Exaltation.
A/N: -sighs- Did I already told you how much I HATE Maths? If not, I'll do it now: It S-u-c-k-s, with a capital S. I got an insufficient mark (again), I'm so screwed right now… - -' Well, at least I got reviews, they made my day! D So thank you very, very much! And, good news, I have vacation! One whole week! Whoooooot!!!! XD Hopefully that means I can update sooner now…. )
Disclaimer: The word 'disclaimer' says enough, right?
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Chapter four.
Eyelids cracked open and dark eyes stared lazily at the ceiling, before squinting slightly.
Ah, fuck!
The light. It was hurting his eyes like hell.
He closed them immediately again, trying to exile all that damn light that was burning a fucking hole in his retina. His already aching head began to thump dully, indicating the beginning of a very, very large headache.
Damn.
He shouldn't have taken that last gulp of sake.
Well, at least he fell asleep again… without dreaming, too.
Whoopee.
Just great.
Sighing gloomily, Uchiha Sasuke tried to sit up, but failed miserably. After one attempt he already ceased his actions and let himself rest on the cold floor, next to the pieces of a shattered bottle that were lying in a puddle of turbid liquid.
God, he hated his life.
The stupid morons he had to work with. His 'friends' who were either so fuckin' scared of him that they practically pissed their pants when he was near, or just loved the amount of money he had on his bank account. This god-forsaken house that was way too expensive, and way too big too. He lived alone and still owned five bedrooms, for fuck's sake!
Jezus.
He was sounding like a whiny little bitch right now.
He needed to get laid.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
He hadn't slept anymore.
Just spent the rest of the night waiting for the dawn and looking.
Looking as she fell asleep again, like nothing had happened.
As if she didn't try to strangle him to death ten minutes earlier.
Not that he was afraid or anything.
Most certainly not.
He was just curious.
Who had it been? Clearly the ghost wasn't someone who had liked him when he or she was still alive. But it was strange, though. Why did it possess Hinata?
It wasn't like she had done anything wrong.
Well, that was he supposed. Hinata couldn't hurt a fly. He had already learned that when they were still young, many years ago.
No, it had something to do with himself. The spirit knew that the snoozing girl in front of him was the only person he had ever cared for in his entire life.
Hell, she even was the only human being he had ever looked at without a glance full of hidden contempt as the one he cast to everyone else around him, disgusted by the behavior of those thoughtless creatures that had named themselves the rightful owners of anything that was breathing and where they could lay a hand on. Repulsive, really.
She was nothing like those filthy beings. She would never hurt someone intentionally, wasn't even capable of hating.
And she was the only person who had ever looked at him genuinely. She hadn't condemned him like everyone else had done, she just stared at him as if she wanted to know who he was.
Who he truly was, under the disguise of eternal stoic ness, beneath that contumelious mask that he had worn for so long that he had forgotten who he was.
The towering wall that he had built around him over the years, brick for brick, was broken down by that single stare. The light had shown through the holes, blinding him but enlighten him too.
She had seen him.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
-BEEP BEEP BEEP-
A groan was heard, before the slight ruffle of sheets and a body that shifted on a mattress.
-BEEP BEEP BEEP-
Another irritated sigh.
-BEEP BEEP BEEP-
"Jesus… All right, all right…. I'm up, you damn thing…. Tsch, how troublesome…"
Nara Shikamaru pushed the white sheets off of him and got out of his bed, not exactly doing his best to hurry. If it was Ino calling him, again, he would move to another country. That woman really was annoying.
-BEEP BEEP BEEP-
The mobile phone was beeping and vibrating almost impatiently, as if signaling to its lazy owner to answer the call a.s.a.p. Lucky for him, the brown-haired man listened.
"…What?"
"My my, cantankerous, aren't we…?"
Shikamaru sighed. He didn't know himself if it was from relief because that insolent blonde wasn't the one harassing him at this early time (it was only eleven o'clock in the morning, goddamnit!), or from agitation because someone else dared to bother him with something that was probably a complete waste of his time. After hearing the mocking tone, he decided it was both.
"…Who do I have the pleasure to speak with?" Maybe, if he would answer as sarcastically as possible, the other would hang up, and then he could go back to his warm and comfortable bed. Ah, that sounded so appealing...
But unfortunately for him, the other was seemingly being very persistent.
"Does the name Sasuke refresh your memory, Nara?"
Oh, great. Another ignorant moron who thought that he could remember every single name he had ever countered in his life. The fact he had an IQ of over 200, didn't mean he was using it too.
"Sorry, doesn't ring any bells. Well, if you'll excuse me, I'll go back to…"
"You don't remember me, Nara Shikamaru? Your college friend, Uchiha Sasuke…" Only a very observing person would have heard the slightly irritated undertone in the voice of the other man. But Shikamaru was a very observant person, even though he would rarely show it. And that was why he recognized the voice.
"Uchiha Sasuke…. Long time since I last talked to you…"
The other laughed, but it was hardly heard at the other side. "So you DO still know me. Glad to know…"
The brown-haired man rolled his eyes. 'Still as merry as ever, I hear….' He groaned inwardly. "So, what did you call me for…"
The other waited for a while before he spoke. "Are you still working at that sleazy office, Nara…?"
Shikamaru was getting quite pissed now. Did that arrogant prick only wake him up to inform him about the not-so-tidy condition his working place was currently established in? It seemed like this call was a waste of his time after all.
"Look Uchiha, I don't know in which fancy estate you're living right now, but unlike certain prestigious heirs, I do have to pay my rent… So if you don't have to say anything significant, I'll…"
The other interrupted him before he could even finish his sentence. "I'll take that as a yes. That's good. I have a favor to ask…"
Shikamaru was a bit dumbfounded. Did the Uchiha just ask him a favor? The Uchiha Sasuke? Well, this was a shocker. From what he still could remember from his college years, the Uchiha never asked anyone for favors. Were we even speaking about the same Sasuke?
"…A favor?"
"Yes. A…favor." The agitated intonation was clearly noticeable right now.
The Nara grinned a little. Maybe his good ol' study pal was in an awful scrape. "All right, shoot it. But it'll cost you a few bucks…"
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Bright sunlight shined through the remnants of what once were curtains, but consisted of a few shredded and churlish cloths now, hanging in front of the damaged window.
She had missed the sun.
Se hated it, but she longed for it too.
The warmth ness reminded her of her mother's arms, holding her tightly and making her forget about the rest of the world.
The rays were like her fingers that grazed her face gently, combing through her dark hair and wiping the tears away, soothing her with motherly words.
And the light…
…that blinding light.
It was just like her face.
Shining brightly, just like the sun, her mother would smile at her in a way she only did to her.
She had always smiled. Hinata had loved her smile. So she had loved the sun too.
That day, she had smiled too. Right before it happened.
That day…
Yes, she remembered it very clearly.
It was the day the sun stopped shining for her.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Flashback.
I frowned.
Mommy didn't see me. She was looking at something else, not even noticing that I was there.
Suddenly it hit me. She wanted to play a game! Giggling softly, I carefully shuffled towards her, determined to scare her. She would always laugh at me then. I wanted to see mommy smile.
I took another step. Mommy still didn't see me.
Wondering what kind of game this was, I suddenly tripped over my own feet clumsily. As I lay there on the soft carpet, I pouted. Mommy had surely noticed me now. As I looked up, I expected her soft smile. But it wasn't there. The usual sparkle in her eyes had disappeared.
Fear.
It was fear that I saw in her eyes.
It scared me.
Why was mommy afraid?
I didn't want her to be afraid. I wanted to see her smile.
Her lips formed a few words. I blinked.
She mouthed the same words again, emphasizing every syllable slowly now.
Suddenly something moved. From out of the corner of my eye, I saw a shadow. Panic overtook me.
No.
No shadows.
Please leave.
Go away.
I don't want to see you…
Fearfully I looked at my mother again. And I saw it clearly.
It flickered slightly in the light. I opened my mouth to yell at my mother, but no sound came out of my throat.
Her eyes suddenly widened. She stumbled forwards, but before she had taken two steps, she fell down on her knees. Stretching a shaking hand out to me, she heaved and coughed. Blood leaked from her lips, making them red. Drops of red liquid fell down, contrasting with the carpet. I saw the knife, sticking out of her body. Tears began to leak from my face, falling onto the ground while I just stared. Her head was suddenly raised, her eyes no longer shining brightly. She mouthed something. And this time I saw what she was trying to say.
Run.
Run away from here.
My eyes shifted from my mother's form to the shadow that was standing behind her. I gasped softly.
What was he doing?
He looked at mommy who was now lying on the ground, his eyes blazing with a strange hate that I had never seen before. It scared me even more than I already was.
Mommy.
I wanted to run to her, to heal her, to make her alive again.
But I couldn't. I was too late.
Standing next to him, a silhouette was bent over my mother's body slightly. He didn't even seem to notice. Long hair was flowing around it, making the face invisible for me. Suddenly its head was lifted, white eyes stared at me.
I froze.
Mommy was looking at me.
But she wasn't smiling. There was no life in her eyes.
They were empty.
I turned around, not wanting to see those dead eyes any longer.
I ran.
End flashback
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Tears were falling once again. Hinata sniffed a little while she tried to wipe them away, but it held no avail, for they kept on coming.
It was since that dreadful day she didn't like the sun anymore.
The warmth ness could no longer warm her, holding her body like she used to do. She didn't want to feel the rays of brightness on her face, she couldn't look at the light without hate anymore.
The sun was no longer the sun for her.
It was a torment, an agony, a painful memory that cut right through her soul.
And even though it would warm her when her body felt cold, it didn't warm her heart. Even though she missed it sometimes, she would hate it too, deep down in her mind.
It shined no longer...
Feeling someone's eyes focused on her, she turned to their owner and sighed relieved upon seeing who it was.
He was there.
He had always been there.
Maybe he could be her new light.
Itachi.
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0
End of chapter four.
A/N: I thought that last line was sweet. :) Well, hope you liked it! I know, the sun-dilemma was probably a bit vague, but I couldn't explain myself properly. Hinata thinks of her mother as the sun, so since her mother died she could no longer look at it without remembering her mother. And she didn't want to. Although she missed her mother, she didn't want to be remembered of her. It pained her. Hope I wasn't too indefinite!
But anyways, now that I have vacation (is still excited about it), I can update hopefully faster!!! XD