Sasuke woke up to the light of the sun shining upon his face through the window. It was much warmer than yesterday morning as summer was soon approaching. He glanced over to the futon right next to his and saw that Sakura was still fast asleep. He let out a slight smirk before getting up to fix the curtains, hoping the sunrise wouldn't wake Sakura up as well.
He made his way to the bathroom and washed his face with cold water and then brushed his teeth. When he was done, he saw that Sakura was already awake. She was talking to someone by the doorway. "Thank you!" bid Sakura as she closed the door and turned over to Sasuke.
"Who was that?" Sasuke asked.
"Oh, good morning, Sasuke kun!" Sakura said with a smile, "It was just the innkeeper's wife. Apparently, someone sent us a package," she said, handing Sasuke a parcel that seemed to contain miscellaneous items. "What do you think it is?" Sakura asked.
"I don't know, but I bet it's dangerous," Sasuke replied sharply, "Nobody knows we're staying here and in case you've forgotten, we're valuable targets,". Sakura chuckled.
"Well, it's not like anyone in the world would be able to take either of us down, let alone both," she said, as she tried reaching out for the package, attempting to take it away from Sasuke. Sakura's hands barely moved before Sasuke let out, "Just go get ready. I'll handle this,"
Sakura remembered the times when she and Sasuke were still teammates all those years ago. Back then, she would simply let him lead and would go along with everything he said. Sasuke was just more skilled than Naruto and I and he was definitely smarter than the pair of us, she would often think to herself. But Naruto's a lot stronger now, and so am I. But even as those thoughts rushed her head, she decided to just let Sasuke lead once more.
Sakura nodded at Sasuke as she made her way to the bathroom to "go get ready" as he said. Sasuke, on the other hand, examined the package and wracked his brain on who could've possibly sent it to them and why. "Sakura!" he yelled over to the bathroom.
"What is it, Sasuke kun?" Sakura yelled back.
"You said the inn keeper's wife gave this to you, right? Well, did she say anything about who it was from or where it came from?"
"No, not really. Wh—", but before Sakura could even finish her sentence, she already heard a door slam. Typical, she thought. It was typical of Sasuke kun to do this and leave me out of it. Sakura wondered whether she should've said something about it earlier, she even wondered why on Earth Sasuke brought her here if he was just going to leave her out of things like this.
Once Sakura realized her thoughts were getting the best of her, she let out a sigh and decided she needed a hot bath. She took off her clothes and threw them all over the bathroom floor. She then grabbed a complimentary bathrobe and made her way to the public springs of the inn.
Meanwhile, Sasuke rushed to the lobby to question the innkeeper's wife about the parcel. Luckily, she was standing right behind the receptionist's desk. "I understand you're the innkeeper's wife, correct?" he asked, ever so arrogant.
"You got that right, boy. What do you need, my dear?" she asked softly, even letting out a smile. For a second, Sasuke felt bad for being rude and asked his next question a little bit more politely, "A package was delivered to our room by you— room 206. I'd like to know where it came from,"
"Well, honestly, the package was already on the front door of the inn before we even opened. There was just a note somewhere on the side that said Haruno Sakura, Room 206 so I just gave it to that pink haired girl, assuming it was her,". Sasuke scanned every inch of that parcel and he was positive he had never seen a note with Sakura's name on it. Sasuke's attempted kindness was shortly ruined by worry over the fact that whoever was sending them something knew not only Sakura's name, but the exact room they had only stayed in just last night. "The note. Did you throw it away?" Sasuke demanded
"Oh, definitely not. I gave it to that girl right after I saw it," she replied, her soft smile still very much present. Now, Sasuke was definitely worried. He ran back to his and Sakura's room without even thanking the innkeeper's wife.
When he entered, he saw that Sakura was nowhere to be found and that the bathroom door was left open, with Sakura's clothes scattered all over the floor. Sasuke knew just how meticulous Sakura was and assumed instantly that this mess was not her doing. Panicked, Sasuke's sharingan awakened immediately as he rushed to go look for the note, hoping it would contain some sort of clue as to where Sakura was and who took her.
It didn't take much looking for Sasuke to find the note underneath a desk next to the door. He figured it just fell off earlier. He picked up the note and recognized the handwriting right away to be Naruto's. Sasuke thought of two different scenarios: (1) Naruto had sent Sakura a package and Sakura simply went out of the room to look for him or to get something to eat or (2) Sakura had been captured, the package was something horrible, and whoever sent it to them had Naruto compromised. Sasuke pondered over this for a while and figured that the first scenario may be more possible. After all, the package was innocently given to them and it didn't appear to contain anything dangerous. Besides, Sakura wouldn't be taken that easily.
However, Sasuke quickly remembered that Naruto couldn't possibly know where he and Sakura were. The longest they had ever stayed in one place was 3 days and they hadn't even spent 24 hours in the inn they were currently staying at. Not to mention the fact that while the pair would communicate with Naruto every now and then, it would only happen once a month and they would never disclose their location.
Sasuke gulped loudly and decided to just open the package. After all, Sakura's life could be at risk. And Sasuke was cocky enough to know that whatever was in the parcel was no match for this Uchiha. As he opened the package, he saw books, packs of instant ramen, and a bunch of other boxes which appeared to look like presents. There was yet again another note inside of the package. Sasuke picked it up and saw that it read:
Happy Birthday, Sakura chan!
I knew your birthday was coming up so I decided to send you some gifts! The others were nosy and wanted to send you some stuff too. But obviously, I know you'll like mine the best. I miss you! (And Sasuke too, but don't tell him). Enjoy your day and stay safe!
PS. Hi Sakura! It's Ino. Hinata told me she tried to convince Naruto NOT TO GET YOU RAMEN, but of course, he wouldn't listen. Anyway, make sure you and Sasuke make good use of my gift, okay? If you haven't already. Hahaha!
PPS. This message is for Sasuke. Aren't you impressed I was able to find you guys? Yup, I'm way smarter than you now. Dattebayo!
From, Naruto
And in that moment, Sasuke knew he was fucked. He saw that the back of Naruto's message contained the date "March 28". Sasuke's head instantly turned to the inn calendar by the window which indeed confirmed that today was the 28th of March. So Sasuke knew for a fact that Sakura was safe and that Naruto wasn't compromised. The only downside now was that Sasuke had forgotten Sakura's birthday. And it wasn't even that he wasn't aware of today's date, no. He wasn't aware of Sakura's birthday in general. Just the thought of that made Sasuke feel even worse. He knew how much Sakura cared about him, to the point where she stood by him no matter what. Even after everything that Sasuke had done, Sakura still welcomed him with open arms. And I… I didn't even bother to know when her birthday was.
Sasuke's mind was suddenly thinking of every single moment he had let Sakura down. These thoughts were quickly shaken away by the sound of a door opening. Sakura had come back, still wearing the complimentary bathrobe, but now her hair was soaking wet. Sakura knew she had just interrupted an important thought that Sasuke was having. His face was usually very stern, with a little smirk every now and then. But for once, Sasuke was actually startled seeing Sakura.
She figured the contents of the package were in fact dangerous due to Sasuke's reaction. "I-I'm sorry, Sasuke kun. I didn't mean to ruin your train of thought," she started, hoping he would tell her what exactly his train of thought was. But of course, Sasuke provided her with absolute silence as he always did. It didn't take long for Sakura to add, "What was inside the package?", as she made her way closer to him.
"Nothing of your concern," Sasuke replied, coldly.
"W-What?!"
"This isn't within your expertise, Sakura," he said, sounding even colder, which Sakura didn't know was possible.
"But, I can help you, Sasuke kun. I've been studying about—"
"No! Just get out. You're soaking wet anyway, so just go back to the stupid baths," Sasuke said, now practically yelling at her.
"Fine!" Sakura yelled back as she slammed the door shut. Sasuke knew that what he had done was mean but he figured that it would've been meaner if Sakura were to find out that he had simply forgotten her birthday. After all, the only time Itachi would be home, and the only time his father wasn't a pain in the ass, would be during his mother's birthdays. Sasuke grew up knowing that those days were definitely special. But after nearly 15 years without celebrating his, nor anyone else's birthday, for that matter, it was just something that never crossed his mind.
Another thing that never crossed his mind was Sakura. They were teammates and at one point, Sasuke truly did care about her and even thought he might've been happy if he just stayed in Konoha with her and Naruto. But after he'd left, he'd only remember Sakura every once in a blue moon. And even then, the thought of her would be alongside the thought of Naruto, and sometimes Kakashi. Sakura, on the other hand, was the opposite.
For seven years, she never gave up on Sasuke and always believed in his heart, and she still does. The only time Sakura had ever changed her mind was when she attempted to kill Sasuke twice. Of course, it was only because Sasuke wanted to destroy the entire Leaf Village. But despite all that, Sakura still couldn't do it. Part of her still cared deeply for Sasuke. While he, on the other hand, had true intent to kill her. Not to mention all the times he's actually physically hurt her.
Shit. Sasuke made up his mind. He promised that he wouldn't let Sakura down again. No, not this time. He was going to do something special for her birthday, no matter what it took. As painful as it was, he tried to recall the times Itachi and Fugaku would prepare these grand plans for Mikoto's birthday celebrations. Somehow, each year would just keep topping the last one. But one thing that was always constant, was plum cake. Umeboshi was Sasuke's mother's favorite, so it was essential to have it at all her parties. He then decided he would do the same for Sakura.
Sasuke stood up, neatly arranged Sakura's gifts on the desk, and exited the room. He walked all the way to the lobby and saw the innkeeper's wife again. "Uhh, hi," he said awkwardly, while attempting a smile.
"Oh it's you again! Do you need anything else, dear boy?" she said, with an actual smile.
"Uhh.. yeah. I was wondering if there are any cake shops nearby,"
"Oh yes! All you have to do is make a left, then when you reach the flower shop, just make a right and keep walking forward. You'll see it by then," she said while using her hands to gesture the directions. "Thank you," Sasuke replied, softly. "By the way, I'm sorry for being rude earlier,"
"No worries, boy. If someone was sending my girlfriend packages, I'd be pretty tense too,"
"Actually, she's not— nevermind. Would you mind making sure she doesn't get back to our room before I do?"
"Sure thing, dear," she said as Sasuke bowed at her before leaving the inn.
—
Sasuke placed the cake on the center of the desk then proceeded to arrange Sakura's gifts nicely. While he was doing this, he saw Ino's gift and recalled her addition to Naruto's note. Make sure you and Sasuke make good use of my gift, if you haven't already. Sasuke couldn't help but wonder what Ino meant by that. Once he had put all of Sakura's presents around the cake, making sure they were surrounding it, his curiosity got the best of him. He tried his best to open it without destroying the packaging. It was a tiny little box so he hoped that any damage he could possibly create wouldn't be noticeable. He opened the present slowly and saw three different lipsticks. Sasuke chuckled. He always took Ino as one of those girls who embraced their femininity so it was very typical of her to gift Sakura something like this. And while Sakura tried to not show that side of her in front of him, he knew that she was just as girly as Ino.
Sasuke chuckled again. The way Ino worded her message was so cryptic that Sasuke didn't know what he was expecting. Make sure you and Sasuke make use of my gift. He figured Ino was just joking around, implying that the lipstick was to be used by both Sakura and himself. After shaking this off, Sasuke placed the lipsticks back in the box, along with Sakura's other gifts and sat down by the chair near the desk.
As Sasuke was awaiting Sakura's return for about 15 minutes now, he decided to finally go check on her. At that point, Sakura had already been gone for over an hour. He got up and went out of their room to check the baths. He waited outside for a couple minutes to see if any women would come out so he could ask them about Sakura. Pink haired girl, is what he figured he would say when looking for her, just as the innkeeper's wife described her earlier.
Sasuke then recalled the innkeeper's wife's assumption that Sakura was his girlfriend. Makes sense. After all, Sasuke and Sakura were travelling together and they only got one room. He wondered how many people from all the other villages they visited also assumed that they were together. His thoughts were shortly interrupted by a lady who looked just about his age. "Um, the male baths are on the other side of the inn," she said.
"Oh yeah, I know. I was actually looking for someone," Sasuke replied.
"Oh," she said back, while chuckling. She leaned closer to Sasuke and put one hand on his shoulder, "Well, if that's the case then…" she added slowly, rubbing Sasuke's arm. Sasuke pushed her away and said, "Actually, I was looking for someone else,"
"What, am I not your type?" she said, making her way closer to him again. He realized this girl was not going to quit it. "I'm looking for my girlfriend," he replied, harshly. The girl instantly let go of him and right that second, Sakura exited the baths and heard him. "Uhh, Sasuke kun?" Sakura said slowly. The woman took one look at her and immediately left.
Sasuke was about to apologize to Sakura for calling her his girlfriend. But, before he could even say anything, Sakura said, "You do know that the male hot springs are on the opposite side, right?"
"So I've been told," he replied, "But, err, I was actually worried about you,"
"Oh really, now? You're the one who told me to go to the stupid baths, right?"
Sasuke was just about to respond before Sakura added, "And you know what, seeing your face just pisses me off so I'll just stay here,".
Sakura was about to turn around before Sasuke grabbed her arm and said, "Let's go back to the room, I want to show you something,"
"No, thanks," she replied, sarcastically. Sasuke leaned in closer to Sakura as she attempted to turn her back on him. "Tch, annoying," he said, with a smug look on his face. Sakura was furious, she knew just how that one simple word could consume her entirely. Suddenly, all of her anger was gone and her cheeks turned the color of her hair.
Sakura grabbed Sasuke's hand, implying that she was now ready to go with him. The pair walked side-by-side, not letting go of one another. The entire time, Sasuke was thinking of a million things at once. Ino's gift, the innkeeper's assumption, his lie to the lady earlier, and practically everything else that involved both him and Sakura.
Lipsticks, assumptions, and lies. No, it had to have meant more than that. Lipstick.. lipstick.. lipstick— was Ino talking about kissing? Does Sakura want to kiss me? Is a first kiss even suitable on her birthday? How do I expect to kiss her when I couldn't even bother to know when her birthday was? More importantly, do I even want to kiss her back?
Suddenly, they were standing in front of Door 206. Sasuke snapped himself back to reality and said, "Wait out here for a bit, okay?". Sakura nodded as Sasuke went inside the room. After a couple seconds, Sakura heard Sasuke say, "Okay, you can come in now,".
She opened the door and noticed it was dark. The curtains had completely blocked out the sun and the only thing that lit the room was a candle placed on top of a cake that said "Happy Birthday Sakura" which was surrounded by gifts. When she turned around, she saw Sasuke, holding her clothes which were now neatly folded. "I don't think you'd want to blow your cake in a bathrobe, right?", he said. Sakura's smile was the biggest it had ever been since Sasuke asked her to come with him. And for once, Sasuke was genuinely smiling too.
Sakura nodded and took the clothes from Sasuke's hand and made her way to the bathroom. When she came out, she saw that Sasuke was now sitting on the floor, along with the cake and gifts. Sakura sat down right next to him. He remembered were the only thoughts that filled her head.
Sasuke moved closer to Sakura and whispered softly in her ear, "Happy birthday, Sakura,". Sakura's heart was beating fast as she leaned in to blow out her candle. "Wait! You have to make a wish first!" Sasuke let out. Sakura was surprised. She didn't expect Sasuke to care about a lot of things, let alone a silly birthday tradition. Sasuke noticed Sakura's expression and added, "My father told me that,"
Sakura smiled and grabbed Sasuke's hand. "Well, you know, if I say my wish out loud, it won't come true," she replied, showing Sasuke that it was okay to talk to her about his family.
"Right," he replied, "Sorry, I forgot about that. It's been so long,"
Sakura realized that Sasuke had probably not known what it felt like to celebrate a birthday in over a decade. Her face revealed her sadness which worried Sasuke. Did I make her uncomfortable with what I said?. Sasuke noticed that her hand was still on his. He decided to reciprocate which caused them to now be interlocked. Sakura smiled once more and blew out her candle. In that moment, Sasuke couldn't help but notice how beautiful Sakura looked under the warm hint of a flame. He held her hand tighter. They stayed like this for awhile until Sakura asked, "So, is this what was in the package? Is that why you were being so cold and mysterious earlier?"
"Err, no. Actually, the package was filled with gifts from Naruto and the others, your parents too,"
Sakura chuckled and said, "No wonder you wouldn't tell me. But, I'm really glad you remembered, Sasuke kun". Sakura's emerald eyes were shining so bright and as much as Sasuke didn't want to ruin it, he just knew he had to.
"Actually Sakura, I didn't. Even when we were teammates, I didn't know when your birthday was. I only found out because I opened the package to find your gifts. I-I'm sorry, Sakura,"
Sakura let out a sigh but to Sasuke's surprise, she didn't seem disappointed. "It's fine, Sasuke kun. It was stupid of me to think that you remembered anyway. I mean, we were only teammates for a short while and I went on a trip with my family that year for my birthday so it's not like you could've known,"
"I-It's not stupid, Sakura," he replied. Suddenly, all the sparkle that took over her completely vanished. "I'll go ask the innkeeper for a cake cutter," she said, while standing up and letting go of Sasuke's hand. Sasuke hated the separation that that created. He wanted to say something to her but yet again, his mind failed him, and Sakura was already out the door.
Lipsticks, assumptions, and lies. But was it really an assumption or was it true? To be honest, Sasuke didn't quite understand how relationships worked and what qualified for being in one. The only thing he was sure of was that he wanted Sakura to come on this trip. But why did Sakura even want to come along? Was she expecting something when I asked her to travel with me? Is she still expecting something? Hell, I'm not even sure why I wanted Sakura to come with me either.
Sasuke turned around as he heard the door open. Sakura sat down on the floor with him, but she definitely kept her distance. She placed down two plates she had gotten and began slicing the cake. "I can do that, if you want," Sasuke said, attempting to break the ice.
"You only have one hand. Besides, I can do it myself," Sakura replied, coldly. Sasuke decided to try again. "It's plum cake, by the way. I wasn't sure if you'd like it but umeboshi was my mother's favorite,"
"W-What?!"
"Why, what's wrong?"
"Umeboshi's my favorite too. I don't think I've ever gone any birthday without plum cake,"
As soon as Sasuke heard those words, a tear began to fall from his eye. Sakura stopped slicing the cake and came closer to him again. They were about an inch apart when Sakura grabbed his hand tightly. She wasn't sure of what to say at that moment but little did she know that her warmth was all he needed.
"Itachi would usually be in charge of buying the plum cake. I always used to ask if I could come with him to buy it but he would just poke me on the forehead and say 'next time'..." Sasuke said as he paused to grab Sakura's hand even tighter, "...He would always say that to me. Even when I would ask him to train or play with me, which was definitely a lot..." he chuckled, "And even when I defeated him, he still poked me on the forehead,"
Sakura smiled. "Well, he was right, wasn't he? There was still a next time," she replied.
"You're right. I guess Itachi wasn't really lying after all," Sasuke said, while reciprocating Sakura's grip on his hand. "But you know, when he came back, he didn't poke me on the forehead anymore. Instead, he bumped our foreheads together and h-he… he told me he loved me,"
Sakura couldn't even begin to imagine how painful it must've been for Sasuke to open up, especially about his family. And she knew that she must've meant a lot to him if he trusted her enough to see him like this. She slowly put her other hand on his face and pulled them closer. Sasuke thought that Sakura may have been leaning in for a kiss. And while Sasuke didn't know much about his feelings towards Sakura, he was certain he did not want to kiss her right now.
But Sakura didn't kiss him. Instead, she simply bumped their foreheads together. I love you were the silent words she was saying to him. They stayed that way for seconds until Sakura felt a tear fall onto both hers and Sasuke's hand, which was still intertwined. Lipsticks, assumptions, and lies. Maybe it wasn't a lie after all. Sasuke knew that Sakura was the only person in the world he was willing to ever talk to, the only person he was willing to ever hold hands with, the only person he was ever willing to touch— and the only person who made him feel like he was at home. He felt Fugaku, Mikoto, and Itachi with him by just breathing her air. Maybe Sakura wasn't his girlfriend yet, but he was sure that there was no one else he'd rather look for than her.
"Thank you, Sakura," Sasuke spoke as he broke their closeness. He let go of her hand and wiped off his tears. "So, you were telling me you liked umeboshi?" he said, with his voice sounding endearing.
"Oh Sasuke kun, we don't have to—"
"No, I want to. I want to know everything about you. And maybe someday, I can tell you everything about me too,"
He saw that Sakura was still hesitant to say anything so he poked her on the forehead. Sakura's brightness returned to her entire body and somehow, it even transferred onto him. And suddenly they were in sync again. Sakura assumed that the forehead poke was just Sasuke promising he would soon open up to her more. But to Sasuke, that forehead poke meant deeper than that. Maybe next time, Sakura, I could tell you that I love you too.