Special thanks for the favs and/or story alerts: KurenaiBara-chan, MaggieMonsterL, pandaastar., R-Sharky, & xSasuSakux
Chapter Dedication for reviewing last chapter: TorieStar, kumikoX3chan, & xSasuSakux
Disclaimer: Naruto and all its characters used in this story do not belong to me. The song used also belongs to WAKESHIMA KANON.
Enter: The Lolita Handbook
.
(CHAPTER 2)
(OF CAKE)
.
WELCOME!
Of Jumper Skirts, Tea Parties, and Lace
.
.
.
.
[Still Doll]
Hi Miss Alice.
With glass eyes,
what kind of a dream
are you able to have?
Are you entranced by?
Again for me,
my heart tears apart
and flows out
Memories
Pierce into
The mended crevice
[分島花音]
.
.
.
.
"S-Sakura-chan, are you okay?" Hinata asked softly as she tried shaking her friend.
Though many things could have happened at that point, one in particular did.
"Eh? What? Oh I'm sorry Hinata-chan, I'm fine," Sakura answered back, blinking her eyes repetitively.
It was both a surprise to not only her, but to the boy as well.
"Wait a minute," the pinkette whispered, her eyes wide in realization.
" . . . Uchiha-san?" she questioned, tilting her head to the side.
" . . . Who are you?"
There was an awkward silence as Sakura and the dark headed boy continued to stare at each other.
"So . . ." the blonde headed boy said while scratching the back of his head. He suddenly pushed both boys aside and smiled goofily to the girls in front of him. Sakura blinked in confusion as her eye contact was severed, her attention now on the boy in front of her.
"Yo! I'm Uzumaki Naruto, it's nice to meet you girls!" He bowed as a wide grin spread across his face.
"Hey! Watch it you idiot!" the white-haired boy yelled out. He bonked Naruto on the head in anger.
"Itte!" Naruto cried out in pain, rubbing the top of his head with a pout.
"I'm Hozuki Suigetsu. Nice to meet you ladies!" He gave a quick nod and a wink.
"You guys are both idiots," Karin rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed by their presence.
"Yeah? Well you don't have to be so mean about it."
"Yeah! Why are you so grumpy?"
"Me? Mean? Grumpy? Well, at least I'm not making a total fool out of myself."
"Really now? I could say otherwise!"
"Yeah!"
The three continued to bicker with each other as Sakura giggled uncomfortably. Hinata was hiding behind her in fright. The atmosphere was no longer awkward, but they still felt a little bit like outcasts to the group. It was quite amusing to watch, but it soon became troublesome as many people started to look at the group.
"Urusai. People are starting to stare," a deep monotoned voice interrupted the loudness of the shouts.
"Eh? You want to start something Teme?"
"Naruto-baka, I wouldn't say anything if I were you."
"He can say whatever he wants Karin!"
"Yeah well—
"U-u-um, excuse me?" whispered the shy Hinata peaking out from behind Sakura.
"Eh?"
"Eh?"
"Eh?"
" . . ."
"Who said that?" Naruto asked. His face was scrunched up in confusion as he searched right and left. Surprised, Hinata jumped a little in panic and went back behind Sakura.
"Um, sorry if we are disrupting your conversation, but we haven't introduced ourselves yet." Sakura smiled nervously at the group as Hinata continued to hide behind her in embarrassment.
"Please excuse these idiots; they're always causing a commotion," Karin apologized reluctantly.
"Um, it's fine really."
"So what are your names?" Suigetsu questioned.
"I'm Haruno Sakura, and this is Hyuuga Hinata," Sakura smiled as she stepped aside to show Hinata in the back. A huge blush adorned the GothLoli's small face.
"It's very nice to meet you," they both continued on while bowing to the two boys.
"I met them while I was hanging out with Konan. They like the Lolita fashion as well, and I asked them if they wanted to come with me to meet you guys, which I totally regret now," Karin muttered.
"Well, we're happy to have you with us!" Naruto gave them a smile.
"Yeah, it's better than having Karin with us all the time." Suigetsu gave a little smirk.
"Why you little—
"Quick, close your eyes!" Sakura whispered frantically to Hinata.
Sakura quickly covered Hinata's ears with both of her hands as Hinata closed her eyes. She didn't want Hinata to hear such profanities or see such violence, especially since she was so pure. No one should taint the minds of the innocent and Sakura felt the need to protect Hinata's while she still could. Since they both were living the lifestyle, such vulgar language and abusive behavior was absolutely intolerable for a Lolita.
"Well, that takes care of that," Karin smirked happily as she dusted off her dress. Poor Suigetsu was lying on the ground beaten and bruised.
"What was that for?" Suigetsu whined, rubbing the spots where she punched him.
"For being an idiot of course," she replied haughtily.
"Man Karin, you could be so abusive at times," Naruto shivered.
"Well, that just shows not to mess with me," she grinned at the two.
"Does this happen often?" Sakura asked cautiously.
"What? Oh this? You'll get used to it," Karin replied back.
"Just be thankful you don't have to put up with this beas—
Karin gave a quick glare to the still sitting Suigetsu.
"I mean . . . beauty."
"Heh, that's what I thought," she grinned evilly.
"So Sakura-chan, how do you know the teme over here?"
"Why yes, how do you know him?" Karin raised a single eyebrow at the pink ama-loli.
"Well . . . um . . . how do I say this?" Sakura fidgeted in her spot.
"Oi! Sasuke! Do you know this girl?" Suigetsu asked the brooding boy in the back.
He glanced boringly at the girl from the railing he was leaning on, and then back to his friend.
"No. I've never seen a girl with pink hair before," he brushed off, looking back in the direction he was staring at before.
"Well I'm sorry, this is just a wig. I can't quite dye my hair pink yet because of school regulations, but I definitely will in the future," Sakura retorted.
"So, um, what's your real hair color?"
"Well, Uzumaki-san it's black."
"Oh, well that's not a surprise."
"What were you expecting baka? Purple?"
"Hey, no need to be rude Karin!"
"Whatever," she scoffed.
"So anyway Sakura-chan, I hope you don't mind if I call you that, how do you know Sasuke over there? He doesn't seem to recognize you," Suigetsu questioned.
"Well I don't know him in particular. But he goes to the same school as me. I've heard a lot of things about him from the girls in my class. We may be in the same grade, but the only contact we've ever made was I guess, seeing each other in the hallways. He probably doesn't recognize me anyway because I'm in my pink wig and I'm wearing my green contact circle lenses."
"Oh, well that makes sense I guess."
"So you guys go to the same school?"
"Um, yes, we do."
"So you're from Shibuya?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"And you're in the same grade?"
"Yes, Naruto she is! Gosh, were you not listening to her before? You could be so incompetent sometimes," Karin yelled frustratingly.
"It's alright, Karin-san, he just needed some clearing up, ne Uzumaki-san?"
"Yeah! Why can't you be nice like Sakura-chan over here?"
"Oh, so you want me to be nice?" Karin said with a forced grin. With his mouth wide open, Naruto quickly shook his head and hid behind Suigetsu.
"Uh, anyway, I guess this'll give you a chance to get to know Sasuke, ne Sakura-chan?" Sakura nodded in agreement though she wasn't particularly keen on the idea.
"Hey Sasuke? Get over here and introduce yourself properly," Suigetsu yelled over to the boy. The dark headed boy lifted himself from leaning against the railing and walked closer to the group.
"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. It's nice to meet you." He gave a bow to both of the girls and then stared down at them.
"Uh, Hinata, why don't you introduce yourself first?" Sakura pushed the petite GothLoli girl to the front.
" . . . U-u-um hello. My n-name is Hyuuga H-Hinata. It's very n-n-nice to meet y-you." The dark headed girl gave a swift bow then quickly ran back behind Sakura once again.
"Um, hello Uchiha-san. We haven't been introduced properly but, um, my name is Haruno Sakura. I'm from Class 2-D. It's very nice to meet you." Sakura bowed to the boy before her.
"Hn. Haruno."
She was starting to fidget a bit more however. His stares were a bit uncomfortable and it really seemed like he was glaring at her. But she had to be polite and respectful, so she kept her mouth shut.
"Um, please excuse the teme over here. He's always like that," Naruto laughed uncomfortably as he played with the black fur from his cat-shaped messenger bag.
"Uh, yeah, no need to worry," Suigetsu agreed while lightly scratching the side of his face with his pointer finger.
"Well, I don't think he likes you," Karin said in a singsong voice. A smug smile spread across her face.
"No, it's alright I understand. I really don't mind." Sakura smiled back, though it was somewhat forced, as she ignored Karin's comment. On the inside however, she was boiling, enraged that he would be so rude. She was trying to be polite to the boy and this was how he treated her? Sakura really had no clue as to how Sasuke could be so popular in the first place. Sure, he was attractive looking, but someone with a nasty personality like that was certainly not worth the trouble.
"Sakura-chan, he's kind of scary," Hinata whispered from behind her.
"It's okay Hinata-chan. Just don't look or talk to him okay? Everything will be fine." Sakura tried to reassure her GothLoli friend. Although she wasn't sure herself, she didn't want to appear intimidated. So she held her head high up and decided to ignore the dark-headed boy. Sakura shook her head in thought; she would never understand who Uchiha Sasuke was, not that she wanted to in the first place.
"So girls, why don't we go somewhere?"
"Um, where?"
"How about Takeshita-dori? I'm dying to buy some new clothes!" Karin suggested.
"T-that sounds g-g-good," Hinata agreed as she peeked her head out from behind Sakura.
"Takeshita-dori it is then!" Naruto jumped with a fist pumped into the air.
"We should make sure to stay together. Since there is going to be a lot of people we don't want to get separated," Sakura concluded thoughtfully. The group nodded in agreement as they set off to Takeshita-dori, one of the main streets in Harajuku.
They walked away from the Meiji Shrine and closer to where the beginning of the bridge began. Right now they were on Omotesando Street, another famous street in Harajuku. It was a huge road with three lanes that had cars busily driving through daily. It joined Omotesando subway station with Meiji Shrine, which was next to Harajuku station. After passing through Omotesando, which consisted of more brand name stores, like Gucci and Prada, they arrived on the narrow road of Takeshita-dori.
The streets were crowded with people window-shopping, tourists, and those clothed in Japanese street fashion. This street had so many stores offering different Lolita styles and clothing. Sakura and Hinata smiled at each other as they saw all the different stores. Though they always went to Harajuku on Sundays, they didn't really go to Takeshita-dori a lot to go shopping. It was a great opportunity to buy some new stuff for future Lolita meet-ups and such.
"Mitsuketa! I found it, there's Body Line! I must go there!" shouted a chipper Karin. She ran away from the group without any hesitation.
"Chotto matte Karin! Hey, wait for us!" Suigetsu yelled, trying to catch up to the red head.
"Wait you guys! Don't run ahead! We're supposed to stick together," Naruto cried out, waving his arms in the air trying to get their attention.
"Quit it dobe. We'll just meet up with them later," Sasuke said boringly. He looked around the stores not really caring where they were.
"Teme! Didn't you hear me? Now we're separated! What are we going to do?" Naruto whined, feeling lonely that Suigetsu left him for the red headed monster.
"Why don't we get a little snack before we go look for them?" Sakura suggested. She was in the mood for some tea and cake in a nice little café.
"T-t-that sounds like a g-good idea," Hinata agreed, also craving for some tea and sweets.
They went into the closest café they could find. It was a small and cute café that had a very welcoming and warm feeling. The smell of tea and coffee surrounded them. As they entered, a waitress immediately greeted them.
"Irrashaimase!" she greeted cheerfully as she bowed.
"Are you a party of four?" she asked politely.
"Yes, we have four people," Sakura answered back.
"Okay, please follow me to your table." She led them to a table near the windows where they could see the streets. After they all sat down, she put placed a menu on the table for them to look at.
"Thank you for coming, here is the menu. Before you look, would you like to order something to drink?" she asked with a small smile on her face.
"Green tea please."
"D-do you h-h-have black t-tea?"
"Yes ma'am we do."
"I'll h-have that t-t-then."
"Hot latté."
"Oooo, I'll have an ice-cold cappuccino," Naruto grinned.
"So your order is green tea, black tea, hot latté, and an ice-cold cappuccino." She looked at the group making sure the order was right. They all nodded.
"Alright then, I'll be back with your drinks. Please enjoy your stay." She bowed and walked away to the kitchen to request their orders.
After, Hinata, Sakura, and Naruto looked at the menu, looking at what desserts or sweets they would want to order. Sasuke was staring out the window, not interested in ordering anything sweet. He did not have a sweet tooth.
"Uchiha-san, aren't you going to order something?" Sakura asked politely as she gestured to the menu.
"Oh, Teme doesn't like sweets, so don't even bother."
"Is that so?" Sakura said thoughtfully. The waitress came back after a few minutes with their drinks on a black tray. She set them down on the table, putting each drink correctly towards who ordered what. With a smile she took out her notepad and pen.
"Are you done looking at the menu?" she asked.
"Yes," Sakura answered for the group.
"Okay, so what will you be ordering?"
"A slice of chestnut cake, please."
"A s-slice of c-c-cinnamon rum-raisin c-cake, please."
"Banana loaf for me!"
"And you sir?"
"I won't be ordering anything."
"Okay, so your orders are a slice of chestnut cake, a slice of cinnamon rum-raison cake, and a banana loaf." They all nodded.
"I'll be back with your orders then. Thank you." She bowed before she took the menu.
"Um, sorry but please excuse me for a moment." Sakura stood up from her chair. Three pairs of eyes set on her.
"W-where are y-y-you going?" Hinata asked, a hint of fright in her voice.
"Don't worry I'll be back okay? I'm just going to the bathroom." Sakura winked at the GothLoli as she began walking away. She quickly glanced back at Sasuke, and with determination, she continued on.
"So Hinata-chan, are you having fun?" Naruto smiled kindly at the dark-headed girl sitting in front of him.
"Y-yes. A-and you?" Hinata blushed as she answered. She stared down at her hands as she started playing with her fingers. She was so nervous without Sakura around to encourage her. This was her first time talking to a guy she didn't know that well.
"This is actually a lot of fun! Too bad Karin and Suigetsu are missing out on the food," Naruto chuckled.
"M-maybe w-we can bring t-them s-s-some cake," Hinata suggested as she glanced up from twirling her fingers.
"Awww you're so nice Hinata-chan. But its okay, those guys don't deserve it!" Naruto smiled at the petite girl.
"I-is t-t-that so?" Hinata blushed even more, her heart beating erratically after seeing Naruto give her a smile. He was being so kind to her, even when this was their first meeting.
"Uhh are you okay?"
"W-w-what?"
"You're face is really red. Do you have a fever?" Naruto stood a little above the table as he brushed her bangs aside and felt her forehead with the back of his hand. Hinata's blush worsened as it turned from a light pink to a deep red.
"Cut it out Dobe. Can't you see your making her uncomfortable?"
"What was that Teme? Can't you see how red she is? Hinata-chan might be sick."
"N-no really, i-i-its okay."
"Are you sure?"
"Y-yes, I'm f-fine," Hinata nodded. She felt so happy having someone worry about her so much, even when they didn't know her that well.
"T-thank you, N-naruto-kun." She gave a smile small to the blonde headed boy across from her. He beamed back in triumph.
"I'm back." Sakura took her seat next to Hinata.
"So how were things without me?"
"F-fine."
"That's good," Sakura smiled. She was very proud that Hinata was able to handle herself while she was gone. It just showed how much Hinata was maturing from the past. Back then, Hinata would have probably followed her, but this time she was fine by herself.
The waitress came back again with their desserts. She placed them down on the table, bowed, and then left holding the tray to her side.
"What the? I thought you didn't order anything." Naruto looked skeptical as he stared at his dark headed friend.
"I didn't." Sasuke rested his head on his hand as he stared down at the cake placed in front of him.
"I ordered it for you actually."
"Sakura-chan, you didn't have to do that! Besides like I said before, he doesn't like sweets so he won't eat it."
"Oh I know Uzumaki-san. This cake actually isn't that sweet at all. It's bittersweet chocolate cake. Though it may be chocolate, they used dark chocolate, which isn't as sweet as milk chocolate. Please eat it Uchiha-san, I think you might enjoy it."
"Hn."
"I'm sorry Sak—
"Itadakimasu."
Sasuke picked up his fork and scooped off a small piece of the cake. He examined it intently before he placed it into his mouth. The rest of the group stared eagerly, their eyebrows raised in anticipation for his response.
"It's good." The visual kei boy continued eating the cake. Sakura smiled in accomplishment.
"Itadakimasu," the other three said joyfully as they began to partake in the desserts they ordered. After they finished, they walked towards the cash register, located near the entrance of the café.
"Why don't we split the bill?" Sakura suggested.
"Okay, sounds good, less for me to spend." They divided the bill and each handed Sakura their share of it. She counted it all up, making sure it equaled what they owed, and then handed it to the waitress. She counted it up and then put it in the cash register. After, she placed a receipt on a small tray and pushed it towards Sakura. Sakura took the white paper, looking at it to make sure everything was correct.
"Thank you for coming. We hope you come again." The waitress smiled as she bowed to the group. The four bowed back and then headed out the door.
"So should we look for Karin-san and Hozuki-san now?"
"H-how about w-we e-mail K-K-Karin-san?"
"Oh, that's a good idea. It'll be faster." Sakura nodded her head in agreement. She took out her pink flip phone and started punching in letters. After pressing send, she closed her phone, but kept it in her hand waiting for an e-mail back. Her phone then vibrated and she opened her phone back up to read the message.
"Meet us at Body Line. （－－）," Karin replied back.
"Do you guys know where Body Line is?"
"Yep. Karin goes there all the time," Naruto rolled his eyes in boredom.
"Well, I'll lead the way! Make sure you stay close and don't get lost! Come on Hinata-chan, let's go!" Hinata nodded back as she walked next to the blonde. The group continued on their way through the narrow and busy street of Takeshita-dori.
The street was filled with so many stores and people. Sakura kept gazing from left to right, taking note on what stores she would want to visit in the future. Sakura had always heard of the store Body Line, but she never visited it before. It was a store filled with Lolita clothing, though the majority of it catered to Gothic Lolita. It was very popular among the GothLoli's, she wondered if Hinata ever been there before. Lost in her thoughts, she wasn't paying attention to where she was going and accidently bumped into a male cosplayer.
"Sumimasen." Sakura bowed, having on an apologetic smile. He bowed back and continued on his way. Sakura looked forward but didn't see Naruto, Hinata or Sasuke anymore.
"Oh no, it seems like I've lost them," Sakura sighed dejectedly. She's never been to Takeshita-dori by herself. She always had someone with her because she wasn't too familiar with this part of Harajuku. She was beginning to panic; she had never been lost before. The smart thing to do was to contact someone, so she took out her phone quickly from her white heart shaped purse.
"I'll just e-mail Hin—
Someone suddenly bumped into her, causing Sakura to drop her cell phone onto the floor. Before she managed to reach it, a gyaru's sharp heal stepped on her phone, breaking the screen.
"Oh no!" Sakura yelled grabbing the phone quickly and examining it. There was no way the screen would work. She would have to buy a new phone, but at the moment, she was still lost.
"What am I going to do?" She sat there, lonely, afraid and lost. Her phone was broken, she had no way to contact anyone she knew, and she had lost Hinata.
"Just as I thought, you really are an annoying girl." Sakura looked up, mouth wide opened as she stared at the boy in front of her. Since it was so sunny out she couldn't see his face, but he soon stepped in front of her, blocking out the sun's rays.
"U-Uchiha-san?"
"Che. Why are you so surprised?" He continued to stare down at her.
"Well, get up. People are beginning to look." Sakura nodded her head as she picked herself up. She dusted off her dress and grabbed her white bag and parasol from off the ground.
"I'm really sorry for the trouble." She looked down at the ground sadly. Sakura had always hated being a burden or causing anyone any type of trouble. She couldn't help but feel really disappointed in herself because she caused such problems for someone she just met.
"Hn. Let's just go." He grabbed her wrist and started tugging her down the street, avoiding anyone coming in their direction.
"What are you doing?" He stopped and glanced back towards the ama-loli behind him.
"I don't want to have to go looking for you if you get lost again." Sakura stared at him in amazement; she never knew he could be so kind, well, in his own way. From what she had seen at school, he was so rude and cold to most of the people that approached him. Because of this, Sakura never really thought much about him. She didn't want to associate herself with mean people. But today, though it was only something small, she learned some new things about him that changed her opinion. Though she still thought of him as cold, she knew he had a kinder side as well.
"Thank you, Uchiha-san."
"Whatever. Let's just hurry up before that Dobe starts complaining." He continued tugging her along Takeshita-dori. She smiled, a small blush adorning her cheeks as they walked along.
Was this the beginning of a new friendship?
UNTIL NEXT TIME!
Close: Chapter 2 Completed
If you have any questions about what I wrote, or if you don't know or understand something that I've written, please feel free to PM me, or try to research it yourself.
REVIEW PLEASE.
~七転八起