The bed sheets were soaked in sweat and tears, and this time, Sakura didn't sit up when she awoke. She already felt the scream erupt from her chest, and she let it happen, let it awaken her from the terrible nightmare. She was awake, but she refused to open her eyes. She could feel old tears dried to her face, and new tears covering the traces. She whimpered and clutched herself deeper into a ball in the middle of the bed.
Finally she opened one eye, still shaking, and to her relief, saw that Sasuke's side of the bed was once more empty.
She slowly sat up and pulled her hair from her face, and pulled her knees up to her chest, hugging them tightly. She let out a small sob, and decided to cry there and then, uncaring if Sasuke was still in the house and could hear her.
When she was done, she stood up, and pulled all of the covers from the bed. She looked at the clock, and saw that it was already 9 am in the morning. Luckily, she had a late shift at the hospital today, so she planned on getting some laundry done. She stripped the bed, and bundled it into a ball, and went for the clothes hamper. She quickly hopped in the shower, dressed herself in sweats, and lugged her laundry down the hallway towards the laundry room.
One of the perks of marrying into a rich family, she assumed, was getting your own professional laundry room. She remembered when she lived with her parents, and they had a small washer dryer combo, nothing fancy. And when she lived by herself in an apartment, she had to take her laundry to the laundromat across the street. But the Uchiha's had their own fancy combo.
Sakura took a deep breath and spent about an hour cleaning all the clothes. She left the clean ones in the basket to be ironed later and headed into the kitchen. There were no dishes in the sink, but Sakura could see another tomato missing from the bunch. She walked towards the coffee pot, thanking that Sasuke had left it on and poured herself a cup. She sat down at the table and sipped the bitter liquid, her mouth forming a scowl. But she finished it anyways.
After she cleaned up, she headed back towards the bedroom to put on another pair of sheets and a comforter. Within three hours, she managed to iron the laundry, clean up the kitchen, prepare a small lunch, and pretty much clean the rest of the house. And by lunch, Sasuke wasn't home, so she just assumed he was out on a mission or training. She didn't bother to worry about it, and instead focused on other things. She planned on starting on the garden, but found she was exhausted. So instead she headed into the living room, avoiding the CD player and laid down on the couch.
She hadn't planned on taking a nap, but she found out that she was just that exhausted, so she did. By the time she was awake, it was time for her to go to work, so she washed up, downed another cup of coffee, and made Sasuke a small rice bowl for dinner. She left the instructions for how to heat it up on the counter and a small note that she would be back from work in the early morning.
Before she left, she made sure to apply extra foundation to her eyes, she could easily see that the dark circles had gotten worse, and she probably looked like shit. She grabbed her bag and coat and left the Uchiha compound.
Perhaps she could just hide from everyone today.
Sakura was wrong.
Horribly wrong.
Not even halfway into her shift, she was elbow deep in placenta from delivering twins, and then soon after, covered in blood after having to heal a whole team of ANBU from a tribal attack outside of the closest village barriers.
And then, at the end of her shift, literally minutes before she planned to clock out for the evening (or morning now, as it was 3 am), two teens came in, one with a kunai stuck up his nose and another with one stuck where the sun didn't shine.
She finally made it out of the hospital, and waved away all the thank yous and compliments. She brushed past Hana, the receptionist, grumpily muttering madness to herself, and walked home. She yawned every 5 seconds, and by the time she reached the compound door, she was ready to collapse. She slammed open the door and slammed it closed behind her, and frowned at the fact that the kitchen light was on. She stepped out of her shoes, dropped her coat and bag and shuffled into the kitchen, stopping as she saw her husband sat at the kitchen table. She rubbed her eyes and yawned.
"Sasuke? What are you doing up? It's almost 4 in the morning.." She yawned again and sighed happily as she saw that the coffee pot was on and ready to pour out some delicious, bitter sludge. She shakily poured herself a cup and collapsed at the table across from him.
"Hn."
If she hadn't been so tired, she would have seen him looking at her, but alas, she was exhausted so she only lifted her head to gulp down the coffee before dropping her head back onto the table with a thump.
She slowly finished the coffee, hoping it would keep her awake long enough for her to apologize for yesterday's incident, but her eyes were glued shut. She let go of the empty coffee mug and sat up, rubbing her eyes. The mug dissapeared from beside her and she hazily saw Sasuke place it in the sink and turn off the coffee maker. She smiled slowly at him.
"Well I'm gonna get some sleep now, goodni..." She stood up, but felt an arm jut around her waist. Thankful for the support, and not awake enough to analyze it's source, she leaned against the source of warmth, letting out a small, but happy groan. Suddenly, she was being lifted up, arms supporting her under her thighs and shoulders, bridal style. She wrapped her arms around the source's neck and leaned into his shoulder.
The last thing she remembered was being put into a warm, lovely smelling bed, and an arm pulling her towards a new source of warmth that she'd never before experienced.
Then she passed out.
When Sakura awoke, it was 3 in the afternoon, and she felt refreshed as ever. She opened her eyes and turned over, seeing that the bed was empty. She smacked herself and sat up, yawning. Of course it would be empty, Sasuke wouldn't lounge around in bed in the afternoon. She stood up from the bed and looked at her wrinkled, uncomfortable clothes from yesterday. She took a long, hot shower and then made the bed.
She changed into a pair of shorts and a tank top and walked down the hallway towards the kitchen. She could hear the faint scrape of metal on metal from the other side of the house and decided that Sasuke was cleaning his weapons in the weaponry room. She opened up the refrigerator and stared at the contents for a good five minutes, before closing it, realizing she had no clue of what to make. Her stomach growled. She was hungry. She made up a pot of chai tea and sat down at the table, her legs crossed on the seat. she closed her eyes and when she opened them again, Sasuke was in front of her, making his way towards the cupboard. He reached for a glass, and poured himself some water, taking a sip.
"Good afternoon." Sakura said meekly. Sasuke set down the glass on the table and took his seat across from her, avoiding her eyes.
She thought back to coming home from work this morning. She remembered that the coffee pot was on, and that she had drunk a cup, and.. Sasuke had waited up for her? She remembered him picking her up and putting her into bed, as she was too tired to walk. And then she remembered an arm around her waist in bed, pulling her flush against someone else. She shook her head. It must of been her imagination running wild, there was no way Sasuke would have done any of that. For one, he wasn't a cuddler.
She probably just arrived home, poured some coffee and went to bed. Sakura nodded inwardly. Yes, she had done that.
She finished up her tea and went for another cup, turning to Sasuke as she did. "Would you like some tea?" He shook his head and took another swing of his water. Sakura put the pot down and sat back in her place, watching her husband. She then looked at her hands around the cup, playing with her fingers.
"Sasuke...", she continued to avert her eyes, even when he looked up towards her face, "I'm... I'm sorry." She knew he knew what she was apologizing for. She honestly hadn't meant to cause him harm by playing the CD. It was just so.. so.. beautiful.
"Hn." He looked away, but when she looked back up at him, she realized that he wasn't angry. She decided to change the subject to get her mind off of it.
"I have another day off, and I really don't feel like cooking, do you want to go out and get something to eat?" She asked gently, watching his gaze turn towards the calendar, as if to see what day it was. He sighed, but didn't answer. He stood up, and placed his empty glass in the sink and dissapeared into the hallway. She twiddled her fingers, figuring he meant no, and stood up to start looking for something to cook.
Well she still had some fresh rice, there was a tomato left, some still fresh fish she had frozen yesterday.. She shrugged. She could make some kind of stir fry. Thanks to her mother's expertise cooking, Sakura had learned a thing or two about how to customize a bowl. Just as she was pulling the fish out of the freezer, Sasuke walked back into the kitchen.
"I reserved a table at the Dual Dragons." He said curtly and stood where he was, curious at what Sakura was doing. She stood up abruptly and slammed the freezer door.
"Sasuke! That's a very high end restaurant! Are you sure?" Sasuke crossed his arms and looked away, not amused at her shock.
"Tch." She shrugged and nodded.
"Well okay, I'll get ready. What time?"
"6:30."
Sakura ran a hot bath for herself, with plenty of time before the restaurant reservation. She planned to soak in the tub a little to get rid of the awful sweat that still clung to her from her nightmares. She hopped in and closed her eyes, in complete bliss. What she loved most about the Uchiha's compound, was that the bath was separate from the shower, and in a completely different room. And it had its own screen and mirror and everything. Sakura was beginning to not miss her tiny little apartment at all.
After about thirty minutes, still an hour from the reservation, she emerged from the bath room in a silk robe and headed into the bedroom and sat at her vanity mirror. She could hear Sasuke in the shower, probably starting to get ready, so she took her time cleaning her face and putting on some makeup. She headed over to the closet to pick out a kimono, just as Sasuke emerged from the bathroom, towel around his pale hips, as always. Sakura couldn't help but sneak a peak at her husbands gorgeous muscles and six pack as she turned back to her clothes, blushing. She chose one of her best kimonos, one of sheer, light pink with the emblem of a sakura tree in gold around the bottom. She saw Sasuke grab his own formal wear and slip back into the bathroom, closing the door behind him, to change.
Sakura searched through her drawer, pondering at what undergarments to wear. She couldn't just wear her usual bra and panties under a lovely dress like this. She frowned, searching, until she came upon something black and lacy. She blushed, pulling out the lingerie combo, remembering suddenly where it came from. This had been Ino's wedding present to her.
"Remember, forehead." Ino snickered, wriggling her eyebrows at her best friend, "Sasuke's favorite color is black."
Sakura blushed, wanting to force the material back in the drawer and to suffice with a nicer number she had, but her hands held tight to the material, and before she knew it, she was slipping it on, and then the kimono over the top.
She seated herself back in front of her makeup mirror, ready to do her hair, when Sasuke emerged back from the bathroom, dressed in an expensive, black robe with a silver dragon on it. She smiled, marveling at how handsome he looked, before he disappeared out the room. She focused her attention back on the mirror and made a face. How should she do her hair?
She always did a bun for work, and she couldn't do a ponytail. She grimaced. She could leave it down, but she didn't have time to curl it. She really should put it up, such a formal outfit deserved a formal look..
While rummaging for her lipstick in her drawer, she came across Tsunade's box. She smiled silently, knowing it was perfect.
Sasuke lounged on the futon in the living room, waiting for Sakura to emerge from the bedroom. He looked at the clock, seeing it was time to get going and stood up.
"Sak-" His eyes caught sight of her in the hallway, and he immediately shut his mouth midsentence.
The kimono she had chosen clung to every delicious curve Sakura owned on her body, especially her hips and waist. The pink color brought out her hair and her emerald eyes shone brightly like newly polished diamonds. His eyes traveled up to her face, done simply, pink lipstick and pale eye shadow, and to her hair. He swallowed. He had never seen that hair clip before, but the way it pulled her hair away from her face so, he didn't give a damn for it, only to thank it. Her hair was teased into a small twist, held by the clip, which left a few strands of hair to frame her beautiful face. She was a goddess. He swallowed again, feeling the tips of his ears heating up.
"Sasuke? Are you alright?" She took a step towards him, her hand out and ready to help him if needed. He turned away, looking at the clock; trying not to draw his gaze back to the sight in front of him.
"Fine." He said. She smiled and nodded.
"We should get going then." He came out of the living room to meet her in the hallway and held out his arm to her. Sakura took it with a small smile, and they exited the compound together. If Sakura had not been trained in the art of formalities, she would have fangirled over the moment when Uchiha Sasuke held out his arm for her to take. But she knew that this extended arm was a move that every man would make to his wife before preparing to escort her somewhere. Still, she smiled happily.
"You look very handsome." She murmured, looking up at her husband, who didn't meet her eyes.
"Hn."
The dinner had gone by very slowly, and very silently. Mostly, Sakura had held a small conversation, making small remarks for Sasuke to respond with his usual sounds to. He even bought her a small desert of her favorite tiramasu.
As they walked back home through the streets in the setting sun, Sakura could see the people coming out of stores and houses to stare at the couple.
Isn't that the Lord and Lady Uchiha? someone asked.
Lady Uchiha looks absolutely beautiful! a woman whispered to her husband.
They're such a lovely couple. another remarked, sighing happily.
Sakura blushed at the comments, and stole a look at her husband, but his face was expressionless as ever. They entered the Uchiha compound, and Sakura stepped into the living room and collapsed on the futon, rubbing her aching, now bare feet. She looked up as Sasuke followed her in and sat on the opposite side of the futon.
"That was lovely, Sasuke... I-.. thank you." She sat up straight, and Sasuke crossed his arms and closed his eyes.
"Hn."
Sakura leaned over suddenly and placed a long kiss to his cheek. She could see that the tips of his ears were burning, and she smiled and stroked his thigh gently. She then stood up, and stretched her arms over her head.
"Wow, after all the sleep I've gotten, I'm still so tired.." She trailed off and started to head towards the bedroom, then stopped. She turned around, seeing that Sasuke wasn't following her, and walked back over to him and grabbed his arm gently pulling him off the futon with her monstrous strength. She continued to smile at him gently.
"Come on, Sasuke." She murmured, and lead him towards their bedroom.
"Hn." She giggled at his attempt at defensive refusals. She closed the door behind him and stood in the middle of the room, looking at her husband. He stood there, looking back at her. She shrugged and walked over to her mirror and took a seat in front of it. She heard him slowly undoing his robe, slipping out of the material to hang it back up. Sakura looked at her face, and slowly removed her makeup with a tissue. She turned back towards her hair, and sighed at how beautiful it was, not really wanting to take it out. But she knew she couldn't sleep in such an expensive clip.
She took a deep breath and raised her fingers to grasp the clip, and gently pull it out-
"Don't."
She jumped and turned to her husband, her hand pulling away from her clip, leaving the hairstyle still perfectly in place. She raised an eyebrow at him.
"Sasuke.. did you sp-"
"Leave it." she looked up at his face, realizing it was hidden by his bangs because he was looking down. He was sat, shirtless on the edge of the bed, clad only in dark pants. She opened her mouth to speak, and then closed it again and turned back to stand up and slowly move towards the bathroom.
"Uhm.. okay I guess I'll go.. change-"
He wasn't one of the best ANBU captains for nothing. Before she could even finish her sentence, he was stood in front of her, blocking the doorway to the bathroom. She scanned his face for reason or explanation, and found none.
"Sasuke, are you al-" He cut her off once more, his lips gently lowering to hers in his usual small, chaste kiss. When he pulled away, Sakura bit her lip.
Oh.
The kiss was far from being an intimate or romantic one, but it was surely gentler and felt nicer than the others. She raised a hand to cup his cheek, to try to look into his eyes, but he held them hidden once more, looking at the floor between them. She took a small breath and mustered up all of the courage in her body. Slowly, she withdrew her hand from his face and moved her her fingers to her kimono, she slowly undid her robe ties, and she shakily pulled the material off her shoulders. She heard it hit the floor with a small thunk and looked up at Sasuke once more. This time he was looking down at her, his eyes staring into hers. She could tell there was lust, as always, but something else.. something she couldn't make out. And the lust wasn't that prevalent this time.
His eyes traveled down her face and her neck, and slowly down to her lacy bra. She swallowed, her cheeks growing red under his watchful eyes.
"Aa." She didn't know what that meant, but she was almost relieved to hear him respond to her. His eyes continued down her flat stomach and landed on the other piece to her matching lingerie. With her hands still shaking, she reached behind her and undid her bra clasp, letting the material slowly fall down her body and to the floor. She closed her eyes, feeling his eyes still on her and slid the rest of the thin black material down her legs, and stepped out of the panties. Finally, she placed her warm, small hands on the band of his pants at his hips and pulled them down his legs, willing herself to look away from the obvious truth she had just uncovered.
She swallowed a hard lump in her throat, and felt him crouch down and grip the back of her thighs, gentler this time. She almost sighed in relief. This part was usual. She slowly placed her hands onto the cool skin of his shoulders, as he hoisted her up, locking her legs around his hips.
Only this time, her back did not hit the soft sheets with a warm body looming over her. She opened her eyes slowly, and saw that instead, he had seated himself on the edge of the bed, with her on his lap. She blushed deeper, her mouth refusing to form words. She searched for his eyes, but he still would not show them, they were hid behind his bangs as he looked away from her. She could see a small hint of a blush on his cheekbones.
"S-Sasuke..?" She murmured so quietly she almost thought she didn't say it. But he refused to look at her, and kept his fingers on the back of the top of her thighs. She moved slightly in his lap, feeling the heat between her legs clash with his. She bit her lip and placed her hands on his cheeks gently, waiting for him to respond. What did he mean to-
"Ride me."
His voice was hoarse and deep, and she almost thought she had imagined him saying it, but she jumped, turning her eyes to his face. She blushed deeper.
"I-I-"
"Please."
She bit her lip, and closed her eyes at the sound of his desperate plea. Jesu, she couldn't even form words right now.
Sakura adjusted in his lap, positioning herself, and the moment she started, his lips parted in pleasure. His head tilted back, and Sakura watched him, her own eyes heavy lidded, her lips opening. She began to slowly move against him, creating a minimal pace, but he was already lost in her. His hands were gone from the backs of her thighs and were instead on her hips, guiding her back and forth. Her thighs involuntarily squeezed his with every movement, and his head slowly fell even farther back, his mouth omitting a few pants. Sakura moved her hands up to wrap her arms around his neck, and buried her head into his shoulder, feeling a little bit embarrassed at the situation, but still lost in the pleasure it was causing.
Sasuke gripped the skin of her hollow hips harder, his hands guiding her to increase the pace of her ministrations, and Sakura happily agreed. She bit her lip, but let a small mewl escape her mouth and into his collarbone, the vibrations instantly making Sasuke shudder. As she continued to go faster, he let out a low growl from his chest, his hands moving down to cup her ass, pressing her closer and closer to him.
"S-Sasuke.." She murmured, and gripped his neck harder. His hands pressed upwards over her spine and cupped her arms. He pulled them away from his neck, and lifted her head up, her eyes meeting his. She stared into his obsidian orbs, and for the first time in a long time, she wasn't scared. As the pressure began to heighten, she opened her mouth more, larger pants and sounds coming from her throat, and her eyes began to close. She felt something clammy press against her forehead and she realized it was Sasuke's forehead. She blushed, continuing to grind against him, hearing his own panting increase.
His hands repositioned themselves on her behind as he guided her harder and faster against him, and her own hands tangled in his hair, her lips finding his. She hadn't meant to kiss him, she knew that he probably wouldn't like it, but in the heat of the moment, doing so was the only thing that could keep her believing that this was real. This was her Sasuke, her husband, she thought, she had every right to kiss him if she wanted. At first, his lips didn't respond, but then they slowly kissed back, and she slipped her tongue out to lick his lip. His own mouth opened, and soon they were in a heated bind, tongues battling each other. She massaged his scalp, finally going at the fastest pace she could muster against him, the heat in the pit of her stomach ready to burst. She pulled away from his lips and breathed heavily, ready to finish.
"Sakura-"
She let out a long moan, finally coming down off her high, and hearing that was all Sasuke needed before he two let out another growl and came too. He lay his head on her shoulder, panting heavily, and Sakura placed a kiss on the top of his head. She smiled, her hands stroking his hair.
This was the intimacy she had always wanted. She was sure of it now.
Even when they finally lay down in the bed, and Sasuke, for once lay on his back, still panting, Sakura planted her head on his chest and closed her eyes, honestly expecting him to move out from under her. But he didn't. She felt his hand briefly caress the crown of her head and she smiled still. She only remembered the clip in her hair when his fingers swiftly pulled it out her tangled locks, letting them fall over her shoulders.
And Sasuke, it seemed, was in heaven at the goddess that had loomed over him.
But he would never admit to that.
"I love you." Sakura murmured lightly, before finally willing herself to sleep.