Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Naruto..or the characters...although i wish i did own Sasuke..:)

An angsty story about the love that developed between BEST PAIRING EVER! Sasuke and Sakura. Mostly flashbacks about how it started..well here it is..ENJOY!

Chapter One: The Beginning

It was cold…or at least he was cold. He was always cold now. His fingers were always numb. He felt just the way he did when the only thought in his mind was lust, lust for that bastard's blood. Back then, he didn't desire anything else except Itachi's blood, he rarely ate, slept, and he certainly didn't talk to anyone he didn't have to. That was years ago and although things were different now…he felt just the same. He remembered when he first came back from his failed mission hanging on to Naruto because he had sustained so many injuries that he would no longer support himself. He remembered the shame he felt for being carried back by deadlast himself. He also remembered how she wasn't there. Of all the things constant in his life, which wasn't a lot, she was the most constant of all. Always fussing over him with "Sasuke-kun this" and "Sasuke-kun that"….Man, she was annoying as hell. Now, he couldn't even call her annoying since she wouldn't come running to his side just the way he thought she always would.

Flashback (italics means part of flashback…normal means present thoughts..)

"Stay here, I'm going to get someone to put you in a room"

Stupid Naruto! He knows I hate hospitals!

"Sa..Sasuke?"

I looked up, "Sakura?" I heard myself say

Naruto did mention that she was training to be a medic-nin. Hn, she looked the same as always, albeit more grown up and attractive but that's not something I'd like to admit, even to myself.

I didn't appreciate her then, I still thought she was just the same fan girl clinging on to my every word, every action. I didn't feel apologetic in the least bit even though I knew I had torn her apart the day I left. I just knew it was easier to forget that people like her, especially her, had feelings.

I grunted, trying to pretend like I didn't feel like shit. She knew better…maybe those medic-nin training sessions were doing her some good. She looked shocked for a moment but a new look replaced that one. It wasn't a look of adoration or relief that I had come back, it was more of a 'I'm professionally trained for these dumb asses who get the shit kicked out of them' look. Whatever, I knew she was excited to see me…she was just better at…hiding it.

She walked away from me and I thought she would turn around and apologize for being forgetful or some other stupid klutzy Sakura thing. Instead, she walked into a room in one of the hallways and a couple of nurses came and brought me into the room. It was a typical hospital room that was as much as I could retain before passing out on the bed from exhaustion.

End of Flashback

Sakura did her medic things for me for an entire week, making sure that I was in good condition but she never acknowledged that I was her ex-team mate or the one she claimed to be madly in love with. After I was released from the hospital, she checked up on me every three days, but it was her duty. The hokage, Tsunade, had ordered her to keep track of me. The village wanted to make sure that I didn't have any traitorous feelings towards them.

She'd come in, change the bandages, checked that I was healing properly, and left. We had started to have some conversation, avoiding the obviously straining topic of my departure and the reasons. At that point, she was the only friend, no… acquaintance that I had had in the past who few years. For some strange reason that I was too ignorant to realize or admit at the time, I had started to look forward to her routine check ups.

Flashback

"Sasuke? It's me, Sakura. Where are you?"

Hn, right on time, if there was something that had changed about her, it certainly was not her punctuality or her cheerfulness for that matter.

"In my room"

Sakura knocked, and I looked to up to see her in a red dress, one that was slightly different from the one she used to wear when we were 12.

"How are you today?"

"Fine, so you can stop coming over"

"I know you're not stupid so I know you know I can't do that" she says even sticking her tongue out at me at the end.

She had obviously loosened up in the past few visits but she was definitely not like before. She didn't jump at the opportunity to see me topless when she had to re-bandage me. I was shocked that first time, either she had moved on (highly unlikely) or she had become very good at keeping her emotions to herself (also unlikely).

When she was done her routine, she walked out of my room and sat down in front of my counter, facing my kitchen and put her head down in her arms. This was weird, she never did this. I walked in after her and stood there in front of her with my arms crossed and my eyebrow raised. She looked up.

"Sorry, I just need a moment"

She had definitely shifted from her playful personality from before and upon closer inspection she was looking a bit pale.

"Training's been really tough lately. It always seems like there's more to learn and not enough time to actually learn it."

I was surprised, she hadn't opened up to me until now even though we had been reunited for three months. I didn't really know what to say.

"You shouldn't push yourself too hard. If you get too fatigued, you won't be able to do anyone any good."

I went to the fridge and got her a glass of cold water. That's when I heard her laugh …something she rarely did around me nowadays.

"What?" I said a bit rudely

"Is that what you live off of?"

I looked in my fridge, there was some water and some milk and half a sandwich that was probably there since before I left. I grunted

"Honestly Sasuke, I'm surprised that you've even recovered at all." She said playfully.

Was she criticizing me? I turned around and slammed the water on the table "Here, take it or leave it!"

She looked stunned and a bit scared but that all disappeared from her face and was replaced by coolness and indifference

"I should get going, I have other people to see today"

She left and shut the door behind her. Good, she was getting on my nerves anyway! I spent the rest of the day being moody.

End of Flashback

That was the first time she opened up to me and I treated her like crap. But that was who I was; a selfish asshole. She deserved better than me and it's my fault. Everything that happened to her is my fault because if I had never come back, she would have had a better life.

A/N: Hey peeps! lol..this is the first chapter...took me while to start...I hope you like it and defiitely feel free to tell me if u like it or not...or if u think it's too...cheesy?..overdone?

It might be difficult for me to update...school's winding down...so LOTS of work...but i'll try...Sorry in advance:S:S