Snapshot

The sunlight blinded his vision when he opened his eyes, only to close them again when he couldn't stand the brightness of the light. Slowly, he sat up, the blanket that covered his shirtless body sliding off of him as he brought a hand to rub the sleep away from his eyes. He yawned and glanced at the digital clock that lay on the table a few feet away, blinking a bit then turning to the bathroom door where his girlfriend came out, wrapped only in a towel and another one that she used to dry her long, dripping wet hair. She felt him looking at her that she turned to him and smiled. "Morning yami nin." She greeted.

"Mor-" he yawned again, earning a giggle from her. "Go take a shower so that you'll be fully awake, you still have to report to the studio later."

"Hn." He responded, getting out of bed, clad only in his boxers. He blinked a few more times before standing up, Sakura tiptoeing to give him a good morning kiss on the cheek. He smiled slightly and headed to his bathroom door, shutting it close once he stepped inside. Just a few seconds later, she heard her mobile ringing, and quickly, she opened the flap to answer the caller. Her green eyes widened upon hearing the voice of the caller that she nearly dropped her phone on the floor. A smile was slowly forming on her lips. "Hey Akira!"


Chapter 7: Why?

"Are you sure you don't need a lift?"

Sakura nodded, ushering her boyfriend to go on ahead. Sasuke shrugged and inserted the key, starting the engine of his bike. "Last call tenshi." She laughed and punched him on the arm playfully, having him shut his right eye, his facial expression looking like the hit she gave him hurt. "Very funny Suke…" she murmured, smiling. "Go on, you'll be late." He tilted his head upwards, "Feh, like that melanin-less hair pervert would care." She giggled and shook her head. "See you later." She whispered, giving him a light kiss on his lips. He returned the kiss and smiled back after parting. He put on his helmet, "Later." And he closed the clasp of the headgear, driving out of the vicinity and out on the road, leaving a waving Sakura behind.

"Akira…" he thought. "Who's he?" before he even turned on the showers a while ago, he heard her say the name 'Akira', causing him to wonder who he was. "But then, there are girls who are named 'Akira', so… maybe…" he pulled over when he arrived at the studio, took off his helmet and shook his head a bit, his bangs getting back in place. "He or she, it doesn't matter." He smiled slightly and took his motor key, putting it inside his pocket as he entered the building. "I trust Sakura, and I know she isn't seeing anybody else." He dismissed the thought and knocked on Kakashi's office door, hearing the man say "come in". He pushed open the door and closed it behind him when he stepped inside, waiting for Kakashi to give him permission to sit down.

"The photos you took during the modeling night and social gathering turned out great." He commented, gesturing the photographer to sit down and listen to what he has to say. "Not to mention how Sakura seems more beautiful than ever." He eyed one picture of Sakura as he smiled slightly and looked at Sasuke. "Looks like you two are really made for each other." Sasuke only smirked and shook his head, glancing at the window behind his boss. "I've heard that a lot of times already. I'm just waiting for one particular person to say it to me."

"Oh?" Kakashi's visible eye crinkled in amusement. "Who?"

"Haruno Ikichi."


"Ah-choo!"

Sakura and her friend looked at Ikichi who sniffled and waved a hand at them. "Morning flu…" he muttered, earning a nod from the two who continued to talk. Ikichi watched as they conversed, a smirk forming on his lips as he saw how Akira complimented his daughter who smiled her thanks. Albeit disappointed that Sakura did not blush from the flattery, unlike if it was Sasuke, he still felt contented that she was with another guy for a change. "Another guy…" he thought, tapping an index finger on his chin. "Sakura," she turned to her father. "Since it's Akira's first time in Japan, even if he's half-American and half-Japanese, why don't you show him around and teach him a few basic Japanese words?"

Akira blinked and turned to Sakura, silently asking her to translate Ikichi's words. On the other hand, the girl only stared at her father, thinking about Ikichi's idea. "But I'll be meeting Suke later…" she groaned inwardly but forced a smile, nodding. "I guess I can introduce Akira to him, I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I explain it." She got up and faced Akira. "My father suggested that I show you around, shall we?" the boy nodded and stood up, bowing slightly to Ikichi who acknowledged him. "This will be good…" Ikichi thought evilly, watching the two leave the house side by side.

She could tell that he was trying to purposely brush his hand against hers but she acted as natural as she could by clasping her hands behind her back and smiling at the clear blue sky. She was aware that Akira fancies her, but she only sees him as a friend, nothing more. "So, where would you like to go Akira-san?" she asked in an English language. Akira smiled a bit. "Please Sakura, no formalities. Anywhere will do, but first, I would like to know, what does your name mean? I'm sure that every Japanese name has its meanings. My oka-san told me that mine meant intelligent."

Sakura laughed inwardly at how he tried to pronounce the Japanese word for mother. "Mine means Cherry Blossom. My mom said that she wanted to name her daughter 'Sakura', and after she gave birth to me and realized that my hair color was pink, she gave me the name, and my father gladly approved of it."

"I see…" he nodded in understanding. "Cherry blossom," he grinned. "I'd like to call you that." She shook her head though, stopping as she turned to face a nearby cherry tree. "Only one person has ever called me that, even if it's only once, but he's the only one who can ever call me that." She smiled upon remembering their first date.

"Is it okay if I call you Cherry Blossom when I feel like it?" he grinned sheepishly.

"Who..?" Akira asked.

"He who was named after a great ninja: Uchiha Sasuke."

"Sasuke…" he said, testing how the name sounds. "He's… another one of your friends?"

"No," she said. "He's my boyfriend."

"Wait a minute, you have a boyfriend?"

"Yeah, why?" she asked, blinking.

Akira looked down, his eyebrows knitted. "So, you don't know."

"Know what?"

"That you're my fiancée."


"Deliver these to the Haruno estate." He repeated Kakashi's words over and over before sighing and getting on his bike. It had been a long day for him, and the sun was slowly setting. He gazed at the big ball of fire, thinking if he could actually face Haruno Ikichi's questions that were starting to annoy him. Making sure that the envelope was sealed and safely tucked in his backpack; he put his helmet on and rode off to the Haruno's. "Come to think of it, Sakura's going to be there, so it'll save more time." If not, he'll most likely pass her by and then he can pick her up on his way to Ikichi's mansion or back to his apartment.

He saw the place up ahead and pulled over, making sure he didn't park it in the "no parking" zone. Sasuke then pressed the doorbell, hearing one of the maids ask for his identity through the intercom. He told them his name and purpose and the gates automatically opened. He then entered, clutching the strap of his backpack and made his way through the front door, where a maid opened it for him and led him to the living room where Ikichi awaited, sipping his cup of coffee and an eerie smile on his lips. "Good to see you again, Sasuke."

The said boy stopped in his tracks, his brows creased, wondering why Ikichi called him by his first name and not last. They still weren't in good terms, unless Ikichi finally gave up or the man had something planned. "Sir, Kakashi told me to hand you the developed photos in your social gathering at GCP," he took out the envelope from his bag and handed it over to Ikichi's outstretched hand. He didn't leave, waiting for the Haruno patriarch to dismiss him formally. "You know, I feel great today," he said, taking the photos out and looking at each and every image. "You did really good job in taking these pictures, for that, I'm feeling kind enough to tell you something Sakura hasn't told you."

His instincts told him to leave, telling him that what was about to come next wasn't going to be pretty, yet he ignored the voices in his head, remembering that he came from a well-respected and well-known family, despite Ikichi's lack of knowledge of the Uchiha's, so he must pay his respects and be polite. "And what might that be sir?" he asked, regretting it mentally upon seeing the smug look on the man's face. "Did she mention who Akira is?" he didn't reply, so Ikichi continued. "The reason why I keep tearing you apart from each other is because…" he stood up, his eyes holding a solemn look as they stared into Sasuke's onyx orbs. "I accepted you like a son when she first introduced you to me. Yet I couldn't show it, because… Akira… he is Sakura's fiancé."

Sasuke almost dropped his bag but his reflexes acted fast, not seeming to give Ikichi the impression that he was shocked. He forced a small smile. "Nice try sir, but please, if there's nothing else you'd like to say, I must be on my way." He bowed down a bit and turned his back on Ikichi, only to stop when the man's hand rested on his shoulder and gripped it firmly. "I'm serious Sasuke, I didn't want to see you hurt. That's why I tried so hard to pretend to hate you, so that you'll forget about Sakura, so that you won't get hurt in the end. I admire your loyalty and devotion to my daughter, and if only the engagement could be cancelled, I'd gladly do so, but it can't, Akira's parents saved my wife's life when she was hospitalized during our stay in the States while Sakura was still in elementary school. If it weren't for them, my wife would've died. I asked them how I could ever repay their kindness and generosity, and they asked for our kids to be engaged, to seal the bond."

"If this is true," he said, turning his head to face Ikichi. "Then why didn't you just say so in the first place? I find the story hard to believe, also, I find it suspicious for you to be telling me just now."

"I didn't want to see you hurt, that's why I tried to break the two of you up while Akira was still in the States."

"You didn't want to see me hurt, then why didn't you stop and think that tearing me and Sakura apart wouldn't hurt me at all?" that caught Ikichi off-guard, and he wasn't able to counter or answer back. Sasuke lowered his head and smirked. "Nice try sir, I'll be going now." And he left the estate, leaving Ikichi dumbfounded. "Don't say I didn't warn you, Uchiha."

"It has to be a trick, there's no way Sakura would hide something like that from me." He told himself as he rode down the street, avoiding hitting pedestrians and bumping into cars. He looked ahead to see Sakura's pink hair swaying with the wind. Smiling slightly, he rode faster, stopping a few feet away from where she stood. He removed his helmet, his mouth opening to call out her name but his voice didn't seem to work, and he found himself staring in disbelief. Of all the things that had happened, this was definitely something that shattered his heart to a million pieces.


Sakura looked down when Akira kissed her cheek. She wanted to avoid him, but she didn't want to be rude, so she just let him do as he pleases. She didn't have anything to loose anyway, it was just a friendly kiss on the cheek, yet why did she feel like she betrayed her boyfriend? "Sakura?" she snapped from her thoughts and looked up at Akira, seeing him give a questioning look. She forced a smile and shook her head. "It's nothing. Thanks for the dinner though." He nodded and looked straight ahead, seeing the raven haired Uchiha staring at them as if the world was ending. Sakura, wondering what he was looking at, turned around only to have her eyes widened. "S-Sasuke-kun..?"

Akira heard the name and he waved a hand at the newcomer, walking over to him and extending out a hand. "Uchiha Sasuke right?" Sasuke blinked and gave an unsure nod, taking Akira's hand as they shook. "Oh, you understand English! That's great! I guess we can be good friends eh?" he turned to Sakura. "Well then cherry, since your friend's here, I'll leave you two alone, I still need to do some unpacking." He waved at them and ran, catching a cab and heading towards the Haruno estate.

Sasuke lowered his head, his bangs hiding his eyes. "Friend, huh?"

"N-no! I told him you're my boyfriend! I don't know why he said that!"

"Yeah, I don't know why he called you Cherry too," he looked at her, his eyes seeming to be cold and distant. "Back then, you told me never to call you that, you even said that you'll only allow me to have the right or privilege of calling you that, yet Akira just called you that…"

"S-Sasuke…"

"Hn. He even kissed you," he looked down "And you seemed to not mind it at all."

"He was just an old college friend Sasuke!" she yelled, tears beginning to well up in her emerald eyes. Sasuke didn't look at her but just continued staring at his motorcycle. What he saw and heard had struck his heart just like the day she broke up with him. "Sasuke, you have to believe me. It was just a kiss on the cheek, I couldn't tell him to not do that, and I don't feel anything towards him! He means nothing to me!" he remained silent, his eyes remained glued on his bike. "Your dad…" he whispered. "He said you were engaged…" he turned to her, and for the first time, she saw his eyes watery. "Why didn't you just tell me..?" and without letting her speak or explain, he put on his helmet and drove off, far away from where Sakura was, far away from her.

"Sasuke!" she yelled but he only picked up the pace and drove faster, expertly avoiding the cars before him. "Why..?" he thought. "Why didn't you just tell me? Why didn't I just believe Ikichi? Why did I… fall in love with you?" it was what he always wanted to ask himself. He wondered why and how. "Why did you fall in love with me..?" he wanted to ask her that too. "Did you really love me..?"

It then started to rain…

His vision started to blur from the tears and rain water, and he was riding faster than ever. He saw headlights up ahead, but he didn't bother to steer his bike. He shut his eyes as the tears continued to stream down from his eyes. "I guess… it's goodbye…"

"I already told you before,"

His eyes widened.

"I'll always be here."

"Shit." He cursed and hit the breaks immediately. "I can't die, I promised her…" Yet he wasn't able to stop in time. The two machines clashed, the impact of the sudden halt caused Sasuke to fly towards the car's window. With a quick twist of his body, his back crashed first, having saved his neck from breaking yet earning fatal injuries to have him in a near-death state.

"Somebody call an ambulance!" yelled one of the citizens who witnessed the scene. The driver of the car, who had a few cuts as well, stepped out immediately and helped the other people who carefully brought the Uchiha lad out of the car, making sure that he was safely out of harm's way. "Sasuke!" they turned to see a white-eyed boy and a bun-haired girl approach the unconscious photographer. Slowly, the boy removed Sasuke's helmet and laid his injured head on the ground gently. "How is he doing Neji?" Ten-Ten asked worriedly. "He needs to be sent to the hospital! He's loosing too much blood!" and they could hear the siren as medics came out with a stretcher, carefully putting the victim and strapping him safely. Neji and Ten-Ten went with the ambulance as the girl took out her phone and started to call the Uchihas.

"What the hell happened?" Neji asked, looking at his friend. Ten-Ten shrugged and glanced at Sasuke as well before hearing the other end answer the phone. "Itachi-san?"

"Yeah, who's this?"

"Itachi-san! Sasuke got into an accident! He's being sent to the hospital!"

"What the- Is this some kind of sick joke?"

"No! I'm serious! Sasuke is in a near-death situation!"

Fugaku and Mikoto looked at Itachi who had his eyes wide and the look of disbelief. The Uchiha patriarch stood up and took the phone from Itachi. "What's going on? May I know who this is?"

"Uchiha-san, this is Ten-Ten, I'm a friend of Sasuke, and your son has just suffered fatal injuries from an accident that happened earlier!"

"WHAT?" he turned to Mikoto. "Turn on the news, now!" she nodded and turned the TV on, switching to the local news channel. Her knees buckled when the reporter had said about an accident that involved a car and a motorcycle, as well as the victim who goes by the name of Uchiha Sasuke.

"Shit!" Itachi cursed and took off, grabbing his car keys and getting on his car. "I'll meet you guys at the hospital!" and he drove off, heading somewhere else. "She has to know this…" he pulled over at the front gate and instead of ringing the doorbell, he yelled Sakura's name.

"Sakura!" he yelled, again and again amidst the booming of thunder and heavy raindrops pounding on the ground. Inside, Ikichi, Akira and Sakura wondered what was going on. A maid ran to them, reporting who she saw outside. After hearing that the man looked like Sasuke, Sakura instantly went out under the pouring rain, seeing Itachi on the other side of the gates. She opened them and asked what was wrong.

"Sasuke, he got into an accident!"

Her eyes widened and Akira and Ikichi, who followed Sakura outside, froze. "W-what..?" she asked, not seeming to believe what she heard. Itachi pulled Sakura and pushed her inside the passenger seat. He got into the driver's seat and drove at a fast pace towards the hospital, Ikcihi and Akira tailing behind. "What happened Sakura? There is no way my brother would have gotten into an accident unless he isn't paying attention." He glanced at the girl who remained quiet, the look of shock on her face still evident. "Sakura."

"It's my fault…" she suddenly whispered, hanging her head low. "It's my fault…"

He didn't know what she meant, but he chose not to push it and just sighed, driving as fast as he can to the nearby hospital, at the same time, praying for his brother. "God, please," he gripped the steering wheel. "Save my brother…" It took them almost 30 minutes to reach the hospital and find a parking space. Quickly rushing inside the building, Itachi asked a nurse where his brother was. Upon getting the room number and floor level, they rushed to the elevators, impatiently waiting for their turn. Ikichi and Akira came afterwards, heading towards them as Sakura's father panted and turned to Itachi. "What do you mean by your little brother getting into an accident?"

"Shut up old man." He muttered; a glare forming as he looked at Ikichi who took a step back, shocked by the hostile attitude. "I'm pretty sure you know why." He turned back to the elevator, staring at the numbers that seemed to go very slow, mocking him. Sakura, who couldn't take the suspense anymore, turned and ran up the stairs, ignoring the calls that her father and Akira gave. "Sasuke, please, don't die…" her eyes started to blur from the tears that were forming. "Please don't leave me…"

Up ahead, she saw Sasuke's parents standing and staring through the glass windows. They turned to her direction upon hearing her footsteps and heavy panting. Not minding their questioning looks, she stopped and stared right through the glass, seeing doctors rushing and performing a series of bandaging, sewing up cuts, removing shards of glasses and trying to keep the victim alive. Her eyes widened upon seeing how his heart rate was slowing down, his pulse rate beginning to lower, and how she saw his shut eyes narrow some more, his breath seeming to be shallow and heavy as if he ran a marathon. "Sasuke!" she yelled, yet he wouldn't hear her due to the sound proof walls inside, despite how she banged on the glass windows or how her voice grew louder. Her knees weakened and she staggered a bit, falling slowly as she cried some more.

Nurses started coming to her, pulling her away but she wouldn't move and just continued to shed tears, watching how her yami nin was slowly giving in to death. "Sakura," she felt a hand placed on her shoulder. She slowly looked up to see her "brother" standing there, a serious look on his face. "He wouldn't like you to be like this," he turned to Sasuke and narrowed his eyes. "It pains him when you cry."

"Smile for me tenshi."

She closed her eyes but still continued to cry silently. "I-I can't… smile right now…" she whispered, earning questioning looks from the people around her. Despite the sound proofed walls, she heard a doctor say something she was praying not to hear.

"We're loosing him!"

Immediately getting up and running towards the door, she pushed it open, startling everyone in the room. The nurses outside tried to pry her out of the room but she ran to Sasuke, not minding how the doctors warned her. "Don't!" she yelled, reaching his side and falling to her knees, her hands shakily moving over his body, gripping on his bloody shirt as she cried. "I-

I… you promised me! You said you'll always be there for me no matter what! Please, don't… don't leave me!" once more, she shed tears, the water droplets falling on the bed sheets as she slowly stood up and bent over him, her lips near his ear, her hands clasping one of his own. "I won't let go… I can't smile for you right now… you won't be able to see me…" she said, not getting any reaction from the unconscious boy. She gave a sad smile, letting salty tears continue to flow down. "You once told me, that death wouldn't solve anything… so please…" she shut her eyes and no longer resisted herself as she threw herself at him, making sure it wouldn't damage his wounds further. "Please, Sasuke, don't die!"

"I'll always be here…"

His brows creased and his hand responded to her, flinching.

One doctor turned to see any improvements and his eyes widened, surprised at the sudden change. He gestured the rest of his co-workers as one of them pulled Sakura away gently, smiling at her as she blinked confusingly. "Someone up there must really love the two of you." He whispered. She turned to Sasuke, seeing him going back to normal state, albeit unconscious yet alive. "Sasuke-kun…" she whispered. She let Itachi pull her out of the room as the doctors continued to treat the young Uchiha's fatal wounds and bandaging him properly. They failed to notice the small smile tug at his lips, yet his brother, being gifted with a sharp eye, had seen it, and he couldn't help but smirk inwardly. "Sasuke no baka…"


Weeks passed yet still no sign of Sasuke waking up. His family and friends started to worry but the family doctor said that it was normal after suffering from both a sudden emotional breakdown and an attempt to kill himself and then decide on the last minute to live. "Even if his helmet took most of the impact, it still caused him to loose consciousness. He's far from dying, and he looks normal, setting aside the fact that he's in a coma, as far as I can say, he may wake up at around the last week of this month."

Fugaku gave a nod at the doctor who spared Sasuke a glance. He pushed up his specs and smiled slightly. "To be honest, he's quite a fighter. Usually, patients like him easily give up and die, despite our attempts to revive them." He turned to the girl who sat by Sasuke's bedside. "I guess love can conquer all, even in life and death situations."

"Cliché Kabuto-san." Mikoto commented, smiling a bit. She then walked over to Sakura and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you for coming Sakura, I hope you don't mind to stay with him, me and my husband still have to report to work, despite our excuse that Sasuke is here." She glanced at her son and bore a sad a smile on her face. "I just don't get why he would kill himself and then think otherwise on the last minute. It's not like he's going to be alone in this world…" she wiped her tears away and turned back to Sakura. "We'll be going then."

"Hai." She replied, her voice barely above a whisper. Itachi glanced at their direction. "I have to go to, I'll come back maybe tomorrow. Sakura?"

"..?"

"Call me when he gives any reaction."


"Geez teme, how long are you going to sleep?"

The rest sighed at how Naruto conversed with his friend, babbling about the things they would do if only the "teme" was awake. "And by now, you'd probably be telling me to shut my trap, too bad you're unconscious." He stared at the sleeping Uchiha and sighed. Neji simply looked outside the window with Ten-Ten beside him, looking outside as well. Ino arranged the flowers on the side table, Shikamaru sat at one corner, arms crossed and seemingly asleep as well. Chouji ate chips and watched Kiba and Shino play cards. Hinata was talking with Sakura who still seemed to be depressed at what happened. "It's my fault." She said all of a sudden, causing the whole gang to stare at her, even Shikamaru. "I wish I could have told him earlier about Akira, I wish I didn't let that guy kiss me on the cheek, I wish I didn't go to my dad's house…" she clenched her fists that rested on her lap and shut her eyes, fighting the urge to cry. "It's my entire fault."

Hinata turned to the others who gave a nod as those who were seated stood up. She faced Sakura and gave a small smile. "Even if you say that, I'm sure Sasuke won't blame you." She got up and bowed down a bit. "I guess we'll all go, I'm sure you want to stay here alone with him for a while." Sakura nodded and looked up to stare at Sasuke's sleeping form. She heard some of her friends bid goodbye until the door closed with a soft thud.

(Play First Love by Utada Hikaru, preferably the piano version)

She got up and approached him, standing by his bedside. "Hey Yami nin…" she whispered in a sad tone, a forced smile on her lips. She frowned though, and looked away. "I know you don't want me to force a smile," she said and faced him again. "But how could I smile with you in this state..?" she sat down beside him, her hand caressing his bandaged one, holding it afterwards. "I always did cause you pain…" she whispered, gazing at his sleeping face. "I never sacrificed anything for you… yet you almost gave away your life because and for me." Tears dropped on their entwined hands.

"Your journals, when Itachi-niisan made me read them, you don't know how it pained me to know how you felt all these years, how you coped with your life on your own." A sad smile formed on her lips. "You told me before, when we were gazing at the stars one night on our prom day, when I asked you…"

"Sasuke-kun..?" he turned his head to her as she gazed at the stars. "What would you do if I suddenly go away?" he was a bit startled by the question, yet he smiled slightly, his eyes half-closed as he positioned himself behind her and wrapped his arms around her, earning a surprised look from his tenshi. "I'll go look for you, and if I can't…" he closed his eyes and inhaled the scent of her hair. "Then it would be the same as being alone in this world, despite my family being there, despite our friends surrounding me. I'd still feel alone if you leave."

"I'm so stupid for forgetting about that when I lied to you and told you that I didn't love you anymore. I forgot how alone you would've felt!" her grip on his hand tightened. "I don't deserve you Sasuke… you deserve someone else." She cried some more. "I… I decided to…" she suddenly closed her mouth, not wanting to continue. Taking a deep breathe in, she wiped her tears away and looked at him, for perhaps, maybe, one last time. "I…" her free hand clutched the silver necklace around her neck. Retrieving her other hand from his, she unhooked the accessory and placed it on his palm, closing his hand on it. "I guess you know what this means…" she whispered and lowered his head to his. "I love you, and I always will, you're my first and my last love… even if… there will be someone who will take your place, they won't steal your spot in my heart." And she closed the gap of their lips, parting after a few seconds. "…Goodbye… Yami nin…" she got up, failing to take note how his fist clenched and held onto her necklace tightly.

(Stop playing the music here)

She was about to open the door when someone else beat her to it from the other side. She frowned upon seeing who it was. "I never expected you to be here…"

"Sakura, I-"

"Save it dad." She looked away. "I hope you're happy now," he noticed something missing from her, and he realized that it was the necklace that Sasuke gave her years back. "I bid him goodbye, and this time, for good." And she ran pass her father, ignoring the stares of the people. Ikichi tore his gaze away from his daughter. "What should I do..?" he asked himself, and then looked at Sasuke. "What will you do?"


He flinched and slowly opened his eyes, seeing white. Blinking to clear his vision, he asked the first question that popped in his head. "Where am I..?" he tried to remember what happened, but nothing seemed to come in mind. "I see you're finally awake." Tilting his head to the side, he squinted, trying to scrutinize who the person was. "Nii-san..?" he asked, earning a nod from him as he got up and approached his little brother. "Mom and dad said they'll come later. So, how are you feeling?" Sasuke looked up and thought for a moment. "I… don't know… I feel like I… lost something…"

"Or someone."

Throwing a questioning look at Itachi, the older Uchiha just sighed and picked up the phone, calling the front desk downstairs and asking for their family doctor to come and check his brother up. Sasuke blocked the conversation his brother had with the doc and tried to remember the past days. "How long have I been asleep..?" he clenched his fists when he was frustrated at not remembering, his right hand feeling something cold. Curious, he raised his arm, feeling the pain and tingling sensation it gave for not being moved for a long time. Finally having the blood circulation back, his eyes widened when he saw the necklace. "Sakura..?" Itachi hang up and turned to Sasuke. "Bingo."

Suddenly sitting up and ignoring the pain signals his body sent to his brain, he turned to Itachi with narrowed brows and widened eyes. "Since when?" He wasn't a prodigy for no reason. And trusting his instincts when it involved his tenshi, he immediately caught up to what situation he and Sakura was in. He knew, just from the necklace, that Sakura plans to leave him for good. "Baka…" he thought, tightening his hold on the necklace. "Baka!" Itachi only pocketed his hands and closed his eyes. "Two days ago, and if you must know, the event will start three days from now. You have until then."

"But how long am I going to be confined here?"

"Actually, I can let you go tomorrow, since most of your wounds are healed." They turned to the door to see Kabuto enter, holding a clipboard. "Oh, and before I forget, Haruno Ikichi-san came by yesterday after Sakura-san left. He told me to tell you to go see him. He said he wanted to talk to you." He noticed the two brothers clench their fists and Kabuto smiled. "He said you won't regret it."


For once, she cursed fate, she cursed time, and… she cursed the person seated in front of her. Still, she forced a smile. It wasn't Sasuke in front of her, so she can fake her smiles and reserve them for someone who deserves those genuine grins. Besides, the guy couldn't even tell if she was really happy or not, that's why it made her groan inwardly that her father had to choose Akira as her fiancée. "Not to mention how egoistic and flirty he could be…" she added in her mind, rolling her eyes when Akira had, once more, teased the waitress serving them tonight, flirting as she'd like to call it. She didn't know if he was doing it on purpose to make her jealous, but she could care less. "The only way I'd feel jealousy is if you were Sasuke." At the thought of his name, her lips turned to a sad one, her eyes loosing more of its sparkle, and she lowered her head, gazing at her lap. "If he was here, he would've asked me what's wrong by now, and… he would probably tell me to smile for him, and I would give a forced one, yet he'd smile and ask for a real one, adding sweet words to it, originally made by him, to and for me, and that would make me smile."

"Sakura..?"

For a moment, when she looked up, she thought it was Sasuke, but after blinking a few times, her lit up eyes turned gloomy once more when she realized that it was only Akira. He smiled at her, and she returned it with a fake one. "Yes?" she asked. "Did you enjoy the dinner?"

"No. One is because you're not Sasuke, two you kept flirting with the waitress and lastly, you picked the restaurant where I had my first date with Sasuke as our first official date! Damn you! I hope you die and rot in hell soon Akira!" she added a prayer of forgiveness, offering it to God and forced a smile at her… date. "Of course I did!" she replied. "Not." Again, he smiled and fished out his wallet to pay for the bill. Sakura felt her mobile vibrating, so she took it out and read the message. Her eyes widened upon seeing who the sender was and what his message said: I hope you're not cursing him to hell tenshi. If you can, meet me outside the restaurant's garden, I need to talk to you. I'll wait, no matter how long it takes.

"Um… Akira, can I go on ahead of you?" she asked. "Oh, wait, I'll go walk you home." She shook her head. "I'm not heading home yet, I just want to take a walk around, alone, to recollect my thoughts." He gave an unsure nod, and she smiled her thanks, inwardly sighing in relief. "I hope he bought my fake smile act again." And she walked outside, checking to see if Akira was still seated. When he was, she immediately walked down the three steps of the entrance and searched for the sender of her message. Again, her phone vibrated, and she took it out of her bag, answering the caller. "Hello?"

"Change of plans, go to GCP now, and don't hang up."

She was happy to hear his voice again, but a bit annoyed that she had to cross the street just to meet with him. "Sasuke, Akira might follow."

"He won't, he's too busy flirting with the waitress."

Her eyebrows furrowed. "Did you plan this?"

"Maybe."

She sighed and crossed the street, then walked to GCP, entering the open gates. As soon as she did, the dim place was lighted with lights, giving her a pathway. "Did you..?"

"Not exactly, the guards and maintenance helped."

She smiled slightly. "In short, you did."

"Say what you want." He answered as she continued to walk.

"Where are you anyway?"

"Follow the lights Sak."

She did and stopped when she saw him standing a few feet away from her, yet it was dark on his side. He smiled at her. "Still don't get it?" she shook her head and he told her to come closer. When she did, the whole place lit up. Nearby, a fountain was turned on; the lights giving a romantic glow and atmosphere as she finally got a good look of his face. His forehead had a bandage wrapped around it; his left cheek also had one. Most of his cuts were healed, and she was glad for that. He hung up, and she did as well as he walked closer to her, only a feet away from his tenshi. "My life is as dark as night, until you came to light it up." He said, "Cheesy, but it's the only line I could think of on such short notice."

She looked down at this. "So, you know…" he gave a nod and used his left hand to raise her head. "Smile for me?" he asked, and she forced one, again, he shook his head. "A real smile tenshi." How she missed those lines, how she missed him, and how she longed to just forget about her decision and go back into his life. Her eyes formed tears and she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms tight around his neck. He was thankful that he had a lot of vitamin K in him, resulting to his wounds to heal faster. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her waist, his right arm still had bandages around it. He closed his eyes and cherished the moment. "Don't go." He said when he felt her try to pull away, and he only tightened his hold on her, letting her know how he meant it.

"I can't Suke," she whispered. "As much as I want to stay, I can't."

"Forget everything else tonight," he whispered back. "Right now," he pulled away slightly and looked down at her tear-filled eyes. "It's just you and me." And he closed the distance of their lips, their eyes automatically closing. They pulled away for air and gazed into each other's eyes, their arms still wrapped around each other's body. "Come home with me…" he said and she nodded, giving in to him.

The two of them walked there, their hands not letting go of the other. "Sasuke, I-"

"Don't." he said, his grip on her hand tightening. "Don't speak or say a word."

They reached his apartment and went up to his room. He was thankful that his brother still hasn't come by to drop off Haru. He closed the door and locked it behind him, walked over to her as she kissed him again, entangling her fingers with his spiky hair. He pushed their bodies on his bed, slowly discarding their clothes. "Aishteru…" he whispered when he parted to go to her neck, she replied the same words to him and held his body close. She knew that what she was doing was wrong, especially after the decision she made. Yet somehow, she can't help it.

She felt his hand roam her body, teasing her as she giggled and felt the smirk that formed on his lips against her collarbone. "S-Sasu-ke-!" he pulled away and laughed a bit. "Sorry, couldn't help it." He said, grinning. She smiled, staring at his face and placed a hand on his cheek. "I missed you." She whispered. "Aa." He said and leaned down. "I know." He had them in another lip lock, his tongue slowly licking her lip, pushing the upper and lower apart. She gave him access and parted her lips; their tongues excitedly meet and intrude the other's mouth. Her grip on him tightened when one of his hands reached her inner thigh, stopping for a moment. She pushed him a bit and whispered in his ear: "Go ahead…" and he gave a nod as his hand came in contact with her core, inserting two fingers inside her slowly. She shut her eyes and he pulled his hand back, pushing her bangs away from her face.

He never wanted to cause her pain, and from her reaction a while ago, he was starting to regret doing this. Yet when her soft hands guided his own back to where it was earlier, he looked at her hesitatingly, to which she gave a reassuring smile. "Are you… sure..?" she nodded. "Do it…" she whispered. Not wanting to see her flinch again, he closed his eyes and kissed her lips, repeating the same thing he did earlier. He could tell that she tried to suppress the moan that threatened to come out. He pulled his fingers out of her after doing the process alternately slow and fast. He brought his wet fingers up, right between their faces and smirked as she blushed under his intent gaze. Slowly, his tongue licked her juice, commenting on how sweet it was before he dove down, causing her inner muscles to tighten. Her thighs were also forcing themselves to cover her core, feeling shy but he prevented that from happening and continued with what he was doing.

"Forget everything else Sakura…" she said to herself. "Forget about the past, forget about everyone, everyone but Sasuke…" she closed her eyes, letting the moment be forever embedded in her head. "It's just me… and him… tonight…"


"I thought you said you wanted to talk to me?" she asked, closing her eyes when she laid her head on his bare chest. He held her close to him and opened his eyes, gazing at the ceiling as a slight smile appeared on his lips. "Action speaks louder than words tenshi."

"Hn." She smiled and raised her head, planting a quick peck on his cheek. "You're starting to sound like me." He whispered, letting his eyelids shield his vision. She giggled and pulled the blankets over their naked and entangled bodies. "Do you mind?" she asked, also closing her eyes. "No," he replied. "Not even a bit."

Silence came afterwards until she opened her eyes halfway and tightened her hold on him. He wondered what was wrong but remained silent when she spoke up. "I don't want this night to end…" he moved a bit, positioning himself to face her and opened his eyes, gazing deep into her own. "It won't, not unless you forget it." She smiled a bit, and he returned it. He always did have a way with words, and somehow, amidst everything, she found herself wishing to take back the words that she told him back in the hospital. "I'm sorry…" she whispered. He knew what she meant, but chose to ignore it. "I told you, forget everything else."

"How can I?" she asked. "Not after I-"

"Shh…" he removed his finger from her lips and closed his eyes, pulling her close to him. "It doesn't matter. I forgive and forget, all that matters right now is you being here, right beside me. Until this night ends, it's just you and me."

"And… what about… tomorrow..?"

"Don't think about it, just forget everything else."

"Forget… everything…" she repeated, closing her eyes. "Aishteru…"

"Aishteru…"

"Tomorrow…" she thought as a teardrop rolled down her cheeks. "Tomorrow will be the day that…" she snuggled closer to him, afraid to let go. He blinked at her, seeing her shed tears, a sad smile on her face. His gaze softened and he tightened his hold on her. "Can you… sing me… one last song?" he gave a nod and thought of a suitable song to sing.

"Before I let you go…" he started. "I want to say I love you…" she cried some more. "I hope that you're listening 'coz it's true."

"You'll be forever in my heart and I know that no one else will do…" she sang along. "So before I let you go I want to say…"

"I love you…"

To be continued…


Next on Snapshot: Chapter 8: Drowning in your love

"What the-?" she stopped halfway on the aisle and looked up. She saw where the choir of the church was supposed to be, yet in replacement, was Shikamaru, playing the keyboard, and instead of the tone of: "Here comes the bride", it was another song.

"Don't pretend you're sorry." She glanced at the soft drum beats, seeing Naruto, "I know you're not. You know you got the power, to make me weak inside." She heard the bass guitar being played and saw Neji, smirking at her as she walked closer to the front, noticing someone standing on where the groom was supposed to be. "And girl you leave me breathless, but it's okay. 'Cause you're my survival, now hear me say." Her eyes widened when she saw who it was who played the guitar and responsible for singing.


A/N: That's already a big spoiler you know. But… this just might be a song dedication, afterwards, it's bye bye to SasuSaku romance! Haha! You'll never know until I update the final chapter of Snapshot! 'Till next time! And sorry for the crappy… limish/lemonish part. A lot of people are sendming me messages about adding lemon and to stop teasing. Whoever you people are… Oh, and the song that they both sang on the last scene is "Before I let you go" by Freestyle. I forgot to add it in the Snapshot OST list.

So...

Will they be together..?

Or not..?