A/N: A guest reviewer commented on how relaxing last chapter felt despite the serious topics, and I gotta say I agree! For me the relaxing part is just being back in Konoha - it's like that feeling of coming home to the familiar after being away on a long trip. :')

Shout out to my pal Aesteraa on Tumblr for making me a playlist to listen to while writing this. It really helped me through my writer's block on this chapter.

Chapter 29

Things Left Unsaid

When Sakura's eyes fluttered open the first thing she heard was an excited gasp and then suddenly Shizune was hovering over her at her bedside, eyes lit with excitement.

"Sakura! You're awake!" Shizune exclaimed.

"Water," Sakura croaked, mouth parched.

Shizune fetched Sakura a glass of water and helped her drink from it.

"How long...?" Sakura mumbled.

"Two days," Shizune answered her. "I'm surprised how long you were out. I suspect it was due to the blood loss."

"I see," Sakura murmured.

"Let me get Lady Tsunade!" Shizune said, suddenly giddy. "She'll want to see you right away!" She dashed out the door a moment later.

Sakura took the time to check the condition of her inner organs with her own chakra probing, and decided that Shizune and Tsunade did an excellent job. She couldn't find any unhealed damage. Though, she supposed the antidote did most of the heavy lifting. It was thanks to her treatment and observation of Lee that allowed her to heal so smoothly. She attempted to get out of bed, but once she noticed how weak she felt, she decided to lay back down.

Tsunade barged in soon after, startling Sakura, a sour expression on her face. Shizune popped in after her, giving Sakura an apologetic look.

And here it comes.

Tsunade harshly chided her for a full five minutes about how disappointed she was in Sakura for getting poisoned and for putting her whole team at risk by having the only medic-nin go down. The phrase 'idiot apprentice' was used quite a few times. After Tsunade was done with her rant her expression softened and she said "I'm glad you're safe, Sakura. Good job protecting Shino's life."

After Tsunade and Shizune left her alone to rest, Sakura spent time recounting all the details she could remember from that night. She had been fighting for both her and Shino's life against the fan-user. Lee came to her side, and then all there was were vague flashes of being carried by him, assuring her she'd make it.

She was thankful to hear from Tsunade that everyone else ended up okay too.

Sakura turned her head to the table beside her bed. It was covered in cards, candy, flowers, and beside it a few balloons that said 'get well soon'. Sakura weakly shuffled herself up into a sitting position. She could easily guess that the most elaborate display of flowers was from Ino. The balloons were from her parents. One of the cards was hand-painted with two cranes - that one was from Sai. The candy with the hastily scrawled note was from Naruto. The store-bought card was signed by Kakashi and Yamato. Another one was signed by Kurenai and her team. Shizune left a note on a scrap of paper with a smiley face, and then Tsunade simply left Sakura's medical report on the table for her.

Then there was the singular daffodil, unmarked. The sight of it made her smile. She didn't need a note to know who it was from.

Seeing the physical reminders of all of her important connections touched her. She had spent the past year closing herself off from those around her in her misery. To know she didn't lose them in that time brought her comfort.

Sasuke was the only one missing, she realized.

Her smile turned sad then. The one relationship that she desperately wished she was connected to.

Soon, she assured herself.

"Oh, my baby," Mebuki cried as soon as she saw her daughter. She rushed over and pulled Sakura in a tight bear hug.

"Ow, Mom! Too hard!"

"Don't squeeze her to death," Kizashi joked. "She's already in the hospital."

Like whenever Sakura gets seriously injured, her mom demanded that Sakura consider quitting her shinobi career and become a civilian again. "It's safer," Mebuki would emphasize, looking to her husband to agree with her. "And I won't need to worry about you. You're going to give your poor mother a heart attack one of these days!"

Her father would then say, "Now, now, dear. Sakura picked this profession herself, and she's become quite the famous kunoichi!"

Sakura would have to then calm down her mother and firmly remind her that she plans on remaining a shinobi. Anyway, she wasn't entirely sure she would even be allowed to quit. Being a shinobi was supposed to be for life.

Once Sakura was able to calm down her mother this time, the three of them caught up.

Mebuki's eyes lit up suddenly. "Oh, when we came to visit yesterday we ran into a friend of yours. Lee, I think it was," she said, eyes twinkling. "That boy is in love with you, isn't he?"

"W-What?!"

"Don't tell me you don't know! It's obvious! Right, dear?"

"Well..." Kizashi started, scratching his chin.

"W-What the hell gave you that weird idea?!" Sakura sputtered.

"I know a lovesick boy when I see one!" Mebuki huffed crossly. "He came all the way here with that flower, barely able to walk. We bumped into each other coming to visit you and so we invited him to visit you with us."

"She practically dragged him in here," Kizashi corrected as an aside. "Scared the poor boy."

Mebuki dismissively waved off her husband's comment to continue her story. "Oh, he was so worried about you. He told me all about how wonderful you are, and how you two were training together, and he even apologized to us for being unable to fully protect you on your mission."

"Lee's just... intense like that."

"Oh, our Sakura is quite the heartbreaker isn't she?" Mebuki said, looking at her husband with impish pride. "Married to the last Uchiha, yet the Hokage himself used to have a crush on her, and now this young man that saved her life is sweet on her too! At this rate all of the men in Konoha will fall in love with her, I swear."

"Mom!" Sakura warned, face red hot. At that moment she regretted ever confiding in her mother about her complicated love life when she was younger.

"What?" Mebuki challenged. "I'm just saying that all these boys keep on falling for you. It's because you inherited my good looks."

"You look just like your mother did when she was your age," Kizashi added.

"You're both so embarrassing!" Sakura said, exasperated. "You didn't say anything weird to Lee, right?"

"I did not!" Mebuki huffed. "I thanked him profusely for trying to keep our daughter safe. I thought he was a very nice man. A little shy though."

"Probably because you're so intimidating," Sakura muttered. Lee was not normally a shy person.

"I am not intimidating!"

"Now, was he the same boy who saved you in the Chunin Exams? The one with the crush?" Kizashi pondered.

Why did Dad have to go and open his mouth.

"What?" Mebuki exclaimed, leaning forward in her chair. "Is Lee that boy?"

Someone please end my suffering.

As if her calls were answered, Shino stepped part way into the room, made eye contact with Sakura, glanced at her parents, and then started to take a step back into the hallway.

"Shino!" Sakura called to him loudly, cutting through her parents' chatter. "So nice to see you! Please, come in!"

Save me.

Shino quirked an eyebrow at her. Sakura gave him a look. Shino relented and stepped in. "I see you're finally awake, Sakura," Shino said.

"Ah! Another one of your friends?" Kizashi commented, turning to get a good look at Shino. "Hello! I'm Sakura's father and this is her mother. Shino, was it?"

"Yes. Shino Aburame," Shino said, still hovering by the door.

"An Aburame!" Kizashi exclaimed. "Then you must be the Shino that is heir to the Aburame clan!"

"Our daughter is friends with a noble clan heir? How exciting!" Mebuki said. She then leaned in close to Sakura and whispered, "Does this boy like you too?"

"Well then!" Sakura drawled loudly for everyone to hear. "Looks like Shino is here to talk to me about the mission! It's confidential, so details are for our ears only. And I imagine it's urgent, too." She gave Shino another desperate look.

"Yes," Shino said after an awkward pause.

"Alrighty then!" Kizashi said, pulling himself out of the chair. "We'll get out of your hair then."

Mebuki look a bit dismayed then being denied her juicy answers. "Fine, but when you get out of the hospital I expect you to visit us more often!"

"Okay, Mom..." Sakura groaned.

After some goodbyes her parents thankfully left. Sakura was lucky she didn't burst a blood vessel.

"Thanks, Shino," Sakura sighed.

Shino nodded. "Your parents are civilians, correct?"

"Yeah. And they can be so embarrassing sometimes."

"I can relate. My father can be embarrassing too."

Sakura had only seen Shibi Aburame a few times, but he seemed to be as stoic as Shino himself, if not moreso. She wondered how someone like that could be an embarrassing parent.

Shino stood by the window near the end of her bed. "Sakura, I have come here for a reason. It is to thank you for saving my life. You only got poisoned and ended up here because you took a hit that was meant for me."

"You don't need to thank me. It's my duty as a medic-nin - protecting my team above all else is my priority. That blow would have been fatal to you had I not got in the way."

"Still, thanks all the same."

Sakura nodded with a smile. "I don't remember much of what happened after I passed out. Can you please fill me in?"

Shino nodded and explained to her what happened after she had fainted, from Lee saving all of them from the gravity-jutsu user with the Eight Gates, to Lee taking off with her alone to get her to Konoha faster. He also mentioned the Hyuga Talons member. "We would likely be dead if not for Lee," he added.

Sakura thought for a moment. "I want to recommend Lee to become a jonin. He has shown me on this mission that he deserves the rank. Would you agree to co-sign my letter?"

Shino shifted, eyebrows furrowed. "You are aware that jonin require mastery of two elemental chakras and that Lee can do none?"

"Yes, but that's a bullshit arbitrary requirement anyway. Between you, me, Hinata, Shikamaru, and all of our senseis, which one of us jonin actually uses two elemental chakras in combat?"

"Good point," Shino conceded. "I do agree that Lee is higher than chunin-level in his strength - his Eight Gates put him at Kage-level easily, but the high cost means he can't always perform at that level. He should have been assigned to at least a tokujo rank long ago due to his taijutsu mastery. However, both tokujo and jonin ranks have some level of increased leadership responsibility. I don't know what leadership experience Lee has."

"I'm not sure either. But the Konoha Council can decide on that. And they'll be able to review his mission success history. Even if they don't approve him, my letter will put him on their minds for future consideration."

Shino thought for a moment and then nodded. "I will sign the letter."

Sakura groggily awoke from her nap to a small clink by her bedside. When her eyes cracked open her eyes slowly focused on the green-lad figure standing beside her, replacing the water for her daffodil.

"Lee...?" Sakura mumbled.

Lee nearly jumped in surprise. "S-Sakura! You're awake!"

After becoming more lucid Sakura shot up in bed. "Oh! Lee! It's you!" Sakura hastily stroked down her hair with her hands, hoping she didn't have a case of terrible bedhead. "H-Hi!"

"Hello! I apologize," Lee said, shifting in place. "I did not realize you were napping. I thought you were still-"

"Oh, no. I wasn't. Not any longer."

"Oh. Good! Sorry! I can leave so you can continue resting, if you want."

"No! No. Please. Stay for a bit," she said eagerly.

Lee perked up at that, face bright. "Oh! Okay!"

He took the chair positioned near her bedside and sunk in the chair heavily, wincing. Sakura then noticed the crutches leaning against the wall.

"You're still hurt, huh?" she said sadly, remembering that Shino told her he opened the Eight Gates.

Lee nodded. "Self-inflicted," he said sheepishly. "Though not surprising with me. But I expect I will not need the crutches by tomorrow."

"That's great news."

Lee nodded. "Never mind me. How are you feeling?"

"Exhausted and weak," Sakura admitted. "But recovering. My insides are fine despite the poison. It's only thanks to how fast you got me back here. So, thank you, Lee. For saving my life once again." She smiled warmly at him.

"I am thankful to hear you will be okay," he said before his brow furrowed. "But, you need not thank me, Sakura. I could have done better. If only I had come a moment sooner, or if I did not freeze when you were taken hostage..."

"Lee. It's okay. I promise. Things can't go perfectly in battle. You were there when I really needed you," she said gently.

Lee gave a small smile, looking a little alleviated from some of his guilt. "Thank you, Sakura."

Sakura nodded. "Listen... I heard that you met my parents. Sorry about that. They didn't say anything weird to you, right?" she grimaced.

Lee blinked. "No, they were perfectly fine! They were very kind to me."

Sakura let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness."

"They were very worried about you. You are lucky. It is a precious thing to have parents, and ones that care so much for you."

"Yeah, I guess I am lucky," she said. To have not only one parent, but both parents living was a rare, special thing for a shinobi. Even if they were embarrassing sometimes. But that was just how parents were.

"Do you know when you get to leave the hospital?" Lee asked her.

"Tomorrow, supposedly. As long as I'm actually strong enough to stand."

"Will you need any help making it home? I can help," he offered.

Sakura imagined the two of them tripping disastrously over each other, both of them barely able to stand while they both tried to help support the other from falling. Sakura laughed. "Lee, you can barely walk as is. I can't ask you to do that for me."

"I swear to you that I will summon all the strength necessary to help you in your time of need," Lee declared, puffing out his chest, defiant almost. "I can even carry you if I must!"

Sakura giggled. It was such a Lee thing for him to say. "No, Lee, I can't. You'd make me much happier if you just stay at home and recuperate. You still have that terrible habit of pushing yourself too hard, you know. And I'll need you to recover quickly so we can start training again as soon as possible, okay?"

His insistence on helping her despite his injuries was incredibly endearing. Here they were, both still in rough shape from their mission, and yet the only thing he could focus on was her. Was it really any surprise that she had picked up a crush?

Lee deflated, looking a little disappointed. "Okay, Sakura. Though perhaps you are right. I will stay at home and rest."

"Good," she smiled. "But speaking of training... even though I should be out tomorrow, I imagine we still won't be in good shape for anything physical..." Sakura cleared her throat. "A-As in taijutsu, that is! But, maybe the day after we can just stick with the basics? Just simple chakra control, and maybe some easy genjutsu? If you think you're ready that is. If your legs are still bothering you we can just do it at your apartment - t-the genjutsu training that is! Just like I used to with Kurenai when she taught me."

"S-Sure!" Lee grinned and gave an almost nervous thumbs up. "Sounds like a plan!"

The two of them continued to chat for some time. The conversation drifted back to the mission and what happened after Sakura had been poisoned. When the defected Hyuga was mentioned Lee's mood noticeably dampened, and he became quieter. Sakura knew there was nothing she could do to make him feel better, so she tried to change the topic to distract him from his glum thoughts.

"The daffodil... I knew it was from you the moment I saw it," she smiled, glancing over at the flower.

Lee perked up and his cheeks reddened slightly. "Y-Yes! You always got this flower for me. And after you told me its meaning - strength and recovery - I thought how fitting it was. It gave me a sliver of hope to hold onto when I was in the hospital, especially when my recovery seemed hopeless. When I look at it now, I feel... comfort. It became one of my favorite flowers," he said, gazing at the lone daffodil for a moment. "I thought that it would be fitting to give to you too."

Sakura remembered what a blushing mess Lee had been when he discovered it was her leaving her those flowers. The cocky, dauntless Lee she had first met in the Chunin Exams had been a bit of an act. Below it was a sweet, kind boy who didn't quite know how to woo a girl he liked. Thinking back on what an awkward mess that first meeting was - from him coming onto her way too strong to her absolute horror at it - humored her now. (She had dodged his blown kisses with a desperation as though they were actual physical, tangible threats. How immature and silly it all was now.) Lee had thankfully figured out how to talk to her after the Forest of Death, and every conversation after that had been more than pleasant, him being nothing but kind and considerate with no mention of his crush afterwards.

Funny how she was now the one with the crush.

"Thanks, Lee," Sakura said, feeling betraying heat prickle at her cheeks. "I'm glad you liked them so much. I like them too."

Lee beamed, and Sakura tried not to get distracted by his heart throbbing smile.

"I am glad to hear it, seeing how many gifts I am competing with," Lee said lightheartedly, eyes looking over the assortment of 'get well' gifts she received. "You are very popular."

"Yeah, gifts from all the important people in my life," she mused. "Except for... well..." Her smile turned wistful then.

Lee gazed at her softly. "He came to visit you two days ago."

Sakura perked up in pleasant surprise. "He did?"

Lee nodded. "Yes. It did not take him long to learn that you were hospitalized, and he came to visit you when he heard. He must have been really worried about you."

Sasuke cares.

It warmed her heart.

"Thank you for telling me," Sakura said, appreciative. "That kind of news... it means a lot to me."

"I know," he said softly. There was certain sadness clouding his eyes. He then looked away from her, down at the hand wraps he was now picking at.

That boy is in love with you, isn't he? her mother had said.

Had she really been that oblivious? Had he really been that obvious?

Sakura swallowed nervously. She wanted to ask him now. She wanted to ask him what he had to tell her when they got back to Konoha. But the words stayed stuck in her throat. She was still afraid.

Shikamaru strode in and locked the door behind him. He looked like he hadn't slept well with the dark circles under his eyes.

Sakura knew what it was about. Before they had left to the Steam Shikamaru had pulled her aside. She had confessed to him that she stole that foreign poison vial from Sasuke and it was undergoing testing, and that Sasuke wanted to take her on a mission. In a way she felt like it was a betrayal of Sasuke's trust. But she had reminded herself that she was just trying to protect Sasuke from himself. Sasuke was volatile by nature and needed her and Naruto's guidance and protection from himself more than ever. Still, she felt the guilt weighing heavily on her when they left.

"You were right," Shikamaru said, leaning against the window sill. The low evening sun cast his long shadow into the room. "The poison he carried was the same that poisoned you, Shino, and Lee."

Sakura wasn't surprised. After fighting the Talons, she was even less surprised. Still, it twisted her stomach nonetheless.

"You were just in the area and fought more Talons, including one that wielded the same poison," Shikamaru continued. "Did you learn anything?"

Sakura sweated, her mouth dry. She could tell Shikamaru. She could tell him her theories on what they could mean for Sasuke. Instead she said, "I... I don't know. I can't think of anything right now."

Shikamaru's eyes flickered with pity. "I understand this is hard for you, Sakura. If you think of anything let me know immediately. I do appreciate you working with me in the way Naruto doesn't."

Sakura smiled sadly. Unsure of what else to say, she changed the topic. "I heard that there was a Hyuga. Were you able to identify him?"

"Yeah, after twisting Hiashi Hyuga's arm a little. Figuratively, that is. Hanma Hyuga. He's been missing for months and we didn't even know about it."

"The Hyuga Clan hid it? How'd they know he ran off rather than that something bad happened to him?"

"Supposedly he left a goodbye note that detailed why he left. For Hyuga clan political disagreement reasons," Shikamaru said, waving his hand dismissively. "Hiashi kept it hidden and Hanma's immediate family and friends didn't report his absence for some reason. Maybe they knew too." Shikamaru sighed then. "It's a messy thing to sympathize with a missing-nin - if they reported him as a deserter, he would have a target put on his back by hunter-nins. So I get why."

"He's on the missing-nin list now, huh?"

"Yeah."

Sakura bit her lip. Did someone like Hanma deserve to be hunted down and killed? "Any news from the Steam?"

Shikamaru's expression fell. "Yeah. The Sound prisoners? Escaped."

"What? All of them?"

"Yep," Shikamaru said, his mouth a hard line. "Without a trace."

"It doesn't make any sense that the Steam would secretly release them! The Sound and Steam are enemies. And then how the hell did all of the prisoners escape on their watch without a trace?"

Shikamaru let out a frustrated sigh. "I haven't got a clue. This is just all so damn troublesome." He then gave Sakura a pointed look. "What I want to know is who released those prisoners." He let that sentence hover heavily in the air for a moment before continuing. "Look, when you get out of here can you drop by my office? I want you to look over some missing-nin reports. Hoping you can identify ones you saw that your team couldn't."

Sakura nodded, feeling a nervous lump in her throat.

Sakura questioned Tsunade on whether it was truly necessary for her to stay the night when she came in to check her vitals again. Tsunade harshly said yes, pointing out that Sakura was still almost too weak to stand anyway. Sakura sighed in resignation.

When the sun set Sakura did her best to fall asleep despite wishing she was in the comfort of her own bed.

She had a nightmare of a large snake wrapping itself tightly around her. She couldn't breathe. When the snake lunged its fangs at her she jolted awake. Her eyes darted wildly around the room, assessing her surroundings to assure herself it was safe. Her eyes locked on the figure in the chair near her bed.

"S-Sasuke!?" she exclaimed, pulling herself up into a sitting position.

"Sakura," Sasuke greeted from within the darkness. "Nightmare?"

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief, trying to calm down her rapid heartbeat. "Yeah," she answered. "I... I wasn't expecting you. How long have you been here for?"

"A few minutes. I came to check on you."

Sakura smiled at him, appreciating the gesture that showed he actually cared.

He does. He actually does care.

It was nice to see him, but when her mind reminded her of all the heavy questions lingering in the back of her mind she started to feel anxious. "I'm doing fine. Lady Tsunade says I should be out by tomorrow thankfully."

"Good," Sasuke said. He then eyed her for a moment. "Your hair is getting longer."

Sakura reached for the ends with her hands. She supposed it was getting long. It was now a little past her shoulders. "You always liked longer hair, right?"

Sasuke wrinkled his brow, skeptical. "I don't remember ever saying that."

"When we were kids... I thought... Never mind. Then... do you want me to cut it?"

"It doesn't matter to me. Wear it how you want."

"Ah. Okay," Sakura said, looking away, embarrassed. She let go of her hair and brought her hands back to her lap. "Your hair is getting long too, I see."

"Yeah. Covering my eye gives me anonymity. A necessity more than anything else."

"That makes sense." Sakura fidgeted, speaking again after an awkward pause. "So... how have you been?"

"Just fine," Sasuke answered simply.

Sakura felt an inkling of frustration. While she would normally let it go, she made a promise to herself that she would push Sasuke a little more even if it made her a nuisance. "Just 'fine', huh? You gotta give me a little more than that, Sasuke," she sighed sadly. "That doesn't tell me anything. You don't speak much as is."

Sasuke looked at her, surprised at her comment. "I don't get what you're looking for. What answer do you want?" he said gruffly.

"I don't know. Just something a little more on how you're feeling, or what you've been doing? Normal stuff."

"Like I said, I feel fine. Neutral. Nothing to complain about but nothing to celebrate. As to what I've been doing - traveling, like usual. Is that what you want?" he said, irritated.

Sakura willed down the internal panic at having Sasuke annoyed with her.

Calm down. He's not going to break up with you over this.

Still, he basically said nothing again, except with more words this time. She decided she would drop it. A more burning question burned in her mind. "You said we would go on a mission together when you saw me next," Sakura said. "That you would have answers for me. When are we leaving?" She gripped the bed sheets in her lap tightly, awaiting his answer.

Sasuke studied her for a moment. "We'll need to wait until you're fully recovered. I can't have you weak. Perhaps in a few days. We'll see."

"Ah." Sakura's mouth twisted with impatience, wanting desperately to have her answers now. "Have you talked with Naruto or Shikamaru yet? About the mission?"

"Yeah. I got approval from Naruto today."

"You accepted another low-rank mission and we'll be doing your mission on the side, right? We're hiding your mission from Naruto and Shikamaru."

"Yeah, you guessed right."

"Where are we going?"

"The mission we were assigned is along the northern border of the Land of Fire. A simple retrieval mission of a stolen object. Along the way back we'll also be doing something else - my mission."

"And what will we be doing on your mission?"

"Like I said before, I'll fill you on the details after we leave."

Sakura's jaw tightened. "You can't tell me even just a little bit so I can prepare myself better? You don't need to hide things from me. Trust me. I'm your wife after all, and I want to help you."

Sasuke studied her silently, expression unreadable.

Sakura took in a deep breath, summoning her courage. "Sometimes... it feels like I don't know you at all. All I want is to understand you so I can love you better. And... maybe I can understand you in the way that Naruto hasn't been lately."

A glint of surprise appeared in Sasuke's eyes. He looked down at his lap for a moment with a deep frown, contemplative. When his eyes returned to hers he said, "In order to retrieve an object of great importance to me - someone with great chakra control is necessary. That person is you. You have the best chakra control out of anyone I know. However, it is being guarded. You need to be ready to fight and also have the concentration necessary for your chakra control."

Sakura fought down the grateful tears wetting her eyes. She was actually getting real answers out of Sasuke for the first time ever. She was finally making progress into breaking into his shell. "Guarded by whom?"

Sasuke paused, clearly thinking on how much more he wanted to share.

"The Sound?" Sakura guessed with bated breath. Please let her positive theory on what Sasuke has been up to be true.

Sasuke continued to stare at her silently with a guarded expression. "No," he finally answered. "Now's not the time to talk mission details anyway. You're still in the hospital. Recover from your injuries first." He stood up.

"Wait, are you leaving already? Can't you stay just a little longer?"

"Get some rest, Sakura." He then paused before adding, "I'll tell you a little more tomorrow, if you want."

For the first time after Sasuke left her, Sakura felt... hopeful. Tomorrow. Tomorrow Sasuke would tell her more.

Sakura slept soundly that night.

A/N: I had so much fun writing Sakura's mom. I took a lot of inspiration from my own mother. When I was in high school any boy that I was mildly friends with she decided was madly in love with me, and because I had several male friends, she proudly decided I was some heartbreaker that had all these boys tied around my finger with my womanly wiles. Whenever she saw me chatting with male friends or acquaintances she would just give me this look of knowing pride, like she knew I was playing my seduction game. For junior year prom I just went with friends, but she really wanted me to get a date, and she said I could ask the neighbor's boy (who I had never met or seen before in my life) because he was supposedly close to me in age and he would obviously say yes the moment he saw me lmao. This is what I get for having a mom that grew up on a small farm in Soviet Poland - very... old-fashioned. (The only time my mom deserves to feel proud of me in regards to my love life is that time in senior year of high school that I somehow got three people to crush on me at once, and in the most awkwardest night of my life the three of them aggressively competed for my affection. Now that is a painfully cringey story for another time.)

Also, I think there are still some things I could have improved upon a little more in this chapter, but after so many scene rewrites and editing I kinda just wanted to call it good enough. When writing a longfic like this I think you have to just settle with 'good enough' over perfection if you ever want to finish your story, so that's the attitude I'm trying to keep to so I can keep to a regular update schedule. As I think I've mentioned before, I want to at least update once a month (if not more). And I'm super excited to write the next chapter. It's been one I wanted to get to for awhile.