Howling Love :.
Chapter Twenty-Three xx Snow

The kunoichi silently speared a lone piece of waffle that had strayed from its declining comrades and popped it into her mouth, chewing contently before swallowing as her eyes again darted up to sneak a glance at the Uchiha's blank expression. He'd been sitting like that for the duration, it seemed, as if he were nothing more than a god-like statue seated proudly upon an unworthy booth seat. He was so perfectly still, so annoyingly breathtaking - and he didn't even have to try. Just the way he held his head; turned slightly so that his striking jaw-line was presented to her with his chin slightly raised, head cocked minimally to the side. His coal-black eyes were staring distantly out the window into the brightening street, and would break that gaze only when they'd dance back to catch one of her stealthy glances. He hadn't been talking much either, though Sakura felt the overriding sense that he wanted to say something, but couldn't quite find the means of saying it.

She poked at her waffle idly, her lips pursing as a slight furrow formed between her brow in thought. She then proceeded to put down her fork and place her arms beneath the table on her lap, her full focus now laying squarely upon her companion's stony expression. He twitched a glance in her direction, eyeing her before turning his head to look at her.

"So.... How's life?" Sakura asked awkwardly, her useless attempt at small-talk feeling completely forced. Sasuke seemed to be mirroring those thoughts, for his brow was cocked, and his thing lips stretched into an amused smirk.

"Boring," he answered numbly. Sakura shrugged and took a reserved sip of her latte.

"Anything happen while I was wrapped up in the hospital?" she asked, her voice laced with just a bit of sarcasm. She hadn't gotten wind of any commotions in Konoha, and she'd asked a couple close friends of hers to keep an eye on both of her male teammates when she couldn't, and so far Ino and Hinata had yet to report anything. She knew that Kakashi was out on a mission, and Naruto was due for one any day now, but Sasuke... He was anchored pretty firmly within the walls of Konoha.

"No..." he replied, though Sakura caught a hint of him being slightly defensive. She raised a brow and eyed him swiftly, a girlish frown blossoming across her lips.

"Then I'd much enjoy hearing about how you obtained that broken rib that I happened to heal while I was supposed to be working on your thumb." She grinned smugly and folded her arms neatly over her chest. She watched with an amused expression dancing across her face as he froze, the way his mind racing for a response physically visible across his face. She watched as his shoulders finally caved in in defeat, and she cheered inwardly at the tiny feat.

"I was sparring with the Dobe," he finally said, his tone low and guarded. Sakura fingered the thin porcelain surface of her mug, watching him with a skeptical brow.

"I'm sure," she intoned coolly as she moved her hand up to brush a loose strand of rose-pastel hair from where it had drifted before her face. She neatly folded her arms across her chest expectantly, a show of faux patience as she waited for him to explain himself in detail. The Uchiha watched her complacently, smirking as he took another large gulp of his coffee.

"Hn. It's the truth," he replied smoothly. The rosette brushed her gaze up to intercept the prodigy's probing stare, finding her cheeks suddenly glowing a flushed scarlet as she quickly dropped her eyes to her cup. The way his eyes gleamed so confidently, that daring extra curve to his smirk.... He was most certainly lying through his teeth. Sakura found herself wanting to almost laugh at the irony; was it even possible to be such a good liar that people immediately know you're lying when you look as if you aren't?

Only with Uchihas, it seemed, was such a ridiculous notion possible. Or perhaps, just this Uchiha in particular. Yet Sakura figured there was really no point on calling him out on it, seeing as how she had some news she was eager to share with him, and having any sort of upper hand against Sasuke - even in conversation - was definitely a good idea.

"Whatever you say..." she allowed dismissively, waving her hand as she took a calm sip of her drink.

"It is whatever I say," the dark-haired man replied easily, looking as if he were about to actually smile before he quickly caught himself. Sakura watched him and found a small grin twitching across her lips before she carefully brought her hands together in front of her, placing a very business-like expression on her face. Sasuke watched her with a guarded expression before cocking his brow, his own expression now expectant.

"I'm leaving tomorrow, Sasuke." She said it quick and simply with no change in expression. She had no doubt that he would have a problem with her leaving the village, and thus was trying to go about it as painlessly as possible.

He opened his mouth immediately to respond, but she quickly cut him off.

"I'll be gone for three days max; the hospital is running low on some supplies and I offered to go collect some. I'll be bringing a few medic-genin along for teaching purposes only, and all we'll be doing is hiking up to the Konoha herb gardens. Nothing serious. Nothing dangerous. Just thought I should let you know."

This was medic mode kicking in, and she rattled off the mission details like she would normally rattle of symptoms. She watched the Uchiha grapple with this information with a strangely-calm composure, feeling a strange feeling pulling at her chest when she saw his eyes searching her face with what could almost be called worry. Then he pulled himself together and took a gulp of his coffee.

"How long?"

"Two days max."

"Hn."

Silence ensued. Sakura took a few more stabs at her waffles, Sasuke stared dejectedly out the window. The kunoichi followed his gaze, gasping as she saw tiny puffs of snow drifting to the street, dappling the ground with iridescent white splashes.

"It's beautiful," she breathed, emerald hues widening as she watched in silent amazement.

"Yeah.... it is..." came the Uchiha's less-than-sardonic reply. The rosette's gaze flicked up to his face, and with amazement she realized that he hadn't been looking at the snow as he'd set it, but right at her. A strange warmth rose up through her chest, and do hide the scarlet blush that was creeping across her cheeks she quickly returned her gaze to the falling snow, finding a strange comfort in it's quiet descent.

Woah, I updated. o__o;; How strange... I'm sorry for the wait, and I'm sorry for it's shortness, but at least I finally got something done, right? Heh... heh.... well, I've got some mojo back, and after re-reading the entire story I sort of recollected where I was going with this fic, so I'm going to attempt to set it all on track again. :D Bare with me...

Anyways, I really love you guys! Sorry for making you all wait so long, and I hope it was (somewhat) worth the wait? Haha... next one will... I have big plans.... muahahaha.... lol

PLEASE REVIEW and THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!!!

-xxIndigo