I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter. I don't think it came out as well as I would have liked, but everything in it is important for the plot!

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Chapter 13

Sakura didn't ask much of her friends. Take their shoes off when they entered her apartment, don't make fun of her odd pink hair, and don't touch her books with their grubby fingers. It wasn't a lot, but apparently it wasn't enough. She needed to add one more rule to that list: leave her alone when she's trying to read.

Her phone chimed for the third time in that hour. She caved and picked up her phone, finally deciding to read Ino's texts.

What's up?

We're going out. Come with us.

Sakura Haruno, txt me back.

She sighed. I told you I was reading tonight, she typed back. She had only left Ino two hours ago, after they closed the coffee shop. She told Ino multiple times that she wanted to go home and read, to finally relax.

Ino's name and photo popped up on the screen. Sakura tried not to roll her eyes as she swiped to answer the call. Before she could speak, Ino said, "You had an hour to read, two if you count when you ignored me."

"I don't want to go out," Sakura said. "I'm almost finished with this book."

"Too bad."

Ino hung up as Sakura heard a knock at her front door. Not wanting her mother to hear and rush out of the bedroom, she got up to answer. Ino, Shikamaru, and Sai were on the other side. Sai at least looked guilty for interrupting her.

Ino's eyes swept over Sakura's pajamas, no words being needed to show her disappointment. Sakura rolled her eyes and headed back to her room to get going-out clothes. Sai followed her close behind.

"I'm sorry," Sai said. "I hate when my brother interrupts my art."

She smiled at him, letting him know she wasn't angry with him, then threw open her bedroom door. Her mother was laying on the bed, watching the small TV in the corner of the room. Sakura had it installed so her mother didn't need to hover over her in the living room.

"Oh, you have a friend," her mother said. She pulled a blanket over herself as if her tank top and shorts was scandalous.

"We're going out," Sakura said. "Don't worry about getting up." She didn't need her mother going to the living room and meeting Ino.

Her mother popped off the bed anyway, thankfully not moving towards the door. Instead she picked up Sakura's hairbrush off the dresser. "Remember when I did your hair before your school pictures?" she asked.

Despite Sakura's reservations with her mother, she appreciated the small moments. Letting her mother do her hair for the night wasn't anything amazing, but it was something good they could share, if even for a moment.

Sakura sat at the edge of her bed, and her mother moved behind her. While her mother brushed her hair, she directed Sai to pick a dress and necklace for her. He had great taste as an artist, so she'd been letting him help her get ready to Ino's standards.

Her mother swept her hair into a braided updo, humming quietly as she worked. Sakura's hair was only to her shoulders, so she needed to secure it with bobby pins to keep it in place. As she moved to secure the first one, she gasped. "Sakura, what are these?"

Sakura shivered as her mother's fingers ran around her neck, tracing the crescent-moon scars. "You know what they are," she said bitterly. When her mother stayed silent, she scoffed. "Of course you don't know what they are. What was I thinking?" She stood up and grabbed the bobby pins from her mother. She'd pin it herself with the mirror on her vanity-dresser.

"Honey, I don't know what you mean," her mother said. "You've never said anything about-"

"Mom!" Sakura whirled around, fire in her eyes. "I told you everything for years. I stopped talking to you when I was scolded one too many times for 'lying.' If you don't know what these are, that is not my fault."

"Sakura, wait!"

Sakura roughly grabbed the dress and necklace from Sai's hands and left the room. He followed after her, closing the door behind him. He knew Sakura didn't want her mother following her.

"Sakura, are you okay?" Sai asked. He grabbed her arm to stop her from going into the bathroom. He reached out to wipe her tears away, but she shrugged him off.

"Don't mention it, Sai," she said. "Just don't."

Sakura changed, splashed her face with water, and put on her makeup. She held her head high, not wanting her mother or anyone else to see her pained. Shove her feelings down, smile wide, and don't let anyone know she's anything less than delighted. Just what she grew-up doing.

X

Sakura looked around the bar. It was crowded but not stuffed to the brim like usual. The novelty of the place must have been wearing off, though she had a feeling Kakashi made sure all of his establishments stayed desirable. Current music, trendy drinks, and happy people. He always aimed to please, she was realizing.

"Aren't you having fun?" Kakashi whispered, the cloth of his turtleneck tickling her ear as he leaned in close.

He was sitting beside her, just close enough to make her ever-aware of his presence. Not enough to make her forget her fight with her mother, though, and he knew. He knew something was off with her. She hated that he knew her so well. It also thrilled her.

She hummed and nodded, eyes focused on Gai as he told a story about a clumsy new employee. Her wide-open eyes followed his animated gestures, but when she blinked she'd have a brief moment of seeing her mother standing over her small figure, yelling at and cursing her. They only lasted a moment while she blinked, but it made her dizzy. The alcohol wasn't helping.

"His hands were buttery, I swear!" Gai was saying.

Kakashi and Gai were drinking at the bar when Ino, Shikamaru, Sai, and Sakura arrived. Ino and Shikamaru ran off to dance, and Sai and Sakura decided to sit with the two men. Sai had pulled his sketchbook out immediately, and looking at Kakashi brought memories of kissing during laser tag. Gai was her only sane source of entertainment, and even he wasn't distracting enough.

"He grabbed it by the neck so fast, it just flew across the room! If he'd just taken his time-"

Sakura choked on her drink. Gai stopped talking, and Kakashi started patting her back. Sakura barely felt his hand as she was thrown into her memories. She wasn't picturing a boy grabbing the neck of a creamer bottle. She was picking large, rough hands, reaching towards her…

Sai put his hand on her knee, and her eyes snapped to him. He was still drawing in his sketchbook, not even looking at her. She saw his lips turned downwards, just slightly.

"I'm fine," Sakura said. She looked to her other side at Kakashi. He was back to listening to Gai.

Gai talked for another ten minutes before he finished his story — or at least paused for more than a second. Kakashi took the chance to stand up and grab Sakura's hand. Being a bar with only restrooms, a seating area, and a dancefloor, she knew where he was taking her. Sai would be fine, she knew, so she let Kakashi take her to the dancefloor.

Kakashi wasn't a big dancer, but he enjoyed swaying to the music. Sakura didn't mind, since she didn't know how to dance, either. She let him pull her close to him and rest his chin on her head. She felt safe with him, and all her anxious thoughts slipped away. She was there with him, and that was all that mattered.

"I'm glad you came out tonight," he said.

She moved her head back so she could look at him. His eyes were smiling, which made her smile. "You haven't been coming into the coffee shop."

"I have a new project I've been working on," he said. He ran a hand over the braid of her hair, wishing he could run his fingers through it. "It's almost ready to show you."

She was going to ask why he wanted to show her — he's never showed her any of his businesses — but her breath was taken away when he leaned in close. Their noses touched through his turtleneck, and she felt the heat from his breath.

"Sakura!"

Sakura turned her head just as Ino appeared, pulling her back from Kakashi. "Shikamaru just told me he and Temari went out to dinner last night alone. He's totally hooking up with hr. I knew I couldn't trust him with her! I'm so out of here."

The music was loud and she was still on a buzz from being so close to Kakashi, so Sakura only understood half of what Ino said. She knew Ino was being dramatic, whatever was going on about with Shikamaru and Temari. They had settled long ago that his ex became one of his closest friends, and there was no way he'd cheat on Ino. Sakura wasn't worried; Ino and Shikamaru would make-up by the next afternoon.

Ino stormed away, and the moment was broken. Sakura and Kakashi made their way back to Sai and Gai. Gai grabbed Kakashi and sat him next to him, continuing his story as if he never stopped. Sakura giggled at the two before looking to Sai, who seemed to be finishing his drawing. He showed her the page, and her heart stopped.

He had drawn her neck. Her hair was pulled up in the braided updo. One of her hands were pulling up the short strands slipping out, and the other was clawing at her neck. The crescent-moon scars were bleeding black where she touched. Everything about the picture was dark and foreboding, even her hair being a gray color.

It was scarred and ruined and dark and alive, everything she had felt while fighting with her mother.

"Sai," she choked out.

"You don't have to tell me, because I understand," he said. "I know you've been through something traumatic, and I know your mother didn't believe you about it."

She grabbed the sketchbook to look closely at the drawing. "Maybe she's right and it was never bad," she said lowly.

Sai put a hand over the sketchbook, forcing her to look up at him. "Don't let hindsight kill the truth," he said.

Sakura had never heard it spoken so beautifully. Hindsight was killing her truth. Her brain told her it couldn't have been as bad as she remembered, while her heart told her it wasn't a lie. ust because she was no longer in pain didn't mean she hadn't felt ever painful second. Sai's picture showed how real the pain was.

"Will you draw more?" she asked. "If I tell you more, will you draw it?"

Sai smiled wide, wider than Sakura had ever seen. She had a feeling she just gave him a project far more interesting than drawing people at a bar.

I have most of the story outlined now :) A lot of fun stuff happening soon! We'll learn more about Sakura and Mebuki's relationship, Kakashi and Sakura's relationship will develop further, we'll meet Naruto and Sasuke, and much more!

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