"Here I am back again
And I'm wishing now, was then."
-Bahamas
My parents returned on December twenty-third, and my aunt and grandmother arrived the day after. It was strange, having the extended family over after seeing them at Thanksgiving, but it was nice all the same. No one said anything about this being out of the ordinary, so I was sure that it was Konan's doing.
"Hello dear," my grandmother greeted me at the door. She would be taking my room again, and I would be sleeping on the couch, which was fine. Usually I would complain, but I was different now.
We had a nice Christmas as a family, besides some bickering between my aunt and my mom (this was actually normal behavior for them). Christmas was my favorite time of the year, and I was glad that I could spend it with my family. I didn't think about how it could be my last - why should I? I didn't want to taint the memories I would have with my family.
Before everything happened, I would have been more concerned with what I was receiving for Christmas than anything else. Last time, when it had just been my parents, Sasuke, and me, I had wanted a bunch of expensive clothes and a new iPhone. This year, I hadn't really asked for much.
Christmas Day was nice and uneventful - just how I like my Christmases. New Year's Eve was the time to party during the winter holidays. Christmas was time for family.
It wasn't until later in the afternoon on Christmas Day - after we had a huge lunch that consisted of turkey and a lot of casseroles - that I saw him.
"Sakura, can you get the door?" My mom called from the kitchen, where she and my aunt were putting away leftovers.
Strangely enough, I found Sasuke at the door. "Er, hi Sasuke." I said. "What's up?" It was snowing lightly outside, and there were several snowflakes in his black hair. He was a little flushed from the cold too.
"I thought I'd go for a walk," he began, "and I figured I'd bring you this..." He handed me a small package that was wrapped in newspaper. "It's from Naruto and me. It's not a lot, but we wanted to get you something."
"That's nice," I said, touched. "Thank you."
"He would be here right now," Sasuke said, "but he's on the phone with Hinata."
"As he should be," I grinned, and carefully opened the present. Inside the small box I found two disposable cameras and a small photo album.
"You're always taking pictures," he said. "We thought you might want to use something more... old-fashioned."
"Hinata helped you, right?" I said.
He smirked. "Guilty," he said, "but it was a good idea."
"Of course," I said. "It's a great gift. Tell Naruto thank you for me please."
He nodded. "I should probably get going." I wondered if he was having a good Christmas with Naruto. It was strange not having him here, honestly.
"Merry Christmas!" I said. "I'll see you later!"
"Merry Christmas," he said, and then started to walk back to his house.
Once I shut the door, I saw my aunt and mom looking at me. "That's the same boy from Thanksgiving," my aunt declared.
"So what if it is?" I said defensively. "We're friends."
My mom just gave me a knowing look. "What a friend," she said.
I said goodbye to my aunt and grandma the day after Christmas. This time, I wasn't so emotional. I had already felt like I had said goodbye for good during Thanksgiving break, so it wasn't as hard this time even though it could have been the last time I would see them again. They weren't able to make it to my graduation - not that I minded the first time, I was only concerned with the after-party.
"It was so good to see you again." My grandma was a sweet lady, no matter how much she drove my mom crazy.
"You too, grandma." I grinned before she walked out the door. Behind her, my aunt mouthed the words "save me" before she climbed into the rental car they had driven together in.
Once they were gone, my mom collapsed on the couch. "I think I just need a second," she said weakly.
The rest of the holiday went by quickly. I didn't see Sasuke again until a few days before New Year's Eve, and that was because I had stumbled upon him when I was going for a walk (I couldn't stand being in the house for very long that day - I love my parents, but I needed some time away).
"Hey," I said, "thanks again for the cameras."
"It wasn't much," he said again. "What are you doing here?"
"This is my spot too," I told him. It was true, we still came to the same spot when we needed to think.
He shrugged. "My brother's back in town right now, actually. He brought a woman he met when he was on vacation during Christmas and it's unbearable to be around them right now." I remembered this, Sasuke had been so annoyed with Itachi that he had stayed at Naruto's house for half the time his brother was in town (not very long anyway, he was gone before New Year's Eve).
"Sorry about that," I said. "If you need anything to do that's not with your brother you can always ask me. I'm getting sick of my parents too."
"Do you want to get coffee now?" He smirked. He must have been pretty desperate to get away from Itachi.
"Sure," I smiled. "Let me get my purse."
We stopped by my house (thankfully my mom was napping so I didn't have to explain what I was doing with Sasuke) for a few minutes so I could grab my things, and then we walked to his house to get his car. On the walk there, and on the way to the coffee shop, we talked about everything that was going on. The Hyuga family would arrive that evening from their vacation (the twenty-eighth), so Naruto was at the airport waiting to pick up Hinata. Most of my friends had gotten back from visiting family too (including Ino and Tenten).
"Are you going to Ino's New Year's Eve party?" I asked him. Ino had called me the day before to invite me to it.
"I think so," he admitted, even though he didn't seem happy about it. "I don't really want to, but I already said I would."
"It might be fun," I said, "come on, all of your friends are going to be there!"
"Are you going?" He looked up from where he had been looking at his hands.
"Of course!" I said. "If you think I'm going to miss an opportunity to wear a sparkly dress you are greatly mistaken!" I had already found the dress. It was the same one I had worn the last time - silver and covered in sparkles.
Sasuke just rolled his eyes. "Of course you would." He said.
"What's that supposed to mean?" I said indignantly. He just shrugged.
"Anyway," I said, "I don't know who I'm going with." I explained that Tenten and Neji were basically an item, so I couldn't just steal her away now. And Naruto and Hinata were basically attached at the hip now that Hinata was back from her family ski trip. "I mean, it's not a huge deal, just I'm used to getting ready with them and all." I explained.
"You can ride with me." The words seemed to surprise even Sasuke.
I stared at him for a second before responding, it really caught me off guard. "You don't have to," I said quickly, "I wasn't trying to guilt you or something-"
"Come with me," he said again. "As friends. It'll be more tolerable that way."
As friends. "Okay," I said. "Thanks Sasuke."
I didn't see Sasuke again until the New Year's Eve party. Apparently Itachi had finally left him alone two days before the party, to Sasuke's relief.
He picked me up a few minutes before the party was supposed to start, like I had told him to. As always, I didn't want to be too early. I was dressed, as promised, in my glittery silver dress. It had capped sleeves and flowed to my knees, and I wore black heels with it. Sure, it was cold outside, but I could deal with it. I loved that dress.
"Wow," Sasuke said when I opened the door to his car. "That's a sparkly dress."
"Told you," I grinned.
The ride to the party was nice, and we talked comfortably. Sasuke looked focused when he drove to Ino's house (which was on the other side of town). That was something about Sasuke - there was something slightly intense about the way he did anything, no matter how trivial.
The party itself was much more animated than the Christmas party. For one thing, there were way more guests, and booze. I could hear the music from outside, and hear shouts from other people who were already there. Once we were inside, I was glad that I had arrived with Sasuke. Not for the image, but because it made me feel better than showing up alone.
"It's like the whole senior class is crammed in here or something!" I shouted to Sasuke over the music. Okay, so I was exaggerating a lot, but it was pretty crazy already.
"Hey guys!" Ino beamed at us. When Sasuke was looking the other way, she winked. I gave her a look that said "it's not what it looks like." "Glad you could make it!"
Sasuke nodded, still looking around.
"Thank you for inviting us." I smiled back at her. I hadn't seen Ino all winter break, and I had missed her a lot. Like me, her dress was covered in sparkles too (there were a lot of girls in similar outfits at the party - it was kind of a New Year's Eve thing).
Ino's parents were out of town that year on a cruise, so she had the house to herself. The last time, Kiba had gotten so drunk he was starting to black out. I had ended up spending most of my night avoiding him (besides the kiss at midnight...), and helping Ino. This time around, I was ready to enjoy myself.
"I have to go circulate some more," Ino said, "but we have snacks in the kitchen, and drinks of course, and you can go anywhere since you're my friends." She winked. "I've been telling everyone else that upstairs is off-limits."
"Sakura!" I turned around to see Naruto and Hinata behind me. I was surprised that they managed to find us so fast.
I screamed a little when I saw Hinata - I hadn't realized that I would miss her so much - and gave her a hug. "How was your vacation?" I said. "You'll have to tell me everything!"
"Of course," Hinata smiled. "I missed you!"
Naruto and Sasuke watched us reunite. Sasuke looked bored already, and Naruto was laughing about something.
"Sakura, your dress is so pretty!" Hinata said. "It looks great on you."
"Thanks," I said, "I thought it fit the occasion."
They broke away because Naruto was interested in getting more food from the kitchen, leaving me alone with Sasuke alone. "So," I said, "wanna find people we know?" Of course, I knew basically everyone here, but Sasuke knew what I meant. I wanted to find people we actually wanted to talk to.
We weaved through the crowd (it was a lot harder to do with Sasuke, because people kept stopping him to talk), and finally found Shikamaru, who was sitting by Neji and Tenten.
"Tenten!" I said with about the same enthusiasm as I had when I saw Hinata.
Tenten just smiled. To my surprise, she had styled her hair herself - it was down and straight. "It's been too long." She said simply.
"Okay," I whispered to her while Sasuke was talking to the other two, "we need to talk about you and Neji. I feel like I'm completely out of the loop here!"
She just nodded. "I'll get you caught up... So what are you doing here with Sasuke?"
I gave her a brief explanation. "We've been hanging out a lot over winter break because I've been having to go over Vice President stuff, and we just ended up coming here together... As friends." I said.
"Hmm." She said skeptically.
Before I could say anything back, something (or should I say, someone) caught my eye. Across the room, I could see Karin glaring at me vehemently. It looked like she was trying to set me on fire with her gaze. "What's her problem?" I said.
"She probably noticed that you're here with Sasuke." Tenten obseved.
"Whatever," I said, "she's going to have to accept that we're friends now. Besides, she's not even dating him anymore. It's not like it even matters."
"I'd be careful," Tenten said, "she seems a little..."
"Tipsy?" I completed her sentence. Sure, Karin could act out of control when she was drinking, but I wasn't worried. I could handle her.
"Yeah." Tenten said.
We stayed in that group for most of the night. Naruto and Hinata joined us after awhile, and we all sat in the same area of Ino's living room and talked. It was actually a really nice way to end the year. From across the room, I could see the majority of the girls eyeing Sasuke. I wondered how many of them had been hoping to finally get a chance with him. Sasuke was never mean to the girls that expressed interest in him, but he still made sure to keep a distance.
"I'm getting kind of hot," I told Tenten, who had been sitting beside me. "I think I'm going to go outside for a few minutes."
"Do you want me to come with you?" She asked.
"Nah," I said, "really, I just need to cool down a little." I was starting to feel light-headed for some reason. Besides, I didn't want to pull Tenten away from Neji. I was basically freaking out about how cute they were internally all night.
She just shrugged.
There were less people outside, but it was still a decent-sized crowd. I wondered how many people Ino had invited, and how many had just shown up. Not that she would care, I thought, Ino always took great pride in her party-hosting abilities. Ino's parents had a really nice back yard, with a swimming pool and a fire pit (that was currently in use), and a lot of chairs.
I made my way to the side of the house where there were less people. I sipped my drink, just ice water, and focused on feeling better. It was working almost immediately.
"So," a snide voice slurred, "I bet you're feeling like a hotshot right now." I turned around to see Karin glaring at me.
"What do you want, Karin?" I said. Seriously, was it impossible for me to have one moment of peace?
"I want you to stop talking to him." She hissed. I could smell alcohol, and she was carrying another cup of whatever it was she had been drinking.
"I don't know what you're talking about." I said. Even though I totally did.
"Sasuke," she said. "Everything was fine until you turned up, bitch. I want you to go away before I have to make you."
"And how are you going to do that?" I fumed. My irritation had transformed into full-blown anger. I was suddenly furious. "How are you going to make me do anything? I have just as much of a right to be here than anyone else!"
"I don't know what you're doing," she said, her words still slurring together. It was a wonder she was able to talk at all. "But it's going to stop. I'm going to figure you out, and how you - how you managed to steal my boyfriend." Now she was just being crazy.
"You did that to yourself." I said, scathingly. Besides, it wasn't like I was dating him or anything.
"You bitch." That was when she threw her drink on me.
"Ow!" I shrieked. She had basically clawed me on the side of my face. "What the hell are you doing!?"
"That's enough, Karin." Sasuke had appeared beside me. "You've been drinking too much."
"S-sasuke." Karin said, her eyes widening. "What are you doing here?"
He just shook his head. "Come on," he said to me, "let's get you cleaned up." I found myself being guided back inside by Sasuke, who immediately led me upstairs to Ino's bathroom.
I didn't realize how hard I was shaking until Sasuke sat me down on the edge of the bathtub - partly from the cold, and the other part because I was so shocked. I knew Karin was crazy, but I had never thought she would freaking attack me.
Sasuke knelt down to where he was at the same level as where I was perched. "Are you okay?" He said softly.
It surprised me even more when I started to cry. I had started to respond, when a sob escaped. I tried to stop myself, but I couldn't stop. I was so embarrassed. I wasn't competent enough to go to a party with the guy I liked without something humiliating happening.
"Hey," Sasuke said. "I'm sorry."
"Why are you sorry?" My voice came out in a whisper, fighting for control. I was still shaking.
"I don't know what Karin has against you," he sighed. "She was always... possessive when we were dating, but I thought that would end when we broke up."
"I'm sorry." I said. To my surprise, he wiped away the tears that were streaming down my face with his thumbs. I flinched when he touched the left side of my face.
"She really got you." He said, and stood back up. I saw him searching Ino's cabinets until he found some disinfectant and bandaids. He knelt back down, and tended to my face. Later, I would look in the mirror and she a large scratch that went across my cheek. It bruised a little, but thankfully went away before school started up again.
I was so surprised by how he was acting that I just stared at him. This was so like the Sasuke that I used to be best friends with. I had forgotten this, but he had always been so protective with me. Now, it was like nothing had changed at all.
Once he had bandaged my face up, he looked me in the eyes. "I'm sorry that happened. I should have kept a closer eye on you."
"I'm not a little kid," I said, "and it wasn't your fault. I should have been more careful, I guess." Not that I should have even had to worry about Karin, but whatever.
We sat like that until I stopped shaking and felt calm enough to start speaking normally. Then, he left again for a few minutes, and came back with Ino.
"Oh my god," Ino said, when she saw me. "Sasuke told me what happened Sakura, I'm so sorry."
"Why are you apologizing?" I said.
"I can't believe her." Ino said. "Jealous bitch." I heard her cursing under her breath as she went back in her room and rummaged around. She came back with a pair of pajama bottoms and a shirt. "Here," she said, "put these on."
Obediently, I put on her clothes (Sasuke left the room for that part). "Thanks Ino," I said.
"Don't worry about it," she said, "are you going to be okay?"
"Yeah," I said. I felt a lot better now once the initial shock of what had happened wore off. Now I was just pissed at Karin. "Really, I feel a lot better. It's not that big of a deal-"
"Oh it's a big deal," Ino said, and she sounded scary. "No one does that to my friend and gets away with it." I learned later that Ino kicked Karin out of the party after that.
When Sasuke returned, Ino excused herself, saying that she needed to get back to the party. "Besides, you're in good hands with Sasuke." She gave me a look, and I realized what she was doing. I just rolled my eyes at her.
Once we were alone, Sasuke looked at me. "Come on," he said, "I know where we can go." He led me back into Ino's room, where he opened the window. I was suddenly bombarded by memories of having sleepovers here and going on the roof. How did Sasuke know about that?
Carefully, we climbed through the window, and took a seat where we could see everyone outside. Faintly, I could hear the music from inside. We sat down, side by side, and I felt thankful that he had gotten my coat from downstairs.
"My dress is probably ruined." I said, suddenly. Dammit Karin.
Sasuke snorted. "Half of your face was bleeding and you're worried about a dress."
"It was a nice dress," I said, "and it will be missed."
Sasuke just shook his head.
"Thanks, by the way." I said. "For doing all of that. You didn't have to."
"You don't have to thank me." He said.
We sat like that until we heard everyone counting down until midnight. And no, we didn't kiss or anything. But there was something comforting about having him beside me when the new year rolled in. Something that made me feel like maybe, despite what happened, everything could end up okay.
Author's Note: So this chapter might have gotten a bit out of control... I'm not even really sure what happened to be honest. Thank you so much for your reviews and kind words! Please let me know what you think about this chapter, and if you like how things are developing. Any constructive criticism is welcome. :)