When Madara finally returned to consciousness that morning, he was immediately aware of the lack of the warmth that had been pressed against him that night.
His eyes flicked open the moment he realized Sakura was no longer curled up against him. After blinking to clear his vision and to try to clear away the discomfort in his eyes, the finally crisp sight before him only reinforced the fact she was gone.
The opposite side of his bed was empty. As usual.
He tilted his head to face the opposite end of his bedroom, noting that her clothes were also gone from the floor. Or at least her panties were, as the rest of her clothes had been deposited in various rooms around the house the night before.
He had thought that her interest in the rooms of his home meant an interest in him, beyond the sex. Apparently not. She had probably woke up before him, realized where she was and what she had done a second time, and got an Uber home or something.
'Why are you surprised?' The Uchiha thought, the tone of his inner dialogue as sharp and ruthless as usual, 'She's young. She's beautiful. Women like her don't stick around for men like you. They just come to get their kicks, sleeping with the scary biker, before taking off…'
He sat up, his still uncomfortable eyes slowly drifting over to the spot on his bed that Sakura had occupied that night. His hand slid across the sheets she once laid on, the fabric long cold.
As he gazed at the empty half of his bed, his mind replayed the events of that night, after their sexual high had ran out and exhaustion was all that remained.
After laying a dozen affectionate kisses along Sakura's spine and basking in the feeling of her running her fingers through his unmanageable hair with an ease that distantly baffled him, she lightly tapped one of the arms that still caged her against the bed.
Madara rolled over to his side, allowing her to slide out of his embrace and to her feet. With a brief explanation of "back in a sec", she padded in the direction of what he assumed to be the bathroom, offering him a view of her sculpted rear and legs.
As she disappeared from sight, Madara leaned back against his pillows and crossed his arms beneath his head. Humming in thought, he considered his next step. After all, when she returned, he expected her to have her clothes and to shyly state her want to go home.
As he waited, he weighed his options: whether he should give her a ride home himself or just call her a cab.
He wanted to take her himself to give himself some time to convince her to meet with him again. He wanted to see her again, even if it was just to repeat this night. Perhaps at her apartment next time?
As he thought, he seriously contemplated doing something he had done so few times in his life that he could count the number on one hand; he considered asking her to dinner.
There was no doubt in his mind that Sakura was the most satisfying lover he had ever had the pleasure of sharing a bed with, a fact that surprised him considering he was nearly two decades older than her. More than that, however, he could admit that he was captivated by the young woman. She had been a prominent figure in his thoughts ever since he met her and the time they had spent together had done little to sway his fascination in her.
She was nothing like what he had expected. He was curious about who his little hellcat was and he wanted to get to know her beyond how she liked to be fucked.
If she decided that she wanted a purely sexual relationship with him, he would be hard pressed to deny her. If she decided she simply wanted to be friends, he would sate himself with her company. If she decided she wanted to part ways, he would find a way to soothe his disappointment.
But the possibility that she would say yes, the possibility that they could share nights like this and even more together…
That settled it. He would give her a ride home himself and ask her to dinner when he dropped her off.
When Sakura finally reappeared, an arm wrapped around her petite breasts in an attempt at modesty, he had already planned out what he would say in response to her inevitably stating that she wanted to go home.
As he gathered the air into his lungs to fuel his offer to give her a ride home himself, Sakura stole his breath by confidently sliding across his blanket towards him and draping herself over his chest. Her lithe, warm body felt as soft as silk as she pressed against him and asserted her want to stay without words.
Madara immediately hooked his arm around her, perhaps too quickly, and pulled her closer to him. Her sigh of contentment as she cuddled up to him had a tightness constricting his chest. The smell of her shampoo as he pressed his nose to the crown of her head muddled his thoughts. The feeling of her lips brushing against his chest as she nuzzled his neck inspired the sensation of satisfaction within him.
His planned words completely forgotten, he greedily basked in her warmth.
He nearly shivered when her hand slid down his shoulder and as her delicate fingertips began to dance across his skin. It took him a long moment to realize that she was tracing the outline of the black and gray tattoo of a hawk which was inked across his pectoral.
"I think this one is my favorite…" she hummed, running the pads of her fingers across the tattoo as if to feel if there was a difference between his bare and his inked skin.
"What appeals to you about that one?" the Uchiha asked, curiosity coloring his tone.
"Hmm… well… Hawks symbolize awareness. Clear sightedness. A vision for a brighter future. I think that suits you well, considering how you look after your family... And considering all the new charities you and the club started since you took over," she detailed, carefully tracing the feathers of the hawk, "I'm a big fan of the one where you auction off bikes to help cancer patients pay their hospital bills."
"That's… remarkably thoughtful of you."
No one had ever complimented his tattoos in such an insightful fashion before. Normally he received half-baked replies that only considered whether or not the person personally liked the animal inked onto his skin or dull compliments on how 'sexy' his deeply significant tattoos were. Her knowledge of symbolism had impressed him in particular, him not having expected such a detailed response to his simple question at all.
"Also, I really like the placement," Sakura admitted, a smirk in her voice as she dragged her fingernail across his built pectoral. She continued, tracing the path of the swooping hawk down towards the defined muscles of his abdomen.
Madara chuckled. "Ah, I knew you had an alternative reasoning."
She giggled softly against his skin. A long yet comfortable silence stretched between them as her fingers continued to follow the dark lines painted into his skin. Her fingertips brushed down his chest to touch the black and gray tattoo of a wolf which dominated his left side. The ink spanned from the crest of his hip to his pectoral and curled out over his ribs.
Her hands drifted upwards until she began to explore the black and gray half sleeve of a tiger which decorated his muscled bicep. Since she couldn't reach them with her curled up against him, she was unable to investigate the tattoos of the bull on his right arm or the bear on his right side but she settled on exploring the inked images of the hawk on his pectorals, the elk on his chest, and the wolf on his side.
"I get the feeling all of your tattoos have meanings…" she commented offhandedly, her voice slowly growing quieter as their conversation continued.
"They all do. Perhaps one day I'll tell you what they mean," he hummed against her hair as her exploring hand flattened across the tattoo of the hawk inked across his pectoral.
"I'd like that…" Sakura sighed sweetly as she nestled further into his chest.
He slowly ran his fingers through her hair, his eyes sliding shut as he savored her tender embrace.
The wild haired man wondered how long it would take before she wanted to go home. How long she wanted to steal his warmth before she became bored and wanted to leave or wanted more sex. While he certainly wouldn't deny his hellion of a bed partner any pleasures she wanted of him, he could not recall the last time that he had been so thoroughly cuddled.
Her embrace sated some deep-seated longing for simple physical affection that had been neatly tucked away and thoroughly ignored for years. Simple sex had been an effective balm for this need but this young woman so sweetly curled up against him felt like a remedy.
Madara found himself hard pressed to remove himself from her embrace. He pondered how much longer he had to indulge in her warm body.
Women didn't sleep with outlaw bikers and then stick around the cuddle of all things after all... Well, at least none of the women he was used to did.
His silent questions were answered by Sakura beginning to nod off in his arms. Baffled, he felt as her body became even more relaxed and heard as her breathing became deep and slow as she dozed off. A smile tugged at his lips when he realized that she intended to stay the night with him.
As carefully as one could when lying on top of the blankets and with a woman curled up against them, he flipped the switch next to his bed to turn off the lights and tugged down his sex rumpled blankets to cover them. As soon as he pulled his comforter over them, Sakura settled into the space between his sheets and against him as if the spot had been made for her.
She fell asleep and stayed asleep with practiced ease while he remained, unable to fall asleep for some time with the feeling of her peacefully dozing in his arms.
Despite the fact that all the lights were on in his house, illuminating a strip of light which snuck into his darkened bedroom, and the fact that he wasn't certain he had even locked the door to his garage, nothing was going to pull him from that bed. From Sakura sleeping so peacefully in his embrace.
He could hardly remember the last time a woman had stayed the night at his home let alone the last time one had slept in his arms.
Sure, the wild haired man had shared his bed and… other places… with a number of women. He knew he was attractive and the member of a motorcycle club angle seemed to be a fetish for some women. He had taken full advantage of those facts when he had first become a full fledged member of the MC, back when his father was still alive and still the president.
The sex had been fun but he quickly noticed that few of the women he involved himself with ever stuck around. Some would cling to his arm at the bar or the clubhouse while others would stick around to try to get something out of him but very few had ever stuck around for more than a week and even fewer still had seen his home.
They never lingered or bothered to get to know him passed him being in an MC. Few ever showed an interest in being his old lady, despite being more than happy being taken to his bed, and the ones who did had always wanted to take advantage of his status. They wanted the scary biker boyfriend to scare off any previous lovers, to hook them up with their drug of choice, or to feed their power trip, as if becoming his old lady would make them queen of the MC.
They all made judgements on him based off of stereotypes. The ones who lingered certainly did but he wondered what the ones who left thought of him. If they left because they thought he was incapable of commitment, that he would be unfaithful, or that he would be abusive. All the farthest things from the truth.
The fact women rarely stuck around hadn't bothered him too much during his wild younger years, but now…
Now that he was in his forties. Now that he felt a pang of envy when he remembered how madly in love his parents had been, so enamored by one another that they had had five children together. Now that he truly saw how happy Fugaku was with his loving wife, Mikoto, and their sons.
He craved more.
And with this strange woman, this beautiful and mysterious woman who was nothing like anyone he had ever met, sleeping in his bed...
Madara's line of thought was interrupted by a sleepy snort from the woman fast asleep in his arms. He blinked in surprise before quietly chuckling to himself and wrapping himself around her tighter. Even her snores were oddly endearing.
It took longer than he cared to admit for his thoughts to slow and for him to calm down, slowly lulled into near sleep by Sakura's warm body and soft noises. It was when he was on the brink of unconsciousness that she had moved in her sleep.
A warmth spread in his chest when she wrapped herself around him even tighter, her small hand grasping at his shoulders and her leg hooking high around his waist. It had been as if she was seeking him out even in her sleep, as if she needed to be closer to him.
His arms tightened around her instantly, his guarded heart clenching in his chest as it sputtered to life like a beat down motorcycle.
It took much longer to finally fall asleep after that.
Madara shook his head, dislodging his line of thinking as his eyes refocused on the empty space next to him. She hadn't stayed.
'You're giving meaning to things that weren't there. Just be happy she bothered with you a second time. At the very least, it means you're good in bed. The only thing women like her want from old men like you is sex.'
He pulled his hand away from the spot she had once occupied with a disappointed sigh. He rubbed at his uncomfortable eyes once again before he finally realized the source of his discomfort: he had left his damn contacts in overnight again.
Standing from his spot on the bed, the Uchiha walked over to his dresser and pulled out a clean pair of jeans. He dragged them up to rest on his hips, not even bothering to zip them up. He leaned down to pick up his discarded pants from the floor, unclipping his holster from the back of the waistband. He tossed his dirty jeans into the laundry basket in his closet before depositing his handgun on top of his dresser.
He padded over to his nightstand to grab one of his pairs of glasses and, with another tired itch at his burning eyes, he trudged into his bathroom with a silent sigh.
After dropping off his glasses on the counter and relieving himself, he stood in front of his medicine cabinet and stared at his reflection. The same old face stared back at him, although the signs of his aging were becoming more noticeable to him every day. His ebony hair was still as wild and unmanageable as ever, something he wouldn't even bother dealing with today, but the bags under his eyes were getting deeper. He noticed that frown lines were slowly making their appearance on his face and crow's feet were already in the corners of his already tired eyes. His eyes were even bloodshot from his contacts agitating his eyes all night, making him look that much older.
He pulled open the medicine cabinet with more force than necessary, blocking out the thought that he was too old for her anyways before the discomfort from it even registered. He fished out the fluid filled container for his contacts, placing it on the counter, and pawed into the shelves to grab his toothbrush and toothpaste.
He made quick work of brushing his teeth, washing his face, and pulling out his dry contacts. After rubbing the last of the discomfort from his eyes, dropping a couple drops of visine into his bloodshot orbs, and slipping on his glasses, he decided he would make himself something for breakfast. Afterwards, he would return to the bathroom for an actual shower so he could wash her scent off of his skin.
As he walked passed his bedroom, he briefly considered washing his sheets as well. It would be easier to fall asleep that night without her feminine scent bringing back memories of her affections.
When he stepped into his living room, the sight that greeted him nearly made him trip over his own bare feet in shock. Instead, he stopped moving entirely, suddenly rooted to the ground, and adjusted his glasses as if they were the cause of what he was seeing.
Normally most people would take pause at an attractive woman in daisy dukes leaning over provocatively… but seeing as it was her, leaning over in his living room, flipping through the channels on his tv… he felt as if his stunned silence and rising giddiness as he stared at her in wonder was perfectly acceptable.
'Sakura… she's still here… She's changing the channels with the cable box instead of using the remote… but she's here,' his dazed mind slowly processed as he stared at her with an expression of shock decorating his face.
As if hearing his thoughts, and after settling on a news station babbling about some nonsense regarding a political scandal, Sakura turned to look over her shoulder at him.
Madara felt a little burst of pride as Sakura's eyes briefly dipped down to his exposed chest and then farther down to the trail of hair leading into his still unzipped jeans. When she met his eyes again and smiled warmly, a blush lightening her cheeks, he couldn't help but smile back.
"Good morning," she greeted shyly before clearing her throat and gesturing to his television, "Uh, sorry I'm messing with your stuff... I'm wide awake at six AM on the dot no matter what I do. Comes from working at the hospital."
His eyes flicked over to the clock in the corner of the news broadcast. 6:49 AM.
His brain slowly absorbed that she had been awake in his house while he had been asleep for nearly an hour. He had been about to comment that she could have just woken him up when his mind finally processed and immediately tripped over the word 'hospital'.
"Hospital?" He parroted, surprised.
He gave himself a mental shake. He had been nearly certain that Sakura was some sort of a martial arts instructor or a personal trainer. The last thing he expected his hellcat to be was in healthcare.
"You work in the regional hospital?" He clarified cooly as he made his way into his kitchen, still regarding her over the bar, as he began looking for something to make for breakfast.
"Yes, I'm an RN and I work in the ER," she explained as she followed him into the kitchen.
He turned to shoot her a surprised look, shocked to learn that not only was she a nurse but that she worked in the emergency room, before she continued with yet another startling fact.
"And I'm in medical school," she subtly preened, leaning back against the bar that bridged his kitchen and living room.
"You're going to be a doctor?" He asked with a slowly growing grin, setting down the frying pan he had located on the stove as he turned to face her, giving her a full view of the ink, and the scars, he had gathered over the years.
"I am. I want to be a surgeon," she replied with a smile and an endearing tilt of her head.
His smile turned into something more teasing as he took a step forward to cage her against the bar with his arms.
This woman truly was a goddess. A warrior to be reckoned with, exotically beautiful, talented in bed, apparently a genius if she was in medical school, made the cutest noises when she slept… which only left one question.
"And here you are…" he hummed, gazing into her eyes as his subtle question hung in the air.
What on earth is a woman like you doing with a man like me?
"I never said that I didn't know how to have fun," she sassed with a cheeky smirk, drawing a laugh from the elder man.
"Hmm… How old are you, Sa-ku-ra?"
"Twenty five," she answered simply, one of her hands wandering from its place on the bar to slide up his muscled forearm, exploring the black and gray tattoos decorating his skin. He nearly shivered as her fingertips continued to wander, drifting up to his shoulder before cutting a path down to the design on his chest.
She was young. Very young. But not too young. Although...
"Huh, you're older than my nephew," he commented offhandedly, remembering that Sasuke was still only twenty-four.
"Same year, my birthday is in March," Sakura explained, interrupting the Uchiha's thoughts, before tacking on with an amused grin, "Naruto is the baby."
"Naruto?" Madara questioned with a quirked brow.
"The blond one who hopped the fence the day we met. Him, Sasuke, and I are all childhood friends," she clarified with a widening smile.
The Uchiha huffed in amusement. "I was sure that kid was going to get arrested."
"He did, actually. I bailed him out the next day..."
Madara could hardly stifle his sudden laughter against her shoulder, unendingly amused that not only had the goofy blond from that night gotten arrested but that Sakura, who was a force to be reckoned with during the bar brawl and who had only escaped getting arrested herself by hitching a ride with the president of one of the biker clubs, was the one to bail him out.
Madara's amusement was infectious, Sakura's bell like laughter tinkling in his ear.
When their laughter finally subsided, he hummed in contentment before pressing a kiss to the skin of her exposed shoulder.
"And how old are you?" She asked in return, her fingertips tracing the line of his collarbone towards his throat.
"Forty one," he answered as he tried to withhold the groan in danger of escaping his lips when her fingertip traced the line bisecting his pectorals and abdominal muscles and dipped dangerously far down his stomach.
"You're pretty spry for an old man," she teased, a grin in her voice.
Madara bit her shoulder, drawing a startled eep and laughter from Sakura.
"Little witch," he huffed against her neck, a smile pulling at the corners of his lips.
"You look really good in glasses though so I guess I can overlook it…" she continued as her hand flattened across the plane of muscle of his abdomen.
"Mhmm, just the glasses?" He chuckled against her ear before pulling back and gazing into her eyes with a sly smirk. "How do you like your eggs?"
"Sunny side up."
"Sorry, I never learned how to do that. You're getting an omelet," he replied, his grin widening at her suddenly irate expression.
"Hey, I don't even like omelets!"
He quirked a brow. "Who doesn't like omelets?"
"Me!"
"Well, tough luck. Better get used to it…" Madara teased, his hands sliding from the bar to her waist, pulling her hips flush against his, "You're my old lady now."
She raised an eyebrow, trying to appear unimpressed although a blush colored her cheeks. Her hand slid up from his chest to toy with a lock of his long hair. "Oh, and who decided that?"
"I did," he admitted, his grin widening, "You seduced me on that back road by riding me on my bike but you really finished winning me over when you deep throated me last night."
Sakura flushed hotly in embarrassment, her suddenly demure expression endearing to the Uchiha.
"I'm pretty sure I get a say in it," she huffed, glaring up at him adorably as she twirled the lock of his ebony hair around her fingertips.
"Oh yes, of course you do. But you and I both know it's a yes." His thumbs traced circles on the crests of her hips, distracting her.
"And what makes you say that?"
"Because you like me. You're curious about me. You want to know more about me..." The Uchiha paused. "And because of how many times I've made you cum."
"So!? That doesn't mean I'll say yes!" she sputtered, gently tugging on the lock of hair wrapped around her finger just enough for him to feel it as she glared up at him.
"I can give you a repeat performance if that will help sway your vote..." he purred in response, dropping his forehead against hers and gazing into her eyes heatedly, "And my omelets are quite good. I may convert you yet."
Sakura continued to blush, turning her head to look off to the side as if deep in thought. Her gaze flicked back to his half lidded onyx eyes.
"It just might help your case. And I have my doubts about the eggs," she nearly whispered.
Madara's grin and glee was immediately as he leaned down, hooked her arms around the backs of her thighs, and hoisted her onto his shoulder. He laughed at her sudden yelp of alarm as he strode out of his kitchen.
"Hey, I am not a sack of potatoes!" She protested, her giggles cutting off her words, as he carried her back to bed.
Sakura leaned into the turn with Madara, just how Sasuke had taught her all those years ago when he had first learned how to ride a motorcycle and had taken her on a ride.
Her arms remained loosely looped around the elder Uchiha's middle, her face pressed between his shoulder blades and containing his wild mane of hair. She basked in his unique scent as they rode, greedily taking in the masculine scent of leather and a warm, woodsy smell that reminded her of a bonfire.
Her eyes stared off at the passing buildings, unseeing, as she tried to enjoy the second ride that she had taken with him where they weren't either making out or breaking the speed limit.
Her mind wandered to the elder male she clung to, her thoughts tumbling haphazardly in her mind as she thought about the previous night and the morning they had shared together.
Sakura fretted over what they were now.
The Uchiha had said that she was his old lady now, but she didn't fully understand what that meant. She knew than the term old lady basically translated to wife but that couldn't be accurate. She surmised that they were in some kind of a relationship now but what else? Was this a friends-with-benefits kind of arrangement? Were they exclusive? Were they dating?
She certainly couldn't ask Sasuke…
Her thoughts continued to tumble as her keen mind analysed the events of that morning.
Sakura awoke that morning the same way she woke up every morning: the exact moment that 5:59am ticked over to 6am.
It took her a long moment to gather her wits when she opened her eyes and realized that she was not in her own bed at her apartment. And not just that, but that she was not alone, based on the set of arms tightly wrapped around her middle and the warm chest against her back.
Confusion made it's home within her when her emerald eyes finally focused and she was met with her own reflection. She gazed into the mirrored closet doors across from her, staring at her face peeking out from beneath the blankets and the mess of black hair behind her.
It only took one moment longer for her sleepy mind to come together and for her to realize where it was that she had woken up and who she had woken up with.
Her heart rate sped up when she realized that she was so securely wrapped up in the arms of Madara. The man she had had a one night stand with just a week previous and who she had happily returned to that previous night. The man who had made himself at home in her mind for the entire week, his presence a constant in all of her thoughts and fantasies. The man who had so thoroughly satisfied her that previous night.
A satisfied smile spread across her lips as she happily sunk back into the blankets and further into the embrace of the Uchiha. She sighed contentedly as she felt the heat from his broad chest seep into her back and the strength in his muscled arms wrapped around her middle. She could feel his warm breath on the crown of her head and the feeling of his chest rising and falling against her with his relaxed breathing.
Sakura wished she could just go back to sleep, wrapped up in this cocoon of blankets with the unbearably handsome man who continued to fascinate her, but knew that she was incapable of such a thing. She hadn't slept in nearly as late as she had the first night they had spent together and blamed the lack of alcohol the previous night. She had barely gotten in a sip of her fruity drink before the Uchiha had caged her against the bar and distracted her with his lips and teeth.
She wondered if she should wait until he woke up himself or if she should wake him up...
Sakura was hard pressed to cut this warm, tender embrace short. She felt so contented, protectively wrapped up in the arms of the man who had been so meticulous and attentive when stoking her pleasure and her affection that night. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt this sated, this secure. Never had a man so thoroughly satisfied her.
While she hated to wake him and cut her sorely needed cuddles short, if she woke him, he would be inside of her again that much faster... At least she suspected he would be partial to a bit more bed play. After all, she was certain she had astounded him when she had deep throated him the night before, revealing one of her hard won talents from her chest of sexual tricks. Just as he had blown her away with his skilled tongue and teeth.
She sighed in satisfaction, her eyes sliding shut as she settled more fully into his warm embrace. She wondered how she would go about waking him. She could turn around in his embrace and pepper his chest and throat with kisses. She could gently drag her fingernails across his abdomen, carefully dipping farther and farther down. She could busy herself tracing the stunning artwork inked into his skin...
A sudden stray thought had her eyes snapping open and her heart racing for a much less pleasurable reason.
Did he even want her to be around when he woke up?
Sakura had shared a bed with a number of men in the past and had had mixed experiences over the years. She had been with men who had obsessed over her, men who had loved her, men who she still considered friends, and men who had just wanted sex.
She was no fool, she knew what this… liaison with Madara had started as. Just two people finding pleasure within each other, spurred on by a rush of adrenaline and endorphins. While there was no shame in what they had shared, it left her conflicted over what they were now. They had shared another night together and the fact that they hadn't spoken much beyond how much they wanted to fuck each other left her in the dark over what to expect now.
She didn't know what she wanted but she knew that she greatly enjoyed his body and was surprised to find that the mind within had fascinated her as well. She knew that she was incredibly curious about the man who had shattered her every expectation. She knew she wanted to get to know him better, to explore this new found companionship a bit farther than mindless sex.
But what about Madara? Sakura certainly wouldn't be too opposed to a kind of friends-with-benefits arrangement with the sexually skilled male, although she would feel some distant disappointment at not having a chance at something more…
In that moment, however, she had no idea where to draw the line. What were they? What were their boundaries? What boundaries did you draw with the president of a motorcycle club anyways?
First and foremost in her mind, however, was whether or not she was even welcome to be around that morning.
Her eyes drifted across the furniture and the decorations in his bedroom, finally taking in the room for the first time, as her panic rose in her chest.
Should she leave? The way he had spoke last night, how she could explore his house in the morning, had sounded like he wanted her to stay the night. But he has also said it while carrying her into his home after she has spent the entire trip to his house stoking his arousal. Was she wrong in assuming he had wanted her there? Had she pushed the boundaries of their "relationship"?
Her anxiety finally pulled her from bed. She carefully snuck out of the Uchiha's embrace, actively ignoring how his fingers clung to her, as if to pull her back into his arms. She looked around for a moment before spotting her panties on the floor and quickly slipped them back onto her hips.
Sakura anxiously looked back towards the ebony haired man, her mind flailing as her eyes took in his still sleeping form.
Madara wouldn't have let her fall asleep, wouldn't have held her like he did, wouldn't have said what he said if he didn't want her to stay… right?
She stood in the middle of the unfamiliar bedroom, her arms wrapped around her stomach and across her breasts, as she fretted. After a couple uncomfortable minutes passed, she suddenly became incredibly self conscious. Gods forbid he woke up and saw her having a crisis while standing in his bedroom in her panties. He would probably think she was insane…
She couldn't sneak back into bed with him and pretend this never happened, as if she could fall asleep with this anxiety ripping through her. Resigned, she simply slunk out of his bedroom.
Deciding to get dressed, Sakura wandered from room to room, searching for her clothes and gathering them in her arms as she located them. When she found her boots, haphazardly dumped onto the floor and standing next to his much larger copies, she paused.
What was she doing? Was she going to leave once she got dressed? Without even talking to him?
The Uchiha was a biker after all… He was probably expecting her to be gone when he woke up. He would probably be upset that she had stayed… right?
Shaking her head, she popped into his garage to grab her purse from the saddlebag of his bike. She was careful not to scratch his bike or accidentally push it, not wanting to damage the biker's most precious possession.
Her eyes briefly darted to the truck parked in the garage, surprised he even owned a vehicle, before she returned into his house. She took her purse and bundle of clothes and darted into his bathroom. She quickly relieved herself and got dressed before standing in front of the medicine cabinet. She stared into her reflection and saw her inner struggles reflected on her face.
Should she stay or should she go?
If Sakura was honest with herself, she wanted to stay. She wanted to get to know this man better, to pursue this new companionship that had unexpectedly sparked between them.
Part of her, however, was frightened. Not of him exactly, although he was undoubtedly a violent man. She had spotted his handgun the night before, neatly tucked into a holster in the back of his jeans. She had noticed it that morning as well, still secured in the holster clinging to his jeans on the floor of his bedroom. She hadn't been able to find it in herself to care then, but now?
She sighed deeply before attempting to fix her hair and makeup as best she could. She had only worn mascara and some concealer the night before but tried to fix the smudges. She checked her breath before grimacing.
Fishing out a small travel toothbrush and a tiny tube of toothpaste from the depths of her purse, she used the sink to start brushing her teeth. As she brushed, her eyes returned not to her reflection but the medicine cabinet itself.
Knowing it was a huge breach of personal space, she considered the cabinet. A part of her expected to find something illicit within. She wondered if the cabinet was full of prescription drugs he was abusing or maybe another gun.
Toothbrush hanging from her mouth, she reached forward. Her hand hesitated along the door of the medicine cabinet. Some distant, overly imaginative part of her wondered if it was somehow trapped. Once she realized how asinine that thought was, she popped open the mirrored door.
Only to be incredibly underwhelmed by what she found.
It certainly wasn't full of guns or drugs like she had thought. At least not the drugs she had suspected, anyways. She did spot a few miscellaneous bottles and tubes of medicine for treating headaches, dry eyes, heartburn, insect bites, and allergies. She found a multivitamin, a sleep aid, and even an aged anti-anxiety medication that actually had his name on it as well.
Instead of being filled with things she would associate with the leader of a 1% MC, the contents of the cabinet were decidedly ordinary. She noticed a single tooth brush in a holder, a tube of toothpaste, a bottle of mouthwash, a roll of dental floss… and a container for contacts? He wore contacts?
She blinked as her curious perusal continued.
A can of shaving cream, a razor, a bottle aftershave, a bottle of cologne... Sakura paused at the cologne, her eyes lingering on the unfamiliar brand and name. She shamelessly opened the glass bottle and took a whiff only to immediately swoon. Sweet lords, it was that fantastic, bonfire-ish, woodsy smell that clung to him. Gods, this existed?
She replaced the bottle, making a mental note of the name. Her eyes skimmed over the rest of the contents of the medicine cabinet. A hair brush, tweezers, fingernail clippers, emery boards, cue tips, antibacterial spray, a box of bandaids, hair ties stored around a tube of deodorant…
A sudden shame overcame Sakura as she gazed into the very normal medicine cabinet. Madara was just a man, not some stereotype… He wasn't just some scary, but sexy, biker. He was a three dimensional person, just like her.
In that moment, she made up her mind. She was determined to stick around and talk to him. After all, what was the worst that could happen? He'd tell her to go home?
A sudden clenching in her stomach told her that was the last thing she wanted. Not just because that would be an embarrassing situation to have to repeat but that he had perked her curiosity. He made her feel sexy, wanted, and had shown her a kind of affection after a hookup that no one ever had…
Sakura finished brushing her teeth and threw on some deodorant and perfume from her purse. As she stared into the depths of her bag, she wished she had had the foresight to put some makeup in it.
She turned off the lights as she exited the bathroom. When she walked passed Madara's bedroom, she peeked in.
The wild haired Uchiha had yet to wake up, although he was now unconsciously reaching out towards the spot she had once occupied. As if he was looking for her in his sleep, as if he-
'Stop,' Sakura thought with a sudden vehemence, forcibly derailing her own thoughts, 'This was just a hookup, don't put feelings in someone else's head…'
She briefly considered waking him up but felt like it would be incredibly strange with her now fully dressed and cleaned up and him still sex rumpled and naked and…
Sakura bit her lip as her gaze dragged across his form, taking in his wild hair, his built abdomen, and the tattoos and scars that decorated his body. Sweet lords he was so goddamn sexy...
She immediately regretted sneaking out of bed as she gazed at the sleeping man. She could be naked and in his arms right now but her damn self consciousness had dragged her out of bed…
Having made her decision to stick around, she felt like an idiot for having abandoned the ebony haired man.
Madara sighed in his sleep as he stretched out even farther. He rolled over onto his stomach, the blankets drifting down until they loosely hung on his hips. As his arm relaxed to hang off the edge of the bed, having not found her beside him in his unconscious stretching, her eyes flicked to his back. His wild mane had parted just enough for her to spot the only colored tattoo on his body: a tattoo of the Uchiha MC crest inked between his shoulder blades.
Sakura withheld a groan as the symbol brought her back to the night before. She could still remember seeing their reflection in his mirrored closet doors. The erotic sight of him, kneeling between her legs, still fully clothed and with the clan crest on his cut bright in her mind, as he ate her out with a passion and skill she had never experienced in her life. The memory sent a rush of pleasure through her body, her clit tingling needily. The memory of him pleasuring her would stay with her until the day she died.
She wondered if she should… nope, walk away.
She'd just politely wait in his living room and hope he woke up soon. And if not… she'd figure out something then.
The young woman shyly ventured back into the living room, taking in everything she had missed during her first pass through the house. She dropped her purse onto the couch before she wrapped her arms around her middle, uncomfortable. She lingered in the center of the living room as her ears buzzed from the absolute silence of the house. Rocking on her heels, she nervously glanced around.
Her eyes flicked across the furniture and decorations, absorbing the small details she hadn't even noticed before. The frayed edges of the faded decorative flag of the Uchiha MC crest that hung across the wall that indicated that the flag was a very old piece. The contents of the entertainment center below his flat screen tv: a satellite box, a DVD player, a well-worn old video game console from before she was born, the newest gaming system, and a stack of brand new video games still in their packaging. The numerous book shelves packed to the brim with dvds, old video games for the ancient gaming system, and a vast variety of books.
Curiosity peaked, Sakura tore herself from where she had been rooted in Madara's silent living room to investigate the bookshelves. As her gaze drifted across the books, she noticed that a good portion of the books were yellowing manuals for a variety of motorcycles, vehicles, and other machines. The shelves contained a wide array of other books, from autobiographies to comics, from novels (was that Jiraiya's newest book?) to poetry, from how-to guides to cookbooks, and everything in between.
She smiled as she noticed a series of manga which were set in a world filled with ninjas, a story that she herself was fond of as well.
Sakura was especially surprised by the fact that an entire bookshelf was overflowing with heavy textbooks detailing every subject she could think of. An impressive assortment of various sciences, mathematics, engineering, psychology, philosophy, astronomy, criminal justice, economics, anatomy and physiology, everything she could think of. The vast majority of his textbooks detailed one subject in particular: history.
As she stared at the numerous books in amazement, she wondered if he had a degree. She admittedly knew nothing about this man, having heard very little from Sasuke, Itachi, Shisui, or Izumi over the years. The more she looked around, the more she realized he was nothing like what she thought he was… Even asleep, he continued to shatter her expectations of him.
Sakura's gaze flicked to above the bookshelves and her silent question from before was answered. Her jaw dropped.
Madara didn't have a degree. He had five degrees.
Two Master's Degrees hung on the wall proudly, the words History and Mechanical Engineering printed along them in a delicate script. Below the two outstanding achievements hung a neat row of three Bachelor's Degrees. The words Education, Mathematics, and English were printed along the framed pieces of paper in the same flowing script as the first two.
She gaped at the proof of his dedication to learning with an expression akin to wonder. Her amazement only compounded when she caught sight of a thick stack of papers that looked suspiciously like more degrees. Her suspicions were confirmed when she read the top page and realized it was an Associates in Psychology. The five degrees on his wall weren't even all the ones in his collection then, they were just his favorites.
Sakura had never felt more uneducated in her life. She had considered herself to be a very educated woman. She held a Bachelor's Degree in Nursing and was working on her Doctorate in Medicine after all. But seeing the decades of higher education hanging on the Uchiha's wall and carelessly tossed into a stack on his bookshelf made her feel like a high school dropout.
Shaking her head in disbelief, she continued her perusal. Was this man even fucking real?
Emboldened by the information she had gained through her snooping, she felt less embarrassed about continuing her exploration. She continued along the wall and stopped in front of a section dedicated to displaying dozens of framed photos. Her eyes flicked across the photos, recognizing some of the people while others remained a mystery.
Sakura spotted a photo of what looked like a much younger Madara sitting around in a mechanic shop with five other men. One looked nearly identical to Sasuke, even more so with the man in the picture having such short hair, so she figured it must be Izuna Uchiha. She didn't recognized the other four men but assumed, by their builds, ages, and how close they all seemed, that they were Madara's brothers and possibly father.
Sasuke had never mentioned having more than two uncles… Maybe the other men were more of Sasuke's cousins then?
Continuing in her snooping, Sakura's eyes settled on the largest picture of them all. The photo was of maybe a hundred Uchiha all together, lined up in tiers like a school photo. While they all had different expressions and poses - some giving the camera the finger, some smiling, some dead faced, some had their arms folded, some had their arms wrapped around each other - the sea of dark haired men and women all shared one thing in common: they all wore the Uchiha MC cut.
She spotted Itachi, Shisui, and Izumi near the middle, Shisui holding them all together in a group hug. Izumi was laughing, Shisui's face was dominated by his classic megawatt grin, and Itachi was smiling his contented half smile. She soon spotted Madara himself in the dead center, a smirk on his face and his arms folded across his chest. Obito stood to his right, his expression neutral, and Izuna stood to his left with a half smile.
Sakura had never fully grasped how large Sasuke's family was. She realized that the picture she was looking at only showed the members of the MC and not the hundreds of other Uchiha who weren't in the club.
Who knew there were so many of them…
Her perusal continued, her eyes settling on a picture of Madara with the scarred, one armed man Obito that Sasuke had warned her about a week ago. They both looked much, much younger, Madara perhaps her age and Obito appearing to be in his teens. The elder Uchiha looked stupidly attractive, his incredibly muscular body emphasized by a grease splattered sleeveless top and his cut. Obito was perched on a motorcycle, his one remaining hand holding onto the handlebar. Madara had an arm thrown around his shoulders affectionately, a wide smile on his face. Despite the dark circles under Obito's one visible eye, the other covered with an actual eyepatch, an equally huge smile was spread across his face.
Sakura couldn't help but smile as well, touched by how Madara and all the Uchihas deeply cared for and respected Obito despite his disability.
She spotted another photo with the Uchiha MC president and his brother as teenagers. Both brothers sat on a familiar looking couch, a toddler perched in Izuna's lap and a newborn baby cradled in Madara's arms. A very young man who she recognized as Fugaku had his arms wrapped around both men, pulling the two younger Uchiha in like brothers.
The toddler and the baby must have been Itachi and Sasuke then? She never realized how cute of a kid Itachi had been.
She also finally got a feel for how much older Madara was than her as she looked at a picture of him, already a man, holding a newborn Sasuke. He had to be nearly two decades her senior.
Instead of feeling abashed, not just by the fact he was nearly double her age but because he was her best friend's uncle, the realization had the opposite effect...
The familiar sight of a cap and gown caught her attention and her gaze focused onto another photo. Madara stood, dressed in his graduation garb and holding his Master's Degree in History for the camera to see. The older man dressed in the MC's cut that Sakura had suspected was his father had his arm thrown around Madara's shoulders. A stunningly elegant looking women, also dressed in the Uchiha MC's cut, was plastering a kiss to Madara's cheek. The wild haired man looked embarrassed but joyous, all three Uchiha's overjoyed as they celebrated Madara's academic success.
Sakura couldn't shake the smile that had made it's home on her face as she browsed through the photos. Each snapshot from his life, each object in his home, revealed more about him to her. He was an intellectual, he was well educated, he cherished his family above all things…
As she continued, a very old picture, the yellowing edges an indication of it's age, caught her eye. She barely recognized the man who she assumed was Madara's father with how incredibly young, perhaps in his early twenties, he looked in the photo. The stunningly beautiful woman from Madara's graduation picture sat in the man's lap, both of them taking up the entirety of a small armchair. Her oddly familiar head of wild hair hung around her like a dark halo as she gazed at the man with adoration. They were both laughing, half finished drinks in their hands, and appeared to be absolutely smitten with one another.
A sudden unease overcame her as she stared at the two people obviously deeply in love. She felt as if she had dug too deep, like she was a voyeur looking in on Madara's life. She didn't have the right to skim over his things, she hadn't earned that trust. She once again felt glaringly out of place, standing in his quiet living room, and once again wondered if she should leave.
Madara hadn't woken up yet after all… Maybe it would be better if she just left him a note with her number and caught an Uber home...
Sakura nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of drawers opening in his bedroom. She whipped around to face the hallway, frozen in place like a deer caught in headlights.
'Shit, shit, he's awake!' her frazzled mind screamed, suddenly panicked, 'What do I do?!'
She stared into the entrance to the hallway as if it were a portal to the abyss, her eyes wide and mouth ajar in shock. When she heard the door to the bathroom close, she released a breath she hadn't realized that she had been holding.
'Dear sweet lords, act natural! Nonchalant!' she thought furiously as her eyes shot across the room, desperate for some kind of distraction. Something to do with her hands that made her look like she was entertaining herself but not digging through his stuff like a voyeur…
Her alarmed gaze finally settled on the flat screen tv hanging on the wall.
Sakura quickly searched for the remote to the satellite tv but, to her dismay, couldn't find it anywhere. When she heard the sink in the bathroom shut off, she panicked and just started jabbing at buttons on the tv and the cable box themselves.
She thanked the gods when the tv flickered on, already playing some war documentary from the history channel on low volume. She took a deep breath to gather her wits as the sound of the bathroom door opening met her ears.
Expertly feigning nonchalance, she casually perused the channels on his tv. Her heart was racing in her chest and came to a fever pitch when she heard his soft footsteps come to a stop in the threshold of his living room.
She settled on some random news channel as she gathered the courage to look over her shoulder at him. She met his eyes, taking in his surprised expression and nearly drooling at the sight of him in glasses. Her gaze couldn't help but drag downwards, tracing a path down his muscled chest and towards the trail of hair dipping into his unzipped jeans. She quickly tore her eyes away from his abs and brought them back to his face.
Still staring into his surprised expression, Sakura smiled tentatively, a nervous flush coloring her cheeks. His warm returning smile immediately soothed her frayed nerves, her heart finally settling into a comfortable rhythm in her chest.
He wanted her here… she was okay.
Sakura finally emerged from her ruminations when Madara came to a stop outside of her apartment complex and shut off his bike.
Despite her thoughts, she had yet to come up with an answer to her inner conflict. Even more than that, she struggled to find the words to even ask to find the answers she wanted.
As she stood, the Uchiha forced down the kickstand and tilted the bike to it's side. She reached down into his leather saddle bag to remove her purse, tossing the bag over her shoulder just as Madara stood from his bike as well.
Sakura tilted her head up to face the man who towered half a foot above her, still struggling for words as he slid off his sunglasses and hooked them in the collar of his long sleeved shirt. She was a great many things but she was no coward. Even if she blundered through this exchange like a spooked horse in an antique shop, she would get the answers she wanted.
She glanced down to the ground, biting her lip as she thought. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, her words were stolen away by him stepping forward and entering her personal space. Her heart fluttered in her chest when he boldly cupped her cheek, gently tilting her face towards his.
When Madara leaned down and sealed his lips against hers, Sakura's mind immediately went blank. Instead of a kiss of pure passion and lust, like the numerous ones the lovers had shared over the past week, he kissed her with an affection that took her breath away.
Her hands slid up his chest to wrap around his neck as she stood on the tips of her toes to bring them closer together. His arms loosely looped around her waist as his broad hands settled onto her hips. She quickly lost herself in his embrace, her concerns washed away momentarily in the face of his unexpectedly sweet and languid kiss.
When he finally pulled back, pressing one more lingering kiss to her lips for good measure, her dazed mind sluggishly processed the fact he had fished her cell phone out of her purse while she was distracted.
"Hey!" Sakura berated, her tone lacking the edge it usually would with her still recovering from the Uchiha's surprise kiss.
The wild haired Uchiha just smirked as he finished typing and handed her back her phone. She glared up at him half heartedly, the heat from a blush still burning her cheeks, before she took her phone back and looked down at the screen.
Tapped into the new contact screen was a new, unknown phone number with 'Madara Uchiha' typed in at the top.
"I'm almost frightened to ask, since you don't like omelets, but do you like sushi?" he asked, breaking her rumination.
"I…" she started, her mind foggy and confused as she stared at the new contact screen. Her gaze flicked back up at him to give him a pointed look. "Of course I do."
"Good. Text me the next day you're available. I have a place in mind," he replied with a quirk of his lip.
Sakura stared at him for a long moment, lips parted in surprise, before her gaze returned to the screen on her phone. With a suddenness and a quickness that had caught her off guard, the questions she had fretted over for the entirety of the ride were answered.
Madara had given her his phone number. He had just asked her out to dinner. He had just asked her out on a date. An old lady wasn't just a wife, it was a girlfriend. He wanted her to be his girlfriend.
"Okay…" she mumbled, her mind slipping up as she came to this realization.
Sakura tapped the save button at the corner of the screen of her phone and watched as the screen flipped. Her phone now showed his name and number in a bold font, a picture of a gray outline of a person accompanying it.
As her phone switched screens, the fact that this was really happening finally sunk in. Madara had asked her on a date. He wanted to explore this potential relationship as much as she did. A slow smile stretched across her face as her eyes flicked up to meet his. His nearly concerned looking expression quickly mirrored her own.
"Sure," she reiterated, her tone much more confident this time around.
Sakura tapped on the call button on her screen, watching as the screen darkened and then loaded the call screen. Despite her earlier confusion and hesitation, she wanted to show her lover that she wanted to further explore this new found companionship with him as well. The quickest and more meaningful way she could do that was to give him her number as well.
There was a short pause before the muted sound of a phone vibrating met their ears. The elder man reached into the inside pocket of his cut and fished out his phone, clicking answer and then end with a broad smile. He leaned down, unhurried, so they were face to face, his warm smile morphing into a mischievous smirk.
For a heartbeat, Sakura thought he was going to kiss her again. She could feel a blush immediately rising to her cheeks at his close proximity.
"Try not to get into any bar fights without me around," Madara teased as he tucked his phone back into the inner pocket of his cut.
"That was one time!" she blurted, her cheeks burning.
"What can I say," he started as he turned and straddled his bike once again, "You left an impression."
Sakura just huffed at him, locking and dumping her phone back into her purse. When she looked back up at the sound of the engine of his bike roaring to life, he shot her a cheeky wink. She couldn't help but smile in response as he slid his sunglasses back onto his face and took off.
She watched the Uchiha ride around the bend of her street, disappearing behind her apartment complex. She could still hear his bike in the distance as her smile widened even farther. She shook her head, unable to contain her giddiness.
Who would have thought that visiting Sasuke at that bar a week ago would have lead to all of this. Who would have thought that she would wind up sleeping with and eventually getting asked out on a date by the uncle Sasuke had never let her meet when they were kids. Who would have thought that the random but passionate tryst she had shared with the wild haired Uchiha would have gotten this far, to the point where she couldn't even restrain her smile as she made her way up to her apartment.
Gods, she felt like a teenager again.
As Sakura made her way down the winding path to her building, up the stone stairs to her apartment, and unlocked her front door, she couldn't wipe the smile off of her face.
What finally did the trick was being scared out of her skin by Sasuke skulking in her living room, her high pitched yelp of alarm and her immediate fight response finally dragging the smile off of her face.
Why she gave Sasuke and Naruto keys to her place, she'd never know. It seemed like a good idea at the time but after waking up on multiple mornings with one or both of her boys passed out on her couch and her fridge half empty, and now with Sasuke lurking menacingly in her living room, she found she had some regrets.
Regrets that only compounded when Sasuke firmly stated, "We need to talk."
Sakura rolled over onto her opposite side for the hundredth time that night.
No matter what she did, she couldn't get comfortable in her own bed. Her mind was going a million miles a second and she couldn't help but toss and turn in the face of her inner struggle. She threw her sage green comforter off to the side, her overheated body finding little relief in the cool air of her darkened bedroom.
No matter what she did to try to relax, to try to sleep so she could get up early the next day for work, she couldn't shake the dread that had settled into her bones.
The dread that had made it's home in her ever since Sasuke had opened up about his uncle. The things the elder Uchiha had done in the past, the things he had ordered done, the things Sasuke had watched him do. The few things Sasuke was now privy to as the prospect for the Uchiha MC.
And what Sasuke had told her made Sakura sick to her stomach...
"He's killed people, Sakura… a lot of people. I've… I killed someone for him."
"Sasuke, I-"
"Don't. I don't want to hear it. I just want you away from him. He's bad for you! Shit, I'm bad for you… We're just going to drag you down. That's what the club is. We're thugs. I watched Obito torture a guy under Madara's orders. I watched Madara toss a crowbar into the front tire of a Senju's bike on the freeway. The trail of blood was hundreds of feet long, they… what was left wasn't even human anymore."
Sakura had wanted to throw up. The look of anguish on Sasuke's face as he recalled his uncle murdering a man in front of him. She was an ER nurse, she knew what motorcycle crashes looked like. She knew how mangled and grotesque the corpses could be and her keen mind filled in the blanks in the story Sasuke told her. She could hardly believe that Madara had done such a thing in front of his own nephew, in front of her best friend...
More than that, the sudden realization - no, the sudden remembrance - of what Madara was… The fact that he wasn't some gentlemanly biker… The fact he was an outlaw, a cold-blooded murderer, the president of a 1% motorcycle club…
She felt like she had been punched in the stomach.
"I watched him beat a Senju to death with his bare hands! For fuck's sake, this is how we all are, this is what we all are! We're all going to kill and die for this never ending war with the Senju! He kills and he will die, I kill and I will fucking die!"
"Sasuke-!"
Sakura had wanted to cry, hearing Sasuke break down like this in her darkened living room. She wanted to grab onto him and hold him as if she could keep her best friend from falling apart with just her arms. But when she had reached for him, he had lashed out.
Like he always did.
"Shit Sakura-why him!? Why spread your fucking legs for my uncle, of all the people of the gods-damned planet?! Do you have a death wish or are you just that stupid?!"
Immediate, white hot rage had burned away all of her concern for him. She reacted with a fury that dwarfed his, fire burning in her eyes as she bared her teeth. She matched his attack with one of her own.
Like she always did.
"Get out."
"I-shit. Sakura, I'm sorry, I-"
"Get the fuck out, Sasuke! And mind your own goddamn business!"
"Fine… just remember-"
"I don't fucking care! Get out of my home now!"
Sakura knew that wasn't the way to end it. After all, what if that was their last conversation? What if she never saw Sasuke again and those were the last words they had shared? Not ones of love and companionship, but words poisoned by a venom they were both too prideful to admit was fear.
But both of them were prone to rage and were terrible with managing their emotions. Sasuke seethed and Sakura rampaged. Despite the fact it tore her up on the inside to leave it like that, just how she knew it was for him, it was how it had to be. They would continue this dance, tearing at each other's throats, until one of them broke down or Naruto, the peacemaker he was, stepped in to take care of it.
Both of them were so stubborn that it almost always fell to their best friend Naruto to sort it out...
Despite clinging to her fury as a way to deny what Sasuke had told her, Sakura's emotional buffer had slipped away from her as shame and fear reared their hideous heads.
Shame for sleeping with Sasuke's uncle in the first place. He hadn't pushed himself onto her, she had been the one to throw herself at him. She should have been humiliated at having been so flagrantly out of control, so incredibly taboo, but instead she had been so turned on by it. So aroused that she had come back a second time, had spent the night getting fucked by Sasuke's executioner of an uncle.
The hands that had so gently caressed her that night, that had so skillfully brought her to the peak of pleasure multiple times, were drenched in blood.
Fear clawed at the back of her tongue, a knot forming in her throat that she could not swallow away. Sasuke's words, his confessions that could get him expelled from his family and even killed, had poisoned Madara's image in her mind. She couldn't sleep with her heart pounding in her chest.
Sakura had always known who Madara was, what he was… but she had never fully grasped the gravity of it. More than that, even, she had conveniently ignored these facts for the sake of her libido. She had sacrificed her safety, in more ways that one, for the sake of getting off at the hands of an attractive man.
She was sick with herself and sick with worry.
She didn't know anything about him, despite perusing his living room like a voyeur. What if he tried to hunt her down if she declined his date? What if he tried to attack her? She was tough, she had spent years training in the art of fighting and was a skilled combatant, but would she be forced to take drastic measures to protect herself? Would he pull his gun on her if she denied him? What if he was a drug addict or what if-
Her cell phone buzzed from it's spot on her nightstand.
Sakura jolted in surprise, her text tone ringing twice sounding more like an explosion to her frazzled nerves. Her heart pounded in her chest as she grabbed her phone, turning it so she could read who her late night caller was.
Her racing heart stuttered in her chest, her panic returning tenfold as she saw Madara's name attached to two text notifications on her home screen.
As Sakura stared into the overly bright screen of her cell phone, she seriously considered just ignoring the message. Just ignoring his message and any that came after.
A sense of humiliation at even having this thought settled over her. She had never been scared off by any man and she certainly wasn't starting now. She would confront this issue like she confronted any issue in her life: head-long and with courage and vigor.
Heart fluttering in her chest, she steeled her resolve and unlocked her phone. She tapped on the app for messages and opened the Uchiha's texts.
Only to be met by a picture of a bar stool and a simple message beneath it.
'Thinking of you, my little hellcat'.
Her confusion easily overpowered her anxiety as her mind wracked over the possibilities. Was there something else in the picture? Why would he send her a picture of a bar stool of all things and-oh.
He had seen her knock out that Senju MC member with a bar stool during that brawl at The Dead End.
Sakura dropped her phone down against her pillow as a sudden fit of hysterical laughter slowly built and quickly overcame her. The anxiety that had been compounding as she had agonized over what Sasuke had talked to her about that morning suddenly broke down in the face of her crazed giggles.
She felt ridiculous, laughing at a picture of a bar stool of all things, but the sudden purge of all the energy she had been building up was a cathartic release. It took her a long minute to finally gather her nerves to text back, her hands shaking as she typed.
'You saw that?'
Her phone buzzed in her hands just a few moments later. Madara was actively on the other side of that screen, giving her his full attention.
'"Witnessed" feels like a more accurate term. Where did you learn to swing like that? And in a dress, no less'.
Sakura's shaking slowly settled as she read the text over and over. Her nerves still remained on edge but, by the time she had read his text a fifth time, her racing heart had finally settled in her chest.
'I grew up with Sasuke and Naruto. Someone had to keep those idiots safe'.
Her phone buzzed once again.
'I should be thanking you then. You did save Sasuke that night'.
As she texted the Uchiha MC president, she thought of her exploration of his home that morning. She remembered how she had felt anxious over what he was but that her little search had revealed something to her that she was ashamed at having already forgotten.
Madara was a three dimensional person, just like her. He wasn't some horrible monster or some violent stereotype. She could no longer lie to herself about what he had done, what he did, but she knew she couldn't replace those lies with more lies about how he was a senseless murderer, a violent psychopath, or an abuser...
Madara wore contacts and had allergies. His living room was filled with pictures of his family. Despite having an absurd number of degrees from Konoha University, he didn't know how to make sunny side up eggs. He had a scar that cut across his stomach from a knife wound. He had killed people. He killed a person in front of Sasuke…
Sasuke had killed a person. He loved tomatoes and hated sweets. He talked in his sleep and slept flat on his back. His first kiss was with Naruto. He kept a stuffed dinosaur that he had stolen from Itachi as a child hidden in his closet...
There was so much more to both of the Uchihas than met the eye.
It was like her old mentor Kakashi had once said to her and her boys… Look underneath the underneath.
In that moment, despite the anxiety still tingling the edges of her nerves and despite the apprehension that came with what Sasuke had admitted to her, Sakura decided she would give Madara a chance.
She would be cautious… but she would give him a chance.
As she continued to text her new 'boyfriend' late into the night, she sent out a text to Sasuke.
'I love you like a brother. I respect you and your opinion and I heard you but I'm going to make my own decisions and you need to support that. I know what I'm getting into'.
She paused for a moment before adding.
'And you owe me an apology, you asshole'.