"God, Sakura. I can't believe you fell for that. What were you expecting? When has a guy ever treated you right?" Sakura walked at a brisk pace to the hospital. She barged in and ran her fingers through her hair to calm herself down before starting her job. Grabbing her chart, Sakura pulled on her white doctor's coat and began her way towards her first patient. Four hours and fifteen patients later, Sakura found herself sitting on a chair next to Ino.
"Cmon, Sakura! This is the perfect way to meet new people! I promise you we won't stay too long, just a few drinks. Please?" Ino gave Sakura her biggest eyes and batted her eyelids.
"God, fine, but only if you stop giving me that freaky face, Pig." Sakura rubbed her eyes as she wondered how Ino had managed to talk her into one of these gatherings again. Sakura pulled off her coat and exited the hospital with Ino.
"Hey, I'll see you at the Red bar tonight! I'm meeting up with Shikamaru, see you, Forehead!" Before Sakura could even protest, Ino was gone. With an annoyed grunt, Sakura began her walk back home. She captured her lower lip and began nibbling on it as she thought of what she had seen earlier. Sakura shook her head wistfully, she should have known better. She kicked a stone out of her way as she furrowed her brows.
"Ouch. Hi to you too, Sakura," joked Kakashi. He smiled as he saw the surprised look on her face. Little did she know that he had been planning this moment for the last hour or so, trying to think of the best way to approach her without looking like a creep. He let his visible eye crinkle as he smiled and lifted his hand to her head to ruffle it, the way he had when she was a genin. The crinkle disappeared when she swat his hand away and muttered something about how she "had to go" and why he wasn't "with someone else." Before Kakashi could inquire about her dampened mood, Sakura had taken off. He just stood behind, watching her back as she walked away.
'I can't believe he would think it would be okay to just approach me like that.' Sakura was pissed and she was even angrier at how her will softened a little when she saw his eye crease, showing her that he was smiling. She was so lost in her thoughts that she almost missed the door to her home. Sakura nearly ripped the door off its hinges and slammed it loudly behind her. Kicking off her sandals, she collapsed on her couch. 'Why is he doing this to me? Why is he even affecting me like this?' Sakura closed her eyes and let out a frustrated groan. She could lie here all day, sinking into the deep abyss of her comfortable, black couch, but she knew she had to be at the damn bar in an hour. Sakura let out another groan as she struggled to get up and sat for another few minutes.
Sakura had opted for jean shorts, a floral bandeau top, and a white cardigan. The blazing heat was driving her insane and she didn't give a fuck what people thought of her. She slipped on some slippers, grabbed her purse, and left to the bar. Sakura was barely out the door when she felt the stares of guys at her. Smiling, she shifted coyly, letting her bare shoulder slip out of the cardigan. Sakura walked like this all the way to the bar.
"SAKURA-CHAN! Man, you look really nice! Hurry up, we already started ordering drinks!" Naruto was all smiles when he saw the kunoichi enter the bar. Sakura slipped through the crowd and sat next to her friends and was quickly sucked into the gossip and fun conversations.
"Hey, Ino! Where's Shik?" Naruto called out towards the blonde girl in a tight, black dress.
"He has to leave tomorrow morning for a mission, so he skipped out tonight!" She looked a bit downhearted as she replied to Naruto.
Her frown was gone as soon as she had her first shot and she began to chatter with Sakura. The night progressed with more drinks and laughter. For the first time in awhile, Sakura felt herself relax and enjoy herself. Sakura felt herself become a little more tipsy and allowed herself to be dragged onto a small dance floor with Ino and the girls. She let a loose laugh as she grinded against her best friend, giving all the boys a show they wouldn't forget.
Kakashi was drinking at the bar with Asuma and they watched with mild interest as the group of young ninjas grew louder by the minute.
"Isn't that pink one your student?" Asuma shook his head as he watched his former student dancing scandalously with Kakashi's ex-student.
Kakashi merely nodded; he was enraptured by the way Sakura moved with the music. He watched as her hips swung to the beat and she bit her lower lip, meaning that she was indeed lost in the moment; he doubted that she was lost in thought. "Excuse me, do you see the pink haired girl over there? When she comes back to the bar, get her a Mint Chocolate Prepper and put it on my tab." Kakashi smiled at the bartender, oblivious to the way she pushed his chest to his face. His mind was on someone else that night. On any other night, Kakashi would have took her somewhere dark and give her the quickie of her life. She looked disappointed at his lack of interest until she felt him grab her hand and pull her back. She gazed at the handsome, silver haired stranger. "Oh and would you mind putting a strawberry on the top of it too?" He smiled at her and let go of her hand.
Sakura was having the time of her life and she threw back her head to laugh at the way the boys were staring. She looked around the room and stiffened up when she saw Kakashi. Sakura looked away as she saw Asuma pointing her way. She felt his gaze on her and began dancing more provocatively, hoping to entice him, but as she looked up, Sakura was disappointed when she saw him chatting up the bartender. She shook her head in disgust at the way the bimbo pushed up her chest for him, but obviously it worked. She watched him as he reached out to grab the bartender's hand and tell her something else. Suddenly, Sakura needed another drink and she went back to her spot at the bar.
"Here you are," said the bartender. She handed Sakura a dark brown liquid with a strawberry on top of it. Before Sakura could ask who it was from, the bartender was gone. 'Probably to get Kakashi in bed,' thought Sakura bitterly. She downed the drink and hummed in appreciation at the mint chocolate taste, but it wasn't enough. Sakura continued to drink, hoping that Kakashi would leave, but he remained where he sat, and she swore that she caught him looking at her a few times.
"I'm going to the little ladies room!" Sakura giggled as she stumbled her way towards the bathroom. When she was in the corridor leading to the bathroom, Sakura leaned her head against the wall, attempting to steady her shaking vision. Suddenly, she felt someone's arm wrap around her waist. 'Kakashi,' thought Sakura, but when she turned around all she saw was Kiba. He slammed his palms on either side of her head and grinned at her shocked expression. Kiba lowered his head and whispered into her ear, "hey, baby. I've missed you, how about we…catch up, right now?"
Sakura tried to push him off, disgusted with every bit of Kiba. "Kiba, stop. You're drunk, and I sure as hell don't want your dirty paws on me." She turned her head to the side, but he grabbed her face with one hand and looked her straight in the eyes. "Don't be such a cold bitch, Sakura." Kiba roughly began kissing her and tried to reach under her light cardigan. Sakura tried to push him off, but the alcohol greatly reduced her strength and ability to coordinate her actions. She was beginning to get dizzy from the heat off of Kiba's body, and suddenly he was gone. Sakura opened her eyes and saw Kakashi staring at Kiba coldly, pulling him away with one hand. He threw Kiba against the wall and landed a punch on his stomach. "If you know what's best for you, I'd suggest that you leave. Now," that was all Kakashi had to say for Kiba to scamper away.
"I can take care of myself." Sakura glared at Kakashi as she pulled her cardigan down to cover her exposed stomach.
"Of course you can because that's obviously what you were fucking doing right now." Kakashi grabbed one of Sakura's arm and began pulling her through the crowded bar. "Sakura's not feeling well, I'm going to take her home," announced Kakashi to her friends. Without waiting for a response, he dragged her out of the bar.
"What the fuck is your problem, Kakashi?" Sakura growled at him and pulled her arm away, massaging the area he had grabbed roughly.
"My problem is that you think that you could've handled that situation when you clearly couldn't. Why can't you just accept my help? And what is up with your damn attitude today, Sakura?" Kakashi stared at her while roughly pulling at his hair in frustration.
"I won't accept it because it's my problem, not yours. Don't you have some busty bitch to go to right now?" spat Sakura. She was livid that Kakashi was yelling at her.
"Is that what this is about? You're jealous of some girl?" Kakashi stared at her in disbelief; his voice was no longer loud and angry.
"No, I'm not jealous. I was just saying." Sakura turned away and began walking home. She was angry with herself that she had said that, now Kakashi knew what was bothering her. She stumbled on a rock and nearly fell, but felt Kakashi hold her arm and support her. Pulling her arm away, Sakura began walking away again and she ignored Kakashi who was following her. Though she wanted to yell at him, Sakura found herself giving her full attention to keeping her balance and walking back home without falling. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her door and turned back to shoot one last glare at Kakashi.
"Good night, Kakashi." Sakura's voice dripped with sarcasm as she fumbled with her keys. She stared at the keyhole as it doubled and she grew frustrated with every missed attempt at putting the key in. Suddenly, she felt Kakashi's hand on hers as he directed the key to its place. Sakura's face flushed pink as she felt Kakashi's body pressed against hers. "Thanks," mumbled Sakura as she tried to push him off of her, but stiffened up as she felt his resistance. She turned her face to look into his eyes and saw him giving her a hard stare. As soon as Sakura met his eyes, his hard stare melted and flickered to her lips and back to her eyes. Unconsciously, Sakura licked her lips and captured her lower lip between her teeth for the umpteenth time.
"Sakura, I'm sor—" Kakashi was interrupted when Sakura suddenly pushed him away.
"I don't need to hear your damn apologies. You're not even sorry, Kakashi-sensei." Sakura looked at him coldly as she remembered the way he acted with those bimbos earlier that day. Without another word, Sakura closed the door on him and turned around. She felt her legs tremble and she leaned her back against the door for support. Still unsteady, Sakura slowly sank to the floor and put her head in her hands. Before she knew it, the tears fell out of her eyes.
Another chapter down! Woo, I'm so proud of myself ^_^ Hope everyone's having a good year so far!