Author's Note: Here's the next installment. I hope you enjoy!

title: carside, written for anonymous
prompt: pack it up man; we're going on a roadtrip
pairing: naruto x sakura x sasuke
genre: romance / general / humor
rating: t

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters, they belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Let me know what you think by reviewing! Favorite and follow, also!

Sakura was pulled from her dreams by harsh whispers and the echoing jolt of her bedroom door.

Blearily, she stared up at the ceiling, blinking away the last remnants of sleep from her eyes. The banging against the entryway to her room persisted, jolting her tired form further awake. The pinkette propped herself up on her elbows, green eyes focused on the hardwood that gave another auditable cry under the unknown pressure.

Ever so cautiously slow, Sakura slipped from her haven of blankets, taking a tentative step in the direction of the door. She strained to listen for anything…something…that would give her a clue as to what lay beyond the threshold of the oak archway.

There was a growl, followed by the shifting of what she could only assume was a body, and for a fleeting moment, the rosette relaxed.

Kakashi was notorious for releasing his dogs in her apartment and Pakkun, the ever-meddlesome pug, was constantly starving for her attention. Prompting him to scratch at her door anytime he was over.

Really, Sakura needed to have a sit-down discussion with her childhood friend. Just because she had known Kakashi for years, didn't mean that Sakura was going to look after his animal companions whenever he felt the compelling need to run off for a few days, no matter how cute they happened to be.

Only after the rosette took another step towards the door did her composed state suddenly crumble; a muffled curse filtering through from behind the door. Kakashi's canines may have learned a lot of tricks over the course their lifetimes but talking didn't happen to be one of them.

Whoever, or whatever, was shuffling around on the other side of that opening, abruptly stopped. The silence didn't last long, however. The clattering of metal filled the silence of her room, her doorknob rattling as some unknown force shook it.

Sakura swore that if this was one of Ino's convoluted pranks, little jokes that the blonde randomly liked to pull every once and a while because Ino got a kick out of scaring the emerald-eyed woman, Sakura was going to murder her best friend.

Irrevocably seeking answers, the cherry-haired female crept forward, drawn to the door, fingers wrapping around the handle. With a flick of her wrist, Sakura tossed the hatch open, quickly taking a step back to allow adequate space between herself and the would-be burglar.

The sight that greeted Sakura was something she hadn't been prepared for, and the pinkette's jaw unhinged as she drank in the scene before her.

There, sitting on his hands and knees, was Sasuke Uchiha, holding a hairpin – one that she distinctly remembered depositing on her bathroom counter the night before – suspended in the air before him.

Her lips parted further, mind trying to seek clarification on what the hell was going on, but Sakura was unable to form any words. After a moment, her mouth closed with a sharp 'click' of her teeth, only to part once again after another moment of silence.

Cocking her head to the side, viridian eyes swam over his form, unsettled by the conclusions her brain was jumping to.

"Were you…," Sakura broke off her inquiry, not believing what she was about to ask. "Were you trying to break in?"

Onyx eyes narrowed at her question, and Sasuke regarding her coolly. The bobby slipped from his grasp, crashing to the floor as he stiffly stood. Sakura was unsure of how someone caught in this position could look so dignified, but Sasuke rose to his feet with all the regality of a prince, his usual mask of indifference encompassing his face.

"This was the Idiot's idea," Was all he offered in terms of explanation.

"You're telling me that Naruto is responsible for this?" Sakura challenged, her tone incredulous. "That he told you to break into my apartment and my bedroom!?"

Nonplussed under her snapped questions, Sasuke softly chided, "Don't screech. It's not becoming for someone like you."

"Not becoming!?" Sakura growled, hands clenched into fists at her sides. "I'll show you what's not becoming, Uchiha!"

Before the situation could escalate any further, a familiar head a blond hair appeared at the end of the hallway.

"We didn't technically break in Sakura-chan," Naruto chirped with a sunny smile. "You gave us a key, remember?"

Never in her young life had Sakura regretted a decision more.

It was an inane idea to gift these two with a way to gain entrance to her humble abode, specifically, because of situations like this. Looking back on it now, Sakura couldn't understand why she had done it in the first place. She must have been tired from her hospital shift that afternoon because under no normal circumstances would the logical side of her brain be okay with something like that.

"Naruto…," The viridian eyed woman started, slowly attention drawn to the bundle the blond held in his hands. "Why are you holding my bath towels?"

Naruto blinked, confusion swimming in his blue gaze. He looked down at the folded garments in his fingers, then back at Sakura.

After a pregnant pause, he responded, in a tone that made it seem the answer was the most obvious thing in the world, "Because we're going to need them."

Sakura's mouth dropped open again, though her lips still refused to formulate the questions that were jumping around in her head.

"Close your mouth and pack your things," The raven-haired male commanded, brushing past Sakura as he entered her bedroom. "We're leaving in an hour."

The demand broke the green-eyed woman from her horrified stupor.

"Leaving? Leaving to go where exactly?" She questioned, rounding on Sasuke. He was impatiently digging through her dresser drawers, throwing shirts and jeans alike over his shoulder. The flying articles of clothing landed in a misconstrued pile, half on her bed, half on the carpet.

Sakura took a step in the Uchiha's direction, ready to verbally – and physically – reprimand him for his odd and demeaning behavior. As she was reaching out to yank him back by the collar of his shirt, Naruto entered the room, depositing – on top of the growing pile on her mattress – not only her bath towels but also a relatively impressive collection of her toiletries.

"I think I got most of them…," The knuckleheaded male murmured under his breath.

Reaching down, Naruto rummaged through the assortment of clothes and various belongings to extract a box, holding it out towards Sakura for inspection. "You're not going to need more than this, right Sakura-chan?"

Embarrassment and mortification flooded her system, and Sakura tried her best to fight down the rising heat in her cheeks. Scrambling across the room, she snatched the container of tampons out of Naruto's grip, cradling it to her chest.

"Alright, enough!" Sakura bellowed, finally drawing the attention of both men. "Either of you want to explain to me just what in the world is going on here? What are you doing here? And why are you destroying my room!?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes towards the ceiling, releasing a small sigh. Slowly, his gaze shifted to Naruto, gracing him with a pointed glower which indicated the Uchiha wanted the blond to explain.

"We're going on a road trip, Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed with a broad grin.

"…A road trip…?" The pinkette parroted.

"Tch. Yes, a trip. Could you stop asking questions now and help us gather up what you need?"

Sakura turned her head in Sasuke's direction as he spoke, leveling him with a scowl.

"I can't just leave Sasuke. I have a job! And none of that explains why you were trying to break into my bedroom!"

"Well," Naruto started, gaining her attention once more. He rubbed the back of his head stiffly, releasing a nervous chuckle. "You didn't exactly wake up when we knocked. Plus, Sasuke thought it would be better if we pack up as much as we could without waking you. We know you had a late shift last night."

A bubblegum-pink brow rose in question, and her inquisitive stare turned back to the Uchiha. The slight rosy tint which broke out on Sasuke's pale cheeks answered the unspoken question, illustrating Naruto's words were true.

"We can't pack for you if your bedroom door is closed," Sasuke mumbled blandly.

The corner of Sakura's mouth twitched as she repressed a small smile, her stance half-shifting in Naruto's direction. "Either way," She commented lightly. "This doesn't change the fact that I can't leave with the two of you. What about my job? What about Ino? I can't abandon my responsibilities and my roommate."

"Write Yamanaka a note," Sasuke grumbled, turning back to the opened draws so he could continue his excavation of her attire.

"And don't worry about Granny or the hospital," Naruto assured. "We already took care of everything. You're covered for the next three weeks. Baa-chan said that you hadn't had a vacation in almost two years, and you have enough time saved up. She was more than happy to part ways with you for the time being."

A frown marred Sakura's brow. "You two went to my boss?"

At Sasuke's grunt and Naruto's jubilant nod, she continued, "And she said that she's okay with you two taking me on some spontaneous road trip? One that will require me to be gone for almost a month?"

As hard as the circumstances were to believe, Sakura wouldn't put it past Tsunade to agree to this baffling scheme.

Before either male could answer the question, Sakura started again, "Really, what is this all about?"

Tossing the box of feminine products on the bed, the rosette crossed her arms over her chest. Naruto, who had begun to fold the clothes which Sasuke had deposited onto the mattress, didn't answer right away.

"You're working too much," The Uchiha groused from his perch by her dresser.

"Plus," Naruto hummed, not taking his eyes off of the task in front of him. "It's your birthday next week. What better way to spend it than on some beach somewhere, sipping on a fruity drink, with the two of us?"

The query sparked the vivid image of Sakura lounging out under the sun, toes buried in the sand, and her every request completed by an eager Naruto and a surprisingly compliant Sasuke. Days spent traveling from city to city, and nights spent together in fancy, private hotel rooms…exploring the more intimate side of their relationship. It was an incredibly tempting offer.

Caught up in the potential that this would-be vacation offered, Sakura's shoulders slumped, any resistance departing from her body.

"Alright," She softly coincided. "Finish packing before I change my mind. I'm going to make a quick bite to eat."

She spun on her heel, padding out of the bedroom and down the corridor towards her kitchen.

Halfway down the hallway, Naruto's thrilled cry of, "Yes! Vacation time!" reached her ears, and a tiny smile curled on her lips.

It was his follow-up statement that made her grin drop.

"Bastard, make sure you only pack her cute underwear!"

"Naruto!"

Thank you for reading!

word count: 1,837
last edited on: 03/30/18

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