Chapter Twenty-One

Happy by Leona Lewis

Disclaimer: We all know I don't own Naruto.

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Numbness.

That's all she felt, and for the life of her she wanted it to stop. She didn't know how to deal with intense emotions like this. She was over him; she had to be over him. She had already moved on…

Or had she?

Blinking back the tears that were still falling from her eyes she raised her head from her crossed arms. Having sex with random guys doesn't constitute as moving on, she should know. She had watched numerous times as her cousin did exactly that, she had always told herself that she would never do that to herself, and here she was… doing the exact same thing. Following her in her size seven footsteps.

Pushing herself up off the ground, she wiped away the wetness on her face away with the sleeve of her jacket. She was a train wreck. She knew she was, she had emotions for a guy that she no longer wanted anything to do with but still had feelings for. She was sleeping with one of her friend's brother's. She was doing everything that she knew she shouldn't be doing but for some reason she didn't care. None of it mattered. It was all to get away from her problems; they were just people she used to move forward in her life. To achieve all of her dreams, her mother's dreams for her at least. She wasn't entirely sure what all her dreams were. She had somehow lost sight of them however long ago that was.

Moving sluggishly toward her apartment, she didn't want to go back there. She didn't want her mother to see her face all blotchy and red. She didn't want to answer questions, all she wanted to do was be left alone and somehow find a release so that she could ignore the world for just a little bit. Glancing down at her phone in her hand she contemplated on calling her brother back and having him pick her up at a different spot, but she knew she would need clothes. She just needed to get away for a weekend. Just a weekend.

Sakura quietly walked into the apartment, the lights were still on so she knew that her mother was still awake. No doubt waiting for her to get home so that she could grill her about her whereabouts. Inhaling deeply as she tried to calm herself, she made her way toward her room with a bit more speed than necessary.

"Sakura?" Her mother's voice called, causing her to slow her pace. But ultimately it didn't stop her as she reached her room, yanked a duffel bag out from her closet and start to throw random items of clothing into it.

"Sakura?" Her mother called again this time closer to her door. "Are you home?"

"Yeah." She replied as she pulled a few shirts down from her wardrobe into the bag.

"What are you doing?"

Stopping her movements only long enough for her to glance at her mother who was now standing in the middle of her doorframe with her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face.

"I'm leaving." She whispered not letting herself make eye contact with her mother as she continued packing.

"The hell you are." Her mom screeched. Sakura said nothing as she grabbed one of her shoes and stuffed it into the bag.

"I'm leaving." She said again, this time with a sharp tone. She had hoped that her mother wouldn't ask that many questions, but in the back of her mind she knew, she knew that she would have a fight with her. Especially after she had stolen her mother's car and drove all the way to Tokyo.

When she had arrived back at the apartment she was greeted with police officers and an emotional mess of a parent in her living room. It didn't matter how many times she had explained what had happened, didn't matter how many times she had explained that Hana had been in trouble. Her mother wouldn't have it. After the officers left the house, a little peeved that there was actually not any problem other than a teenager who had snuck out and a mother who had overreacted.

She had spent what seemed like hours after they left arguing her point, and why she shouldn't be in trouble. The entire time her mother yelled back at her, cutting her off in the middle of all her explanations. It was at that point when Sakura just gave up and left the room trying to get away from the arguing, except her mother had followed her.

"You are not!" Her mother shrieked as the pinkette zipped up her duffel bag and heaved it over her shoulder.

"I am." She said as she maneuvered around the woman that was once blocking the door.

"You don't have anywhere to go." She said with a crack in her voice, and Sakura couldn't help but feel some of her resolve break. She had always stayed so that she could keep her mother strong. Especially after her brother left and after her father had died. She had always told herself that she would never leave her mother no matter what. That she would always be there for her, and stay with her so that she wouldn't be alone.

"Yahiko is coming to pick me up." She replied with a sad voice, she knew what that admission would do to her mother. For years she and Sakura had fought numerous times about Yahiko. About how her mother thought that Sakura would want to leave her, the arguments had always ended with Sakura telling her mom that that would never happen and that she would never leave her.

"I see how it is. You choose him over your own mother."

Sakura stopped in front of her front door and stood still for a moment before turning her head and facing her mother once again.

"I'm choosing myself." She whispered with a sad voice.

Facing the door again she turned the knob and pulled it open, letting a gust of chilly air rush into the apartment.

"If you leave then you cannot come back."

Closing her eyes briefly, Sakura inhaled deeply before stepping across the threshold and into the outside hallway that lead toward the stairs that would lead her to the parking lot that she would wait for her brother in.

XXX

"She won't tell me what happened." Yahiko said quietly as he stood in the doorframe of his living room, Konan and Hana standing next to him staring into one of the spare bedrooms that Sakura had refused to leave since she had arrived at her brother's apartment.

"Has she spoken at all?" Hana whispered her gray eyes filled with worry. She had an idea why her best friend/cousin was upset, but she wasn't entirely sure if she was right. All she could remember was seeing her ex at a bar and him asking a lot of questions. Most of them being about her little cousin, things that he knew that only she would know. Biting her lip, Hana casted a glance to her older cousin, Yahiko. He had no idea about what his sister had went through, and she couldn't help but feel like it was somewhat her fault for not telling him. But she had been sworn to secrecy. She had been sworn to secrecy and yet she was sure that she had told Sasori things that she had sworn to never utter to anyone but Sakura ever again.

'God damn Sakura for picking a guy who is perceptive.' She thought as she turned her attention to her best friend once again. For the past hour of her being there she had yet to see the pinkette reach for her phone, which she was sure had vibrated at least twenty times in that short time. All the girl did was sit on the bed with her knees hugged to her chest and her eyes staring out of the large window that overlooked a park that was across the street.

Yahiko shook his head in response. He hadn't known what to do; he had never seen his sister act this way before. Usually she was so vibrant and outgoing. This was the first time that he had ever seen her act so… numb. It hurt to watch, to see how she was reacting toward the smallest of things. Since she had arrived she hadn't ate once, and he knew that she was hungry. He had heard her stomach rumble on more than one occasion, and no matter how many times his girlfriend went into the room to talk to her and try to convince her to eat it didn't matter. His little sister wasn't budging.

When he had picked her up he hadn't expected to see her sitting on the bottom stair that lead up to his mother's apartment with a large duffel back at her feet. He had actually expected to get into a fight with his mother for taking his little sister for the weekend. Especially after he had received a phone call from her blaming him for her behavior when she had stolen her car weeks prior.

"What should we do?" He asked his voice still low so that Sakura couldn't hear him. Hana only shrugged her shoulders; she had no idea what they could do for the girl.

XXX

"So what if it hurts me..." Sakura hummed as she walked briskly toward her destination. Her heels clacking against the pavement and echoing into the night air. The only other sound was her off tune humming to one of her favorite songs. She was on her way to see her guy, the same guy that she had sworn to never see again. The guy that she had spent a lot of time with after her and Sasori broke up, the one guy that always had numerous ways of helping her forget, even though they tended to be costly. But this time she didn't care, she wanted to just forget.

The throbbing in her chest hadn't got any better since her arrival at her brother's house. Music didn't numb it like it usually did, and it didn't matter what Hana or anyone else attempted to do nothing could get rid of any of the emotions.

She blamed Sasori for everything.

Usually her emotions were so easy to handle, to throw under a blanket and ignore. But he had to go and just make it all worse. So much worse than it had ever been before. He had to go and make the pain that she ignored everyday so noticeable that she needed to find her guy to escape. Licking her chapped lips, the rosette climbed up the cement steps that lead up to the two story house that her guy was located in. It was old and crumbling, and she was vaguely sure that it was an old restaurant that had went belly up. And that her guy only lived there because no one really ever wanted to walk the distance to bother him for anything other than drugs.

Raising her hand to knock on the door she was startled as it swung backwards. She stared at the empty eyes of her guy with her hand settled on her chest in an attempt to cause her heart to slow down from the surprise.

"Pinkie." He drawled leaning against the wooden door "I thought I wouldn't ever see you again."

Sakura rolled her eyes and stuffed her hands into her jacket pockets. Shifting on her feet she opened her mouth to speak but quickly shut it as she watched a dark haired male walk into to foyer that her guy was standing in. With a quick nod of his head her guy bid the dark haired male goodbye as he walked pass them.

"So, what brings you here Pinkie?" He asked with a lazy smile on his face, his gray eyes contrasting with his dark locks.

"I need it."

XXX

She had sworn that she would never get high again in her life, and if she did it would only be something soft like marijuana or something like that. Nothing like what her guy was heating across from her. She had thought that she would have felt awkward or strange being in his presence again but it seemed that it wasn't the case this time, this time she didn't stutter over her words. She knew what she wanted, and it seemed that he knew that she needed it. So when she told him what she wanted he didn't even pop off with the price, he only nodded and motioned for her to enter his abode.

"You remember how to chase the dragon?" He asked as he brought a tube to his mouth and inhaled the vapors that were rising from the tin foil that he was holding. Throwing the lighter on the glass coffee table he closed his eyes and slumped down into his seat, the foil still resting in his hand. Sakura watched him with anticipation; she desperately wanted to feel what he was feeling. She wanted to feel nothing.

"Sort of." She said quietly. Her eyes were still on him as he blinked open his eyes and sluggishly moved forward so that he was standing. He walked over to where she was sitting and sat down close to her. Handing her the foil he repeated the steps that he had just done, and watched with a small smirk as her eyes closed as she inhaled the vapors.

All that Sakura could feel was nothing. And it was possibly one of the most beautiful things that she had ever felt. Almost instantly the hole in her chest closed up and her body lit up with warm feelings that slowly spread from her scalp to the rest of her limbs. It was like a liquid fire, like getting into a shower and letting the hot water scald your body after you hadn't had a shower for days. It was like getting so stoned, while having sex and eating her favorite strawberry ice cream. The inside of her body was having an orgasm, one that no one else could see from the outside. All of her senses rejoiced as the calmness settled over her.

Opening her eyes she eyed her guy that was sitting next to her with his half smile. He nodded once before standing up and walking out of the room for a few moments, then returning with a small bundle. Dropping it into her lap he gave her a long look.

"You can pay me back later." He murmured.

Closing her eyes once again she grasped the small bundle and squeezed it tight in her hand. It was her only hope of staying this way, her only hope of keeping herself on both of her feet.

"Thank you Obito."

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AN: Dun Dun Dun! Damn, I'm just shelling them out aren't I? I have other stories that I want to start writing and I promised myself that I wouldn't just throw away a story so I am currently making up for all the chapters and weeks that I haven't updated. So I hope all of you enjoy!

Review and tell me what you all think! :D Oh oh and I have decided to write a Sasuke & Sakura fic. And I might delete a couple chapters of my This Is Where We All Come From and rewrite them. I finally figured out the plot for that story too.