Hell High
Chapter 8: Words to Say

She heard that name before.

She heard Uchiha Fugaku warn her about that man.

She was told to tell her father to stay away from that man.

"U-Uchiha..?"

Itachi nodded and looked at her. "According to our family's history, our name can be considered a curse – whether it's due to being consumed by greed, hatred, or simply corruption, it's always linked to our family name."

"That… That can't be…" she said in a whisper. "Sasuke… and you… and Fugaku-san," she met his gaze. "You're not like that, you're far from it!"

He had to give a small smile for her comment. "It's rare to see people like you," He said. "Especially since you come from an upper class family…"

"What… do you mean?"

"Uchiha is an upper class as well, but after what Madara has done, well," he snorted. "I wasn't surprised when some of our relatives began to change their family name."

"But… why can't you all stand up to him?"

"Madara is dangerous," he admitted. "The moment he targets someone, he'd most likely succeed, and if you get in his way, he won't hesitate to kill you – unless you have use for him."

"Does everyone think of the Uchiha name as a curse?"

"Not all," he smirked. "You're not everyone, and your father isn't, I hope."

"No."

"Good to hear," he glanced at the horses. "The Tsukiyoshi family does not think of us as such, even if that… Prince of yours is such a pain."

"Yeah," she murmured. "Then… what did Madara do?"

"He set my father up," he said. "Madara accused him of drug dealing, and framed him while doing so. Had it not been for a lawyer friend of the family, my father would have ended up in jail."

"If your father was proven innocent, then… why did it come to this?"

"That guy has connections, and my father's innocence is the only thing that was proven, but there are really drugs involved."

Sakura took note of Itachi's clenched fists.

"Do you know… the reason behind my mother's… leave?"

"No…" she answered.

"I do," he said. "And she made me promise not to tell my father, and especially my brother."

"Why?"

"She has her reasons." He answered. "But I've been itching to tell someone, so… can you keep it a secret as well?"

She nodded.

He sighed in relief. "Madara saw her as a threat, because she knew everything, she knew the truth, she knew what the bastard planned, and he used us against her."

"How so?"

"My mother knew of Madara's connections, and she knew that he was aware of where I studied back then, of where Sasuke plans to study high school, of where my father used to work, and he swore he would have us all killed." He narrowed his dark orbs. "He told her to leave us, or else he'd order the hitmen he hired to kill us."

"So she left without a word…"

"Yes, she left without even leaving behind a number for me to contact her. Right now, even I don't know where she is." He sighed. "And for that, Madara took advantage of our depression."

"Alcohol for your father, drugs for you, and smoking for Sasuke."

"Yes and no." he said. "I admit, Madara pushed me into doing drugs, and when the depression wore off, I didn't want to stop, and my father, well, he just believed that alcohol would get rid of his sorrow."

"And Sasuke…" she looked down. "He thought his mother would come back if he smoked - something she didn't want any of you to do."

"Yes," he said. "And Madara had planned on showing just how incapable my father is in taking care of us, but like I said, thanks to a lawyer friend, and my mother, we were left alone." He glared at the horizon. "Until Sasuke started high school, that is."

"Ami's brother."

"Aa."

"Wait, I thought your mother left when Sasuke was about to start high school?"

"Try rewinding a bit earlier," he said. "She left a few days before he started."

"Oh. So, what happened regarding Ami's brother?"

"It was around night time, and Sasuke has this habit of walking around at night to clear his head, and possibly smoke too." He smirked lightly at that. "He came across Watanabe Aiko, but the guy was soon stabbed on the back, and the culprit had run off."

"Then… how…"

"Sasuke would have chased the guy, but he chose to stay with Aiko to try and save him." He explained. "He knows a bit of first aid, but the stab was near the kid's heart, and he wouldn't make it in time even if my brother tried to bring him to the hospital."

"So, what happened then?"

"Watanabe Aiko was supposed to meet his sister, Watanabe Ami, at that time, and she arrived just when her brother died, and she misunderstood Sasuke's glare."

"Glare?"

"Sasuke was emotionally unstable back then, and he couldn't really react properly in different situations." He said. "At that time, he was frustrated because he knew Madara was behind this, don't ask how, it's just Uchiha instincts."

He inhaled for a bit before proceeding.

"Watanabe Ami arrived to see him frustrated, but to her, it looked like Sasuke killed her brother."

He glanced to the side when he heard neighing horses.

"Long story short, family friend lawyer managed to defend Sasuke, yet there's really no witness available to verify both sides, so the case has been put on-hold, and Sarutobi-san had no choice but to have Sasuke transferred, and Sasuke… well, he could really care less, and to be honest? He likes it better in Oto." He soon stopped and pushed himself off of the wall. "Yo, cleared your head yet?"

"Just a bit."

Sakura turned to Sasuke and gave a small smile. He just nodded once to her and looked back at Itachi.

"Tell dad I won't be home for dinner."

Itachi smirked at his brother and glanced at Sakura. "Don't forget to use protection."

Sakura blinked when Sasuke suddenly kicked Itachi's leg, the older sibling managing to dodge and laugh.

It felt so much like a fairytale – her sitting behind him and having her arms around his waist while her cheek was pressed on his back.

The clear night sky just made things seem perfect – with how the stars were twinkling, and how the moon chose this night of all nights to be full.

"Have you ever watched Lady and the Tramp?" she asked out of the blue when she felt him pull onto Blackout's reigns.

"Yeah, why?" he got off of the horse and looked at her.

She smiled. "Bella Notte." (Beautiful Night)

He smirked and shook his head, before placing both of his hands on her waist while she had hers on his shoulders.

She got off of Blackout with his assistance, and she instantly wrapped her arms around him, afraid that she might fall.

"What's wrong?" he asked with his arms around her waist. "Don't you trust me?"

She blushed. "It's not that…" she buried her nose and mouth onto his hair. "I just… reacted."

"Hn."

"You can put me down now…" she said in a soft voice while Blackout decided to feed on some green grass.

"What if I don't want to?" he asked in the same tone, eyes half-closing. "What if I just… want to hold you like this?"

His words were not helping in calming her fast beating heart.

"Can I?"

"Yeah, but…" she smiled lightly. "I'm kind of hungry, you know?"

He smirked. "Way to ruin the moment." He lowered her to the ground, but they still held onto each other.

"Why?" she grinned. "Were you planning something?"

He quirked a brow. "What do you think?"

She laughed and pulled away from him to pet Blackout. "I don't know, you're just full of surprises." She turned to him. "First, you keep saving me when I was new in Oto, next, you babysat Akai with me, and then you bought me Shi-shi, and you happen to be working for the Tsukiyoshi family, and then you appear at the dance Konoha had while riding Blackout, and a while ago, you asked me to accompany you here and have dinner with you afterwards."

"Yeah, so?"

"So…" she turned back to Blackout. "I don't know what you're thinking, I mean, it didn't cross my mind that you meant dinner underneath the stars in a nearby meadow."

"I figured it's the only way we can come to an agreement."

She remembered the last time they ate out, when she refused to eat at a burger joint, and he didn't want to enter the French restaurant she picked.

"You seem to like stargazing, and I happen to enjoy the outdoors." He explained.

"You sure planned everything." She crossed her arms. "So what are we eating?"

He looked pass her and the pure black stallion, so she followed his gaze.

"How's Italian sound?"

Her eyes widened at the sight of a blanket with a couple of plates on it, silver eating utensils, pasta, bread sticks, and…

"Where the heck did you get wine?"

He smirked. "I'm a Knight who studied magic."

"Very funny!" she slapped his arm playfully. "But seriously, how?"

"When I picked you up, you took a very long time getting ready, so I managed to ask your father for a little advice."

She tilted her head.

"I have zero experience when it comes to dinner."

"Okay…"

"Hn. He said you like Italian, followed by French, and I only know how to prepare a few Japanese meals, so he offered to help me out."

"I couldn't have taken that long to get ready…"

"You didn't, so your father called Aria-san, and she was more than happy to help."

"Is that why we went to Akira's?"

"Yeah, it was my day off, but you didn't need to know that."

"And the whole time you were silent and so… so… ugh!" she grabbed his shirt's collar. "Is that why you're in a dress shirt and coat?"

He smirked.

"And you didn't even warn me! I could have worn something close to formal!" she looked down at her black knee-length skirt, black combat boots and socks which ended a few inches below her knees, pink spaghetti-strapped shirt, and blue hooded jacket.

"Hey, I'm not exactly in formal attire."

"You're wearing a white dress shirt and a black coat!" she seethed. "And black leather shoes!"

"I'm in jeans."

"Dark blue jeans!" she sighed. "The only thing missing is a neck tie."

"Hn." He grabbed her wrists and pulled them down. "Aren't you hungry?"

"Not until you tell me everything!"

"Okay…" he smirked. "I took you to the stables and pretended to get the other horses for some running exercise. You wanted to stay there, so I got lucky, and then left Blackout to deal with the herd while I went to meet Aria-san about the Italian dishes."

"Go on…"

"When we were done, I had a few extra help from their maids and their butler, and we set everything up right here."

"Good thing it wasn't stolen."

"Some of them stayed to watch over it while I went back to get you. Their butler acted as a lookout, and managed to do a pretty good job in escaping discreetly." His smirk widened. "And since you were enjoying the ride, you failed to see what was up ahead, so I grabbed the opportunity to position Blackout wherein you won't be able to see it."

"You… are unbelievable."

"Hn."

She smiled. "But it's really romantic and sweet."

"Yeah well, it wasn't easy." He said.

She raised a brow. "If it was so hard, why go through all of it?"

He didn't answer.

"There you go again!" she huffed. "Last time I asked you about the Watanabe case, you ignored me! And here you are again, ignoring me!"

He still refused speak, and she didn't notice how his fists clenched when she mentioned about his past.

"Why is it that you always, always have to be like that anyway? Why can't you just tell me straight what it is that you're thinking?"

He looked to the side.

"You're doing it again! You're not listening to what I'm-"

"I always listen!" he cut her off and looked at her with narrowed eyes. "Even if you're rambling I still listen to every single word you say!" he lowered his head slightly to hide his eyes with his bangs. "Don't you get it, Sakura? I hate stuffed animals yet I walked in a store full of it for you! Just to say I'm sorry! I end up doing things I normally hate so much just for you, and do you even know why?" he raised his head, the glare still present on his face while his fists remained clenched on his sides. "It's because I love you."

He had yelled, he knew, but he couldn't help it – everything just piled up, and she sort of provoked him. He didn't want to say it yet, because he was still worried about the whole Madara thing, especially now that Sakura knew something about his past, and since he went to Konoha even if he knew the risk of Ami revealing his secret.

Still, he called his friends in Oto to participate in his plan, and Naruto and the rest were more than happy to help. They delayed for a while until his arrival, and he had ignored the warning signs, ignored the sight of Watanabe Ami because he knew she'd recognize him.

And yet… for her – for Sakura, for his Princess…

"I love you." He repeated. "There, I said it." He turned away and ran a hand through his hair. "Now you can…well, whatever it is you're-" he didn't get a chance to finish when she suddenly threw herself on him and placed her lips on his.

When she pulled away, she smiled at his surprised expression. "Don't act as if you don't know that I love you too."

"Yeah well," he looked to the side, his cheeks turning red. "Hn."

He was cute in his own way, and she loved that. "Come on," she grabbed his hand. "I'm starving."

"I hope so," he said as she led him to the blanket. "Because I'm not really a good cook…"

She could care less, even as they sat down next to each other, even when they fed each other, even when they ended up running around because she had teased him, she still thought he was perfect.

"Hey," she called after laughing for sometime. "This night isn't over just yet."

"What makes you say that?" he asked, feeling her right hand touch his face as he hovered over her on the grass.

She smiled. "It doesn't feel like it's over."

"Hn," he leaned closer and stopped next to her ear. "You're right."

She noticed him pull something out of his pocket, and she blinked when she saw his phone.

"It's far from over." She heard music playing from his mobile when he pressed a button on the side.

He stood up while bringing her with him, and he pocketed the device in his coat, so that they can still hear the song.

"Can I have this dance," he whispered against her ear while holding her close. "…your highness?"

She looked into his eyes as the lyrics of Jesse McCartney's "Because You Live" reached her ears.

He gave a small smile, a sight she missed seeing.

"Yeah," she said in a soft and shy voice while lowering her head, her lips adorning a smile. "You can."

When they got to the part of the second stanza, she asked him why he picked that song, and he smiled as he didn't answer for a while until the music was about to end.

"I'm so glad I found an angel," he whispered. "…someone who was there when all my hopes fell."

And she remembered his past.

"Because you made me believe in myself." he continued to repeat some of the lyrics. "Because you live there's a reason why I carry on," he cut it off at the part. "I want to give what you've given me, always."

She closed her eyes and remained quiet as he continued to speak, his phone playing the next music which was also sung by Jesse McCartney.

"Are you a… fan of Jesse McCartney?"

He just smirked. "His songs kind of voice out everything I feel for you, so I risked it."

"Risked..?"

"If Naruto and the others found out I have his songs in my phone, I'll be so dead."

She giggled.

"And… I'm not very good with words, so…" he stopped when she placed a finger on his lips, and then lowered it so that she could give him a light kiss.

"Do me a favor and sing the chorus part, will you?" she grinned.

"Don't push your luck."

I don't want my love to go to waste
I want you and your beautiful soul

A sea of never ending laughter, though he still can't understand how they found out, or at least, how they got his phone…

"Give it." He said, his princess, now girlfriend, remaining next to him while holding back a giggle. "Now."

"But whyyy?" his supposedly best friend said with a huge grin. "There's nothing wrong with being a fan of Jesse McCartney, Sasu-chan."

It's bad enough that his own friends knew, but for the rest of the soccer team to find out too? Hell, someone was going to pay.

"Hand it over, now."

"Nu-uh." Naruto stuck his tongue out at Sasuke and increased the volume of his mobile. "It's only a few minutes 'til coach dismisses us, so let's enjoy some music on your playlist first."

"Give it."

"No way! It was hard to swipe this from your bag!" he grinned. "Good thing you were busy kissing Sakura."

"Fuck it." Sasuke muttered, and then dropped his sports bag.

"T-Teme..?" Naruto began to sweat as Sasuke walked over to him and cracked his knuckles. "I was only kidding!"

And he cried out when Sasuke… well, let's just say it wasn't pretty.

Naruto then decided that he hated Saturday soccer practices.

He turned to her with narrowed eyes as she continued to giggle.

"It's not funny."

"Oh come on! It is!"

"Hn."

"Aren't you satisfied yet?" she grinned. "I mean… Naruto's face is all swelled up…"

"Hn." He blinked when he felt her lips touch his cheek.

"Smile for me?"

He just sighed and looked away. "I hate you."

"Love you too." She never thought that she'd be in love with a temperamental guy who could be pacified just from a kiss. "By the way, my father told me to invite you for dinner tonight."

He raised a brow.

"You promised last time, remember?"

He tried to recall when that was.

"When we got stuck in the freezer?"

"Right." He nodded. "I guess I'll just tell my brother."

"Why won't you tell your father?"

"He'll just go on about a long sermon about getting a girl pregnant, etc."

"I can feel the trust."

"Hn." He checked his mobile for the time. "It's still a bit early; you want to go somewhere first?"

"Not really," she shrugged. "You decide."

He didn't answer for a moment as she hummed a random tune, and then he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the left.

"Eh? Sasuke, where are we going..?"

He smirked. "You'll see."

She didn't expect him to take her to a pet store.

"Uh…" she didn't get a chance to say anything since he pulled her inside, the store's bell ringing to signal that a customer has arrived.

"Welcome, wel- oh, it's you." His eyes looked to the girl beside the young Uchiha, and he grinned. "So I finally get to meet your girlfriend, eh?"

Sakura blinked a couple of times before looking at Sasuke.

"My brother's best friend, Kisame." He introduced.

"Pleasure to meet 'ya." The man said and offered a hand to Sakura, who took it. "Sakura, right? You don't mind if I call you that, right?"

She nodded to both questions.

"Great!" he looked towards Sasuke. "So, what brings you two here?"

"Kill time," he said simply, and led Sakura to another area of the store. "We'll just have a look around."

"Yeah, sure, go ahead!"

Sakura looked at her boyfriend as he led her to where the baby animals were.

"Awww… they're so cute!" she said upon seeing the puppies standing on their hind legs, begging to be petted. "Can we go in?"

He placed his bag down on the floor and entered the playpen, afterwards, offered her a hand which she took, and he assisted her in.

"They're adorable!" she knelt down on the floor and picked up one puppy, while some gathered around her and pawed at her legs, wanting to be petted and carried too. "I wish I had more than two hands for these little guys!"

He knelt down on one knee next to her and petted some of them.

She giggled at the small tails which wagged non-stop, making their rear shake from left to right.

"Pick one."

"Hm?" she looked at her boyfriend.

"I already asked your father for permission," he said. "He gave me the go signal." He gave a smirk. "He says it might teach you more about responsibility."

She scoffed. "You two are out to get me! I just know it!"

"Hn." He leaned to her and lightly kissed her cheek. "Just pick one."

"Oh fine, but it won't be easy." She admitted while looking at the puppies. "By the way, whatever happened to Raiha and that stray kitten?"

"Raiha's at home, and the stray stops by from time to time."

"Aw you didn't adopt it?"

"I did, for one day, because it scratched most of our furniture," he paused. "And some of my father's laundry."

"Oh…" she forced back a laugh and eyed the litter of puppies. "I can't pick Sasuke, they're just too cute!"

"You have… cute issues." He muttered, and then eyed each one of the pups.

"I noticed," she said. "That they're of different breeds, why?"

"I don't know with Kisame, but he separates them when play time is over, or at least, when it's closing time." His eyes moved from the noisy Japanese Spitz, to the jumpy Terrier, until it landed on a snoozing Chowchow. He smirked and moved forward a bit to scratch its left ear, seeing it twitch before the pup slowly lifted its head to him.

"Oh my gosh! It's so cute!"

Sasuke used his index finger to catch the pup's attention, and he moved it from right to left at a fast pace, satisfied that the Chowchow's eyes were locked onto his finger, and it tried to catch it with its small paws.

Sakura ended up giggling.

He slowly pulled his hand back while coaxing the baby dog towards them, and when it was within reach, he picked it up and showed it to her. "Pure breed, white fur, and a quiet little guy, what do you say?"

She smiled. "It's a girl though."

He checked. "Hn, what do you know, looks like you'll both get along."

She laughed. "It takes after you though, so silent, and yet quite playful."

He raised a brow. "How am I playful?"

"When you're playing soccer, or when you're riding Blackout."

"She's playful, I'm just active."

"Whatever…" she grinned and took the chowchow in her arms, and instantly, it yawned and closed its eyes. "Just like a baby…" she whispered.

"The last one to be sold too," Kisame commented upon entering, and Sasuke spotted his older brother and a few friends. "What'd I tell 'ya guys? Little Sasuke here has a nice girl eh?"

"No doubt, yeah."

Sasuke sighed. "Deidara," he nodded once to the blonde, and then turned to the quiet red head. "Sasori."

Sakura looked up from the chowchow in her arms. "H-Hi." She greeted.

"If Sasuke bullies you, just tell us, okay?" Sasori said with a small grin before turning to Sasuke. "And you… well, don't blow it kid."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." He said, before getting up with Sakura doing the same. "Anyway, Kisame, I'll pay for it when I return tomorrow." he looked back down at some of the whining puppies, and he bent down to pet them. "Oh geez, you're giving me a hard time of leaving again."

Sakura looked at Itachi with a questioning gaze.

"If Sasuke isn't working, at home, or practicing soccer, he can be spotted in here." He leaned closer to Sakura and toned down his voice. "Somehow, he's grown fond of animals all of a sudden."

Her eyes looked over at her boyfriend, seeing the rare grin on his face as some of the pups tugged onto his shoe string, and one refused to let go of his finger.

"And at the same time, those pups have gotten used to having him around."

Sakura just smiled at that new found information.

"I never thought of you as an animal lover." She giggled.

"I didn't think I'd actually take a liking to them either." He admitted. "I mean, horses are a different matter, since I basically grew up caring for them and learning how to ride them."

"And..?"

"Well, dogs…" he shrugged. "I always wanted one back then as a kid, but I never really got one since my father is allergic to them."

"What about cats?"

He raised a brow at her, and she remembered him telling her about the stray kitten.

"And yet birds are fine?"

"Well, Raiha was a gift, so my father just let it slide."

"From who?"

"A co-worker of my dad."

"And your dad is a..?"

"College professor," he answered. "Anyway, I don't really remember when I started liking animals."

She grinned. "You're lying."

He blushed.

"Come on, just tell me you started liking them when you found out I like them."

"Hn…"

"Well?"

"Yeah," he muttered. "But afterwards, I just… started to like the feeling of being around them."

"I told you it was fun!"

"Hn." He glanced at the snoozing chowchow in her arms. "Got a name for it yet?"

"I'm still thinking," she said. "Kisame said to take my time, right?"

"Aa." He looked back up ahead. "But while its still young, you ought to give it a name."

"Can I call it Sasuke?"

He glared.

"I was just kidding!"

"Hn."

She pouted and then looked at the puppy which moved a bit in her arms. "Your daddy's quite a grouch."

He flushed lightly and raised a brow at her. "What?"

"Well, she needs a daddy." She smiled. "She can't just have a mommy, right?"

"…Seriously, you're weird."

"You're weirder for liking me."

"Who says I like you?" he smirked.

She glared.

"I don't like you." He walked ahead with Sakura yelling a few profanities at him.

"Sasuke…"

He hated that tone, but he still looked at her.

"Seriously, you… hate me?"

"What made you say that?"

"You said you don't like me…"

He snorted, trying to hold back a laugh. "Like and love differ," he smirked at her expression. "So if I say I don't like you, it's my way of saying I love you."

To hear him say those words again made her heart beat so fast, like he was saying those words for the first time.

The moment was, once again, ruined by her when she suddenly grinned.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

He twitched.

"What did you say again?"

"Hn."

"Aww… say you love me Sa-su-keeee!"

"…"

"Please, please, please say you love me?"

"You love me."

She twitched.

He smirked.

"I'm beginning to despise your smirk."

"Hn. Whatever."

To be continued…

Next on Hell High: Chapter 9: Irrationality of a Princess

"Sakura." He growled while glaring. "Don't."

She just grinned, not even moving from her spot.

"If you don't get off right this moment I'll-"

"You'll what, my darling and stupid Knight?"

He was beginning to hate that damn nickname of his.

A/N: Meh. I don't feel like leaving a cliffhanger… Maybe it's also because it's my way of saying sorry for making everyone wait.

FIC PROMOTION:

Immortal Sin by Apathetic Silence

How can you live forever with a sin that can never be forgiven no matter how many times you repent? "What are you..?" she breathed, eyes wide at the sight of blood on his face and hands. "An Immortal."

AND

Close Proximity by Apathetic Silence (AND ME)

"I'm not supposed to love you, I'm not supposed to fall for a Priestess." she looked at him. "I'm not supposed to love an Assassin, yet here I am, telling you my feelings."