Sakura loved surprises. Since she was a child, she had always savoured the burst of bright yellow energy and joy that accompanied them. And after the endless ritual of summers spent sprawled into the grooves of the roots beneath cherry blossoms, with Ino's tiny fingers threading wild flowers through her hair, she realised how much she loved flowers too.

With a powerful kick, Sakura's office door flew open, rebounding loudly off the wall, which now supported a little more than a mere fissure at the impact. She grunted, as she slung the heavy stack of textbooks onto her desk, as it groaned slightly at the sudden weight, as if it were Shikamaru whenever she asked him for a "troublesome" favour. Despite knowing that Tsunade loved her as if she were a daughter, Sakura couldn't help but think sometimes that the wicked side to her shishou, secretly enjoyed piling on the work for her beloved student.

And then she saw them.

That brief flash of spring, so familiar in colour and freshness, which captured the very corner of her vision. Curiously, she peered around the tower of books, only for her breath to be dragged from her lungs, as her plump pink lips parted into an 'O' of breathless surprise. Innocently, on her desk, as if they had every right to be there, lay a heap of crisp yellow daffodils, their sweet heady fragrance overpowering her senses, and filling her office with the sweltering sense of spring and life.

As if on instinct, or mere curiosity, her fingers uncoiled in fascination and eager delight, and reached upward toward the delicately frilled edges of the pale yellow petals. But then, her eyes snapped up to the very top of the pile. It was difficult to miss the one daffodil, whose colour didn't quite fit with the others. Its head was pallid white, the epitome of innocence and purity, emitting the most delicious scent that she had ever imagined, and tied to its stem with string was the most beautiful white gold ring she had ever seen.

Fingertips trembling with emotion and delight, she carefully detached the ring, examining how the marquise diamond embedded between two smaller sapphires, threw a spectrum of colours from the light that filtered in through the window.

Sasuke-kun…

Slowly, she slid the ring onto the fourth finger of her left hand, noting how it was quite literally, a perfect fit. All of a sudden, a memory from months before flashed through her mind, of how she had searched her entire apartment for one of her favourite rings, turning the place inside out, before accepting with misery that she must've lost it down the drain or when she was in town. Yet weeks later, it appeared out of nowhere, sitting casually on her bedside table as if it had never vanished. With startling realisation, Sakura put two and two together that Sasuke must've crept his way into her apartment, and borrowed the ring for size reference, whilst he was searching for the one that she was currently wearing.

At the thought, a small smile crept onto her face.

Sasuke-kun, you must've been carrying this engagement ring around for months…

Sakura's limbs ached to run to him, to find him and hopefully have him say the words that she so very much longed to hear. On a spur of the moment, she dashed from her office, footfalls hammering against the hospital floor and rebounding off the walls. Her student trainees probably wondered what on earth their dear Sakura-senpai was doing running through the hospital corridors, but she didn't care. She just needed him.

Honoka, the receptionist gaped in astonishment as Sakura whizzed past and out through the main entrance, stopping briefly to flare out a wave of her chakra, and grinning when a familiar burst of chakra reflected against hers. Without stopping to think, she bounded off in the direction of his signature – judging by his location and the unmistakable chakra signature beside his, he was currently heading toward Ichiraiku's ramen stand with Naruto.

She ignored all of the inquisitive and baffled expressions that she received from civilians and fellow ninja, as she sprinted desperately through Konoha marketplace. All she needed was Sasuke. She knew that his stubborn pride would prevent him from spilling the true depths of his feelings, but she never expected him to propose in such a romantic way. If anything, she thought that he would just grunt it out of the blue, but now she knew how serious he was. She knew that all of her doubts and insecurities were for nothing, and that her feelings were finally reciprocated to an equal extent. Of course she saw that he loved her. He already confessed that on their first date, but she couldn't seem to dispel that teeny tiny voice in the back of her mind, that suggested that she would never be good enough, or that she really was too annoying, or even that he would have an epiphany that she was merely an important friend. It was a voice that she despised listening to because of the painful tugs on her heart that resulted, yet she was only a human. She couldn't help it.

I guess I needn't worry any more, she thought, because you really must love me Sasuke-kun, to want to marry me…

Her heartbeat danced wildly in her chest, as she rounded the final corner of the street, to see Sasuke and Naruto, in the distance, staring directly at her. They knew she was coming. Stood out in the open, visible from any compass point, it was clear that they had been waiting to see her reaction.

Swiftly, she raced through the dusty street toward the man she loved, her urgency to be close with him evident throughout her expression, before she flung herself onto him, arms tightly wrapped around his neck, and fingers grasping at his dark hair. Almost immediately, he responded by winding his arms around her waist, clutching her to him.

"Sasuke-kun," she mumbled, her face buried into his shoulder, "All those years ago, in the hospital, you really did appreciate those daffodils didn't you?"

"Hn." his warm breath hit the skin at the top of her ear, "But I'll admit, it was your blonde friend's idea to have the novelty daffodil on top."

"Ino knew about this?" Her eyes widened slightly, but she decided to snuggle further into his cloak, "I thought she was acting suspicious lately."

Sakura cast her mind back to her last brief visit to the Yamanaka flower shop early that morning, where the Ino-pig had been grinning at her like an idiot, when all she did was innocently admire the daffodil stand.

"Sasuke-teme let me in on it too." Naruto interjected beside the couple, causing Sakura to retract her head from Sasuke's shoulder. "I know, it's shocking isn't it Sakura-chan, that the bastard would actually ask me for my opinion."

Sakura glanced between the pair of them, eyes narrowed "Your opinion on what exactly? The choice of bride?"

Naruto, in precaution, raised his hands before him in surrender, as he explained nervously, shaking his head "No, no, the bastard came to me one night to show me the ring."

She felt Sasuke's fingers tremble slightly against her back, clearly indicating his rising temper toward his best friend. Sakura guessed that wanting Naruto's approval was a threat to his stubborn pride.

Naruto's face broke out into a cheeky grin "He wanted to ask if it was pretty enough for his Sakura-chan."

"Naruto!" Sasuke growled with vehemence, the threat evident in his voice silencing his now wary friend.

Naruto waved his hand at her dismissively, changing the subject. "Anyway, Sakura-chan, we knew you were coming, so we started heading to get some ramen to celebrate. Teme's paying!"

"I'm not." Sasuke grunted with finality, beginning to loosen his hold on her, but stopping midway to take hold of her wrist, approving of the elegant ring on her slender finger. A perfect fit, he noted smugly. However his expression darkened, as he remembered what had plagued his mind when he purchased it.

Sakura nervously glanced up at his emotionless expression, "Is something wrong, Sasuke-kun?"

His eyes flickered from the ring, to hers. His voice was a barely audible whisper as he muttered, "I actually wanted to give you my mother's ring...but it was only proper to have her buried wearing it."

Sakura's heart swelled, glowing with love at his words. He wanted to give her his mother's ring…that could only mean that he saw her as family…

A jolt of emotion and long-buried distress flickered transiently across his contrasting eyes, at the reflection of his departed family. However, it vanished not long after it appeared. Eyes glassed over with tears like glistening orbs, Sakura slowly leaned up, to press a chaste but affectionate kiss to his cheek.

"It's perfect…and I love you."

"Hn. I'm guessing that's a 'yes'."

She grinned with content, "Of course."