La Tua Cantante

Chapter 6:

INTERROGATIONS

One could say that Sakura was used to seeing wealthy people dining in fabulous restaurants. She had heard of the mature waiters, the delicious food and the classy small talk being shared. She had seen the snobby rich people who picked at their food and the pricey plates sitting innocently on tables covered by expensive fabrics.

Of course, these experiences were all done through television.

"Do you have a reservation?" asked the man behind the counter politely, as he flashed the customers a dazzling smile. Gesturing towards the interior of the restaurant, he courteously pointed a slender hand to the workers. "I assure you, this restaurant is of top class, complete with exquisite food and wonderful service."

As if on signal, a worker, clad in sleek attire consisting of a black vest over a white blouse with matching pants, smiled at the pair graciously before returning to complete the order of an elderly couple. Despite the fact that her feet were touching the marble floors of the luxurious scope, the pink haired girl was still baffled and unsure if she had been whisked away by her handsome boss to an upscale restaurant, or if this was all mere fantasy.

Fiddling with the sleeve of her coat, Sakura turned to her dark haired companion for help. "Well... do you have one, Sasuke-kun?"

With a slight jerk, said man rotated his body to face the maître d' casually. Onyx eyes scanned the employee lazily before he sighed and leant forward on the bureau. "No," said the man stoically, as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Would we be able to eat here without one?"

The host shot them a smug grin, before running a hand through his hair refreshingly as he played with the reservation papers in front of him. "I'm afraid that without a reservation, there is no place for you here, sir."

"That's too bad; I'd hate to close this restaurant because of bad service."

Growling, the man lifted his chin up haughtily as he pointed a finger accusingly at him. "Who do you think you are? I can have security take you outside right now i—"

He was cut off as a hand quickly slapped down a card onto the mahogany surface of the desk. "Who do I think I am?" Sasuke reiterated as his pale hand rose away from the card to permit the scowling man to get a glimpse of its readings. As if the action was done with absolute mockery, the vampire ran his fingers through his raven locks, glaring at the man as he did so.

Eyes widened and a gasp was heard as the man cupped his hands to his mouth in horror. "Sir, I-I really didn't know tha—"

"That what? That Uchiha Sasuke was coming?"

The very name sent shivers down the poor server's spine, spread fervent whispers around the room and caused female workers to swoon.

Sakura glowered at the numerous stares she was receiving from her comment, and flicked her head to ignore them. "Just get us a table," she barked irritably, crossing her arms over her chest. "Now that you know he's here, aren't you going to do something about it?"

Blushing at the revelation, the host put his hands up in surrender and ushered a nearby waitress forward as he uttered directions subtly into her ear. A high pitched squeal erupted from the girl's lips when she assessed the handsome man appreciatively, and she drew herself up as she sashayed ahead of the pair. "This way, please."

"That was unnecessary," whispered a husky voice into Sakura's ear as a firm hand touched the small of her back. "And annoying."

Sakura grimaced inwardly as she allowed herself to be steered to the table that was being graciously offered by the flirty waitress. "It was not unnecessary! We would never have gotten anywhere if I hadn't stepped in!"

"Hn," grunted Sasuke as he pulled a chair out amiably. Sliding into it elegantly, he watched as his pink haired secretary yanked her seat out and plopped onto it angrily. "Order, now."

"Hah! I just sat down, and you expect me to order straight away?" Sakura sneered, snatching the menu from its place on the table. She flipped it open and buried her nose deep into it, effectively hiding her face from the bossy Uchiha.

The waitress giggled and posed her body in a seductive manner as she bent forward to speak softly into his ear. "What would you like to drink?" breathed the ditsy girl as she deliberately showed off her assets. "If you have trouble choosing... I have some recommendations."

Sakura snorted at the double meaning in those words, and avoided a brief glare as she hid behind the paper once again. Sighing loudly, she muttered inaudible curses before clearing her throat. "Oh no, I don't know what to get," she drawled ostentatiously as she lowered the menu to reveal her viridian eyes, which were brimming with mischief. "Would you help me?"

As the rosette expected, she was completely disregarded by the busty worker, who pretended not to hear her. Sakura shared a succinct peek with her boss before she shrugged, pursing her lips as if trying to deliver a telepathic message. "I tried," she mouthed sarcastically as she laid down the menu.

"That wasn't trying," he mouthed back, feeling disgruntled when the woman put her hands on his shoulders.

"Well, then my efforts were wasted." Sakura crossed her arms over her chest stubbornly, still holding the paper as she sat back in her chair in mock comfort. Tightening her taut frown, she continued to mouth messages. "I don't care."

Sasuke smirked at her unspoken comment. "You don't care?"

With that, he charmingly shot his pale hand out to reach for another menu that lay neatly in the middle of the table, and he turned the pages as he convincingly searched for a suitable beverage. Sakura could evidently tell he was pretending; his eyes hadn't left hers since his last silent remark. "We'll just have two Cokes."

"I'll be right back with your drinks," she assured him with more warmth than necessary. He didn't notice her superfluous smile as he intertwined his fingers together and continued to stare arrogantly at his secretary.

"Are girls that easily swayed by pretty boys?" Sakura sent a cold scowl the waitress's way as she set down the menu.

"So you think I'm pretty?" asked Sasuke as he too put down his menu. "I was never under the impression that you thought of me that way, Sakura."

Sakura lifted a brow. "I was never under the impression that men were fine with being called pretty."

"I never made any implications. Maybe your hunger is making you stupid."

Right on cue, the waitress returned with their promised drinks and complimentary bread rolls. She stood with her back to the insulted girl as she placed them on the table.

"Would you like to order now?" she asked Sasuke nicely, before turning reluctantly to the pink haired girl behind her when the man nodded his head towards Sakura.

"Um... can I just have the..."

"She'll have the fried salmon with the Caesar salad," cut in Sasuke monotonously as he grew impatient with her indecisiveness. "I won't be ordering anything."

Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but the Uchiha just grabbed the waitress's hand and pulled her closer to him. Green eyes narrowed at the intimate position that was being exposed, and she flicked her head away in disgust. "Good-for-nothing playboy..."

With the coy smile still in place, the server nodded zealously as she left satisfied, speaking one last innuendo. "I'll be sure to do what you asked." She strutted off unsteadily when Sasuke nodded at her briefly, and Sakura swore she saw the girl trip as she made her way quickly back to the kitchens.

"Stop doing stuff like that." Sakura's voice was disapproving.

When he didn't reply, the girl threw her hands up in the air in frustration. "I don't understand why you're so... so... influential. It's hardly fair. What if I was allergic to salmon?"

There was still no answer. "That, and you should be nicer. I mean, the poor girl's probably hyperventilating in the kitchen right now!"

Sakura growled when he remained silent and she leant forward. "Do you think just because you're Uchiha Sasuke, you can get anything you want? You shouldn't use your status or looks to gain things like this, no matter how overwhelming you may b—"

Sasuke cut off her long rant. "Didn't you say you didn't care?"

"I lied," Sakura admitted.

Then, the server strode back to their table, where she put the dish in front of Sakura before turning to Sasuke. "Will that be all you need tonight sir?"

Sasuke nodded, and didn't discontinue looking intently at the girl opposite him, even as a bulky folder was placed on the cloth. Sakura remained oblivious as she picked at her food with a shiny fork.

"Just eat it; it isn't poisoned."

Sakura looked up at him oddly. "That makes me even more suspicious, you know."

A silence engulfed them following her comment, and she obediently began to scoop the fish into her mouth, chewing carefully as she thought. Cocking her head to the side, she licked the tips of her fork as she stared back at him. "Ne, Sasuke-kun, why did you take me out to dinner?"

No response was given— as Sakura somewhat predicted. "You're sometimes really mean to me, so I don't understand why you made me decline Naruto's invitation for ramen."

"Would you rather I was mean?" replied Sasuke finally, as he unlinked his fingers and put his right over his left offhandedly.

Sakura shook her head furiously. "No! Not at all! It's just..."

"Just?" Sasuke prompted as he leant toward her.

"You have issues, Sasuke-kun! One minute, you're all strict and hellish, the next you're all nice and... smirky!"

The dark haired man smirked. "Smirky?"

Glaring, the girl pointed a long finger at him flamingly. "See! You're doing it again!" Sakura ignored the man's minute withdrawal as she stretched her hand out to grab his, and wrapped her fingers around it loosely as she pulled it closer to her. "Tell me the truth; what did you take me out here for?"

Sasuke stared blankly at her before making a move to extract his hand, but Sakura lurched forward to cover it with both of hers. Tightening her grip, she returned his stare. "Why did you take me here?"

His face hardened and he moved his hand out from under hers as he put underneath the table. "I took you here to interrogate you about your talk with Tsunade," he confessed, leaning towards her.

"Tsunade is, in some form, my superior. The fact that she was interested in you startled me. That woman isn't ordinary."

"Ordinary?" speculated Sakura, as she pondered on the exact reasons of why she had spoken to the woman in the first place.

"She's not normal. Her beliefs are different from ours, so don't believe anything she says."

Sakura blushed as she recalled exactly the types of things they had talked about. Hurriedly, she stuffed some more food in her mouth to avoid having her redness noticed. "Um... yeah."

The vampire looked at her strangely, before taking a hand and lifting her chin up. "What's wrong?"

Green irises widened as Sakura gasped and scooted her chair back quickly, and Sasuke pulled his hand back immediately. The pink haired girl blushed an even deeper shade of red as the feeling of her boss's cold skin amplified the memories that were currently running through her head.

"N-nothing," she stammered as her hand fisted itself in her skirt.

Sasuke sighed and fiddled with the straw of his untouched drink. "What exactly did she talk to you about?"

"Um... just about the plans for the hospital enlargement," Sakura lied smoothly, hoping he would believe her. He didn't, shown by the way he grunted and crossed his arms condescendingly.

"Tsunade isn't normal. She wouldn't go through all the trouble of sneaking into my office just to talk about that."

A vein popped in Sakura's forehead as she registered the mocking tone of the Uchiha's voice. "I know. Why. Do. You. Think. I'm. Lying?" she hissed, leaning even more forward as her palms lay flat on the surface of the table.

"You aren't a very good actress."

Sakura snarled and swiped her drink from the centre of the table and gulfed it down with ease. "It's nothing to worry about," she said, slapping herself inwardly as she cursed for reassuring him, no matter how discreet it seemed. "Believe me."

With those words announced, the vampire merely nodded and pushed his drink towards her. "Hn," he sounded, looking away from her face. Calming down, Sakura thanked him softly and began to sip through the straw gently.

"It really is nothing to worry about, ok?"

Sasuke turned his head to face her and smirked. "Who said I was worrying?"

"Why you— never mind," grumbled Sakura as she pouted around the straw in her mouth. Shrugging, she took the cup in her hands and leaned back in her chair. "So, is that all you asked me for?"

"You still haven't answered my question."

"I think I did; I told you, all she wanted to talk to me about was the plans for the ho—"

"Not that."

Sakura tilted her head to the side. "Eh?"

In a single fluid motion, the vampire had thrust the folder that had been put on the table earlier by the flirty waitress in front of her. Leering, he repeated, "You still haven't answered my question."

The rosette haired girl examined him closely before using her free hand open the folder. "I still don't get..." Her eyes widened as she read out the title of the entire file. "'Konoha Hospital Expansion Project'?"

"'Now, how would a secretary like you know so much about this?'" he restated.

Sakura peered at him with understanding as she gasped. "Oh, you want to know why I was so interested in the medical side of things, huh?"

Sasuke nodded, and watched as she set her Coke down and shuffled through the papers. "Ah, I never thought we were this far ahead in plans already. I though—"

"Hurry up."

"Yeah, yeah, just give me a minute." Putting the file down, she took another sip of her drink as she thought carefully. Sasuke's empty looks never wavered, and Sakura only ignored him as she sighed. "Where to start..." Sakura placed a finger on her chin as she hummed to herself while she considered how to begin; the man opposite her merely awaited her words.

"Hurry up."

Sakura glared at him. "Would you like to hear my story about my poor dreams then, Sasuke-kun? I'm sure it will interest you. Not," she seethed, her voice dripping with uncanny sweetness. "That you'd care to listen, huh?"

The man was getting intolerant. "Hurry up."

Teasing tone gone, she sniffed and turned her head away in exasperation. "Fine! I've just always wanted to be a doctor, ok? Ever since I was a kid, I've always wanted to help people.

"But, this world..." Her tone darkened. "Is full of horror."

Sasuke stiffened at the edge in her voice. "What do you mean?"

"It's disgusting; the amount of people who are hurt around the world," said Sakura grimly, clenching her fists. "This world, is full of people who would hurt others for their own sake... it's just disgusting."

"Some deserve it," said Sasuke roughly, his body slackening. "Some deserve it because of the things they did."

"No one deserves to die."

There was a pregnant pause, and Sakura coughed to regain her voice. Changing the subject quickly, she began to speak again. "People in this world have to do something—"

"Why? Not all people were born to help others."

"I know. It doesn't matter who you were born as, anyway.

"I mean, with my weird hair and big forehead," Sakura laughed as she fingered the strands of her hair. "I was bullied at a small age, but that didn't stop me from wanting to help everyone. Many people thought of me as a weak, little girl who wouldn't be able to accomplish anything so big as becoming a big time doctor..."

Her eyes drifted away from the Uchiha as she stared out the window at the pale moon, her face cast in a far away expression.

"My parents aren't rich, so their hopes for me weren't that high. I wasn't exactly the smartest person ever either, but I was passing school. Ha, you should have seen my parents' faces when they heard that I wanted to study medics.

"'Why do you want to do that? Do you just want to waste your life away?' my mother said, with my father nodding absent-mindedly at the back.

"I didn't know that my parents were so against my dreams becoming a reality, and I remember crying for days on end because they wouldn't le me study it. I was such a baby back then. I knew that getting me into a good school was hard enough, but I seriously thought that they would try to get me into a medical college, because parents are supposed to do that, right? They're supposed to support you, right?"

Sighing, a soft smile formed on her face as she continued. "And it was at this time that I became friends with Naruto.

"I'd gone to the same school with him for years, but he always seemed like the boy who was better off alone. I was wrong, obviously. That boy craves company almost as much as his ramen."

At this, Sasuke chuckled quietly while Sakura laughed along with him, but with wistfulness in her sounds.

"He found me when I was crying at the playground once; don't ask what we both were doing there. Naruto's too nice to ignore a 'damsel in distress' as he called it, and he was my source of comfort for a while. His smile cheered me up instantly, and his words were always terrifyingly honest, which he found to both good and bad; I pack a good punch when I'm mad, you know!

"Naruto is... the type of person that just has a natural habit of making friends with anyone. 'You're weird,' I told him once, but he just grinned and gave me a thumbs-up. I remember thinking that he used to have some sort of superpower where he could read my feelings, but I found out it was just that I was too predictable sometimes.

"'Hey, I think you'd make a great doctor, Sakura-chan!' Naruto yelled one day when I was patching him up at my house. He had fallen over like the clumsy boy he is, and I was just treating him. However, his words were what gave me courage to get a job and pay for my own tuition at college. After that, I think I developed some feelings for him, bu—"

Sakura gasped and looked at the Uchiha suddenly, covering her mouth with her hands hurriedly as she realized what she had just said. "I-I didn't mean to say that! I-I just m-meant..." she said quietly. "Ah, please just forget what I said."

The man grunted and smirked at her. "I didn't expect you to tell me your life's story."

A vein twitched in Sakura's forehead. "Sasuke-kun, I just told you really, really personal things! You're such a bigheaded jer—"

Her insult was stopped in her throat when she heard him chuckling softly, and she grinned mischievously. "You know what, Sasuke-kun?" Leaning even closer to him, she took both of her hands and placed them on either side of his face. With her nose almost touching his, she laughed as well. "You may be a jerk but...

"You sound nice when you laugh. You should do it more often."

Sasuke's face lost all its humour as he roughly pulled his face out of her grasp and stood up. Sakura squealed in surprise as she fell onto her chair at the man's sudden movement. "We're leaving," he declared, shoving his hand in his pocket to grasp for his wallet.

"I'm sorry, I guess I just do the wrong things, right?" said Sakura sadly as she too got out of her seat. Zipping her purse open, she pulled out some bills and looked up at him. "How much do I have to pay?"

The man picked up the bill that came with their food and examined it. "¥300, 000."

Sakura gaped. Snatching the bill from his hands she stared at it incredulously and her hands shook at the realization. "Why is it this much?" She turned her head to glower at Sasuke. "And why am I paying for all the food?"

A soft yawn was elicited from the vampire's lips as he stifled it with his cupped hand. "You ate all the food we bought."

"Eh?" Sakura searched her wallet frantically for some magnificent amount of bills to appear. "I don't have enough money..." Collapsing back onto her chair, she groaned as she set her head on the table tiredly. "I'm dirt poor."

"I'll pay then."

At those words, Sakura's head shot up excitedly, her face adorned by a huge smile. Standing up, she clasped her hands together. "Really?"

Splash.

A look of utter terror took over her features as she comprehended what she had just done. The bubbly liquid had spilt all over the sheets that were previously in the folder she had been scrutinizing. She paled. "Oops...?"

Sasuke grunted and ran a hand through his hair. "You're annoying."

With the same terrified look on her face, she squeaked and began peeling the papers away from the table unsuccessfully. "A-ah, the papers are sticking to the surface," she said nervously, her voice full of tremors as she spoke. "I'm really sor—"

She was cut off by a pale hand resting over hers, and her skin tingled as she felt that ice cold skin skim the epidermis of her own hand. Electric shivers bolted through her system at the contrast of their skin— his being extremely chilly to her toasty warm — and it made her blush at the fact that his slight fingers were close to encompassing her own. It seemed like centuries that they were touching, and she was too embarrassed to look up at him.

However, the moment was brief, and her hand was released as soon as they had touched. Recoiling, Sasuke murmured something inaudible to her ears, before he was expertly picking up the sheets and placing them back into the folder, even in their soaked state.

"I'm sorry; I'm just really clumsy..." said Sakura, as she laughed falsely. She sighed depressingly after realizing that he wouldn't join her in her laughter.

He didn't answer, and Sakura took this is a sign of rejection as her shoulders slumped. "I-I'll take that," she chirped fallaciously as she circled around the table then extended her arms out to offer help.

By pure accident, her hand brushed his, and a resounding slap sounded through the room.

Shocked, Sakura took her uninjured hand and clutched at the newly forming bruise on her skin. "S-Sasuke-kun..."

The Uchiha, prior to his unexpected blow, was now crouched slightly in a defensive position. An arm was hung in front of his chest, yet away from his body. His other had attached itself to the fabric of his pants. Dark locks were shadowing his face and his whole body was tensed and ready to attack.

"Sakura..." whispered Sasuke as he lifted his head to look at her. His eyes averted to the hand she holding close to her chest, and he stared at it closely.

"I-I..." With that, Sakura fled the scene. Running urgently through the crowd, she was desperate to escape the flooding whispers, the startled stares, but most of all, the edgy figure of her boss.

She heard no chasing footsteps behind her, and ran faster.

As her feet brought her outside, she felt the frosty night air hit her face, and she fell to her knees at the entrance. Tears threatened to fall, but she shook her head to rid of them furiously. "I won't cry, I swear..."

Wrapping her arms around herself, she shivered from the cold engulfing her body, and she gripped her arms tighter. It felt as if spikes of ice were devouring her skin and piercing holes, and remembered the coat she had left behind in her attempt to run away from her boss.

"What a mess," she muttered as she moved her hands up to grasp at her hair frustratingly. "I've just made a big mess of myself."

Suddenly, she felt a large object drape over her. Inching her hands up slowly, she fisted her hands in the fabric and found it to be her coat. "Eh...? I thought I left this behind..." she mumbled, slipping the clothing off her head and pulling it down to fall over her knees. "How did this..."

"What, no 'thank you'?"

Sakura's eyes widened and a shrill scream elicited from her mouth as she jumped, and fell onto her bottom uncomfortably on the hard concrete path. "S-Sasuke-kun!"

The man snorted at her delirious pose on the floor. "Hn."

Standing up shakily from her scrawled position on the ground, Sakura mirrored the Uchiha's pose. "W-what are you doing out here?" She crossed her arms over her chest and stepped back a bit to offer some distance. That gesture was ignored as Sasuke dropped his hands and stepped forward.

"Look, Sakura..."

She contemplated her options. One, she could stay and listen to her boss's apology. Two, she could bang her head against the wall in hopes of this all being a dream, because she was pretty sure her monotonous boss wouldn't do something like a, a dinner date with his secretary. Three, she could run and escape from whatever Sasuke was going to say, which most likely wasn't going to be an apology.

Sakura liked Option Three best.

"I'm really sorry about tonight; I didn't mean to be so... um, unreliable." She flashed him a fake smile and turned to walk away, but the tip of her elbow was caught by the same cold fingers that had slapped her. She flinched and a fevered scream was torn from her throat as she jumped away.

Her eyes enlarged at the realization of what she had done, and she bowed down and began to apologize profusely. "I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun, I'm really sorry! I was simply surprised t—"

Sakura was cut off as a solid item smacked the top of her head. "Let's go."

Making her gaze rise up to meet him, she was greeted by the sight of the Uchiha with his hand holding the folder of shoddy papers, and his other dug into his pocket. His grip on the folder loosened, and Sakura was forced to stand up speedily to catch it before fell.

"You're still a baby."

For the umpteenth time that night, Sakura used her eyes to reveal what she was thinking as they widened. "What?"

His pale hand reached out, and a lone finger caught a tear as it cascaded down her cheek. "You're crying."

Then, Sakura lost control. All the tears spilled over, and quiet sobs radiated through her chest. Bringing her free arm up, she used her sleeve to wipe away the beads of wetness that kept falling. "I'm sorry..."

Her tears continued to plummet down her face and she dropped the folder as she brought both of her hands up to cradle her face. "I'm sorry..." she said again, smearing the salty moisture over her cheeks as she rubbed ardently. "Back there..."

The hand marked by a scary bruise fell down to her chest and she fisted it. "You scared me... I was just so scared..."

Sasuke turned his head away from her crying face with a distant expression. "I'm not a good guy, Sakura.

"It's only natural to be scared of me."

No skin needed to touch prior to the startling blow that was delivered this time. Sasuke stepped back as he touched his throbbing cheek, and stared plainly at Sakura as she stood before him, huffing as she had her fist clenched and outstretched.

"I'm not scared of you! It's just what you did that scared me!"

Sakura panted and covered the hand she had used to punch him –which was aching much more, being the hand with the imprinted bruise— and looked at him indignantly. "I'll see you at work tomorrow," she declared, stomping off.

"Sakura." She froze.

Not looking back, she answered, "Yes?"

She heard a soft chuckle, and the fading footsteps of the Uchiha. "I'm..."

The footsteps stopped. "Sorry."

Sakura smiled to herself and exhaled noisily. Continuing to walk, she nodded to herself. "Yeah, and I forgive you."

"I don't forgive you for wetting those files though."

Stopping again, she wheeled around to face the vampire, who was already several metres away from her. "What?"

Sasuke lifted a hand in the air, and waved in nonchalantly. "Extra work for you, Haruno."

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled, about to run after him, but he disappeared into the darkness. Content somewhat with the happenings that had just occurred; the pink haired girl pivoted on the spot and turned to walk home. Looking up at the night sky, she grinned slyly to herself.

A soft hand was brought to her face as Sakura wiped away the remainder of her tears. "I guess I still am a baby, huh?"

A/N: Well, we found out a bit... I think? I know there isn't much fluff yet, but it's because it's really early in the story, so just wait a bit, ok? To clear things up, the thing between Naruto and Sakura... will be discussed later on, ok?

Please, review! Especially if you are going to favourite or alert this story... if you read my previous notes, I was feeling really discouraged at the lack of reviews. Please review, and I wish you all a HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

And on this vampiristic note, has anyone watched the new scene from the Twilight movie? Don't you just love how Edward says: "I had an adrenaline rush. It's very common. You can google it if you want." Yer... I end this fangirly author's note here.