"

'Oh right, Itachi knows everything,' she thought with mild exasperation as she stepped back into the small spotlight. Deidara crouched down to tug on the hem slightly in a few places before standing to walk around her, then after a moment's hesitation he shook his head again. With a small sigh, she headed back into the fitting room.

As grateful as she was for the professional help, she had a feeling this was going to take a while.

"Try the yellow one next, yeah!" He shouted after her.

…

Stay tuned for the conclusion in part 2. Review, like and follow please :)