title: future
prompt: #24 - day trip
summary: the thought of his future with sakura makes sasuke's heart soar.
They journey out to the edge of the country one morning, for a glimpse of the sea.
It is neither the warmest nor brightest of days, and the sky overhead seems to have broken into two, only to attempt to stitch itself back together with threads of clouds. There are slim columns of sunlight filtering down from the gaps between the thick clouds, though, illuminating the beach as they reflect off the water, and Sasuke decides that it is enough.
His eyes skim the horizon, where the ocean seems to touch the sky in conversation. Sakura walks along the lip of the sea beside him, flecks of water splashing against his legs from the impact of her feet. She bends down a few steps later to trace the water with her fingertips before standing back up and pressing a small seashell into Sasuke's open hands.
The corners of his lips raise, and he lifts the shell to his right ear. "Is this the type of shell that lets you hear the ocean?" he asks.
Sakura laughs lightly, pulling his hand away from his ear. "No, Sasuke-kun," she says, "This one's just a normal scallop shell. But I'm sure we could find one if we looked."
Sasuke watches as the ocean pulls Sakura a few spaces from him. She slips the shell into a pocket of her dress and takes to peering into the surface of the water, in search of other shells. He reaches down to fold his pant legs up a little higher and meets her side.
The sea is cold to the touch, and it is no wonder that the beach is nearly empty, save for a few people walking down the sand. Sakura reaches down to skim the water with her hands again.
"Did you visit the sea often as a kid?" Sasuke asks, quietly.
Sakura glances up at him for a moment before following his eyes to the horizon. "Not too often, but my parents and I sometimes visited in the summer when the weather was nice."
"I don't think I've ever really been," Sasuke says. He pauses for a beat. "Is it nice in the summer?"
Sakura takes his hand, nodding. "Don't worry," she tells him. "I'll take you back here during the summer so you can see it for yourself. It's beautiful, really. The ocean becomes this lovely, saturated crystal-blue. And if we ever…"
Sasuke glances at Sakura, who has lifted a hand to her neck, her cheeks flushing. He raises his eyebrows. "If we ever?"
She smiles up at him, nervously. "If we ever have kids, we'll take them here during the summer, so we can all see it again together."
He is quiet for a moment, before squeezing her hand and returning the smile. "I look forward to it," he says.
They look to the distance and glimpse a trio of birds soars up between the chasm in the sky to reach the light behind the clouds. Sakura's grip on Sasuke's hand tightens, and the thought of his future with her makes Sasuke's heart soar.