After an amazing time at the beach with my friends, I've discovered two things.

1. I am incapable of getting sunburn.

2. Shady boardwalk food is the best.

Anyway, the usual author's note blahblahblah here. Just enjoy the chapter, all of my lovely readers.

Fancy Footwork

Chapter 5: Bikinis, Sand and Aloe

"Aren't you swimming, Sakura-chan?" Sasori inquired. Sakura, hugging her legs to her chest under the big beach umbrella, looked up at him with a tight smile. She shook her head, letting her head droop until her cheek pressed against her right knee. To her surprise, Sasori sat on the beach towel beside her with a sigh.

"Is it the bikini?" he asked after a minute. She didn't look over at him as she nodded. She was still wearing a loose white t-shirt and khaki shorts over the mint green bikini that Deidara had picked out for her. She gasped when Sasori lifted the collar of her shirt to peek at her bathing suit. Slapping him away, she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Sorry. It's just that… it looks really good on you," Sasori flatly said. Had it been anyone else, she would have thought he was lying. But Sasori was one of those people who didn't care about social grace and breaking things to people delicately. In fact, as soon as they had arrived on the beach, some other girls wearing tiny scraps of fabric had run up to the four attractive males to flirt, shoving Sakura to the side in the process. Sasori had looked the girls straight in the eyes and simply said "Too much make-up" before walking away with Sakura in tow.

Sakura couldn't stop the little smile that spread across her lips as she took in his compliment. They both looked up as Deidara came splashing out of the water and flying through the sand. He fell to his knees in front of Sakura and clasped both her hands in his.

"Sakura-chan, Itachi and Tuna-chan are ganging up on me, yeah. Come swimming with us," Deidara pleaded with his most dazzling smile. Sakura stared at him and then looked out at the water where Kisame was waving enthusiastically with both arms. She felt the word "yes" forming on her tongue when she saw Itachi lift a hand in greeting too. But when she looked down at her outfit and imagined the embarrassingly revealing bikini underneath, she shook her head furiously. Deidara deflated a little but didn't protest.

"Mackerel-kun! Sakura-chan says no!" Deidara called out to Kisame. The blonde turned to Sakura who buried her face in her arms.

"Hey, don't worry about it. We can stop by a boutique later and pick out a one-piece for you, 'kay?" Deidara assured her, patting her shoulder. Feeling slightly better about herself, she peered up at him and nodded a little. He grinned in response and ruffled her hair.

"HEY! SAKURA! I BET YOU SUCK AT SWIMMING! I BET YOU LOOK LIKE A DYING COW SWIMMING!" Kisame suddenly hollered, cupping his hands around his mouth. Sakura stiffened. Deidara whipped his head around to shoot his friend a glare.

"You're not helping, Sharkie, yeah!" Deidara snarled. Ignoring the blonde, Kisame shouted even louder.

"KITTEN! IF YOU BEAT ME IN A RACE, I'LL BUY ALL YOUR FOOD FOR THE NEXT THREE DAYS!" Kisame shouted. Sakura didn't respond as she simply stared out at his form jumping around in the water.

"Actually, never mind. You couldn't beat me if I was missing an arm," he snorted loudly.

Deidara yelped when Sakura scrambled to her feet and peeled off her clothes, throwing them onto the beach towel. Underneath, she was wearing a mint green bikini with white piping and ties on the sides. (Which, in her opinion, was the worst since the ties left her vulnerable to perverts.) But her competitive streak overran her embarrassment as she picked up a bottle of spray-on sun block and began coating her arms and legs.

"Wait! Sakura-chan! I thought you were embarrassed, yeah!" Deidara sputtered as Sakura began furiously applying sun block to her face and chest. She turned to him while she twisted awkwardly to spray her shoulder blades.

"The only thing I hate more than being embarrassed is LOSING," she replied before she threw the can in his lap and sprinted off into the sand. When she reached the water, she waded up to where Kisame was standing with a cocky grin. The water only went up to his stomach whereas the waves were lapping at her collarbones. Still, she stood her ground and glared up at him.

"First one to the buoy and back," Kisame instructed, pointing to a red blob in the distance. Deidara splashed over to them with a huge smile on his face.

"On your mark! Get set! Go!" he hollered, throwing his arms in the air. But the 'go' was garbled as Sakura dove under the water. The cool waves that washed over her were almost too cold. But her muscles remembered the feeling and after a few moments, everything just felt pleasantly cool. And thanks to the insane "training" she had suffered through, her body felt strong and almost relieved as it cut through the oncoming waves. Her legs kicked furiously as her arms rose and fell, splitting through the water. The blue world around her frothed as her movements spawned billions of bubbles. Just beside her, she caught glimpses of Kisame's powerful arms moving him forward. When the floating base of the buoy came into view, Sakura propelled her body the last few yards and twisted around. Her feet touched the smooth metal for an instant before they pushed off, throwing her into the waves that carried her to shore.

She surfaced at the same time as Kisame, gasping for air and throwing her head back. Blinking a million times to get the salt water out of her eyes, she looked over at Kisame. He was panting too as droplets of water rolled off his arms and shoulders. His blue hair hung like a mop in his eyes until he pushed it back in an irritated sweep of his hand. Sakura pulled strands of wet hair out of her face, squinting against the sudden brightness of the sun.

"Who won, Deidara?" Kisame demanded between gasps. Sakura looked over at the blonde too, curious. Deidara's mouth hung open as he stared at them.

"Tuna-chan… you're buying Sakura-chan food," Deidara finally stated. Behind him, Itachi nodded, looking just as shocked.

"Yay!" Sakura cheered as she threw her hands in the air. When she turned around, Sasori had joined them in the water. His eyebrows were raised, which was more than enough to convey his surprise.

"I can't believe Sakura-chan swims faster than Sushi-kun over here," Deidara sighed, shaking his head. Without warning, Kisame smashed his fist into the water, sending a wave of water racing into Deidara's face.

"Don't call me Sushi-kun, you girly-boy," Kisame snapped.

"Ah. Sorry, Sashimi-chan," Deidara sneered, sticking his tongue out. With a roar, Kisame tackled the blonde, sending waves flying in all directions. Sakura shrieked when a wall of salty water smacked into her face, filling her mouth and nose. She shook her head, trying to clear her ears. She sputtered as she wiped her eyes and saw Sasori coughing as he shot the battling duo a disapproving stare. Itachi was scowling too as he pushed his hair out of his face.

"Ugh. I'm so thirsty now. I'll go buy us drinks," Sakura volunteered as she ran towards the shore.

"Ah, Sakura-chan!" Sasori called out but the sound was swallowed by a crashing wave. Back at the beach towel, Sakura quickly dried herself off as best as she could and crammed her wet toes into her flip-flops. After digging in her bag, she found her wallet and ran to the vending machines up on the boardwalk. It took her a minute with her bad sense of direction, but she finally found the machine for cold drinks and stood trying to choose the sort of beverage Itachi would enjoy. She finally settled on green tea and pushed the plastic button. As she leaned over to pick up the bottle, a hand smacked down on the machine and a huge shadow appeared over her.

"Hey, cutie. What's your name?"

The voice coupled with the golden tan was unmistakably-

"Naruto?"

"H-Haruno-chan?"

Naruto scuttled back a few steps, his hands raised in a passive gesture. Sakura turned to look at him, puzzled. He still had his t-shirt on over his swim trunks so he probably hadn't gone in the water yet. His blue eyes were huge as he stared at her too.

"W-What are you doing here?" Naruto nervously asked. But then his eyes found a drop of water that was gracefully trailing down from the nape of her neck to between her breasts. Sakura followed his gaze and turned scarlet as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm here with friends," she guardedly replied, not meeting his eyes. As if on cue, Sasori appeared over her shoulder, making Naruto jump.

"Sasori-san?" she exclaimed. Over the last month, she had learned that the quiet red-head had a penchant for unexpectedly showing up in the most random places. Her initial surprised squeal and jump reaction was now just a little jolt before her expression relaxed into a smile. Sasori blinked innocently as he took the cold drinks from her and gathered them up in the crook of his left arm.

"Deidara sent me to protect you from 'raging perverts'," Sasori flatly explained. Sakura sighed. As if reading her mind, Sasori looked down at his nails as he muttered, "Though that idiot's the biggest pervert we know," making Sakura giggle. And then, with a completely serious expression, Sasori looked over at Naruto.

"Are you a raging pervert?" Sasori demanded. Sakura clapped her hands over her mouth to stop herself from laughing at the look of utter terror written across Naruto's face. The blonde blanched for an instant as he looked into the red-head's blank eyes.

"NO!" Naruto shouted, his ears turning suspiciously pink.

"Haruno?"

At the sound of the familiar voice, Sakura immediately darted behind Sasori. And to her completely horror, Uchiha Sasuke strode up with his hands stuffed into his pockets to stand beside Naruto.

"Haruno, I know it's you. Don't be annoying," Sasuke sighed, as he arched an eyebrow in her direction. Sakura shrank against Sasori's back, refusing to move. When Sasori glanced over his shoulder, she stared up at him with huge puppy-dog eyes, silently pleading for him to do something. He heaved a silent sigh before he turned back to the two teenage boys eyeing him questioningly.

"You… are you a raging pervert?" Sasori inquired as he looked straight at Sasuke. Sasuke bristled at the sudden question from a complete stranger. He scowled, gritting his teeth and refusing to answer.

"He's not responding. I guess he is a raging pervert. Now, Sakura-chan, it's my duty to protect you from him. Off we go," Sasori calmly concluded as he turned around and tossed Sakura over his right shoulder. Sakura squealed her protest as she was lugged off like a sack of potatoes. Sasori seemed not to hear as he leisurely carried her down the boardwalk. As Sasuke and Naruto grew smaller and smaller, all Sakura could focus on was Sasuke's blank stare of disinterest aimed directly at her cleavage.

When Sakura was deposited on top of her beach towel a few minutes later, everyone was extremely startled when Sakura was bristling with anger. Deidara hovered unsurely over her, shooting Sasori suspicious glares.

"Did you touch her somewhere weird again?' Deidara finally demanded after a few minutes of Sakura's wordless fury. The red-head shook his head and the four men went back to watching Sakura with concern.

"I mean, what's wrong with them!" Sakura suddenly exploded, continuing the internal monologue she had been spitting out inside her head. The men stared at her, baffled. Sakura seemed to suddenly remember that she had an audience of four as she looked up; she wilted a little.

"I'm standing there talking to Naruto and all he's doing is staring at my boobs. And then, when Sasori-san's carrying me away, all Sasuke's doing is staring at my boobs too!" Sakura exclaimed, gesturing wildly in the red-head's direction.

"He could have been a random rapist and they still would've stood ogling me forever!" she fumed, crossing her arms over her chest. She took a moment to think and then turned to Itachi.

"And you know what Sasuke-kun says, Itachi-san?" Sakura continued her rant. Itachi humored her as he sat beside her and looked her straight in the eyes, giving her his full attention. Sakura hunched her shoulders over and threw her head back in the same cocky way Sasuke did.

" 'Haruno, I know it's you. Don't be annoying,' " she sneered, imitating Sasuke's deep voice and adding in a good "hnh" for emphasis. Itachi pursed his lips, trying his best not to laugh at the girl clearly mocking his younger brother with surprising accuracy.

"Who does he think he is? How dare he call me annoying when he can't look away from my boobs!" Sakura snarled, throwing her arms in the air. Deidara burst into laughter, earning a dirty look from Sakura. The force of her evil stare drained the smile from his face until they sat quietly, watching Sakura stew in her black cloud of anger.

After a long pause, Kisame carefully raised his hand like he was a student being punished in class.

"Um… so… let me get this straight. You're angry because two teenage boys, including the one that stomped all over your confession, were staring at your boobs," Kisame flatly said. Sakura nodded once as her lip stuck out in a pout. Deidara heaved a sigh as he flopped onto the sand beside her.

"Sakura-chan, I hate to break it to you but you have some nice boobs. They're not too big, not too small and kind of perky," Deidara said with a shrug. Sakura's eyes grew huge as she curled her knees to her chest to cover it. Her entire face and neck turned bright red as she threw her hands over her face, mortified.

"WHAT IS THIS, GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE BOOBS?" Kisame snarled as he brought his sandal down on Deidara's head.

"Ignore that pervert over there, Sakura-chan. What we're trying to say is that you are very cute and wearing a cute bikini. It's sort of natural for guys to be attracted that kind of thing," Sasori explained with a shrug. Sakura cautiously peeked up at him through the safety of her fingers.

"Is that all it takes to get a guy's attention?" she quietly asked. The four men took a moment to look at each other.

"Pretty much," they replied in unison.

"Anyway, Sakura-san, forget my stupid little brother. You came here to have fun, right?" Itachi said in his soothing voice and she couldn't help but worry a lot less.

Sakura groaned.

If this was Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame's version of fun, she was sure they ran Hell. Each morning: 6:00 wake-up call. 6:30 was an hour-long run on the beach before breakfast. By now, an hour-long run didn't seem like such a daunting task. The problem was the stupid sand that made moving infinitely more difficult. By the end of the run, her calves were screaming and her thighs just about ready to explode from the sheer pain.

"I'm going to die, Deidara-san," she huffed as she collapsed in the chair next to him. The hotel had graciously provided one of their smaller gyms as a dance studio, though she shuddered to think how much Itachi had paid for the privilege. Then again, Sasuke never had a problem using designer bags and ridiculously expensive shoes around school so that Uchiha clan probably didn't mind forking over some extra cash.

Deidara responded by pulling out a bottle of aloe vera gel and wincing as he rolled up his sleeves. The skin on his shoulders was a dangerous shade of red, making Sakura cringe with sympathy.

"Let me," she quickly said when she saw Deidara eyeing his sunburn dubiously. He eagerly relinquished the tube and settled back in his chair. Sakura squeezed the clear goop out and gingerly massaged in his arm. Deidara gritted his teeth but didn't complain as she made sure to cover all of the red. He twisted around in his seat and let her repeat the process on the other arm before she handed the bottle back to him. Deidara looked her up and down and scowled.

"What the hell, yeah. You were crazy pale and now you're a bronzed beach babe," he complained. Sakura glanced down at her arm and found that it had tanned nicely, leaving a warm, summery glow. She shrugged apologetically as she fanned herself. Deidara twisted open a bottle of water and gulped down half the contents in one go. He offered her the bottle next and she reached over to accept before Itachi pushed Deidara's face away and handed her an unopened bottle.

"Be careful, Kitten. Sunburn isn't the only stuff this guy has picked up," Kisame muttered as he walked past. Deidara leapt to his feet with sudden vigor as he shook his fist.

"What are you implying, Sharkie?" he hollered as he ran after Kisame who did a good job in ignoring him.

"Are you alright, Sakura-san?" Itachi asked as he took the chair Deidara had vacated. Sakura twisted the cap open and took a sip of water. She put a hand on her chest, trying to even out her breathing. Suddenly, the bottle was plucked from her hands and placed on the floor. Itachi took hold of her wrists and raised her arms straight over her head.

"Sorry. I'm not doing anything weird," he apologized, seeing her face frozen with shock, "But try taking a deep breath now. It should be easier when your back is straight."

Sakura struggled to keep a straight face as Uchiha Itachi held her hands and watched her very… very intently. But when she took another deep breath, the knot inside her chest loosened. It felt so good that she took another deep gulp of air and sighed. Itachi lowered her arms with a small smile.

"Raising your arms improves your posture. Slouching makes it harder to breathe," he explained. Sakura nodded as she took in the helpful tidbit. She retrieved the bottle and took another sip. They sat, watching with mild amusement as Deidara karate chopped Kisame in the back of the head as he took a sip of water. Kisame sputtered before he whirled around and grabbed Deidara in a headlock.

"We're heading home tomorrow morning," Sakura began and Itachi's head turned towards her.

"Any last requests?" he asked as he watched the way she chewed on her lower lip. She smiled nervously. It was always a little flattering and nerve-wracking that he read her so well.

"Um… can we goshoppingprettyprettyplease?" she blurted out at once as she stared down at her feet.

"Shopping?" Itachi repeated, arching his eyebrows. Sakura nervously glanced over at him. What if he thought she was some stupid, shallow girl because of this? But when she met his eyes, they were a little puzzled but warm.

"On the way to the hotel, we passed by this little boutique with this gorgeous bracelet and I really want to buy it," she explained, her voice growing smaller and smaller under his gaze. She started when Itachi suddenly got to his feet.

"Everyone meet back in the lobby in 30 minutes," he called out, drawing everyone's attention. They looked at him questioningly, especially Sakura.

"It's the last day so we're heading into town to buy souvenirs and have dinner," Itachi ordered, not looking at Sakura. She felt her face stretch into a wide smile. On impulse, she jumped to her feet and threw her arms around him in a quick hug before she ran off.

"Itachi… you're blushing," Kisame hesitantly said once the girl was gone.

"….Shut up, Kisame."

After a quick shower, Sakura slipped on one of the summery dresses Sasori had given to her after the photo shoot along with silver sandals and a little matching purse. At exactly 5 pm, Sasori and Deidara knocked on her door. Deidara with his dark jeans and white t-shirt that showed off his biceps looked like a model straight out a fashion magazine. And Sasori with his ear piercings, bleached jeans and black sleeveless hoodie looked like some sort of undercover rock star. Sakura gave them the obligatory girly twirl to show off the dress and received approving smiles.

"Hold on a sec, yeah," Deidara said as he gathered her damp hair into a side ponytail and pinned it in place with bobby pins he had pulled from nowhere. ("Magic," he whispered with a cheeky wink.) After she was deemed presentable, they headed down to the lobby where Itachi and Kisame were already waiting. Sakura had to take a moment to calm herself when she saw that Itachi's white shirt was left half unbuttoned with the sleeves casually rolled up. The glimpses of his taut chest each time he moved were definitely unhealthy for her heart.

Sakura smiled, preparing herself for a pleasant evening with her friends who happened to be rather attractive young men.

What none of them had expected were women to follow them around, whispering to each other as they wondered if the men were celebrities. Sakura took to walking between Itachi and Kisame so she could avoid the jealous glares from passing women. When she heard one particularly venomous woman hiss, "She's so ugly. Who dyes their hair pink?" Sakura felt her eyes sting as hot tears threatened to well up. Sasori leaned forward so that his mouth was just beside her right ear.

"This is good practice. Stand up straight. Smile. Show her how beautiful you are," he whispered before he straightened and continued walking normally.

Sakura took a deep breath. She channeled the humiliation from the biting stares deep into her chest. The shame and frustration welled up enough to make her want to cry. Instead, she glanced up at Itachi. He was watching her, his forehead creased with concern. It was then that she remembered him during dance practice, his strong body moving with grace and precision that made her heart pound.

That was right.

Dance wasn't about looking good or getting the steps perfect. It was about moving the way the music pulled you and losing yourself in the moment.

So she lost herself in music that only she could hear. She held her head high, pulling her shoulders back. It was if just a change of posture let the whispered criticisms roll straight off her back. The murderous glares were still there, but somehow, when she looking the women straight in the eyes instead of looking down and apologizing, they were just people without the power to hurt her.

Sasori nodded approvingly as he watched her spine stretch out and her head tilt back just the slightest bit. Itachi's tense shoulders relaxed a little as he looked over at the girl. But Sasori's eyes were drawn to the subtle sway in Sakura's hips. She had never walked that way before so it hadn't really occurred to him. But Deidara leaned over jerking his chin in Sakura's direction.

"Sakura-chan… has a really nice butt," the blonde whispered, voicing exactly what Sasori had been thinking.

Unaware of her two friends subtly examining her butt, Sakura walked on until she spotted the small corner boutique she had described to Itachi. She tugged on the edge of Itachi's sleeve, pointing excitedly to the store and he nodded, a light smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

"Let's meet up in an hour," Itachi said, looking over his shoulder to make sure the two in the back had heard. But he followed Sasori's rapt gaze and found the pair observing Sakura's behind with interest. His eyes narrowed, making Deidara jump and quickly avert his gaze to the sky.

"An hour," Sasori calmly replied like he hadn't been caught staring. Itachi fixed him with a disapproving look before he let Sakura pull him and Kisame into the boutique.

"Welcome!" the pretty, young shop attendant greeted them. Her eyes lingered on Itachi's face for a fraction of a second and she very subtly fluttered her lashes at him. But then Sakura ran up to her with childish excitement etched across her face. At first, the attendant looked startled but, like most people, she was sucked in by the girl's enthusiasm and a matching bright smile spread across her face.

"Um, those bracelets on display in the window… how much are they?" Sakura inquired, pointing to the wooden rack. The attendant stepped out from behind the counter to help her figure out. They stood, looking through the signs until they found the amount and giggling together when they realized how easy it was to spot.

"Just one? That'll be-" the girl began but Sakura shook her head. The girl glanced up and met Itachi's eyes, her expression dimming with disappointment.

"Oh, then one more for your boyfriend?" she asked, gesturing towards Itachi. Sakura's face flared bright red as she shook her head furiously. Itachi chuckled quietly under his breath.

"Oh… then… is he your boyfriend?" the girl asked, her eyes resting on Kisame. With his big muscles, towering height and somewhat sharp teeth, the result was a little overwhelming. Sakura laughed a little as she shook her head.

"I need 4 more. For my friends," Sakura explained and asked for help choosing the colors. A few minutes, after making fast friends with the cashier of the boutique, Sakura paid for the bracelets and skipped outside, the little plastic bag dangling happily from her fingers. On the sidewalk, she abruptly stopped walking and turned around.

"Hands!" she happily ordered. Kisame and Itachi shot each other puzzled looks but they obediently held out their right hands. Sakura dug in her bag, pulled out a bracelet for each of them and tied them around their wrists. She held up her own hand to show off the black threads decorated with polished mother-of-pearl and light green beads. Itachi's was the same only with red beads while Kisame's had purple. Although Kisame grumbled that purple wasn't a very manly color, Sakura caught him staring appreciatively at the bracelet more than once. After stopping in a couple more stores, they traveled to the town square where there was a big stone water fountain.

Deidara and Sasori were already waiting, sitting on the edge of the fountain. Deidara immediately leapt to his feet when Sakura ran up to them, holding out to the two remaining bracelets.

"Orange, yeah!" Deidara happily exclaimed after she tied it on. He grabbed her in a tight hug and planted a kiss on the side of her head before Kisame yanked him away. Sasori graciously accepted his own blue bracelet and thanked her with a one-armed hug. His arm lingered on her shoulder as they stood in a circle. At first, Itachi noticed and thought about saying something, but then he caught the lecherous stares of men walking past and decided Sasori was a much more suitable alternative to some creepy men hitting on Sakura.

"I was thinking we could have dinner at that restaurant over there," Sasori suggested as he pointed at the seafood restaurant across the town square. Everyone agreed since their stomachs were growling. But Deidara was suddenly in front of her, his hands held together as if he were praying.

"I'm really sorry, Sakura-chan. I know you hate when we randomly get clothes for you…" Deidara began and Sakura's eyes immediately narrowed. In the span of one month, she had been forced to accept 11 dresses, 8 pairs of shoes, 6 shirts that she "had to have" and a pair of jeans (which were admittedly gorgeous and insanely comfortable). While all of them suited her well and fit perfectly, it made her feel terrible when they didn't let her pay for them. She had taken to secretly slipping the money into their jackets and bags when they weren't looking but most of the time they caught her.

"But you don't understand, Sakura-chan. This dress was made for you," Deidara insisted as he reached into a bag sitting at Sasori's feet. Sakura opened her mouth, ready to scold him, but all the words went flying out of her head when she saw what he was holding.

It was a white sundress with red polka dots and a red ribbon running around the waist. There were four tiny buttons in the front that were in the shape of lady bugs. With shaking hands, she let Deidara place it in her hands. She stared down at it wordlessly until her fingers began stroking the soft fabric.

"It wasn't expensive. Please please please please take it," Deidara pleaded. Sasori's arm, that she hadn't realized was still around her, gave her a light squeeze. She wanted to refuse or to at least whip out her wallet and hand over some money. With a guilt-filled groan, she hugged the dress to her chest and nodded.

"Thank you so much," she said as she smiled ruefully.

After a pleasant dinner filled with laughter, they strolled down the boardwalk before retiring to their rooms for the night. At 6 am, Sakura dragged herself out of the ridiculously soft hotel bed and into the bathroom to wash up before she took her suitcase and took the elevator down to the lobby. At first, she felt silly still wearing her monkey-print pajama pants that she had bought as a joke with Deidara the week before, but then Kisame, still wearing his matching pants, lumbered out of the elevator and greeted her with a yawn. Itachi followed after, wearing jeans and a t-shirt and not looking any less gorgeous than usual. Sasori and Deidara were next, looking impeccably fashionable and handsome as ever. Sakura glowered when they greeted her with perfect smiles and showed off their perfect not-bed head.

"Deidara and I've got to head to school so we'll go together," Sasori said.

"I'm going home and sleeping," Kisame grumbled.

"I'll drop off Sakura-san then," Itachi said and she spared him a tired smile. With a lot more yawning and dragging of feet from Kisame and Sakura, they went their separate ways in the parking lot. Sakura tossed her suitcase in the back seat and climbed into the passenger seat, promptly curling up and dozing off again. When she woke again, they were already on the highway.

"Awake?" he greeted her when she blearily lifted her head and looked out the window.

"Sorry… I'm not a morning person," she mumbled.

"That's alright," Itachi simply replied. They sat quietly, listening to the hum of the air conditioner. Sakura glanced into the back seat and saw her new dress poking out of the top of her bag and scowled.

"I wish they would stop spending money on me," she sighed mostly to herself.

"They have their reasons," Itachi assured her in a tone that made her forehead crease.

"Reasons?" she repeated, baffled.

"Sasori has cousins around your age, I believe. He's very fond of them but because of family troubles, he doesn't get to see them often. Deidara grew up without a mother or siblings. Kisame has a younger brother but since their parents' divorce, he hasn't been able to see him," Itachi listed off. Sakura's eyes widened as she looked back at the dress. Suddenly, she felt a little bad for giving Sasori and Deidara such a hard time about it.

"Oh," she just said, not knowing what else to say. Itachi nodded.

"Indulge them a little, Sakura-san. It means a lot to them that they get to spoil you a little," Itachi continued. He thought for a moment and then glanced over with an unreadable expression.

"I think you could use some spoiling," he commented rather bluntly before turning on the radio to fill her pensive silence.

When they stopped in front of her apartment building later, Sakura heaved a tired sigh.

"Home sweet home," she said a little sadly as she imagined the empty rooms and the echo of her own footsteps. Her mother had called a few days before, apologizing furiously as soon as Sakura had picked up the phone. She had been scheduled to stay in Japan for about two months, but she had received a sudden assignment to meet with clients in Canada. She would be flying straight from England to Vancouver. Sakura had tried not to sound too annoyed, but it had become such a regular occurrence that Sakura was more used to her house without her mom than with her. Still, it was so lonely returning to a silent home and eating meals alone at a table built for four. But when she reached for the door handle, Itachi suddenly locked the car and began driving down the street.

"Itachi-san?"

"I was going to visit my parents today. Sasuke's still down at the beach so it should be fine."

"What?"

Itachi parked the car in a driveway and looked over at her with the smile that made her heart melt into a little pile of goop.

"Welcome to the Uchiha household," he said. Sakura slowly turned to the window and saw an adorable two-story house complete with flowerbeds out front and a recently-mowed lawn. When the front door opened, Uchiha Mikoto waved at them and Sakura let her head hit the dashboard.

"Don't I get a say in this?" she grumbled.

"Of course," Itachi said, opening the car door. Sakura looked up at him hopefully but a mischievous smile was curling his lips.

"You get to say yes."

Sakura stuck her tongue out at him and he let out a startled laugh.

Please review in anticipation of more awkward and cute ItaSaku fluffiness.