OMG. sorry if I haven't updated, like...FOREVER. gaah! I feel so guilty. T_T

anyway, here's the next chapter.

enjoy! :D


Sasuke was furious.

Yeah. That's a good way to describe it.

Mad. Unhappy. Angry. Get the point?

Hn.


Amnesia
Chapter NINE: Far Away
[*-
I forgive you, for being away for far too long. -*]

ooticklemeblue20oo

Next thing she knew, she was hugging him, soaking his maroon long-sleeved shirt with tears.

"I missed you so much." she sobbed on his chest. She felt him stiffen, so she hugged him tighter.

"Sakura." he breathed, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Don't cry. I'm here now." he comforted, combing his fingers through her pink tresses.

He grabbed a handful of her hair, and tugged at it gently, making her head snap out to him. The eye contact was blissful.

"Gaara-kun." she said, a small smile of relief tugged up her lips.

"T-that's Gaara?!" Ino asked, bewildered. "He almost killed that guy, and trashed the whole cafeteria, but Sakura's just...hugging him like nothing happened!"

"Damnit all to hell." Sasuke said, gritting his teeth in an attempt to calm himself down.

"I can't believe you still kept this." Gaara smirked, playing with the trinket on Sakura's necklace.

"I promised that I'll wear it every time, right?" she laughed.

"You still have that laugh." he chuckled out.

"You still have that chuckle." she said, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Hn. Do you still have that kiss though?" he smirked, cupping her cheek. She blushed heavily with the small gap they have.

"I guess I have to find out for myself." he said, leaning forward, their noses touching at the close proximity. He was about to kiss her, when she was forcefully taken away from his arms.

"S-Sasuke-kun!" she gasped. She forgot about him.

'Gosh! I didn't even move away! Am I still...in love with Gaara?'

There was a glaring contest between the two boys, and Sakura was being squished in between them Gaara was holding her other arm, while Sasuke held the other.

"Gaara-kun, meet Sasuke-kun." she smiled nervously, placing her palms on each of the boys chest, and forcing them apart.

"Hn. Who's he?" Gaara asked, folding his arms on his chest.

"Um—he's my b-boyfriend."

"What?" he snapped coldly.

"Uh—"

"Saki-chan!" a new voice entered the scene.

"T-Tema-chan? You're here too?!" she beamed excitedly.

'Good timing, Temari.' Sakura's Inner sighed in relief.

"Kankuro's here too." she smiled, pointing at the man walking—or more like dragging his feet just to get to them.

"Saki!" he exclaimed, and run to Sakura's side, the laziness in him evaporating.

"I swear, you and Shikamaru are the same." Sakura said.

"Shika—who?" Temari asked, looking around.

"Shikamaru. I'm sure you'll like him too." Sakura grinned. Temari blushed.

"Well, if he's as lazy as Kankuro, I guess I wouldn't care."

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto exlaimed, running to Sakura's side and hugging her tightly. Due to his careless antics, he bumped into Temari and she fell to the floor.

"Naruto! You bumped into Tema-chan!" Sakura scolded playfully. Temari was rubbing her hip, since the floor hit that part.

"I was just worried!" Naruto said, fake tears running down his face.

"Sorry, Sakura. Naruto's a little hard to restrain." Shikamaru mumbled, while the rest of the gang trailed behind.

"Anyway, sorry—um—Temari, was it? If ever Naruto hurt you. Where does it hurt?" Shikamaru asked.

"Um. It's okay. It was just my hip, the blond kid's head is pretty hard." Temari said sheepishly. "Erm—who are you, exactly?"

"I'm Shikamaru Nara." he smiled wearily, holding out his hand to help her stand up.

"O-oh..." she trailed off, quickly giving Sakura a stern look.

Temari's eyes were saying, "This is the Shikamaru you were talking about?!"

Of course, Sakura and Temari have such a strong bond, and so Sakura replied with a nod.

"Oh my God!" Temari giggled nervously, squeezing onto the soft object in her hand.

"Um—Temari, can you let go off my hand now?" Shikamaru asked, an amused glint evident in his eyes. Temari blushed, and hurriedly shoved her hand into her pocket, an uneven laugh escaping her lips.

"Seems that Temari has a new love interest." Kankurou whispered to Sakura. She giggled in response.

Temari noticed the people who were hiding behind Shikamaru. She leaped in front of them.

"Hey there!" she chirped, waving her hand at them. "You must be Saki-chan's friends. Nice to meet you! I'm Temari."

"I'll introduce you to them later. They're a little shocked since your new here." Sakura smiled.

"Sakura-chan. I-I need to go t-to the c-clinic. I think I f-forgot my handkerchief when N-Naruto-kun brought m-me there." Hinata said timidly.

"Hinata-chan? You went to the clinic? Why, did you faint again?" Sakura asked, trying to move with Naruto hugging her waist so tightly.

"Aa. During S-Science class." Hinata replied.

"Why don't you come with her Naruto?" Sakura suggested.

"Dattebayo! Come on Hinata-chan! We can have some alone time again." he laughed, grabbing Hinata's hand and dragging her to the clinic.

"That Dobe." Sasuke mumbled, wrapping his arm around her neck as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"You know, Sasuke-kun, no one knows were together, except Shinoichi."

"And your point is?"

"Our classmates are here, too. They're too scared to stand up and just leave."

"Hn." he muttered, and whispered something to her ear.

"Can we leave? I think I need to kiss you right now." he smirked, and to emphasize his point, he gave her neck a small nip.

"W-what the heck, Sasuke-kun?!" she backfired, rubbing the red mark.

"Is something wrong, Sakura?" Ino asked.

"N-nothing. Hehe. C'mon let's go back to the classroom. I brought onigiri." Sakura smiled. The group nodded and walked to their room.

"Hey, Saki. Who's the brooding prince beside you?" Temari asked.

"Oh. This is Sasuke. My boyfriend." she smiled. "Wait—where's Gaara-kun?"

"Behind you." Gaara whispered, smirking.

"I'm so happy you came back." she smiled sweetly.

"Well, I'm not." Sasuke muttered very, very softly. Sakura elbowed his ribs, an action that means, "Quiet, you."


SABAKU RESIDENCE:

"So, TenTen, Hinata, Ino, Neji, Naruto, Sai, Shikamaru, and Sasuke?" Temari asked, memorizing their names.

"Right!" Ino beamed.

"So I see Shikamaru has a new playmate?" Naruto asked, nudging Shikamaru slightly.

"Dobe. You're so troublesome." Shikamaru said, blushing slightly.

"So, where are you from?" Hinata asked.

"From Suna. That's where we met Saki." Kankurou said.

"I see. So why'd you move here?" Neji asked.

"Well, there are no high schools in Suna, so Chiyo-san sent as here, to the most prestigious school ever." Gaara answered, never taking his eyes off the girl cuddling with Sasuke.

"Chiyo-san?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah. The old lady who— you know." Temari responded quietly.

"O-oh. Chiyo. Oji-sama's grandmother. (she is talking about Sasori here.)"

"Then, what happened to your parents?" TenTen asked. She saw how the Sabakus hung their head down low for a moment.

"Um, TenTen-chan. Their parents are...dead." Sakura smiled sadly.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry for asking!" TenTen gasped.

"It's okay. We let go of them a long time ago. We can't actually tell you the details, unless...you all have the same genes we have. It's kind of hard to explain if you don't have 'em." Temari voiced out.

"You mean, ninja genes?" Sai questioned, a small smirk graced upon his features. "We all have them, actually."

"Really?" Kankurou asked, amusement in his eyes.

"Yeah. That's why we call ourselves Shinoichi."

"Gaara-kun? Can I tell them the story?" Sakura pleaded, standing up from her seat, and moving to Gaara. Sasuke glared at him for a second.

"I guess so. You're here with me anyway." Gaara smirked, and let her seat on his lap on the beanie bag.

"Sakura-chan. Sasuke's watching you know." Naruto said, laughing slightly.

"Sasuke-kun. Are you jealous?" she asked innocently, cuddling even more to Gaara.

"No."

"Awww. Sasuke-kun doesn't get jealous when I'm with another man. That's not what a boyfriend does." she pouted cutely. His Sharingan turned on for a moment, just long enough for Sakura to notice that he was angry. She 'eep'ed and buried her face on the crook of Gaara's shoulder.

"Hn."

If Gaara wasn't Gaara, he would've been blushing madly right now. But something down there was getting painful all of a sudden.
'Oh my God. Did she just kiss my neck?'

"I thought you were gonna tell them about the story?"

"Oh yeah!" she grinned and faced the group.

"Anything you hear from me will be our secret. Anyone caught telling anyone else, will be permanently removed from the Shinoichi." Sakura stated.

"Okay."

"About Gaara's parents, Karura-san died when she gave birth to Gaara. While Gaara's otou—" she felt Gaara's hand turning into fists. She held his hand for comfort. He linked his fingers around hers. She was taken aback for a moment, but entangled them anyway. Sasuke turned away to hide is annoyance.

"His otou kinda sacrificed Karura-san. You see, Gaara's otou is the Kazekage of Suna, and he sealed the Shukaku inside Gaara before he was born. Mainly, Gaara's main purpose of living was to be a weapon or to protect Suna from wars. Karura-san's life was sacrificed to power the sealing process. Chiyo-san helped with the seal." she said, tears welling up onto her eyes. She blinked them away.

"Gaara-kun was hated by the village because of the demon inside him. He was locked inside his room, and the only time you'll see him is when he would peek outside his window. One time, December 24, 11:51PM—" she laughed at this, "Me and Sasori-sama were out buying Christmas decorations. It was very late, and no one was outside, except us. When Sasori-sama entered the house, I dropped my doll and a stray dog took it away. Being the child I was, I ran after the dog, Sasori-sama having no idea."

"Is this gonna be long?" Naruto whined.

"Ssssh! We're listening to the story!" the girls hissed. Naruto sank to his seat.

"It won't be much longer, Naruto."

"Dattebayo!"

"So, after my attempts of getting my doll—which included a huge scar on my knee, since I tripped—I got tired, and, well, I cried." she said. The group laughed.

"Hey! I was just a little kid!" she retorted, picking up the pillow beside her, and throwing it at Sasuke, who was stifling a laugh.

"Anyway, while I was crying, I looked at the my watch, it was 11:59PM already, and I was lost. I cried, yet again. I was about to stand up and try to find my way back home, when my doll, which was covered in dog slobber, was thrown right in front of me. I smiled happily and thanked whoever found it. And as I looked at my hero's eyes, the grandfather clock in the nearby house rang. That's when I realized, I was drowning in a pool of turquoise."

"Who's the person with the turquoise eyes?" Shikamaru asked. It was obvious that she was curious.

"It was Gaara-kun." she smiled.

"Nice! So you met Gaara at exactly 12:00, and on Christmas Eve, too! Is it fate that brought you together?" Ino said dramatically.

"Yeah. It was love at first sight." Sakura said, trying to hit a nerve on Sasuke. Oh yes, she heard a growl.

"Teme's jealousss..." Naruto trailed off. Sakura giggled softly.

"I spent the night at their house, and if you must know—"

Kankurou started laughing by then. Gaara's smirk was getting wider, until he released a brief chuckle.

"—I screamed too loud when I saw Temari. She was wearing a facial mask, and cucumber on her eyes. I threw my doll at her at some point."

"I didn't mean to scare you! The sound of the front door opening creeped me out. I was wearing a white nightgown, and since it was winter, and the door was opened, while I was coming down, the breeze added to the effect, and I really looked like a ghost."

"To be honest, you were too young to be wearing a facial mask." Sakura said.

"I was nine years old." Temari backfired.

"Still too young." Sakura said, sticking her tongue out.

"Um, is that the k-kanji for love t-tattooed on your forehead, G-Gaara-san?" Hinata stammered. Gaara nodded in response.

"Well, when Sakura left Suna, I used to draw it on my palms, because she usually holds my hand everytime we meet." Gaara said. The girls cooed. Sasuke grunted.

"I finally tattooed it on my forehead when Yashamaru tried to kill me when I was ten years old."

"Yashamura-san? Karura-san's brother?"

"Aa. The medic-nin who helped you with the scar you had while chasing the dog, remember?" Gaara smirked.

"I still do." she huffed.

"Sakura-chan, what time is it?" Naruto asked tiredly, playing with the zipper of his jacket.

"It's almost eight."

"Hey Teme! It's Monday!" Naruto exclaimed, a grin on his face.

"Ugh. Do we have to do it now?"

"C'mon, it's boy's night out. We only do this every Monday. When was the last time you've been laid?" Naruto asked, laughing maniacally. Sakura blushed, and hid her face on Gaara's shoulder again.

"Hn. You Dobe. Once me and Sakura break-up about this, I am so gonna hunt you down with a chainsaw."

The boys left with the girls, leaving Sakura alone with the Sabakus.

She took out her phone and texted Ino. She didn't care if Gaara was peeking.

...

From: Sakura

To: Ino

7:42PM ; Monday ; May 10

dude! Sasuke's not a virgin anymore?! he never told me that. :(

but I guess I have to admit it. he's kinda skilled with his lips and hands. :))

how many girls did he ever...get it on with?

...

"Your boyfriend never told you he had previous girlfriends?" Gaara asked.

"I never asked him...but it's quite expected since he's handsome. Which reminds me, have you ever had a girlfriend?"

"Matsuri."

For some reason, there was a pang of pain that arrowed through her heart.

"M-Matsuri-chan? Isn't she older than you?"

"By one year."

"O-oh."

"I was just joking, Sakura. I never had one."

"But did you have admirers?"

"Matsuri and Sari."

"Figures. They're best friends, right?"

"Aa."

...

From: Ino

To: Sakura

7:45PM ; Monday ; May 10

s4dlr. i'm like driving here!

ewww, sakura...too much information...i don't care if his hands are skilled. sai's are too...with art. :)

no, sakura... he's still a virgin... naruto was just joking...but the boys go to the bar every monday to watch girls...and to get drunk...so maybe he's seen many girls, but never touched any of them...

and if you're wondering how many girlfriends he's had...only one. YOU... ;)

...

"Aww! I'm his first! Sweet, Sasuke-kun."

"Hn. Are you going home?"

"Yeah..."

"But it's late, you might get hurt out there."

"Well, if I stay here, where would I sleep?"

"In my bed." he whispered, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"B-but—"

"Don't worry Sakura. I won't do anything with you."

"It's not that. I didn't bring any spare clothes, and tomorrow's school."

"You can borrow my shirt, and you can borrow Temari's skirts."

"How about...um—underwear?"

"Temari bought new ones yesterday." Gaara said softly.

"Haha! You went lingerie shopping with her?"

"It's not my fault. She has a giant fan."

"She still has that fan?! She hit my head lots of times with that!"

"Anyway, Kankurou was with us, and he enjoyed the whole trip."

"Kankurou. That pervert."

"Come on. Let's just go to sleep." he said, walking up the stairs.

"You sleep now?" she asked, walking alongside him.

"Shukaku's gone. I can sleep whenever I want to." he answered, entering his room, Sakura trailing behind.

"You never told me!" she exclaimed, while closing the door behind them.

"You never asked."

"Then why do you still have the black eye rings?"

"How should I know?"

"Honestly, with your short answers, and 'hn's, and the brooding attitude, you're just like Sasuke."

She was instantly pinned to the wall, as a gasp escaped her lips.

"What's your problem Gaara?" she questioned sharply. He held her closer.

"I expected that when I come here, I would see my girl, smiling like always. Not cuddling with her boyfriend." he said, fondling with her tresses.

"I-I know. But I...forgot about the past. You should too. You can find someone better than me." she said softly. He suddenly attacked her neck with kisses, as she moaned at the sudden passion it was bringing her.

"G-Gaara-kun!"

'God damnit, Inner. Those kisses were hot! Hotter than Sasuke's!'

"You told me you never had a girlfriend."

"Yes."

"Then why do you kiss like you had?"

"I don't know. It comes naturally, maybe. Since it's you who I'm kissing."

"But, Gaara..." she trailed off, looking down. She felt guilty for kissing someone else when she knew she had a boyfriend.

"Sakura." he said hesitantly. She looked up to be kissed tenderly. She closed her eyes, but had control to break it.

"Gaara, I have a boyfriend now, this isn't going to work out."

"Please. I promise I'll never bother your relationship again. Just give me one last kiss." he pleaded. She smiled faintly, and kissed his lips tenderly.


SNEAK PEEK: "Sasuke asked me out!" she squealed, twirling around with an excited grin plastered onto her face.

QUICK FACT: Temari is THREE years older than Sakura, while Kankurou is TWO years older.

so, yeah.

It kinda about GaaSaku again. :))

don't worry, it'll be SasuSaku in the next chapter. :D

anyway. please review. :D

BYE. :)