Roommates
by Diana-san

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

02. Cuddle Buddy

Sasuke got up in the middle of the night as he sighed from the thoughts raging through his mind. His exam date for the police academy was coming up and he couldn't help but feel nervous as the days drew closer. It wasn't like him to get nervous for things like this. He was always at the top of his class and excelled at everything he tried at. But knowing that his father would be watching him was enough to send his stomach into an overdrive. He hated to disappoint his father if he should do him less proud or worse, fail.

His throat felt dry. He needed water. As he got out of his bed to leave his room and into the kitchen, he noticed a lump on his perfectly white couch. It was Sakura. She was sleeping in the fetal position with her mouth slightly opened and her hands clenched into balls of fists. He wondered if she was fighting someone in her dream or something.

He walked into the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water and drank it all in one gulp. Placing the glass in the sink, he left the kitchen to go back to his room. As he passed by the couch, he wondered if he should carry her back into her bedroom. He glanced over at his bedroom which was adjacent to hers.

'She must have come home late from the hospital again and just passed out on the couch. Even though her room is only twenty steps away from the couch,' he thought silently.

He sighed as he grabbed a woven blanket from the couch and pulled it over the sleeping girl. He had enough of his own worries. Plus, he didn't want to be caught in any potential situation where Sakura might infer that he was attacking her in the middle of the night.

It had been a week since the two of them had become roommates ever since his last roommate, Shino, stormed off from anger at Sasuke for killing Shino's beloved spider. He had no choice but to resort to asking Naruto for help in finding a replacement roommate and ended up meeting Naruto's friend, Sakura.

True to Naruto's words, Sakura had been the perfect roommate. Clean and tidy and didn't have any weird fetishes like Shino did with bugs. She was always cheerful and their conversations were pleasant rather than annoying. He was wrong about living with a female roommate. She was a lot better than his past male roommates. The fact that she can cook a killer dinner helped a lot too.

Sasuke returned to his bedroom as he collapsed on top of his bed.

The next morning, he woke up to the smell of eggs and bacon coming from the kitchen. He yawned as he turned off his alarm clock which hadn't even begun to ring since he woke up a good half hour earlier than the set time. He got up as he walked out to the living room to see Sakura placing down two plates of food down on the kitchen table.

"You're up," she said cheerfully as she turned off the stove.

"How are you always able to get up so early without an alarm clock?" Sasuke questioned.

"Habit," Sakura responded as she gestured to him to sit down and join her for breakfast.

Sasuke walked out of the bathroom as he wiped his mouth with a small hand towel before going into the kitchen and sitting down in a seat across from Sakura.

Sakura handed him a fork and he took it graciously as they ate in silence for the first few minutes.

"How's studying for the exam?" Sakura asked in between bites as she glanced down at the newspaper that was sitting beside her plate.

"Alright. Half of it is book-based and I can study for it. The other half is going to be announced during the exam."

"Seems tough. Hope it doesn't catch you off-guard."

Sasuke nodded as he swallowed down a piece of egg. He took a sip of his orange juice and glanced at Sakura. "How are you doing lately? You seem to be working longer hours this past weekend."

Sakura nodded as she sighed. "Yeah, the hospital has been really busy lately so I'm taking longer shifts to accommodate for the influx of patients."

Sasuke could only nod in sympathy. He didn't know what else to say.

"Hey, there's a festival happening next weekend. It's after your exam and I also have a two day break then. We should go!" Sakura said excitedly as she pointed to a section of the newspaper.

Sasuke frowned. Festivals weren't his thing. Actually, social events with other people weren't his thing. But what could he say to get out of it?

"No excuses Sasuke! I can see the wheels turning in your head. You're trying to think of a way to get out of it!" Sakura accused as she pointed an accusatory finger at him.

'How does she know these things?' he wondered.

"Fine," he said with a sigh. He figured it was the least he could do for her since she always cooked for him. Then again, she is living with him rent free for the rest of the month until next month rolls by.

Sakura smiled as she folded up the newspaper and cleared her plates. "I'm off to the hospital now but I'll see you later for dinner! I'm thinking curry!"

Sasuke nodded as he wiped his mouth clean. "Don't forget the tomatoes," he murmured.

When Sasuke came home, he could smell the waft of curry in the air as he entered the apartment. Sakura glanced out from the kitchen with a smile as she waved her ladle at him.

"Welcome home!" she greeted him.

"Ah," he responded. "It's good to be-" he froze mid-sentence. The scenario seemed eerily familiar to him. It was almost like when his mother would greet his father each time his father returned home for dinner. Sasuke cleared his throat as he walked to his bedroom to put away his things. It was silly of him to think of his parents. It wasn't like he and Sakura were anything but roommates. Roommates that had dinner together each night and go to festivals together.

He walked back out into the living room as he watched Sakura cooking up a storm in the kitchen. Her hair was tied back into a small bun and she was humming as she stirred into the pot of curry she was concocting.

It felt weird to him for him to be watching her cook in his kitchen. They had only been roommates for a week and yet she was all too comfortable being in the apartment as she searched through the cabinets and pulled out matching bowls and spoons. They were matching. Like a set. A married couple set. Only couples would have matching items. Sasuke groaned as he sank into the white couch. What was wrong with him? He shouldn't be thinking this way at all.

"Sasuke?" Sakura called out from the kitchen.

Sasuke bolted upright from the couch. "What?!" he exclaimed.

"Dinner's ready."

"Oh," Sasuke uttered in embarrassment.

They ate quietly in the same manner as earlier before for during breakfast. Only this time, instead of a newspaper, Sakura was reading up what appeared to be hospital documents.

Sasuke peered up at Sakura from his bowl of curry. She was reading intently and pursing her lips every few minutes as her face scrunched up in deep concentration. He gulped down a spoonful of curry and rice as he noticed how pretty her face despite her long days at the hospital. Even with a messy bun and a wisp of hair falling slightly over her left eye, she shined with a radiance that only men could see from a long distance. Sasuke felt uncomfortable sitting across from Sakura. He wondered if the lack of sleep he had been getting each night was getting to him. He swallowed quickly before realizing he was choking on a piece of carrot.

He made an undistinguishable noise as he clung a hand to his throat and gargled for water. Sakura glanced up in shock as she jumped up from her seat and rushed over to Sasuke's side. Quickly, she pulled Sasuke off the seat as she performed the Heimlich maneuver on him. Sasuke coughed as a piece of carrot shot out from his mouth and rolled onto the floor.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked in worry as she lowered Sasuke down to the floor and he took a big breath of air. Sakura quickly reached out for a glass of water from the table and handed it to him. He took it hungrily as he gulped down half the glass before returning it to her.

"Yeah, choked on the carrot," he grunted.

"Sasuke, you're training to be a police cadet. You can't be choking on carrots like this," Sakura scolded.

He hung his head low. "Sorry," he muttered.

After that embarrassing event, Sasuke cleared the dishes as Sakura got ready for her night shifts at the hospital.

"Don't do anything dangerous to yourself or the apartment," Sakura joked as she waved goodbye.

As Sasuke got ready for bed, he placed one arm underneath his head as he stared up at the ceiling. Whatever happened earlier at dinner was just a weird mishap. He wasn't in his right mind and so he choked on the carrot. That was all. He turned to his side as he closed his eyes. If he slept on it, he can forget about it in the morning.

Only he couldn't forget it. Because somehow in the middle of the night, something crawled into bed next to him.

His back froze as he realized that a body was breathing heavily next to him. He turned to see Sakura sleeping peacefully in the fetal position. Her breathing returned to a normal slow pace as he took off the covers that was covering her mouth.

'What the hell,' he thought as he watched her sleep. He knew his bedroom was adjacent to hers but she couldn't have possible walked into the wrong room in the middle of the night, could she? He had to carry her back into her bed. It would be super awkward in the morning if he didn't.

But as he continued to watch her sleep, he couldn't make a move to disturb her quiet nature. She had a smile on her face and her hands reached out to grab him by the arm. Slowly, he allowed her to come closer to him as she began to snuggle against his chest while all the while continuing to sleep like an angel.

This was wrong. This was very, very wrong.

But in that moment, it felt right.

He woke up the next morning and realized that he never completed the task of carrying Sakura back into her bedroom. He awoke to her shifting position in bed as she murmured softly in her sleep.

"Ah, crap!" he said a little too loudly as he got out of bed and stared at the lump in his bed. He had to bring her back now before she wakes up.

Quickly, he scooped her body up bridal style as he gently ran out of his room and into her room. It was easy since his door was left opened by her from last night but her own bedroom door was closed shut and Sasuke struggled as he tried to turn the doorknob in a way that wouldn't wake up the sleeping girl in his arms.

The door opened and he saw how bare it was except for a suitcase packed away in the corner and the few pieces of furniture that had been there since the start. Sakura didn't have much belongings with her when she moved and she never seemed to have bothered unpacking quite yet. He lowered her gently onto her bed and she stirred a little in her sleep. Quickly, Sasuke draped her sheets over her before exiting the room as quietly as possible. Mission accomplished. No one will ever have to know about what happened last night except for him.

Meanwhile, back in Sakura's bedroom, Sakura opened one eye in a hazy yawn as she sat up in bed. For some reason, she had a weird dream that she was cuddling in her roommate's arms. Her cheeks turned a rosy pink as she slapped her cheeks awake. "Don't think so dirty!" she scolded herself.

They ate breakfast together but each looking down at their own plate as they both couldn't look each other in the eyes. It was a quiet breakfast as they both ate speedily without a word.

The days passed by as they both returned to their normal routine with Sakura working at the hospital and Sasuke studying for his upcoming exam. He returned home one night with a smile on his face as he brought the good news to the dinner table.

"I passed," he stated as he sliced up a piece of his chicken.

"I'm so happy for you!" Sakura smiled as she raised her glass of water. "I knew you could do it!" She down the glass as she got up to go towards the cabinet where she pulled out two champagne flutes and a bottle of champagne. "I got this to celebrate!"

"You prepared early," he commented.

"I knew you were going to pass. It was the matter of when you chose to reveal it."

He smiled as he clinked champagne glasses with her as they drank to his accomplishment. "You're off work tomorrow?" he asked.

"Yes, the festival is a few hours from here though. We might have to stay the night," Sakura mentioned as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "It's okay if you don't want to go though. Since it's so out of the way. I thought it was going to be in the city."

"It's fine. We should go," Sasuke said as he bit into a piece of chicken on his fork.

"Really? You don't mind?"

"I passed the exam. I am in the mood to celebrate."

Sakura smiled. "Okay then!"

He wondered if he would regret those words. Staying overnight with her? They were roommates but it seemed a bit different to be staying in the same room together. That is, when one of them isn't unconscious in sleep and the other one is aware of everything.

It wouldn't be weird. They would have separate futons of course. It wasn't going to be weird. He had to make sure it wasn't.

He was wrong. It was weird. Definitely, really, really weird.

She came out from the changing room in a summer yukata and twirled around as she showed off the colors of pink and rose on her yukata for the summer festival. Sasuke folded his arms against the blue yukata he was donning. They had taken the train to the location of the festival and had changed into yukatas at the insistence of Sakura. She had never worn one before and Sasuke was surprised to see how different she looked in it compared to her usual green scrubs.

He blushed slightly as he muttered a compliment of something along the lines of "you look nice" and "let's go."

She walked slowly next to him in her clogs and Sasuke could tell that she wasn't used to it as she stumbled every now and then. He sighed as he offered his arm out. He knew she wasn't going to ask for help but would only take it if it was offered to her first. She took his arm willingly as she clutched tightly to the fabric of his yukata. They walked past the food stalls and stopped along the ones that Sakura pointed out to.

Sakura laughed as she held a stick of dango in her right hand and watched Sasuke get matcha powder all over the side of his cheek as he awkwardly held the mochi in his left hand. She took out a handkerchief from her waist pocket as she gently wiped the powder away from his face. She blushed when she realized how intimate it must have looked to the eyes of spectators around them.

They said nothing as they walked some more to the end of the festival where the edge overlooked the waters of the lake. They stood there silently as they waited for the fireworks show to start.

Sakura let go of his yukata as she placed both hands on the railing in front of her. She smiled in amazement as the fireworks show commenced.

"Amazing!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Ah," he replied. He caught her gazing at him and they glanced at each other. He wasn't sure how long they were staring at each other but he broke eye contact when he heard another round of fireworks go off.

The festival came to an end with the closing of the fireworks for the night. The two of them returned to the inn they were staying at and awkwardly sat in the single room with two futons laid out.

"Goodnight Sasuke," Sakura said as she slid underneath the covers of her futon.

He replied with a good night as he got underneath his own covers. Somehow, along the night, Sakura had completely abandoned her futon and had rolled over to his side as she hoisted a leg up and trapped him underneath her. Sasuke woke up with a start as he rolled her over and lifted up his covers. She was passed out sleeping in the center between the futons and Sasuke sighed as he lifted his covers to shield her from the cold.

She must have sensed the movements because she promptly rolled over back to his side as she snuggled up to him. He closed his eyes as the scenario was just like a repeat of the last time she was found in his bed.

"Sakura," he said gently as he tried to wake her up. It was to no avail as she continued to sleep with a hand clutched on his shirt.

He laid back down as he wondered what to do at this point.

"Sasuke," Sakura said softly as she hugged him.

Sasuke froze in place. He watched as Sakura's eyes slowly opened and looked up at him. She smiled at him and he could tell that she was conscious. Unless this was some form of sleep-talking and she was still unconscious despite her opened eyes. He opened his mouth to say something. Anything really. Maybe a joke to break the awkward silence he was feeling. Nothing came out as they stared at each other underneath the soft reflection of the moonlight shining down on them.

Suddenly, she squeezed him tighter as she apologized loudly, "I'm sorry Sasuke! Can we sleep like this? I haven't been sleeping well these past few nights but one night, I accidentally crawled into your bed and it was the best sleep I had in ages and now I don't know what to do anymore because I can't keep sneaking into your bed at night but I really want to sleep."

She was speaking so fast that the words seemed to blur into each other and there were a few tears coming out of her eyes as she looked up pleadingly at Sasuke. He was at a loss for words. How was a guy supposed to respond to that? She wanted to sleep with him? But only just sleeping.

"I-I…" Sasuke started.

"I know! You think I have a weird fetish or something! I'm sorry! Naruto promised you that I was normal but it turns out that I'm this bizarre girl who likes to sleep with her super, hot roommate and now you are thinking of how to turn me down gently without hurting my feelings or maybe you're just thinking of how to tell me that I can't live in the apartment anymore and I should pack my things up and go!"

Sakura wouldn't stop talking and interrupting his thoughts. He pulled away from her as he pushed her arms off of him so that he held her at an arm's length by her shoulders.

"Sakura," he responded gruffly as he stared directly into her eyes.

"Yeah?" Sakura whimpered a little. She didn't want to move out. Or get kicked out.

"Does your weird fetish work on all boys?"

"What?" The question made no sense to her.

Sasuke sighed. "Would you crawl into Naruto's bed if you couldn't sleep at night?"

She wrinkled her nose. "Ew, no. That's weird!"

"So it's not just any guy? Just me?" Sasuke asked.

"I-I guess. My lack of sleep mostly started after that night I went into your room by accident."

"You were aware that you were in my room?" he questioned.

"N-not at first. But when I woke up back in my bedroom, I thought I was dreaming it all. Until you didn't look at me the next morning. Then I knew that I probably wasn't dreaming."

He looked her squarely in the eye again. "Sakura, do you like me?"

Her face turned a bright pink. Not that he could tell since they were in the dark but he could feel her body stiffen at the question as she cast her eyes away.

"N-no!" she stammered. "I think."

"What would you do if I kissed you right now?"

She turned to look at him in shock. "I'll punch you in the face."

"Really?"

Sakura smiled. "Want to bet on it?"

He smirked as he pulled her closer and leaned his face forward to kiss her on the lips. At first it was gentle, chaste kiss and he meant to pull away quickly in the event that Sakura did decide to punch him in the face. But when he began to pull apart from the kiss, she reached her arms out to pull him back as she kissed him back. His tongue explored her mouth as the kiss deepened and he could feel her press her body up against him. They only began to pull apart from the kiss for a moment's breath of air. His forehead pressed against hers as he listened to her heavy breathing mingled with his own.

"You lost the bet," he whispered softly as he played with a strand of her hair.

She batted her eyes at him. "What is my punishment?"

"You'll have to move out…"

She gasped and for a moment, her eyes looked as if she was going to burst out into tears.

"…into my bedroom," he finished.

Sakura closed her eyes, half-relieved and half wanting to strangle Sasuke for scaring her like that.

"I can't have you always falling asleep on my white couch. You're going to dent it."

She scowled. "Is that any way to talk to your beloved roomie?"

"We're more like bed buddies now."

"Cuddle buddies," she corrected him.

"You're a cuddler?"

She frowned. "You're not?"

"Maybe, if it's with you."

Sakura smiled as she leaned in to kiss him gently on the lips.

"Do you kiss all your cuddle buddies?" he asked with an amused smile.

"Just the ones I like," she responded as she settled comfortably against his arms with a smile on her face.