Chapter 7
"Uhm... Sakura-san?" Hinata asked, with a concerned tone, while Sakura gawked in response.
Sakura did remember vaguely seeing the option of bringing a plus one written on the card, however, she could have sworn it was optional. So why was Hinata staring at her so expectantly?
"Well uh, I was just thinking of coming alone..." Sakura confirmed, sheepishly.
"Oh... Well, it is optional for regular attendee's to bring someone, but I was kind of hoping you had someone in mind. There is going to be formal dancing, and all of the bridesmaids and groomsmen are bringing dates to participate, after Naruto and I have our first dance" Hinata quieted, before continuing, "You know... To get everyone else in the spirit. I-I can change that if you want Sakura-san, I don't want you to be the only one without a partner so-"
Sakura cut her off then.
"No. It's perfectly fine Hinata" Sakura said, as she slowing let her confidence take over, "I will have no problem finding a date, don't doubt my abilities! I just feel bad for the guy that ends up being used for only one night" Sakura said smugly, hands on her hips, stifling a malicious laugh.
Awkwardly, Hinata forced a laugh, attempting to ignore the obvious insecurity Sakura held.
"A-alright. Good! Well, how about we meet up on Monday to go over the preparations?" Hinata asked, happy to change the subject.
Sakura nodded in agreement, "And don't worry Hinata, I'll get my date sorted out ASAP. I'll see you Monday!" Sakura called back, already jogging in the direction of her home.
Hinata stood there smiling and waving back at Sakura, I sure hope this isn't too much pressure for her right now...
*~Home Again~*
Hauling in a few bags of groceries, Sakura kicked her front door closed behind her.
"WHEW" she sighed, as she kicked off her boots and set the bags on the counter.
Putting away her groceries, and setting aside her dinner ingredients, Sakura heard her phone go off in the other room.
**RINNNNNNNGGGG**
"Coming..." She mumbled to no one, as she waded into the living room and picked up the phone.
"Sakura speaking" she stated blandly, catching sight of herself in the mirror.
"Hey! Sakura! Did you get Naruto and Hinata's wedding invite?" the voice she recognized as Ino's, eagerly shrilled out of the phone.
Primping herself in the mirror, Sakura felt herself fill with pride as she announced, "Invited? I've been asked to be the maid of honor"
"WHAT?! Why you billboa- I mean", Ino paused to sigh and calm herself down, "Good. I'm glad it's you actually, you are a pretty good planner, and the role comes with big shoes to fill" Ino stated calmly, to which Sakura was astonished.
"Well thanks Ino, that's awfully nice of-" Ino cut her off almost instantaneously.
"Yeah it's great, because it means that the other bridesmaids and I, have nothing to worry about. In fact, we can just let you know everything we want, and you can discuss it with Hinata for us" Ino said slyly, her tone rich with malice.
Irritated and bested, Sakura openly sighed into the phone, Ino, you never miss a beat do you? she thought to herself.
"Wait, who are all the other bridesmaids anyway?" Sakura inquired, curiously, plucking a loose string from her shirt.
"Besides us, Tenten, Temari, and Hanabi. And for the groomsmen, I'm not completely sure, but I know my Sai is going to be one for sure, and probably Lee, Choji and Shikamaru"
"Really...? Temari?" Sakura asked, realizing the potential offense of her question.
"Yeah, I know. But since Shikamaru is going to be a groomsmen most likely, there's no way Temari would go with him unless she was one. You gotta respect her for that" Ino said chuckling, seemingly unaffected by Sakura's blunt criticism.
"Well, as long as Hinata's happy, that's all that matters. This will be a good bonding experience for all of us I think" Sakura said, lightening the mood, and surprised by her own genuine tone. She really did want to deepen her bonds with the girls, everyone sort of got swept up in their own lives since the war ended.
"Hey Sakura..." Ino began, interrupting Sakura's wishful musings, "Do you think Sasuke will be coming? Has Hinata said anything to you?"
Startled by the question, Sakura chewed her bottom lip, "I'm not sure honestly, and no she hasn't". Sakura's eyebrows furrowed further, "I had already assumed he had left the village by now anyway. Haven't seen or heard any news about him, and I'm sure he didn't intend on staying long".
"Hmm..." Ino breathed, while multiple seconds of silence filled the phone line.
"Well, whatever. You'd think he'd be around for his buddies big day, but that's none of my business" Ino snapped, "All right, so have you got a date yet? All of us already have one, so it's just you that needs to get sorted" Ino said, rubbing it in with her actually authentic concern.
Sakura made a 'pffft' sound, and retorted, "And why exactly would you assume I don't have a date yet? I'll have you know, it's not an issue that needs 'sorting'".
"So it's Takao then?" Ino pressed.
SHIT!, Sakura covered her mouth from nearly speaking her thoughts aloud. I totally forgot to call Takao!
"Yes. I was thinking about bringing up the idea with Takao, as a matter of fact" Sakura said, attempting to sound poised.
"... You totally forgot to call him didn't you?" Ino declared, blandly.
"Oh my God, YES okay?! I can't believe I forgot, I'm going to call him right away" Sakura admitted in dismay.
Ino sneered, and stifled a laugh at Sakura's expense, "Well good luck, I'm sure he will say yes! Maybe if you bring it up the right way, he'll offer to take you, and save you your dignity from being the one to ask him"
Audibly whining now, Sakura said "Jeez Ino, give me a break. It's obvious you are on a roll today, so I'm gonna steer clear. My ego can't take much more"
"You know I love you," Ino giggled, "Don't be dumb. Call him up, and tomorrow you and I should meet up so we can go over some bridesmaids stuff"
"Ugh Ino, it's up to Hinata what she wants us to do, you shouldn't be pushy with your 'suggestions', and I'm not sure about tomorrow, I'll have to call you" Sakura said briskly, walking back into the living room.
"Don't say that Sakura, come on, and don't blow me off tomorrow either! We all want to look good that day, and the original idea was to have us wear pink dresses, but pink brings out the red in my skin, and Temari hates pink, and Tenten thinks we should have pink flower arrangements instead, which I think is a perfect idea-"
"I'm hanging up now" Sakura said, rolling her eyes.
"No! Wait! So we came to the conclusion, that lilac dresses with different necklines, and skirt lengths would compliment everyone, especially my complexion, and because Temari's legs are SUPER long, despite the fact that we are all around the same height, so she wants a dress that accentua-"
*Click*
Sakura hung up the phone before she could finish. Oh boy... This is gonna be a lot a work with those girls, she thought to herself, shaking her head.
I guess I should give Takao a call...
Reaching for the phone again, Sakura felt the weirdest sense of hesitation. Shaking her head once to snap out of it, she picked up the phone, and dialed Takao's number.
"Hello?" the man answered.
"Takao! Hi, it's Sakura" Sakura said, feigning enthusiasm.
"Sakura! It's great to hear from you, how have you been?" He asked, with extra exuberance.
Must be happy I called. Jeez, how long did I wait?
"I've been well, and yourself?" Sakura asked politely.
"Good now that I've finally heard back from you, honestly I was worried I wouldn't after the other night. Sorry if I spooked you..." Takao said, in a genuinely apologetic tone.
"Oh no! Not at all, I apologize for that. I had a really nice evening with you" Sakura reassured, remembering now, how she had fled from him before a kiss.
"Well, how about I make it up to you anyway, and we go out again? Are you free this Wednesday?" Takao countered smoothly.
Looking over at her calender, Sakura realized she had work that day. Chewing her lip, she analyzed the times. It wouldn't give us long, but...
"Actually, I work Wednesday. But I have something I need to talk to you about, so maybe we can just meet up for coffee, and then do something on the weekend?" Sakura offered, hoping he'd agree.
The sooner I ask him, the sooner I can forget about it, she concluded.
"Sure! I'll swing by the hospital when you're off, and we can go from there" Takao replied warmly.
Yessss, Sakura celebrated internally. "Great! I'm off at 4:00pm. I'll see you then" Sakura stated.
"Of course, goodnight Sakura, see you Wednesday" Takao murmured, as he took note of their arrangement.
"Goodnight" she said, before hanging up the phone quickly.
Sakura stretched from the arm of the seat she had been sitting on, and landed backwards on the couch. Great, everything seems to be working out! I hope everything goes according to plan.
Yawning, she remembered how hungry she was prior to the phone calls, and got up swiftly to make dinner.
Now where was I...
~Monday~
*~SASUKE~*
"Helloooo~ Sasuke-kun~!" An unidentifiable women greeted Sasuke, as he walked into a tux fitting store with Naruto.
Naruto chuckled, as he walked right past them, disappearing deeper into the store. Sasuke appraised the women, and finding nothing that jogged his memory of her, he decided to nod politely and carry on walking.
"Wait! Sasuke~! Don't you remember me?!" The woman's shrill voice, pierced Sasuke's ear drums, causing him immediate irritation towards her. She had grabbed his arm, to prohibit him from walking any further away.
Looking down at his arm, and then staring disapprovingly into the young woman's eyes, she let go in earnest.
"Sorry about that~!" she giggled, as she let go of her inappropriate grip on him. "Do you really not recognize me though...?" She persisted with a whine, pointing to her pouting face.
Sasuke's cold stare, solidified that he had no recognition of her, causing her pout to turn into an expression of shock.
"We went to the academy together!" The girl suddenly blurted out, giving away her true feelings in her tone.
"Ahh" Sasuke simply replied. "That was long ago. I apologize, but I do not remember you", Sasuke stated factually.
The girl blinked a few times, in process, before regaining her composure. "Well, that's alright. It's true too, it has been a while. What do you think about getting reacquainted~?" The girl purred, in sudden contrasting confidence to how she was before.
Sasuke had no intentions of becoming acquainted, reacquainted or otherwise with unnecessary people.
"No"
Sasuke replied so ice cold, the girl winced. He turned on his heel then, and continued into the store, leaving the dumbfounded girl behind.
Pushing through, Sasuke had an odd, sudden realization. Filled with a foreign curiosity, he angled his head slightly, to peer behind him at the women, but not so much that he would alert her of his gaze.
She had sat back against the counter, staring wide eyed and mouth agape at the floor, before slowly closing her mouth, and tightening her hands into fists. She sighed sadly, and muttered "I'm so stupid to think he-", stopping herself mid sentence. After another hearty sigh, she crossed her arms and stared out the window.
Sasuke stopped looking at her then, feeling immediate guilt. This was an unfamiliar feeling to him, as fresh guilt was surprisingly rare. Since Sasuke became aware of his affect on those around him, atoning for his sins and feeling constantly guilty since that day had become usual.
However, this was different. It was fresh. It was new. It was something he had just done, to unintentionally hurt another with his indifference.
It is complicated for him though, as dealing inter-personally with those around him in a healthy manner has always been difficult. That was usually due to his reluctance to put any importance on those around him and acquire the necessary information in which it required to communicate with them effectively.
Realizing that he will only continue to do harm, even unintentionally by not realizing this, Sasuke felt the sudden, and inexplicable urge to turn around and explain himself to the woman.
As he started to walk towards her, he kept thinking, What is it...? What is it about this woman that is making me do this? Surely, it is unnecessary. Nothing particularly beneficial will happen to either of us, from me divulging my motives to her. Why do I feel like I owe her?
That's when it dawned on Sasuke.
Sakura... he thought. A new knot in his stomach twisted and gripped violently, when he recognized the similarities. The way she acted, reminded him a lot of Sakura, even subconsciously. It's not this women I need to be speaking to...
Sasuke had already gotten too close however, and the women was about to turn around to face him.
Once the girl had locked eyes with him, her mouth slowly opened into a broad, excited smile.
Thinking on his feet, Sasuke opened his mouth to speak when,
"Hey man! Come on! We still have to pick the suits, and get measured and all that. What's taking ya' so long Sasuke?" Naruto said, throwing his arm over Sasuke's shoulder, beaming his usual overly animated grin.
Naruto steered Sasuke around then, unintentionally saving him from another strange encounter, leading him upstairs to the fitting area.
Relieved, Sasuke decided to focus on the matter at hand instead.
Naruto had given him an important mission, of selecting the groomsmen's formal attire, and aiding Naruto in his final choice for his own.
"These are the ones Hinata had brought up for us to choose from, I didn't want too spend to long here, and I don't think it's such a big deal. So lets just pick through this rack I guess..." Naruto said, with a perplexed tone.
Sasuke stopped him, and Naruto looked at him questioningly.
Sasuke breathed, and then stared intensely at the selection from the rack. This is my mission. I will give it the best of my abilities.
Feeling Sasuke's intensity, Naruto gawked at the dark stare Sasuke was burning into the clothes, Naruto backed up meekly. *Gulp*
"Uhhh... Sasuke..." Naruto began, completely bewildered.
"Shhh" Sasuke ordered, with a powerful commanding voice, that ceased all interruptions.
The tailoring lady had just entered the room, and immediately felt the foreboding aura that was quickly filling it. Naruto shot her a grave look, and as she looked at him, and then to Sasuke, she slowly crept backwards, wide eyed, out of room.
Fast as lightening, Sasuke pulled the tuxes off the rack, and inspected each head to toe, with blinding speed.
Naruto watched, not daring to speak a word.
"It is done" Sasuke said finally, in a dark voice, thrusting two tuxedo's in Naruto's face.
Gulping again, Naruto stepped back into the room, and hesitantly took the tux's from his bizarre buddies clutches.
Looking back once at Sasuke, who's expression went from grave and cloudy, to unexpectedly anticipatory, Naruto assessed the clothes.
Sasuke anxiously counted the painstakingly long seconds it took for Naruto to give the final verdict...
"Hey! These are pretty great Sasuke!" Naruto slapped Sasuke on the back then, in approval. "You saved us a lot of time too. I'm so stoked to wear a bow tie, I'll look like one of those suave movie guys!" Naruto enthusiastically exclaimed, as Sasuke let out a sigh of relief.
Naruto went right back to how he was before, giddy in his imagination, now thinking about some ridiculous movie scene.
Sasuke and Naruto headed down the stairs, after getting their tuxedo's tailored to them, and got the rest of them on hold.
"Great! Well, just make sure the other groomsmen come in before Friday for their fitting. Congratulations on your wedding by the way!" A different girl, who manned the cashier said cheerfully as she accepted Naruto's payment.
Sasuke and Naruto exited the store then. Sasuke feeling much better now that the ordeal was over, and Naruto was chatting away, when they spied two familiar females walking by.
"Hey Hinata! Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled, running up to the girls cheerfully, picking up his fiances hand. "How's the dress shopping going? We got our tuxes! They look awesome!"
Sasuke followed quickly after Naruto, and he couldn't help himself but stare at Sakura as he approached.
It had been too long.
"Hi Sasuke-san, thanks for helping Naruto out with the shopping!" Hinata said, happily smiling, and bowing to Sasuke.
He could barely bring himself to notice, as at that moment, a pair of luminous green eyes looked up to meet his steadfast gaze, staring deeply back at him.
Sakura...
**~ANY/ALL REVIEWS APPRECIATED :)~**