One of my hands are gripping the toilet seat while the other pulls my hair back. This is the third time this week I've woken up sick, pushing the nob I sit back up and wipe my mouth on the towel. My stomach seems like it's going to fail me again today, maybe some tea will help. Slowly I rise from the floor and walk to the kitchen, my hands lightly grip the tea kettle and place it on the stove. My body feels weak and my head starts to hurt slightly. I haven't been sick in so long and I've been taking my vitamins too so this makes no sense. My eyes wander over the to fridge and I see my calendar, oh no…My cycle was supposed to start two weeks ago.
Before I had time to think, my body lunges for the trashcan. My chest hurts from heaving and the air comes slowly to my lungs. Being a medic I know the first signs of pregnancy, morning sickness and tiredness. For the past two weeks that's exactly how I've been feeling. The whistling of the kettle brings me back to reality and I sluggishly make my way from the floor. Pulling a ginger tea pack from the cabinet, I dunk it in the hot water pouring myself a small glass.
My legs are too tired to carry me to my bedroom so I plop down on the couch instead. Sipping the tea, I let the ginger do its job. I told Ino yesterday that if I don't make it today that I'm taking a personal day. I'll go in to have Tsunade look me over later today, maybe it's nothing. My head lays down on the pillow and I pull the throw blanket over me, there's a fresh scent to it, Sasuke's scent. It's been almost a month since his mission began and the house has been lonely without him here. Every night I wake up at least once, my hands mindlessly searching for his body. The nurses at the hospital have been talking about how he only took this mission to get away from me. Saying we were only married because he was desperate to get a wife, I had to set them straight a few times and Tsunade even threatened to fire them. If they only knew.
Sasuke's POV
My muscles are screaming by the time the village gates come into view. Naruto and I were able to end the mission sooner than we thought, the village princess had a problem with a few drug lords. They were easy targets to take out, Sakura as a genin was more of a challenge than they were. These past two weeks were lonely, I've gotten used to Sakura's presence and even sleeping next to her. The nightmares are none existent when I know she's beside me, but almost every night Itachi has plagued my dreams. Tonight will be a peaceful night.
"You know we have to go get checked out first." Unlike his usual energetic self, Naruto's voice is quiet and lethargic. Instead of stopping to rest we continued through the night to hurry home. Tsunade will make us go get examined after we turned in our mission reports, maybe Sakura will be the one to do the exam.
"We're almost there dobe. Hurry up." I push whatever energy I have left and start to run even faster. The gate blurs by and we both start to jump from rooftop to rooftop, this used to be the fun part about coming home from a mission as a child. The Hokage tower comes into view and a sigh escapes my mouth, finally. Naruto is the one who burst open the door to reveal a busy Tsunade, piles of paperwork are covering her desk.
"A knock would be nice. Just give me your report." I pull the scroll from my pack and hand it over to Shizune. Tsunade waves us off, looks like no exam for me today. Smirking I leave Naruto in the dust as I head towards the compound, a nice long shower is calling my name. Sakura's most likely at work since it's Friday which means the house will be quiet once I get there. Last night I thought about taking her out since I've been gone for so long, a surprise would be a nice gesture.
Opening the door, I feel a familiar calming chakra in the room. My eyes narrow as I see she's sleeping peacefully on the couch. Why was she home? Sakura's work schedule is the same every week. I notice a half empty cup of tea sitting out, retreating to the bedroom I throw my mission bag into the closet. Every fiber of my being wants me to jump into the shower but I know Sakura won't sleep well on the small couch. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I return back to the living room. Her pink hair is circling her face almost like a halo, the expression on her face is soft but there's a slight scrunch between her brows. Slipping my arms under her knees and neck, her body is warm against my chest.
Her body sank into the bed and her body curled up into a ball. Now that she's taken care of I can finish what I want to do. Leaving the door open slightly so I could hear Sakura if she woke, the hot water washed over me taking the dirt and sweat with it. The past month that I've been away has given me time to think about what I want from all of this. Trusting people and letting them in is something that I've never been good at but she's always been able to make a crack in the wall. Sakura may never know how much she's actually changed me or my true feelings. I'll never be able to fully let her into my thoughts but I can make sure she gets taken care of, possibly loved. That's the least I can do after everything I've put her through.
The door slamming open catches my attention and I watch as Sakura bend over the toilet. Turning off the water, I wrapped the closest towel around me and I go to her side. Instinct takes over as I pull her pink locks from her face, in all the years I've known her she's never been sick. She tries to push me away but it only causes me to move closer and hold her hair higher. As she finishes, I move to grab the towel sitting on the counter. Her cheeks are flushed and she's taking her time breathing, something's wrong.
"Sakura." I try to be gently but she jumps at the sound of her name. Her hand goes up to her forehead and rubs it gently. Instead of letting her stand on her own, I pick her up bridal style carrying her to the bed again. Warmth spreads over me from her cheek resting on my bare chest, a fire starts to build but there's no time for that.
"You need to go see Tsunade." Pulling on whatever clothes were convenient, I return to Sakura and wrap her back into the blanket. Once we are on the streets, I see elder couples giving me a glare of concern for their pink haired beauty. Children whispered as they watched and I can't help but smirk at them. Their innocents is a novel, when I was their age I had already lost my family. My children will never know the pain or loneliness that I endured.
The hospital doors open and I see Ino sitting at the desk with wide eyes. She knows who is wrapped in my arms and I follow behind her to an exam room on the first floor. Ino motions for me to lay her down on the bed, as soon as I do Ino starts to insert an IV into her right hand.
"I'll get Tsunade here ASAP. I've never seen Sakura like this." The blonde rushes from the room and I can't help but stare at the woman in front of me. Her lips are dry and cracked, she probably hasn't been able to keep anything down, the shine has dulled from her hair and there isn't a glow to her like normal. If I would've been home then it wouldn't be this bad, she should've gone to the doctor days ago. Why wasn't anyone looking after her while I was gone? Sakura's always had a tendency to over work herself and sometimes she needs to be reminded that taking a break is normal.
The door opens and I shoot daggers at the Hokage, making it known that I'm beyond irritated. I haven't slept in 36 hours and I come home to find my wife sick…That's the first time I've ever called her that. It ahs a nice ring to it.
"Calm down Uchiha. I have to wake her up." She whispers the sentence and moves over to the resting pinkette, with a nudge she starts to flutter her eyes open. Tsunade helps her to sit up and holds her up slightly with her hand. Her greens eyes land on me and a small weak smile comes to her face.
"What's going on Sakura?" Lanced with concern, Tsunade starts to examine Sakura's entire body.
"I've been getting sick for the past few days' sensei." Her voice is cracked and soft, there's no doubt that her throat hurts from being sick. Even if she fights me, there's no way Sakura will be coming back to work until next week.
"Have you had your cycle?" Cycle? Does she mean…my face starts to get hot and I look away from the two women for a moment. This is something that I don't want to hear.
"No." What? I look back to the woman and I see her eyes lower at our contact, could she be pregnant? By no means were we safe both times we had sex, it's too early for this. We need more time to work things out and try to repair our bond.
"I'll run a few tests but I won't have the results for a few hours." Tsunade reaches for a needle and takes a vial of blood from Sakura.
"Can I go home sensei? I just want to sleep. I don't feel nauseous anymore." Is she being honest or lying so she can runaway from the situation? The older woman nodded her a yes and there was a bigger smile on Sakura's face. My eyes start to get heavy as Sakura takes the IV from her arm and grabs the blanket as she stands from the table, her legs shaking slightly.
"I'll keep my phone close. Sasuke you need to rest. It's been a while since you've slept." She's being rational and I can't find a reason to argue with her. Standing from the hard chair, my back pops and I feel my legs start to regain feeling. I follow beside her slowly, Sakura rests against me trying to steady herself. My arm snakes around her waist giving her extra support, I can tell that her strength is almost gone. Sakura purposely lied to Tsunade so she could go home, that's something we will talk about later.
As we walk up to the door, I feel Sakura go limp against me and before she can hit the ground I catch her. Her body is heavy in my arms this time as I carry her to our bed. My muscles are beyond tired and aching for the release of sleep. Pink covers the white pillow and I can't help but place a small kiss in the middle of her forehead before laying on my side. Once my head hits the pillow, the darkness takes over.
There's a soft breeze on my face and laughter is heard from the distance. My eyes slowly flicker open and I see Sakura's pink hair and a small figure with black hair. Sitting up on the grass, Sakura is playing with a small child. As they both turn towards me two pairs of emerald eyes are staring at me, the child takes off running and tackles me to the ground.
"Daddy! Daddy! Come play with me and mommy." The young boy reminds me of myself when I was that age. His smile is contagious and I can't help but follow him towards Sakura, her stomach is larger the closer I get to her. No doubt pregnant with another child, my hand reaches out for her and I pull her closer to me. The child runs off up the hill and tries to jump down to us.
"Look daddy I'm a ninja." There's a small chakra signature coming from the boy as he jumps again to my arms. A feeling of pride fills my body and I smile at him. Sakura's arm snakes around my waist giving the child a kiss then one on my cheek.
"I love you Sasuke." I smile at her and return the kiss. Everything is peaceful and my heart is beyond full.
"I love you too."
I sit up from the bed with a light sweat on my forehead, Sakura is no longer laying beside me. Her chakra is radiating from the living room, had she gotten the phone call already? And why was there a boy in my dream? My head aches with each step I take, my body still needs sleep but this is more important. Sakura's head is hanging low and her body seems tensed, but as I take a seat next to her she relaxes slightly.
"Sasuke, I think we need to talk." Most man would be afraid of those words but I know that this is inevitable.
"I know." It's not a lie. I'm not going to hide behind my usual barrier today, Sakura could already be carrying our child after two nights together. I feel stupid for being so careless but deep down I know what I want, a family.
"I'm still waiting on Tsunade to call but…we need to figure out where we stand before any child is brought into this house." Where we stand? I spent sleepless nights trying to figure that out on my mission. Sakura and I have slowly made progress but she's right, I don't want a child to come into this house unless we both are on the same page.
"Sasuke I know this isn't the ideal situation. I know that you've never thought of me as more than a teammate. But we're stuck together now." Just a teammate? For someone as smart as her I'm surprised she hasn't read me like a book yet.
I don't want her to think that we are stuck together. This probably just kick started things between us honestly. Sakura was the only one I ever thought about as a teen when I thought about repopulating the Uchiha clan. Not just for convenience but because she was always able of making me feel things that no one else could. My hand ranks through my hair before it drops back down into my lap, my eyes steal a glance of the silver band. I have to take down my own wall so I can let her in, if I don't it may ruin our relationship even more.
"Sakura…This is something I never thought would happen for me. I might act cold towards you but I just don't know how to show what I'm feeling. You've always been a special person to me, believe it or not. I told you I would try and I am, believe me when I say that." This is the most I've opened up but I still need to let her know more, not everything though. That dream still has my brain working a mile a minute.
"Special?" Those green eyes dart to look at me. I can tell she's trying to look for the meaning behind that. Before I can ever say those three words to her, I have to make sure that it's true. I nod my head.
"I think we need to have an actual relationship." The words leave my mouth with so much confidence. Shock appears on her face and there's a tear building up in the corner of her eye, yes we may be married but we don't have a relationship. The two times we were intimate together were pure instinct, nothing personal.
"What are you saying?" I want to pull my hair out slightly from the obvious answer. I swear she is going to be the death of me eventually.
"Hn, you're annoying. You heard what I said." My cheeks warm from the small blush creeping onto my face. I can't bring myself to actually saying the words.
"I think I can live with that." She flashed me a genuine smile and rested her head on my shoulder. A warmth washes over me and for the first time since my parent's death I feel at peace. This is going to take some time getting used to sharing everything I feel with Sakura, it's something I'm willing to do though. The phone rings and we both jump slightly; her hands are shaking as she grips the device.
"Hello." I watch Sakura's eyes dart around the room, absorbing every words that's being said on the other side. So many emotions are displayed on her face. A tight feeling in my gut causes me to sit on the edge of the couch.
"I understand. Thank you Tsunade." Sakura places the phone down softly on the table, she's still processing what was said.
"Sakura?" My voice cracks at the end of her name. The beating in my chest is the only sound I can hear at this moment.
"I'm not pregnant. Just a slight case of the flu." There's disappointment covering her face. She wanted a baby, but it's far too early.
"Look at it this way, more time for us." It's completely true. There's more time for Sakura and I to develop a real relationship before bringing a child into the mix. I pull her closer to me and I feel a sigh of relief wash over my skin. I place a small on the top of her head and relax further into the couch giving my body what it wants. Sakura wiggles down until her head is resting on my lap and my hands mindlessly fiddles with her hair as we both let exhaustion take over.
A loud crashing sound causes me to jump from the couch with my sharingan activated. Sakura isn't in my lap anymore and I start to look around downstairs for her. Pans are scattered across the kitchen floor and Sakura is sitting against the cabinet with her face in her hands. I move over to her and squat down to look her in the eyes.
"What are you doing?" The concern is evident in my voice. She's sick and needs to be resting, I'm just tired from a mission.
"Trying to cook dinner." Stubborn woman, I'm more than capable of cooking dinner for us. My hand reaches out for her and I move her hands away from her face. Sakura's face feels like fire and she's sweating, running a fever.
"Stay right here." I stand back up and go straight to our bathroom. My mother used to run me a hot bath when I was feeling sick, maybe this would work for her too. The water feels nice running over my palm and I return quickly back to the kitchen. Sakura is trying to pick up the pans when I walk through the doorway, I can't help but smirk at her persistence.
"I said stay there. Stubborn woman." I take her hand and lead her down the hallway. She's nervous but doesn't hesitate to follow. I pull her into the bathroom and turn the water off just in time, when I turn back to look at her I'm met with a completely pink Sakura. Her face matches the soft pink locks perfectly.
"Sasuke am I taking a bath?"
"Yes. So don't argue, get in. I'll make dinner." I leave the room, shutting the door so I can give her some privacy. If I see her naked I don't think I'll be able to control myself. Ever since that night, I've wanted to take her over and over again. On my mission there were night where I stayed away imagining what I would do once I came home to her. Sex shouldn't be my main concern but I guess that's my testosterone talking.
I take out everything I need to make miso soup and begin the process. It's almost second nature to me now, cooking was a stress relief when I was younger. Sakura's been taking care of me for the most part since I came home, it's time I repaid her for it. After everything I've put her through, she deserves to be taken care.
Once the soup is simmering, I turn to go back to Sakura and I knock on the door so she has a chance to cover up. A quiet 'come in' signals me to enter our bedroom and I stop in my tracks. She's wearing a tank top and short, both colored deep red contrasting with her ivory skin. Her pink hair is slightly darker from being damp and clings to her curves. Even though she's sick and tired, she still looks amazing.
"Dinner's ready." Her body moves towards me and I notice that she's not wearing anything under her thin tank top. Karma is getting pay back right now without a doubt, I follow behind her and I see the Uchiha fan stitched onto her top. My chest swells with pride and I smile widely. Her body slumps over at the kitchen table and I make her bowl of soup along with a glass of water. Taking my spot across from her I eat my meal slowly making sure Sakura eats as well. Her movements are slow; the flu can reek havoc on the body even for a medic. She didn't think anything was wrong so it makes sense that she didn't try to heal herself.
It's almost eight and I know that it won't be long before we both call it a day. Neither one of us has rested for a while, having her beside me will make it easier for me to sleep. Even through her sickness, I can see that she hasn't been sleeping well either. I take my empty bowl to the sink and start to wash the dishes that I used. Two arms wrap around my waist and her forehead rests against my back. I can feel the heat from her through my shirt, I stop what I'm doing and turn to hold her against me.
"I'll finish these tomorrow, let's go to bed." She weakly nods against me, I squat down slightly and pick her up. Her legs dangle on either side of my hips and her face is buried in the crook of my neck. Entering the bedroom, I turn off the lights and place her under the covers. I throw off my shirt and pants to join her in the bed, I wrap my arms around her as her head rests on my chest. It won't be long before she is asleep again, my fingers twirl her locks. Looking down I see her eyes closed and I can feel her breaths even out.
"I love you…" Her breathy announcement makes my heart tighten and I stare up at the ceiling. The entire time I've been back I've wondered if she still loved me or not, but I guess I just got my answer. Where do I go with this? Naruto so blatantly pointed out that I'm in love with her but yet I haven't said anything. These feelings I have towards her are getting stronger with each passing day, I guess I have to start showing them to her slowly. It's not going to be easy but she deserves to be loved the way she's loved me all these years.