-Believe Me, It's True-
Summary: Sasuke has always hid his innermost feelings for as long as he can remember. But at age sixteen, he can't afford to hide those feelings anymore. But what if the one he loves hates him for past misunderstandings? SasuxSaku
Chapter Ten: No More Lies
Sasuke woke up with a start, looking at his surroundings for anything out of the ordinary. He relaxed a bit, letting out a much needed sigh of relief. But…something was wrong…this caused the Uchiha prodigy to tense up again.
"Sakura?"
She was standing there, her pink locks swaying behind her, as she looked up at the clouds. She turned to look at him and smiled, "Sasuke…" she said quietly, her voice flowing like the wind blowing around her.
Sasuke stood up and smiled at her, but before he could say a word, Sakura turned around and began walking away.
"Sakura!"
Sasuke knew he was running, but Sakura was walking and somehow managed to be way ahead of him. She turned to face him, a huge smile on her face…
"Sakura?" Sasuke asked, confused.
Now standing in front of him was a younger Sakura, at age eight. Her hair was short and seemed to bounce as she danced around. The old crimson ribbon held back her bangs, just like it did before. She smiled a toothy grin and said, "Guess what, mister!"
Sasuke just stood there, stunned.
"I asked you a question mister!"
"Uh…what?" he replied hesitantly.
"I like this boy!" she squealed, her hands up in the air as if to grasp her affection.
Voices rang out of nowhere, saying, "Don't tell me it's Sasuke!"
"It is him, isn't it?"
Sakura frowned, "How did you guys know? Did you know mister?"
"Uh…"
"I really, really, really, really think he is the cutest boy ever!" she giggled, her emerald eyes gleaming. "Sasuke is just so dreamy…"
Sasuke frowned. She sounded like one of his fan girls.
"Hey mister, do you think I could ever tell him that I like him? Do you think he could like me back?"
Again, before he could answer, the little Sakura began to run away, causing the young man to chase after her.
"I like Uchiha Sasuke!"
Sasuke stopped, to see Sakura yet again, only this time as a young preteen.
"I…I love you, Sasuke."
"Sakura…"
Sasuke stared at her, he knew now this was only a dream…right?
"Sasuke…why…"
Tears were streaming down her cheeks; she now stood before him as the sixteen year old of the present. Her long hair cascaded behind her back, her hands crossed together in front of her chest.
"I gave it to you…and you broke it…"
Sakura opened her eyes to only be greeted by the chill of the night breeze and the glistening of the starlight above. She shifted slightly and cringed back at the pain that shot from her stiff neck. She sat there, dazed.
Where am I again?
Her vision focused to the night to see a young man standing in front of her, his hands shoved in his pockets.
All at once, memories of her leaving, staying in the woods, watching Sasuke collapse into her arms…that left her with a very big headache. She shook her head slowly and looked up at the young man. "Sasuke…?" she asked sleepily.
He looked down at her, his hair covering his dark eyes. He smirked.
"What are you…"she started, but soon faltered with a quiet, "Oh, never mind," and clutched her head as if it was in fear of exploding.
"Are you alright?" he asked calmly, crouching down to look at her.
"Yeah, I just need some water and a powerful headache killer." She tried to stand up but ended up plopping back on the ground. "Crap…"
Sasuke looked at the struggling girl and offered his hand; she took it and suddenly found herself being hoisted up unto his back. "You're not feeling good."
Sakura didn't say anything; she just wrapped her arms around his neck, allowing herself to relax as Sasuke carried her back into the village. She muffled a quick, "Thank you," before drifting off once again into a deep slumber.
Sasuke held the girl on his back tenderly, walking to the village. He let out a long sigh; out of all the weird dreams, he had to have one that confused him more than ever. To top it off, Sakura was sick and they couldn't leave the stupid village until she got better.
"Sakura…" he said, knowing that Sakura was sleeping deeply, "I'm sorry for everything. I didn't mean to put you through so much. I knew you loved me, I really honestly did. But, I guess at first, I was unsure…maybe even confused. But, after some time, I realized that you meant more to me than anything. So…please…no matter what stupid thing I know I might do…don't ever leave me again. I don't want to lose you so easily…"
All he got was a quiet groan in response.
Sasuke sighed…after all this time…that's all he could afford to do.
Voices…
"What the hell did you do to her, you bastard?"
That's all Sakura could hear. She wanted to open her eyes…but her body was too tired, too stressed to allow that.
"Nami! Don't be rude…"
"I can be rude to whomever I want to be rude to!"
"Nami!"
"Natsumi! Are you forgetting who the eldest of the two is?"
Sakura wanted to laugh…even if Nami is the eldest of the twins, Natsumi definitely acted like the oldest.
"Whatever, Sasuke! What the hell did you do?"
Sasuke…?
"I didn't do anything…she's just sick."
"Okay, I understand that…but…it's been two days now and chief is still sleeping."
TWO DAYS?
"WHAT THE HELL?" Sakura yelled, springing from the bed. "TWO DAYS AND YOU GUYS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP!"
"Uh…"
Sakura inhaled deeply and forced a smile. "I mean…I wouldn't want to stay that long…"
Natsumi let out a sigh of relief and said joyously, "Oh sis! I thought you would never wake up! I was getting so worried for you…"
Sakura smiled, "Hey, I'm alright now aren't I?"
Sakura looked around the room to find that both Nami and Natsumi were in the room with her. She recognized the room as the one she has stayed in for the past two years…
"Why am I back here at my aunt's house?"
The twins exchanged glances and Nami said nervously, "Well, chief…you see…"
Nami whispered something in her ear as Sakura's face darkened with rage.
"WHAT?"
Sakura towered over Nami as the young girl cowered in fear. "I didn't mean to! It just happened that way! And your mom said it was alright!"
Sakura stepped down and laughed. Her emerald eyes lingered at the lavender topped pair and then shifted over to the dark-haired boy who was staring out her window. She repressed the urge to drool at the mere sight of him. He stood there, leaning on the wall with his face looking down at the streets below, gazing at the people walking back and forth to their destinations. Sasuke's hands were in his pockets – just like always – as he continued to watch the not so crowded streets. Sakura noticed that he removed his headband, and his raven bangs covered his eyes.
My God, he looks so…
"Sasuke?"
He turned to look at her and quickly looked away, a shade of light pink lingering on his cheeks.
"Sakura!" a girl burst through the door and enveloped the kunoichi in a huge hug. "You're finally awake!"
Sakura forced a smile and pried the girl off of her. "Himiko! What are you of all people doing here?"
"I wanted to see you!"
"How'd you get in the house?"
"Your aunt let me in!"
Great, her inner-self yelled, my aunt couldn't refuse to let the witch of all witches enter! It's like that time mother let Ino in the house!
Himiko smiled and flipped back her long black hair. Her ruby eyes stared at her hard before softening. "Sakura, I was hoping when you'd wake up!"
"Why? What's the occasion?" Sakura asked, looking at her with piercing eyes.
"Well duh! It's my sixteenth birthday today…and you and your hot companion are invited." She replied proudly, emphasizing the word 'hot.' "Well, my dad made me invite you and your family…but your mom and aunt told me they couldn't come! So it's just you and…"
Sakura followed Himiko's gaze which landed on Sasuke. "His name is Sasuke."
"Well yeah! So…the party is tonight! Formal dress codes imply so," she continued, batting her eyelashes at Sasuke, "so see you two there! Oh, and the Kawahara twins too."
Himiko winked and walked away, giving Sasuke a small smile.
"I swear," Nami started, "she is completely mental. I could have sworn she was hung up over Sanosuke…oh well. What can we do?"
Sakura smiled thoughtfully and turned to Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke? Do you really want to go to that party?"
Sasuke, who was still looking out the window, merely nodded. "If you want to," he added, turning to face her. Sakura felt her face grow hot and quickly looked away.
What is wrong with me? He doesn't love me…I have to remember that!
Sasuke continued to look at her with concerned onyx eyes.
"Um…Nami?" Natsumi whispered, looking at her sister. "I think we should go now…you know…give them some space."
Nami looked questioningly at her sister, then looked at Sakura and Sasuke looking at each other, then quickly understood. "Say, uh, chief? Me and Natsumi are going to leave now. We got to…"
"Find our dresses for the party tonight!" Natsumi finished, grabbing her sister's hands and dragging her out the door. "Well then, bye!"
They closed the door behind them, leaving the two Konoha shinobi alone.
"Nami, what are you doing!"
Nami slipped the key into the door knob and click! the door was locked.
Natsumi smiled. "I cannot believe I'm related to you."
"Be glad, dear sister, Sakura will thank me for this some day. Besides, it was your idea to leave them alone." Nami replied, grinning.
"Ouch."
"I'm too nice for my own good."
Sakura felt her emerald eyes turning to face the young man beside her. She resisted the urge to look at him and sat on the fluffy bed. The silence between them was very uncomfortable.
"Sasuke…I just…want to…I mean…thanks." She stuttered out. Why am I stuttering?
Sasuke sat down on the bed next to her and took her hand into his. "No problem."
They sat again in silence, her fingers now intertwined with his. Sakura leaned her head on his shoulder and sighed. He placed his free hand on her head, stroking the pink locks.
"Sakura…why did you leave me again?"
She snuggled in closer, saying something in response. Her voice was muffled by Sasuke's shoulder.
"Sakura?"
She moved her head away from him and whispered, "I don't know."
He wrapped his arms around her. "Sakura don't leave me ever again." He tightened his hold on her petite figure.
"Sasuke, I'm so sorry…but please...this is so hard to believe."
"What is?"
"That you're here, that you love me…I just…don't want to believe it."
Sasuke turned to look at her. "What are you talking about?"
She pulled away from him. "I saw it all…how can I be certain that this isn't a dream? How can I know that what you're feeling for me isn't just a figment of a lifelong fantasy?"
"Sakura…"
"Sasuke…I can't bring myself to believe what your telling, what I'm feeling when I'm near you…is all true…is all real. I mean, when I left I was here, in this very village…to try and run from it all."
Sasuke looked at her emerald eyes, tears forming.
"Sasuke, I saw it all. Don't you remember? Ino and you and then…I mean…I saw it all."
Sasuke sighed, and watched Sakura stand up from the bed. "Sakura, I tired to tell you before."
"You went out with her! You love her…and I'm just here."
"No, you don't understand," he said, standing up to face her. "I was…forced to be with Ino and I had no choice."
"Sasuke! There always is a choice."
"Listen to me! I don't love her…I love you. I always will love you! And only you!"
"But…" she crossed her hands in front of her chest, "I gave it to you….and you broke it."
Sasuke stood there, a swing of déjà vu hitting him. "Sakura…you know I love you…why can't you just believe me? It's all true…"
Sakura blinked back tears and faced him, her emerald eyes now on the brink of releasing tears. "I want to believe you, but I just can't," she whispered. "So many of things have happened over these past few years…I can't help it."
Sasuke looked at her and whispered back, "Do you love me?"
"Yes…"
"Then why can't you just believe what your heart tells you and not what your mind does?"
"A dream…nothing more than a dream…"
"No it's not! Sakura…this is reality."
"Stop lying to me!"
"I'm not lying!"
"Please Sasuke, no more lies."
"I'm not lying to you, Sakura, I love you more than anything."
"Sasuke," Sakura said, tears streaming down her cheeks, "please, stop."
"Sakura you have to listen to me…it was just-"
"No! I don't want to hear it! Sasuke, you're breaking my heart."
He moved forward, wiping away the tears gingerly. "Sakura, I don't want to see you cry anymore…I don't want to be the cause of your pain…"
She pulled away, staring at him with frightened eyes. "Sasuke…please…I'm begging you…PLEASE JUST STOP!"
KNOCK! KNOCK!
"Sakura? Are you alright? Sakura?"
Sakura looked to her door and said, "I'm fine auntie! I uh…I'm alright!" she wiped away her tears and opened the door to talk with her aunt.
Sasuke sat down on her bed and sighed. He would do anything to make her understand it isn't a dream.
"Oh yeah! Party time!" said Nami enthusiastically. She grinned as she walked down the stairs into the Haruno living room, showing off her outfit. She wore a silver spaghetti strapped dress that stopped a few inches above her knee and pushed back her lavender bangs with a simple clip.
Natsumi followed her, wearing a dress of similar design only golden in color. She tied her hair into a high ponytail. "So how do we look?" she asked, smiling shyly.
Sasuke merely nodded. He tugged at his tie as Sakura's aunt fixed his black tuxedo. "You look wonderful Mr. Uchiha!" she exclaimed.
"Thanks."
"Hey, Ms. Haruno?" Nami asked her.
"Yes dear?" she replied, finishing her adjustments on Sasuke's tux.
"Where's Sakura?"
"I'm right here!" Sakura said, walking down the stairs, her dress swaying around her. She wore a wine-colored strapless dress, the skirt stopping right at her ankles. The top of her dress shined with small sparkles. Her pink hair fell behind her back, a dark red headband pulling back her bangs. She wore a silver necklace around her neck, a simple heart pendant finishing it.
"Wow…" Natsumi said, breathless. "You look really good, sis!"
Sasuke turned to look at her, and tried to suppress a grin. She really does look good.
Sakura blushed. "Thank you."
"Well children," Sakura's aunt said, "shouldn't you kids be going now?"
"Wait!" Nami said, digging in her purse as she pulled out a small camera. "Just for a small keepsake!"
She gave the camera to Ms. Haruno and stood to pose next to her sister.
Click!
Nami and Natsumi stood on either side of Sakura.
Click!
The twins stood on either side of Sasuke.
Click!
The twins stood in the middle of the two shinobi.
Click!
Nami pushed Sakura. Natsumi pushed Sasuke.
Click!
"Okay! Let's get going!" Nami said.
Himiko walked up to her guests, a huge smile on her face. "I thought you guys wouldn't make it!" Her gown swished behind her, the dark pink satin material shining in the light. Her long black hair was tied back into a bun and a diamond necklace covered her bare neck.
"Happy birthday, Himiko," Natsumi said politely, bowing.
"Yeah, what she said," Nami said, following her sister's actions.
"Well, come in then!" Himiko said, ushering them inside.
Loud fancy music and elegant people wearing elegant gowns moved past them. Nami and Natsumi stood next to each other, and looked up at Sakura.
She smiled at them and turned to Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke…I…"
"Sakura!" They all turned to look at the tall young man walking towards them.
Himiko smiled and walked up to him, wrapping her arms around him in a loose embrace. "Sano, my love!"
"Sanosuke, long time no see," Sakura said giving him a hug.
"Uchiha, you're here too?"
"Yeah, problem?"
"No, not really."
"Then deal with me being here."
Sanosuke forced down the urge to laugh and looked at Sakura. "Whoa, you really are looking wonderfully beautiful tonight, Sakura."
"Thank you, Sanosuke."
Himiko scowled and said, "Sano, darling, what about me?"
"Of course, nothing beats your abyss of eternal beauty, my lovely Himi-rin."
She giggled, "Dance with me then!"
She grabbed his hand, leading him to the dance floor.
"I think she's still jealous about you, sis."
Sakura forced a smile. "I guess…"
Natsumi smiled back, "Hey, I think I'm going to find Ginta…"
Natsumi left the group to be met by a young man who both moved to the dance floor, leaving Nami behind.
Sakura looked at Natsumi and the spiky haired boy she was dancing with. "Who's that?"
"That's Ginta, Natsumi's new boyfriend…well her first boyfriend."
"Oh, interesting…"
"Hey, it's not like you don't have a boyfriend. I mean come one, Sasuke sure is a looker!"
Sakura blushed and Sasuke turned away. "What are you talking about?"
"Okay then, hide it from me," she said amusingly. She spotted the buffet table and added, "You know what; I'm going to eat some grub. See you, chief!"
"You really are like Naruto."
"Sure, whatever you say Sakura!" she waved at them and made her way to the tables.
Sakura waved good bye and turned to face Sasuke who shoved his hands in his pockets.
"Sasuke…"
He looked at her and smirked. He offered her his hand and said, "Care to dance?"
She smiled at him and took his hand, "I would love to."
The music blared a soft tune as Sasuke held unto Sakura, his arms around her waist. She leaned into him as the night breeze swayed around them. They stood outside from the party, looking at the silent village from the balcony. The stars glistened above them. Sakura closed her eyes and allowed Sasuke to hold her longer.
"Sasuke," she whispered, "I'm sorry for yelling at you."
"It's alright," he whispered back, resting his chin on her head, "I deserved it."
"I…want to go home."
"But I thought you were running away…" he looked at her pleading emerald eyes.
"But you found me, so what's the point of running when I'll always be found?"
"Wherever you are, I will always find you."
"I know you will."
Sasuke smiled. "Are you going to keep on running then?"
"No. I…want to go back to Konohagakure…can we? Tomorrow morning…please?"
"Yeah…let's go home."
"Thank you…" she looked up at him and smiled.
He smiled back at her and kissed her cheek, "I love you…"
Sakura tiptoed to meet him, her lips dangerously close to his. "If I'm dreaming, please don't wake me."
"I promise…" he whispered, closing the distance between them.
Click!
The clicking sound, flash of blinding light, and a voice saying "I couldn't resist" didn't part them…in fact…they didn't notice it at all.
Sakura broke the kiss, staring at his onyx eyes. He placed another kiss on her forehead, planted another one on her cheek and placed his lips on hers as she wrapped her arms around him.
Sasuke…please don't wake me…
To Be Continued…
-Author's note: sorry it took so long again! Our teachers have us preparing for our semester exams…my god I'm going to fail them all…but yeah! Hope you guys enjoyed it! (Oh and Sakura's dress is the same dress I hopefully will wear to my first ever winter formal! Yay!) Reviews/flames/comments/suggestions are always welcome!
Preview of Ch.11: Summer Rain
(Omg…last chapter!)
"Sasuke…"
He looked deep into her emerald eyes as she placed her hand on his chest. He attempted to wipe the droplets away from her face, but failed because the drops kept on coming. She smiled at him.
"Sakura," he said, "you'll…stay with me then?"
She blushed.
"Sakura?"
"Of course I will you idiot."
He grasped her shoulders gently and gave her a small smile. "So, that means you forgive me?"
Sakura looked at him and smiled back.