note: I apologize for the two week-ish delay. I contracted a cold from my boyfriend.
this is: chapter six
"I'm just having coffee." The two girls said in unison. They laughed.
"And who is this fellow you have here?" she asked, sliding into the booth beside Sakura. "I'm Tayuya, a friend of Sakura's."
"I'm Gaara." he said lazily. "Pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is all mine." she gave a light giggle. "You're very attractive."
"Has someone spiked your coffee, Tay?" the pink-haired woman gave her a strange look.
"It's his pheromones." the other woman dismissed. "They're making me high. I'm a research scientist." she fluttered her eyelashes. "What do you do?"
"I'm generally used as a model." he smirked.
Tayuya dramatically fanned herself with her hand. "That's hot."
"You didn't tell me that!" Sakura stuttered, her eyes wide.
"I thought it was obvious when I said I do odd jobs for my sister."
"But…"
"And when I mentioned she's hired all my friends to be models as well." he shrugged, crossing his arms. "Hinata does work for Temari part-time, along with another friend of mine who does her work full-time."
"No. Way." Tayuya gasped. "Your sister is Temari, Temari of Menthe?"
Sakura had a very blank look on her heart-shaped face that he couldn't help but chuckle at. "Yes."
The rhubarb-haired newcomer also noticed her friend's blank look. "You don't know how famous she is?"
She slowly shook her head. "No."
"She's the biggest designer in the country. Her designs are so sought after! I don't even own anything from her. It's impossible. The wait lines are months long. Everything she has made is limited-edition. It doesn't come cheap either." she sighed. "I can't believe you have no idea who she really is, Sakura."
"Wow." she snuck a wonder-filled glance at her new heels.
"I guess since you're always cooped up with Sasuke you haven't been too in touch with the fashion world." she took a swig of coffee. "She and Sasuke are like lovebirds, did you know? One is almost never without the other. Weird how you have her without him right now."
"Tayuya!" she admonished, glaring daggers.
"Sorry, sorry."
He filed the snippet of information away in his head.
"Anyways, I have to run. See you later, Sakura. And nice meeting you, Gaara!"
After the rhubarb-haired woman left, he tossed their paper cups into the trash.
"So what do you study, Sakura?"
"I'm a medical student. I want to be a surgeon."
"Commendable."
She gave him an unsure look.
"Spit it out." he watched her, amused, as she struggled to find words.
"Did…did you always want to be a model?"
"I've wanted to be many things, but the work I choose I'm comfortable with." he said evasively.
"Like?"
"Classified information." He grinned at her pout.
"So you basically have no ambition."
"I wouldn't say that."
"So you don't want a steady job." she presumed.
"You misunderstand, Sakura. I have several steady jobs."
"I don't understand." she frowned. "I don't get how you can just go through life without attending a post secondary and have a fulfilling good life."
He laughed at her naiveté, his harsh decibel clashing with his light-hearted tones. "You need to attend a university or college to have a fulfilling life. Am I right to assume that this is what your parents told you?"
He saw her blush and she slowly nodded her head.
"Nothing to be embarrassed about. Not everyone receives a chance to be shipped off into a university." He gave her the crooked smile he knew that always softened his words. "Not everyone wants to go to university either."
She bit her lip, clearly unsettled by his answer.
He eyed her lip abuse. Not a typical quirk of a girl with a fiancé. Sasuke should have put a stop to that long ago.
"Stop biting your lip or I'll do something about it." the playful words flowed out of his mouth before he could think better of it.
She looked up at him with her jaw open. "Excuse me?"
For a brief moment he wondered if he stepped over the line, but he watched as a faint rosy blush crept up her cheeks.
Despite the disbelief she wore on her face, she was flattered.
His cell phone rang, and he almost cursed out loud.
"Excuse me." he stood up, and stepped into the bathroom hallway to speak.
"Who is this?" he snapped.
"Whoa, who put pepper in your hot sauce?" the feminine voice viciously snapped back.
He sighed. "Sorry, Ino. What do you want?"
"You should be very sorry, Gaara no Subaku."
"What do you want, Ino? You're interrupting something." he growled.
He could just see her ears perk.
"Are you on a date?"
"What are you, my mother?"
"No…I'm just curious."
"Ino…"
"Sorry, sorry. Just…uh…don't come over for a while, alright? Me and Kiba are having a fight…" she trailed off, her voice beginning to become wobbly with tears.
"Alright." he paused. "Call me if you need anything."
"Thanks." She hung up.
He stuffed his phone back into his pocket, and walked back to the table.
To his surprise, the pink-haired woman had disappeared, leaving a note in elegant, loopy cursive.
Sorry I had to take off, but I have class in ten minutes!
-S
He almost laughed out loud, Ino's troubles forgotten.
He ordered another Americano with two lime beignets as he sat back down, fingering the note.
His phone rang again, and he groaned at the caller ID.
"What did you do to Ino now, Kiba?"
She knew it was a cowardly thing to do, but it was a white lie and he didn't need to know it since she was going home rather than going to school.
What did he really mean by that, saying that not everyone wanted to go to university? She chewed her lip as she stood in the elevator of her apartment building. University is the way to go to have a successful good job, isn't it?
And that line he dropped about doing something about her lip-biting. What the hell did he mean by that? Did he mean…to kiss her or something?
She shook her head. Couldn't have meant that. This ring of mine should keep any man at bay, she told herself.
She opened door 432, tossed her bag and jacket down on the coffee table and sighed.
"Sakura?"
"Tenten?"
"Neji's here with me. We're in the kitchen."
She ran a hand through her short pink hair, and peeked in. "Hi, Neji."
"Sakura." he was delicately massaging her friend's shoulders. "Sasuke was looking for you."
"He called twice." Tenten said helpfully, closing her brown eyes.
"Thanks." she grabbed the cordless phone, and went to her room.
Sitting on her bed with her legs crossed, she dialled.
"Hello?" a masculine voice anxiously spoke.
"Hi, Sasuke. I'm sorry for making you worry."
"I've been trying to reach you all morning, Sakura. Where were you?"
"I was at a coffee shop studying. I have a lab test soon."
"I see." his voice took on a proud tone. "Do well on the test, okay?"
"Always." she fiddled with the edge of her bedspread.
"Maybe you should get a cell phone so I don't have to call everyone to find out where you are."
She laughed. "You're crazy for calling everyone, Sasuke. It wasn't like I was kidnapped."
"I wanted to spend some time with you. Laze around. Help you study. Watch your lame TV shows."
She immediately felt a twinge of guilt, but joked, "You're studying business and entrepreneurship, love, and I study medical science. You can't help me much. And my favourite programs are not lame! You and your sports shows are lame!"
"Tch. Just because you don't understand the point of the game."
"Remind me to never be a sports doctor."
"Of course. Now, go back to studying. I'll come by tomorrow morning to take you to breakfast. When's your test?"
"Tomorrow afternoon."
"Perfect timing then. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Bye."
She let the phone slide from her hand as she flopped back onto her bed.
Sakura was apprehensive of what she should feel.
This was the first time she ever lied to Sasuke.
Endorphin side effect
Just gonna crawl back to bed now… stupid cold.
Reviews would be awesome.
:E hypheniated