title: It Was Always You
prompt: SASUSAKU MONTH 2014
rating: T-M

summary: o30: There they were again, just the two of them, on that stone cold bench in the middle of the night.

dedicated to: my girls reviee, DeepPoeticGirl, and SR :)

.o30.
It All Comes Back to This

"So here we are again," Sakura said, sitting on the opposite side of the cold bench she knew so well. She peeked over at Sasuke, who stared at the stone ground, refusing to meet Sakura's gaze.

"Yup."

He sat as far away from her as possible. Sakura didn't mind. She figured that this place brought back memories just as unwanted as hers.

"You know," Sakura whispered, watching tree leaves fall casually over them. They fluttered with a wispy sigh onto their bodies and the bench, and Sakura picked one up, running over the soft texture with her fingers. "You broke my heart here."

Sasuke looked up, watching her. This time, however, her eyes were focused on the leaf in her hands.

"Are you really going to bring that up, Sakura?" he asked, his voice laced with a little more harshness than he would have liked.

She shrugged. "I'm just saying."

Silence flooded between the two as Sakura dropped the leaf onto the ground and brought her knees up against her chest. She laced her arms tightly around her legs and rested her head over her limbs.

"I never stopped loving you, you know," she said. "Despite everything that's happened."

"It all comes back to this, doesn't it?" Sasuke asked. "Your love for me." He allowed himself to scoot closer to Sakura, but he was still far enough that she wouldn't perceive his actions as too intimate or get the wrong idea.

Sakura freed her legs and likewise moved closer to him.

"Yeah," she breathed. "I guess it does. You know, Sasuke-kun, my feelings for you have not changed over these years. They most likely will never change, no matter what happens between us." She moved closer. "You matter to me."

They were an arm's length away. Sasuke placed his hand in the middle of the empty space separating them. He noticed Sakura's hand right next to his.

"Stay with me," she begged. "If not for me, stay with us." Feeling brave, she touched her pinky finger with his, enjoying the touch of his skin on hers.

Sasuke said nothing. Instead, he looped his pinky around hers and squeezed tight. It was a wordless promise, but a promise nonetheless.

He wouldn't dare to break it.