a/n: quick, preparatory chapter


Distance

Sasuke was going through the documents uncomprehendingly, his thoughts going back to the night before, his mind taunting him with Sakura's hopeful face over and over and the way he crushed that hope, leaving her in limbo again. He was barely aware of the poor state of the piece of paper he was holding when Kakashi tapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Don't torture the paper, Sasuke," he reproached halfheartedly, easing the paper out of his grip.

The door then blasted open, revealing a golden-haired boy.

"Teme! Huge problem!"

Sasuke furrowed his brow at him while Kakashi proceeded back to his seat, picking up his favorite reading material.

"The Stock Union meeting is tomorrow!" Naruto panicked.

"Tell us something we don't know," Kakashi quipped.

"We have the documents ready, Dobe. Stop – "

"But I can't go!" Naruto's eyes flickered between Sasuke and Kakashi as he went on to explain. "There have been changes in the wedding plans and we have something to fix tomorrow. I'm sorry I just can't leave Hinata to do it all alone."

If he were the Sasuke before, he would have paid Naruto no heed and insist that Naruto do something about it. Kakashi and Naruto had been preparing for weeks for this business meeting while Sasuke continued to do his job of signing the relevant documents with the occasional sessions of legal counseling from Kakashi. It had been set from the start that Naruto would represent their company because he had been the one monitoring the company's performance anyway and could sell their name better to the willing investors.

But somehow, Sasuke could relate to his partner's predicament and actually felt a pang of guilt for making Naruto do all the work when he had his wedding to prepare for. Sasuke wondered for how long Naruto would be there to shoulder his responsibilities.

"I'll go. I will review the documents later," said Kakashi nonchalantly, still perusing through his magazine.

Naruto shot him an incredulous look and walked over to him. "But Sensei, what about Mei-san? You'd be gone for a week . . . and the baby! Anytime, she could – "

"She'll be fine. She can drive herself," Kakashi replied, shooing the excessively fretting man away.

Suddenly, Kakashi's phone rang. He made sure to flip to the next page before answering it unhurriedly.

Sasuke could only look at the company's legal adviser as he heard his voice rose in alarm, his face pale, his book now a useless heap on the floor.

"What? . . . Can you still hold it in?"

Sasuke and Naruto passed rapid glances at each other, wondering who was on the other line.

"No. Don't drive. I'm coming," Kakashi said with forced calmness, but the little quivers of anxiety marring his tone were unmistakable.

As soon as he hung up, Kakashi rushed past Naruto and flung the door open.

"Sensei, where are you going?"

"To my wife. Can't be late."

And Sasuke just knew what was happening.

"Wa-wait." Realization dawned on Naruto as he called out to the now running Kakashi, "Is the baby – "

"Coming out," Sasuke supplied.

His lips curled into a thin, genuine smile before he faced Naruto.

Naruto looked at his feet. "Sorry, Sasuke. . ."

"No," he shook his head, "It's my duty."

He then gathered the documents littered on his table and began reading them, emptying his mind of any form of distraction.

...

"Sakura-san, Sakura-san . . ."

Sakura snapped out of her musings, blinking away the recurring, intrusive flashes of the night before.

She looked at her plate and gasped in mild horror at the sight of the chunk of meat which had received multiple stabs from her fork. She became even less confident to face Gaara when she had realized that he was almost finished with his meal. She then started shoving food into her mouth, easing it down her throat with the aid of her juice. Even so, she still felt like throwing up.

"It's okay, Sakura-san. You don't need to hurry," Gaara coaxed, his tone overwhelmingly patient.

Sakura just smiled albeit wanly, dabbing away bits on her chin with the napkin. She vaguely remembered what they were talking about. All she knew was that Gaara invited her out to lunch to seek her advice regarding his "career direction and future plans."

"Are you okay, Sakura-san? You seem a little preoccupied."

She tried laughing it off. "Is it that obvious? I'm sorry I guess I'm too easy to read then."

"You don't need to hide it."

Sakura intercepted the anxious look he was giving her.

"But you don't have to tell it to me either if you're not ready. I'm not forcing you," he added consolingly.

"I've just been feeling down . . . and tired – yes, tired, lately," she offered plaintively, twisting the napkin on her lap.

"You can talk to me always, Sakura-san."

"Thank you, Gaara-san."

"I just have a favor to ask."

She took a sip of her juice before nodding eagerly, dragging her chair forward to hear his request.

"Can we drop the honorifics?" he asked, suppressing a smile.

She grinned cheekily. "Oh yes, why don't we, Gaara-kun?"

He nodded dutifully. "Sakura."

"So . . .what were we talking about again?" she asked sheepishly. "As you have accurately noticed, my mind has been drifting elsewhere."

"Shiba-sensei's asking me to transfer back to Suna," he said, his tone that of slow, careful consideration.

Sakura cocked her head, urging him to elaborate. She had heard from him before that Shiba-sensei was the director of the hospital in Suna where he used to work and that Gaara had looked up to the respected man as if he were his own father.

"He's retiring soon and he needs someone to take over the hospital."

She pursed her lips in confusion. "But why does it have to be you?"

He pressed his lips. "His only child refuses to do so and I don't want to add to his disappointment."

"So I'm assuming you've made up your mind then?" she asked pensively, upset over the fact that a close friend of hers would leave soon.

"Not exactly. That's why you're here," he chaffed.

"Why, of course!" she exclaimed, feigning surprise as they fell about laughing.

"But well, Gaara-kun, I believe you just have to do whatever it is that your heart desires. Sounds cliché, I know. But that's what I've been doing." She smiled meekly.

"I'm still thinking about it. He's a precious person to me but I also have my precious people here," he said earnestly.

"You 'd miss me," she joked.

"Yes. Definitely."

It wasn't his answer, but the way he said it that made her pause. It wasn't casual; it was serious and hinting. He was also looking at her intently, and she could only offer a quick smile before focusing on slicing off the remaining meat on her plate.

"Do you want to go visit Suna with me sometime?" he inquired in a new tone, the air of casualness was back.

She perked up at the idea but illegally thought about Sasuke.

"I'd love, too, but then . . . the kids . . ." she finished lamely.

She cared about the kids, her patients, but she knew that she also needed a break. Besides, she wouldn't be gone for too long to not be able to attend to their needs. She was more worried about Sasuke. She didn't want him to think that she'd been deciding on her own when their child's life could be at risk. She also didn't want to give him a reason to think lowly of her – she knew that Sasuke wouldn't understand that she and Gaara were nothing more than friends.

"I understand," he replied, his previous jovial tone now punctured.

"No, no. We'll see how it goes. I'll go with you when I can, okay?" she countered quickly, not wanting to let him down even though she wasn't really sure if she could stay true to her promise.

"I'll hold you to that," he said expectantly. "By the way, Kazuo-sensei will be holding a celebration next week. He says he hasn't been seeing you around so he wants me to give you this invitation."

Sakura took the proffered invitation, reading the gold-inked, engraved letters of Dr. Kazuo and his wife's "50th anniversary."

Although Dr. Kazuo, being the head surgeon of Konoha hospital, was someone she was close with, her mentor in the early months of her practicum in surgery, she still dreaded having to attend the party.

"Will everyone be there?"

None of her colleagues knew about her condition. Initially, only Dr. Tsunade, her ob-gyn, knew about it, but she sooner let Dr. Kazuo in on the secret to allow her to take temporary leave from her duties as a surgeon. If she were to wear a dress, other people would surely know, see it, and she didn't want to answer a barrage of questions. She was gratifyingly proud of her bump, but it was a feeling she wouldn't want to share with busybodies.

"I think everyone's invited even the nurses but I doubt all of them would show up. Feeling antisocial, aren't we?" Gaara teased interestedly.

She bit the inside of her lip. "No. Just that I can't handle people too well these days .I've been –"

"Stressed, I can see. This is an opportunity to loosen up, then, Sakura." He reached for her hand resting on the table.

"I guess so." She smiled quite hesitantly, feeling his foreign skin against hers.

She fought the urge to squirm under his touch. After all, he was her friend, and he had helped her a lot. But she wasn't used to having such an intimate contact with another man besides Sasuke – the reason why she had been on the rack since last night.

She could barely sleep a wink, constantly worrying about him possibly having fits of nightmare again since he decided to sleep outside their room; she wanted nothing else but to check up on him every minute.

When the morning came, there were no pleasant greetings and shared meals, only a commotion of preparation for the day. Sasuke was already inside the car, waiting, when she had finally finished preparing. As expected, nothing was said during the drive, with the mechanical humming of the air-con serving as Sakura's only companion.

She glanced at him just before she stepped out, but he was resolute not to look at her. She sighed audibly and realized she had to give it time.

Sakura slid her hand out of Gaara's grasp as casually as possible, not wanting to offend him, and looked at her phone, checking for messages or any kind of signal from him.

But still, nothing.

...

No sooner had Sasuke entered the shop than an object came flying towards him. It missed his face fractionally, the object grazing past the tip of his ear. He let out a low growl, narrowing his eyes at the offender.

Ino, whose hands were formerly in an akimbo, swiftly brought one hand to her mouth.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she began, her voice laced with mocking, venomous concern, "It slipped off my hand."

She then went around the counter, staging a desperate, apologetic gesture of rushing to him.

"Did it hurt? But it was just a plastic vase! And it missed you . . ." the corners of her lips twitched ironically, "Oh how lucky you are for having it missed your arrogant, angelic face!" she finished derisively.

Sasuke did not respond, thinking it safer to just shut up when he was aware of where the woman was coming from. He could not really blame her.

Ino then shifted her weight and crossed her arms over her chest, challenging him to speak up.

"What brought you here?"

Sasuke straightened up, shoving his hands deep into his pockets.

"I came here to make a request," he said in one breath, making sure it would come out firm and unnegotiable.

Ino crinkled a wry smile. "Oh, so you actually know how to say, please? What, are you going to ask me to spare you mercy – "

Sasuke suddenly bowed. "Please take care of Sakura while I'm away."

Ino took a step back, her eyes widening, not expecting the man to be capable of doing such a humbling gesture.

Sensing her confusion, he continued, "I'll be on a business meeting abroad for a week. I need someone to be there for her."

She heaved a sigh, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Sakura is my best friend so you have nothing to worry about."

Sasuke felt great relief washing over him especially since he was almost sure, with her downright hostility towards him, that she would never take requests from him. But he could not be more thankful that Sakura found a very supportive friend.

He drew himself to his full height, reached for his business card inside his suit, and offered it to her.

"Call me right away if anything happens."

She nodded.

Sasuke then turned away, ready to leave.

"Why are you doing this? Is it just because of the baby? Or is it because of your other selfish reasons she doesn't know about? Why can't you just let her go? Why do you want to make her suffer so much? Do you even love her? Do you feel even a bit of care for her?" Ino spat, letting him know that she was incriminating him for causing her best friend misery.

She was met with unbearable counts of silence, however, so she yanked him around.

"If you don't, then stop confusing her with your half-assed feelings, Uchiha!" she barked, gritting her teeth in indignation.

Sasuke just spared her a glance before answering.

"I don't know."

Ino curled her hands into tight fists, preparing to swing a punch at him and destroy that face of his.

"But I can't let her go. Not yet."

He could see her seething at his response, but he was more disappointed at himself for not knowing how to name this feeling that had been tearing at him. All he knew was that he always wanted, needed to see Sakura especially whenever she smiled, never wanting her out of his sight. Maybe that was selfish of him, but he had always been that way, and she still stayed through all that. So, he thought, maybe he could just remain selfish if that would mean keeping her.

He waited for her to react, but when she began walking back to the counter, he knew it was time for him to go as well, hoping that the next time he would set foot in this very place, he would have the answers to her questions.

...

Sakura could not almost believe at the sight that greeted her as soon as she stepped out of the hospital. Sasuke's car was parked at the usual spot, and the car window was rolled down, allowing her to see him busily reading the contents of a folder, with his hands propped against the steering wheel. She actually had half a mind to contact Ino or even ask Gaara to give her a ride because she did not think he would show up given that the both of them were still a mess from last night's incident – a miscalculation, an accident. Besides, she didn't want to consider having another silent drive on the way back. But then she guessed that maybe Sasuke was just really intent on doing his part of this whole deal of creating a loving atmosphere for the sake of their child.

She took a deep breath before climbing inside. She then immediately reached for her seatbelt and buckled it around her, thinking about the next thing she could do as an excuse for avoiding his gaze.

"I won't be coming home tonight."

His cold voice rang clear, and she stopped her hands on reflex, focusing on him.

Sasuke flinched his eyes away. He couldn't take seeing the puzzled anxiety in her own eyes. "I'll have to fly to New York for a business meeting," he simply said, holding up the folder.

There was a rushing emptiness filling her inside, and she found it hard to breathe. She clutched at her seatbelt, shrinking into her seat.

"How . . . how long will you be gone?" she asked tremulously, and she hated that she could barely disguise her weakness.

"A week."

She nodded thoughtlessly, entertaining thoughts like Sasuke coming up with a viable excuse to avoid her, Sasuke choosing to distance himself yet again because of her excessive initiative, Sasuke walking away for good. "Take care."

He regarded her tentatively. "Will you be fine?"

"Of course!" she breathed out a laugh, as if his leaving was nothing.

Sasuke took her word for it and started the car. The air around them was taut with expectancy. Sasuke was half expecting her to utter anything, to stop him perhaps and make him stay. Sakura, on the other hand, was bracing herself, waiting for his further allusions to an impending farewell. But there were no words exchanged, only passing glances that never quite caught each other.

Sakura got out of the car as soon as they stopped in front of their house

"Will you still be going inside?"

"No," he said, his answer echoing dismally.

"Then, I'm going in."

She started to walk off.

"Sakura."

"Yes?" she responded quite indulgently.

Sasuke closed his eyes for a moment, already regretting what he had to say. "Please forget about what happened last night."

Sakura wanted to protest but realized that she didn't have the right to. She forced down the lump in her throat before answering.

"Sure," she said, her voice cracked as she painted a smile.

Sasuke drove off while she remained there standing, staring off listlessly at his car now an impossible distance away, and she couldn't help feeling that no matter how they tried, perhaps all their relationship could ever amount to was this – a bleak cycle of waiting and chasing.

...

Tbc.

(Thank you so much to all those who have been constantly supporting this fic. I can't tell when I can post the next chapter, but I promise that as long as I live, I'll give you updates.)

(Thanks for the tip Mars! I'll make sure to try doing that.)