She woke up, careful not to wake the cat, who was still curled up asleep. Ate breakfast, fed the cat and left for the Academy.
When she got there, she sat down in her seat and waited for her teachers and the other 21 students.
When everyone was together and class had begun Iruka told the class,
"In one week we will have student exchange day. You will buy or make a nice gift to give a person. When I call your name come up take a slip of paper, and sit back down again. No showing it to anyone. And NO TRADES!"
He called up the class name by name.
"I hope I get Sasuke!" Ino said.
"No ME!" yelled Sakura.
"ME!" cried another girl.
'I don't care who I get, as long as it's not Ino! I hate her so much!' she thought.
"Ino," Iruka chimed.
She opened hers and gave an annoyed look. 'Why Sakura?' she thought.
"Naruto!"
'Sakura! Sakura! Sakura! Please be Sakura!' he thought "Aww, man! I got Choji Acimuchi!'
"Mika." Called Iruka.
She walked up and took a piece of paper. When she got back to her seat, she opened it to find none other than the name, 'Sasuke' written on the slip.
'I wonder what I could get for Sasuke….'
When all of the class had drawn, the bell rang and the students left. She heard people telling others who they got and bits of gossip as well.
She went to the once again scuffed-up cafeteria and began to work. Iruka walked past the cafeteria then stopped.
Mika acted like she didn't see him. 'Damn!' she thought, 'Why doesn't he just go already?'
"Mika, shouldn't you be home by now?" he asked.
"No. I do this everyday. The cafeteria ladies have their own lives to tend to. They should be shown respect too. They spend enough time at the school already don't you think?" She answered back. "and it's quiet. I can think."
"But your parents won't they worry?" Iruka questioned.
"Iruka….." she started, but stopped herself. "No, they won't worry trust me."
XXX
She got home early even after the talk with Iruka. She did her chores, then sat down by the river, thinking about what to get Sasuke.
'If I remember right,' she thought, 'wasn't Sasuke a good flute player?' she paused time, and traveled through memory.
'Yes he WAS a good flute player, but some jerks called him a wimp and snapped it in half, and chucked it in the river. Sasuke had tried to go in after it but I stopped him. The current had been too fast, and the water too deep. He would have died. Poor Sasuke….."
Restarting time again, she said out loud, "I'll make him a flute!"
She went to the old woodshed, found a perfect piece of wood and carved it just as her father had all those years ago.
She worked on it everyday after school and when her chores were done.
On Thursday, the night before the gift exchange, she carved his name, SASUKE down the flute, not too deep that it would alter the sound but deep enough that you would know it was there. She played a quick tune to make sure that it worked, cleaned it, and put it one the counter for school the next day.
XXX
Once she got to school early as always she waited.
Before the bell rang, Sasuke walked in, followed by his fan club.
"All right guys!" Iruka called, "Trade gifts!"
Ino walked up to Sakura.
"Here take it!" they yelled to one another. They had both gotten each other the exact same thing, a green-tea candle.
"That NEVER happened." Said Sakura.
"Right."
Mika giggled. Sasuke chuckled too. He relieved his 'mistake' and regained his composure.
"Here, Sasuke." She said quietly.
"Uhh….. gee, thanks. How did you know I played the flute?"
"Uhh….. I have my ways….."
"Yah, I lost mine in the –"
"river." She cut him off.
"Uh…..right….Hey! So where'd you get this? I could never find one. It's made really well."
"I, uhh…. umm…… made it." She said quietly.
"Well it's really good."
"Thanks." She said turning light pink.
"Hey I almost forgot! Here." He said, handing her a leather-bound book.
"I saw a that you liked to write and read a lot so, yeah."
"Thanks Sasuke!"
"Yum! Chips!" Said Choji.
"Here Naruto." Said Hinata, handing him some homemade cookies.
"Thanks, Hinata!"
She blushed.
When the bell rang and Sasuke left his fan club following close behind him.
XXX
"Finally Miko! I got his attention!" Mika said after she got home.
Then there was a knock at the door. It was Iruka!
"Umm, Ir-I-Iruka-sen, sensi? What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I'd like a word with your parents."
"Oh," she said turning away from him, "they're in the garden."
Iruka walked around the corner, two pairs of eyes watching him. He pushed threw the
gate. He didn't see anyone. Then he noticed, by a rose bush, surrounded by flowers,
were 2 flat head stones. 'They're graves.' he thought.
And if Iruka were to for some strange reason unearth the graves he would find
two badly made coffins, which, in the making caused a 7-year-old child's hands to bleed
bones to break and cause bruises on her hands. And five years ago, that same little girl
prepared her parents' bodies for the burial, which only one person would attend. And on
that same day the little girl, who felt all alone in the world now, the sole funeral attender,
buried her parents bodies with her own two hands. And it seemed her best friend didn't even care….
XXX
BLOOBERS:
"All right guys!" Iruka called "exchange girls!"
'Sakura! Sakura! Sakura! Please be Sasuke!' Naruto thought.
Taijiya: Yes she finally got longer chapters!
Mego: Hey Shut Up! At least I can spell!
Taijiya: Shut the truck up!
Mego: The spelling boogie mans gonna get you!
Taijiya: No He won't I killed him last night! Ha ha ha ha ha!
Mego: ……….
Taijiya: ;-P
Mego: T.T
Taijiya: …..
Please read and review!
Taijiya: They already read it you dunce!
Mego: ……
Taijiya: ……..