Whirlwind
Chapter Seventeen
-Operation Day Thirteen: Awakening-
She wasn't surprised to find herself walking down the street towards the marketplace, hand in hand with her mystery man. She took in her surroundings, before looking down at their intertwined hands. She squeezed his lightly, making sure that he was really there. For some reason she felt as if she was going to lose him soon.
She began to look up his body, hoping, praying, that this time she would get to see his face. When she reached his jaw, her excitement began to build. She looked into his face, only to see familiar jade eyes looking down at her. She smiled, somehow not surprised to see the redhead.
She could suddenly feel a change in the air, and knew that something was terribly wrong. But what? Then she heard it, the sound of cracking glass. She glanced around, trying to find the source but saw nothing. She focused back on Gaara, shocked that he was acting as if nothing were happening. How could he not hear that?
Finally she looked down, seeing the cracks appearing on the ground from their pressure. "Gaara." She looked up at him but he continued on. "Gaara!" she yelled now, trying to pull him back. His hand slipped from hers as he walked on.
When he stepped forward, the ground beneath him shattered and he fell into the darkness.
"GAARA!" she screamed, diving to grab him. She clasped his hand in a firm grip, taking notice of the lone tear that landed on his startled face.
"Gaara, please! I won't let go! So you better not either!" she cried to him, fear of losing him evident in her voice. Relief washed over her as he grabbed her hand with his other one. She pulled him out of the hole, and, once he was beside her again, she leaned into him and sighed. Suddenly, everything vanished, and she was left alone.
Gaara sat bolt up in bed, with sweat dripping down his face. What had just happened? He bent forward, covering his countenance with his hands. It had been Sakura's voice in his dreams. He didn't know what to make of this. She had saved him, just like she said she would. The redhead looked over to the slumbering girl beside him and noticed tears staining her cheeks. He leaned over her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, resting his head on hers, and whispering her name, not wanting to wake her, but wanting to stop her suffering.
She stopped whimpering, and scooted closer to him, trying to shield her body with his. Once she was situated, she sighed in her sleep, a content smile on her face.
He could feel the smile form on his face, mirroring her own. He lay back down beside her, circling her waist with his arm and pulled her back against his chest. He closed his eyes, not to sleep, but just so he could have some peace from the abrupt awakening.
Sakura slowly opened her eyes, giving her mind time to clear from the vestiges of sleep. She was incredibly warm, and didn't need to think too hard as to why. Snuggling even closer to the sleeping man beside her, she froze, feeling the dried substance on her cheek. She recognized this feeling. It was one that she had become familiar with after Sasuke had left. She had been crying. But why? Suddenly she remembered her dream last night. Gaara was her mystery man, she thought as she pulled away from the redhead and sat upright in the bed.
Gaara's eyes flashed open from the sudden movement, his sand already formed defensively around them. "Sakura! What is it? Are you ok?" he asked, watching her warily, but also watching the shadows as well. He didn't feel anything different. He sand fell, crawling back to the gourd in the corner of the room. "Are you alright?" he finally asked after a moment of silence.
Regaining her composure slightly, she turned to him. "Yeah I'm fine. I just had a weird dream was all."
"What was it about?" he asked stridently. He tried to keep his tension hidden, but the dream resurfaced despite his attempts.
She didn't really want to tell him, embarrassed by her reoccurring dream. But, if there was ever going to be complete trust between them, he needed to know. She took a fortifying breath. "Well, shortly after I started staying with you I began to have this dream. In the dream, I'm walking down one of the streets here, and I'm holding someone's hand. But before I can see who it is, I wake up. Each time the dream happened I would get to see more of him. Last night, I saw him." She looked into his eyes then. "It was you Gaara." Her cheeks reddened at the admission, and she looked away in embarrassment. His eyes went wide with shock. She decided to leave out how that knowledge made her feel, not really knowing herself. "But, the ground cracked, and you fell. I yelled your name, and was just barely able to grab onto you. I pulled you out of the hole, and, just as I leaned towards you, you vanished, and I was left all alone." She said, bottom lip trembling in remembrance. She began to wring the sheets in her hands nervously, waiting for his reaction. His hands had curled into fists, trying to fight back the anxiety that was about to burst from him.
He took a deep breath, trying to relax his straining muscles. "Sakura…do you…remember the dream I told you of, when you had awoken in the middle of the night and come into my room?"
Sakura went wide-eyed, as realization struck her. "In your dream!" she gasped, turning to face him despite her embarrassment. "You were falling and you heard someone call your name." She nodded, sure that this meant something important.
"Yes," he confirmed, looking away now. "I began having those dreams when you came as well." He sighed, shifting his gaze to his sheets. "This time though, I felt someone in the darkness. I guess now, well I am assuming it was you, or maybe it always was you, but they were trying to pull me back. All I could do was go forward though, I knew it was coming, but it was the only thing to expect in that dark world. When I fell…this time something held me up, and when I looked to see what it was…it was you." He confessed, every nerve in his body wanting to disappear now after sharing such a deep subconscious part of himself. But he willed himself to stay, knowing it would only hurt Sakura if he left.
She smiled at his admission, her embarrassment completely gone now. She let go of the sheet, and wrapped her arms around the redhead in a hug. She laid her head on his shoulder. "Maybe our dreams connected because of the bond we have. I mean, ever since I came here I felt like we've grown closer."
"Maybe." He nodded, slowly and hesitantly wrapping his arms around her. He could feel himself losing it. Why did he want to flee now? He was at peace and in turmoil all at the same time. He wanted to stay and he wanted to vanish. He hadn't noticed that his grip was tightening to a painful clutch for her.
Sakura looked up at him, seeing the twisted emotions playing across his face. "Gaara are you alright?" she asked, trying her best to ignore the pressure he was putting on her arms.
He snapped out of his own mind and eased up on his hold. "No…everything's fine. I was just thinking it was because we have spent so much time together." He lied, thoroughly this time, so she could not see the deception. "I've never actually gone to sleep with someone so close to me before, usually it's very uncomfortable for me to be vulnerable in front of people."
Not fully buying his words but deciding to leave it alone, she pulled away from him. She suddenly had the urge to be alone right now. She needed to come up with something to get away from him without hurting his feelings, wanting to reflect on what she had learned. "I understand. We should get moving, I need to wrap things up at the hospital and make sure everything isn't left in chaos when my team has to go back to Konoha." She said solemnly.
It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't completely the truth. All she had to do was leave the workbooks for the nursing staff and name someone head of the hospital. She already had the proper candidate, so it would only take her ten minutes or so to get the job done. After that, she could go find solitude in order to think properly.
"Oh…yes." Reality started sinking in quickly. She was going to be leaving him the day after tomorrow. The day after he killed one of her closest friends. The day after tomorrow, he would lose one of the only lights in his world. He needed her away from him…now. His control was slipping fast, and he didn't want her to see him break down.
"Of course Sakura," he managed out, sounding pained. "I will see you later." He quickly moved away from her and headed towards his bathroom so he could wash off before 'going to work'. His heart hurt, his past and his present were colliding violently. The memories of Yashamaru's betrayal, Naruto's friendship, and Sakura's care. He wanted so badly to be able to accept these new feelings. But his instincts were right in the way, telling him to cut ties and let her go. What would he do? He didn't want to feel this heartache any longer. But he just didn't know what to do!
The bathroom door shut behind him and he was gone from the pink one's view. She sat there for a while, puzzled at his actions, but grateful for his absence. She left his room and got ready for the day.
The walk to the hospital was a silent one, and not the good kind. Both were lost in their own thoughts, confused about what they were feeling, and not wanting the other to see them so distressed. When they arrived at the entrance to the hospital, Gaara turned away from her without a word. Unsure if he was going to come back for her or not, she spoke up. "Will you be back at five?" she asked hesitantly, unsure of his answer. Although she wanted him to leave right now, she didn't want it to be permanent.
He stopped, not facing her for a while. He tried the technique she had taught him. Breathe in and then count backwards from ten, and for the moment it worked. He turned to face her and tried to give her a smile, "Yeah, sure."
She tried not to feel distraught with his answer. She had never received 'Sure' as an answer from him before, and she wasn't so sure she liked it. It seemed like such a weak assurance. "I'll be waiting for you." She said truthfully. Then she entered the hospital, trying not to look back. Maybe it was for the best that they spent some time alone for now.
It actually took her less than ten minutes to get everything in order. Once she finished, she told the receptionist that she was taking the rest of the day off. Everyone simply assumed it was to prepare for the coming day, when her former teammate was to be executed.
She sprinted across the rooftops of the city, until she reached her destination. The Kazekage Tower. She smiled at the irony. She had willingly gone to the one place Gaara would be in order to get away from him and be alone. Directing chakra to her feet, she easily jumped onto the roof, sprawling out on her back and gazing at the clouds. It wasn't until now that she understood why Shikamaru did this so often. It was so peaceful, and really helped you clear your mind. Determination set in her face, she began to think about her dream.
In the beginning she had wanted it to be Sasuke. But as she got to know Gaara more and more, she wasn't able to think of the Uchiha in such a way. Over the two weeks she had spent with Gaara, she had begun to care for him more each day. He understood her on a deeper level than anyone she knew. And sometimes, she knew exactly what he was thinking and feeling, having become so tuned in to his needs. And, the thought of leaving him made her incredibly depressed. Her life would never be the same when this was all over, and she didn't know how to deal with that. Not on her own anyways.
She suddenly realized that she had come to depend on the redhead, in almost every way. Over the time she had stayed with him, she had depended on him for food, shelter, company, laughs, and someone to cry on. Heck, if she was truly honest with herself, she depended on his very presence to keep calm and somewhat sane, as if she were addicted to him.
On top of all that, he made her feel things she had never felt before. He made her want to laugh and cry all at the same time. He made her blush with the simplest of looks. And when he was near her, teasing her in the way he was wont to do, she wanted to kiss him. So, so badly.
She sat up at her last thought. The only other boy she had ever wanted to kiss had been Sasuke, and everyone knew how that had turned out. It was a childhood crush anyways. Sasuke never made her feel the things Gaara did. If she had kissed him when she wanted to, would things be different now? Would they be in a different kind of relationship than the one they were currently in?
Then she thought about what life would be like if she were in a relationship like that with Gaara. She would get to see him more often. That thought made her happy. Then, if things progressed any further, maybe someday they would get married. She giggled at the thought. Gaara didn't strike her as the type of person to tie himself down to anyone, least of all a woman. But it would be nice. He would make them breakfast every day, and then walk her to the hospital on his way to work. When the day was done, he would pick her up and they would talk about their days. Then she would make them dinner once they got home, and later, they would go to sleep in his comfy bed. His face would be the last thing she saw before going to bed, and the first things she saw when she woke up. Thinking about it, she realized that their lives were already pretty similar to that, given the exception that she hadn't gotten to sleep with him every night she was here.
Her thoughts of marriage led her to ones of children. She had always wanted some, someday. At least three. Suddenly her mind was filled with images of her and Gaara having kids together, and she smiled. They would be the most adorable children in the whole world. He would be a wonderful father, and she already knew that she would be a great mom. Their home would be full of laughter and love, the perfect foundations for a family.
Love…that was it! She stood up at her realization. She had fallen in love with the temperamental redhead! That explained why she felt like a blushing, bumbling school girl when she was around him. And why she could picture living her life with him until the day she died. She knew that he must feel something for her in return, she just didn't know how deep it went.
She looked out at Suna, startled that it was almost sunset. Had she really been on the roof for so long? Not wanting Gaara to get worried, she used her teleportation jutsu to bring her in front of the hospital. She sighed in relief when she arrived, noting that she still had roughly ten minutes before he would show up to get her. She walked over to one of the benches outside the hospital, and sat down to wait for him, bubbling with joy at what she had discovered about herself.
Gaara walked slowly down the street heading towards the hospital. He couldn't believe he had literally sat and stared at one scroll for eight hours! It had taken all that he had in him to actually get up and come to the hospital. He almost didn't want to see Sakura, and that truly frightened him. He hated how many things she could make him feel at once, it was a bit overwhelming for him and his poor psyche. But he also wanted to see her…he needed to see her. She had become the only reason he could make it through those piles of paperwork, or putting up with annoying guests, like Naruto and his friends. No, he told himself, shaking his head. My friends, he had actually made friends with these people, and it was only because of her.
But if she was so great, why did her presence make him suffer so much? Why did her care for the Uchiha make his blood boil? Why whenever she was hurt did he need to comfort her, to protect her? "AAAH!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, getting a few odd stares in return. He didn't understand! He just didn't! None of this made sense, he had never felt this before, which made him confused. And unfortunately when he was confused it made him angry. He took a deep breath and turned the corner to see the hospital. He stopped near the front, staring at one of the benches, seating a happy pink haired woman.
When she saw him she felt a wave of relief wash over her. He came. She got up from the bench and ran into his arms. "Gaara!" she yelled as she wound her arms around his midsection. She looked into his eyes, hers sparkling in joy. "How was your day?" she asked.
He remained still for a moment and then slowly wrapped his arms around her. "It was long…and very uneventful." He wanted it all to stop, so that the pain wouldn't be so bad when she left. But he couldn't, he lowered his head so that his long red bangs hid his eyes and let his forehead touch her shoulder. His grip tightened, but not in a painful way like he had before. He didn't want her to leave, he felt accepted and normal when she was around him. He could actually laugh. He wanted to cry, but the man inside him refused to show any such weakness.
She reached up and began to stroke his head in a soothing manner, loving the feel of his soft hair running between her fingers. "Let's go home. We can eat all the leftovers for dinner, and finish off the ice cream I made." She said with a tender smile.
He nodded, removing himself from her shoulder and standing erect. "Come on, let's go." Without a moment's hesitation he took her hand and led her away from the hospital and to their home. He didn't want to think, at least, he didn't want to think tonight. He would enjoy every moment of Sakura that he had left. Unfortunately for him, that just wasn't going to happen.
They could hear the noise before they actually saw the trio it was coming from. Temari jogged towards them, with Hinata and Ino close behind. "Sakura we've been looking everywhere for you!" Temari yelled, but a smile was still plastered on her face. Gaara tried not to seem too annoyed with their unexpected arrival.
"Yeah!" Ino laughed, going to her best friend's side and tugging on her free arm. "We checked the hospital but they said you left early." Hinata nodded, as if to agree with the pale blonde.
Gaara immediately looked down at Sakura, a look on his face that meant And just where have you been all day? You can be sure that we are talking about this when we get home. "Anyways!" Temari interrupted their silent conversation, waving her hands in the air. "We're going out to eat, just the four of us! No icky boys!" the older blonde laughed evilly, a laugh that could give Gaara a run for his money.
"And no excuses!" Ino wagged her finger in Sakura's face. "Sorry Gaara, but we're taking Sakura for a little, she'll see you later!" and with that Ino latched onto Sakura and dragged her away before either could even mutter a goodbye.
Hinata followed after the Konoha kunoichi, and Temari waved at her brother and dashed off after them. Gaara could feel his eyes twitching, he needed to get home. Now. Or else someone was about to die. Now he was even angrier than he was before, stomping home like a child, he vowed to eat all of Sakura's ice cream.
They took her to some specialty restaurant that served foods from other villages. She just ordered a salad, having lost her appetite from being taken away from Gaara. At that thought, guilt overrode her conscience. If you really thought about it, she had been neglecting her friends by spending all her time with the redhead. But, now that she had discovered that she loved him, she wanted nothing more than to shout it out to the village.
The food arrived, and Ino looked at her expectantly. "Ok Forehead, spill it."
Feigning confusion, she asked, "Spill what Ino-pig?"
Annoyed at her friends' antics, Ino pointed her fork across the table at the pink haired girl. "What's going on with you and Gaara? After the fight at the restaurant you were like a zombie, then at the party you two were practically making love on the dance floor, and now it seems as if Gaara doesn't want you to leave his side. So, what's going on?"
Turning red at what her friend was saying, she tried to play it all down. "I really think you're exaggerating Ino. I mean, all that happened was-"
"Don't give us that crap Sakura." Temari interrupted. "I was there the day of your party. I saw how quickly you changed back into your normal self when my brother came home. Don't try to downplay it."
In one last attempt to save herself, Sakura looked beside her at the quiet Hyuuga heiress. "Do you think this too Hinata?" she asked.
Blushing slightly at having all the attention directed at her, Hinata poked her fingers together nervously. "Well, you both act differently when the other is around. And, when you are around each other, you stand closer than is proper for friends. I believe that both of you are confused about what you feel." She said softly.
Growing irritated at how transparent she was, she slammed her fist on the table. "I am not confused!" she yelled.
Ino narrowed her eyes. "Oh reeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaally? Then tell me Sakura, what are you?"
"I'm angry!" she said with conviction. "Just because I am in love with Gaara doesn't mean-" she stopped talking, realizing what she had just done. She braced herself for the onslaught that was sure to begin.
Temari dropped her fork in shock. "You're in love with my little brother?"
"It's about damned time you realized it!" Ino yelled, pumping her fist in the air.
Hinata merely sat there and gave her a reassuring smile. Once things had quieted down, Ino spoke up. "So…..when did you realize it?" she asked, raising a blonde brow.
She began to play with her salad in an attempt to cover up her embarrassment. "Um….today…."
"Really?" the blonde asked, perking up at the news. "Have you told him yet? Are you even gonna tell him?"
She sighed. "No I haven't told him. I was going to tell him tonight, but now it looks like I'll have to wait for the right moment."
"You'd better do it soon." Temari advised, taking a bite of her lasagna. "Gaara doesn't do well when he's emotionally confused. Trust me, I know."
"No matter what," she said with conviction, "I will do it before we return to Konoha."
Turning towards the ebony haired girl, Ino smirked. "Well, now that Sakura has found someone, all we have to do is hook Hinata up with Naruto."
The Hyuuga blushed. "Um…Ino…I really don't think that that's necessary. I mean…Naruto-kun has a lot to deal with right now, and-"
"Oh come on Hinata." Ino interrupted. "Didn't you tell me the other day how Naruto flipped out at that witch who works at the hospital?" she questioned.
"You mean used to work at the hospital." Sakura corrected, glad to have the attention on someone else. She merely shrugged at everyone's questioning looks. "I punched her through a wall and fired her the other day. Gaara fully supported my decision." She explained, a self-satisfied smirk on her lips.
"Awesome." Temari said, smiling. She had never liked the brunette in the first place, having only seen her at the party, and heard of her from her friends.
"Yeah, it's great. Now back to Hinata." Ino said, dismissing the news, completely focused on her task.
Said girl merely blushed a shade darker. "Well, he did, but I'm sure he would have done that in order to defend any one of you."
Ino shook her head negatively. "No Hinata. He wouldn't. He may have yelled at her true, but he wouldn't have gone fox demon for any of us."
Sakura stared at Hinata, shock written on her face. "He began to go fox demon? How did you calm him down?"
Hinata looked down, embarrassed at what she was about to say. "I simply laid my hand on his arm. He calmed down immediately and took me out for some ramen."
Even more shocked than before, Sakura turned in her seat to fully face the girl, excited now. Remembering her conversation with Naruto the other day, she asked, "He calmed down without you having to say anything and he paid for your lunch? Naruto never pays for anyone else's lunch, not even mine." She said, astonished.
"Y-yes. But that doesn't mean anything. Naruto-kun has only ever seen me as an acquaintance." Hinata said, trying to deny what they were hinting at. Only in her dreams would Naruto ever care for her the way she wanted.
"Hinata, Naruto couldn't take his eyes off you when we were at the banquet. Even Kiba noticed." Ino told her.
"Yeah, he never left your side for one second. I even saw him glaring at that guy you were talking to." Temari said.
Lavender eyes widened in astonishment. "He was?"
"Of course he was! You were smokin' hot and Naruto didn't want to share!" Ino admonished.
She blushed even more. "W-what should I do?" she questioned, her old stutter beginning to come back at her newfound excitement.
"You should tell him." Temari said, looking as if the answer was obvious, which it was. "I mean, if you don't, he might find someone else, and you'll regret not telling him for the rest of your life."
"If that's true Temari-san, then why haven't you told Shikamaru your feelings?" The Hyuuga inquired, honest curiosity in her voice.
"Oh! Good one Hinata!" Ino yelled, putting her hand up for a high five. She returned it hesitantly, hoping that she hadn't offended the wind mistress.
Cheeks slightly pink from the innocent question, Temari quickly came up with an excuse. "That's because I haven't seen him in a long time. It's not like I make frequent trips to Konoha or anything. I have responsibilities to do here." She said defensively, crossing her arms.
"Yeah, but if Gaara and Sakura get a thing going, you can just visit Shikamaru while he's visiting Sakura." Ino said, giving the other blonde a sly look.
Temari simply shoved lasagna into her mouth, making it clear that she was done with the conversation. For the rest of the evening, the girls simply talked about what had been going on lately around the village, and their guy friends, making jokes every once in a while about their strange habits and behaviors.
Walking home that night, Sakura felt at peace. Was this how life would be when she and Gaara got married? Scratch that, she thought with a shake of her head. It all depended on whether or not he returned her feelings, and then, if he did, it depended on whether or not he wanted to get married at all.
Walking through the door, she was about to yell that she was home when she saw the disaster that awaited her in the kitchen. Lying on the kitchen table were both containers of ice cream, completely empty. Her left eye began to twitch. He had eaten all of her chocolate ice cream! Nobody ate the rest of her chocolate and got away with it, no matter how much she cared about them! "GAARA!" she yelled angrily, ready to smash something.
"What." He replied shortly, she turned around quickly to see him in the doorway with an old angry glare set in place.
"Did you eat my ice cream?" she asked accusingly.
He walked forward, slowly, his arms crossed tightly over his chest. He stopped right in front of her, nearly a head taller than her. "What if I did." He stated, not really making it a question. He reached forward and grabbed her shirt, jerking her forward, in turn making her collapse against him. "Are you going to do something about it?" he asked darkly. Something was definitely off about him. His aura was even different than its usual gloomy demeanor.
Not one to be easily intimidated, Sakura glared into his eyes. "Hell yes I'm gonna do something about it! I leave you for one hour. One hour! And you go and eat my favorite flavor of ice cream! That I worked hard to make! We don't even have the ingredients for me to make some more!" she yelled into his face, raising a petite fist in the air and shaking it.
Suddenly something dawned on her, and, despite her instincts telling her not to, she decided to tease him. Raising a brow, not caring that he still held her shirt in his fist, she asked, "What are you upset about? Because, when women are upset about something, they usually eat. And what they eat is their favorite sweet. So, since ice cream is your favorite, and you ate all of it, what's bothering you Gaara dear?"
She could see the flame ignite in his eyes, unfortunately it was the wrong time for teasing. Gaara pushed her back, releasing her shirt in the process. Stumbling back only a bit before regaining her balance, Sakura watched him warily. He started laughing, that same dark laugh he had after he had thought she betrayed him. "Are you really trying to tease me Sakura?" he asked, walking away from her, beginning to pace around the kitchen. He stopped by the sink and picked up one of the plates. He stared at it for a while, before throwing it at the wall and shattering it. "Because I don't feel like playing!"
Emerald eyes widened in shock and began to tear up. "Well, if you're going to be a jerk and ruin one of the last nights we'll have together, then I'm going to bed." She said, bottom lip trembling. She would be damned if he saw her cry again. She made her way towards the stairs, wanting to cry in the solitude of her room.
"Fine! Go to bed! I don't care!" he yelled after her, trying to control himself. Obviously it wasn't working. Once she disappeared from his sight he let out another scream, the sand around him exploded, swirling around in a dangerous whirlwind. The paint off the walls began to scrape off and some of the cabinets ripped off their hinges, smashing against the walls. Gaara slumped to his knees, the sand falling down with him. The kitchen was destroyed, debris everywhere, and sand filling the floor like an hour glass. He fell forward, grabbing his head and resting it on the ground. He didn't know what to do, he couldn't control all these emotions Sakura gave him. The things she fueled inside him set off alarms that told him to push her away. Hurt her before she could hurt him. But he didn't want to hurt her!
He sat back up and fell back against the counter. He didn't like not being in control, he didn't like not knowing. It was going to drive him mad. He shut his eyes tightly, trying to ease his mind. No wonder he had never tried getting close to someone, because bad things happened. Bad things like caring…and anger, and something else. He stopped thinking now, fueling the dimming fire once more. He just needed quiet.
Hearing the damage being done in the kitchen, she accidentally let out a choked sob halfway up the stairs, and hoped that he didn't hear it. She didn't want to anger him more than he already was.
Why did she love him? It hurt so much worse than loving Sasuke! But, unlike with Sasuke, she knew that she would never be able to move on if he rejected her. Tears already streaming down her cheeks, she finally made it to her room, where she promptly flung herself on her bed and began to sob into her pillow.
All she asked was for him to be kind to her, was that too much? If it was, then maybe asking for him to return her love would be impossible for the redhead. Maybe she should just keep her feelings to herself, and try to patch up their relationship before she left. That way he would still want to see her, and she would get to spend some time with him in return. Confused at the turn of events and her feelings, her crying doubled, to the point where she was in hysterics.
Gaara sat there for almost three hours, unmoving, just breathing in and out. He finally stood, walking out of the kitchen. He slowly made his way up the stairs and stopped at Sakura's door. She was probably asleep and still angry at him for freaking out. The redhead decided to go to his room and change into some sleeping clothes. After his shoes were off he changed into black draw string pants and a black t-shirt with a white Suna symbol on the front. He stopped at his bedside and stared down at the silk sheets. He couldn't bring himself to get in.
He sighed and left his room, stopping in front of Sakura's door. Gaara raised his fist to knock, but then thought better of it. She would just yell at him if he woke her. In a quick wisp he was taken into her room with his sand. It took only a few seconds for his eyes to adjust to her dark room. There was no sound aside from her soft breathing, and he didn't want to imagine what she had done before sleep took her. He made his way over to her, contemplating on getting in bed with her. With a deep breath he carefully crawled under the covers with her and stared at her back, since she was facing the other way.
Awakening slightly at the feel of the bed dipping behind her, she didn't need to open her eyes to know who it was. She rolled over and wiggled closer to his chest, nuzzling him affectionately. "I'm sorry." She mumbled, hoping he would forgive her.
He did nothing to suppress the small smile that came to his face. He snuck his hands around her waist and pulled her against him, mostly so that he could feel her. "No Sakura, I'm sorry. You didn't do anything wrong." He said softly, his voice nothing but tender and caring.
She wrapped her arms around him in return, effectively bringing her body flush against his. "But I couldn't make you smile." She semi-whined, scrunching her brow in displeasure. "I just wanted to take away your pain, for whatever reason you were hurting."
He buried his face in her hair. He didn't want her feeling sad about his current emotional state. "I'm sorry for being so messed up, it wasn't something that you could do anything about Sakura. It's just me, I'm just…damaged, probably beyond repair." He sighed, taking in her sweet scent. "This is something I have to get through myself…"
She nuzzled his neck again, for reassurance. "Everyone is damaged in some way Gaara. I mean, look at me. I can't function without another person keeping me company, my greatest fear is of being alone. So, just as you will always be there for me when I want you, I will save you from your darkness, as long as you want me."
He remained quiet, but she could feel his nod. "Sakura…" he began with a long sigh. "I'm sorry…for tomorrow."
She frowned at his statement. "Don't be. He brought this upon himself. It was only a matter of time before he was caught and punished for his actions." She said, mimicking his words when they had first begun to stay with each other. Strange how loving someone made you understand their reasoning a lot better.
He gave a small nod, giving her a tight squeeze. "Alright. Goodnight Sakura."
She snuggled closer to his warmth. "Goodnight Gaara. Sweet dreams." She sighed, and fell into a peaceful slumber.