Sasusaku Month, Day 07: Dear Sasuke

Dear Sasuke,

Thank you so much for your last letter. I'm glad you're okay. Happy 26th birthday, you old man.

I can't even begin to tell you how happy it made me to see your chicken scratch handwriting once again. Your words bring comfort to my heart, just to know you're alive and safe out there. Sarada and I are so incredibly proud of all you're doing to keep everyone safe. But oh, how I miss you!

Today was my first shift at the hospital since you left, and I felt like I was a child back at the Academy, alone with all eyes scrutinizing my every move. I could feel the stares of all the staff and patients, craning their necks to catch a glimpse at the Uchiha emblem on my back. I was in the center of a storm of whispers swirling around me as I walked throughout hospital. You've told me before how proud you are to see me wear the symbol of our little family so proudly. But today, it feels like a reminder to the people around me that you're not here.

I entered the elevator, hoping for just few moments of normalcy before my shift began. The usually deafening conversations ceased once I entered. I wished I had taken the stairs, honestly. The confined space suffocated me with the unsaid words, the heavy glances, and unspoken judgments. My chest felt tight, and my breath caught in my throat, like the nights where your nightmares get to be too much and I hold you tight. But you're not here.

I'll take the stairs starting tomorrow.

Dr. Yamada approached me today, his eyes narrowed as if measuring my worth! I'm his director; who the hell does he think he is? His words were horrible, still ringing in my ears now. "Do you think Sarada understands?" he questioned, implying that you have deserted your family and village. His voice was laced with an unkind undertone, a challenge, and an unspoken accusation. "Will you be taking leave to take care of your issue at home?" The nerve of that man! Shannaro!

I don't know how I did it; I don't know how you dealt with it as child. But I simply pushed the knot in my throat down. I pushed my eyes to stop trying to cry. I forced my voice to not quiver, and stood strong. "Sasuke is on a mission for the safety of our village and family. Sarada knows her father's heart," I replied, my voice unwavering. In that moment, I felt like a sapling fighting against the relentless rain, but you made me strong. You've always made me stronger, even when you're a million miles away.

My shift was long, tiring, but also therapeutic. I tended to patients and listened to them: Mr. Akito's leg hurts when it rains. Himawari is growing up so fast. Shikamaru continues to stop smoking despite his horrible cough. And Mrs. Kaede's hip needs surgery. It may seem menial, but I realized how much strength and solace I find in helping others. It reminded me why I am here, why I keep pushing forward despite the whispers and sideways glances, why I can't be with you right now. For just a few hours, I can forget the stares and be Sakura.

You know, there's a strange calmness that settles within me when I write to you. It's the knowledge that what we share is a fortress, our impenetrable sanctuary against the whispers and judging gazes. We are like two trees with roots intertwined deep within the earth, standing tall against the storms.

I don't owe them the intricate patterns of our love or the knowledge of the silent promises that resonate between our hearts. They do not need to know of the nights when you held Sarada and me close, or of the mornings when you made breakfast and filled our home with warmth. They need not see the man who planted a cherry blossom tree in our garden, promising that it would grow with our love.

Sasuke, I miss you more with every beat of my heart, and yet I feel you with me, an unwavering presence. I see you in the kindness of a stranger, in the gentle breeze that rustles through the cherry blossom tree, and in the smiles of our beautiful daughter.

I'll protect Sarada and be the pillar for her and everyone else to lean on, just as you have been for both of us. We will be here, hearts open and love unwavering, for when you return.

As I stand by the window, looking at the cherry blossom tree, I imagine our time away from Konoha, kissing under the shade of forests. Our laughter merging with the rustling leaves, our smiles as radiant as the sunlit blossoms. I know our day will come. Until then, my love, I carry you in my heart.

Our love is a tapestry woven with trust, sacrifice, and devotion. It's an entity that belongs to us alone. I want you to know that no whispers or judging gazes can touch what we have. Our love is the bough that holds us steady against the storm. It's something for just us, and I will protect it with all my might.

This love is ours.

Love,

Sakura.

THE END.