A/n: Update because I want to let you know I'm alive (despite acads) so quality isn't on a par with the previous one. I also get distracted by Tumblr and the writing prompts I've been getting from my classes which then usually make me think about writing oneshots instead of continuing with my draft for this and editing.
DMHG, yes I do think 699/700 are a bit rushed! You can PM me about it!
Matthew Uchiha, thank you for sharing your opinions with me about 699/700. I'll be responding to it soon!
Reviews are greatly appreciated. I'm accepting both violent reactions and friendly suggestions because I feel like I'm not doing well enough.
Sakura breathed a deep sigh before pushing the door open and walking into Yamanaka's flower shop.
Before she could even throw a look at the counter, her best friend was already there, practically squeezing her into a hug that Sakura had to instinctively remind her that she was carrying a child.
"I'm so sorry," Ino released her and gave an apologetic smile, "but I haven't seen you for so long!"
Sakura made her way towards the reception area and flopped down on the couch, making herself comfortable.
"It's been only a week, Pig," she giggled as she reached for some magazines resting on the coffee table and started flipping through the pages.
She did not know what she came here for, but Ino was her best friend, and she would always be the best go-to person whenever Sakura needed solace. Besides, it was not like there was anyone else she could turn to.
A flower came into her view, and she looked up at Ino smiling warmly at her.
"It's carnation. It's what husbands usually get for their pregnant wives. Its sweet scent will calm you."
Sakura took the red flower and held it close to her nose. Ino was never wrong.
"Thank you."
Ino slumped down beside her, casting her a radiant look.
"Of course, I belong here, Forehead," she quipped as she looked around the room with a profound sense of satisfaction.
Sakura laughed, "I know."
Ino was also a medical student like Sakura. But two years before graduation, she realized that what she really wanted to do was to take care of flowers, not of people, so she had to quit from med school. Ino had been Sakura's best friend since Sakura decided to live apart from her mother. Ino was just a roommate before, but she had fulfilled a role beyond that. She was the one who was there to provide Sakura with her needs during the times she did not want to ask for financial assistance from her mother. Since Ino's parents were also abroad, Ino was used to living by herself. She was a great help to Sakura who was trying to learn how to live on her own. Ino lectured her on budgeting, ordering her priorities, and staying strong when everything seemed to be unbearable.
Ino was also the first one to know about her getting into a twisted relationship. Ino had cautioned her against it, and even when Sakura did not listen, Ino remained as a shoulder to cry on. She was also the first one to know about the baby, and she could not be any happier about it. She did not mind the circumstances Sakura was in because seeing that Sakura was still happy was enough for her to feel the same, too.
Ino was like a precious flower to Sakura, so Sakura would always be in full support of her for the path that she had chosen.
Sakura was absentmindedly stroking the surface of flower when Ino posed the dreaded question.
"What made you come here, Sakura, aside from missing me?"
Sakura faced her and automatically sensed that her best friend would not drop the subject unless she offered something. But Sakura still tried shrugging it off.
She laid down the flower on her lap and began perusing through the magazine again.
"Nothing. I just want to unwind."
Ino only became more wary.
"But have you informed Sasuke about this? He's decided to be your personal driver, right?"
Sakura just rolled her eyes, "I don't have his number, and he doesn't have mine. And he's not my personal driver."
Ino stood up from the couch dramatically and placed her hands on her hips.
"But it's almost been nine months since you two got together!"
Sakura just raised a brow at her.
"You know we never got together, Ino-Pig. Things just happened. Besides, it's pointless. We don't talk much. And he seems to always know where I am anyway..."
Sakura stopped busying herself with the magazine and nestled against the couch instead. It was that kind of feeling again.
Ino did not seem to notice though as she continued attacking her with questions.
"Then how did you get here? I thought Sasuke banned you from driving your car or something? Don't tell me you walked five kilometers to get here!"
If Sakura was a bit more okay, she would spend all her energy on engaging her best friend and keeping up with her humor.
"Silly. He didn't ban me. He just insisted on doing the driver-job thing and I realized I had no more use for my car. It's also to save gas you know. I would've walked if it was not so tiring but one of my colleagues dropped me off here."
"So you're in a hurry then?" Ino stood up, peering outside of the shop to see if there was a parked car.
"No, no. I told him he didn't have to wait for me. So we can hang out for a bit," Sakura picked up the flower and inhaled its scent again to calm her down, also hoping it would neutralize her dizziness a bit.
Ino turned around to look at her, wearing a knowing look.
"It's a guy then, Saku-chan? Tell me about it," she suggested with a childish humor.
"It's not like that. We're just colleagues, friends," she countered, trying to wave off the topic.
"C'mon, Saku!"
"Don't push it, Ino," she said with a finality on her tone.
Ino decided to drop the issue because the warning against upsetting a pregnant woman was something she had to recognize and heed. Not to mention that she knew how delicate of an issue this was to her best friend.
She then segued her way into talking about Sakura's baby, knowing it would ease Sakura up a bit.
"So is the baby male or female? We can start drafting names, Saku! Of course I want to give my godchild a cute name!" she sat beside Sakura again, clasping her hands together, excitement overflowing from those baby blue eyes.
"Well, I'm having a checkup with Tsunade-shishou next month and I'll know it by then. You'll be the first one I'll call when I get informed about it," Sakura winked at her.
"Of course best friend over the father!" Ino said, folding her arms across her chest and sitting up straight, posing with pride.
Then they started laughing, and this somehow relieved Sakura from both her physical and emotional distress.
Suddenly, Ino stood up, "Oh!"
She went over to the flower section and started to clean up stray stems and petals.
"I'm supposed to be closing at 8 but since you're here I'll be a responsible friend and drive you over to your house now. Wait. Let me just finish some things."
Sakura stood up as well and walked over to her, eradicating any last hint of hesitation.
"I—Ino, you don't have to drive me back as early as now. It's just 7! Let's go while away our time somewhere. Shopping?"
"Are you sure? Aren't you exhausted? And what about Sasuke?"
Sakura painted a reassuring smile.
"No. I told you I just want to unwind. It'll make me feel less exhausted. And don't worry about him. It won't kill him," she finished with a casual beat of a laugh.
Ino did not want to linger on it and decided to yield to her demand. Sakura helped her clean up and minutes later, they were out of the shop, driving their way to the mall. They chattered and engaged themselves in light-hearted conversations just like the old days – fashion, juicy rumors about their college classmates, latest happenings in Ino's life, and of course Sakura's daily life. But Sakura deviated the conversation from her life as much as she could, only offering anecdotes about her encounters with different patients and the unusual cravings she would have sometimes. She indulged Ino in talking more about her new romantic venture with a guy whom she had met once in a bar. Sakura was feeling all giddy like a teenager again when it struck her that she no longer had the same degree of freedom as she had had before. In fact, going to mall spontaneously was not even legal in her situation.
But she was not about to regret the life she had chosen.
...
Sasuke, as usual, made sure to leave the office at five o' clock to arrive at the hospital by seven. Despite being the CEO of Uchiha Inc., he was not really attached to his work and most of the time just let his partners handle the work although one was also the slacker type while his adviser was more into reading his favorite magazine than actually checking through the company's legal documents. Sasuke's work was limited to signing documents and occasionally calling for a board meeting even though it was usually his adviser who would do the talking. Sasuke thought the people would understand him or at least they should. They should know that he never wanted any of that. He never wanted to be the sole inheritor of their company. He never wanted to gain something when he had just lost everything.
Sasuke had been waiting for almost an hour outside the hospital. Time was part of the arrangement of course, and Sakura told him she would usually be out by seven. There were a few times in which Sakura had to go out and inform him about sudden extension of her shifts because she had to monitor the condition of a patient. He would just nod and wait until she got out hours later. Then there was a time when she told him that she would not be able to go home at all, reasoning that her patient needed her and that she would not be able to sleep knowing that the child was in so much pain. She asked him to just go home, saying that she could snatch a few minutes of sleep in her office anyway and so there was nothing to worry about the baby. He did not give her a reply and just let her walked back inside the hospital.
Sasuke would never understand the enormous concern that Sakura had for her patients. He knew that she was a pediatrician and that it was part of her job description to take care of her patients – but should it be to that extent? Besides, Sakura was pregnant, and he could not help worrying. So instead of driving home that night, he still waited outside the hospital while Sakura was busy taking care of her patient. Sasuke would glance every once in a while towards the exit of the hospital to check if there was any possibility of Sakura going home. He never saw her leave the building though, and the morning after, Sakura was just surprised that he had actually gotten there so early. He did not say a thing and just drove her home, straining his eyes to not give up on him.
But it had almost been an hour, and there was no Sakura in sight, so he decided to get out of his car and enter the building. As he was walking down the hospital corridors, it was not hard for him to feel how every nurse's attention was suddenly glued to him. He did not like the feeling of receiving sticky looks, and despite the nurse in the counter giving him exactly that, he still approached her to inquire about Sakura's whereabouts.
"I'm looking for Sakura."
"Ha—haruno –san?"
He was about to show a face of displeasure when someone chimed in from behind.
"She's not here anymore."
Sasuke turned around to see a man with a mop of red hair and dark linings around his eyes. Sasuke instinctively quirked an eyebrow at the sudden intrusion.
The man just slightly pulled up the corner of his lips and continued, "I dropped her off at Yamanaka's flower shop. I think her best friend owns it."
Sasuke would have said something or at least asked him who on earth he was, but he would rather reserve his voice for Sakura's ears. He took brisk steps back to his car, trying to make sense of the sudden burst of an unfamiliar emotion. He started the car and had his tires screeching because of the speed. He did not like the idea that Sakura was not there, that she did not tell him anything about it, and that someone else knew about it. He now realized the importance of knowing her phone number. It was not so much an issue before because he was always assured that Sakura would never leave without saying goodbye. But she just did, and it pissed him off.
He knew the flower shop because he usually passed by it on his way to work, but he never knew that the owner was Sakura's best friend. Heck, he did not even know Sakura had a best friend. He got to the flower shop in no time and ran to the door only to find that the signboard reading "Close" had been flipped over for visibility. But he still pounded on the door, impatient for someone to answer. When it had become clear that there would not be anyone to open the door and tell him where the fuck was Sakura, he went back inside his car but not before kicking his front tire in frustration.
He drove straight home, hoping against hope that Sakura was there, waiting just like always.
...
Sakura could say that she finally was able to breathe more steadily now that she had spent considerable time with her best friend. Living with Sasuke had required her – it was not even a requirement back then because it was pure willingness on her part – to stay with him as much as possible except when she had to attend to on-call duties. She had turned down invitations from her best friend and maintained connection only through sporadic calls. When she found out that she was pregnant and finally admitted to herself that she was entrapped in a loveless relationship, she took comfort in drowning herself in work, shutting everything and everyone out. She refused to see Ino because she did not know what kind of face she should be showing to her best friend when she just ended up exactly the same as her mother did.
Until one day, a month ago, Ino just barged into her office, and before she could even speak, Ino was in tears, hugging her. Sakura finally broke, releasing all the pent-up frustration and bottled pain she had been carrying inside. Since then, Sakura had found it easier to open up to Ino about Sasuke and their cold dynamics even though she still could not disclose the full details simply because it was hard for her to articulate her experience without breaking down and putting her baby at risk.
Ino demanded that they check the baby section of the department store so that Sakura could start buying clothes for her baby. Ino dragged her along, but Sakura just quickly dismissed her idea with a laugh, saying that she would not know if it would be a girl or a boy until the checkup with Tsunade so the whole should-I-buy-this-or-not process would have to wait.
Besides, as much as she loved her best friend, she thought it more appropriate if Sasuke would also be with her, but then she quickly discounted the thought because she knew that Sasuke was always busy – whether at work or somewhere else that she could not fathom thinking about. But as she ran her fingers through the baby apparel in display, her mind betrayed her and started generating versions of a future in which she would be not only with her child but also with the father.
They then proceeded to buy new dresses and pairs of shoes – Sakura still had to be a fashionable mom, Ino argued. Ino was the one who did the real shopping while Sakura merely walked around with her, nodding and shaking her head at the choice of clothing or shoes. Sakura was never really into fashion except when she had to attend some formal event for medical practitioners which required dolling up. But under normal circumstances, she would be fine with a loose-fitting dress which would always be later on partly covered by her medical coat.
Ino finally got tired of walking around and thinking about different fashion configurations. She brought Sakura to a pastry shop where Sakura gobbled down slices of strawberry cake while getting Ino to prattle on about her newfound love interest.
"So when are you introducing him to me, hmm?" Sakura began as she stirred her caramel frappe with the straw.
"I'll make sure to introduce him to you – oh, but we haven't even had our first date yet! Wait, why don't we have a double date then?" Ino wiggled her brow at Sakura.
Before she could even be aware of her thoughts translating into words, Sakura had already opened her mouth.
"Sasuke will never – "
Ino playfully slapped Sakura's other hand which was rested on the table.
"Who says it has to be Sasuke?"
Ino never had a contact with Sasuke. She knew him through media reports, but that was it. If she were to be honest, without Sakura's stories, she would have admired and worshipped him for his gorgeousness. But now she just hated his guts, the way he treated and hurt Sakura. Of course, Sakura never really badmouthed him. What had only been relayed to her in summary was that Sasuke had had a bad past which he would not open up about, that he invited Sakura to move in with him until Sakura had foolishly fallen for him, and how despite his deliberate mistakes, Sakura still chose to stay because of the baby and of the promise made by Sasuke that he would care at least for the baby, if not for her. Ino had not talked to him, so she would keep judging that he did not deserve her best friend until she saw for herself that she had been wrong.
Sakura paused from her actions and mentally berated herself for even bringing up such impossibility. She then leaned back into her chair, suddenly wary.
"I don't think I like what you're suggesting, Pig."
"C'mon, Forehead, don't even call it a date! It's just a friendly get-together, how's that? Invite that guy who brought you to the shop. What's his name again?"
"I told you. He's just another doctor in the hospital. Colleagues," Sakura sighed, unsettled by where this conversation was headed.
"Saku, it won't hurt to open up your heart a bit, okay?"
"But I'll be a mother soon! I can't bear to be irresponsible..." Sakura avoided her gaze.
Ino folded her arms.
"Yes, but you're not married. Sasuke can always provide for the child. That way you can still have your complete family. You don't have to kill yourself by staying in a hopeless relationship, Sakura. Someone else out there deserves you and your love. And who knows? Someday, that Sasuke might also find someone else whom—"
"Whom he will love and marry and have children with," Sakura looked back at her, "I know, Ino. It's always in my mind. It's just that I've promised to stay. I don't want to run away from that promise and until I find a strong reason to break that promise, I am staying."
Ino just raised her brow at Sakura, completely confused by her logic.
"Is it really the promise or is it because despite everything, you still – "
"Maybe. I don't know, Ino. Right now, I'm just...content with whatever arrangement we have. I just need to learn how to not care about whatever he's doing with his life and I'll survive," she sighed resignedly before touching her lips to the straw of her frappe, looking at anything but Ino.
Ino reached for her hand and squeezed it gently.
"Okay, I won't force you, Saku," she looked at her watch, "Oh, it's getting late! We should probably get going. Want to take out more sweets?"
Sakura laughed.
"Is that your way of sympathizing?"
Ino just rolled her eyes at her.
"No, it's a token of admiration, Forehead."
...
It was almost eleven o'clock when they reached Sakura's house, and Sakura did not know what to feel about having found his car parked in the garage. Perhaps disappointment that he did not even bother to drive around the city to "frantically" look for her or perhaps ease because it meant he did not care at all and so she could also stop caring just to establish a mutual relationship.
She threw Ino a quick hug before getting out of the car only to find Sasuke now standing by the doorstep with a blank look directed at her. She turned to Ino one last time and waved her goodbye.
But Ino rolled down her window and asked, "Wait, Saku, want me to explain to him?"
"You don't need to. Take care on your way home. Call me tomorrow, okay, and thank you so much for today," she gave a reassuring smile.
With a reluctant nod, Ino finally drove away.
Sakura put on her coat and put her hands inside the pockets as she tried to casually pass him.
"Where have you been?" Sasuke began before she could completely move past him.
Sakura did not spare her a look.
"Let's just talk inside. It's getting cold."
...
Once inside, Sakura rested upon the sofa and started rubbing her temples while Sasuke decided to stand a few steps beside her, thinking if he should begin by asking what's wrong or just wait for her to say it herself.
She let out a sigh before looking up at him.
"I'm sorry. I got off work early and I just wanted to breathe... I had no means of telling you..." she trailed off before looking away again.
There were beats of silence until Sasuke finally decided to sit beside her, also heaving a sigh.
"You don't have to avoid me. It's no use."
Sakura was startled by his statement that she had to whip her head and look at him again. But upon realizing how close they actually were, she stood up and started pacing around the room so that she would not have to look at him.
"I'm not avoiding you, Sasuke. I just...want to stop caring. I realize I can't always be emotional when I'm here carrying a child. "
"So you're running away."
She turned to him again, and for a moment, they only stared at each other, wondering what the other was thinking and wishing everything would not have to be this hard.
"I could've done that months ago but I never did. You know I never did," she gave a weak smile before turning around again.
Sasuke decided to approach her. He knew he had hurt her a lot. He knew that Sakura's choice of action was justifiable considering their history, but he had promised her he would do something about it. He did not know why he suddenly cared so much about making their relationship work but perhaps it was because he wanted to atone for the mistakes he had done. He at least wanted to redeem himself by making sure that the child would live a relatively easier and definitely a happier life and that he would not be ruining another's life yet again.
"I was serious when I asked you to teach me."
Sakura tensed up when she felt him standing directly behind her, and it did not help that what he had just said triggered undesirable emotions inside her.
She started rubbing her arms to calm herself down, hoping Sasuke would not notice her shaking.
"I've given everything I could ever give, Sasuke. You can't possibly expect anything more from me."
The crack in her voice was unmistakable, and Sasuke had the sudden urge to touch her. But then he knew he did not have the right to. The implications of that gesture would be more than what they could both handle at their current situation especially since he himself did not even have a clear reason why he wanted to touch her in the first place. Maybe pity.
Having obtained no response from him, Sakura continued, "I am so tired, Sasuke, so tired."
This time no matter how much she had sworn off crying, the emotional exhaustion was just too much for her to contain that she attempted to escape into her room. But Sasuke had already taken hold of her arm, willing her to look at him.
And she did.
"Let's start anew, "he stared into her eyes and slowly brought up his hand to her cheek until he was able to wipe away the tears before they fell.
Sasuke did not know why he still ended up touching her, but he realized he could get used to it.
...
Tbc
(update in two/three weeks)
