In retrospect, it was better off not knowing the atrocity of the drama hurricane that'd blown through last night. Staying curled in Mitsuki's bed with a horrible hangover for fifty years seemed like a lesser punishment than having to face reality. Boruto's heart felt twisted and sore.

There was a soft knock, and Mitsuki came through the door and shut it quietly.

"Are you okay?"

At the question, Boruto felt like he wanted to disappear. He didn't know how to get out of this one. It was strange, he didn't have overwhelming feelings for Sarada, it was mostly the fact that if he had a sliver of a chance before, he really wouldn't now. Things had been going so good, and now they were ruined. He was severely disappointed in himself.

"No." He said. Mitsuki was someone he could trust indefinitely. But that didn't make admitting his feelings any easier. "I fucked up, Mitsuki."

"Why?"

"Because," He scrubbed both hands down his face. "I just...made a huge mistake last night."

"Who was Chocho talking about?" He said. Boruto sighed.

"She was talking about Sarada."

"Really."

He nodded.

"I kind of figured." Mitsuki crossed his legs. "She gave you that necklace, didn't she?"

At the mention of it, Boruto held on to it. "Yeah...yesterday morning."

"Why wasn't she at the party yesterday?"

"She said her family went skiing for the day. That's why they weren't at my family party either 'cause they were packing."

"Hm. I see."

Boruto rolled to his side. "I just...don't know what to do now. Chocho set me up big time."

Mitsuki sat next to Boruto. "Well, for one, she's never allowed to our parties ever again–" Boruto snorted, "–and, as soon as you can, go talk to Sarada before Chocho can get ahold of her."

Boruto smothered his face into the pillow. "It's no use. Sarada probably already hates me again."

"How do you know that?" Mitsuki raised a brow. With one swift movement, he swept the covers off of Boruto, and he gasped at the sudden rush of cold air. "I can't believe I'm saying this to you, but stop overthinking. You don't even know that Chocho talked to her."

Boruto groaned, curling up in a ball. "They're girls! After something like that though of course Chocho is going to spill everything to her."

"I thought they weren't friends, though."

"They're not." Boruto muttered.

Mitsuki looked at his friend for a long, quiet moment. He did truly seem torn up about it, after all he was thrust into the situation without much time to think and did what he deemed the best option. Mitsuki could clearly see where Boruto was coming from – he wanted to protect Sarada. And that alone showed he cared about her more than he let on, he was just horrible at showing it.

"Boruto," Mitsuki sat on the bed next to him, "so what if Chocho already told her? Wouldn't you rather offer her an explanation so she can decide what to do from there, or are you just going to run away again?"

Boruto didn't say anything. He stared at the ceiling, his mind blazing with thoughts. If he did go there, what was he supposed to say? Would Sarada even accept his explanation? Was he even ready to admit his feelings out loud? Regardless, Mitsuki was right. An anxious feeling bubbled in the pit of his stomach, and he propped himself up onto his elbows with a sigh.

"What time is it?"

"Two-thirty."

Boruto blinked. "Seriously?!"

Mitsuki shrugged. "I tried to wake you up earlier."

Boruto swore under his breath, throwing the blankets to the side. Scratching his pounding head, he stumbled to gather his keys, wallet, and his shoes. His hangover was miserable, but he had no time to gripe and groan. A phone call would not suffice, this was a conversation to be had in person. He didn't even know if their family was back from their ski trip, but he had to try.

He hopped in his car, only stalling twice, and pulled up to Sarada's house. No matter what, he had to clear things up, whether she was aware of what happened or not. The one thing she was big on was trust. They had come so far. It was stupid and defeating how easily things could be falling apart just from one miscommunication especially due to Chocho.

There was a car in the driveway. Thank God. That meant they had to be home from their ski trip. Boruto jogged onto her front porch, knocked, and the anxiety was killing him. His foot tapped mercilessly, and the door opened to reveal her uncle Itachi.

"Is...Sarada here?" Boruto asked. Itachi stared at him evenly.

"No. She's at a friends house."

Damn. Boruto tried to conceal his disappointment. He ran his fingers through his messy hair.

"Okay, sorry for bothering."

Itachi closed the door, and Boruto trudged down the front steps but then paused.

Wait, Itachi lied. What was he talking about? Sarada didn't have friends.

XxX

Sarada was laying face down into her pillow. There was no way to describe how she was feeling, truly. Bummed out, disappointed, angry, betrayed, were some adjectives that came to mind. On the car ride home, Chocho called her that morning, asked if they could talk in person, and Sarada had hesitantly complied. She almost wished she hadn't, but now there was nothing she could do.

"Sarada," Chocho had cried over the phone. "I...need to tell you something. About Boruto."

"What is it?" Sarada asked. An unsettling feeling pooled in her stomach.

"I can't tell you over the phone. Can I come over?"

So she did once Sarada was back home and settled in, and they had sat on Sarada's bed. Sarada had been clutching the ruby necklace Boruto had given her, though Chocho didn't seem to notice.

"Well…" Chocho fiddled with her hair. "First, I'm really sorry about what happened between us because of Boruto. I realize how stupid I was about it, and I miss you as a friend. I should've never done what I did."

Sarada's heart swelled. Chocho missed her? Was this the growing up Itachi had talked to her about? The redemption felt nice. For once, Sarada felt validated. She smiled.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm not mad at you. Maybe at first I was, but I'm just glad he's not between us anymore."

Chocho was silent, and that wasn't what Sarada had been expecting. The next expected topic of conversation was the ski trip Sarada had just gotten home from, but Chocho's energy said differently. Something else was up.

"What's wrong?" Sarada asked. There was a strong feeling that Chocho wasn't here to ask about her ski trip or redeem their friendship after all.

"Um, well, I know you and Boruto are a thing now, and Boruto had a party last night so I was wondering why you weren't there."

"My family went skiing up north...I didn't know he had a party. Was it fun?" Sarada questioned.

She wasn't aware, he didn't tell her. Not that he was obligated to anyway. Her family had been invited to his family party that morning, but since they were packing all morning they had declined, thus Sarada had to quickly deliver his birthday present.

Boruto and Sarada were still navigating this weird "kind of liking each other situationship but neither knew what to do about it so they weren't looking too deep into it" type of friendship. Boruto had been Sarada's first kiss and it was special, but it completely slipped her mind to ask how Chocho knew they had a "thing" because they hadn't spoken for months, the only way she'd know is if Boruto told her himself.

If that was the case, then that was a whole other conversation loaded with questions.

"I swear he would've invited you," Chocho said, and it's like she wasn't even listening to what Sarada was saying, "but he was all over every girl last night and making out with every single one. When I asked him about you he kept changing the subject, treating you like you were the dirt on his shoe! He said he hated the necklace you got him, and I even asked him if you even meant anything to him he said no!"

Sarada dipped her head in confusion, the icy anxiety festering in her chest. Her heart was thudding. "Wh-What? What...do you mean?"

"He doesn't care about you Sarada, and I don't want you getting hurt like I did! Look," she pulled out her phone and showed Sarada the picture of Boruto kissing Ava. Sarada's whole body went cold. "This is the only evidence I could get. He's a cheater, Sarada. You can't trust him! He threw this party because he knew you were going to be out of town so he could get with other girls! I even found him in Mitsuki's bedroom taking some girls' clothes off! Ugh, he disgusts me."

"Um…" There were honestly no words. How was she supposed to react? She was disappointed, her head was muddy, and her body was trembling with anxiety. She honestly thought Boruto had changed. But the proof was right in front of her face. She may have bad eyesight but she wasn't blinded enough by infatuation to turn the other cheek.

Chocho clasped Sarada's hands between her own. "He's the worst, I can't believe you ever saw anything in hmi! Please get over him Sarada, he's lying and playing you just like he did to me! I kept trying to expose him and he kicked me out of the party, he's so immature and I kept asking him why he would do this to you, and he was like, "it's none of your business," and then would find a girl to make out with."

There was an elongated silence that ensued. Sarada was staring at the floor with a blank expression on her face. Finally, Sarada spoke.

"Well...thanks for telling me." She said softly. She didn't know what else to say.

Chocho embraced her in a hug. "I'm here if you need anything." And she left.

So obviously she didn't want to be friends again, Chocho only wanted to snitch on Boruto and ruin his and Sarada's relationship. But still. The realization that Boruto was still lying to her about his character bummed her out. He hadn't changed a single bit. He only put up a front around Sarada.

Tears began welling up in her eyes. She had really started to like Boruto, but for him to go and do that with proof was telling of his character. It was all an act. He was fake with everyone, Sarada wasn't anything special. She never had been. The cookies, and the necklace was all a really good ploy. He had even said it himself, "say all the right things, kiss them once or twice, spend time with them, buy them cute things, then boom, they're hooked." He'd literally laid it out on a blueprint in front of her and she had ignored it thinking she was an exception to the rules. Boruto had put on his little show and fooled Sarada good.

A knock on her window jolted her upwards. Boruto was there, a concerned expression on his face. Sarada immediately sprung upright to her feet.

"Sarada." He leaned his head against the window. "Can we talk?"

Without a word, she drew her blinds closed. Her heart was thudding a million miles a minute. Boruto was here?! What the hell?!

Silence followed. After a few moments, she peeked through a slit in the blinds. Boruto was still sitting atop the roof, head leaning against the panelling of the house.

"Please."

Sarada couldn't stand the kicked puppy look he was giving her, and she supposed it was cold outside. She might as well be hospitable, even though her hair was in a messy bun, her mascara was smeared, and she was wearing his hoodie. How embarrassing.

She opened her window and he crawled in. Closing the window behind him, he stayed put in his spot. Sarada sat on the furthest end of her bed.

Silence.

"How...was your skiing trip?"

Sarada felt a surge of irritation. He knew what he did, yet was here trying to make small talk.

"It was fine."

Silence.

"I, uh, can't tell if you're upset." He said.

If she wasn't upset before, she was now. "Oh, upset over what? You're my first kiss, then four days later are kissing someone else? Like, do you take me for a joke? I saw the picture."

Boruto knew it. Chocho had fed her lies and now she was going to shut him out again. He clenched his fist. "Listen, Chocho is lying to you, she's trying to get back at me for not being with her! I promise it's not what it looks like."

"She had a picture, Boruto, of you kissing some other girl! I don't know about you, but being my first kiss was a pretty big deal, and you're treating it like nothing! Chocho said you admitted you don't even care about me and you hate the necklace I got you!"

Boruto's eyes widened. "What?! Sarada, are you kidding me? That's a complete lie, I swear I never said those things."

Sarada stood up, her fists held tight. "Chocho said she asked you straight up if I even meant anything to you, and you said no!"

Boruto stared at her in shock. What the hell was she going on about, he'd never said such things. He was going through the events chronologically in his brain thinking back to his and Chocho's conversation. God, this was so difficult being as drunk as he was last night and as hungover as he was this morning. His memory was shit. Then it hit him.

"I'm not playing her."

"Then why are you wearing it?"

"You know, that's a great question."

"But does she mean nothing to you?"

"What, no."

"God," Boruto ran his hands through his hair. "Fuck. Okay. Listen, Sarada, Chocho twisted my words. She asked if you meant nothing to me, and I said no, because you do mean something to me. She worded it in a way that I got confused, and I was drunk as hell last night and already had problems thinking straight, but I know for a fact I did not say you meant nothing to me, and I did not say I hated the necklace. I knew how much your first kiss meant to you, so I wouldn't have made a move if I was just going to play you. I'm not this big man whore people are making me out to be. God, Chocho is making all that shit up."

Sarada's posture loosened. The plausibility that Boruto was telling the truth was a lot higher than Chocho telling the truth, because she tended to take things to the extreme. There were so many things running through Sarada's head, one of them popping out that Boruto admitting he cared about her. But that was besides the point, there was still a picture to prove he did in fact kiss someone else last night.

"Then what about that picture? Chocho said you didn't invite me because you wanted to make out with everyone there behind my back and she even walked in on you taking off someone's clothes. You're sitting here telling me one thing and then acting completely different behind my back? What am I supposed to believe?

"You can believe me when I say I know I was set up. I didn't even know about this party, my friends planned everything as a surprise and if I had known I would've invited you, I swear. But you were going skiing with your family. And I didn't know Chocho was going to be there either. I never took anyone's clothes off, and I didn't make out with every girl there. We were playing spin the bottle kiss or tell, and when it landed on me I tried to walk away. Sarada I swear to you," He took a step closer to her and grabbed her hand, though she tried to lean away stubbornly. It only made him hold on tighter.

"It landed on Ava, that girl in our grade. You know the rules, it's either kiss them or say your crush, and the last thing I wanted to do was drag you into any more problems. Chocho was saying horrible things and trying to make it seem like I cheated on her with you, and calling you names, and just making up ridiculous rumors so I had to follow through with the stupid game and kiss someone or she was going to throw you in the middle of all this drama."

Sarada was surprised he was being so open, but that didn't erase the gravity of the current events. So many emotions and thoughts were swirling through her head.

For one, Boruto admitting indirectly that Sarada was his crush was one thing. That made the butterflies in her body flutter like crazy. But him not wanting to admit he had a crush on Sarada in front of everyone just proved he was still saving face and acting fake. So the butterflies were quickly exterminated with weeping disappointment.

The next thing was Chocho obviously had an agenda: break up Sarada and Boruto. And while Sarada now believed Boruto, that still didn't take away that he was embarrassed to admit he had a crush on her. He had good intentions, it just severely missed its intended target.

"Well, you saved your reputation. Congratulations."

Boruto frowned. "Hey, don't be like that.

"Like what? You could've simply said you didn't have a crush!"

"It's not that simple, that conversation Chocho and I had she kept bugging me until I told her who I got the necklace from. You know how she is, she took it to the next level and was going to throw you in the middle of everything!"

"No, stop trying to put all this on Chocho and take some accountability! There's a reason people will believe these rumors about you so easily, so look at yourself for once and stop blaming other people. You're just embarrassed to be linked to me! That's your problem, not mine."

Boruto flinched back. "N-No, I'm not embarrassed, I just…"

Sarada kept her stern gaze on him. He was looking everywhere but her, and that was all the confirmation she needed. He had no excuses simply because it was the truth. Sarada was no Chocho Akimichi, or his former ex girlfriend Eden Sommer, and Boruto knew that. She was Sarada Uchiha. Plain, unfashionable, nerdy, boring Sarada Uchiha. Not a super model, she didn't turn heads, she wasn't popular. She was just Sarada. And that wasn't good enough for Boruto to want to claim.

Sarada tried to never act based on emotion, which was lucky in this case because hers were all over the place. The Boruto Uzumaki admitted he cared about her, and she was his crush, but it meant nothing because his actions around others didn't show it. She had to look at the facts, not the emotional obligation.

This was too much at once.

"I don't want someone around me that doesn't appreciate me for who I am. You show me in private that you care, and I believe you when it's just us. But when it comes to everyone else, you'd rather pretend I didn't exist."

Boruto looked to the floor. Sarada felt tears pool in the corner of her eyes.

"You had me convinced I was special, but you even said it yourself. It's easy to get any girl you want, and I just became another name on your list. You think you like me until you realized everyone was going to judge you and you couldn't have your reputation taking a hit for liking Sarada Uchiha." Sarada seethed.

Boruto's eyes were closed, his fists clamped together tightly, until he slowly looked up at her. His eyes were bloodshot and glossy.

"It's not like that." He said.

Sarada kept their intense gazes locked.

"I don't believe you."

Boruto's shoulders drooped, and he slowly let go of Sarada's hand. Her hand was left feeling cold as he carefully raised his hands behind his head, unclasped the cross necklace she had given him off his neck, and set it in her hand gently. "Keep it. I don't deserve it or you."

Without another word, he climbed back out her window.

XxX

If Sarada had a dollar every time Boruto's name was brought up Monday morning back at school, she would be a trillionaire. Rumors were flying; saying Boruto cheated on Chocho, Boruto slept with this girl, Boruto kissed that girl, Boruto was dating Chocho, Boruto did this, Boruto said that, and most shocking of all, Boruto had a crush?! Frankly, it was driving Sarada up a wall. People must've been way too bored with their own lives to want to stay talking about someone else.

Of course, Boruto was back to his usual cocky self, so nothing new changed there. There was no longer a guilty-conscious resident in his mind since Sarada metaphorically set him free from having to stress about breaking it to the general public that he had a crush on Sarada Uchiha. The only difference was now there were rumors about all the infidelities that happened at the party.

"Oh my God, Chocho said Boruto cheated on her with some skank." Sarada overheard two girls saying in her homeroom. "I wonder who that hoe is?"

"A downgrade, just like she said." The other girl responded. "Probably ugly and looking for popularity. If she wanted to be noticed so bad why don't we know her name?"

"We should ask Chocho since she knows."

"No! She's probably still upset about it."

"But her and Boruto are back together!"

"No they're not, Chocho told me she hasn't forgiven him. He's begging for her back, though." A third girl joined the conversation. The first two girls gasped.

"No way!"

"Oh my gosh, are you guys talking about Boruto?! Apparently he's dating that girl he kissed at his party!"

"Ava?"

"Yeah! She said so herself!""

Sarada was fed up. Being in this setting was not helping her at all. She threw her shoulder bag over her head and stormed out of the room. When Boruto said he was set up, he sure was right about that one. But that didn't matter. No matter how hard he tried to stay out of drama, he somehow always ended up being in the spotlight. People were way too concerned with Boruto's life. Maybe this was a blessing in disguise; Sarada was content with her small little bubble she had created for herself and now it was going to stay that way. No drama, no rumors, no fakes, nothing. It had almost been burst, but removing herself from the public eye by taking back halls and disappearing into the crowd was helping significantly.

"Sarada!" Metal ran up to her at her locker, still jogging in place once he caught up. "How are you feeling today?"

She shrugged. She was too defeated to come up with an authentic answer. "The same as usual."

"Would you like to come watch me run five miles today?" He asked with a large grin.

"If I didn't have paperwork I would."

Metal gave her a thumbs up. "Then do not worry! I'll see you later!" He waved as he jogged away. She shook her head. Metal was such a character, he always made her day.

Sarada dreaded going back to the homeroom. Boruto had been taken off probation so was therefore allowed back into the student council. They would be stuck alone in a room for up to two hours in complete awkward silence, since it was Monday it was just the two of them. Standing in front of the doorway, she took a deep breath and slid open the door. Boruto was already there, tapping his pen impatiently.

"Took you long enough."

"Drop it." Sarada glared, and Boruto immediately recoiled. When he was blunt, he just expected Sarada to take it, but he could never handle it when she dished it back. It was because she was so nice and sweet all the time that when she finally snapped, Boruto very quickly knew she meant it.

"I'm sorry."

He sounded so genuinely hurt. He was well aware of what Sarada had been feeling and the rumors she'd been hearing all day, but Sarada held her composure.

"Let's just get it done quickly."

Their conversations kept strictly to school-related only, even though Sarada caught Boruto staring in her direction more than once. Her mind drifted to Metal who had invited her to watch his exercise. Being suffocated in this room with Boruto was driving her crazy.

Hm. Maybe a change of scenery would do her some good after all.

"Boruto, I'm going to the track." She said firmly. "Finish these papers for me."

He blinked, then his expression turned incredulous. "You're kidding?"

"No, I'm not." She snipped, and he flinched. "I have my reasons, and I've had enough alone time with you for one day."

Boruto frowned. "Don't be unreasonable–"

"I don't want to hear it." As she turned to open the door, he quickly grabbed her arm.

Instinctively, she quickly swung her free elbow towards his temple, but he blocked it swiftly, then pressed her against the door.

"Knock your shit! Listen, I know this whole situation is shitty, but just stop listening to everyone." He said. "I wouldn't have given you that necklace if you didn't mean something to me. I wouldn't have made you cookies either, I don't do that shit for just anyone."

She narrowed her eyes, her hand subconsciously grabbing the ruby necklace hanging around her neck.

"You walked out on me and gave your necklace back, that's pretty telling about how you really feel!" Her gaze was intense. "You know what, Boruto, you can't beg me to trust you and tell me you care when you don't even show it! If you care about me you'd show it all the time, not just when it's convenient for you! Just accept the fact that you're a liar who cares way more about being what other people want you to be rather than being who you actually are and sleeps with every girl that looks at you."

Boruto looked at her and took in a deep breath, letting it out slowly.

"You really believe that?" His voice cracked.

Sarada couldn't look him in the eyes.

"Let me go."

His eyes quivered, but he did as she said. As she flipped her hair behind her shoulder, the ruby crystal caught a sliver of light from the sunset, making it flash red across the hallway. His heart felt twisted.

He was an idiot. But Sarada was right. About everything. She was way too smart and observant to be fooled by his bullshit. He honestly had good intentions deep down and thought he was ready, but really he wasn't. This wasn't one of their typical miscommunications, this was all on Boruto. He always blamed other people rather than self-reflecting and realizing how his actions played a part in his reputation. Sure, Chocho took things out of context, but at the end of the day, it was so believable due to Boruto's lack of integrity.

Now, the only thing he could do was just hope she would wait long enough for him to gather the courage to be himself, and then he would have no fears of others' judgement getting in the way of his feelings. It was stupid. He was stupid.

As long as Sarada kelt that necklace on, he had hope that he could still fix this. If she took it off, that meant she was done for good.

Metal was hyping himself up. There was shouting, cheering, and whooping heard as Sarada approached the track field. Her head felt hazy, she didn't like it. The fresh air was doing her good, though, as she sat on the bleachers far away. She couldn't seem to tear her mind off of Boruto, though, and it made her heart twist in uncomfortable knots.

"Sarada!" She heard Metal's voice from far away as he jogged closer. "You made it!"

She smiled, curling closer into her coat. "Yeah, sorry I didn't get here earlier!"

"That is okay!" He said, his voice slowly fading as he ran around the corner. "I still have one more lap!"

She liked Metal's aura. It was clear, strong, and precise. Boruto's was often changing, very muddy, and stressed her out. But at the same time, she couldn't deny the chemistry they had. Just being in the same room as him made her feel some type of way.

But he was a liar, immature, and placed his worth upon other people's opinions. He wasn't honest nor reliable. It was vital that Sarada come to terms with that fully and completely put a close to their relationship or else they'd continue to bounce back and forth like they have for so long.

Once Metal was finished with his lap, he ran over to Sarada.

"Barely made my goal!"

"Good job!" Sarada laughed. Short shorts really weren't a good look on him, but it was an essential for runners, so it was excused.

After taking large gulps of water, Metal let out a refreshing sigh.

"I feel great! Are you busy right now?"

"No, why?"

"Do you want to go out for ice cream?"

Sarada blinked. "Right after your workout?"

Metal held a thumb up. "I get sorbet!"

Sarada smiled. She supposed it wouldn't hurt. "Yeah, I'd really like that."

Boruto was in the classroom leaning against the window pane watching Sarada and Metal walk through the sunset-lit field. They went towards the parking lot, and she got inside his car.

He turned back to the paperwork without a word.