Prologue:

Their first kiss had been magic. Filled with uncertainty and sweet anticipation. It had been so unexpected yet somehow felt like it had been a long time coming. They weren't perfect but for almost three years what they had worked because they had found something that was just for them.

For both their sakes they had chosen to keep their relationship private. In hopes that somehow they could last, as long as they kept what they had just between them. Which ironically had been their undoing.

She knew his life before team 7 was filled with war, strife, unimaginable pain and heartbreak, which he had never been able to heal or recover from fully. In her own way, she tried to be there for him, to let him know he didn't have to shoulder all of it by himself. However It was always the same, every time they made one step forward it was always ten steps back and he would just shut down on her. With no one to turn to for support or guidance, she tried her best to be patient and understanding.

Eventually, her own paranoia and insecurities won out, after one particularly nasty fight they'd had. It had resulted in them basically avoiding each other for almost two weeks and even after, they had tiptoed around the other unsure of where they stood.

Did he not trust her enough to let her in? Would he ever? Was she once again giving her heart to someone who wouldn't be able to love her the way she deserved? The questions just wouldn't let up. Could she really love him through this? Did she want to? No, she couldn't take that chance. She had already experienced and felt the repercussions of loving a broken man. There was only so much her heart could take.

So slowly she watched in silent heartache as her little piece of happiness was swallowed by her pride and his reticent.

Now as she found herself seated at her kitchen table, a worn-out expression and once again the all too familiar feel of a dull ache in her chest. She felt paralyzed where she was, unable to move or even fully acknowledge his presence. It didn't take him long to realize something had changed. Before he was even able to utter a word, she finally broke.

"Dammit." Tears broke free from their captivity desperate in their escape. Her fury, love, and frustration for the man before her unable to be restrained any further. Words seemed to fail at how something so beautiful had turned to this. His face sobered, already figuring it out; they didn't call him a genius for nothing.

One of her hands covered her face, the other curled and bunched her skirt

"It's alright Sakura." His reassuring words did nothing to alleviate the heavy feeling building in her chest. A soft hand found its way to cup her chin, gently lifting it to face the man whom she had given what remained of her already tattered heart. His eyes were soft and comforting, her chest tightened even further, her sobs grew louder she buried her face in his chest.

Her heart was too kind, too soft, to say what they both knew needed to be said. Which was why he would have to make the call, as much as it weighed heavily on him. He knew she was only holding on for him. If he were honest with himself, he wouldn't want it any other way

After all, he felt lucky to have been loved by someone so compassionate. He only regretted that in the end, he had been the one to cause her so much pain.

"I'll go." He gave her a tender lingering kiss to the forehead and then just like that he was gone.