WARNING(S): N/A

A/N: And of course, what oneshot collection is complete without a good old fashioned modern AU? Rest assured, I won't be doing many of these - as far as I remember, this is one of the only ones in the list. I tried my hardest to be more diverse this time around!

"Hey, Haruno," the receptionist called, making the woman pause in her route. When she glanced up from her clipboard, her eyes softened when she saw the bouquet of flowers sitting in a pretty white vase on the edge of the desk.

"Aw," she cooed, walking over to gingerly press one of the brilliant scarlet petals between two fingers. "Are they for you?"

"No," she corrected, wiggling her brows at her superior. "Three guesses as to who left them here… for you."

Giggling, the receptionist handed them over to the doctor, the latter indulgently rolling her eyes with a fond smile playing on her lips. "Oh come now, we don't know that they're for me."

"Who else leaves bouquets of camellias and roses just about every week with the same color ribbon as your eyes?" A pointed look made her huff a laugh.

"I'll let him know I got them," she said, clutching the vase tightly to her chest. "Thank you, Inori."

"You've got a good man on your hands, Haruno," the younger woman answered, resting her chin in her hand and gazing up at her with a longing in her eyes. "My boyfriend doesn't do that kind of thing at all. You're so lucky. What's your secret?"

"I have no idea, honestly," she admitted, pausing to glance down at the ring adorning her finger. It was a simple gold band, not glamorous by ring standards, but as she smiled down at it she recalled just what it symbolized. "I suppose I just lucked out. Everyone shows their love differently, and I guess Sasuke's is through gestures instead of words."

"Akihiro is sweet enough, but sometimes I feel like he just tells me I'm pretty." With a groan, she let her arm slowly slide down on the desk until her forehead was resting against her hand, pinning it to the desktop. "I don't feel like he actually loves me as much as he says he does."

"If he does love you, he'll show you," Sakura reassured her, plucking a white camellia from the bouquet and handing it to her. With a smile, she added, "And if he turns out not to be the right one, eventually you will find him. Sometimes your first love isn't your last."

"Thanks, senpai." Inori accepted the flower, twisting the stem fondly in her fingers.

Sakura continued through on her route to the office, humming a quiet tune to herself. As soon as she got to the elevator and pushed the button, she felt a presence beside her.

Smiling, she handed her husband the vase. "Going up?"

"How did you know it was me?" He asked, a hint of a pout on his face.

"You always show up for lunch after sending flowers," she answered with a giggle.

The door slid open and they both entered, and as soon as it closed and they were alone, Sasuke turned to her. "I brought Ichiraku today."

"Had an outing with Naruto, did you?"

"His secretary brought up some takeout, and he insisted I take some of the extras." He let out a disbelieving snort. "I'll never understand how Hinata still tolerates it. I'm beginning to grow sick of the taste."

"It takes a lot of love to be married to someone like him," the pink-haired woman mused thoughtfully. "And Hinata… well, she's just as crazy about him now as she was in middle school."

"Crazy, isn't it? She could have anyone in Tokyo and she chose Naruto."

"Love does that to a person." Smiling, she shyly snuck her hand into the crook of the man's elbow.

"I suppose he deserves someone that devoted. Lord knows a lesser woman would have divorced him long ago." He commented.

"It's hardly his fault he works such long hours," she defended, indignation for their childhood friend rising in her chest.

"No, but it's hardly romantic."

Sakura heaved a sigh. She couldn't argue with that.

The elevator doors opened, and just like that her arm was back at her side - and they strolled through the hall to her office.

A couple of junior nurses stopped and stared their way as they passed, whispering to one another. She knew the presence of her husband caused quite a stir, yet she stood tall, ignoring the buzz.

She'd heard every single rumor before; he was too cold, she was too clingy, he was too much of a free spirit to stay tethered in Japan, she was too devoted to her work to be a good wife to him - she'd heard it all and taken it all in stride. All of her hurts were left in the past, the insecurities and worries of a bride-to-be who had gotten engaged so soon even her parents were left reeling from the news - being a married woman in college was hardly surprising, yet it still seemed so considering just who she'd married.

Once upon a time, Uchiha Sasuke was considered untouchable; one of the most sought-after students in their middle and high school years, aloof and charismatic all the same. She was a hard worker, just like he, yet she devoted most of her time to getting into the best university so that she could have the best chances possible of achieving her dream. How he'd decided to tail after her, she still didn't know - he could have settled with any of his dreamy-eyed admirers, yet he chose the working-class girl who had long since abandoned all hope of dating him.

"Just how did you woo me?" She questioned as they entered her office.

"What do you mean?"

"For the longest time I could have sworn you hated me in school," she pointed out. "How on earth did you decide you wanted me?"

He gave her a longsuffering stare as he set the takeout bag on her desk. "I thought I already told you; I always thought you were cute, but I didn't seriously consider dating until third year in high school."

"You stole my textbook and let me think I lost a two-thousand-yen piece of school property," she accused.

"I was going to leave you a note, but nothing I wrote sounded good enough," Sasuke sighed.

"You camped at our class booth the entire time I was helping run it during the festival, and you kept buying all my boba!"

"I wanted to support the class, and you happened to be the vendor," he defended.

"You hate boba!"

"Why do you think Kiba was so full by the third shift?" He gave her a pointed look. "After my first tea, I asked him to discreetly start taking them instead."

She paused, squinting at him. "You never told me that."

"I didn't think you wanted to know." He shrugged, popping off the lid from the takeaway bowl. "You seemed content enough thinking that I was doing something I hated just so that I could find an excuse to buy from the booth."

Her mouth dropped open for a moment, but then she shut it and thoughtfully tapped her nails against the desk. "Y'know, that makes more sense. Huh. So Hinata was right."

"Of course she was; who do you think I found to ask?"

"I'd be more upset you were secretly getting advice from one of my best friends if I wasn't already giving Naruto advice about how to date her." She sagged into her chair and rubbed her forehead. "I'm still kind of upset that all those times you just walked away from me when I tried talking to you, it was just because you were shy."

"I had horrible communication skills; I've already said I was sorry about that."

"I know, and I've already forgiven you," she replied, leaning against his side as he handed her some chopsticks.

The two ate in silence, the bouquet sitting innocently on the windowsill. The red and white flowers seemed to perk up in the warm sunlight, providing a nice spot of color in an otherwise monochromatic room. Other personal items, such as a framed photo here, or a diagram there, livened up the space.

Sakura paused, mid-bite, when she felt a foot sneakily trailing up her leg. Giving her husband a sly grin, she leaned forward, resting her elbow on the table.

"How is Sarada?" She asked.

"Sleeping nicely when I dropped her off at Mother's earlier," he answered. "We should be in for a nice evening."

"I'm so glad your parents agreed to watch her this afternoon." She closed her eyes when his hand found hers, fingers intertwining in hers. The glint of the wedding ring he wore around his neck caught her attention for a fleeting moment before she looked back into his face, handsome features captivating her.

"Itachi was similarly pleased to have the opportunity of seeing her," he added with a chuckle. "Sometimes I wish they could have adopted more than just Jun."

"One child is trouble enough sometimes; I would pity her if she had more." She shot her husband a look. "How would you feel if we had another? She's already turning five - I know she gets lonely being the only child."

Sasuke took pause and hummed thoughtfully, squeezing her hand. "I'm not sure. I wouldn't want her to feel any less loved should we have another baby."

Sakura took a moment and gazed at him, eyes softening. "We would never," she reassured. "We wouldn't love her any less with a sibling, or two, or even three."

"Three?" He balked, brow furrowing in confusion. "Sakura, are you planning…?"

"No, just thinking of the future." With a smile and a laugh, she went back to her ramen. "It's too soon to tell, anyway."

Shaking his head, he slurped again - and promptly choked, eyes flying wide as he clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Sasuke?" The woman questioned in alarm, rising from her chair with a hand raised to help.

Shaking, he stood, grasping her hands and coughing into the crook of his elbow. Once his brief fit had passed, his panting for air turning into laughter.

"You… you're…?" He questioned, ghosting his fingers across her front.

"I just found out this morning," she confirmed with a broad smile. "Four weeks."

"You're pregnant," he breathed, half in disbelief. "Holy shit…"

"At least it isn't a surprise this time!" She laughed, holding him close as he sagged into her body.

"Mother will be so happy. Itachi will- I'm-" He stumbled over his words, letting out a wheeze.

The couple embraced tightly, and if she felt a wet spot on her shoulder she said nothing.