Chapter: 2/?
Summary: An alternative universe fan fiction where the Naruto gang is in high school, focusing on the ups and downs of Sakura and Ino's relationship.
Disclaimer: One time I owned Naruto, but then I woke up. After realizing that Naruto and all of it's character's belonged to Kishimoto I cried.
A/N: This chapter was such a drag to get through, but now I feel like I'm over the hump so onto chapter 3. R&R please.
And it totally pissed me off that wouldn't load my superscript from Word. So when you see random numbers in the middle of the story, it's means there's a little note down at the bottom if you care to look.

Hurricanes & Heartbeats

Following in Ino's tracks Sakura raced through the downpour. Being weighed down by her drenched clothes made it difficult for the girl to keep up. With chattering teeth Sakura mentally scolded herself for destroying her new clothes in less than a day, a new record. As the blonde turned another corner pulling Sakura along by the hand, she showed no intention of slowing down. Eventually the pink haired girl stopped breathless, causing Ino to turn around and examine her friend.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just figured what's the point of running if we're soaked anyway?"

A chuckle escaped Ino's mouth before she responded. "Yeah you're right. And we only have a block left to my house, so you want to walk?"

She nodded and they both made their way down the street trying to enjoy the searing pain of freezing rain on their skin.

Puddles covered the floor of the foyer. Sakura hadn't even looked through the curtain of dripping pink hair when the distinct smell of flowers hit her nose. Her hands rose to wipe the strands out of her vision so that she could have a better view of the flower shop she had landed in. Beautiful vibrant colors invaded the sanctuary of her mind and overtook in the absence of the dreary skies outside.

Sakura took an appreciative sniff. "Flowers?"

"Yeah, my dad owns the shop. I help out after school, but since you're over he'll give me a break."

"Does your mom work here too?" Sakura inquired about the family business.

"She used to. She passed away when I was young."

"Oh." Sakura didn't have time to think of what to say when Ino took her hand to drag her behind the counter and up the stairs. On the second floor was a family sized loft that Ino and her dad clearly inhabited. Hanging over the sofa laid a man's trench coat and hat. The other side held a Teen Magazine with a purple hairbrush on top, fine blond hairs laced into the bristles. Having taken to long to examine her surroundings, Sakura found herself being shoved towards the bathroom by an impatient Ino.

"I'll get you some clothes to change into." Ino announced as she flipped on the lights and closed her friend inside the room. While waiting the pink haired girl inspected her face in the mirror, glad she had decided against wearing makeup today. She wasn't in the mood to deal with runny eyeliner. Her body shivered again and she decided to strip out of her shirt, tossing it recklessly on the floor. The strawberry pink bra she had worn had become see-through after being saturated with water. Determining it to be un-wearable and uncomfortable Sakura reached to her back to unhook it. She let the thin material plummet to the floor as her breasts were exposed to the cool air.

The door cracked open and Sakura used her arms to cover her chest.

"Sorry, I didn't realize you were already getting undressed. Um here, I thought these would fit." Ino tossed the pile of clothes at the girl, trying to control her eyes from traveling across the expanse of bare skin before her, to no avail. Ruffled at her own reactions Ino hastily slammed the door shut. Cheeks flushed she leaned against it to calm down and clear her head. The only idea that seemed suitable was to go about like nothing occurred and figure this whole thing out later. Ino headed back to her room to change.

Sakura emerged from the bathroom in an overly large white tee shirt and a pair of gray Soffee1 shorts.

"They're not the biggest fashion statement, but they're dry." Sakura reveled in her new clothing. The blonde had been waiting on the couch in a purple tank top and matching pajama pants.

"Glad you like them. You might have to sleep over, the storm's getting pretty harsh." As if on cue the sky cracked with a bright flash. Seconds following came a rolling thunder dissipating in the howling wind.

"Sounds good, you don't mind having me do you?" Her instincts told her to avoid the weather, but she hadn't known Ino long and wanted to be polite in this situation.

"Don't even worry about it." Ino reassured cheerfully. "My dad will be glad to have you around, it will give him someone new to annoy."

Ino beckoned her friend to sit next to her. Being a good hostess she flipped the television on to a music station and offered Sakura a blanket. The pink haired girl accepted and scooted closer to Ino so that they could drape the fabric upon both bodies. The beat of the music became a soothing background noise as the two became lethargic from the tiresome events of the day. Exhaustion quickly overtook Sakura as she fell asleep against Ino's shoulder in a cozy embrace. Ino noted the hot breath hitting her skin, but the sleeping girl made her feel at peace. She could recall their hearts beating in harmony as her eyelids became heavy and leisurely closed her gap of sight.

"Wakey. Wakey." A singsong voice sounded from the kitchen. "You girls don't want to starve to death from missing my delicious home-cooked dinner do you?"

"Mhmm Dad. Do you always have to be so dramatic?" Ino muttered as she was awakened to the daytime world.

Sakura nuzzled herself back to life from the warm shoulder that had been her pillow. Panicking a bit, it took a few seconds for her to realize where she was. Snapped to attention, she sat up straight and took in the man before her. He was about 5'9 and had the same blond hair and blue eyes as Ino. It took most of her restraints to keep from laughing when she saw his pink "Mr. Mom" apron.

"Hi, Mr. Yamanaka.2" She greeted him.

"Hello there, I don't believe I've met you before. Can it be that my teenage daughter is embarrassed of me and won't let me meet her friends? Am I not cool enough?"

"Dad." Ino shook her head at his antics. "This is Sakura. I just met her today. And why would I be embarrassed of an eccentric father?"

"Oh no, insulting your own father. You're going through your rebellious phase aren't you!?" He accused walking back to the kitchen to finish preparing the meal.

She turned to Sakura who had been quiet throughout their interaction. "He's just kidding. He has a strange sense of humor."

The weather was still brewing outside as they finished up their mouthwatering, oh-so-tasty, fabulous, delectable, world-class, scrumptious, to-die-for dinner. (In the words of Mr. Yamanaka of course.) The clock read 8:12 when Ino let the last of the dishes clank together in the sink. "Done." She made directly for her room, Sakura trailing the flowing wisps of blonde hair into a violet chamber. Not only were the walls saturated in lavender but also the blankets covering her bed as well as the carpet.

"So I guess purple's your favorite color." Sakura commented on the color palette.

"Yeah. What's yours? Pink? You dyed your hair pink."

"Um, no, actually my favorite color is red. And I didn't dye my hair… this is it's natural color. I'm a genetic freak." Displeasure was soaked in Sakura's voice at the last sentence.

"I think it's beautiful." Ino whispered just loud enough to cause a blush on Sakura's cheeks. Then gaining confidence she motioned the girl over to her, "Come here."

The green-eyed girl sat next to Ino on the edge of her bed. Scooting behind her, Ino ran her fingers through the pink hair. They entwined themselves in the silken cherry locks, fingers twisting their way past strands to wrap in others. Back and forth Ino's hands moved delicately over Sakura's scalp. When the blond had finished, Sakura found her hair in a loose fitting braid. She turned to face the girl that had manipulated her hair into it's current form and reached past the side of Ino's face grabbing at the ponytail that held the blond tresses tightly in place and tenderly pulled it out, letting it collapse against her back. Liking the way it looked naturally, Sakura preferred not to style Ino's hair.

Happy about the new connection she felt with the other girl Ino pulled Sakura back with her as she stretched out on the bed. Lying next to each other they spent the next few hours talking about whatever they fancied.

"I'd say we should stay up late and make prank phone calls, but we have to go to school tomorrow." Ino's wicked side mused.

"Ah, that's right. I can't wear my clothes even if they've dried. They were completely ruined in the rain today."

"Relax, I'll lend you some. You're about the same size as me so just look through my closet, pick something out, and see if it fits."

"Thanks. You're a life saver, you know that?"

When Sakura opened the doors of Ino's closet she wasn't prepared for the miles of clothes that stretched before her. The girl could clothe a third world country if she wanted to. Purple and blue hues dominated the expanse of the closet, so when Sakura saw a speck of sea foam green she was immediately drawn to it. After pulling the article out of the closet she realized it was a picturesque summer dress.

"Oh, I have white sandals that match that perfect!" Ino exclaimed being the fashion guru she was. "And I have a jean jacket that would look nice, incase it's still raining tomorrow. Why don't you try it on while I search for them?"

The dress fit flawlessly, Sakura noted that it matched her eyes perfectly as well. She slipped back into the white tee shirt. Leaving the bathroom the pink haired girl felt a yawn creeping it's way up her throat.

The blond caught on to Sakura's weariness the moment she returned to the room. "So you can sleep on the sofa or I could sleep on the sofa and give you the bed or you can sleep in the bed with me if you don't mind."

Not wanting to burden Ino with sleeping on the couch, or sleeping alone on it herself she opted for the third option. "Let's share the bed."

They climbed beneath the sheets and Sakura automatically cuddled up to Ino, draping her arm across her friend's waist. An affectionate smile stretched to the corners of Ino's face as she flicked the light on the nightstand off, so that darkness engulfed the room.

"Ino?"

"Yes?"

"Do you miss your mother?" Sakura's voice asked in a soft murmur, treading over a brittle subject.

"Sometimes. I was so little when she died I have trouble remembering her as a part of my life. But sometimes when I close my eyes I can see a picture of her face. She was always happy." Ino reminisced. "You know her and my dad bought the shop together. It was her dream. They started out with nothing, day by day they added a new flower, a rose, a daisy, a lily, a tulip, until the shop was full of every different color. My dad used to tell me that story. He said when Mom first told him the idea he didn't want to work with a bunch of flowers, but as she grew on him so did they. Now you couldn't pay him to work anyplace else. This place reminds him of Mom, it's their own little fairy tale." Ino's thoughtful words trailed off.

"Thank you." Sakura's soft voice broke the silence.

"For what?" Ino inquired.

"For that beautiful fairy tale."

"Goodnight Sakura."

"Goodnight Ino."

End Chapter 2.

1Soffe is just a clothing brand. They're very comfortable. XD

2How does she know Ino's last name? Well I didn't put it in the story, but she learned it when Kakashi took roll call. Ino learned Sakura's family name the same way.