A/N: Hello!

Rich Boy, Poor Heart II

Chapter Thirteen

000

CONTINUING JULY 19

Sakura sat down on a nearby chair and looked over at Sai seriously. His smile faltered a little. He was confused by her expression.

"You said you had something to ask me," He stated calmly. She nodded.

"Please tell me about Sasuke-kun and Karin," Sakura told him straight forward. There was a short pause.

"Ah…you mean when they were together?" Sai clarified. Sakura nodded slowly. His fake smile appeared again.

"Sure," He replied. Her eyes brightened, and he noticed this. "Thank you, Sai-san," She told him sincerely. He nodded before speaking again.

"They were together about…four or five years ago, when the Uchiha Gane partnership first formed. They were introduced to each other, and of course, Karin fell for him right away. Sasuke-san, on the other hand, thought she was an annoyance at first," Sai began. Sakura frowned.

"But…I guess they got to know each other a bit more"—

"But why would Sasuke like Karin?" She demanded.

"Let me finish first before asking questions," Sai replied. Sakura sighed, but nodded.

"They started dating eventually. However, Sasuke-san didn't date her for her personality or anything like that. He was still young then, and knew nothing. He was immature," Sai explained bluntly.

"Though it may sound unbelievable, he dated her for her body," Sai stated and Sakura widened her eyes.

"Were they…intimate?" She asked, nearly fearing the answer. The male looked away from her.

"Tell me," The pink-haired girl told him, almost forcefully.

"Sasuke-san isn't a virgin," Sai finally admitted. Sakura's stomach clenched painfully and her eyes began to tear up.

"Soon enough, Sasuke realized just dating her for her body wasn't satisfying him the right way. He broke up with her. And that's it. Of course, Karin was angry…and I suppose somewhat 'heartbroken'," Sai finished.

Sakura still couldn't believe it. Everyone knew. But they didn't want her to know.

Sai's eyes widened when Sakura had rushed out of the chair and jumped onto to him, hugging him tightly.

"Sakura-san…I don't think this is very…appropriate," He informed her. She shook her head.

"I-I need the comfort right n-now," She sobbed quietly. Sai had never been hugged like this, and he didn't know what to do. So, he simply lifted his arms up, and patted her back. He let her cry on his shoulder.

END JULY 19

000

JULY 20

Sakura woke up in her bed with a confused expression. Her eyes hurt a bit.

She walked over to the mirror and saw that her eyes were pink, and even red in some places. She frowned.

'That's right…Sai told me that Sasuke-kun isn't…'

Sakura shook her head. Just the thought made her want to cry again.

'Sasuke-kun's weird perverted thoughts came back after Karin's visit…'

She flopped back onto her bed.

'Is he attracted to me…or her…?'

The pink-haired girl opened the curtains, and saw that it was raining quite heavily. She sighed loudly.

Knock knock…

"Come in…" Sakura said. The door opened and Sakura glanced over. It was Sai.

"I am guessing you wondered why you were in your bed this morning," He told her.

She nodded slowly.

"You cried yourself to sleep on me. So I was going to carry you back to your room," Sai explained. Sakura rose an eyebrow.

"Going to…?" She questioned.

"I met Sasuke-san along the way," Sai told her, smirking lightly. Sakura blinked in surprise.

"Did he…do anything to you? Did he ask you anything?" She asked quickly.

"Of course, he asked me why you were in my room. And I told him. He knows you know about him and Karin," Sai replied. Sakura nodded slowly. She wasn't mad at Sai. She was about to confront Sasuke about it anyway.

"Anyway, he took you away from me and told me to stay away from you," He added. Sakura smiled.

"Don't listen to what he says," She said. He nodded.

"I wasn't planning to. You should come down for breakfast now," Sai told her.

"Yeah…just give me a few minutes," Sakura replied listlessly as Sai left her room.

000

Sakura ambled down the hallway very slowly. The sun wasn't shining. It was pouring rain. And she had found out yesterday that all her friends had kept a very important secret from her. All in all, her legs felt like lead and her head felt airy and light. Not a good combination at all.

"Sakura!" She heard an extremely familiar voice say loudly. Arms were encircled around her body. She widened her eyes and realized that she was just about to fall down to stairs. She turned around to face her savior.

"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura whispered. Sasuke shook his head.

"Don't go blanking out like that," He snapped.

Sakura pushed his arms away and turned around to completely face him. He instantly noticed how pink her eyes were and frowned.

"Sakura"—

"Sasuke-kun, I think it's better if we take a little break from each other," Sakura cut him off. His eyes widened slightly.

"Break?" He asked. Sakura nodded without hesitation.

"I'm not breaking up with you though. I just need time to…think," The pink-haired girl explained. Sasuke looked at her carefully.

"I…understand," He finally said. Sakura looked down at the floor. When she looked up, he was already walking down the stairs. The pink-haired girl let out a deep sigh and leaned against the wall.

'I…was able to do it…'

Finally, she walked down the stairs to the dining table. But before she could enter the room, Sai stepped in front of her.

"I wouldn't go in there if I were you. They're talking about you," He told her. Sakura widened her eyes slightly, then frowned.

"What were they saying…?" She dared to ask. Sai glanced away from her.

"Apparently, you just broke up with Uchiha-san," He replied carefully. Sakura looked away.

"I…didn't break up with him. We're just taking a short break," She explained. To her surprise, Sai smirked.

"Then it's a short break up," He told her. She didn't say anything back.

"Do you think you can cope with this?" Sai asked her. Sakura looked up at him, then smiled.

"I suppose," She replied before walking back up the stairs.

000

Knock, knock!

"Hai?" Sakura called out as she walked over to her locked door.

"It's Sai," A voice said back. Her eyes widened slightly, but she unlocked and opened the door.

He was holding a small tray of food.

"I'm assuming you didn't eat breakfast yet," Sai told her. Sakura grinned.

"Y…yeah…" She replied. He invited himself into her room and sat down on the floor. She gratefully took the tray from him and began eating.

"Sasuke-san is really…sad," Sai commented. Sakura glanced up at him, and frowned.

"It's okay…it's not like we're really broken up or anything," She answered back.

"Then you should tell him that. He thinks the exact opposite," Sai informed her, surprising her slightly.

"Eventually, everything will be okay…I just wish…" The pink-haired girl trailed off and Sai looked at her curiously.

"I just wish someone would have told me about Sasuke and Karin earlier," Sakura finished. Sai gave her a smile.

"They probably feel bad for what they've done," He told her. She sighed.

"Probably…" she muttered as she finished up the last of her breakfast.

Knock, knock!

"Come in," Sai called out for Sakura. The door opened quickly to reveal Ino, Shikamaru, Naruto, Hinata, Ten Ten, Neji, Rain, Itachi and Iko.

"Sai?" Ino asked, looking at him suspiciously. Sakura shook her head quickly.

"He just came here to give me some breakfast," She explained. Ino nodded slowly, but still confused.

"Anyway…" Naruto started awkwardly. He cleared his throat quickly.

"We're all here to apologize," He stated. Sakura widened her eyes as they all looked at her sincerely.

"We didn't think you'd find out and get this upset…" Ino said, frowning deeply.

"And we all felt really guilty," Ten Ten added.

"Will you forgive everyone?" Shikamaru asked, a ghost of a smirk on his lips. She smiled back at him.

"Of course!" She replied. Then, she had finally realized that Sasuke wasn't with them.

"Where's…Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked, trying not to sound too worried.

"He said he wants to apologize to you personally," Naruto explained and Sakura frowned.

"Sakura, can we talk privately?" Shikamaru asked her, much to her surprise. He looked over at the group.

"Privately," He repeated. Ino cast him a quick look before leaving with the rest of the group.

"Sai, do you understand what's coming out of my mouth?" Shikamaru sighed. Sakura shook her head.

"It's fine if Sai hears. I'm guessing it's about Karin?" She asked. He nodded, glancing quickly at Sai.

"Partly. You see…" Shikamaru started.

"You didn't like the thing about Sasuke and Karin being kept a secret from you. Wouldn't you be doing the same thing to everyone else but keeping our visit to Karin's a secret?" He asked cleverly as Sakura frowned.

"You're…you're right," Sakura sighed, defeated.

"Then we should tell them some time or another," Shikamaru suggested. The pink-haired girl nodded slowly.

"Tonight we'll tell them…" She said.

"Okay then. I'll…" Shikamaru looked over at Sai again. "I'll be leaving now. See ya," He said before leaving the room.

"It seems no one likes me," Sai finally spoke. Sakura sighed, then smiled at him.

"They just don't understand you. You should just try getting close to them. They're all good people, so it shouldn't be that difficult," She told him.

"Maybe," He said as he stood up. He pointed at the door and Sakura looked at him with a confused face.

"There's someone over there. So, I'll be leaving now," Sai said, picking up the breakfast tray. Sakura looked at the door curiously.

"Ah…okay…thanks for the breakfast, Sai-san," She said quickly as he opened the door.

The person from the other side brushed passed Sai. Sakura looked at him in surprise.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes before closing the door.

"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura muttered.

"What was he doing here?" Sasuke asked instantly.

"He was just here to bring me some breakfast. Sai's a nice person," She told him, slowly growing annoyed.

"I don't like him," He answered back. Sakura frowned.

"I don't like Karin," She huffed. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"I don't like her either, Sakura," He told her.

"You used to," The pink-haired girl countered back, much to the Uchiha's displeasure. He walked forward until he was directly in front of her.

"I didn't like her for her personality," Sasuke started.

"I was shallow," He muttered.

"You…" He tucked a bundle of pink hair behind her ear.

"You made me realize that," He continued. Sakura's breath caught up in her throat slightly. Sasuke smirked lightly.

"I like you for you," He told her. To his surprise, he heard short sobs coming from her.

"D…did I say something wrong?" Sasuke asked, alarmed. Sakura giggled, and he widened his eyes slightly.

"N…no…I'm just…happy," She managed back. He ruffled her hair gently.

"I…don't like it when you cry," Sasuke stated simply. Sakura smiled and hugged him.

"Some short 'break' this was," She told him.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the door, Sai was standing there, with a serious expression on his face.

000

"Um…guys?" Sakura said uncertainly, approaching everyone who was in the living room.

Everyone looked up at her, and Shikamaru, knowing it was his cue, walked over to stand beside her.

Sasuke looked at her so intently, she had to glance away.

Ino eyed Shikamaru suspiciously. Naruto titled his head to the side, clearly confused.

"Um…well…how do I…" Sakura blurted out nervously. Shikamaru smirked beside her.

"Yesterday, me and Sakura went to Karin's house," He announced for her. Sasuke's expression turned into one mixed with confusion and slight annoyance. Ino looked strangely offended.

"I…I told her some things. And she agreed to stop using me or anyone else to get to Sasuke-kun," The pink-haired girl said, finally gathering up some courage.

"How are you sure she wasn't lying?" Naruto asked quickly.

"She said she's making a contract," Shikamaru replied.

"That's…interesting," Neji commented.

"Then…that's good! Right?" Rain asked, looking at her Uchiha boyfriend.

"Were you planning on keeping this a secret?" Itachi questioned. Sakura frowned.

"I…yes. But then Shikamaru suggested that we tell everyone," She answered back, smiling at Shikamaru.

"Sasuke-kun…are you mad?" Sakura asked the Uchiha. He sighed, but shook his head.

"You could've asked me to go with you though," He muttered back.

"You wouldn't have let me go then," She replied, giggling lightly. He smirked back.

Meanwhile, a certain blonde girl wasn't looking too happy.

000

"Ino-chan? Since when do you go up on the roof?" Sakura asked as she poked her head from the ladder. Ino widened her eyes in surprise.

"I just felt like…being alone for a while," Ino replied slowly. Sakura titled her head to the side and sat down next to her.

"You go here on the roof?" Ino asked curiously. The pink-haired girl nodded.

"Almost every night! Sometimes I run into Sasuke-kun, Sai, Hinata, even Shikamaru," Sakura listed down, counting her fingers.

At the mention of Shikamaru, Ino cringed slightly and looked away.

"But…" Sakura started.

"Usually they only come here if they're not feeling well."

Ino frowned and looked over at the girl.

"Ino, what's wrong?" Sakura asked, extremely concerned. Ino sighed.

"It's Shikamaru," She finally admitted. Sakura rose an eyebrow.

"Shikamaru…? Did he do something wrong?" She asked. Ino frowned.

"He's so…stupid!" She burst out, and Sakura sweat dropped.

"What did he do?" Sakura continued to question.

"All he talks about…is you!" Ino said loudly, rubbing her eyes like a child. The pink-haired girl looked at her in surprise.

"…What about…?" Sakura said. Ino pouted.

"You and Sasuke-kun. And how you're having a hard time about Karin. And how he really worries about you…I tried getting him to talk about, you know, us. But all he does is talk about you…" The blonde explained. Sakura frowned.

"Ino, Shikamaru only thinks of me as a friend. He loves you," She said, patting her best friend's back. Ino wailed.

"But…but you two have so much in common! You're both so smart…and you guys play shougi together…and…you even went to Karin's house together…secretly…"

"Ino," A voice sighed. The two girls turned to see Shikamaru, standing on the ladder and regarding them with a cool expression.

"Sakura, would you mind…not being on the roof tonight?" He asked the girl, smirking lightly. Sakura grinned.

"Sure thing!" She chirped before heading towards the ladder that Shikamaru was climbing off of.

"By the way, someone's waiting for you at the bottom of that ladder," He added as Sakura climbed down with a confused face. She looked down to see Sasuke, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said happily as she hopped off of the ladder and rushed towards him.

"You go on the roof too much," He told her as she tackled him into a quick embrace.

"Let's go on a walk, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura told him happily.

000

Sakura walked ahead of Sasuke, with her hands held together behind her back.

"I always thought the forest looked scary at night…but…for some reason, it looks really pretty right now," The pink-haired girl said with a smile. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"You're strange," He told her with a small smirk. Sakura grinned at him, but then sighed. He cocked up an eyebrow.

"What's up?" He asked, walking towards her.

"Did you talk to Karin like this?" She asked reluctantly. Sasuke frowned.

"Karin doesn't matter," He said after a small pause. Sakura half laughed.

"I'm…just a bit jealous," She admitted, much to Sasuke's surprise.

"She was your first love…your first kiss…you first"—

She blushed lightly and shook her head.

"She wasn't my first love. I didn't love her," Sasuke told her. Sakura titled her head to the side, slightly confused.

"I was just a boy with uncontrollable hormones, Sakura. I didn't love her," He repeated.

"If it makes you feel any better…you're my first love," Sasuke said, his cheeks turning pink. Sakura stared at him in disbelief, before her face broke out into a wide smile.

"Of course that makes me feel a lot better!" She said.

"You have nothing to worry about anymore," Sasuke told her and she nodded cheerfully.

"Anyway, let's walk back now. It's getting really dark," He suggested, turning around.

Sakura jogged to catch up to him, and smiled at him softly while clutching onto his hand.

END JULY 20

A/N: Sorry, this chapter was a bit delayed!

Thanks for reading!