Sakura stood at the bus stop by her house. Her things were all packed in a blue suitcase. It was her favorite bag, as she and her childhood friend used to pack it with food and supplies pretending to 'run away'. They had never gotten very far before one of their parents found them.
Instead of the usual bus, a dirty, ancient school bus pulled up to the sidewalk. The brakes made a horrible squeaking noise as the bus rolled to a stop. Sakura briefly worried whether the bus was safe or not, but pushed away her fear as the doors swung open.
She walked onto the bus, ignoring the creaky stairs. She was one of the first to board the smelly deathtrap, so she didn't worry about finding a place to sit. She shuffled to the nearest seat and sat by the window, placing her bag beside her. She hoped it would stop anyone from sitting down. She liked to be alone.
After settling in, she decided to scan the bus. There were only two passengers so far. The first person she saw was a scrawny boy with shock red hair.
At least I'm not the only one with odd hair
The boy seemed to be wearing a lot of eyeliner around his bright blue eyes. Something was familiar about them. He had a twisted expression on his face, as if he was deep in thought. Below one of his eyes was a small tattoo. She wondered why he would get a tattoo in such a strange place.
Sakura noted that the boy would be attractive if it wasn't for his frightening look. She wondered if he was insane. It wouldn't surprise her.
While analyzing the boy, Sakura missed the flamboyant blonde who flounced onto the bus. She was wearing very little clothing, not bothering to cover her swollen belly.
The girl walked over to Sakura with a bright smile on her face. She picked up Sakura's bag and tossed it to the floor.
"Hi! My name is Ino! What's yours?" The blonde reached to shake her hand. Sakura sweat-dropped.
"Uh, Sakura. Hi… I guess," She shook Ino's hand uncertainly.
"Sakura, hmm. That's a nice name. So, Sakura, you're not pregnant. Are you?" Sakura blushed deeply.
"Wait-wh-uh-No! No!" Ino laughed at her discomfort. Sakura grabbed for her water bottle, gulping nervously.
"Relax, sweetie. I was just kidding. It's so obvious you aren't. I mean, look at you! You radiate prude." Sakura choked on the water and glared at the flashy blonde.
"I'm not a pr-"
"Right," Ino snickered, cutting Sakura off, "You're a roaring sex machine," Sakura blushed deeper.
"That's not what I-"
"I can see it now! I bet you do your own porn. You probably have some ridiculous porn name like 'Cherry Popped' or 'Sa-cock-ra'. Oh I'd love to see it." The blonde laughed as Sakura tried to hide her mortification.
"NO! I'M NOT A PORN STAR!" Sakura screamed. The quickly filling bus went silent. Ino burst out laughing, and strangely so did Sakura. Her laugh was a bit hoarse from underuse, but she was laughing. It felt good.
"So," Ino said, pulling a chilled mocha latte from her purse, "Have you seen any hot guys on the bus?"
We're on a therapy bus and this girl is looking for hot guys? Unbelievable.
"Uh, I don't know. I haven't really looked." It was partially true. The only person she'd seen was the redhead, and he gave her the creeps. Ino shifted in her seat to take a look at the people around her. Sakura followed.
She saw a bored-looking girl with brown hair in buns at the top of her head. She seemed to be playing with a knife of some sort. Sakura shuddered. Her eyes drifted to another kid, this one a boy, with spiky blonde hair and bright blue eyes.
The boy looked as if he had trouble staying put. His hands were tapping on the window and he looked extremely energetic. He looked kind of lonely. She thought he was cute, not necessarily hot. He reminded her of a teddy bear that desperately needed a hug.
Behind him sat a sleeping boy, whose hair reminded her of a pineapple. He was quite ordinary in her opinion. Not to mention he was very…unkempt. Sitting a couple of rows behind him was a petite looking girl with black- almost blue hair.
Her eyes were like pearls, and she looked very, very scared. Her entire body was shaking. Sakura had the sudden urge to hug her, along with the blonde boy. Next to the black-haired girl was a frightening boy.
His eyes were similar to hers. His long, brown hair was pulled into a neat ponytail. Not a thing was out of place on the boy. Even his posture was flawless.
She turned her head to see a second Ino, minus the baby bump. The girl was tall, blonde, and wearing even sluttier clothes than Ino (if possible). Sakura wasn't sure what the girl was thinking when she did her hair, but the result was quite strange. She was sitting close to the redheaded boy, and looked as if she was holding conversation with him.
The final person on the bus remained a mystery. He/She was wearing a hood and facing the window, obscuring his/her face. The mystery person's clothes hinted he was a male, but Sakura wasn't sure. She leaned to see a better look, but ended up slipping and elbowing Ino in the stomach.
"Ow, watch it, pinky. I'm carrying fragile cargo." She pointed towards her stomach. "Anyway, I found a hottie!"
"Oh, really? Who?" asked Sakura. She wondered who Ino would find attractive. The answer was not one she'd expected. Ino extended a manicured finger towards the sleeping boy.
"Sleeping Pineapple?" asked Sakura. Ino gave Sakura a puzzled look.
"His name is Shikamaru. He was in my geometry class before, well, you know," Ino gestured towards her inflated stomach. "I always thought he was hot, but he never bothered to say 'Hello' to me. Not once. Frankly, the only word I've heard him say is 'troublesome'. I never thought I'd see him here." Ino stared at the sleeping boy fondly, a soft smile on her face.
Sakura was not one to get jealous easily, but she almost wished someone would look at her like that. She was deep in thought when she heard Ino sniffle. The girl had gone from happy to upset in a matter of seconds.
"Uh, Ino? What's wrong?" The blonde looked at her through watery eyes.
"I bet he thinks I'm a slut. I bet you think I'm a slut!" She sniffled softly. Sakura tried to cut her off. "No, just say it. I know I look like a total whore!" Sakura tried to calm the girl before she went into complete hysterics. People were starting to stare.
"Shhh, Ino. No, you aren't a slut. Calm down! People are staring at you…" Ino straightened up and wiped the mascara from under her eyes.
"You're right, Sakura. I need to calm down. I'm sorry about that. So, what are you here for? I was so self-absorbed I forgot to ask."
"Oh, well I-"
"Hello ladies and gentleman. My name is Tsunade, and I'll be your counselor for this week. I know you may feel uncomfortable here at first, but this week is about encouraging you to open up to those around you. I know from experience, recovery can be hard. I'm a diagnosed alcoholic. I want to…" The woman droned on, concluding her speech when the bus stopped at a small lake.
"Any questions?" asked Tsunade. Ino raised her hand.
"Yes?"
"Why the fuck are we at a lake? I thought this was an indoor camp!" Ino looked disgusted. Sakura didn't mind the outdoors and didn't understand the blonde's distress. Tsunade glared at Ino.
"Well, it's called a camp. What'd you expect? Don't worry, we'll be sleeping in cabins." The Ino-clone raised her hand as well. Tsunade sighed, not bothering to call on the girl.
"Yes, the cabins have electricity." The girl put her hand down.
After a couple more questions, Tsunade lead the group off of the bus and to the campground. When they all made it off, a silver-haired man called for their attention. He wore a mask across his lower face, making Sakura wonder what was underneath.
"Hello. I'm Kakashi. I'll be the assistant counselor." He started to walk off when Tsunade cleared her throat. "Oh, yeah. The boy's cabin is the blue building and the girl's is the pink. There are 4 rooms in each cabin. Every room has 2 beds. The room assignments will be posted outside your cabin. No one is to be seen in the opposite sex cabin after 10 o'clock at night. Thanks…er…bye." Kakashi took off running. Tsunade sighed, muttering something along the lines of 'I need sake'
Sakura followed the rest of the girls to the pink cabin by the water. It was quite a large building, which pleased Ino greatly. The girl with the odd buns pulled the room assignment off the wall and began to read out loud.
"Ino Yamanaka and Temari Suna are in the Nuturing room," Ino waved goodbye as her and her clone walked inside. "Hinata Hyuga and Sakura Haruno are in the Happiness room and I am in the Patience room." Sakura learned the girl's name was Tenten. Sakura grabbed her things and followed the others inside.
The room was quite elegant for a cabin. There were several couches in the center room, a nice TV, a kitchen, a game room, 6 bathrooms and a small library. Despite the size, Sakura found her room rather quickly. She realized her roommate was the black-haired girl she'd seen on the bus. She was glad to be partnered with the shy girl, as Sakura was not very social herself.
Hinata slipped into the room behind Sakura. The teen was incredibly shy, and hoped the pink-haired girl would not hear her entry. Unfortunately for Hinata, Sakura had incredibly good hearing.
"Hi, you must be Hinata. I'm Sakura." The pink haired girl smiled slightly, hoping to befriend Hinata. Hinata shuffled awkwardly to her side of the room. (There were double beds like in hotel rooms)
"H-hi. Yes, I-I'm H-hin-ata. Nice to m-meet you, S-sa-kura." She had a terrible stutter. It was as if she was very cold, trying to keep her teeth from chattering. Sakura had taken a liking to the frightened girl, despite her obvious flaws. In fact, maybe it was because of her flaws that Sakura felt safe around her.
"Hinata?"
"Y-yes?"
"Would you like to meet my friend Ino? She's a bit obnoxious, but I'm sure you'll like her." Sakura wasn't sure why she'd asked. She didn't even considered the blonde a friend. The again, Ino had certainly welcomed Sakura to camp. Sakura wanted the petite girl to feel welcome as well. Hinata looked up at her, a bit surprised.
"Okay. W-which room is sh-she in?" The black haired teen surprised herself. It wasn't like her to attend social outings. Then again, she was never invited to hang out in the first place.
"The Nurturing room. Come on, I'll show you." It struck Sakura that this was the first time she'd really tried to interact with anyone in a while, besides her odd relationship with Ino. She led the way to Ino's room and knocked on the door.
The spunky blonde answered the door while pulling a brush through her hair. She smiled at Sakura and the tiny girl cowering behind her.
"Hey Pinky, long time no see." She laughed, tossing her brush onto her bed and shutting the door behind her. She gestured towards Hinata, who shrunk behind Sakura even further. "And you are?"
"H-h-Hin-Hinata" She squeaked. Something about the blonde intimidated her greatly. Sakura frowned at the girl behind her.
"Its okay, Hinata. I don't bite" Ino smiled as Hinata eased out from behind her pink haired roommate. "So, my lovely ladies. What is the reason for your visit?"
"We just wanted to hang out, I guess. Would you like to come to our room?" Sakura gave Ino a small smile, hoping it looked sincere. Smiling was hard.
"Okie dokie, let me grab my purse," Ino patted her stomach, "You never know when the man in my life is gunna start kicking!" Sakura started to reply when she heard Hinata whisper,
"I-it is a boy?" Hinata looked…curious. Sakura had never seen an expression other than fear on her face. She was a very pretty girl; all she needed was a pinch of confidence.
"Yep," Ino looked down at her swelled stomach with pride…and a tinge of regret. "Well, the clock is ticking. I'll be right out." The blonde stepped back into her room, leaving Sakura and Hinata alone in the hallway. Sakura spoke the first thing that came to her mind.
"Do you like children?" Hinata glanced at Sakura, and gave her a small smile.
"Y-yes, I do" Ino stepped out in the hallway at that moment and looked at the smiling Hinata.
"You know, Hinata. You're really pretty when you smile." The modest girl blushed, looking a bit flustered.
"T-t-thank you I-ino," The girls walked back to the Happiness room and sat down on Sakura's bed. They talked for a while, until Ino blurted out:
"Can I give you guys makeovers?" Hinata flushed a deep red and Sakura looked at the blonde skeptically. She didn't want to look like a whore, but it was Hinata she was worried about the most. Sakura was shocked when Hinata replied first.
"S-sure, I-ino," Sakura stared wide-eyed at the shy girl. Hinata quickly corrected herself. "I-I mean if S-S-Sakura wants to!" Sakura sighed.
"Eh, what do I have to lose?" Ino clapped her hands in excitement and ran for her makeup kit. Sakura was first. Ino gave her a natural look with just a bit of lip gloss, blush and pink eye shadow to offset her dazzling emerald eyes. Sakura looked in the mirror. She felt… pretty.
It was not as if she'd never worn makeup before, but this was different. She smiled. It was almost a real smile. Almost.
Soon it was Hinata's turn. Hinata looked stunning. Ino gave her lavender eye shadow and a peachy blush, leaving her porcelain skin shining.
Both Sakura and Ino pretended they didn't notice the bruises on her neck.