Moving In!
Chapter 5 - Dreams:
I vacuumed the carpet savagely backwards and forwards. There was a tiny piece of bread stuck inside it and I was desperate to get it out. "What are you doing…?" Sasuke asked when he was passing by my room and saw me harassing his carpet. I suddenly screamed, causing him to jump. Then I closed my mouth and nodded my head.
"Sorry, I forgot you lived here too." I said breathlessly. I then turned back to the vacuum and continued. He walked towards me and grabbed my wrist. He used his other hand to turn off the noisy vacuum and picked up the piece of bread wedged in the carpet. I stared at the bread with wide eyes. He let me stare at it for a second, and then threw it in the garbage.
"Have you never used a vacuum before?" He asked me, raising an eyebrow. I frowned at him. "Why are you vacuuming anyway? Where's the maid…?" Sasuke asked and looked around, expected her head to pop out somewhere.
"I'm doing her job for her today." I explained and smiled. He looked at me incredulously.
"Why?" He asked, as though I had lost my mind. I shrugged. I was just a random impulsive decision I had made, just like when I accepted to be moved into Sasuke's house… I seemed as though I had lost most of my sanity after having that meeting with my father. That hope that had filled my heart was gone in a flash, and I think that hope didn't leave by itself. "Sakura-chan…?" I snapped up and saw him staring at me very intrusively.
"Gomen…" I mumbled robotically and looked at the vacuum. Ah, that's right. I was vacuuming when this jerk came in. He just watched as I walked away from the vacuum and towards the wall. I stopped in front of it.
"What are you doing…?" He asked. I turned towards him. I was so deep in thought that I didn't realize him approaching me. I walked towards him blindly and hit my head against his shoulder.
"Itai!! What the- What's wrong with you?" I complained and held my head in my hands.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" He asked very seriously (in my mind this meant: "Oh my god! Are you okay?). I shook my head and was pushed onto my bed. "Stay there." He ordered me and left the room.
"I'm fine!" I called after him. I suppose he didn't hear me, because he didn't come back right away. I wanted to go do my job, but I felt slightly dizzy at the moment. My brain was so overflowed with thoughts that I didn't know which ones were which. I got under my blanket, becoming suddenly overjoyed by the fact that Sasuke would be taking care of me. It was still very early; I had almost forgotten that today was a school day.
I had a little over an hour before school would start, plus Sasuke's house was very close to it. It was a maximum five minute walk. I turned onto my side and let my eyes close. Before I knew it, I was in a very interesting dream…
It started when I was walking around in a familiar place. It was my old house. I jumped over the fence and broke inside. Everything was clear… but there was no furniture in the room. The place was filled with boxes and bigger objects, too big to fit inside the boxes. I heard footsteps come down the stairs, which were visible as soon as anyone entered the house. There was a beautiful woman walking towards me.
"Oka-san?" I mumbled as she kept walking. She turned into the kitchen, completely ignoring my presence. I followed her and saw her drinking a glass of water. "Oka-san!!" I said happily and hugged her, not caring if her water soaked my clothes.. Well, I would have… but I fell right through her and landed on the cold tile floor.
I didn't know what was wrong, but I was invisible. She looked at the counter and picked up a picture frame. As I got up, I noticed that my mother was crying, no, sobbing. Tears were pouring out of her eyes, and she was almost hyperventilating. I looked at the picture very closely.
It was me.
I woke up screaming louder than I ever had before. I was curled up in a ball and I had my hands on my head. My scream stretched out under I lost my mouth. I opened my soaked eyelids, and let my tears fall out mercilessly. I looked at my clock; I had only been sleeping for three minutes. I gasped when I looked into the mirror on my wall.
My face was paler than a sheet of paper, and beads of sweat were falling all over my face. My door suddenly burst open, and I let out another scream. Sasuke yelled something at me I couldn't understand. I suddenly shut my mouth, and turned to him.
"Am I still dreaming?" I asked fearfully. He could probably see the absolute terror in my eyes, because he nodded his head pretty fast. I took in a deep breath. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale… Itachi looked at me strangely, as if I were frozen in a block of ice.
"You don't look so good." He said.
"I feel fine." I lied, my shaky voice didn't help.
"Hn." Sasuke said sarcastically. A woman came in, she looked like a nurse. I waited for her to reach my bed to look up at her. Her eyes were soft and brown, very calming. I took in another deep breath. She stuck a thermometer in my mouth and put her hand on my forehead.
"You have a fever, but it's not too bad." She noted and took away her hand. "Mind if I ask you some questions?" She asked politely. I shook my head. She smiled and turned expectantly to Sasuke and Itachi, who immediately understood and left the room.
"Why do they have to leave?" I asked quietly.
"Do you want them to stay?" She asked and frowned.
"What? No, no! Just asking…" I said warily. She nodded her head and smiled again.
"Alright, so how old are you Haruno-san?" She asked.
"I'm seventeen years old." I said and sighed.
"Are you pregnant?"
"No."
"Have you ever had children?"
"No."
"Have you recently participated in sexual activity?"
"No!! None of that!"
"Gomen."
"It's okay."
"Why don't you live with your parents?"
"Because I can't."
"Why not?"
"…"
"It's okay, you can tell me."
"Because one's dead and the other one has been in the hospital for the past five years."
"Oh…"
"Next question."
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I walked out of the shower silently. School was starting in half an hour and I felt well enough to go. It wasn't really a matter of my health though; I wanted to see my friends again. I changed into my uniform and combed my hair under the hair dryer. I stared into the mirror and made myself look as perfect as possible; such must be expected in the Uchiha household, ne?
I walked out of the bathroom and swung my bag over my shoulder. I skipped down the spiral staircase and towards the kitchen. It was completely empty, except for a piece of toast in a plate on the island. I walked towards it and picked it up. There was strawberry jam on it! I ate it quickly as I walked towards the door.
"Where do you think you're going?" Itachi asked. I quickly turned around and saw him in a tight black muscle shirt and slightly baggy jeans. I struggled not to drool and quickly turned my head to the door. He didn't seem to notice the red coloring on my cheeks.
"I'm going to school." I said breathlessly, still looking away. I heard him chuckle and walk away to the kitchen. I turned to check, I was right. I heard him open the fridge and close a few seconds later.
"I don't think you should go." He said in a singsong voice and I heard him put a pan on the stove. I scowled at the wall.
"Why?" I asked, trying to keep my voice light.
"You should wait 'till things cool down a bit."
"Wait until what cools down?"
"Oh, you'll see." He simply said. The sound of sizzling was heard from the kitchen. He was probably cooking bacon. I took the last bite of my toast and walked out.
When I arrived at school, I realized why Itachi had told me not to come. I was walking around with Gaara, Sai and Hinata. Wait… I was running. There was a rather large group of fangirls chasing me angrily, screaming questions at me like: "HOW DID YOU DO IT?!" and: "WHAT WAS YOUR STRATEGY?!"
I knew exactly what they were talking about; Gaara had reminded me with a scowl right before we entered the school. He was so mad at me that he wouldn't even speak a word to me. We ran into a supply closet and Gaara held it shut.
"We… finally… got… away…" Hinata said between deep breaths. My eyes were wide with, not fear, but shock. Sasuke really need to get 'unpopular'. Sai turned to me, beaming.
"That was fun, let's do it again!" He said. I smacked his shoulder, but that guy was so preoccupied by his thoughts that he didn't notice. Gaara sent me another scowl before glaring holes into a wall.
"I'm sorry Gaara!" I repeated for the umpteenth time. He didn't even flinch at the sound of my voice. Talk about a cold shoulder…
"So… how was it over there?" Hinata asked. I was hoping she'd change the subject.
"It was… eventful." I said and looked towards the ceiling.
"Did something happen?" She asked worriedly.
"Yeah… I guess." I mumbled. I saw a sly smirk spread across Sai's face and kicked him hard in the shin- he could never avoid it in such a crowded closet. i This /i time he noticed. "Nothing like that." I snapped and watched him shut his eyes and muffle his cries of agony.
"Then… what?" Hinata asked, completely ignoring him.
"I had a really weird dream." I told them and finally looked down from the ceiling. They waited anxiously. "In my dream… I was a ghost." I mumbled.
"How do you know you were a ghost?" Sai asked, finally curious (in the right way).
"Because…" I explained everything single detail of my dream. I even saw Gaara narrow his eyes from the corner of my eye. Hinata had a worried look, Sai seemed bored, and Gaara was rather stiff. Before I could open my mouth again the bell rang.
"See you guys at lunch time." I told Sai and Hinata. Gaara and I ran towards our first class together, the silence was starting to kill me. We sat down beside each other in our usual spots. I pushed my desk closer to his, like I always did. He seemed to hesitate, was he deciding whether to ignore me or not now? "Teddy…" I mumbled. He didn't even blink. Normally, he would get pissed off when I called him that. I decided to give up when the second bell rang. Ten minutes into class, something startling happened.
"What?" He finally answered. My face must have brightened up because he rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Are you ever going to forgive me?" I asked, though I was still smiling.
"Of course I will."
"Do you forgive me right now?" I asked and gave him my best puppy face. His expression cooled down immediately, I knew it would work!
"I guess. I couldn't stay mad at you even if I wanted to." He sighed in defeat. I beamed and gave him a big hug, the kind he was famous (in my opinion) for: the big bear hug. He rubbed my back and a small smile spread across his face. Kakashi stared at us for a second and raised an eyebrow.
"Err… Sorry." I mumbled and quickly let go of Gaara, I was blushing now. He chuckled and I straightened up in my seat uncomfortably. Kakashi seemed to smile under his mask happily. I grinned at Gaara, who was still smiling.
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"Sakura, are you okay?" Hinata asked worriedly as we walked home. My fever was coming back again, and I could hardly walk. She put my arm over her shoulder and nearly fell over. Hinata was shorter than me, and I was a little wobbly to be carried by her tiny body.
"I'm f-f-fine…" I said through my clattering teeth. She used all her strength to drag me home. I could see the mansion coming closer into my vision.
A deep wave of relief washed through me, I was saved!
When we got to the gate, I pressed the button impatiently. "Let m-me in! I'm s-s-s-sick!!" I said loudly. The gates slowly opened and Hinata dragged me halfway to the house, when Itachi burst out the front door and stood in front of me.
"I told you so." He teased and picked me up into the air. He set me over his shoulders and walked towards the house, as though I weighed less than ten pounds.
"H-H-Hey!" I said in a strained voice. Hinata followed us nervously to the door. She stopped in front of the open door and watched Itachi drop me onto the couch.
"Come in." He said and walked into the kitchen. She came in quickly, as though those words were exactly what she was waiting for. Hinata was too polite for her own good, my health was so much more important.
"What utterly idiotic reason did you have to go to school today?" Sasuke asked as he walked into the living room and saw me lying awkwardly on the couch. I struggled to lift my head up and see his blank expression passing along my body. "You look horrible." He noted.
"I feel horrible too. How surprising…" I muttered and couldn't even find the energy to frown at him. He walked towards me and put his hand on my forehead, checking my temperature. I think I became even hotter at the feel off his cold touch on my skin.
"It's not too bad, but you should rest for a while…" He said and left into the kitchen as well. Itachi came out as Sasuke went in, and threw a wet, cold and folded towel onto my head. I sighed and shivered from the feeling of it.
"Why didn't you stop her from leaving?" Sasuke asked his brother rather calmly.
"I tried…" He said and sighed.
You only warned me you ass!
Hinata walked over to my side and kneeled down at my face. "Do you want me to stay here with you?" She asked quietly. I thought for a moment.
"Yeah. I could use some female company." I whispered back and quickly glanced to Sasuke and Itachi. Hinata let out a small giggle and got back up. "Can you bring me to my room?" I asked weakly. Hinata smiled and nodded her head. She helped me get to my feet and she led me to my room. We struggled to get up the stairs, but of course, we managed.
"Oh, it's right there." I said weakly and pointed towards my door. Hinata brought me inside and dropped me onto my bed. She bent down, with her hands on her knees, and breathed very slowly. "Wow… Am I that heavy?" I asked and laughed. She sent me a small smile before sitting down beside me. Sasuke walked into the room silently, as he always did.
"I got your medicine." He said and Hinata jumped up in surprise, not helping her with her breathing. I giggled and took the medicine bottle from him.
"Arigatou." I chimed and Hinata took it from me.
"Itachi said that you'll have to skip work." He said and stared at me blankly. He was acting weird again, like I was a stranger – well, I was a i kind of /i stranger... but not as much as I used to be. I stared at him with wide eyes.
"I want to go to work!" I said loudly and sat up. I felt dizzy sitting up, and had trouble focusing on him. I had just got my first check yesterday, and even though it was plenty of money already, I needed more. He pushed me down with one finger on my forehead.
"No." He said simply and glanced at Hinata, who had just managed to open the medicine bottle. "If it makes you happy then you can go shopping for as long as you want when you get better." He suggested at sat at the very end of my bed. Hinata poured the medicine into the tiny cup.
"I'm saving up my money!" I complained and took the tiny cup from Hinata.
"Who said you had to use yours?" He asked and smirked, it made me bubble up inside. I nearly spat out the medicine I had just swallowed and started at him with wide eyes. Hinata seemed surprised as well, but was calmer than I was. "If you don't want it then…"
"Give me money!" I demanded with a beaming smile. He raised an eyebrow at my sudden change of mood. "I want it!" I said loudly and nearly jumped into a sitting position.
"Why?" He asked coolly.
"I need a new car." I explained happily. My face twisted into an unreadable expression, it reminded me of my wrecked smart car and the crash I had been in not too long ago.
"I won't buy you a new car… but I can lend you some money." He sighed and glared at the door, as if he were being force to do this. It all seemed so well rehearsed.
But I didn't care.
I jumped onto him, hugging him tightly. "Arigatou! Arigatou! Arigatou!" I yelled happily. I heard a silent sound and a flash. My eyes suddenly widened in horror as I turn to Hinata and pointed a menacing finger at her. "How dare you?!" I said dramatically as she took another picture.
She laughed out loud and gripped her stomach as she did so. I turned to look at Sasuke, whose face was the color of his favourite food, tomato. "Awww… You're blushing!" I teased and grabbed his cheeks. He suddenly hit my hands away and abruptly stood up.
"I can't do this. Everything is wrong here." He muttered and stalked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. I stared blankly at the spot where he had one sat and glanced at Hinata, who has hyperventilating. What was he taking about?
"Sasuke… has... a temper... worse… than… yours…" She said. I glared at her and turned back to the bed. She was right though. Something about was wrong, something about him. Maybe Sasuke had multiple personalities. That… That would be wrong.
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Hinata stayed with me until I got better, and then had to get back home before her parents would notice her absence. I held up my mirror to my window and watched Hinata pass through the gates, and disappeared down the road. I sigh and put down my mirror.
I grabbed a golf club (Hinata had brought it to me) that was purposely there for me to use, and hit my radio with it. A soft song I immediately recognized began to play and my lips moved slowly with the words. As I sung quietly, I glanced at my golf club again.
A small smirk spread across my face and I lifted the club into the air. I pulled back my arm and threw it as hard as I could towards the door, hoping that someone would hear it and come. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion… As the golf club continued to spin in the air, the door opened.
I froze in place when I noticed that the one standing at the door was Sasuke. I wanted to yell at him to move but my mouth hadn't even opened by the time it hit his flawless face. "Sa-!" I only managed to say. He fell onto the floor like a log and didn't make a sound after that. "…suke…" I finished numbly.
I flew out from underneath the covers and ran (more like dragged my feet) towards him. I fell at his side on my knees and stared at his aggravated expression. His eyes were closed, but just by glancing at his eyebrows and mouth, I could tell he wanted to punch me. A small shiver went down my spine when one eyelid lifted itself.
"Sakura-chan…" He growled. I gulped and braced myself for a long and loud row of curse words. I shut my eyes closed and heard a loud thump. I quickly opened my eyes to see Itachi on the other side of Sasuke, on the floor.
"Why the hell are you lying in the middle of the hall?!" He asked. Sasuke quickly sat up and glared at him furiously.
"Why don't you ask her! It was your idea to have her here anyway!" He yelled. I raised an eyebrow.
"What?" I asked in confusion. Sasuke had a satisfied expression on his face, while Itachi seemed annoyed. There was a long pause.
"Fine, I'll admit that it was my idea to invite you here…" He started, "But at least I've kissed a girl in my life!" He said loudly. Sasuke face became a very dark red (in anger, don't get me wrong!) and he would've jumped onto his brother, if I hadn't just passed out.
I was lying in a hospital, I supposed I was dreaming again. I could hear the continuous beeping of the monitor, and it was infuriating. I tried to turn around and try to stop it from doing so. I tried… I did… But I couldn't. My body wouldn't let me move at all. That's when I realized that everything was blurry, as if I had bad eyesight and had dropped my glasses somewhere.
I soon realized that I knew the place, even through my distraught vision. It was the same exact room as the one that my dad was in. Every angle was the same, the wall were the same pale white; the beds were in the same exact position.
That was when someone walked inside. Standing right in from of me, I'm sure, was my father. I tired to make a sound but not a sound came from my mouth, which was still closed. It was as though I was asleep, but I could see through my eyelids. 'Oto-san…' I whispered in my head, my voice surprisingly clear.
He looked at me with tired eyes and sat down beside my bed. I couldn't see his whole body, because my eyes were stuck in the same position. "When will you wake up?" He said in a broken voice. I felt my heart shatter when numerous tears fell down his cheek. 'No… Not again…' I whispered in my mind.
The roles were, once again, switched. Now I was in a coma.
I woke up screaming again, and the Uchiha brothers winced at the loud noise coming from my mouth. I couldn't breathe properly again, and when I looked at them they're eyes held no concern, but held curiosity instead.
"You're not going to die, are you?" Sasuke asked. I bit my lip and let my tears pour down my cheeks as I took in short and quick breaths.
"You idiot, now you made her cry." Itachi told him.
"Shut up." He snapped, still staring at me. I felt so defenceless and weak. I felt like my parents must have. It felt wrong, to be in their place. I wasn't ready to die just yet; who would explain everything to my father, if he ever woke up?
I needed to show my mother that I would live the life they wanted me to, because I knew she was watching, and that had been her dying wish.
