Day 6: Shivers
Haruno Sakura was in a conundrum.
On one hand, she was finally warm.
On the other, she could see the hairs standing up on Sasuke-kun's arm.
But she was finally warm. Cheerleading might keep your blood up during the game, but walking home after sunset in November wasn't nearly as invigorating. She'd tried hard not to show it, though, when Sasuke-kun - THE Uchiha Sasuke, campus heartthrob and star of the football team - offered to walk her home.
Still, he'd probably guessed just how cold she was by the way her teeth had chattered when she'd said "Yes."
They'd walked along the streets in silence until they turned the corner, well out of sight of any of the lookie-loos who'd gathered to watch them go. She half-expected someone to follow them, but none of them did after Sasuke had done… something. Sakura wasn't sure what - she was too cold to notice.
Dammit Ino, that pig. She's going to tease me about this so much in Biology tomorrow morning!
Sakura still hadn't regretted saying yes, though. Despite the awkward silence and few feet between them and the fact that her lips were probably blue, she'd simply basked in his presence. He was a dark guardian angel by her side, carrying both his football gear and her bag, always making sure he was between her and the road despite the fact that the suburban streets were empty at this hour.
It was so nice. Sakura never wanted to get home.
Except she was freezing.
And then they'd turned that corner. And Sasuke-kun had fallen a few steps behind her. In the few seconds before she'd realized that he was no longer beside her, a heavy weight fell on her shoulders. When she looked down, she realized that he'd draped his heavy varsity jacket over her shoulders.
"Sasuke-kun?"
"Just wear it. Otherwise, you'll freeze before you get home."
"But won't you be cold?"
"Better than dead if Aunt Mebuki thinks I let you catch a cold." Without giving her a chance to protest any more, Sasuke started walking again.
Sakura shuddered involuntarily, thinking of the way her mother had yelled something about a sweater as she ran out the door. She hadn't listened, of course - she'd miss Sasuke-kun if she left any later. Her mom would probably give her an earful if she came back with blue lips.
The jacket smelled like him, like his deodorant and grass and just a hint of teenage boy. It enveloped her in leather, wool, and the remnants of Sasuke-kun's body heat, which warmed her up nicely. If she hadn't been so cold, she might have already started nosebleeding all over his lucky number 7. It was heavenly.
That led to her current conundrum.
Sasuke-kun was cold.
He was actually shivering. Sakura could see the way the tendons in his arms stood out as he clenched his fists hard, trying not to give away the tremors. As much as she enjoyed being treated like this, she never wanted it to come at the expense of Sasuke-kun's health.
"Sasuke-kun, I'm warm now. Do you want your jacket back?" She asked
"Keep it until we get to your house." He didn't even look back from where he was, several steps in front of her.
Knew it. Shannaro! Boys. Even her beloved Sasuke-kun could fall prey to the follies of the male ego. Like the determined fangirl she was, she couldn't just disregard his health like this.
If he won't take his jacket back, then I'm just going to have to warm him up some other way!
Gathering up all her courage, she called, "Sasuke-kun, wait for me!" and chased after him. She knew he'd stop, just like she knew he wouldn't be expecting her surprise attack.
Sakura caught up with him and wrapped her arms around him in a giant bear hug, despite the fact that she just fit under his chin. Sasuke stiffened, but he must have been cold because he didn't push her away. He didn't hug her back or relax either, but Sakura would take what she could get. She was glad for the dark November evening, now, since it hid her bright red face in the shadows of twilight.
"Don't get the wrong idea, Sasuke-kun. I'm not taking advantage of you," She insisted, still hiding her face in his chest, "I'm just worried that the rest of the team will kill me if you get sick in the middle of the season because of me."
From her vantage point, she couldn't see the small smile on his face. She could, however, feel him relax and pat her back gently with the hand that wasn't holding their bags. Startled, she looked up at him.
"We can't walk like this," He said, his face back to its normal expressionless mien, "And you have a curfew."
Before Sakura could protest, though, he shifted and wrapped one arm around her shoulders, leaving one of her arms around his waist. Then he started walking like nothing unusual happened.
Sakura floated all the way home.
AN: As you may have noticed, I do like my AUs, but this one I have to blame squarely on Jyacira1 on tumblr, who has the most adorable sketch of Cheerleader!Sakura and Quarterback(?)!Sasuke inspired this one. I'll reblog the image on my tumblr (same username as my penname) if you want to see (although given how popular that image is, you probably already have!). High school AUs are one of those things I always want to write, but given my propensity to smut things up... I probably won't LOL. I hope you enjoyed this little snip, though!