Chapter 12. Splinters

"Mistakes are meant for learning, not repeating."

|Sakura|

I popped the second Saturday tab out of the packet and tossed it into my mouth. With a swig of *I LOHAS, it was down my throat and in my system in no time. Sighing, I placed the box on the shelf and tried to push it as far back as possible. When I pulled my hand back, a pill bottle fell onto the floor. As I picked it up, I read the label: Paroxetine.

'Don't take it. You don't want to get rid of me, do you? We've been having such lovely conversations lately!'

"That's the problem." I mumbled as I turned the cap.

'Wait, wait, wait! Okay, I admit that joke was ill-timed. But seriously, do you really want to get rid of me now? Who's gonna help you face him?'

As if on cue, there was a thump from downstairs, as if something had been knocked over, and I sighed as I stared at myself in the mirror.

'Can you even face him?'

"I think so. I was able to get through lunch with him." I traced the bags under my eyes with my fingers, "And I invited him here, didn't I? Besides, Sasori's here."

'At whose suggestion did you invite them?'

I shook one tablet out and set the bottle down.

'Think for a second! I'm here to help you. If you want, you can even leave everything to me.'

"No, you've been here for too long. I should've gotten rid of you the moment you came back." I swallowed the tablet dry.

'Silly girl! Nine years ago, when you needed someone, who was there for you?'

"I—"

'Me! I was there for you! I am you! If you get rid of me, you'll be weak! You've always been weak, but it didn't matter because I would make up for it! Without me, you're nothing.'

"…Just go away."

'It'll take some days before you get rid of me, silly. Shall I remind you of everything you've ever messed up while we wait?'

"Shut up." I shook my head.

'Let's see, I guess the first mistake happened junior year in high school. You remember, don't you? How you made Sasuke-kun want nothing to do with you.'

"It wasn't like that."

'Sure it wasn't. Oh! Then there was Sarada's birth, which you also almost fucked up.'

"I didn't have time to—"

'Look at that! ANOTHER excuse! And then, of course, there's Suna. You just couldn't stay put, could you? What do you have to say for that one?'

I felt the tears come down as she reminded me of my worst mistake, "Nothing, there's nothing I can say."

'And here come the infamous Haruno waterworks.'

I covered my mouth to keep from crying out loud and shut my eyes, "I get it. I get it, okay? I'm a failure who can't do anything right, is that what you want to hear?"

'I want to hear you stand up and be the strong woman you once were!' She roared, 'For Kami's sake, look at you! You're nothing now! You've been nothing for a long time, but by Kami it's even worse!'

"Well, gomennasai for being nothing." I remarked tearfully, staring at myself in the mirror, "If I'm so useless then why don't you just let me waste away in my uselessness? Why are you talking to me?"

'There you go again, crying yourself into a depression. You're forgetting I'm you, and if that shit doesn't work on Sasuke-kun, it definitely isn't gonna work on me. Stop bitching about my criticism and…' She trailed off as I knelt down and retrieved something from the floor cabinet.

"Go on." I encouraged her as I straightened up, wiping my eyes and nose, "Finish what you were saying."

*I LOHAS is a popular Japanese water brand, kinda like Poland Spring

|Naruto|

I checked my watch and found that it was just past five. With that in mind, I returned my sight to the TV where the famed Wagatsuma Junko was reporting a brutal murder on East Senju Avenue.

"For a city so advanced, ya live pretty dangerously." Sasori commented, licking a spoon of ice cream.

I shook my head, "You wouldn't believe there was a police station over there."

Sasori chuckled, "Well, it ain't yer fault. At the end of the day folks will be folks."

"Yeah." I nodded in agreement, and we returned our attention to the TV.

When he had invited me to sit with them, I figured he was nice guy but when Sakura excused herself and went to the bathroom, things went downhill.

"I saw ya at the motel." He said in a low voice, "I was her taxi driver."

I stopped for a second before shaking my head, "I don't know what you're—"

"A blue flannel over yer shoulder and her coat in yer hand?" He raised an eyebrow, "Sound familiar."

Swallowing hard, I faced him, "What do you want?"

He sat back and grinned, "Nothin', nothin'. I'm just surprised I met the man who made Sakura-san cry."

My heart faltered, "She cried?"

"Soon as she got into the car the tears came rushing like a waterfall. I was thinking ya had to be downright terrible to make a lady cry that much."

I stared at the grill, "I wasn't…We were both…"

"Yer conflicted," Sasori crossed his arms, "Well, what did ya do?"

I cleared my throat, "None of your business."

"None of my business?" His tone changed, "Yer forgettin' I know who ya are? Uzumaki Naruto, right? Seventh Fire Chief of the city. This could affect ya, right?"

I crossed my arms, "Like I said the first time, what do you want?"

He shrugged, "I'm bored and new to the city. Some drama would spice up my life, and ya seem to have somethin' especially spicy right now."

"In other words, you just wanna know what happened." I surmised, "How can I trust you not to tell anyone?"

"Ya can't." He admitted, "And I ain't a fan of crossin' my heart, but hey, damned if you do, damned if you don't, right?"

I bit my lip.

"How about this?" He sat up, "The way I see it, yer losin' your mind over what happened. And I'm pretty sure ya haven't been able to tell anybody. Think of me as yer shrink, ya can say anythin' ya want and not worry about bein' judged."

I rubbed the back of my neck, "Well…"

"Come on," Sasori persisted, "What have ya got to lose?"

After that, I'd said to hell with it and told him. Excluding the details, I gave him a rundown of what had happened and how I felt about the situation, but before he could say anything, Sakura had returned to the table. It rubbed me the wrong way that I could tell a complete stranger something this private, but then again, it wasn't exactly a secret I could share with my wife or my best friend.

Clearing my throat, I decided I had to hear his opinion. Whether I liked it or not, he was the only one I could count on for guidance.

"So Sasori, after what I told you, what do you think?" I turned to him.

He had finished his ice cream and was now flipping through channels.

"About the motel incident? If I'm bein' honest, yer the main aggressor in my eyes."

I sat up, "Why do you say that?"

He raised an eyebrow, "Ya kiddin'? She was clearly drunk beyond her limits, and she even told ya to stop—"

"She never said stop." I cut in.

Sasori rolled his eyes, "Ya know who says stuff like that? Rapists, and if this were a court case, I'd be callin' ya a rapist."

"I'm not a—!"

"I ain't sayin' ya are." Sasori raised his hand, "But from what yer tellin' me, she didn't sound like she was in a position to think clearly. Maybe yer just a bad storyteller, and Sakura-san's side will clear things up."

I cracked my knuckles anxiously as I recalled our last conversation, "I don't think she'd help my case."

He narrowed his eyes, "So ya raped her."

"No!" I jumped up.

He looked at me for a moment before a smile spread onto his face, "Ya sure are expressive, to say the least. Relax, I ain't gonna tell anyone. Besides, this is somethin' ya need to work out with Sakura-san. Ya need to stop worryin' about what I think and get her to forgive you."

His phone rang and he brought it out of his pocket.

Frowning as he identified the caller, he stood up sighing, "Speakin' of forgiveness, my boss."

"Yes sir?" He answered the call and left the living room.

I paced back and forth while he was away, thinking back to Sakura's comment about me being a predator.

'I didn't rape her. She wanted it just as much as I did, ya know?' I reasoned with myself, biting my nails.

But what Sasori had said stuck with me. She had puked moments before…

'But she didn't try to resist! She didn't say no!' As if she could, she was drunk!

I thumped myself in the forehead, 'Too drunk to drive home but sober enough to have sex? Naruto, you fucking—'

"Sorry about this, Naruto-san." Sasori popped back into the living room, "My boss wants me back ASAP. Tell Sakura-san I couldn't wait any longer."

Before I could respond, he was out of the house. The door slammed shut behind him and I shook my head before looking up the stairs. Sakura sure was taking her time. As soon as we'd arrived at her house, she'd excused herself to freshen up, but that had been almost half an hour ago.

'Something's not right.' I thought to myself as I climbed the staircase.

I opened the door of the first room on the right and immediately recognized it to be the master bedroom. When I didn't immediately see her, I moved to shut the door with the assumption that she wasn't in the room. However, a light in the inner bathroom caught my eye and I entered the room this time, an uneasy feeling making itself known in the pit of my stomach.

As I got closer, I could hear Sakura's voice.

"After all, I'm such a disappointment! I'm nothing, right? Absolutely useless!"

"Sakura-chan?" I called lightly as I neared the door, which I found to be open.

"So why don't I just fucking end it?" I watched in shock as she placed the muzzle of a gun to the side of her head.

"Sakura-chan, no!" I yelled, as she pulled the trigger.

|Sarada|

"Sarada, daijōbu?" Mitsuki asked, shifting his head to look at me.

I nodded before quickly sniffing and wiping my eyes, "I'm fine, it's just…that ending was so sad."

He stifled a laugh, "I never thought you'd be the type to cry over a movie."

"Shut it." I said as I gently slapped his cheek, "I usually don't but this one got to me."

His smirk remained on his face, and he shut his eyes for a moment before sitting up. I eased my right leg off the couch and allowed him to stand up.

"Bathroom. Be right back." He assured me, stretching his arms as he walked away.

I nodded and took the opportunity to get up and stretch as well. For the past two hours, Mitsuki and I had laid on the couch with little to no movement. To say I was stiff would be an understatement, and it didn't help that Mitsuki had been laying on top of me for the most of it.

I had originally been hesitant when I felt him lean against me sometime after the movie had started. But once his head fell into my lap and rested against my thigh, I began to relax, and after a while I adjusted so that I was lying down as well.

'Oh, better let Chōchō and Sumire know.' I thought to myself before looking around for my phone.

I found it on the table next to the couch and lifted it up to find barely any notifications.

Just finished the movie. I texted the group chat, He went to use the bathroom.

Why? Sumire immediately replied, What's he got planned next?

With a roll of my eyes, I responded. Nothing. We're probably just gonna watch another movie. That or I'll head home.

Keep your eyes on that clock, Sarada. Chōchō warned me, If your mom calls my mom, we're both screwed.

I nodded as I answered her, I'll text my mom right now. I'm gonna tell her we're watching a movie at Shinobi Square Theatre. That should give me enough time, right?

Enough time to do what? Came Sumire's interjection.

To watch another movie! Come on Sumire, keep up!

ARE YOU SERIOUS?! SARADA, GO HOME RIGHT NOW!

Before I could respond, I heard a set of footsteps approaching and immediately switched over to Instagram, scrolling through my feed to seem occupied.

"Done already?" I asked as I looked up, "What are we…"

I trailed off as I realized it wasn't Mitsuki who had entered the living room, but an older version of him. The young man I was staring at had the same golden eyes and white-blue hair, albeit at a shorter length, but the real difference between them was his height as well as the scar on his right cheek.

"H-Hello." I waved as I greeted him.

He stared at me and said nothing, and for the first time I became aware of how unsettling those golden eyes could be. Thankfully, I didn't spend much longer under their gaze, as Mitsuki appeared beside the man.

"Log." He addressed him with a bitter tone, one I had never heard before, "What are you doing here?"

The young man reached into his back pocket and brought out a pack of cigarettes, "Is that any way to greet your older brother?"

His eyes flicked back to me, "And who's this? Hm?"

"I'm Sarada." I quickly introduced myself, hoping to lessen the tension in the air, "Uchiha Sarada."

"Uchiha?" Log's eyebrows perked up as he looked from me to Mitsuki, lighting a smoke, "Ah, so that's what's going on here."

"Shut up and leave." Mitsuki replied, immediately glancing at me, "Ignore him, Sarada."

"Poor girl." Log approached me and took a puff from his cigarette, "Take it from me; whatever he's told you is a lie."

"What?" I tilted my head, confused by what he was saying.

He opened his mouth to continue speaking but stopped when Mitsuki grabbed his shoulder.

"I told you to leave." Mitsuki glared, the look on his face unlike anything I had ever seen.

"Make me." Log shot back, a sneer dancing on his face.

Immediately, Mitsuki cocked his fist back and slammed it into Log's jaw, sending the older brother stumbling back. The lit cigarette fell to the ground as Log collected himself, and after stepping on and putting out the light, he narrowed his eyes at Mitsuki. Before he could retaliate, another person made themselves known.

"Hey, what's the hold up?" The guy questioned, "You said you were gonna head inside real quick, it's been fifteen minutes."

"…Kū." Mitsuki acknowledge him, "What are you doing here?"

As he questioned the new character, I watched as four other people approached and stood behind this shaggy brown-haired mystery man. From right to left was a girl with blonde hair, a guy with red hair, another guy with wavy long black hair, and the last guy had light brown hair in a bowl cut like Metal's. All of them had pale skin.

"Some stuff happened in Iwa so we're taking a little vacation. Haven't seen my cousins in a while, so I figured this'd be the perfect opportunity." Kū smirked, "We'll be in your care, cuzzo."

The blazing anger that had captured Mitsuki's face had quieted down to a simmering fury, and with news of his extended family now staying at his place, Mitsuki's expression seemed to be morphing into one of displeasure.

"Ah, almost forgot." Kū reached into his pocket and brought out a white block covered in Saran Wrap.

He produced a switchblade from his other pocket and unwrapped the block before cutting a tiny sliver from the side and offered it to Log. I watched as he bent down and sniffed the bit of powder off the blade before straightening up.

"It's good." Log nodded, clutching his head and grinning, "It's amazing. I feel like I can smell colors now."

Mitsuki clicked his tongue at the statement, but Log went on to slap Kū on the back, "The kids on the street won't know what hit 'em."

Kū shared a grin with him before turning to me.

"Want some?" He offered, his knife poised to slice off another piece.

I raised my hands to decline but before I could speak, Mitsuki answered for me, "Hell no. And keep that shit away from her."

"Okay." Kū threw his hands up in fake surrender, "Look at you, cousin! Really protective about this one, eh?"

"Come on Sarada, let's get out of here." Mitsuki beckoned, ignoring Kū's statement and holding out a hand.

I stood up and joined him, and we moved past the group from the way they had come in.

"Wait a sec…" The blonde girl stopped me, staring into my eyes, "I know this girl."

I had no idea what she was talking about, and as I stared back, I couldn't help but feel more confused.

'I'd remember these grey eyes.' I thought to myself as she continued to stare at me.

Unsure of what was happening, I swallowed lightly and remained in place.

"Kirara." Kū called her name, "You're making Mitsuki mad."

She blinked and stepped back, looking at Mitsuki, "Oops. Gomen, cuzzo."

With a tug, Mitsuki and I were going up the stairs and I sucked in a quick breath at the thought of heading back to the room that had started it all. However, for better or for worse, instead of going there, we entered the room on the immediate left once we reached the top.

The room was practically empty, save for the bed pressed up against the window and the small desk setup on the opposite side; if it weren't for the cobalt blue walls, I wouldn't have been able to confidently say that this was Mitsuki's room. However, with a little deductive reasoning and the fact that he so easily laid down on the bed, it wasn't hard to figure out.

After a few moments, I decided to break the silence, "Um…"

"Oh, gomen." He shifted so that his back was against the wall before patting the space next to him.

A sense of déjà vu flooded through my body at the gesture, and I made no move to join him. Mitsuki's eyes widened slightly in realization before softening to reflect a tender countenance.

"Sarada, I promised." He reminded me gently before sitting up.

I shut my eyes and took a deep breath before sitting down in the space he had made for me. Trying not to become too overtly conscious of the lack of space in this intimate setting, I continued with what I was going to say.

"So, those guys downstairs. They're family?"

"Something like that." He responded with a sigh, "We're basically cousins, but it doesn't change the fact that I can't stand any of them except for Sekiei, the one with the bowl cut."

"That's not good." I found myself immediately replying, "If you have direct family, you should try and get along with them. I would, if I had anybody."

"You have me." Mitsuki offered, leaning forward ever so slowly.

I caught his eyes dart to my lips before darting back up to my face and as he inched forward, his golden yellows silently asked for permission. Again, Mama's warning played in my head but I recalled her approval of kissing, and subtly nodded for him to go ahead.

When his lips encountered mine, I couldn't help but think, 'His lips are really soft.'

The kiss started off as light, cute, almost innocent, and Mitsuki pulled back to gauge my reaction. Seeing that I wasn't openly averse to the contact, he leaned forward to continue, this time deepening the kiss with a swipe of his tongue. I opened my mouth to give his tongue room to explore, but when I felt his teeth lightly sinking into my lower lip, a muffled sound escaped my mouth. I felt him smile before pulling back once more.

"Well?" He asked, looking down at me with a happy expression.

"Well…what?" I returned the question, unsure of what he was getting at.

He pressed his lips to my ear and sucked in a sharp breath before speaking, "Can I continue?"

A knock came at the door and we both turned to it. There was no disturbance after waiting for a moment, so I looked back at him, "I mean—"

Someone knocked a second time and Mitsuki called out in exasperation, "Come in!"

The door cracked open just wide enough for someone's head, and Kū appeared in the gap, "You two decent?"

"You're supposed to ask that before you come in the room." Mitsuki rolled his eyes, "What do you want?"

Kū grinned as he fully opened the door and leaned against the doorframe, "I hear Sarada-chan has a knack for marketing."

"Huh?" I remarked in surprise, not expecting my name to be brought up.

"There was a party here a couple weeks ago, ne? Apparently, the drink you sold here is what everyone in the city's looking for." Kū tilted his head to the side, "I could use somebody with that kind of skill."

"I—"

"Try asking her like you're giving her a choice." Mitsuki interrupted, "Or better yet, give her one good reason why she should help you."

Thankful to Mitsuki for the suggestions, I turned my attention to Kū and questioned him, "What do you want to sell? That white rock? What is it, cocaine?"

"It's shabu." Kū stepped into the room and turned the chair at Mitsuki's desk around before taking a seat, "Everyone in Iwa knows about it."

I thought for a second.

"20% of the profits will be yours." Kū offered, as if money was the reason for my hesitancy.

"I don't care about money." I told him flatly, "I'm just trying to think this through. All you've told me is that it's drug."

Kū sighed and leaned back in his chair, "The more you know, the worse it'll be for you if the law catches us. Are you in or out?"

"I just—"

"Forget it." Kū stood up, clearly annoyed, "Of course an Uchiha wouldn't agree."

Looking back on it now, this was an obvious attempt to get under my skin, and it worked.

"Uchiha? What does that have to do with anything?" I shot back, not liking my family name being brought into this.

"Come on, your name's synonymous with police. I guess you can't get caught up with us when you've got justice running through your blood." Kū laughed as he brushed back his hair, "Like father like daughter I see."

"I am nothing like my father." I grimaced, "Y'know what? I'm in."

"Sarada." Mitsuki called my name in disapproval, but what was done was done.

A grin broke out on Kū's face, "Let's get along then, Sarada-chan."

|Naruto|

"Don't think like that." I told as her brought her in for a hug, "Don't ever think like that."

She laughed uncannily before returning to her sorrowful state, and I felt the urge to cry with her. I'd never seen Sakura in such a low countenance. Even during her father's funeral when anguish had been clear on her face, she had looked much more composed than she did now.

'But to contemplate suicide…?' My gaze fell to the revolver on the nightstand, 'Buddha be with us.'

We were currently sitting on the bed. After Sakura had pulled the trigger and I'd only heard the click of an empty gun, she had turned to me droopily and said, "Better luck next time." I had quickly yanked the gun away from her before tugging her out of the bathroom and back to the main room.

Sniffling, Sakura sat up from me, "Gomennasai, this is the second time you're listening to me complain about my problems. I don't know how you're not sick of me yet."

I shook my head, "I could never be sick of you. But you scared the hell out of me when you pulled the trigger. I thought...I thought you were gone, ya know."

She wiped her eyes and lifted the gun off the beside table, opening the cylinder to reveal six chambers, all of them empty except one, "I guess tonight wasn't the night."

"For Buddha's sake, Sakura-chan!" I looked at her in disbelief, "How many times have you done this?"

She set the gun down and looked at it with a sad smile, "Enough times to know I've got the worst luck."

"Listen to me." I grabbed her shoulders and made her face me, "You've gotta talk to someone about this, ya know? I'm not the best with words but if you're contemplating suicide, you need help."

As I was talking, her eyes dropped from mine to the bottom of my face, to my hands on her shoulders.

"History does repeat itself." She chuckled, which made me uneasy, "It was this a situation like this that led to us having sex, remember?"

"Sakura-chan—"

She raised a hand, indicating she wasn't finished, "I know it was my fault for getting so drunk in the first place, and you're a man so I can't say the risk wasn't there—"

"No." I immediately cut in at that statement, "We're friends. We're even closer than that! You're like my sister, I should never have—"

"You shouldn't have but you did." Her voice broke as tears began to well up in her eyes, "I just wish that…oh Kami…"

"That what? Tell me." I encouraged her, eager to find out her feelings about the situation.

She shook her head, turning away, "N-No. I can't. I've already done enough damage."

Something about the tone of her voice, the shame that I could clearly identify made my heart ache for her. I certainly understood the feeling, as even though I had swung by her house with Boruto and apologized with the intent of moving past our…mistake, I couldn't help that my mind tended to recall the events of that night whenever I had some downtime. How Sakura had felt, what I had done, her glorious voice…If her voice was any indication that she too relieved the moments, then I would fall right with her.

Gently, I lifted a hand to her cheek and guided her eyes back to mine. They were glazed and glassy, as if tears might fall from them any second, but nevertheless I held her gaze.

"That night…" She finally whispered, as if afraid that speaking any louder would cause the whole house to come crashing down on us, "It's all I can think about. I know I shouldn't, but I do."

"Me too." I found myself replying in a similar whispery voice, "It's been running in my head nonstop, and I…"

'I want you.' I finished the rest of my words in my head, and looked at her endearingly, hoping she would be able to fill in the blanks.

Sakura's emerald-green eyes slightly widened in understanding, and she wiped away a tear that had slipped down her cheek before placing her hands on my chest and surging forward. I didn't move as her lips met mine. The kiss was light with barely any pressure to it, so I took it as a sign of Sakura testing the waters and wrapped my hands around her waist, pulling us closer.

At this, Sakura deepened the kiss, swiping her tongue across my own and fighting for dominance. When her tongue traced the inside of my mouth, I fought off a growl before easing her down into the bed. My fingers slid under her jeggings and palmed her core, but before I made any further moves, Sasori's words came to mind.

Breaking the kiss off, I stilled my movements as I pulled back to look at her. Her eyes opened and for a second confusion was clearly written on them before she recognized the wordless question my own gaze posed.

After a moment, she nodded.

I pressed my thumb down on her throbbing nub as my fingers slide against her and she groaned into my mouth. She fumbled and grabbed at the sheets as I used my freehand to ease her out of her pants. The dark red underwear I found underneath beautifully complimented her legs, and I decided that I liked them better on than off.

Pulling them to the side, I lowered my mouth to her warmth and lapped at her like a dehydrated dog. She latched her fingers onto my hair and made it clear with her voice just how good she felt.

With that vocal encouragement, I replaced my tongue with my fingers and pressed mouth to her nub. She gasped as I opened my lips and threatened to run my tongue over it.

Her eyes widened, "Naruto, wai—"

Whatever she was going to say was quickly cut off as a I swept a circle around her bud before taking it into my mouth and sucking at it with the same tenacity that I had been using to drink at her insides.

My fingers drowned in her wetness and she clamped her thighs around my head as she screamed, "I'm gonna—oh Kami!"

Arching her back off the bed, she gripped my hair tightly as she shook and reached her climax. She took in deep gasps for air and I felt her thighs unclench as she came down from her high. But before she could completely unwind, an idea came to my mind, and I gripped her thighs and pressed my tongue back inside. Her shock was expressed through the jerking of her legs as she tried to pull away, but I held her down and worked her into a higher climax.

Her moans came out in sputtering intervals as she held her hands to her face, twisting and shifting on the bed, and her wetness ran abundantly over my mouth and down my chin, but I was determined to continue for as long as she would allow.

It was only when I curled my fingers inside her that she jolted up, grabbing my head and attempting to push me back with a weak hand, "St—for Kami's sake, stop…"

I gave her one last suck before moving away from her, and she fell back, going completely still. Wiping my mouth, I became painfully aware of my situation down below as I sat up, and quickly unbuckled my pants. My length wasted no time in springing forth, happy to be free from its tight confines, but one glance at Sakura told me that the odds of being joined were low.

'It's fine.' I thought to myself, 'She's had enough.' And with a quiet sigh, I stood up to head for her bathroom and clear up this problem.

Although we had shared many intimate things with each other, I didn't think we were at the stage where I could please myself in front of her. Hell, I wouldn't dare attempt this kind of thing with Hinata.

"Matte." Sakura called just as I stepped forward.

Turning back to her, I immediately found her eyes and searched for any sign of regret. Instead, I found her green eyes dark with lust, and she swung her legs to the side of the bed. Her hands reached for mine as she got up and she encouraged me to sit before getting down on her knees. My eyes widened as I realized her intentions.

"You don't have to, ya know." The words left my mouth before I could think, "Really, I'll be fine."

She said nothing as she lifted her left hand to my base and her right hand to my balls. As I sucked in a sharp breath, she leaned forward and I placed a hand on her head, holding her back.

"Sakura-chan, I..." I trailed off as she descended upon me.

Maintaining complete eye contact, her mouth enveloped my tip, and her hand began to slowly pump up and down. I instinctively bucked my hips into her and leaned back, using a hand to keep me up. My other remained on her head, and I laced my fingers in her hair as she slid her tongue down my length and fondled my balls.

I wanted to groan but with her vision trained on me, I felt like I was being tested and if I made noise, I would somehow fail that test. Gritting my teeth, I dug my heels into the floor as she took me deeper into her mouth and sucked. Her tongue didn't let up in its inspection of me, and I scrunched my eyes shut for a second.

She went further down, this time lightly scraping her teeth along my skin, and I let out a shaky breath. I looked at her again and noticed a silent expectation in her eyes. With a blink, I leaned forward and placed both of my hands on her head before driving myself to the back of her throat. She dug her nails into my thighs and gagged around my member, and I tightened my grip on her hair as I thrusted into her mouth.

In a twisted satisfaction, I watched as tears grew in her eyes. Each time my length hit the back of her throat, she choked and flinched. Her eyes remained open throughout the assault, and I felt myself twitch as I assessed her face. Cheeks red, lips swollen, eyes glazed with fervor...it was a dream come true.

Moving back, I tried to pull myself out of her mouth as I reached my limit but Sakura held me in place and harshly sucked, encouraging me to let it out.

"Sakura-chan!" I came with a loud grunt, releasing her head once I had stopped shuddering.

As my member dropped from her mouth, I realized what I had just done and quickly held my hands together in front of her.

"Spit." I told her, seeing that her mouth was oddly shaped and wanting to rid her of her burden.

Instead, she stared at me again and did the unthinkable. I watched in awe as she lifted her head up and swallowed; the sound of my essence going down her throat was unforgettable. But even Sakura had a limit to how bold she could be, and apparently this was it as she quickly looked away and got up.

"I love you." I immediately said, embracing her tightly, "So much."

She nodded into my shoulder and wrapped her arms around my back. Pulling apart, I fixed my pants before standing up. Now came the awkward part.

"So, I'll see you around?" I tried for a casual question as I adjusted my belt.

Sakura blinked and for the first time since we'd gotten to the house, I felt her go back to normal.

"Yeah." She nodded, lifting the soiled covers off the bed and tossing them to the side, "I'll see you around."

I made for the door but stopped once I touched the doorknob. Spinning back around, I turned Sakura to face me as she finished laying a new cover. With my hands on her shoulders, I planted a light kiss on her lips. Sakura stood still for a second before tossing her arms around my neck and kissing me back. Our tongues hungrily ran over each other and when I felt myself start up again, I broke the kiss.

A line of saliva spread between us and I cupped Sakura's cheek as I whispered in her ear, "Bye."

"Bye..." She repeatedly breathlessly.