title: love month
prompt: SASUSAKU MONTH ON LJ!
rating: T-M
summary: oo4; Sasuke, a pyromaniac, was warned by Sakura—if you play with fire, you could get burned.
.oo4.
Burning/Ignite
Sasuke always knew that he should never play with fire. In fact, the rates showing household fires grew increasingly every year, with kids finding matches and leaving them unattended, or lighting candles and leaving the house while the flame was still burning…
Although…an unquenched desire thirsted in his heart. He was a closet pyromaniac. Sasuke absolutely loved the flames, how they ate up everything that was given to them. The way the white papers crinkled up into black ashes and withered away…
Fire was a beautiful monster. He loved it. Every time he lit a candle, he would spend hours at a time watching the orange and yellow eat up the wick and wax until there was nothingness. And he would always volunteer to light the matches and use the lighter.
The obsession started when he was five. It continued until now, at fourteen. Itachi would always "accompany" his little brother while he played with fire, making sure that Sasuke didn't get third degree burns and kill everybody within a five mile radius.
In fact, the only thing that could stop Sasuke from playing with fire (for a few moments, at least) was when Itachi took his mentee over to tutor her. Her name was Sakura, and she had bright pink hair and pretty green eyes. She was at least three inches shorter than Sasuke (who was 5'5), and two years older (making her sixteen—ha, see? Sasuke could've tutored her in math) and came over every Thursday afternoon for math help.
Sasuke was mesmerized. In fact, he was so infatuated with her that whenever he held a match in his hand, and she walked straight through that door, his face froze in her direction and he would only awaken from his pain to feel the flames creeping up at his finger.
"Ow!" Sasuke would cry out, shaking his hand as the match extinguished.
Sakura would turn towards his direction, and Sasuke turned away, blushing. Itachi put a hand on Sakura's shoulder and turned her from his brother. "Sorry. Sasuke's a bit…odd."
Sakura wanted to look behind her again to see what was so odd about such a cute boy, but Itachi took her shoulder again took her to the study room.
Sasuke couldn't concentrate on the fire when she was in the same house as her. He sighed, sitting on the sofa and eyeing her and his brother from afar. Looking at his fingers (slightly red), he sucked on them and watched as she laughed with Itachi.
.
.
.
"Hey," Sakura said as she sat down next to Sasuke as he was beginning to light a match. He jumped as her hand touched his shoulder, dropping the match. Blushing, he turned behind him to see Sakura smiling, sitting down next to him and crossing her ankles.
"Whatcha doing?" she asked as she scooted closer to her. Sasuke immediately felt uncomfortable, and kept on blushing as if he had a fever.
"Nothing," he muttered, turning away from her. He didn't want her to see his face in such an embarrassing state, and he just wanted to play with fire.
Sakura looked over his shoulder. "You know, when I was young, my parents told me not to play with fire, because…well, you know. You could get hurt."
"Hn."
"It's gonna burn you, Sasuke. And it's really, really painful."
"Hn."
Sakura sighed. "You know, Sasuke…I used to like to play with fire, too, until a really traumatic experience changed that." Sakura fiddled with her fingers. "I got burned. Right here. There's still a scar, but for the most part, it's healed. I can't tell you how painful it was, though. It was like…how should I explain this?" Sasuke, interested, turned around to see what Sakura was doing. She had rolled down her sock, and he saw a large scar run at her ankle.
"Ugly, right?" Sakura said, laughing softly. "After that, I stopped playing with fire. I still like to watch it from far away, but I've been too scared to actually touch it again." She rolled up her sock.
"You're a really cute kid, Sasuke," Sakura laughed as she petted his hair. "No wonder Itachi tells me all about you. Secretly, though," Sakura looked around to see if Itachi was nearby. "I think he's jealous of you."
She gave him one last smile, let her hand linger on his shoulder, then got up and left. Sasuke, mesmerized by her, didn't notice the flames creeping up on him to bite him. Gasping in pain, he shook his hand and sucked his index finger as he watched Sakura walk away, remembering the ugly wound that marred her perfection.
.
.
.
Sasuke loved Thursday, because Sakura would always come over. He knew when she walked through that door, and exactly when she left, so he made sure not to play with any lighters when she came.
He missed having her talk to him.
"Hi, Sasuke," Sakura said as Itachi led her to the study room. She winked at him, giving him the "shame" sign of her two fingers rubbing against each other, and continued up to follow Itachi. Sasuke, looking at the hidden matchboxes in his pockets, sighed, wanting to pull one out to relieve tension, but instead, took them in his fist, smashed them, and threw them in the garbage. Part of him wanted to grab them back out, but the other part told him, This is for Sakura.
Sasuke then sighed. What else could he do for the next three hours?
.
.
.
"Hey."
Sasuke gave her a small nod of acknowledgement as she sat down next to him again.
"Still playing with fire?"
Sasuke grunted. "Nah."
Sakura smiled at his antics. "Good for you." She lied back on the chair, sighing as she looked up towards the ceiling. "Your brother asked me out today."
Sasuke's ears perked up. "What? What'd you say?"
"I said no. I mean, I'm flattered, because no guy has asked me out before…especially a really good-looking one. But I like somebody else."
"Who?"
Sakura laughed. "I can't tell you! It's a secret."
Jealous, Sasuke wanted to know more. "Give me a few hints."
"Well…he's a little naughty, as in, mischievous. He really likes his family, although I know that he tries to hide it. He's such a sweetheart, and he's really, really cute, but I don't know if he sees me that way. It's okay, though, because he still has a lot of time to think about it and stuff."
Sasuke couldn't think of anybody he knew with that description. "Oh."
Sakura took Sasuke's hands in hers. "Oh—Sasuke, you're hurt." She looked down at his fingers, all red and blistered from the flames that he left unattended.
"It's fine." He attempted to wrench Sakura's hands out of his own, although he liked the warmth and softness of them, but she held on.
"I have a few band-aids here…and some cream," she said, reaching into her handbag and pulling out ten band-aids for him, along with her ointment.
"Thanks," he muttered nervously as she applied it carefully onto each hand. She smiled at him. "Don't worry about it. Just don't be as reckless, okay?"
"Hn."
Then, she put each band-aid on, wrapping all of them around every finger so that they fit snugly. After that, she took his hand and kissed each finger gently.
Sasuke blushed.
"My mom used to kiss my fingers after I would get hurt by playing with fire. I always thought that it felt better."
Her kisses were soft and he could barely feel them, but he liked them anyway. His fingers burned up where her lips touched them, and he immediately turned redder.
Petting his head, she looked at her watch and said, "I've got to go, Sasuke. Tell your brother I said thanks." She petted his head again, ruffling up his hair, and waved as she went straight out the door.
Sasuke looked from his bandaged fingers to the exit where she left, and smiled.
Inside, the feelings that burned for her ignited, and the flames created a fire that sparked his love for her blazed.
He'd had enough of playing with fire. Sasuke knew that as he took all the matches he had and tossed them into the trash.
Inspired by Good Charlotte's "Victims of Love"
Slight changes 7.8.14!