Crossroads
Callista Miralni
disclaimer: plot—mine. characters—not mine. Easy right? You can find all the fun things I used as a reference to build this story on pinterest: /callistamiralni/crossroads/
Surely you've figured out what's going on by now. Surely.
The shit-eating grin on Ino's face was enough to make Sakura regret saying anything to her best friend.
"Really?" Her blue eyes seemed to sparkle with intrigue. "Naruto-kun did that?"
Stirring her frozen drink, Sakura took another sip. "Isn't that weird?" She frowned. "Since when was he so considerate?"
Ino froze and tried not to glance at the black jacket hanging on the back of a spare chair. "Well..." she trailed off. "He's always been like that, right? I just wished he would show it more. He thinks being a jackass makes him look tough and cool but it just makes him look like an idiot."
Sakura scoffed. "That sounds more like Sasuke-kun than Naruto-kun. It escapes me how the two of them are best friends."
The blonde shrugged and pushed the salt and pepper aside to make room for the platter of bruschetta arriving at their table. She loaded a piece of bread with tomatoes and took a bite before addressing Sakura again.
"If you had a choice," Ino began slowly. "Would you choose Naruto-kun or Sasuke-kun?"
"Sakura-chan..."
Sasuke looked up and stifled a laugh. His best friend wrapped himself around the petite girl, crushing her to his chest. Sakura struggled under his hold before twirling her pencil around her fingers and driving the point into Naruto's arm.
"Itai!"
Taking advantage of his surprise, Sakura threw Naruto off and glared at him. "Go away. We're busy."
Sasuke tried to ignore Naruto's feelings but it was hard. Sakura's dismissal hurt Naruto deeply and he alone knew why.
Of all the women in the world, Naruto had to pick the most difficult one.
"You're studying?" The false cheer in his voice sickened Sasuke. "I'll join you!"
He picked up his bag and dropped it on the table beside her textbook. Naruto continued to chatter, regaling tales of their weekend to Sakura. She continuously muttered "I don't care," and "how nice of you to mix Sasuke-kun up in your stupidity."
Sasuke winced at the last comment. Sakura thought too highly of him sometimes. If he was remotely the man she thought he was, he wouldn't be mixed up with people like Naruto or Kiba in the first place.
In comparison to those two, Sasuke was a decent enough person, but when he stood next to Sakura, he felt like a delinquent.
"Oi," he called. "Quit running your mouth Naruto. We've got work to do."
Karin smoothed her pink locks back into a simple French braid.
"My cousin will be drooling over you tonight," the red-haired woman exclaimed triumphantly.
The praise had the opposite effect. Sakura scowled darkly.
"Karin-chan, I love you but your cousin can be the most obnoxious piece of shit ever."
She winced. "Naruto is just enthusiastic," Karin defended him weakly.
"Is that what they call it nowadays?" Sakura retorted mildly. "I didn't realize it was in his nature to continuously suffocate his friends and proclaim his non-existent marriage to said friend to anyone who will listen."
Karin winced again. Sakura always had the uncanny ability to cut right to the heart of an issue.
"Saki-chan..."
-naruto-
The first time Sasuke handed him an ivory invitation and told him to dig out his best suit, Naruto couldn't grasp the reality of the situation. It all seemed so surreal.
That was nearly three years ago. When he was a freshman, he thought it was a good idea to put his name in a mentorship program. The guy they paired him up with was an anomaly—sophomores usually weren't allowed to be student mentors. After their first meeting, Naruto understood why Uchiha Sasuke was the exception.
Today, the linen invitation was commonplace. Naruto lost count of the number of events Sasuke invited him to as a means of "lightening the mood." This event—a charity fundraiser—was the first of three Sasuke forewarned him of for the summer.
Naruto stepped out of the car and handed his keys to the valet. Smoothing the tuxedo jacket, he took in the surroundings. The Chateau was the most expensive hotel in the city and tonight, Naruto felt more out of place than ever.
He gave his name to the doorman, passed through security, and walked into the lobby. Following the signs towards the ballroom, Naruto bumped into the least expected person.
"Ino-chan, what are you doing here?"
The blonde-haired woman startled. "Naruto-kun?" she exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
Did Sasuke invite her as his date since she lived in the city? If only he had known to bring someone, he would have asked Sakura to come with him.
"Sasuke invited me," Naruto replied. "Are you looking for him?"
Ino shook her head. "Actually, I'm looking for-"
"Ino-san! Over here!"
A tall woman, made taller by her five-inch heels, approached them. Her dark gold hair was swept up into a curling updo and smoky make-up accented her green eyes. There was something familiar about her, but Naruto could not place where he had seen this stunning woman before.
"You must be a friend of Ino-san's."
It took Naruto a moment before he realized she was speaking to him.
"Yes. Uzumaki Naruto." He bowed slightly.
She smiled and again, he was struck by familiarity. "Haruno Misaki, your host for tonight. Pleasure to meet you."
He echoed the statement but her last name struck a chord in him. Misaki was too young to be a mother; perhaps she was-
"I'm afraid I have to steal Ino-san away from you, Naruto-san. I'll return her as soon as possible. Meanwhile, enjoy the party!"
Naruto blankly nodded.
-Sakura's sister?
-sakura-
She paced the length of the bride's room, her brother Takashi watching her languidly from a chair.
"Quit pacing. You're making me dizzy. Misa went to get Ino so relax."
Sakura glared at her brother. "I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation. You're not the one-"
The door slammed open and Misa and Ino entered.
"Finally!" Sakura threw her hands in the air. "What took you so long?"
Ino set the Saks Fifth Avenue bag she had been carrying on the bed. "Naruto-kun's here."
"What?!"
Sakura resumed pacing. She knew Naruto's puppy crush wasn't just that; it developed into something not quite love, but more than a crush. It was easier to pretend she wasn't breaking his heart if Naruto had a silly crush.
Tonight would not only break him, but it would ruin the friendship between him and Sasuke.
"I don't think he knows," Ino babbled as she pinned up the last of Sakura's curls. "But Misa-the-Genius introduced herself to him, full name and all, so he might be putting together the pieces."
The thing was, Sakura thought wryly, Ino didn't know everything either.
The door opened again, admitting three people. Sakura sucked in her breath at the sight of her mother.
Haruno Mebuki was a world-famous plastic surgeon. As a mother, she was no-nonsense and strict. Mebuki loved them in her own way but it was hard to be around her parents given the current circumstance.
Her youngest brother, Kazuto, ran a hand through his gelled locks, turning their mother's attention to him as she shooed him to the bathroom to fix his hair.
"Don't forget the flower," Mebuki plucked the boutonnière from Misa's hand and passed it to her youngest daughter. "Ino-san, so good to see you, sweetheart."
Her best friend kissed her mother's cheek before they filed out the door, leaving Sakura alone with the third member of her mother's party.
Sasuke shifted his weight before approaching her and grabbing her wrist. Carefully sliding the corsage from his wrist to hers, he studied the arrangement of primroses, baby's breath, and peach roses.
Sakura glanced at the flowers in her hand before affixing it to the flower hole of Sasuke's tuxedo. "Did you pick the flowers yourself?"
He smirked. "No. But I may have told my mother that peach roses are your favorite flower."
Sakura laughed weakly. "You know that's not true."
"Then it's a good thing for me my mother does not know the language of flowers."
"Naruto-kun is here," she said as she smoothed the wrinkles from his shoulders. "Why didn't you tell me?"
Sasuke frowned before letting out a soft sigh. "I heard. He called me up earlier to ask for directions. I didn't even know he was on the guest list."
"It doesn't matter," Sakura sighed. "Tonight is only just the beginning."
-ino-
The ballroom was filled with people. Ino smiled and took mental note of all the contacts she met in the past. It would do her well to reacquaint herself with some of these people in hopes of talking her way into an internship or a job. After all, wasn't life about who she knows, not what she knew?
"It really doesn't matter where you are, Ino-chan; you always seem to know everyone."
Lightly glaring at Naruto, Ino snatched the other wine glass from his hand. "What are you doing?"
"Still waiting for Sasuke to show up. The most interesting conversation I've been in so far is what I think about the Gulf oil spill. Hardly fascinating."
Ino laughed and decided to take pity on Naruto. "C'mon, I'll introduce you to someone."
It was easy to find Kazuto among the crowd. At five nine and eighteen years old, he was the youngest person in the room and had a crowd of adults surrounding him shouting advice for college.
When Kazuto saw her waving at him, he excused himself from the crowd. "Ino-nee, I don't know if I've ever told you this, but you are the best friend ever."
"Yeah yeah. You say that now. Kazu-kun, this is my friend Uzumaki Naruto-kun. We're in the same year at university."
Shaking Naruto's hand, Kazuto said, "Nice to meet you. Enjoying the party?"
The other man snorted. "Sure. If oil spills are a topic of interest."
The teen laughed. "You must have met Fujiyama-sensei. He's very passionate about reading the Times."
Misa took the stage and delicately rapped on her wine glass with a spoon. "Ladies and gentlemen, if you would kindly take your seats, dinner is served."
"Come on." Kazuto seized Ino's hand. "Misa-nee said she saved a seat for you guys with me."
Ino threw a questioning glance at Naruto over her shoulder. He shrugged and followed her through the crowd.
Halfway to their seats, a flash of peach chiffon caught her eye. Ino caught a glimpse of Sakura with her hand in the crook of Sasuke's arm, giving the older couple they were speaking with a charming smile. Sasuke said something to the couple before leading Sakura in the same direction she was headed.
Keeping them in her peripheral vision, Ino noticed even long after she had taken her seat, people continued to stop Sasuke and Sakura. After another impatient call from Misa to take their seats, the pair finally stopped at her table. Sasuke pulled out the empty chair on her right before seating himself next on Sakura's other side.
"What took you so long?" Kazuto drank his tea. "I thought Misa-nee was about to strangle you two."
"It's not our fault everyone wants to talk to us," Sakura grumbled. "It's like they haven't seen us once in the past four years."
Kazuto rolled his eyes. "That's because no one has seen you in four years," he answered smartly. "Unlike Sasuke-nii, who makes an appearance every season, you insist on locking yourself at home to study or sleep."
"Shut up, Kazu."
Naruto had been staring at them since they sat down. "Glad you could make it," Sasuke finally said to him. "I wondered if you got lost."
He snapped out of his stupor. "Yeah," he buttered a roll. "Thanks for inviting me again man."
If Ino had not been watching Sakura closely, she would have missed the way Sakura tensed at the sound of Naruto's voice.
-sasuke-
Sakura sat ramrod straight in her chair, her left hand clenching the fabric of her dress. Sasuke gripped her hand under the table and gave her a reassuring squeeze.
Kazuto continued to chatter, blissfully unaware of the tension sailing over his head. Sasuke knew Naruto questioned why he was with Sakura; the matching flowers on their person surely signified they were each other's date for the evening. Naruto had yet to address the issue and Sasuke wasn't going to initiate the conversation.
A waiter came by with a tray of desserts. Sasuke pointed to a chocolate cake with raspberries and handed it to Sakura.
Sakura gave him a weak smile and thanked him softly before picking up her fork and taking a bite. Sasuke signaled for another piece of cake and gave it to Ino. The other woman gushed over his thoughtfulness, thanking him exuberantly.
"So Kazuto-kun," Naruto said. "How do you know Sasuke, Sakura-chan, and Ino-chan?'
Kazuto swallowed his cake. "I met Sasuke-nii at the hospital a couple weeks ago, Saki-nee's my sister, and Ino-nee never leaves the house."
"Oh that's nice—wait. Sakura-chan is your sister?"
Sasuke smothered a laugh at Kazuto's infamous are you stupid look. "Can't you tell?" He pulled Sakura right next to him. "Out of all the Harunos, we look the most alike."
The woman shoved her brother off of her. "He gets it, Kazu."
The sting quartet swelled into the opening waltz. His parents, Mr. and Dr. Haruno, Takashi and Misa started the dance.
That was his cue.
Sasuke stood up from his chair and offered a hand to Sakura. "Would you like to dance?"
Sakura set her napkin down on the table and accepted his offer. Once they were spinning on the dance floor, Sakura whispered, "I know he's your best friend, but I really wish he wasn't here."
Bending his head slightly, Sasuke replied, "I know, but I promise you I did not put his name on the guest list. My mom must have automatically assumed I wanted him here."
"Do you?"
"Hn."
Sakura giggled. To everyone else, it looked like they were any other couple whispering sweet nothings in each other's ears.
"Stop being so chivalrous. You can't fool me, Uchiha Sasuke. I know what you're really like."
He saw Naruto offer a hand to Ino. What he was about to do was wrong, but Sasuke had no other choice. His entire future depended on this evening.
Deftly maneuvering them to be in line of sight, Sasuke put his lips close to her ear. "Then it's a good thing you like me anyways," he said before softly pressing his lips to her cheek.
Author's note:
Baby's breath means innocence and pure at heart. Primroses mean eternal love. Peach roses mean gratitude, appreciation, admiration or sympathy. Take a gamble what the arrangement means.
Ja ne-
Callista Miralni