Suteki Da ne?
A/N: Hehehhe... I updated! Late again! But now that school is over, I can actually update more often. Yay! Be happy! I am extremely tired! Yay! Joyfulness!
It was Christmas Eve.
That meant, a Christmas Eve party. Now this was no normal get together; there was no champagne, small little pastries or tree shaped cookies. There was no classic Christmas caroling, sled rides, or simple present exchanges. However, there was spiked drinks, spiked food, and anything else that could be dipped, filled, or served in some form of alcohol. There also was 'dance competitions with yourself', 'karaoke without music', and 'pin the tail on the drunk idiot'.
Which usually ended up being Naruto.
Looks are deceiving, as this was no big bash. It sure did sound like one at 4 in the morning, but that is what you get for throwing such good friends together on such a holiday. The usual members included: the incredible team 7, Ino, Kiba, and Shikamaru. Also, on few occasions, the sensei's of Konoha village will show up for a drink... or 8.
Plus there was the randoms, who came in just because the door was left open.
This time, the Christmas Eve party was to be a 'Masquerade Ball', so of course, people had to wear masks. And that just happened to be Sakura's problem.
"This doesn't go either!" She decided to go with a simple strapless black gown, easy to move around in and easy to get out of. Seeing how she is planning on speaking her sensei, she wants to look presentable and, of course, irresistible. Even if she ends up getting a little tipsy.
"Calm down! We'll find you a goddamn mask!" Ino, somewhat apologizing for the other night, volunteered to help her fellow kunoichi search for the ideal garment that goes perfectly with her dress, while mirroring her personality. Which turns out to be more of pain then expected.
"How about this one?" Sakura held up a thin piece of fabric over her eyes, glaring threw the eye holes at her friend.
"Well maybe if you stopped looking like you were some angry serial killer, I could tell you."
"I do not look like---oh whatever." She relaxed and glanced in the shop mirror beside her. She looked like a female zorro, or she could even get cat ears and go as cat woman. She laughed at this thought and told the blonde across the room, who was looking at a mask for herself.
"Well there ya go, now you can help me."
Ino ended up purchasing a bright pink thing covered in beads and sequins, topped by a large fluffy feather that pointed up way passed the top of her head. Sakura found herself feeling quite disgusted by the sight of it. Of course, she would never say that to her friend. If she liked it, so be it, she just won't being hanging around the blonde. Besides, the party is going to be at Kakashi's, which means maybe, just maybe, she would get the chance to have a little chat.
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It was now time for the night everyone was looking forward to. The time that Sakura got ready for 5 hours ago, and was now running late. Her heels echoed down the darkened streets, and her jagged breath rang through her ears. She noticed people in the windows as she passed by, they were all around their trees having such a jolly, jolly time. She hated how repetitive it was.
Soon enough, she was at the door labeled 233, it's numbers lit with the bright lights that surrounded it. Taking a few seconds, she checked herself over; The mask was on, and she was not popping out of her dress, luckily. Her hair was up in a high styled pony, she even curled it and added just a bit of sparkles. Then she took a breath, knocked twice, and opened the door slowly.
There was way more people then planned.
The girl pushed her way through the crowd, looking for a safe area in which she may breathe in. There was masks, millions of them, in a mixture of bright glittery colors and shapes of all sizes. Too many guests in such a small space made it hard for her to scout out her friends. A flash of silver made her turn around, only to find a man with a large shiny hat. She sighed. This was going to be difficult.
"Sakura! Sakura! Sakura is that you?" A high pitched voice battled with the loud music, and Sakura turned as a hand was placed on her arm. There, with goggles over his eyes, stood Naruto in his usual attire. "I knew it was you! Wow! You look cute!"
"What do you want, Naruto?" Even though she has not seen the boy in a while, she was not in the mood for his constant, and quite annoying, nonsense. For seconds he just stood there with a smirk slapped across his face. The girl sighed, leaned on the wall behind her, and waited.
"Heh, just wait for a sec!" He ran off and dissapeared into the crowd. There was a crash, followed by loud cursing, and then he was back, this time with a step ladder and something green in his hand. After successfully tripping over the second step and knocking over a plant, he had pinned the green object on to the ceiling, right over Sakura's head.
It was mistletoe.
"You got to be kidding me..."
"Give the dope a break, Sakura. It is Christmas Eve." There was no point in turning around, even if she could. She knew that voice. It was the same one that haunted her dreams, the same one that called out to her over and over. The same one that sent chills down her spine and continued to do so.
"Sasuke!" Naruto took an offensive stance and raised a fist. "You back off! She's my date!"
"N-Naruto-!" She placed a shaken hand on his arm and squeezed. She wouldn't dare turn around and look into those empty eyes. Why? Fear. It was fear of him. Being so close made her feel nauseous, even claustrophobic. But, mashed with all these emotions, she could not forget the fact that not that long ago, she believed he was the one for her. She was crazy, or soon approaching that point.
And he was gone. Just like their fleeting past.
"Heh heh, I told him..."
"I got to go." The kunoichi quickly left the living room area and dashed towards the closest place she knew she could relax.
"Well isn't this a nice surpr--"
"Ah-sorry!" She slammed the door to the bathroom and blinked. Did she really just walk into Kakashi's bathroom without knocking? What she that much out of her mind? Either her mind was playing tricks on her, or she just happened to walk in on her sensei... The door opened and she was face to face with the man.
"Sakura..." He pulled the tightly wrapped mask over his mouth. "Don't look so terrified, I was only washing my face." He smiled as he gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Would you like to talk about it, or do you wish to sit in solitude in there? Its no problem, as long as you don't mind on people pounding on the door seeing how I only have one bathroom."
"How did--" She stopped as she saw the strange expression on his face. "What?"
"You look good, Sakura." The girl immediately felt her face burn as she looked down at her feet. With his eyes on her she felt like she was on fire. She felt if she did look up at him, he would be able to read her thoughts, and figure out how badly she wanted to be in his arms once again. However, what she really wanted was to show to him that she can get along just fine without him being by her side. She had to keep her face.
"Would you like something to drink?" He was now leading her towards the kitchen, completely ignoring the yells and waves he got from the blonde boy who was hanging from the ceiling by his pants. The girl sat down at the counter, and taking off her mask, she let him serve her a drink.
"Hey! You, old man! Get over here! I wanna put on some good music!" Ino was yelling louder than she really needed to, seeing how Kakashi was but a few feet away from her. He sighed and sauntered off into the crowd, leaving Sakura by herself. The music stopped and besides the few protests, it was almost silent.
"The calm before the storm." The girl jumped at the sound of a voice beside her. She didn't turn, nor look, because it was him again. He sat comfortably in the chair, his glass made a thump as he placed it on the counter top. They sat in silence as Ino continued to shout commands at their sensei, and Sakura could feel him watching her.
"Aren't you going to say something?"
She took a sip of her drink. She cringed. Damn, Kakashi gave her water.
"Then I will." He grabbed her tightly by the arm, and pulled her close to him. "You can forget about there ever being 'us'. Your friend won't betray me, unlike you."
"What are you--" She winched as his grip tightened. Struggling to get her arm free, her eyes met his. The boy there wasn't the same one years ago. He was so different...
"That's right. Ino." Then the music started up, and he released her. She quietly stood up and walked towards the back bedroom, brushing past Kakashi who noticed Sasuke sitting there pouring himself another drink.
Sakura sat down on the edge of the bed and looking out the window, she tried to clear her thoughts. She needed to relax and just make sense of what had just happened to her. But that silence and that pounding pain in her arm... she fell back in the bed and buried her face in the pillow. It smelled exactly like him.
And she cried.
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Kakashi knew it.
He knew how incredibly foolish it was to leave Sakura when that boy was roaming around. What did he think, that they would patch things up and everything would be fine? No. That same boy had hurt her, and Kakashi had wanted to snap his spine in two. Yet he let her get hurt once again.
She needed someone, and he would be that someone.
Sakura jumped at the feeling of a hand on her back, she turned a saw the faint silhouette of silver hair and she smiled through those tears. She embraced him, and he silently returned it. She cried, and he whispered comforting words. She calmed down, but he didn't let go.
He spotted the bruises formed around her arm before she quickly drew it away. He tried to meet her eyes, but she avoided his.
"Sakura..."
A knock at the door, and then it opened.
"Sakura?" And there in the doorway stood Kakashi.
A/N: Yeah I know its not christmas! leave me alone! TT ps: I love you :D