Date: 9/17/13
Rating: K+
Genre: Cute, Romance
Prompt: Based on "Brutal Love" - Green Day
By the time it was ten o'clock Sasuke had already lost count.
Sakura was on the dance floor again, her arms around another nameless man's neck as his hands slowly made their way to her waist, his lips whispering something in her ear. She blushed, her face the same light shade of pink as her hair. He grimaced, tearing his eyes away from the dancing couple, and glowered at the bottom of his empty glass. It had been while since he'd seen her blush like that.
The reception began four hours ago, the music three hours ago; and since then, Sasuke watched as Sakura could barely sit down for more than few minutes before someone asked her to join him for yet another dance, none of them ever him. He glanced at the clock behind him and pursed his lips—about two more hours until it was over; there was still time, not that that really meant anything to him. Sasuke reached for the pitcher of water. All he had to do was endure, one glass at a time.
But then he heard her laugh, forcing his eyes to return to the couple just in time to see Sakura dip her head back, her laughter contagious as she and her partner continued to sway with the music. Sasuke dropped his hand to the table, forgetting about the pitcher of water as his fist clenched. That was it. He was going to leave. He didn't care that it was early. He'd done nothing but sit for the past four hours, sit and watch, sit and listen—to slow music, to laughter, to teases—and he was done.
Sasuke stood up, taking those who remained at the table by surprise, bidding a haphazard adieu to the host before walking out of the building and into the coolness of the night. He took a deep breath, savoring the fresh air; he hadn't even noticed how stuffy it had gotten inside.
"Sasuke-kun, wait!"
He turned, barely twenty feet away from the building, hearing the tap-tap-tapping of her feet against the pavement as she rushed towards him. He blinked. She was fast.
"You're leaving?" Sakura asked, disbelief strewn across her face, "Already?" Sasuke nodded. She smiled. "Well, then," she said, fixing her jacket she'd put on inside out in her haste to catch up with Sasuke, "let me join you."
He made a face. "Why?"
Sakura paused, one arm mid-sleeve. "Oh," she said, her voice dropping as she took a step back, "Do you—do you not want me to come with you? Because I'll leave, if that's what you want—"
"It's not." Sakura's eyes widened, prompting Sasuke to clear his throat. "I mean, you," he said slowly, averting his gaze as he resumed his walk home, warding off the images of Sakura dancing with everyone but him, "you just seemed to be having a good time."
She tilted her head, scrunching her nose as she placed her hand on her chin, as if taking Sasuke's words into consideration. She shrugged. "I guess you could say that. But," she said, "to be honest, it could have been better."
Sasuke said nothing, but he didn't have to, the question unspoken and yet, hanging in the air as he turned his attention back to her. How?
She let out an awkward laugh. "It's silly, but," Sakura said, blushing, the intensity of Sasuke's gaze a bit overwhelming, "I was actually kind of hoping—you'd ask me—to dance." She covered her face with her hands and continued walking, embarrassed. "And I know it was stupid, and that you probably think I'm being—"
She stopped because Sasuke stopped. And then, she saw his face. And she knew, her eyes widening as the realization finally hit her. "Oh." She bit her lip. "Did you—did you want to?" He remained silent, showing no sign that he was going to answer her question. Sakura tried again, less baffled, gentler this time. "I mean, it's not too late, Sasuke-kun. You can still ask me." She smiled. "If you'd like."
Sasuke blinked. "But there's no music."
"… Does it really matter?"
"Okay, then do you," Sasuke asked slowly, as if suddenly unsure how to form words, "want—to dance—with, uh, me?"
Sakura smiled and took his hand, leading him under one of the street lamps. "Of course I do, Sasuke-kun."
However, Sasuke didn't move, still holding Sakura's hand in his, the two of them standing under the lamp light in silence. She wasn't saying anything, but he knew she was waiting—patiently, but waiting for him to do something nevertheless. He swallowed. "I don't really know," he finally said after a few more minutes passed, "what to do."
She laughed, placing his free hand on the small of her back as she placed hers on his shoulder. "Here, Sasuke-kun," she said as she began to sway, guiding him gently as they moved to the imaginary beat, "like this."
"Okay."
It was quiet, the only sounds coming from the low hum of crickets amidst the trees and the occasional contented sigh. And in that time, swaying beneath the lamplight, neither spoke. Neither even dared to whisper.
And they were okay with that.