"Just Carrying it For a Friend" Chapter 4
There were times that Sasuke felt stupid. Not like the dobe-kind of stupid, but stupid in the sense of sticking his hand in a fire even though he knew it was going to sting.
That night that he met Sakura, he knew that there was a heat that attracted him to her, but he didn't realize how passionate this heat of hers was.
He could see from the beginning how much Yamanaka's wife meant to this woman, but never in his life would he guess that Sakura would be doing something as big as being a surrogate for the couple.
She said that he needed time to think about what she was doing before they began to get serious, and after getting over the shock of the news she delivered, he decided that she was right.
Sasuke laid in bed, staring at his ceiling and trying to think rationally of what he wanted to do. He kept glancing to the phone that laid on his night stand, almost hoping that Sakura would call him. However, he knew that she wouldn't because she believed that it was the man that needed to pursue her when it came to being with someone. It always amused him when she would say things like that. It was basically her way of saying: "You better have the balls, or you're not worth my time.".
It was 1 AM, and he wasn't sure if Sakura would be awake. He knew that she had work tomorrow night, and needed her sleep during the day, so there was always a possibility that she was staying up and doing whatever women did to keep themselves occupied.
The young Uchiha groaned and picked up his phone, quickly opening Sakura's contact information. He hesitated on pressing the call button when he saw the sarcastic smile of her picture.
There was a lot of complex things about this woman that he just didn't get. She kept something so big from him, and yet he still couldn't help but want to know more about her. It wasn't that he was angry over Sakura's decision to be the Yamanaka's surrogate, it was more of the fact that he was worried over if Sakura considered him important to her. He would never say that, of course. But did she really think of him as someone she could rely on, especially while she was pregnant?
The teasing glint in her eyes that he saw in her photo was practically daring him to make a move. He could just imagine her saying "Do you even have the nerve to press that button?" in her mocking tone that she always had when they would make fun of each other.
Sasuke smirked to himself when he decided what he was going to do. He locked the phone and put it back down on his night stand. He realized that he didn't care what this girl did with her life, because it was just that- her life.
He wasn't going to give her up, though. Not this easily.
Sakura sat on her couch huddled under a blanket with a bowl of popcorn and peanut butter sitting in her lap, the glow from the TV being the only source of light in the room. She decided that she needed to binge watch and eat all of the things in her apartment after the night she had with Sasuke. Since she became pregnant, she was unable to work out like she did before to relieve her stress, so she just gave in to the insane cravings and continuously stuffed her face until there was nothing left.
Sakura really wished in this moment that Ino hadn't become a responsible adult and went to bed as soon as midnight hit. Her excuse was that she had a baby on the way, so she needed to let herself become accustomed to the schedule of a normal mother would be. Sakura respected her wishes to not be woken up unless something was wrong with her or the baby. She didn't believe that what transpired during her date with Sasuke was important enough to wake her best friend up for, anyway. Sai was off tonight, and she wanted the couple to enjoy their night that they got to have each other in their arms.
Just like the couple she was currently watching on the TV screen.
Sakura felt tears roll down her cheeks. These stupid hormones made her cry at anything, now. It didn't help that all she seemed to think about was that Sasuke would never want to see her again after the secret that she kept from him. Yes, she only knew him for a few weeks, but she had felt that she finally met someone who understood a lot of the things in her life that Ino didn't. That was a huge deal for her.
The young doctor forced herself to pay attention to what was on the screen. She didn't even want to begin to think what was going to happen to her time with Ino when the blonde became a mother. Sure, Sakura knew that she wouldn't leave her high and dry, but she also knew that children were what took up a majority of a mother's time. This meant that Ino's social time was going to be very little.
The music on the show Sakura was watching began to get intense, signalling that the couple's tender moment was about to come to an end. From the reputation that the show had, she knew it wasn't going to be a very happy one.
An intruder had entered their home, and was sneaking his way up to their room. The couple was too engrossed with their mouths to even hear what was coming. The floor made little creaks, which they must have thought was their bed. The figure in black got closer, and he pulled out a gun. As he came around the corner, he pulled the trigger and-
"SHIT!" Sakura's heart almost stopped when she heard knocking on her door. The bowl of popcorn went flying as she clutched her chest with one hand, and her bump with the other. Once she steadied her breathing, she paused the show to go and see who in the earthly hell would be at her door at almost 2 AM.
She grabbed the nearest thing that could be used as a weapon, and looked through her peephole. She turned on her outdoor light to see who it was, but she forgot that her bulb had gone out.
Great. She thought to herself. I'm going to get killed by a psycho killer because I forgot to change a stupid light bulb.
Sakura clutched her weapon in her right hand, and put her left on the knob to open the door. She quickly swung it open and was ready to strike when two strong hands grabbed her wrists.
"Woah! Woah! Woah! Easy, Sakura! It's only me!"
"Let go of me!" She yelled, struggling to get out of the person's grip. She ended up dropping the object in her hand in the process.
She looked up to the person in horror when she heard him begin to laugh. "An umbrella? Are you serious right now, Haruno?"
Sakura squinted her eyes to see if she could make out who it was. "Sasuke? What are you doing here?"
He let go of her wrists and picked up the umbrella that she had armed herself with.
"Maybe you need to invest with something that can do a little more damage to predators." He teasingly said as he handed it back to the woman. "Why didn't you turn on the light first before you opened the door?"
Sakura looked away, her cheeks coloring with embarrassment. "I forgot to change out the bulb. To be honest, I couldn't find my step ladder to change it. I think Ino hid it so I wouldn't be climbing anything."
"Do you have any inside?"
"Yes, but I can wait to change it in the morning."
"Or you can go and get one now so that I can do it while I'm standing here."
"Sasuke, really, you don't need to." Sakura insisted.
"I want to reassure myself that if something like this were to happen again, you would be able to see who was at your door." Sasuke was using his tone that he used when he was on the job. She could tell that he was being serious.
"Fine... Go ahead and come inside."
She stepped aside and let him in her home. As she left to go and retrieve a new bulb, she turned on the light switch to the living room to give him light while he waited.
Sasuke looked around the small place, surprised to see it in such a cluttered state. There was a blanket thrown over her couch with a red bowl laying upside down. Popcorn seemed to be everywhere, along with various wrappers from different junk foods.
"I'm sorry about the mess. It's not usually like this." Sakura had returned and saw him examining her living space.
"Trust me, I've seen worse. The dobe tried to grow his science experiment from a cup of ramen that was half eaten during our eleventh grade year, and we didn't find it until he moved out a couple of years ago." Sasuke held out his hand for the bulb Sakura was holding.
"You never answered my question earlier. What are you doing here so late?"
"Let's talk after I finish doing this." Sasuke walked outside, and Sakura followed to watch him.
He easily reached the dead bulb and twisted it out. Sakura's chest panged slightly as she watched him do this simple task for her. Was he doing this to avoid talking to her? Or was it because he really wanted to make sure that she was safe?
Once Sasuke was done, he handed the useless bulb to Sakura and smirked at her. "All done."
The two returned back into the apartment, closing the door behind them.
Sakura cleared away some of the mess so that they could sit down on the couch.
They awkwardly sat in silence for a few minutes while they racked their brains to figure out something to say. Sakura was afraid that Sasuke had come to tell her that he didn't want to see her again, while the raven-haired man was trying to think of a way to ask her if she would let him be a part of her life in any way that she felt comfortable with. He nervously glanced at her abdomen, which he could now tell that there was indeed something growing underneath her shirt.
Sakura suddenly became even more self conscious, and reached to cover herself with her blanket, but Sasuke stopped her.
"You don't have to cover yourself up. It's just different is all."
"You know it's just going to keep growing until I can barely walk, right?"
"So?"
"So, I'd understand if you didn't see me as a desirable person anymore."
Sasuke scoffed. "Do you really see me as someone to be that shallow?"
"Of course not, it's just... I understand if it creeps you out."
Sasuke reached over and took one of her hands in his. "Sakura, I've thought it over and over again since you left me alone tonight. I think what you're doing for your friend is amazing."
"Do you? Please be honest with me, Uchiha. If it isn't obvious, my hormones are raging right now. If I sense even just a little bit of uncertainty, I won't be able to handle a relationship with you."
Sasuke nodded his head with determination. "I promise that what you are doing does not change the way I feel about you."
"And just how do you feel?"
"Isn't it obvious?" He chuckled and brushed his thumb lightly over the hand that he held. "You have captivated my attention, Sakura Haruno. That isn't an easy thing to do."
Sakura felt her cheeks redden when she looked at his intense gaze. She knew that he wasn't lying. Even Naruto would joke from time to time about how it had been forever since he had seen Sasuke hanging out with a girl and how he had thought that maybe Sasuke was more into the homosexual lifestyle. She hadn't known them for very long, but as far as their friendship was, she was able to see that Naruto would do anything to embarrass Sasuke. If he was a player, Naruto would definitely have said something.
"So... What are you saying, Sasuke?" She finally mustered up the courage to ask him.
"I'm saying that I want to try this out." He answered. "I want to pursue this, Sakura. What do you think?"
Sakura stared in awe at the man before her. She wasn't expecting him to be as okay with her being pregnant like he was being right then. His words were genuine, and that's all she ever wanted from him.
"I think I want to be with you, too."
Sasuke smirked and reached his face forward as if he was going to kiss her, which caught Sakura off guard. She closed her eyes, and waited for his lips to meet hers, but she felt a gentle poke on her forehead instead.
She opened her eyes to see his teasing smile.
"I'm not going to kiss you just yet, Haruno." He chuckled.
Sakura felt slightly disappointed at his words. "Wasn't that what you were about to do?"
"I want to ask you in the way I was going to tonight." Sasuke reached into his pocket and held out a box. "My father always taught me and my brother that when we make the decision to be in a relationship that we had to find a way to show the pride that we take in her so that everyone knows that she is something special."
He opened the box, and inside was a silver necklace with an uchiwa fan pendant.
"This is my family's crest." Sasuke explained. "I know it's a lame way to ask, but Sakura, I want you to be my girlfriend."
Sakura felt like she was in high school again. Her face turned bright red, and she began to giggle because she couldn't contain herself anymore.
Sasuke, however, became embarrassed by her response. His ears had turned red, and his face showed that he was not amused by her laughter.
"I'm sorry. I just find it adorable that you would do something like this." She said after regaining her composure. "Yes, Sasuke. I will be your girlfriend."
Sasuke closed the box, and turned his body away from her. "Nope, I take it back."
Sakura could tell that he was just pouting because it hadn't happened the way he had hoped it would.
She reached over, trying to grab it from his hand. "But I already said yes, so technically that's mine now."
"What do you think you're doing? Get off of me." He took his hand out of her reach, thinking she wouldn't dare to go any further to get the box.
Sakura climbed completely on him, straddling his waist as she did her best to reach for his hand that he held over his head.
Sasuke's face heated up when he realized what she was doing. Sakura reached up even further, causing her chest to come up further to his face.
"Fine!" He quickly gave in and forced her to sit down on his lap before he found himself in an even more risque position with her breasts suffocating him.
Sakura had a victorious smile on her face when he handed her the black box.
This time, it was her turn to catch him off guard. While he fought to control himself, Sakura quickly moved her face closer to his.
"So, are you going to kiss me or not?" She giggled.
"After that, I'm not sure if you deserve it just yet." He smirked, playing along with her little game she had started.
"You know, I could always kiss you first."
"Then why don't you?"
Sakura and Sasuke sat there, watching one another for a few moments. They could feel each other's breath on their faces. It was like an intense staring contest, trying to see who would give in and make the first move.
"Tsk." Sasuke rolled his eyes and pulled her completely forward into him, and kissed her in a passionate manner.
Sakura felt her heart flutter in her chest when their lips met. She had never been kissed like this before.
They broke apart for air, and just embraced each other.
"So, this is a thing, right?" Sakura had buried her face in his shoulder. Her face was hurting from smiling so much.
"Yes." Sasuke chuckled. "We're a thing, now."
They stayed like that for a while, and didn't even realize that they had fallen asleep until the sunlight made its way through Sakura's window the next morning.