I have a long update for you! I didn't want to make two short chapters out of this, so I smooshed them together, just for you guys ;)

NaNoWriMo is underway, and I have a chapter's worth finished already! I might start posting in a week or so. I'll be sure to keep you all posted.

SouTorment, I hope I didn't make you wait too long! And thanks to 50blades for your review spam :D

Chapter 18

Sakura had to take an Uber to get to the Mexican restaurant. It was across town from her apartment but only a couple blocks down from the hospital, making it the perfect place for Ino to have her "First Lunch as a Fulltime Employee" celebration.

Ino's break didn't start for another twenty minutes, but Sakura wanted to have an appetizer ordered and ready for her friend. She went to the host and said she'd be getting a table for herself, Ino, and two others.

"Ino Yamanaka?" the host asked. Sakura nodded, surprised the woman already knew. "We already have Dr. Uchiha at a booth for your party. Please, right this way."

Sakura followed her, dumbfounded. She probably looked like an awful friend, letting a man Ino barely knew get there before her best friend. She was also confused, because Ino said they all had lunch at the same time. How could he be there sooner than Ino? Was he a jerk that cut-out before the girls, refusing to walk over with them?

They approached the booth from behind, and Sakura felt something vaguely familiar about the back of his head, the way his thick hair stuck straight back. She couldn't quite place where she's seen him before.

"Right here, Miss," the host said, motioning for Sakura to sit at the booth. Sakura sat across from Sasuke, wanting to sit next Ino when her friend got there. "Would you like to order appetizers while you wait?"

"Can I get an order of nachos with extra—"

"Pico," Dr. Uchiha finished. "Already ordered."

The host slunk away, and Sakura was left gaping at the man sitting in front of her. He was damn good looking, she realized. She was worried about him stealing the title of Ino's Best Friend — especially after he knew her favorite appetizer and already ordered it — but now she was wondering if Shikamaru should be more worried.

"You must be Sakura," he said, eyes focused on her hair. "Dr. Sasuke Uchiha."

Of course he threw in the "doctor."

"Sakura Haruno, no title," she said. She was hoping he'd notice how stuck-up he sounded by giving his title.

He smirked. "Don't you have a little mouth." He leaned across the table. "I like that."

Despite herself, she blushed. Was he flirting with her? This hot, probably-single guy she couldn't get involved with. Even a friendship would end in a disaster as long as he worked in a hospital.

"Hey guys!" Ino chirped, coming up to the table. She pushed a girl with long, dark blue hair in the seat beside Sasuke. "Sakura, this is Hinata. Hinata, this is Sakura, obviously. Sorry we're here late. Nurses get shorter lunch breaks than doctors."

"I have nachos on the way, extra pico," Sasuke said, smiling at Ino.

Sakura held back her gasp. Sasuke was acting like an entitled ass two seconds ago to her, and now he was acting all sweet with Ino. He even took full credit for the appetizer, even though he knew fully well she also asked for it. He could have at least said "we got you nachos."

"You're so sweet, Sasuke," Ino said. She turned to Sakura. "Isn't he just awesome? We're so lucky to have him as a doctor. The hospital is a brighter place since he came. All the other doctors are stuffy old men who—"

Sakura kicked Ino under the table, making the blonde gasp. Sasuke raised a brow at Sakura, knowing what she did. Hinata was none the wiser, happily looking through the menu and humming. At least she seemed sweet, unlike the doctor sitting beside her.

The waitress came by soon after to get their food and drink orders, dropping off the nachos while she was there. Sasuke ordered a taco salad right after Sakura did, which made her wonder if he was trying to bond or annoy her. Probably both.

"Hinata moved across the country," Ino started saying. "She went to nursing school online, then up and came here for her internship. Cool, huh?"

"It's not a big deal," Hinata mumbled, blushing. Sakura could tell she was a really shy girl.

"It is!" Ino said. "I could never move so far away like that without my family. I was born and raised in this city, and I'm here to stay!"

"Where are you from, Sakura?" Sasuke asked, startling her. "Do your parents live close?"

"She moved here for college and has the cutest apartment," Ino answered for Sakura. "It's right near the coffee shop where we work. Hinata, you should try the coffee shop sometime. It's really cute. Watch out for the manager, Gai, though. He'll chat your ear off!"

Sakura let out a breath. She was grateful for Ino, as well as her skills in rambling. She didn't want to talk about her family, especially to a man she just met, one who works in a hospital. Ino knew that, and she jumped in to save her. Once again. Ino was good at saving her.

Hinata asked questions about the coffee shop until their food arrived, then Ino and Hinata started gossiping about other nurses at the hospital. Sakura stared down at her salad the entire time, feeling Sasuke's eyes boring into her. She didn't know what his deal was, and she didn't want to find out.

X

Kakashi showed up at Sakura's apartment later that night. He found Sakura alone doing dishes, wearing jean shorts and a worn-out tank top. She smiled when she saw him, but with how hard she was scrubbing the dishes, he knew something was bothering her.

"Mom's out with Minato again," Sakura said. "It's the third time this week. Isn't it awesome? I've read two books already. I have so much free time without her breathing down my neck."

He grabbed a towel so he could help dry the dishes. It was oddly domestic, which made her smile. "I think you're too hard on her," he said. "She's trying hard, even I can tell."

"You don't understand. There's a lot you don't know."

He wanted her to tell him, more than anything. He wanted to know of her pain, to take it away. But she kept that special box locked in her heart, refusing to let him in. He knew Ino and Sai knew, so he stung she wouldn't tell him.

When the dishes were done, he told her he had somewhere to take her. She slipped on her sandals and they walked down the street, close enough to bump hips every few steps. They went down a few blocks, the opposite direction of the coffee shop.

"Ah, here we are," he said.

She looked around at the building they stopped at. The outside looked a little worn-down, the siding cracked and dirty. The windows had newspapers taped to the inside, and one had a deep crack across it. He probably could have opened the door without the key. Just give the door a good push and the lock would break, she thought.

The inside was completely empty aside from three paint buckets in the middle of the floor. The floor wasn't even a floor. It was stripped to the bare bones, just that rubber-looking layer that's usually installed underneath linoleum. All the edges around the windows and doors were taped-off with the blue painting tape.

"What is this?" she asked. "It looks awful."

He put a hand over his heart and gave her a sad face. "That hurts my heart, Sakura. This is the new project I told you about."

She vaguely remembered him mentioning a new project the last time they were at a bar together, though she had been pretty drunk at that point. "And your going to make me paint?"

Instead of answering, he handed her a paintbrush. Then he pulled off his turtleneck, revealing a cotton t-shirt underneath. She was shocked at how good it looked on him; she had only ever seen him wear turtlenecks, and now she never wanted him to put one on again. The shirt was doing wonders, stretching against his arm muscles.

They got to work after that. He opened up the cans, which were full of honey-brown paint. She painted edges with her small brush, and he used a paint roller to get the wall. They painted in silence for a while before Sakura asked, "Do you just get to start businesses whenever you want?"

She looked back at him, and he had stopped painting. "You can think of it like that, yes," he started explaining. "I do own a portion of Hatake Corporations, which I can invest into and create businesses as I choose."

"Who owns it, your dad?" He had never mentioned his family before, she realized.

He nodded. "He started the Hatake Corporation himself, then when I turned eighteen he made a division within it, the Leaf Division. It's a piece of the main hub, but it acts as its own individual unit. He isn't benefited or harmed by any business decisions I make, just as I'm not affected by his."

"Why not make your own corporation then?"

"That would be more work later. Whenever my father dies, I'll get the entire company. It's a lot easier to liquidize a Division into the main Corporation than it is to merge two separate Corporations."

She didn't know what to say to that. He certainly was a wealthy and powerful man, and she didn't want him to think she was hanging around him for his money or status. If she got too curious, he may get suspicious. Or maybe he wouldn't and she's the paranoid one.

When she stopped asking questions, he continued speaking. "The coffee shop was my first business, a gift from my father. He transferred ownership to me, and it basically became a new business. I changed the name and everything. Naturally I asked Gai to be the first manager. We were best friends in high school, as odd as he is." He chuckled.

"After that, I mostly invested in other businesses. I had spent so much time and energy in the coffee shop, I was scared to do anything else. I didn't want to try hard for a new business but it not be enough, and I didn't want the coffee shop to suffer if I took my time from it.

"The bar was sort of a rash decision, honestly. Iruka saw the building for sale and said I should buy it. The coffee shop has been running itself for years, so I decided to give it a try. I spent nearly a year planning before I opened it. I knew my father would be watching, since it was my second business over ten years after my first; he wanted to make sure I still knew what I was doing."

"It's an amazing bar," Sakura said. "You're a great businessman. I hope you know that."

She went back to painting, feeling tension building in the room. The compliment felt oddly heavy, and the look he was giving her told her everything about how it made him feel. It was like she was the only person in the world who understood him, appreciated him.

She felt something cold and wet hit her neck. She brushed her fingertips over it and saw it was paint. At least she had her hair in a bun, or that paint would have been in her hair.

"Don't be so serious," he said.

She turned to look at him, and he had a stupid grin on his face. His hand was covered in paint that dripped onto the floor. He must have stuck his whole hand in the can before flicking the paint on her.

They were always throwing liquid at each other, she thought with a chuckle. First the sweet and sour sauce and now paint. But this time, she realized, they didn't have carpet beneath them. This floor meant nothing and would soon be replaced by hardwood or carpet.

She could put her all into this fight and there wouldn't be any mess to clean.

Determined, Sakura jumped at Kakashi, running her fingertips over her paintbrush to flick paint at him. He picked up a paint bucket and stuck his hand inside and chased her around. She squealed and tried to dodge him, but he was faster than her. He slammed his hand onto her neck and drug it down to her chest. She felt drops fall between her breasts and down to her belly button, making her squirm.

"That is so gross," she gasped.

She managed to smear paint down his arm and across his one pant leg, but she wasn't winning by any means. Nearly every inch of her was covered in paint by the time he was finished with her. They only had half a can of paint left, which meant Kakashi would have to buy more to finish the walls.

"Sorry about your paint," she said, though she didn't start the paint war. She ran a hand through her hair and groaned. "It's going to take days to get this out of my hair!"

"I happen to be an expert at getting paint out of hair," he said, walking over to her, grabbing her hips. "We could go take a shower, and I'll help you get it out."

Her heart pounded and she knew her face turned a deep red. He had never made a joke like that towards her, and she didn't know how she felt about it. A part of her wanted to punch him and tell him to not be weird, but another part of her wanted to dare him to do it.

He leaned into her ear and whispered, "Just kidding."

"Kakashi Hatake!" she gasped, pushing him back. "You're an asshole!"

She took the paint bucket and chased him again, planning to dump the remaining paint over his head.

Coming next: A sweet date between Kakashi and Sakura, a group party, and some embarrassing drunk texts!

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