MisoHime

Author's Note:

Original Note:
Thanks for all who read my story, I always look forward to hearing your opinions.
To my reviewers:

- Angelic101 : Thanks for reviewing and reading, it really makes my day. I hope everything is going great with you, I know it's been a while.

- HinatasHelper : Thanks for reviewing again! I'll be sure to check out your stories as well.

- DarkAngelRakell : Thanks for reviewing & reading! I look forward to more of your reviews in the future.

- river of the sand : Thank you for writing back to me on your opinions. I hope you enjoy this chapter just as much.

Updated 2016 Note:

This chapter was read and reviewed on the: 24th July 2016

Hello again. I've been waiting for my semester break to start in order to update this story, so I thought I'd start by updating this rewritten version of Chapter 9.
Also, a special mention to Sasuke, who's birthday is on the 23rd of July!

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

◊▫ 星の十字 ▫◊

Hoshina no Kurosu

Kyuu

応力

Ōryoku

The darkness was a warm cocoon that wrapped around her securely. There was nothing - nothing but the sound of heavy breathing and some unnamed tension that lingered around her. The air was thick like syrup, sweet and peaceful.

Somewhere, she could feel the brush of warm fingers that trailed up the skin of her back. The pressure rubbed her cotton shirt against her sensitive spine and in turn sent a tingling sensation shooting up to the base of her skull.

The silence continued onwards, paired with the heavy thump-thump-thump of her heart. Erratic and wild like a thunderclap, it echoed in her chest. The sound roared in her ears.

She wondered if he could hear it too.

She could feel the presence of another with her. The heat of his body emanated from the strong muscles that wrapped around her smaller frame like a cage.

It was a sensation she welcomed entirely.

Something soft tickled the shell of her ear, sending another wave of toe-curling sensations over her. A weak gasp rattled past her dry lips - the sound too loud in the immeasurable quiet.

She licked her lips, moistening them with her saliva. Her throat was parched as her tongue felt like sandpaper. She craved for something to quench the slow burn that spread all over her.

Soft lips brushed over her forehead and over her closed lids while warm fingers guided her face upwards and backwards.

Another sigh wisped from her when she felt the heat of his breath graze the curve of her cheek and jawline.

The rhythmic drum in her chest began to take flight, accelerating along with her anticipation.

The seconds seemed slow and endless. There was nothing save for her, him and the dark.

She could feel his own climbing emotion - his steady pulse. They echoed through his veins and into her skin. His closed mouth traveled down the contours of her face in a gentle sweep. The caress was so tender it brought an emotion much like adoration blooming within her. They neared her own lips, which were parted slightly.

The distance between them closed. Soon, their lips would meet and the yearning in her would seize to overtake every molecule that clawed for his kiss.

Closer and closer they leaned into one another.

Until the distance was no more and-

Tangled, mussed locks of blush pink flew with the sudden movement of her jerk as Sakura bolted into a sitting position.

Her breath was uncontrolled and ragged. Her lungs burned as if she had been holding her breath for an innumerable measure of time. The air around her was cold and stale, unfriendly like the night.

It took her a while before her eyes could focus. Her room was still dark, save for the glow of her clock casting the room in an eerie blue haze. The shadows around her seemed to stretch and crawl, adding to her own discomfort.

Sakura's hand reached up to push back the stray locks of pink which had fallen over her face. Her stiff fingers were shaky, trembling with her unsettled nerves.

Just a moment ago, she could have sworn she was back in that dark room, tingling with heat and some sort of... affection. The residual feeling still remained under her skin, reminding her of her nightmare.

The Haruno focused only on her breathing, pulling her knees up to rest her forehead against them through the material of her blanket. She sucked in greedy gulps of air, holding them in until her heartbeat began to calm.

With a shallow sigh, Sakura pushed away the heavy comforter and swung her legs off the bed. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dark atmosphere of her bedroom before she eased off the mattress.

The glass window was uncovered by the small slip in between her curtains, revealing that the sky was still a deep blue.

One that resembled the same colour as his shirt.

Mentally, Sakura yanked her train of thought away immediately. Flashes of her dream continued to linger, all to which she shoved away. A strain settled on her shoulders and Sakura blinked away the dizziness and confusion that momentarily arrived.

'What in Kami is going on with me?'

Stumbling on weak knees to her adjoining bathroom, Sakura ran a clammy palm over her face. It took her a few tries to find the light switch of her bathroom, after which she regretted immediately as the bright beam assaulted her eyes and burned like a vicious laser.

Tears collected in her sleepy, slitted eyes; to which she blinked away. The cold ceramic of her bathroom felt soothing on her sweaty hands.

One gaze in the mirror had the pinkette grimacing.

Dark circles ringed her lifeless, flat green eyes. The usually vibrant colour seemed like washed out mint, sunked in and hollow.

She had definitely seen better days.

Twisting the tap and cupping a cold handful of water, Sakura washed her face, scrubbing at her eyes when residual images of her dream began to mentally flash at her again.

'Do I like him..?'

The water seemed past her lids and prickled at her sensitive eyes.

'I can't like him! I hate him!'

She scrubbed harder until her hands were numb from the chilled water and her face was raw.

Sakura snapped the tap off and leaned her wet hands on the sides of the sink. Water dripped off her chin and dampened the stray hairs by her face. Her eyes were untamed and stormy, looking back at herself from the mirror.

"Then why do I keep thinking about that kiss..." She whispered to herself aloud, voice soft but rough.

She was certain that she hated Sasuke. It had never been anything she has second thoughts on. She knew it from the moment she saw him, and she felt it every day since. The man was a menace and a jerk. He was a barb that constantly tested her temper every time they were within each other's reach. For so long, Sakura knew she felt nothing more than pure loathing for the prodigious, wise-cracking, vexatious Uchiha Sasuke.

Yet somehow, one maddeningly, all-consuming kiss had managed to drive her completely out of control.

'This cannot be happening'

Pushing away from her mirror and drying her face with a spare towel, Sakura moved back into her room. The sky was slowly turning lighter, casting highlights to the rumpled state of her bed.

The clock by her bedside told her it was just reaching 5:40 in the morning, but she doubted she could bring herself to go back to sleep. The fear that her nightmares could return to plague her was enough to cancel out the temptation of burying herself back under her blanket.

Instead, the young girl sat herself on the seating bench underneath her bay window. She slipped one side of her curtains behind to reveal the streaks of light that were brushing through the weakening sky.

The bench was a cozy nook she often sat on when she couldn't sleep. Fluffy pillows cushioned her back when she leaned into them.

Sakura could already feel the growing headache from her lack of sleep.

Soon, it would be dawn, and with that, morning would follow.

"You know, I know what you're doing."

Sakura's eyes slowly peeled open. From where she was - slumped into the cushions of her bay window seat - she could see the lithe outline of Sai.

He was leaning against her door jam, one hand still wrapped around the brass knob. His stance was casual and relaxed, but his eyes were knowing and secretive.

"I have no idea what you mean by that," Sakura drawled out.

Her vision was still blurry and unfocused. During sometime in her restlessness, she had slipped into a light doze. The uncomfortable position had created an annoying crink in her neck - oddly fitting with the headache that had yet to recede.

Sai didn't deign to reply to her dismissal. He stepped away from the entryway, slowly pushing the door behind him until only a small sliver was left ajar.

The gap between her gossamer curtains allowed the morning sun to stream through. It's colour had changed from the deep blue and orange of early dawn into a cheerful sky blue, with its bright rays nearly blinding her sensitive eyes. Sakura had to blink away the tears that rose in response to it's harsh glare.

Seeing as Sai was here and the sky had faded into a soft blue, she guessed that it was well past her usual schedule. By this time, she and Sai were usually out the door and on their way to get a morning up of coffee.

Her closest friend moved over to sit by the space where her feet were stretched out on. He nudged them aside and onto his lap, his back resting at an angle that allowed him to face her but not the direct light. Sai had not bothered to switch on her overhead lights, leaving them partially in shadows and the rest of her bedroom in a haze - highlighted only by the morning glow.

"I think you do, Sakura." He said quietly.

She remained where she was, silent.

"It's unlike you to try and run away-"

"I'm not." She snapped, her defenses quick to rise.

Sai didn't fight her comment.

"I'm not," she repeated, her tone softer, "but... I don't know what to do now."

"... Do you love him?" He asked softly.

"What?" Her head snapped up suddenly to look at Sai's inquiring gaze with shock, "Of course not!"

His pale lips twitched at the corners. Sakura fought off the urge to kick him with her feet. Instead, she settled for a roll of her eyes.

"Then you shouldn't feel any differently." Sai continued. His long fingers played absently with the hem of the blanket she had tossed over her exposed legs.

Sakura suddenly felt very tired. She sighed, eyes closing and head falling back slightly.

"What have they been saying?" She asked warily, stomach tightening just a fraction.

Sai didn't answer straight away, but Sakura knew it was not because he had not understood her question. His quick mind knew what she meant.

"Do you really want to know?"

Sakura groaned and squeezed her eyes more tightly together. Her mouth twisted into a grimace of frustration and exasperation.

She didn't want to. Kami, it was the last thing she wanted to. But Sakura didn't doubt that after her disappearance yesterday and Karin's gleeful expression, word had most definitely spread like a proverbial wildfire.

The impulse to skip her day was strong, but Sai had been right. It was unlike her to run away. Sakura was no longer the young, fragile girl with only a big forehead and a lack of self-belief. If she chose to avoid facing the consequences of what happened the day before, it would have done nothing but fan the flames of whatever gossip was spreading. Her insecurities made her cringe from the thought of having to face the public today - with their judging eyes, unspoken comments and addiction to scandal - but it would get worse if she chose to dodge it all together.

Eventually, she would have to face it. It was better to nip it immediately than later, when things were out of her control.

She just wished that she didn't have to in the first place.

Sai's hands ceased their unconscious fidgeting on the hem of her reading blanket, instead resting on her ankles like a steady anchor, holding her to the ground.

"It's not as bad as you think," he said softly, to which Sakura snorted, "but there is word..."

He paused, allowing Sakura time to let the words sink in. Slowly, she pried her eyes open again to look at him. It was better to hear what he had to say and prepare herself for it than to jump in blind.

The ironic fact that she was comfortable with attention in the theatre but not in reality was not lost to her.

"Everyone's speculating," Sai continued, "it's just... weird. Nobody would have thought they would hear of any sort of romance between the two of you - given your... "particular history""

Another sigh deflated from the pinkette. She reached for a small pillow and hugged it to her abdomen, wishing the soft cotton would soak up the anxiety that churned like a storm within.

"There isn't any, we were just rehearsing." Her voice was small and confused, much like how she felt at the moment.

"It doesn't stop them from coming up with their own stories, Ugly."

She fought the urge to bury her face into the pillow.

"I know. I can't explain it - not even to myself, let alone everybody else," a tight knot wound itself around her chest, "I didn't even mean for it to happen... I don't even know how it happened!"

Sai was quiet, having no words to say. Sakura didn't doubt that it was because he had no opinions on the matter, but because he respected her to not question her puzzlement.

"What do I do now?" She moaned, pressed the heels of her hands to the sockets of her eyes. The pressure helped to elevate the pounding of her migraine just a fraction.

"Just do you."

Misted eyes peeked up to meet steady black from behind her fingers.

"What else could you do? Just ignore it like how you ignore all the other ridiculous rumors." He shrugged, "You don't have to answer to any of them if you don't want to - it's nobody's business anyway."

Her green eyes implored him, the wheels of her mind turning in an endless cycle. He was right, of course. Sai always knew what to do. He always encouraged her to straighten her spine and stand up for herself. This time was no different.

But what about the confusion she had about herself?

From the slip of her expression, Sai's posture stiffened just the slightest. His eyes prodded her's with concern.

"What is it?"

She shook her head, an uncomfortable lump settling in her throat. Her nails dug into the fabric of her pillow. Her hands compressed the fluffy cotton stuffing until she feared she might rip into it and send it's contents spilling out.

"I-I feel like I have betrayed my family, Sai..." Her proclamation burned her tongue, "I may not have meant it to happen, but it's like I've committed a sin to them!"

Her distressed caused her tone to rise into a higher pitch. Sai was quick to attempt to calm her, one hand reaching over to fold over her clenched fists.

His fingers were cold but steady, holding firmly over her trembling knuckles. The sensation slowly eased them open, until the cushion was no longer at risk of tearing.

"Stop it." He blandly stated, "it was just a kiss. For the sake of the play - even. You haven't done anything to betray anyone."

The wild thumping of her heart galloped in tandem to the throbbing over her headache. She could feel nausea threaten to cease her, much like it nearly did when she had first awoken to her dream hours earlier.

His fingers pressed deeper into her flesh, as if Sai was attempting to reassure her more insistently.

Sakura nodded slowly, her movements jerky and robotic. Her wild emotions slowly simmered and ebbed back down to uncomfortable unease.

With pursed lips, Sai relaxed back until he was resting against the corner once again.

Neither of them spoke, the silence filled in the space as they both lost themselves to their thoughts. Sai's on Sakura's well-being and Sakura's on her utter lack of comprehension over her current situation.

She didn't have the guts to tell him that she suspected some seed had taken root within her, and while she had not betrayed them yet, she feared she would soon.

And that it would be entirely out of her control.

The hot, scalding burn of her drink took Sakura by surprise. The bitter taste was as unforgiving as its boiling temperature.

She had to fight the urge to gag the hard-to-swallow taste from rising back up her throat, tears prickling the corners of her eyes when the heat left a tingling wake on her tongue.

She was never one to drink the strong, exotic concoction of coffee to which her parents often indulged in during their mornings before work - she much preferred toned down beverages with milk and sugar or some sort of tea. She would have even preferred hot chocolate in some cases.

Unfortunately for her, there were no other option in her family's kitchen that would be able to substitute the strong Brazilian blend. Seeing as she had spent her morning wasting in her room from her inner crisis, both she and Sai would be unable to spare any time to make their morning run to The Konoha Java Hub.

Secretly, Sakura had no regrets. She would have rather gulped down a dozen cups of hot, black coffee than become a victim of the gossip crowd so early in the morning. It would be inevitable for her to deal with it once she reached campus, but at least she would be able to delay the ridicule until then.

From across her kitchen island, she saw Sai's face wrinkle for but a second before it was schooled back into its usual expression. His pale complexion was slightly gray, but other than that, there was no indication that he thought their coffees were unpleasant in taste.

'He's definitely got better willpower than me' Sakura thought, watching him take another gulp of the strong brew.

Around them, the smell of caffeine wafted in the air. Both her parents had already left for work, but had set a new pot of coffee for Sakura and Sai, knowing they would be skipping their morning routine today. It was generous of them, and the pinkette's heart warmed from her parent's kind consideration. She just wished she could muster the courage to tell them that their choice in coffee was the last thing she would have picked for herself.

She looked down into the small terracotta cup in her hand. She had thrown back the concentrated beverage in one big gulp, but a small residual puddle of black coffee still remained. Even through the watery eyes that collected from her painful swallow, Sakura could make out the grains of coffee grounds that floated at the bottom of her ware. She had the sense to know that that last mouthful would be far more bitter than her horrid mood.

Sakura turned to dump the small pool of remaining coffee into the sink, turning the faucet to soak the cup.

"Your parents have very... mature... tastes, don't they?" Sai commented absentmindedly, coming up behind her to place his cup into the sink as well. Unlike her's, he had downed every last drop, a testament to show how well could hold the flavour.

Sakura shrugged, "Let's hope we won't be missing anymore trips to the hub anymore."

They both grabbed their belongings, moving on autopilot out the door. Today's weather was surprisingly mild. It was neither hot not cold, instead floating in between. It was such a rare occurrence for Konoha to have such controlled weather during this time of the year that Sakura took a quick opportunity to breathe in a deep inhale. The air smelt like forest pines and cedar - an expected scent, seeing as their country was abundant in greenery.

The ride to their campus was uninterrupted and fairly peaceful. Neither of them felt the need to make inconsequential small talk, instead choosing to enjoy the small moment of silence. It was a trait that had become intergral to their friendship. Sakura liked to think that it was a product of years of having to know one another until there was no need to speak of nonsense.

Much to her dismay, however, the silent car ride today did not calm her nerves like it usually did. On the contrary, as they gained every mile and passed by every traffic light, her panic and unsettled feelings began to grow more and more pressing. With every inch they gained closed to their destination, Sakura had to fight the urge to wretch herself out of the car and duck and roll onto the middle of the street.

She didn't think Sai did not notice her discomfort, because more than halfway there, he glanced over to her lightly perspiring face and said:

"Calm yourself, Ugly."

She was tempted to snap at him that his instructions, while obvious, were far harder to do than to merely "calm herself". Although, seeing as Sai had been nothing but genuine and patient with helping her regain her senses that morning, she didn't find it appropriate to reply to him in such an abrupt manner.

So instead, Sakura merely folded her hands into nervous knots on her lap. Her appendages were sweaty and clammy, making her feel like they were foreign limbs that existed as a representation of her own knotting stomach.

'Good lord, get a hold of yourself!'

It appalled her how incredibly weak and pathetic she was coming across. Had she not felt like she was about to throw up, Sakura might have even considered slamming her head against the dashboard out of shame. She was Haruno Sakura! Fearless and outspoken! She controlled her emotions just as well as she could control her grades. Passionate as she may be about acting, there had never been a time she didn't feel out of place within her own skin.

And somehow, after yesterday's events, she was now reduced to nothing more than a nervous puddle of goo, squirming from discomfort.

Over the next turn, the looming campus of Konoha's leading educational institution presented itself in all it's glory.

Something leaped inside of her.

Sai smoothly glided along the pathway that they had driven on for their entire lives at the academy. He maneuvered them past the main gates and past the sprawling estate, cruising with the type of calm Sakura would have killed to posses at the very moment.

Why, you ask?

Because the second their usually indistinguishable vehicle had entered the premises, the eyes of various onlookers had settled upon them like wolves.

Her green eyes remained unseeing - focused straight ahead like a doll's. Sakura made sure that by doing so, her vision would not snag on anybody's own eyes in particular, preventing them from reading into her wide-eyed gaze to see the mild terror that was slowly creeping up on her.

As the cruised deeper, their presence became more and more pronounced. She wasn't sure if it was just her own mind creating such reasons, or if it really was happening, but Sakura felt as if the more they traveled into the main vicinity of their campus, the more of people's attention they drew.

By the time they were parked and out of the car, Sakura knew she wasn't imagining anything.

Stares. Stares from various eyes and various people followed her like ghosts. Whispers of conversation had errupted not long after, creating a chain effect that filled her own ears with a messed up garble of conversation. Despite the indistinguishable sound of multiple conversations going on at once, Sakura didn't need superpowers to be able to pick up on some similarities, such as her and Sasuke's names.

The urge to run tingled at the back of her mind.

A warm hand rested on her lower back, drawing Sakura's attention to Sai, who stood close by. The look her gave her was a supporting one as well a slightly apologetic one. He had no ability to cease the gossip and the speculation that would come from today, but he was still promising his support nonetheless.

The pinkette drew from this knowledge and silently willed herself to composure. Gossip was gossip, she could not help it more than she could go back in time to prevent her from kissing Sasuke anyway.

With an imaginary steel rod shoved down her spine, Sakura straightened, tilting her chin up a little and schooling her features into an unreadable mask.

Silently, she prayed that some deity would give her to strength to keep that mask intact for the rest of the day.

"Did you hear? They were making out in one of those decrepit practice rooms! And they were enjoying it!"

"I heard that they didn't bother to stop when Karin-san found them."

"Really? I thought they hated one another?"

"Apparently that's a lie. They've been secret lovers for years!"

"No way! I would never have guessed-"

"Yes! And they're using their roles in the play as an excuse to show affection publicly-"

A muscle ticked away in Sakura's eyebrow. She could feel tension radiate from her entire body - aching into the spots between her shoulder blades and behind her neck. Her grip on her textbook was bruising to the point until her fingers were turning pale. Something violent and frustrated raged inside of her like a building inferno. Her breaths were beginning to escalate along with her need to punch something.

Her predictions for the day were worse than she could have imagined. It was the end of fourth period - not even half a day over with - and Sakura's self-control was fraying at the edges. She didn't think she could handle it anymore.

Everywhere she went, not a second of the day had passed without eyes following her and whispers trailing after her. There didn't seem to be a person in the entire academy that didn't hear of the news and not a single soul who didn't care enough to not openly gawk at her when she walked by.

When she walked into any of the classrooms, a pindrop silence would ensue. All of her classmates didn't even bother to mask the curiosity and speculation, making the room fall into such eerie quiet that even Iruka-sensei had questioned the weird atmosphere when he had walked in.

What was almost worse was the whispers that were muttered as if her spectators thought she was born without the ability to hear. Some didn't even bother to lower their volumes, openly speaking and spreading more and more outrageous lies.

The Haruno was tempted to yell at them all about why it was such a big deal.

Surely whatever had happened between her and Sasuke yesterday was not as astounding as other types of news going on in the world. What was it about this particular piece of gossip that had everyone talking as if somebody had died?

"I always knew there was something going on between the two of them."

"Please, there was no way you could have seen this coming. Did you not hear that she tried to kill him once?"

"What? Really? When?!"

"She tried to push a shelf of tools on him in the Art Studio a few weeks back! But-"

"WOW! What is with everyone today?" A loud voice interrupted, the volume of the statement and emphasis rendered the whispers around Sakura's immediate surrounding area silent.

Across from her, Ino gave a smug look, continuing her statement as if she were relaying information about the weather. They were sitting on the outdoor patio by the back of the campus grounds - a place which was usually empty and used as a group hangout spot on campus during breaks. This particular area on campus was typically occupied by different people alike. It existed solely for the purpose of allowing students to chill with their friends when one did not wish to be in the crowded mass of the cafeteria, or in the studious environment of the library. It was a chill spot - which was quickly becoming anything but "chill" to Sakura.

"I mean come on! Does everyone have nothing better to do than gossip?"

Somewhere in the crowd, somebody coughed awkwardly. Nobody deigned to break the awkward silence around them by pointing out that the blonde was being a hypocrite - seeing as she was quite famous in town for being the queen of all gossip and secrets.

With one brilliant flip of gold, Ino turned away from the gawking crowd and looked back at the rigid girl across from her. She smiled brightly, tapping Sakura's clenched fists on the table.

"Ignore them, Forehead. It's none of their business."

Sakura looked at her with a bland expression. Her friend would have known better to realise that while it may not have been anyone's business but her own, it definitely did not stop them from making it their business.

She released her pressing grip on the pages of her biomedical textbook. She had picked up the elective earlier in the term, seeing as it piqued her interest. The class was coming along great, surprisingly Sakura when she found herself enjoying learning things about the medical world - second to her love for the performing arts, of course. It was unfortunate that her beautifully treasured reference book was now wrinkled and worn on the edges from her unforgiving grasp on them.

One of the corners were even torn - something she regretted subconsciously as she traced over the ripped edge with a finger.

Ino's own face leaked a little bit of pity at her. Whilst she would have indulged in the same vigor when it came to gossip about anybody else, her blonde friend didn't seem to be feeling so excited about having her good friend become the school's most talked about dish for the day.

Sakura dragged her eyes from where they had been staring at the long paragraphs of words in her book to cast a wary, subtle glance around her.

Few of their onlookers had gone back to their own conversations, but some were still looking at them with no care for rudeness. Once in a while, a handful of students from various spots would turn around to glance at her again, as if they could not help themselves from chancing a look at the target that was Sakura.

Perhaps it would be better to seek solitude elsewhere.

With newfound purpose, Sakura hoisted herself off the seat, the furniture scraping back against the paved outdoor deck with a harsh screech. The grating sound drew more onlookers and startled Ino, but Sakura paid it no concern. Her hand was already slinging her bag over her shoulder while the other cradled her heavy books. She offered her companion nothing more than a brief farewell before she moved to the nearest exit.

The stares pelted her back like bullets, as they did during the entire day. It was amazing, how well she drew the attention, Sakura thought. If she had naturally magnetised people's interest as well on stage as she did today, Sakura didn't think she needed to worry about her acting skills. People would probably just pay to watch her on stage like some sub-par actress, perhaps even gaping at her like a carnival animal instead.

She passed by the backside of the school grounds and through the secondary wings. Her stride was purposeful and brisk. Everywhere she went, more and more eyes followed her. By the time she reached the central courtyard, Sakura was beginning to feel the stress of having to deal with such unrelenting attention for such long stretches.

'How long will this go on?'

Tempted to break out into an all-out run, Sakura was barely stopped from doing so when an arm wrapped itself around her wrist from behind.

The sensation of somebody else's hand on her nearly scared her out of her wits. She had been so focused on finding a place to be alone that she didn't even realise the presence of another human so close to her.

Her jade eyes immediately snapped to the direction of the hand, first taking in the sight of slender, female hands with red manicured fingernails, then trailing up to peruse the figure.

Before she even reach the face, Sakura knew it was Karin.

Irritation and something violent twisted in her. The last thing Sakura wanted to deal with was the troublemaker of her problems.

The redhead was dolled up as usual. Her makeup was fresh and light, highlighting the natural slope of her eyes behind the stylish frames of her glasses. A pink flush brought out her usually washed-out complexion and her hair had been groomed to be casually messy yet trendy.

She looked better than she did on a normal day, which part of Sakura suspected was because she was busy living off the high of being the big source of campus's most juicy tidbit.

Also known as the tattletale of her and Sasuke's kiss.

The hand under Karin's fingers tensed into steel. The muscles in Sakura's neck corded with the rest of her figure. She felt like she had turned into steel from the sheer tension she felt with the added interruption of the redhead.

"Hey Sakura!" Karin's voice was sweet and saccharine, "Glad I caught you,"

At those words, the anger Sakura felt raged. Her face morphed into a hard, unforgiving expression. She didn't even try to soften the laser glare that sharpened onto the other girl's face. Her irritation, frustration and resentment boiler like a dangerous toxin in her belly.

"Listen, I wanted to talk to you..."

She knew exactly what Karin wanted to talk about. She had no desire to stick around and listen to her talk about how sorry she was or whatever nonsense the other girl had cooked up. The damage was well and done. Sakura was officially the school's most interesting specimen to pick apart and it annoyed her how none of it would have ever happened had Karin not kept her big mouth shut.

Unfortunately, that didn't stop the other girl from trying to explain herself.

"I know things have gotten a little out of hand," she laughed, lightheartedly. Sakura was tempted to punch her in the face.

"I really didn't mean it to get so wild, you know?" Karin brushed a lock of her hair out of the way. She beamed a bashful smile, as if it was no big deal, "I only told a few friends, honestly, but you know," she shrugged, "word kind of spreads..."

At each word that came out of Karin's mouth, Sakura's molars clenched more and more. By the time she trailed off her sentence, Sakura's jaw was locked to the point that a muscle was ticking away. Her fist was clenched with a bruising force. She was lucky her nails had been trimmed short, otherwise they might have been drawing blood. In fact, she might have even decided to claw out Karin's face had her nails been filed to daggers.

Around them, a small crowd had amassed. Following the same trend as it had the entire day, the surrounding onlookers all stopped in the middle of their day to openly ogle at her. Perhaps it had something to do with her interaction with Karin. Seeing as the redhead was the source of the story, everybody knew how it started. There was no telling what other rumors would erupt from seeing them together.

"... Anyway, I just thought I should explain myself, although I don't think it's really that big of a deal. I mean, if I were you, and I-"

Sakura pulled her hand of the other girl's grip with a violet force. The sudden action cut Karin off in the middle of her words, which Sakura was glad for. She did not think she had enough restraint to hold back a sincere punch to her face if she completed her sentence.

With Karin staring at her with wide eyes, Sakura stalked forward a few steps, putting the two of them toe to toe. She was taller than the other girl by one or two inches, but with her back straight and form rigid, the mere difference seemed to give her the added height. Karin stood frozen, shocked by her sudden looming stance.

"I would advise you to keep things to yourself, next time," Sakura's tone was hushed but hard, sharp as a knife, lowered so that only Karin would hear the clipped remark, "if not for your own sake, then for the sake of others."

With an all-out audience surrounding them and speculation of the scene passing back and forth, Sakura turned on her heel, striding stiffly away with barely contained anger. Everything within her was tense and burning with the need to turn around and show the other girl exactly where she could shove her half-assed explanation. She had no desire to stick around and play the dumb victim who would automatically forgive her for turning her into the school's social specimen.

There was no words that could make Karin understand, and as angry as Sakura was about the actions of her female co-star, she knew no good would come out of serving a violent retribution on her. There could have been a chance to stop it the day before, if Sakura had decided to stick around and catch up to Karin immediately after the kiss.

But she hadn't.

She had chosen to flee like a coward, confused and shocked and in complete disbelief over whatever she felt over what had happened.

She knew that Karin would spread word. It was nobody's fault but her own for not having seized the opportunity to stop the girl from doing it when she had the chance.

And it was nobody's fault but her own for feeling the way she did over the kiss.

Her confusion was her's to bare. Just as the incessant attention from everyone was her's to bare.

She didn't look back even once as she made her way to the main gates.

End Notes:

I dedicated an entire chapter just to convey the tremulous emotions Sakura must be feeling after the kiss since I feel that conveying the shift of one's feelings from ultimate hate to ultimate love does have to go through a significant amount of confusion, frustration, anger and reluctance.

Also, my point in having Karin be the tattletale wasn't out of spite, or to paint her as the picture of the bitch in Sakura's life. Though there is some animosity, the dynamic of their relationship is mostly out of rivalry. She just so happened to be the most fitting for the role, but I wouldn't have written Sakura's anger and frustration in this chapter any differently had anyone else.