Yeah, um...hi. It's me again. ShikaRoX-LOL. Ya' know...Memory? No? Nobody remembers me? sigh Oh well, after this story, click on my profile and read my other story, Memory. What? You don't remember that either? I just mentioned it! Man! You have a horrid memory, gosh! Okay Mr./ Ms. Short term memory loss, please read the story!
Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, I would own you too.
Setting: After Naruto came back, but Sasuke isn't back yet.
Moonbeams and Cherry Blossoms
Naruto sighed. He was lying in his bed, and silver moonbeams were flooding in through the open window, along with a sweet summer breeze. The small gust of wind carried a familiar scent he had memorized throughout his childhood: cherry blossoms. Once, during a tedious mission in Sunagakure, they were resting under a tree in their client's yard. It was very hot, and they were all getting very tired. Sasuke had already gone to sleep in the tree, and the remaining two were well on their way. Sakura finally gave way to unconcsiousness and passed out, nuzzling her head into a comfortable position on Naruto's welcoming shoulder. Shocked, he turned his head her way and studied the way her pretty pink hair parted. He rested his sleepy head on top of hers, and the last thing he remembered before succumbing to slumber...is the way her hair smelled like cherry blossoms.
He turned towards his window, and looked at the moon. 'How pretty. It's so...beautiful.' he thought. The thing he hated most about the moon, was that, no matter how much you stared at it, no matter how much you silently praised it in your head, no matter how much you wanted to touch it, to attain it...you just...couldn't. Sort of like...her. No, exactly like her. His gaze hardened. He would never have her. She was just as, if not more unattainable than the silvery orb that hung high in the sky just outside his window.
He silently acknowledged his defeat to Sasuke in the comforting darkness of his room. Sasuke had stolen her. Sasuke stole everything from him. He didn't even want the attention that Naruto had craved for the longest time. That craving had turned him into a clown. Everybody ignored him and thought he wasn't worth anything. They woudn't give him a second glance.
He knew he couldn't attain affection, so he settled for attention. Any kind he could get was fine with him. Whether people were laughing at him for looking stupid, or scolding him for being the delinquent he had forced himself to become, if they were talking to him, and treating him like a person, he was happy. There were two kinds of people when he was a small child. There were the people who knew the truth and hated him for something he couldn't help, and there were the people who didn't know the truth and treated him like trash just because they were afraid of the truth, and were not decent enough to help a child in need of a companion.
He looked at the wall, and focused his vision on the clock. 1 o' clock A.M. He sighed. 'Why do I even think? It only makes me more depressed! I really need to talk to Sakura-chan tomorrow...I need to tell her...she needs to know. I just hope she won't laugh in my face...she won't. She's not like that. I know her...a little too well.' he ended his looming thoughts at that. Naruto slowly sat up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He got out of his bed, and clumsily made his way to the kitchen. He stumbled through the messy hall and caught himself on the wall and made his sleepy way to the sink. He grabbed a glass and filled it with water. He swallowed it all down and put his glass down on the counter. He decided he wanted to sleep on the couch and gathered some extra blankets to help his new bed seem less make-shift. He settled in and fell back into sleep's loving and pain-numbing womb.
Unfortunately, his slumber did not last for much longer.
His rest was interrupted by rapid knocking on his front door. He got up hesitantly and made his way to the sound with great difficulty. When he arrived at said location, he greeted his esteemed visitor with a groggy "Huh?" He suddenly woke up when he saw who his sopping wet guest was.
"Sakura-chan?" he gasped in disbelief.
"Yes, Naruto, it's me." she smiled a tired smile. "Listen, my apartment's water valve sprung a leak, and I have no where to stay, so...do you mind if I stay here?"
"Of course not, Sakura-chan! You can stay as you want! I mean need to...or bleah! Whatever!" Things were just not going his way. Sakura giggled. 'He gets so cute when he's flustered! He's such a nice guy, letting me stay this short notice. I wish...I wish I had noticed his kindness sooner. That way, I could have saved him some grief. I could of had a real friend from the start. I'm so stupid! Well...at least we're friends now...'
"Okay, so here's some clothes you can change into...they might be a little big...but that's okay." He handed her an over-sized T-shirt, the smallest boxers he owned, and a pair of shorts.
"Thank you, Naruto! Well...turn around!" she chirped playfully with a happy smile on her face.
"Eh? What do you mean "turn around"?" He asked, quite confused.
"Oh come on Naruto, I'm not gonna let you see me change!" she shouted, on the verge of laughing at his obliviousness.
"Oh...Oh! I'm sorry! I thought you were gonna change in the bathroom! Sorry!" He apologized, blushing like mad. Sakura giggled again at his lovable Naruto-ness. She started slipping off her nightgown. 'How could anyone hate someone like Naruto? He's so...lovable. He's so nice, and courteous, and kind, and...Oh...no. I'm, I'm...falling for him aren't I? NO! No...I...I love Sasuke...yeah.' 'Oh really, do keep telling yourself that, pinkie, but I'm part of you, and I know who we're in love with, stupid! That Sasuke guy will NEVER love us! But him...he's already given up so much for you and I! You also know as well as I do...he's gotten REALLY hot!' 'WHAT? SHUT UP INNER ME! EEEEWWWWW! Wait...you're right...he is cute...isn't he?' She finished dressing and turned around. It felt so right to be in his clothes. They felt warm against her cold body, and made her feel so...at home. Her expression saddened. 'He probably grew up without this feeling...I was so blind.'
"Sakura-chan..." he walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her petite form. "What's wrong Sakura-chan? Don't worry, your house'll be fixed soon...and you can stay here as long as you need...so, don't be sad...I...I can't stand to see you sad. It...It makes me sad." he mumbled, moving his mouth to her ear and whispering the last few words for emphasis.
"Naruto..." she started.
"It's okay." He said as he released her.
"N-no! You aren't listening! Come back here!" she yelled after the retreating blonde.
"No. You come over here." he teased with one of his patented fox grins.
"Oh fine!" she gave in, and started walking towards the couch. It was very dark in the room and all she could see was a faint outline of him, and the couch he was sitting on. She eventually made it to the couch and sat down beside the boy who had loved her for so long. His bright, beautiful blue eyes shone through the darkness like a light, and she was mezmorized by the sparkle they always seemed to carry.
"Sakura-chan? Are you okay? You're staring. You must be sleepy. You can sleep on my bed." He said softly.
"N-no...I want to talk. About anything." she was preparing herself for her next sentence. "As long...as it's you I'm talking to...as long as it's your voice...anything is fine." she blushed and looked straight into those blue eyes she loved so much. He had won. She gave in. She was sure about her decision, that she loved him, and was willing to love him...forever.
"H-huh? What? But I thought...no..y-you must mean something else when you say that...I could never win...ever." He tore his gaze from hers, and the pain in his blue eyes was definite and heart-breaking.
"No, dobe...I...love you." she used his nickname. He looked up at her emerald spheres. Had he really won? There was no hint of dishonesty in those lovely green eyes of hers. He had won.
"I love you too...Sakura-chan." words he thought he would never use just escaped his lips. She leaned over and kissed his cheek. He looked at her with a loving gaze and gently pulled her on top of him. Sakura grabbed the blanket and pulled it over their bodies. His gaze met hers as the space between them closed, and their lips locked. Her hand started running itself through his messy, blonde hair, and her other arm wrapped around his neck. One of his arms was under her shirt caressing her bare back, the other held her soft face. Their kiss was passionate, deep, and hungry. He added pressure to it and licked her upper lip. Of course, she complied. When he gained entrance, he could taste her. She was wet, and delicious. He felt warm inside when he tasted her.
They broke for air eventually. They looked at each other, satisfied with what they had just done. She smiled gracefully, and rested her head on his chest. The consistant rising and falling comforted her, and assured her he was still there. As they fell asleep, they could smell the lingering scent of cherry blossoms mix with the aroma off faint cologne, and eventually fade into the still air of the serene night.