Hey you guys! Once again, I must thank you all for reading. This chapter has the characters experiencing a lot of drama and mixed feelings. I'm starting to think that chapter seven will be the 'Fourth of July' chapter, for all of you who were expecting it.

Special thanks to Chinbaldo for adding me to their alert list.

WARNING: Fluff bonanza. This particular chapter is chock full of pointless thoughts and citrus. You have been warned.

Thank you, and enjoy!

CHAPTER 5: No Way in Heck!!
The tan-skinned girl tossed and turned in the cotton sheets, growing tired of the negative thoughts that racked her brain. She just wanted to forget how much she….how much she loved it when he did those…those things... She sat up in bed and shook her head wildly.

No! She absolutely refused to think that way about him!

She scolded herself for what seemed like the hundredth time. It was stupid, almost insulting to know that almost every seventh grade girl at John H. Green Middle School felt the same way about him as she did. It sickened Katarina to know that she was being lumped in with a bunch of mindless, gushing fangirls. And what terrified her more, was that she may have been slowly turning into one.

"Damn Uchiha." Kat muttered under her breath, cursing the cause of her shame and insomnia.

"Its only a waste of time to dream about him. ALL of those girls have a better chance than I do at possibly 'courting' him." she thought as she laid back down on the soft, downy comforter.

She remembered. She remembered, that starting when she was just a little girl, all of her other female classmates had crushes….Crushes that liked them back. She had never had that. They may have been friends, but not a single boy had ever been attracted to her.

But why? She knew for a fact that she wasn't pretty. She didn't stand out, and always had a look on her face that said she didn't want to be bothered. Was it because she was ugly? Maybe. Probably, even. But she thought that perhaps her personality could change the way people looked at her.

"But that's not true. That's only something mothers tell their children to stop them from worrying about their looks. And it worked on me. So...I'm destined to be alone. Yay."

Sasuke walked into the school hallway, his feet making gentle noises on the linoleum floor. He gave a quick glance in all directions, surveying his surroundings, and making sure none of them were around. Oh yes, there would be lots of 'them' starting today. And Monday and Tuesday. Up till Wednesday, the day of the Fourth of July dance. He winced at the thought of dozens of girls running up to him, asking him to go with them.

"They don't matter anyway. I already know who I'm going to ask." The Uchiha stopped dead in his tracks. "What did I just think?! Who the hell am I talking about? Whatever. I've wasted enough time already." He thought as he opened his locker. "Now lets see, I need schoolbooks for Math and Social Stu-"

He was abruptly cut off as a mountain of hand written 'invite' notes poured out of his locker. Looking around, he saw a crowd of fangirls, smiling and looking at him hopefully - waiting for him.

"Damnit."

Pushing his way though a sea of students, the young Uchiha scrambled to get to class, with the fangirls close behind. "Relax, Sasuke. Don't freak out, just get to class. Just get to—" he assured himself, right before he smacked into something solid.

Knocked to the ground, all of Katarina's anger was unleashed. It was him, the cause of the stress that was built up in her mind and her heart.

"Watch it Uchiha!! You don't own the school. You got that?!" Kat spat at him as an array of papers and essays fell to the floor. That's when she caught herself. Why…why did she just say that? He hadn't even done anything to her, yet she was pissed and not afraid to show it.

As she sorted out his papers from hers, a jumble of swear words and apologies flooded her brain. She wanted to curse him out, but at the same time….Shaking it off, she handed him his papers with a harsh scowl as she struggled to stand. He didn't even help her up!

Sasuke stared blankly at her as he accepted his belongings from her hands. He didn't know what to say. He was…tongue-tied, and he didn't know how to fix it. Feeling as if his heart was lodged in his throat, he managed to croak a "Sorry" as he hid his face, shuffling his feet to homeroom.

Sasuke was confused. And that was rare. Every time he glanced at her, no matter what she was doing, he struggled to keep the heat away from his pale cheeks. He felt feverish and shaky every time he saw Kat, not to mention the sudden strikes of those irritating chest pains. Seconds after each of these events, the Uchiha would stare blankly into space, trying to understand his feelings, but every time he would put it off as 'nothing'.

Kat glanced at the raven-haired boy, feeling guilt wash over her. She brushed it away.

"He doesn't care what others – let alone what I – think." She told herself as she ate her lunch quietly, making a note to stay away from the Uchiha, starting now.

He couldn't take this anymore, it was ridiculous. He had never felt this way about her before, so why now? She was just a worthless nobody. A loser. Yet his heart jumped and beat at a quickened pace every time he even looked at her.

Watching Katarina walk by, Sasuke stepped backwards into a shadow, attempting to conceal his bright red face. He clutched his schoolbook as he closed his eyes tightly, feeling as if he had sunk to an all-time low.

"I shouldn't be thinking like this. I need to focus on my studies. THAT'S whats important, not that stupid girl." He tried to swallow, but his mouth was dry. He tried to concentrate on class, but his mind pathetically wondered to unusual fantasies. The raven clenched his teeth and let out a near audible growl of frustration. These thoughts needed to cease. Now.

Finally! Finally she could get away from this madhouse known as 'school' and get home to a relaxing, stress-free environment. Slinging her bag over her shoulder, Kat rushed towards the front door, only to be halted by a strange sight.

Almost all of the seventh grade students were slowly taking empty spots on two adjacent benches. What she noticed was that the girls sat on one bench, while the boys sat on the other.

"Sakura, what's going on here?" Katarina asked cluelessly to her teal-eyed friend, who happened to be seated on the girl's bench herself.

"You don't know?!" she asked, alarmed. "If we sit here, we might get asked to the dance. Don't you wanna go?"

Katarina's eyes widened. She wanted to go, she was sure of it now. She didn't care if she could possibly get her heart broken, this was her chance to finally be loved, and she was going to seize it. Setting her backpack on the carpet, the curly haired girl sat next to Sakura, glancing up at the boys sitting opposite of her. She would have been lucky to be asked by any of them.

Slowly, time went by. Every once in a while a boy would 'cross over' to the girls and stutter nervously, asking if she would accompany him to the dance. Usually, the chosen female would nod excitedly and take his hand. Sometimes, however, she would scowl and turn him down, or desperately try and make up an excuse as to why she couldn't go.

As the minutes passed, more and more of her classmates had found partners, and soon there was only herself, and Tayuya, the class rebel. Within seconds, the very last male had crossed and reluctantly asked the fiery red head.

She was all alone.

Even Sakura was gone, Naruto had asked her, and she accepted. Kat felt tears approach, gently stinging her near black eyes. She knew this would happen. She knew she'd be left behind.

Standing up against his locker, Sasuke felt a wave of sadness come over him. He felt bad for her, but convinced his heart otherwise.

"She got what she deserved. Maybe she'll learn not to talk to me that way if she doesn't want to face the consequences. Or the karma, rather."

It seemed as if she couldn't hold it in anymore. Hanging her head, Kat let her tears overflow and spill down her cheeks. She tried to fight the feelings, angrily wiping away the droplets that trickled down her face.

Sasuke appeared shocked. The way she acted, the way she talked….he never thought she would break down like this, right there in front of him! He felt guilty, thinking those terrible things about her, acting as if she wasn't worth his time. He didn't understand himself anymore. When other girls acted like this, it didn't bother him a bit. In fact, it mad him despise them even more.

The raven's legs shook as a crippling blow was delivered to his chest once more. But it wasn't pain. It was…something else. These feelings in his chest…they never happened until she showed up. It was always when she was around.

The Uchiha had finally gotten it. He remembered what he had said to himself, and now he understood. Now he knew what was 'wrong' with him, and why he felt so strange around Katarina.

flashback

"I see girls talking about their crushes or guys wondering about how to impress a girl. I just don't get it, what is there to get excited about? But, I guess I want to fall in love too someday."

end flashback

"I finally realize...I'm...I'm in...I'm in love with Katarina-san."

Sasuke face felt his face redden considerably as he came to recognize his intense feelings for his classmate.

"The dance...I'm...I've got to. I've got to ask her. Not today, but tomorrow." He thought as he lifted his head to the sky, his heart pounding furiously against his chest.

He smiled.

"Tomorrow. Tomorrow for sure.