A/N: Sorry for the long wait, everybody, but I started working on Revelation and it was sort of... well, I'll be honest: It was much more fun to write because of the really weird plotline to it. X3 But still, I worked my butt off to get the chapter finished!
I'll warn you, it's not very good because my brain kind of went kaput half way through, but I did what I could!
"Itachi-kins!"
Dear Lord... I looked up from my unappetizing meal (I would have preferred staying to my liquid diet than eat the hospital's congealed pea soup) to greet my even less appetizing visitor. I watched her with disinterest as she literally danced into the room and then stopped at the foot of my bed, her face flushed with excitement.
"Guess what!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands with delight.
"This is the coma and everything that happened in my supposed dreams was the reality?"
"No, silly!" the blond exclaimed, patting the air with a hand, giggling at me as though I was just the cutest thing ever! "You're going home today!"
"Home," I murmured. By home, did she mean back to the world that made sense (because, surely, a world where you can do magic using sign language made much more sense to me than the fact that girls like this Ino were the ideal girlfriend-material in whatever screwed up world this was) or did she mean my "home" on this twisted little planet? I was going to put my money on the latter.
Ino nodded. "That's right!" Her lower lip jutted out and she leaned forward, her hands propping her up on the bed at the perfect angle to give me a spectacular view of her cleavage. "I've been so awful lonely for you while you were in your coma! I had to eat all alone and sleep all alone and I almost didn't think I'd be able to take it anymore!"
I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes. She thought she had it rough? "Yes," I agreed dryly, "It must have been very hard for you. Poor baby."
She nodded, smiling so happily at how I understood her. I don't think she caught on to my sarcasm. "Right! But now that's all over because you're coming home with me! Isn't it just so totally awesomely wonderful?!"
"Amazing..."
"Too bad the amazing-ness is being postponed," Haruno said with way too much amusement, eying me with wry amusement. She knew I wasn't looking forward to Ino's company and she had caught my sarcasm. Thank God for smart women. "Itachi may be well enough to be taken from the hospital, but he's definitely not well enough to go without medical attention. He'll have to stay with me and Sasuke-kun for a while."
"What?" Ino and Sasuke whined in unison, the latter just walking into the room as Haruno's conclusion was voiced.
She nodded and I actually found myself grateful to her. She may have been one of my enemies at one point in time or another, but in this world at least she was on my side... shit! That was her plan! To rope me into trusting her enough that she could get all of Akatsuki's deepest, darkest secrets from me! And I'd almost fallen for it, too...
Ino pouted and Sasuke stood in the doorway with a scowl that could have reduced even the most cold-blooded of people to shivers. I eyed him and then looked to Haruno who was avoiding looking at her supposed boyfriend. She simply smiled at me half-heartedly. And then she turned to Ino.
"I'm really sorry, I know you were looking forward to this, but I'm sure you'd put Itachi's health above all other things," she told the blond, a meaningful tone to her voice. Her tone sounded almost sarcastic, as though she didn't really believe that Ino was capable of putting others before herself.
Ino pouted and very reluctantly agreed. "Alright..."
Haruno nodded and pulled out a bag, pulling a set of clothes from it. "I took the liberty of going to your and Ino's apartment and got you some clothes to change into. Sasuke can help you."
"I don't need help," I replied, letting Haruno come forward and place a pair of slippers beside the bed so that my feet wouldn't have to touch the cold floor. "I can dress myself perfectly fine on my own."
"Oh, we have no uncertainties about that, we're completely confident in your ability to dress yourself," she corrected almost patronizingly, "It's just that your legs aren't yet strong enough to support your bodyweight."
I glowered at her (I had to remind myself that she was evil—well, evil against Akatsuki, anyway) and placed my feet in the slippers, determined to do this on my own. No Konoha shinobi was going to put me through the indignity of helping me in the most simplest of acts and I made sure to voice that resolution.
Ino and Sasuke eyed me with confused curiosity and Haruno sighed, gesturing with a wave of her hand for me to continue.
I pushed off of the bed and smirked with satisfaction when I managed to stay upright. "See? I told you I—" My knees buckled suddenly and without any warning and my head slammed into the bedside table.
Darkness greeted me, laughing at my show of powerlessness.
Fuck...
When I awoke, I was in a bed that was much more comfortable than the hard, lumpy hospital bed and my aching skull was resting in a not-too-hard-but-not-too-soft pillow that seemed fluffed to perfection. I just wanted to snuggle into the bed and sleep some more, but something kept me from unconsciousness.
I was in Konoha... that reminder kept me from sleep.
I sat up and looked around the small room. It was littered with knickknacks and framed pictures of different people, but there were no clothes or items that would show that the room was often used. Guest bedroom, I assumed.
Then, a light shone in my eyes and I looked over to see that the curtains had been pulled to the side of the window, showing a lovely view of... of... what wasthat?! It was like a mixture of the Hokage tower and a lamp pole. I eyed the big metal tower and wondered just what it was that I was looking at.
"I swear, this is all about keeping Itachi healthy," I heard Haruno say with what sounded like annoyance, "No ulterior motives or anything like that. Like I said, he doesn't even remember what..." She paused and there was a new tone in her voice when she finished, "What happened before the accident."
"Of course he doesn't," Sasuke said with a scoff, "And I hope you're telling the truth. Like I told you before, you can leave me for any goddamn person on this planet but him. You leave with him and you know what will happen."
Silence.
There was the sound of the doorknob turning and I quickly lay back down, pulling the blankets over my head to make it look like I was still sleeping. I forced my body to relax and closed my eyes, training all my other senses on my surroundings.
There was a new weight on the bed, the sound of soft breathing, soft, warm knuckles caressed my cheek and I forced my body not to react to the very first soft, gentle touch I had ever felt in my entire life. Then, lips pressed against my temple and soft, sweet-smelling hair fell in front of my face, trying to delight me with the scent of strawberries and a slightly headier scent of... of Haruno Sakura.
"I love you..." There was that soft whisper and then a single tear fell on my cheek. "And I'm sorry..."
A/N: ... *snickers* You're all probably really confused right now X3
