(06.13.2020) *Sidenote, I know nothing absolutely about coding or game design so please forgive me for any inaccuracies.


Dark Chocolate Ice Cream - The very best kind


32 hours.

32 freaking hours.

That's how long it took them to finish the prototype for the new Sensorinode gaming system - all because Kiba's new puppy had incidentally destroyed their most recent version of the schematics. However, not even Akamaru, in all his fluffy cuteness, could perk-up her mood right now. Not after she had spent the entire night hunched over her computer, working tirelessly to help the team meet their deadline, while Naruto and Sasuke's bickered constantly in the background.

Gods, if Kakashi hadn't locked them in the storage closet for four hours, she was confident someone at New Leaf Co. would have murdered them.

"Ugh, just thinking about those two is making my head hurt." She grumbled as she pulled the hood of her sweatshirt up over her head and tugged her baseball cap down to shield her eyes from the afternoon sun. All she wanted to do now was go home, bury herself deep under her bed covers, and sleep like the dead for the next sixteen hours.

Beside her, a loud yawn erupted from a grumpy brunette woman before she rested her head on Sakura's shoulder and slumped against her side. "Wake me up when we get to East Hakusen, please."

Too tired to muster a coherent response, the pinkette simply grunted in return before forcing herself to look around the subway car in an attempt to stay awake. A few seats to her left, Shino Aburame, one of their senior coders, was slouched in his seat with his hood pulled up and sunglasses firmly in place on his nose. It was hard to tell if he was actually awake, but she supposed they would find out sooner or later. Standing beside Shino was Sasuke, his hands gripping onto one of the overhead bars like it was only thing keeping him upright and conscious. Across from them sat Naruto, mouth hanging open as drool dribbled down his chin and his head lolled from side to side with each bump of the subway car. And next to him, for reasons completely unknown to her, sat Ino, the marketing genius of their rag-tag group, who had unfortunately been dragged into the fray in order to document any changes that were made to the gaming system in case they had to adjust their advertisements. Then, last but not least, her gaze settled on the man sitting to her right, the source of their plight, Kiba Inuzuka.

He looked like he had been through a war, so run-down and exhausted that she felt compelled to ask if he was okay.

"He won't be if this ever happens again."

Looking down at the woman snuggled against her side, Sakura watched with vague interest as Tenten lifted her head just enough to send another scathing glare at the dog-loving software engineer. Kiba, for his part, offered the harried senior graphic designer yet another apologetic smile and bowed his head. After all, of all the individuals working on the new Sensorinode console, Tenten's team's work had been one of the largest components of the newest schematics.

"Honestly, you should have been more careful," Sasuke added, "we don't take the paper schematics home for a reason."

And he was right. The company had a strict rule that the hard-copy documents for current programs were to be kept in the office at all times - for security reasons. There were very few occasions when anyone was permitted to remove the files from their office, and the privilege was reserved exclusively to team leaders and project directors. The same rules applied to downloading project details and programs onto their personal computers - it was strictly prohibited for anyone aside from team leaders who received explicit permission. However, after this "puppy mishap," Kakashi had forced them all to stay an extra three hours to download a password-restricted copy of the latest design draft and project details onto their company-provided flash drives.

"I know. I know. It was a dumb decision," Kiba said, as he dragged a tired hand through his hair with a heavy sigh,"but I was sick all of last week and with the deadline coming up next week, I was worried that I wouldn't have enough time to finish the in-game messaging system. I'm really sorry, you guys."

"Just don't do it again," sighed Ino, as she gently shook the blonde beside her awake. "Because, if I ever have to pull another all-nighter because of you or your dog, I will neuter both of you."

Perhaps it was Naruto's loud yawn that followed Ino's words or the obvious cloud of fatigue that hung over all of them, but the threat fell flat. So much so that Sakura could even hear a few of their fellow passengers chuckle softly at their conversation. Not that any of them really cared at this point.

Yawning softly, Sakura fought the temptation to close her eyes and instead shifted her gaze to the overhead teleprompter. She was silently relieved to see the words "Next Station - North Bokusochi" crawled across the screen.

She was almost there.

"Ne ne, Sakura-chan! Are you going to join us?"

Blinking slowly, the pinkette returned her attention to her friends, her brain working sluggishly to find the source of the voice before she asked him to elaborate.

Despite being even more sleep-deprived than she was, Naruto smiled brightly and pointed in the direction of the Inuzuka sitting beside her. "Kiba's treating us all to BBQ at Choji's place. You in?"

Raising a hand to cover her mouth as another yawn escaped her lips, Sakura shook her head. "Nah, I think I'm just going to head home and sleep." Then, turning her head to regard the source of her fatigue, she offered him a small smile, "Buy me the tempura special the next time we go out for drinks and we'll call it even."

Chuckling softly, Kiba gave her a nod and a mock salute. "Aye, aye Taichou."

Sakura smiled faintly at the old nickname before slipping her laptop bag onto her shoulder and rising her feet as the train slowed to a halt. Then, after bidding her coworkers a farewell, the twenty-six-year-old sound engineer made her way off the train and towards the exit.

Once above ground, Sakura pulled the bill of her ball-cap down and slid on her sunglasses before setting her course straight for her apartment. She didn't care that she looked ridiculous in her old neon blue hoodie and purple shorts, or that a few people openly stared at her as she trudged by, her frizzy pink hair sticking out in all directions from under her hood. At the moment, she only had three things on her mind: get home, shower, and maybe order some delivery.

Her pace quickened at the thought of collapsing into her own bed and blissfully hibernating amongst a sea of pillows and cotton sheets. And when her apartment building finally came into view, Sakura nearly cried tears of joy. She was so excited to go to bed that it wasn't until she had reached the landing to her sixth floor apartment and turned down her hall that she noticed a figure following several feet behind her, a pair of white plastic bags dangling from one hand while a pack of beer hung from the other.

He chuckled softly as he watched her impatiently dig her keys out of her bag and unlock her front door.

"You look a little worse for wear, Sakura," he teased lightly as he drew near enough to lean against her door jam, "Did you not get enough sleep last night?"

Glaring sharply at the man, Sakura hissed, "Screw you, Sasori," before pushing her front door open and storming inside.

Sasori laughed good-naturedly at the whirlwind of a woman before following her inside. After carefully removing her keys from the doorknob and pushing the door shut with his foot, the redhead paused for a moment to slip out of his shoes before proceeding to the kitchen to deposit his load.

Meanwhile, he could hear his grumpy girlfriend shuffling about in her room - no doubt changing out of her clothes and preparing for a shower.

"If you still feel even remotely human, I brought food," he called from his place by the kitchen table, "and beer."

He wasn't offended when he received nothing more than a shutting bathroom door in response. After all, no one would want to be forced to work on their day-off to try and rewrite a week's worth of careful software coding within the span of two days. Hence, why he had hoped to surprise his leading lady with dinner and alcohol - agreeably two of the best things after spending long hours at work. Although, after seeing her zombie-like state and nearly feral desire to crawl into her bed, he wondered if he should have just ordered a pizza and left it in the fridge for her to find when she rejoined the world of the living.

Nevertheless, he had already bought the tempura from her favorite restaurant and the dango from her favorite bakery, and had a list of her favorite cheesy romance movies prepped from viewing on the DVR. Worst case scenario, she'd go straight to bed after her shower and he would spend a few hours watching Elle Woods fumble her way through law school.

Sasori had just finished setting the kitchen table and was about to crack open a beer when he heard the bathroom door open and watched his girlfriend shuffle into the living room. She was dressed in a pair of old sweatpants from her university days and one of his old T-shirts with a towel draped over one shoulder and her hair still wet from her shower. Sasori let out a small sigh and set down the bottle opener before walking over to her, grabbing the fluffy pink off her shoulder and laying it over her head. Then, despite her quiet protests, he gave her hair a gently ruffle, folding the towel and rubbing the ends of her damp pink hair between the layers of thick cotton, section after section, until she had stopped dripping water on their carpet. Then, draping the fabric over her shoulders and pulling the ends of her hair out from underneath it, Sasori took Sakura by the hand and led her quietly over to the living room sofa.

"Sit," he said gently, "I'll get you something to eat."

She said nothing, only nodded tiredly, before turning and seating herself on the plush furniture with an unusual amount of grace. She felt like she was in a daze, her mind barely clinging to consciousness, so very ready to take the dive into the sweet abyss of sleep, when Sasori returned and set a warm bowl of shrimp tempura in her lap. Then, as if the smell of the delectable, greasy treat assaulted her olfactory senses, she felt a surge of energy overtake her as her stomach roared to life.

To her left, Sasori sat cross-legged with his own bowl of tempura, his cheek resting in his hand, propped up by an elbow on his knee, as he watched the brilliant woman beside him tear through her meal in a matter of minutes. He was by no means surprised by her hunger. She had told him stories about the long hours their company had spent in its formative years working to finish projects before their deadline, long stretches of time that they had spent going without food or rest, so he was more than happy to replace her bowl with his own when hers was empty.

Taking in the small blissful smile on her face as she bit into another fried morsel, Sasori couldn't help but smile. Just seeing her get this happy over tempura made the sacrifice of his dinner more than worth it.

Quietly standing from the couch, Sasori took Sakura's empty bowl to the kitchen, intent on grabbing her the rest of the shrimp and throwing some leftovers together for himself. However, just as he rounded the corner of the sofa, he heard her call after him.

"You should have some for yourself, Sasori."

Stopping in his tracks, Sasori turned to see Sakura looking at him sheepishly from over the back of the sofa, her green eyes filled with guilt as they flickered from his bowl to the container of shrimp on the table, silently beseeching him to eat some of the tempura. Add her puppy eyes to the crumbs of panko stuck to her cheeks and Sasori felt himself melt inside.

"Kami, how can you be so cute right now?" He blurted aloud as he stared back at her, his brain short-circuiting briefly when she answered him with a bright smile.

Then, she grinned.

"Because you love me?" And so the illusion was broken.

Rolling his eyes, Sasori continued on his way into the kitchen, ignoring his girlfriend as she grumbled from her place on the couch. "I was being serious, though..."

"Yes, yes," Sasori replied placatingly, as he set her bowl on the counter top and opened the refrigerator to find more food. Then, after locating a container of leftover fried rice, he re-emerged and set it on the counter. "I love you very much."

"I haven't slept in nearly two days," Sakura whined, "don't patronize me!"

Chuckling as he dumped the fried rice into the bowl and popped it in the microwave, Sasori gasped dramatically, "I would never!"

Sakura snorted loudly from the other room, no doubt rolling her eyes at his melodrama. "Yeah, and Naruto's my twin brother."

This time, Sasori paused before sticking his head out of the kitchen and meeting her playful gaze. Then, in all seriousness, he asked, "Are you parents aware of this?"

A moment of silence passed before Sakura erupted in a round of hysterical, sleep-deprived giggles. "You're unbelievable," she laughed, her body shaking so hard that she had to set down the bowl in her hands to keep crumbs from spilling over the couch.

Grinning to himself, Sasori reached up and pulled his bowl of food out of the microwave when it beeped before heading back to the living room to join his girlfriend.

"Nonsense," he said with a small laugh, "I am just concerned about how such a bombshell would affect your family. Your father would be beside himself."

"More than he was when you spilled coffee on yourself the first time you met?" She asked, her giggles subsiding as Sasori settled in beside her.

The red head scowled at her, "Hey, cut me some slack. Neither of us knew your parents were going to show up in that café. Anyone would be startled if their girlfriend's father suddenly showed up behind them."

Smiling gently at the flustered man, Sakura reached up and gently cupped his cheek. "Well, at least you were able to redeem yourself at Christmas that year."

Rolling his eyes, Sasori took a bite of his food and chewed grumpily. He had worked his ass off helping her decorate her apartment and prepare a huge Christmas dinner for her family that year. They had spent the entire day cleaning, hanging garlin, and cooking for twenty people.

"The things I do for you." He grumbled half-heartedly, stealing a glance at the smiling woman from out of the corner of his eye.

It was then that he realized how exhausted she was. The shower had helped with her messy hair, but it did nothing to improve the dark circles under her eyes and the pallor of her skin. Even her beautiful green eyes, which were normally sparkling with energy and mischief, were duller than usual and a little unfocused as she gazed at him.

"Hey, why don't you head to bed?" He said softly, "You're exhausted, I'll join you once I'm finished and have cleaned up."

To his surprise, Sakura shook her head. And, instead of getting up and going to their bedroom, she carefully pulled the beige throw blanket off the back of the couch and snuggled against his side.

"Sakura-"

"Eat." She commanded softly as she rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. "I am perfectly comfortable right where I am."

Then, after only a few moments, her breathing evened out and Sasori knew she was fast asleep - and he was helpless to wake her up. So, with a defeated sigh, the red head placed his bowl in his lap and pulled the blanket properly around her shoulders before wrapping his arm around her and quietly finishing his dinner.


A few hours passed before Sakura woke up again, and when she did, Sasori was gone. Confused and more than a little bit upset, Sakura reached out and patted the warm couch cushion beside her before carefully pushing herself into a sitting position and looking around for the familiar red head.

The room was darker than before and she could tell that the curtains had been pulled shut, so it must have been evening. Had he perhaps gone to bed?

No, he would have taken her with him if he had, and the spot beside her was still warm... maybe he went to the bathroom?

Turning her head in the direction of the bathroom, Sakura squinted in the darkness. No, if he had gone to the bathroom, the light would have shown from under the door... So, just where was-

"You're awake?"

Groggily, Sakura turned around to look behind her, and there she could just barely see Sasori standing in the doorway of their dimly lit kitchen.

"What are you doing in the kitchen?" She asked.

Chuckling softly, Sasori replied, "I accidentally fell asleep after I finished eating. I woke up a little while ago and decided to clean up."

Sakura felt a small smile tug at the corner of her lips. He really was the sweetest.

"You should have just left that for the morning." She said with a yawn. "Let's just go to bed-"

grrrrrrr

Cheeks pink, Sakura placed a hand on her stomach and looked back up at Sasori in embarrassment.

"You're still hungry?" He asked in disbelief.

Sheepishly, Sakura nodded. "I guess so."

Chuckling softly, Sasori turned to go back into the kitchen. "Alright, just wait there, I'll get you something."

Sakura nodded obediently before turning around and sinking back into the couch. Pulling her blanket tighter around her body, Sakura pulled her knees up to her chest and closed her eyes. Hungry as she might to be, she could still barely keep her eyes open. Even when Sasori returned with a large bowl in his hand and a pair of spoons she hardly moved. It wasn't until he had settled back into his position on the couch that she snuggled against his side and propped her sleepy head on his shoulder. Although, she didn't even bother to open her eyes when he teased her about her blanket cocoon. Instead, she quietly asked him what he'd brought back from the kitchen.

"Ice cream," he replied, lifting the bowl up to her and asking, "Would you like some?"

Not yet swayed away from absconding to dreamland, Sakura mumbled, "What kind?"

"Only the very best kind." Sasori reply, not missing a beat as he picked up a spoonful of the dairy delicacy and placed it in his mouth.

One emerald eye cracked open to investigate the claim before Sakura made her decision. However, the moment she caught sight of the mocha-colored treat, she opened both eyes and straightened up a little bit.

"Dark chocolate?" She asked, already reaching out to take the other spoon that was sitting in the bowl.

"Indeed."

"Omg, marry me."

Eyes wide in surprise, Sasori's spoon paused in mid air as he turned to look at his possibly delirious girlfriend. "Um, okay."

Then, as if just realizing what she had just said - what he had just said - Sakura up at her boyfriend in shock. "Wait... really?"

Carefully setting his spoon back in the ice cream bowl, Sasori rubbed the back of his head with his free hand and nodded slightly. "Yeah. Let's... get married."

Cheeks red, Sakura returned her spoon to the bowl as well before taking it from his hand and setting it on the coffee table. Then, turning back to look him directly in the eyes, she asked, "Do you really mean it? Do you really want to marry me?"

This time, Sasori wrapped a warm, comforting arm around her waist and pulled her in close. "Yes, Sakura," he said confidently, his gaze soft as he took in the happiness spreading across her features. "I want to get married... to you."

Hands coming to her mouth as happy tears began to well up in her eyes, Sakura nodded excitedly before leaning forward to kiss his lips. "Okay then... let's... let's get married!"

Smiling at his soon-to-be blushing bride, Sasori drew her into his chest before speaking calmly.

"On one condition."

Surprised, Sakura peeked up at her beloved with a raised eyebrow.

"Since you were the one to pop the question..." Sasori said, stretching his free hand out in front of them before grinning down at her. "I believe my ring size is 10."


I'M BAAAACK!

Greetings to everyone after a year of absence! I hope everyone is able to stay safe and healthy during these crazy times.

For whatever reason, I have been struck with the sudden urge to upload a new drabble. This one in particular has been sitting in my documents for the past year, but I just couldn't figure out where to take it until now.

And... a shout out to Orchidflen, Spirit Seer and jacpin2002! I'm always so happy to hear that you love these drabbles so far!

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it, and as always, I am open to accepting ideas and prompts.

Thank you all for the support!

Until next time!

~Smash