Not Like Me, Not Like You

The rest of the afternoon was spent with my parents in the city, where I was quickly reminded of how my growing popularity made it…inconvenient to casually be out in public. This was especially true with my mom's condition, and how every second we were in the city felt like we were only moments away from unraveling a secret we had spent years keeping under wraps. She didn't switch from in person to online consultation for the sake to revealing her illness to the world because Jiraiya and I felt festive and wanted to go out for brunch.

One blonde wig, a thick sweater, and a dark pair of sunglasses later, we had brunch at a nice restaurant that happened to stay open for the holidays before I had to head home to be picked up by Deidara while Jiraiya spent time with my mother at the hospital. Perhaps she would be well enough to come home for the evening. I had mentioned in passing to Shizune that the house should be somewhat more presentable in the off-chance that it happened.

I arrived just as Deidara pulled into my driveway, unaware that I was in for an earful because, in the two hours we were out, he found out I went into the city without him, Kisame, or Itachi, thus "putting myself in danger" by "being there without proper protection." What if something happened to us between the time we got out of the car to the time we made it inside the restaurant? Did I know how Itachi was going to read when he got there? They would all exclaim to me in one form or another, not that it would change anything but they sure made it sound like it could.

My only line of defence was that Jiraiya's car was less distinguishable between all of us, and it wasn't really until we had finished up and left the restaurant that I started to notice a crowd buzzing around the restaurant. I guess Itachi's girlfriend and her famous mother having brunch in public was a spectacle to behold. How quickly Itachi and Deidara were able to pick up on the news would never fail to amaze me, and the amazement sat on par with how much it would come to annoy me in the future. It had never been an issue with them for me to come and go as I pleased before. It just so happened that they knew I was specifically in the city that day from the set of photos that had begun to circulate online during the twenty minutes it took for me to drive home.

The drive from the cabin to the New Year's Eve party would be a quiet one. Itachi barely said a word to me when he and Kisame came to pick me up after I spent the entirety of two hours listening to Deidara list all the ways things could have gone wrong because I wasn't under anyone's supervision while Sasori silently got me ready. I had to reiterate that the contract never stipulated that I needed anyone's permission to go into Konoha during my days off. They weren't too happy with that technicality and I realized I might be in for more than just a new year after tonight.

I picked at the gold sequins on my dress, crossing and uncrossing my heels as Itachi sat beside me in silence. His disapproval didn't bother me as much as the lecture Deidara gave me that afternoon, and even that annoyance was small in comparison to the feeling of dread in my stomach. The closer we got to the banquet hall, the tighter the knot in my stomach felt. I pulled the strap of the seatbelt over my head, just to give myself more room to breathe, just so I wouldn't throw up all over Sasori's hard work before anyone got a chance to see it. By the third time I shifted and pulled the white peacoat tighter around my shoulder and fixed the low-cut neckline of my dress, Itachi finally reached over and steadied my hands with a sigh.

I braced myself for some kind of lashing, or an irritable comment at the least. He just held my hands still until I turned to look at him.

"I heard you were out with your mother today." He said evenly, his thumb rubbing in that gentle and tender way he knew that I liked over my knuckles. "How was brunch?"

I looked up from Itachi briefly before casting my eyes to the rearview mirror to catch Kisame's reflection nervously. He only looked up from the road to give me a reassuring look which said he hadn't uttered a word to Itachi about my mother's condition, and I could only hope at this point that the make-up I slapped on her and the wig was convincing enough for everyone to not perceive anything was out of the ordinary with her. However, I knew better than to think that Itachi was just bringing this conversation up out of his own curiosity and for small talk. Whatever he had to say, I wanted him to say it so I had one less thing to anticipate.

"You're not mad?" I blurted, my eyes roaming his face and trying to catch every small microexpression with the dim light of the streetlamps that passed.

I felt the way he stiffened and noticed his right eyebrow quirked at my question, as if not expecting me to be so forward with my concerns—or so brave to as to force myself to face them head-on. He was debating between saying "no," just to keep the peace before the party, and saying "yes," to keep me from doing something like that again. He was carefully forming his words, as he always did.

"I was worried." Itachi admitted, meeting my eyes before his brought my knuckles to his lips. "Upset, yes, but only because I was worried about the paparazzi overwhelming you."

The knot in my stomach tightened and fluttered, and instinctively I flexed my hand in his hold. I wanted so badly to call him out on his fake, sweet words as a calculated ploy to keep me placate throughout this public event but I didn't want to unnecessarily add a "ticked off Uchiha" to my long list of worries that night.

"They aren't as overwhelming as this." I hated the roughness in my voice, and more so when I felt him momentarily pause. Old habits die hard, and the stubborn part of me was still unforgiving about having to go to this. I could be mature about it and accept that this was the fate I signed onto, or I could make small remarks here and there—like now.

"Sakura, you will be fine." He squeezed my hands for extra comfort while he took a deep breath and stared me down with his obsidian eyes. "Kisame and I will be by your side the entire night, and Sasuke and Naruto will be there. What are you afraid of?"

What was I afraid of?

Nothing.

I was solemnly afraid of anything. I was, however, nervous and frustrated. Nervous to finally face the population of Konoha I had been actively avoiding and how they would perceive and treat me now that I've come out of my cave. Would they ridicule me? Isolate me? Ignore me? Those ideas didn't clam me up more than it frustrated me. Frustrated that against my own sense of self-preservation, I would have to endure it and smile because I was working, and Mrs. Uchiha does not go throwing punches and make snarky remarks at the sight of fuckery.

I sighed.

Usually I would be better at playing pretend. But usually I wasn't playing pretend with my personal life. It was easier to take insults from a politician in a foreign country, who could not recognize me in my disguise, and would be dead by the end of the night, than it would be from my "friends" and people I knew Itachi did business with. To mess this up would mean I violated the part of my contract where I promised to help him claim his position as the CEO of Uchiha Security Incorporate.

Assassinating people has proven itself to be easier than working this job, it would seem.

"You sure have a way of making me feel stupid." I tried pulling my hands back, but Itachi's grip remained firmed. His eyes were hard with annoyance as he looked down at me, although I knew it wasn't entirely directed towards me.

"That's not my intention." His thumbs rubbed over my knuckles again and he shifted his body, against the restraints of the seatbelt, to fully face me. "I simply just want to know why you're feeling like this."

Reluctantly, I had to admit that Itachi was right. I would be fine. Moreover, I was sure there wasn't any kind of animosity between me and the aristocrats of Konoha for them to outwardly despise me—especially in a public space.

"I'm not afraid." I dropped my gaze and knitted my brows, and I could already feel the frustration bubbling inside of me. "I'm overwhelmed and nervous. I basically avoided everyone for the last five years, and I'm…anxious about how they will react to seeing me there with you."

This was part of the job. I had to keep reminding myself. The more I kept that in mind, the better I could preform. I had stupidly forgotten about this minor detail where I had to talk to people when I quickly signed on at the promise of $20,000 a month, thinking that the relief of having all that cash would make up for the mental torture I was putting myself through. Somehow, sitting in the car and being driven into the epicentre of my anxiety, the money sometimes didn't seem like it was worth it.

People really would do anything for money. I was no exemption to that fact.

A click of the seatbelt and a shift in the leather seats later, Itachi was pressed up beside me in the backseat. His presence was as demanding as it was comforting. He may not be particularly bulky like Kisame, but he was bigger and firmer than me, and I could feel his heat engulf me.

"You are coming as my significant other." Itachi's tone left no room for arguments. I was coming as his significant other. I was his date. It was not lost to me the way my belly warmed at the pride in his voice, almost as if they were sincere, and as if I liked it. "It does not matter how they react, so long as you remember that."

Itachi slung one arm behind my head and pulled me to rest against his shoulder. His other hand covered both of my own as he laid them on my lap, no doubt to keep me from fidgeting again. The rest of the drive was rode in silence, and the only sound I could make out were from the passing cars and his heartbeat.

During moments like these, I found myself debating reality. The support and tenderness that I never anticipated Itachi to be capable of threw me in for a loop, and at times I had to question if his intentions were genuine or just an act to ensure I did my role efficiently. Was I being duped? Was I being unknowingly manipulated into wanting to play more than just a part? Would you call this a method to increase workplace morale? Whatever I questioned, I didn't do it out loud. The part of me who that felt deprived of security and intimacy craved it too much to let me think logically about Itachi's movements and do anything that would dispel the illusion.

Itachi untangled himself from me when we pulled up to the hotel. Kisame climbed out first to give the keys to the valet before he opened Itachi's door and they came over to open mine. I took his hand with one, and held the end of my dress with the other. When Kisame closed the door behind me and the valet drove off with the car, the only thing I registered was Itachi fixing the pea coat around my shoulders to ensure it didn't slide off—because we all know you just wrap coats around your shoulder and not actually wear them—and then holding his elbow out for me to take.

I took it and allowed for him to lead me inside where one of the hotel attendants took our coats and gave Kisame our ticket. The actual trip to the banquet hall passed as a blur as I reminded myself of the different ways I had to stand, walk, and speak that made it seem like I grew up inhaling aristocratic air. When I was led through one of the large wooden doors and into the hall that had white-sheet covered tables, chandelier centre pieces, and gold polished utensils, I felt the pressure as my brain kicked into overdrive to find me safe places to hide or escape if the situation—whatever that entailed—called for it. To the left of the bar was a hallway leading to the bathroom which undoubtedly had an emergency exit. To my left was another door that led to another part of the hotel, again, probably containing some sort of emergency exit. To my right was a kitchen doorway where waiters would be bringing out food. Another possible escape route?

To my dismay, there weren't any windows.

With all my fine observation skills, I didn't realize Itachi had been pulling me towards his family until his mother stood in front of me with her arms out.

"Sakura-chan, it's been so long!" Mikoto squealed, kissing my cheek and pulling back to hold me at arms length. "You've grown into such a beautiful woman!"

Her smile was so radiant that anyone looking at us wouldn't have guess that over a year ago she had been gently encouraging her youngest son to sever our relationship and "acquaint himself with different friends." Sasuke had mentioned that his mom had been doing so a couple months after I got out of jail, and it's not that I could really blame her for it. A lot of coaxing on Sasuke and Itachi's part was probably needed to encourage her to welcome me more openly. She also simply couldn't reject Itachi's new girlfriend in front of everyone either, what would that say about the family? Disobedient sons? A weaker family bond than what was once believed?

"Sakura," Fugaku's presence was just as demanding as Itachi's, and if I hadn't known that he felt indebted to me—unbeknownst to Mikoto—I would even say that he was threatening. "I hope my son is treating you well."

Even with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease he stood sturdy beside his family, looking only slightly winded and a little bit irritated that he had to be there. There was a tinge of pride of his voice as he regarded me as Itachi's lover, and in that moment, any shame and regret that had shimmering beneath my questionable conscience exploded. Of course he would approve of our relationship. Unlike everyone else he regarded me as a worthy candidate for his eldest son after the favour I did for his family five years ago. Now, in his dying days, I disrespected his judgement by actively engaging in fraud.

And thus, acting the part of the terrible human being that I was, I smiled and bowed.

"Yes, Fugaku-sama. He's been nothing but kind to me." I said reassuringly, going the extra mile to take Itachi by the hand and smile at him like we created only the fondest of memories these last couple of months—and not like he spent the first two scowling me while I told him to shove it. We were a disgusting front for the perfect, loving couple who happen to know each other our entire lives but didn't realize how compatible we were until recently. How cliche and romantic.

I felt like I was suffocating.

"Nii-san, I need to borrow Sakura." Sasuke announced. He stepped forward and took me by the elbow, knowing that Itachi wasn't going to refuse him in such a space.

I allowed him to drag me across the room and towards the more crowded area around the bar. Now why was he taking me into the epicentre of idle chatter and conversation when that was the last thing I wanted, you may wonder? Because he was a jackass and my friend.

My original plan for the night was just to make an appearance, stick by Itachi's side for most of the event, avoid all types of conversations that wasn't the regular "hi, how are you" and leave as quietly as I came. Sasuke had other diabolical plans for me.

"What do you—"

"Sakura-chan!" Then a wall of blond crashed into me. It sobbed and wrapped its arms around me tightly before it grabbed me by the arms and shook me for all I was worth. "How could you? Of all people why are you with someone like him!"

I realized then that this was an ambush. Not only had Sasuke betrayed me once this year, but he was going for a streak.

With all of my effort put towards training and avoiding Naruto, Sasuke was left alone to bear the burden that was our whiney best friend. It was only a matter of time before Sasuke turned against me and I smiled bitterly to myself for not realizing that this was the perfect time for it. I couldn't possibly argue that this was worse than having to fake small talk with Itachi's parents and look into the eyes of Itachi's dying father and tell him I loved his son and was going to take care of him when the old man dies, but it came pretty close.

"Naruto!" I hissed, shaking his hands off me. He was less than willing to accept my retreat, and instead opted to grab hold of my hand and sob about how I was making the worse mistake of my life, and I was brainwashed, and had basically decided to sign my life away to a devil.

If only he knew.

It would seem like Sasuke was only tolerant to a certain extent, which was nothing less than what I already knew of my backstabbing friend.

"Quit it, Dobe, you're making a scene." He huffed, giving Naruto a light shove for emphasis and hopefully regretting his choice altogether. It worked in diverting the blond's attention from squeezing the life out of my fingers and hoping to change my mind through sheer willingness to Sasuke who's started to realize his mistake.

"You traitor! You probably helped your brother brainwash Sakura into liking his bastardness, Teme."

I was starting to wonder then if the training I had endure was necessary. Albeit, training was a term I use lightly to describe what I had to memorize, but I didn't want to discredit Sasori and Deidara's coaching. Did I really have to stress myself and will myself to act to Itachi's likeness if this was how Naruto and Sasuke were allowed to behave in public. It wasn't like anyone was going to stop them, and I guess it didn't harm their family's reputation considering that they had always been like this—but I guess they weren't the one tooting around a criminal record.

My long hair was supposed to disatcosiate my appearance from my past, and my demeanour played an equally important role. Itachi trained me, not because he wanted me to be like him. He just didn't want me to be like me.

That was becoming increasingly harder to do with these two around, though.

"Enough," I swatted the accusing finger Sasuke looked around ready to bite off and placed a firm hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Behave for tonight, will you? We'll have this conversation later."

That seemed enough to get him to pause in his pursuit of fighting Sasuke, if only momentarily. Naruto looked at me questionable, probably pondering why I hadn't decked him over the head for basically referring to my boyfriend as "his bastardness" or causing a ruckus within this lovely dining hall. I didn't need to turn around to know that half the room was watching us.

"Tch, yeah right." Naruto rolled his shoulder back and crossed his arms. Despite being stubborn and outwardly petty, I noted the hint of sadness in his voice. "You've been avoiding me."

However, that wasn't going to move me into giving into him. He wanted me to go along and revoke my relationship with Itachi—all the while also insulting the man for all the bastardness that he may or may not be. That couldn't happen today, not here, not within the next three to four years.

"Well maybe it's because you react like this." Reverse uno card played. "If you wanna have a mature and adult conversation, I'd be happy to arrange something, ne?"

Naruto started looking a little sheepish around then and maybe a little concerned at the same time. Sakura-chan would normally tell him he was being a jerk and used his brain to think a little, not smile at him so sweetly like she promised she would skin him alive if he didn't cut his shit and stop embarrassing her in front of everyone. But he was pleased with my answer.

"Let's get a drink, Teme." He said quickly, linking his arm with Sasuke to drag the poor boy with him. "Do you want anything, Sakura-chan?"

"Wine."

Normally I would prefer a strawberry beer, a cocktail drink of some sorts, and anything on the sweeter side. But my best guess was Mrs. Uchiha (Junior) doesn't drink that at formal events, and something about a glass of red wine sounded more classy.

They left me waiting along by myself where I fought the urge to twiddle my fingers while half the room was whispering about me. I only made it through the second round if recounting my emergency exit when I heard a voice that wasn't Naruto's, or Sasuke's, and definitely not Itachi's.

"Sakuraaaa!"

Instinctively I flinched before I turned around to catch Ino in my arms, my best friend through high school who was unfortunate—maybe fortunate—enough to lose contact with me after I left.

"Hi Ino." I returned her smile easily. Knowing that I probably wouldn't have to see her too often and get caught in my act made interacting with her feel less personal and more business.

I paused.

It hadn't dawned on me until then that have outside relationships of any kind wasn't possible if wanted to keep things under wraps. I couldn't gossip to Ino about my romantic life and hoped she wouldn't get suspicious. Not that I had originally planned to in the first place.

Sure, one could only just simply lie but it would only go one for so long before they started to catch up. Trying to maintain a fake life with real people would inevitably lead to it. It wasn't doable.

I turned to her companion and nodded a greeting too. "Kiba."

He gave me a toothy grin.

Kiba and I weren't particularly close compared to me and the boys, or me and Ino. Sure, we run in the same circle and sat together with everyone else at lunch, but within circles were smaller niches that stuck together. He was a fun and good friend though. But he was more of Naruto's friend than he was mine.

"It's nice to see you out from that house of yours. We were starting to worry that you would rot away in the forrest." Ino took both of my hands in her as she teased me, and I couldn't fathom how easily she picked up—or was trying to pick up—our relationship back up where we left off after all these years. The familiarity appeared as if it never faded away with the years between us.

If only I could respond in kind.

"Thank you for the concern, Ino. I can assure you that I was not rotting away out there." I tried, carefully watching the way her eyebrows twitched and the the corner of her lips turn downwards as if she realized just then she was talking with a stranger. "Sometimes a little peace and quiet away from the city is necessary."

I squeeze her fingers lightly, hoping that it would reassure her the sincerity of my words. My way of speaking may have been forced, but what I said was true. That, at least, I knew she understood.

With all that had happened when we were seventeen, the city was the last place my parents wanted me leisurely hanging around. I would mostly come in twice a week for my lessons with Kakashi, but in terms of socializing I kept that to a minimal and out of the public eye. Fresh out of high school and in the middle of a scandal, I didn't know how to suddenly deal with all the negative press around me. Everything I did was an indication that I was a terrible person who was back to my old ways, and the more people buzzed around me, the more frustrated I got. My parents had just gotten me out of jail for supposedly distributing drugs—where there wasn't enough evidence to find me guilty though. They didn't want to test their luck with murder.

"How have you two been?" I asked, steering the conversation away for the benefit of my patience. "Kiba, I heard you opened a bar recently?"

"Yeah, you should definitely stop by!" His enthusiasm was as contagious at Naruto's. "It might not be up to your boyfriend's taste, but I think you and those two would like it. We even host live music some nights."

I forced a grin. "That sounds lovely."

There was a very small chance I would be stopping by anytime soon, especially not with Itachi. At best, I would allow Naruto and Sasuke to drag me there, but I wouldn't trust myself with all these secrets and alcohol in me.

Movement caught Kiba's eye and he glanced over his shoulder.

I followed Kiba's gaze as he looked over his shoulder, and my breath caught in my throat at the sight of the Hyuuga heiress mingle amongst her clansmen.

"Hey, there's Hinata over there." He said, calling Ino's attention who hummed in approval. I felt the knot tighten when he raised his hand to call her attention. "Oi, Hinata!"

Maybe it was written all over my face while I was watching her excuse herself to come over to us. The small anticipation in my pit of my stomach that made me drop my demeanour for a second.

"I wonder if Neji came too." Ino said allowed, staring at me until I finally turned to face her. "You probably haven't seen him in years, eh, Sakura?"

I made choices I did not regret. Will not regret, and my own pride got to me where I was.

"No, I haven't really spoken to anyone from high school in a while—save for Sasuke and Naruto." I chose my words carefully, hoping that I was dissuading Ino with how obvious I was trying to avoid talking about myself that she would take the hint.

"You certainly have a type when it comes to men." But of course, this was Ino I was talking about. My best friend for as long as I had been best friends with Sasuke and Naruto. "Tall, long-hair, handsome..."

She was trying to get a rise out of me as she usually did, as if nothing had changed between us, as if we hadn't gone without speaking for years. She was also trying to get me to respond like me and not whatever it was I was doing now. Was it so obvious that I was faking it? Was it clear that I was uncomfortable with what Itachi tasked me to do? That wasn't going to work at all.

I pretended like I didn't know what she was talking about, and that there weren't any similarities between Itachi and Neji at all. Physically, yes, she did have a point and perhaps that had the same hairstyle and were handsome in their own respected ways, but individually they were…

Just as similar?

I smiled sarcastically to myself in realization that I might be dating an older clone of my ex-boyfriend, save for the fact that Itachi was more mature and calmer compared to what I knew of Neji in high school. Both were equally prideful, but Itachi knew how to handle it better. No, Itachi wasn't like Neji and that wasn't why I was attracted to him. On some arbitrary scale, Neji was more similar to Sasuke than he was to Itachi.

Sasuke and Naruto came back just as Hinata reached us.

"Hi." The meek girl said, giving Kiba a quick hug before surprising stepping in to give me one too. "S-Sakura-chan, it's been so long. I'm happy to see you here."

I wasn't particularly close with with pearl-eyed girl, seeing that she felt more comfortable around Kiba and Shino than she did around us—but that was probably due to Naruto than it was from her personal dislike of me.

"You too, Hinata." I returned her hug nevertheless, careful not to spill the glass of wine the boys had fetched me.

She looked anxious in a way that made me wary. She glanced rom Kiba to me, before whispering a "Ah...Neji-san is here with Tenten," like everyone expected that to mean something to me.

Neji and I had dated for two years in high school. Even after he graduated, he still made efforts to come home on the weekends and to be with us for the holidays. It was my—our?—first serious relationship and obviously since he was involved with me, he was involved with the other eight of them. I couldn't blame them for using Neji as the only material to pull on when trying to make a connection with me. The last time we had all seen each other, I was Neji's girlfriend, and they had nothing else to go off of except express some concern about how uncomfortable this situation was supposed to make me feel.

Well, they had that other thing to talk about, but no one really wanted to go there.

"No way, I had no idea they were seeing each other." Ino whispered to Kiba, as if there was some history there that I was left out of the loop of.

I caught sight of him between the crowds of people huddling around their table, and I turned away when he looked up and caught my gaze.

"There's no way he's coming over here." Kiba tsked.

Somehow it had slipped my mind that there was a chance he would be here, and between worrying myself grey with being in a crowded room with my high school friends and their parents, I hadn't anticipated I had to worry about running into him. But it's been years and there was no reason for me to feel any type of way.

It just so happened that last time we spoke was when I broke up with him after he made the drive to my house to make sure I was okay because I stopped responding to his texts, and he had fought me on it until my mom had to tear us apart. I still loved him, he told me, why would I do this to us? It was because I loved him that it was better that I did this, I told him. After my mom stepped between us he agreed to let me get way. I was a coward and a fool for underestimating how much he could handle, he said as he slammed the door, and I hadn't heard from him since.

It would be a lie to say that for the year following I wasn't hoping he would reach out after everything had cooled down.

Ino placed a hand on my shoulder, "Do you want to come to the bathroom with me?" She whispered.

A small part of me wanted to say yes, tuck my tail between my legs, and hurry off to the little girls' room. But with everyone seemingly hyperaware that Neji Hyuuga was making his way across the room to talk to his high school sweetheart, the idea of allowing myself to run away would cause speculations and rumours that would be less than favourable to show up in those trashy magazines.

"Ino, I can't just go running to the bathroom with you to hide." I said tersely, glancing over my shoulder and feeling that knot in my stomach tighten as he was getting closer.

"Why not? We've done it a hundred times before?"

Haruno Sakura leaves party after running in with her ex-boyfriend? What could this mean? Does she still love him? The possible titles to question my relationship with Itachi was endless, and the man would be none too please to have to deal with that in the new year.

I was his significant other. His girlfriend. I couldn't pull the same old tricks anymore and avoid my responsibilities.

"I appreciate your offer." I kept my voice gentle and apologetic, understanding well that she was hurt by my rejection of her offer and had taken it as a sign of me rejecting our friendship and what we had growing up. Ino meant well, always, even if her methods of doing things were unconventional. Her tough love matched that of my mother, and I couldn't ever blame her for putting me through situations that had undoubtedly made me stronger. "But I'm not a coward, and I have no reason to be afraid of Neji coming over here."

"Suit yourself." She seemed pleased enough with my answer to let me go, but not one to be stood up she turned to the heiress. "Will you come with me, Hinata?"

The second the girls left I felt all the bodies around me stiffen. Kiba seemed to be saying a quiet prayer to himself just as Neji made his way beside him, undoubtedly dealing with the male Hyuuga enough time to know how intense he was.

"Hey man, how are you?" He said all the same, trying his best to push forth the same enthusiasm he had shown me earlier which had little to no effect on the long haired male.

"Kiba." Neji said curtly, only giving him a quick one over between looking at the two heads beside me. "And of course, Sasuke and Naruto."

"Yo."

"Hn."

Just because he was my boyfriend didn't mean the group was as excited to have him around as I was. They were tolerant of him the first year we dated and when he joined us for lunch, but let's just say after a while Neji preferred we had lunch alone and the group's only complaint was that I wasn't around as much anymore.

Our eyes met and I could've sworn that the tightness around his eyes faded, if only a bit.

"Sakura," He said, a little softer than he had with other three.

"Hey," I said lamely, putting on a civilized smile while my eyes drank him in.

The childlike features he had the last time we spoke melted away in manhood. His jaw was square and his shoulder was broader. The one's I watched walk away and out of my life were a little less refine.

Involuntarily I felt myself flinch at the memory. This was not the time and place to be reminiscing about that. What's behind us is behind us.

"It's been a while." Neji had a smooth voice, and I remembered I always liked listening to him speak. Today, however, it wasn't soothing as I remembered it to be, and he didn't quite have that deep tone that I liked when I heard Itachi spoke...Wait. "Your hair is longer now."

There was an accusatory undertone to the comment about my hair, no doubt stemming from all the times I ignored offhand comments that I would look more feminine with long hair. Ah, yet another similarity between Neji and Itachi. Ino would be right to say I had a type, IF it had been my choice to choose Itachi as my partner and I wasn't under contract.

I took the moment to glance quickly in the said man's direction, and I felt the weight of his gaze when our eyes met across the room. Itachi was watching me. His dark eyes bore into me speculatively but with a little hint of protectiveness.

I quickly looked back at Neji.

"Yeah, I finally decided to grow it out." I said, tucking a strand behind my ear. "How are you? I heard you're here with Tenten."

"Ah, she's somewhere making sure Lee doesn't make a fool out of himself." There was a little annoyance in his voice that I recognized too well, and I couldn't help with let out a little chuckle at how very little he seemed to change. "I hear that you're with Uchiha Itachi."

If there was any indication that he cared about that, he didn't show it. He only glanced over at Itachi's general direction before looking back at me.

"We've been together for a little while now." Itachi and I really needed to lay out a good origin story that I could tell people, I reminded. Surely meeting up with on a rainy morning and buying my cooperation wasn't going to cut it, though it would make a compelling story.

"Hn. He's been good to you, I presume." He was looking at me expectantly, almost as if he was demanding me to explain myself.

"Of course. I wouldn't be with him otherwise."

Neji eyes looked over my face, speculatively. It felt like he was expecting to find a tick to give away that I was lying. Like he was hoping I was.

Beside me, Sasuke shifted restlessly.

"I know you wouldn't." Neji conceded, sighing before he stuffed his hand in his pocket. "I worry because I know how temperamental Uchiha's can be."

That was more of an insult towards the Uchiha than it was genuine concern and we all knew it. If history had taught them anything in the past, it was that I was as stubborn as my mother with the same lack of tolerance for bullshit, and he knew I wouldn't have tolerated anything less than being treated with respect and decency—as Itachi has learned by now, as well. The minute he asked if Itachi was treating me well I should've known he was trying to bait Sasuke. Sasuke would go for it, of course.

Some things would never change with them.

"You wanna start something, Hyuuga?" The younger Uchiha took a threatening step from beside me and pulled me behind. His chest puffed with indignation while he stood face to face with Neji.

"Oi!" Naruto grunted, eying Kiba who contemplated stepping between them too but was leaning towards his life was more valuable than that.

"No, I was simply starting facts—evidently." As proud as ever, Neji had the audacity to eye Sasuke in a way he knew got under his skin.

In the meantime, I started becoming more aware that the conversations around us had died down and people had already started to turn to watch.

"Sasuke. Enough." I hissed, pulling on his left arm to step back. He easily shook me off and took another threatening step forward.

"Listen, Hyuuga. You only got a free pass from me kicking your ass in high school because you were Sakura's boyfriend." His growl echoed through the room and I had to bite back the heat rising up my neck and to my face. "Evidently, you don't get that pass anymore so I'd advise you watch your mouth when speaking about my family."

"Sasuke!" I gave him another tug and he pulled forward again, this time, to the mortification I was doing my best to keep off my face, to grab a handful of Neji's tie.

"She's not with you anymore, she's with my brother. Get over it and get back to your date."

"That's enough, Sasuke."

I was never religious, but that day was one of the few days that I praised the lord for the small mercy that was Itachi. Kisame stood quietly behind him, acting as a visible threat to Neji as he did to me. Sasuke would back down simply because Itachi had commanded him to, Neji would need more nudging.

Grunting, Sasuke turned and pulled the half drunken wine glass out of my hand. He mumbled something along the lines of "I'll refill your glass" and took Naruto and Kiba with him.

I sighed a relief, after watching him saunter away, only to turn back to catch Itachi and Neji in a deadlock.

"Neji-san." Itachi said curtly, his chin slightly tilted upwards and his shoulder square.

"Itachi."

The lack of honourifics didn't go unnoticed between any of us, and for a second I swore his eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

"It is time to be seated for dinner."

Neji held his eye a couple moments longer before nodding, just for dramatic effects. His eye swept over to look over at Kisame who was doing his utmost best to look intimidating. If the moment wasn't so tense, I would have laughed at the poor man's attempt.

"Of course," He tilted his head in what would have been a bow, his body already turning to leave before he looked back at me. "Sakura, it was a pleasure seeing you again. Please take care of yourself."

"You as well." I said quietly. When I turned to look at Itachi, I already had an apology boiling in my throat. As much as I hated to admit that I fucked up, because really, Sasuke was too easily baited by Neji, I could have very easily steered the conversation elsewhere but I was frozen in my inner self-consciousness. This really wasn't like me. "I..."

"Let's get seated for dinner." He held my face and pressed his lips against my forehead for a quick second before taking me by the hand to lead me back to our table, leaving me no room to through up the apology I wiped up on the spot.

Itachi could be hard to read sometimes. During moments like these I couldn't tell if he was annoyed with what just happened and just didn't want to make a scene, or if he really was unbothered. I would later learn that he was somewhat pleased in being able to stake his claim in me towards my ex-boyfriend, just like the sadist that he was.

Sasuke came back with my glass of wine just as we got seated.

"That was quite the commotion." Mikoto commented, keeping the unpleasant tone in her voice to a minimum.

"He was being an ass." Came Sasuke's even reply from my left.

Mikoto was none to please to hear it.

"Sasuke," She hissed, tucking her chair in while she glared half-heartedly at Sasuke. "It was good of you to stand up for Sakura."

Was there a secret meaning to what she just said? Was she trying to underhandedly push the blame onto me? I wouldn't put it pass her to it, they were all like this. I knew it better than anyone so I turned to Sasuke.

"Yea, thank you, Sasuke-kun." I smiled prettily, taking his hand and just squeezing it for good measures before our appetizers came.

I turned my sole attention to the food, and only took to speaking when someone directed a question at me. It was more preferably for me to just listen to their conversation and not unnecessarily involve myself in any other social interactions unless I really needed too. After getting some food in me and being able to reflect on what happened, I could say that things could've been worse. It definitely could have been better, but I felt the knot in my stomach loosening. The anxiety I had showing up to this event was based on my own imagination. And due to this imagination, I had gotten side-tracked and didn't perform to the best that I knew I could.

Being left on my own for too long, I had assumed things and made up too many scenarios about what may or may not happen. It wasn't like me to be this paranoid, and I'm way too young to be going senile.

No one hated me. People judged me. And it didn't bother me as much as I thought it did. Granted, it never bothered me before, but after the incident I had become uncharacteristically paranoid and sensitive to things that didn't make me bat an eye at before. I could hardly label what happened as traumatic. I really didn't have an excuse to be so over vigilant about this as I had been the entire night.

Now that everything has passed and the dust settled, the only thing I could feel was frustration and some annoyance. Frustrated that I acted stupid this entire time and making things worse than it needed to be, and annoyed with how everything played out. Kakashi would not be pleased to hear about this. How could I be trusted to go undercover and complete assignments if I couldn't even get my mind straight to make it through a dinner party with the conglomerates.

Sasuke didn't help with the situation either. That probably explained why he stopped pairing us together.

"You're mad at me." Said Uchiha whispered in between my bites of creme brûlée. He had been keeping the conversation mostly between his family and made an effort to try to avoid speaking with me since he returned with my wine. There wasn't even the occasional side whisper or nudge.

I sighed and set down my spoon. "Why do you figure that?"

He knew that was a challenge, almost a threat, and I saw the way the gears were turning in his head as he debated on if he should say never mind and go about his night or settle with dealing with me now that I was already irritated.

"You're doing that thing with your jaw and eyebrow." He said slowly, testing the waters to see if it was safe to continue. "And you called me Sasuke-kun."

"How intuitive of you." I looked across the table at his parents to see that they were too engaged in their own conversation to pay attention to us, and I turned to face Sasuke letting my hair fall to the side and hide my face. "Whatever issues you have with Neji; leave me out of it. Because the next time you put me in that situation again, I will skin you regardless of who's watching."

He had to pause to think if I meant figuratively or literally, but he nodded in agreement all the same.

After dinner concluded and our desserts were taken away, the corner of the room reserved for dancing lit up. Mikoto somehow coaxed her husband to entertain one dance with her and Sasuke went off to find Naruto. No doubt the boys would drink themselves blind tonight. I was only relieved to know that I wouldn't be tasked to take care of them—and disappointed that I couldn't join them.

That left me and Itachi at the table, which didn't surprise me because I didn't take him to be the type of want to dance anyway. Tables around us began to clear out as people made their way to the dance floor or the bar to socialize, and I could say I was relieved that he wasn't forcing me up into the crowd to meet new acquaintances and business partners. The universe heard my prayer when I begged that I wouldn't have to be tasked with that until we were married. I would be more experienced and better equipped then, I hoped.

"How are you enjoying your night?" He asked, scooting his chair so our armrests touched. His cologne hit me when he leaned over to hear me better, and I felt most of the tension I built up throughout the night slowly melt away by his proximity.

"Everything's great." I answered, vaguely registering my fingers picking at the sequence of my dress again.

He chuckled. "You're not still upset about Hyuuga Neji?"

"No," My response came out quickly and a little bit more enthusiastically than I liked. Damn it, Sakura, I was really losing it lately. I had to get a hold of myself.

I sighed and slumped back against the chair; frustration knitted in my brows. "No, I was just a little annoyed."

My answer didn't seem to keep the amusement from his eyes. "And overwhelmed?"

It was a tease and I responded to it with a smile. "Maybe a little overwhelmed, as well."

"Understandable."

We fell back into a comfortable silence. He didn't seem to want to be anywhere else and he looked as though he didn't even entertain the thought of moving us anywhere close to where the party was. I knew he was doing it out of consideration for myself and how much I had loathed coming here only to draw more attention to myself with Neji and Sasuke. Usually, I wouldn't complain too much about putting a foil in Itachi's master plan. Tonight I didn't seem to feel that way anymore.

"Thank you for stepping in and stopping Sasuke." I started, turning to meet his gaze after staring at my dirty napkin for the last two minutes. "I don't know what I would have done if the two of them started fighting…well, I knew, but—"

Naruto probably would've intersected to pull Sasuke off of Neji and Kiba would have tried to hold Neji back. Somewhere in between there I would yell a "fuck me," sock Sasuke in the face to get him to stop struggling against Naruto and step in front of Neji and ask him to stop. In his usual Neji self, he would tell me to stay out of it, which would indignant me even more and maybe, now that I didn't feel romantically inclined to not what to lay him on his ass, I would end up socking him too just to get a shock out of him.

"It would not be fitting to have my girlfriend throw elbows at her first holiday party with my family." He was humoured by me, and it did weird things to my insides. Turning his body towards me fully, he reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind my ears. "The two of them have tension."

I would take it that this wasn't the first time Itachi had witnessed it.

"No kidding." It exasperated me how easily Sasuke fell for Neji's baiting each time, and how much of kick Neji got from doing it. At least when we were together, they had attempted to be more civil towards each other, and I had hoped they would grow out of it once they got older, but if tonight has shown me anything it's that not very much has changed since my self-alienation. "Neji has always been…overprotective, and Sasuke doesn't respond well to that sort of mental challenge."

"Has it always been this way?" The warmth from his fingers seeped into the skin of my neck, and despite myself I leaned into his touch.

"Yes, even during high school. Although for some reason I found him challenging Sasuke to be charming back then." Definitely not now. A man who constantly needed to toot his own ego wasn't someone I could be too fond of. At least Itachi did it only every so often and very subtly too. There was a certain class to being an asshole that Neji hadn't quite mastered yet. "Jealous?"

I was disappointed when he pulled his hand back, and even more surprised when he used it to flick my forehead. I saw red for only half a second before I heard him laugh.

"You must be dreaming, Haruno."

I guess one of the good things about the lockdown is that I finally have the time to sit down and write. This chapter has been sitting on my hard-drive for months now, and I'm happy to finally be able to update the story. I have read all your reviews throughout the years and I'm so happy (and I feel guilty) reading new ones after I haven't updated in a while, but I'm grateful you all have stuck with me through my long, unannounced hiatus.

In all seriousness, I hope everyone is well and doing their part to stay inside and minimize the spread of the virus.

All comments and criticism, as always, are widely accepted and appreciated.