Sakura closes the guest bedroom door and falls against the inside of it. Tears welling in her eyes, her throat hoarse from a cry waiting to emit. One of her hands moves to cover her mouth as she sobs quietly into her hand. Pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging her legs as she uses the long sleeves of her shirt to wipe away her tears.
I have to take Sarada to school tomorrow. Work tomorrow. Surgery at midday.
All she wanted to do was crawl into her bed, well, her old bed that was not ashen and dust and sleep away her emotions. She had been doing that since the divorce. Sleeping away tough emotions hoping they would dissipate by morning. That wasn't possible right now, she was a parent, she had to keep things as 'normal' for Sarada as possible.
The world goes dark as she stops sobbing and drifts to sleep. Forgetting she had been up since early morning, now later into the evening.
A light rapping on her door stirs her awake from her position on the hardwood floor. She moves to stand slowly and opens the door to Sasuke in his pajamas and all the lights off in the condo.
"Hey. Can we talk? Sarada is asleep."
Sakura nods and steps out of the doorway to let him in.
"Before you ask, I have a plan, I'll try to be out of here by tomorrow and will pay you back for your trouble." She rambles hoping he will leave her alone again.
"Sakura. Relax."
"I am relaxed."
She hated when he did that. Telling her to relax never had the effect of relaxation.
He's seated on the guest bed and Sakura is standing by the door. Sasuke rakes a hand through his hair and speaks, a nervous habit of his.
"Sakura, I came here to say you can stay here for as long as you need. I-I would never hold anything over you. I owe you for even being in Konoha in the first place."
Her heart hurts. Her body hurts from sleeping on the floor for the past few hours.
"That was my decision." Sakura spouts back a bit more harshly than necessary. She sees annoyance flash over his face for the briefest moment only to go back to neutral. That was one of the reasons they had divorced in the first place. He had a hard time opening up, expressing his emotions and did not want to go to the couples therapy Sakura had suggested years ago to work through his emotions.
"It's an option if you decide you want to stay here until you get back on your feet." Sakura nods, she looks at the nightstand clock on the accent table next to the bed it reads two in the morning.
"Why are you still awake?"
He gives her a look that she had seen many, many times throughout their relationship.
Anxiety.
Taking pity, or maybe to provide comfort to him, she offers to make tea.
"Come on. What kind of tea do you have?"
The dark haired looks up at her with a questioning glance.
Sakura nods her head in the direction of the kitchen and makes her way over, waiting to hear his footfalls following behind her. They walk into the kitchen together and he starts pulling out all the necessary items to make a couple cups of tea.
They stand around in the kitchen waiting for the water to heat, both too exhausted to speak. He pulls out a small sugar dish.
"You still like a dash of sugar right?" He asks.
Sakura nods.
"Thanks."
The kettle screeches and they sit at the elevated chairs by the kitchen island. They sip at their tea cups in a strange silence.
"I'll think about it. Thank you for your help."
Sakura gets up, takes her tea cup and his empty one over to the sink and cleans them. He is ready with a towel and dries the cups off. Once the cleaning is done, they separate and walk into their separate rooms.
"Good night."
"Night Sakura."
Perhaps it was the part of her brain that liked to torture herself but after sharing a cup of tea with him in the quiet of the early morning, she wanted nothing more than to lay next to him and have him hold her, tell her everything would be alright.
Sakura tucks herself into the clean smelling sheets, and wills the thought from her head. She was stronger than this. Setting the alarm on her phone she readies herself to wake in a few short hours to get ready for work.
—-
Sasuke hears Sakura's alarm go off at five in the morning. He had only had a few choppy hours of restless sleep.
If her routine was the same she was going to shower and get ready for work, then prepare Sarada's breakfast and drive their daughter to school and herself to work. It dawns on him how she has no clothes. Sarada had a plethora of clothing options within her closet but all of Sakura's had been burnt to a crisp. He wants to help more and go offer her some of his attire but he assumes she will turn it down and simply re-wear the clothes she had worn yesterday.
Sasuke had browsed his phone last night and seen a news article on the apartment complex fire. Apparently it had started when one of the neighboring restaurants dumped some of their trash into the apartments trash bins, and something started on fire from improperly disregarded grease- spreading to the apartment buildings.
Idiots.
He pulls himself to sit on the edge of his bed, his head aching from his insomnia. If he couldn't provide clothes he could at least get breakfast ready for them. She didn't know his kitchen and he was awake anyway.
Sasuke hears the guest bathroom shower running and his mind flickers to the thought of her naked form in the same space as him. Just as quickly as the thought comes to him the guilt overshadows and he busies himself getting ingredients out for waffles, a meal he knows both Sakura and Sarada enjoy.
—-
Sarada wakes shortly after she hears her father getting a pan and plates out of cabinets. Rubbing her eyes she looks at her bedside clock and is unsurprised to hear her parents awake before the sun is even on the horizon.
Reality hits as she realizes all the belongings she had at her mothers residence are all gone and she would be staying with her father for the time being. It was strange seeing her parents interacting. Last night was awkward to watch. Her mother was always so sure of herself in nearly every aspect of her life, but last night she was fumbling, quiet and obviously nervous. Sarada thinks it's slightly silly for her mother to act that way with the man she had dated, married and lived with for over a decade.
Sarada would never admit it out loud but between her mother and father her dad was the better cook. Though her mother was the better baker. If she wanted a good meal she would ask her Papa if she wanted baked goods for her birthdays or school bake sales she would ask Mama.
She puts on her glasses making her way to the kitchen. He must not have heard her, because he jolts slightly when she comes into his line of sight.
"Morning Sarada."
"Good morning Papa. What are you making?"
"Waffles. How many do you want?"
Sarada is slow to respond as she notices two tea cups drying on the rack by the sink. Those had not been there when she went to bed last night.
"Two please!"
Her father turns his back towards the stove as she sits on the kitchen island waiting for her meal. Her mother comes out of the guest room, freshly showered and wearing her clothes from yesterday, her hair is visibly wet.
"Sasuke? Do you have a hair dryer? Oh, you're making breakfast?"
"Yes, and yes. Sarada has one in her bathroom. Sarada, can you get it for Sak- your mother? Waffles. Want any?"
Sarada tries not to cringe at her father. He was fumbling too! Were these the same people she lived with week on, week off?
Sarada hops down from the island chair and goes to the bathroom attached to her bedroom to retrieve the hairdryer.
They all eat the waffles her father prepares, and it is awkward. Her parents don't speak other than to confirm Mama was taking her to school, Sakura would pick Sarada up from school, and that they would be back later in the afternoon. The three finish eating and all make way to get ready for their respective days.
—-
Sasuke is greeted by one of his co-workers as he walks into work, a large coffee cup in hand.
"You look like shit." Suigetsu says, looking him up and down.
The dark haired walks to his office door, pulling out the key from his pocket with his free hand.
"Did you come to insult me or do you have something to say?"
"As your friend first, and co worker second I thought I'd let you know Konoha View apartments is a client of ours."
Sasuke is busy unlocking his door and walking into his office to understand the meaning behind what Suigetsu was saying.
"What does this have to do with me?"
"Damn. Doesn't your ex-wife live there…or she did I guess?"
Shit. That's why it sounded familiar.
"Oh, right."
"Well, you have until the end of the day to decide if you want on or off the business. Oh and maybe run a comb through your hair, yeah?"
"Suigetsu, I don't want the business."
As a lawyer he had to remain more or less unbiased, but if the client tried to scam residents out of any money deals post fire he would not trust his judgment to 'aid' them.
He had enough work right now and with his ex-wife and daughter living with him full time now for the unexpected future he had enough on his plate.
