A big thanks, once again, to all those who are supporting me, both with or without leaving reviews/comments!
Shoutout to: KawaiiCherri, FloraInFaded, KassfromVenus, ElevatedJewel, Nikki114, Lunnafreya, Ilovecats72, YuhGucciCarHeather, GreyMoonHuntress. There are also a few guests who consistently comment.
I appreciate all the feedback, good or bad!
There are only a few chapters left, so I hope you don't hate the ending.
Thanks again for reading, and enjoy!
Vanilla, soft skin, and warmth. Those are the things Sasuke first noticed upon waking the following morning.
He didn't move a muscle because he was concerned it'd rouse the still-sleeping woman. Her back was against his chest, and his arms were loosely around her. Small hands grasped his forearms. Long, pink hair tickled his bare skin as it flowed between them and around Sakura's shoulders.
'She really let me do all that. I thought it'd take months,' Sasuke thought, brow furrowing when he felt her bottom pressing against his sex. How he fell asleep with her lying this way was beyond him. 'That's not true. I know how. Fucking for hours tends to exhaust a person.'
Honestly, he could've continued for a while longer, but Sakura'd met her limit, barely able to keep her eyes open, sweaty, drunk, and filled to the brim with his DNA.
Something had come over the man last night that surprised him now that he had time to reflect. He's always been a dominant partner, but it'd always been because he didn't trust any of the sluts he'd fuck around with enough to let them control the situation. With Sakura, though, it was different.
Sasuke wanted everything. He wanted her to submit entirely to him, to know she was at his mercy, and to be happy about it. The man was greedy, and they both knew it after last night. He wanted to stain her body with his mark, inside and out, and he did.
'And she let me.'
His eyes crept open, blinking a few times before lowering to see the top of Sakura's head. A wave of satisfaction washed over him when he noticed the bite mark on her bare shoulder. No, he didn't go as far as drawing blood, and he would've stopped if she seemed not to like it, but that didn't happen.
More than he was surprised at his actions, he was utterly bewildered by how the woman behaved last night. First, he was stunned that she let him fuck her at all, but then she let him do it again, and again, and again, each time in a different position and each time causing him to become more obsessed.
'I was right about her,' he thought, feeling a little proud of the usually reserved pinkette.
At the club, the night he took her to her apartment, and they nearly hooked up, he recalled telling Hidan that he thought she'd be good in bed, to put it more respectfully. Sakura had little experience; that was evident at first, but damn, she was a quick learner. That bold, argumentative demeanor she often gets with him made more sense now that he'd witnessed her at her most desperate and depraved.
Suddenly, Sasuke snapped out of it, the warmth and comfort turning into panic. 'I told myself I'd get rid of her once I get laid,' he slowly released his hold around her with one arm, running his palm flat down her toned stomach to rest atop her lower abdomen, 'But I don't know if I can do that now.'
He touched and tasted her thoroughly because she allowed it, but he wasn't bored now that morning had come. Usually, once the hookup is over, the man quickly gets irritated just by being near them. That's why he always goes to their place, does the deed, waits for them to fall asleep, and then leaves so he doesn't have to be around them any longer.
Honestly, he hoped that'd happen in Sakura's case. That way, he could end things and forget about her without issue. 'What a complete and utter failure.' Sasuke's not a total idiot. A small part of him knew things would be different with this woman. The question now is what to do going forward.
After Itachi was forced to come find him that day six years ago because he'd gotten in with the wrong crowd at school and narrowly avoided getting arrested, the man vowed never to let himself find happiness like his brother and sister-in-law had.
Izumi died because of Sasuke.
If Itachi never had to save his ass, they never would've been on this shitty side of town, and that stray bullet never would've hit her.
His elder brother never took his anger out on him. He never blamed him, not once, at least not out loud. It doesn't matter, though, because the crime still eats at the younger Uchiha's heart. That horrific event is also what led to both men joining the Akatsuki.
It'd been a rival gang that'd recklessly opened fire on the street that day. Sasuke never found out how Itachi received that information because he never asked. He was too stunned by the fact that his perfect, well-mannered, loving older brother vowed to avenge his late wife. The only way he knew how was to join that gang's enemy and use them to enact that goal. Sasuke joined, too, since it was his fault the entire thing happened.
The pair of Uchiha's achieved their wish almost a year ago. Akatsuki went to war, of sorts, with that rival gang and came out on top.
Now, their "family" is unmatched in Otogakure. It also felt impossible to leave, not that either spared the idea much thought. The elder Uchiha excels at jobs where one needs to remain unseen, unheard, and untouched, while the younger is easily the gang's best fighter. His unyielding self-hate and anger are to blame for that violence.
'How can I possibly let myself have this after what I did?' Sasuke thought, nuzzling his face into Sakura's hair and eagerly drowning in the scent of her shampoo. 'He always says he wants me to be happy, but he must be-' Sakura sighed softly. The slender body pressed against him moved, trembling momentarily as she stretched with all the grace and beauty of a cat.
For a moment, the Uchiha worried she'd freak out like she did last time she woke in his arms but was relieved when the hands gripping his forearm squeezed slightly. Her voice was soft and raspy, "...Good morning…."
Sasuke could've laughed, 'She's so easy to read, and I'm not even looking at her damn face.' It was evident Sakura felt bashful and nervous as the memories of their night together returned.
The man wouldn't allow her to shy away this time, not after all they did. He spoke into her hair, closing his eyes to relish in the calm aura of the room, "G'morning."
Unsurprisingly, she spoke honestly, almost bluntly, "I, um…I don't know how I expected you to be, but it definitely wasn't this."
"Shut up," he scoffed but tightened his hold around her.
That's when he felt it, the woman's insecurity. Something in the way she became quiet instead of nagging him for telling her to shut up told him she was concerned about how she'd been perceived.
"I-I hope I-" "Don't fuckin' say it. You'll piss me off first thing in the morning," Sasuke interrupted.
There was a long pause before Sakura responded more softly, "Um, thank you."
His eyes shot open in confusion. All the women he's slept with over the years undoubtedly enjoyed the experience, but none outright thanked him.
Neither said another word for a long time. Though it took him off guard, the man eventually realized why she said what she had. Sakura wasn't thanking him for fucking her senseless. She was grateful he'd done so in a way they both enjoyed instead of just him.
'Her ex is a jackass. The sad fuck doesn't know what he missed out on.' If only the mystery man had tried harder for the pinkette, he'd have gotten to see all those addictive expressions and hear the intriguing sounds she could make.
Then again….
'If he'd done it right, she might not have been so shy.' The pretty blush Sakura often got around him was charming, and it'd become a hobby to make it appear. It was fun seeing her gradually care less and less, too.
It was selfish, but Sasuke was glad he got to be the one to discover the woman's irresistible sexuality.
'Oh, God. Why did I do all that?!'
Sakura Haruno was in a panic. Last night was the most intense, reckless, and amazing sex she's ever had. The thing is, it was never supposed to happen. The woman had joined Sasuke last night, intending to friend-zone him for both of their safety. In the end, they didn't go to sleep until almost four in the morning.
Now, they're in the Uchiha man's car; it's nearly ten o'clock, and they're on the way to campus to make it to the classes they haven't yet missed.
'I just have to do it. It's awful, and he doesn't deserve to be treated like this, but if I don't do it, he'll go to prison and possibly even be executed.' Sakura swallowed nervously before glancing at Sasuke's profile, "So, um…There's something I need to-"
His phone rang, interrupting her, and he spared her a look before answering it, a smirk on his lips when she blushed and faced forward with wide eyes. Ever since they woke, she couldn't meet his eye without recalling all the dominant, sexual things he said and did to her. It wouldn't be so bad if she hadn't enjoyed every second of it. The feelings she'd developed for him all but quadrupled in the past twelve hours.
'How am I supposed to say I don't like him to his face now?'
The closer the pair got to campus, the more on-edge Sakura became because somewhere in those buildings awaited a walking nightmare who was here solely to ruin her life. Sasuke's phone call didn't end even when they arrived, and the woman jumped when he wordlessly grabbed her hand as they walked toward the exit.
'What if he's watching us right now? He'll definitely retaliate if he sees this!'
Gritting her teeth and lowering her head, the woman pulled away from the Uchiha. It was evident something was the matter, so he quickly ended his call, and once they were indoors, he didn't beat around the bush, "Something's wrong?"
'Don't hesitate, Sakura. Just do it.'
She stopped walking and faced him, forcing herself to meet his eye, "I-I don't want what happened last night to happen again….Do you understand?"
He did.
He did, and he wasn't happy about it, either.
"That's a fucking joke, right?" The man knew it wasn't.
"No, I, um," she paused, taking a strengthening breath before retrying, "It was a mistake. I went into your room last night to clarify things, but I drank too much, and I-" "You're seriously gonna try that bullshit excuse? Alcohol had nothing to do with it."
'He's right.'
Sasuke continued, his rage and disbelief evident in his handsome features, "What's the damn problem, Sakura? You like me. I know you do."
'Again, he's right. He's figured out how to read me too well.'
Despite that, the woman had to continue for his sake, 'He may not ever find out, but I'm doing this for him as much as I am for myself.'
"Believe what you want. I'm finishing the contract, and then I'm leaving Oto."
Sakura didn't wait to see his response. She turned and began walking quickly toward the staircase, only for him to grab her wrist and force her to face him, "You think you can just walk away after everything? Quit lying to my fuckin' face and tell me what's actually going on before you really piss me off."
Tears in her eyes, the woman yanked her arm away and forced a glare onto him as she hissed, "We never should've kissed, or slept together, or talked like we did. I don't want you, Sasuke! I-I still love my ex-boyfriend, so leave me alone!" The words tasted sour as they left her tongue.
The stunned, almost heartbroken expression on the man's face hurt Sakura like she'd been slapped. He quickly masked the unexpected emotion with a hateful glare, looking her up and down as though seeing her for the first time all over again, "Do you really mean that?"
She nodded, frantically wiping her wet cheeks, "I do."
'No, I don't. It's all a lie.'
Sasuke searched her face for a silent moment before nodding once, stepping around her, and heading up the stairs with his free hand fisted angrily. Considering how short-tempered and violent-natured he is, Sakura considered herself lucky he didn't react worse.
Since they argued for so long, she didn't make it to her next class in time, and the door to the lecture hall was locked when she arrived. Dejected and hating herself, Sakura trudged into the library and slumped into a seat in the back of the massive room. A textbook was open before her, but she couldn't see anything on its pages. All she could see was the hurt Sasuke'd tried to hide.
Maybe ten minutes into the woman's zoned-out thoughts, someone suddenly sat beside her at the otherwise empty table. She knew who it was even before the terror-inducing voice met her ears, "I've missed you, Saku. You look pretty. Are those new clothes?"
Sakura didn't bother responding and simply let her tears slip from her eyes to her cheeks and onto the table. A familiar disgust grew in the pit of the woman's stomach when the man's hand landed atop her thigh beneath the table, squeezing slightly.
'I can't believe I went through all of this just to end up here, in his control all over again.'
To her despair, he sat nearby in every remaining class she had, forcefully interlacing their fingers once the final one ended, and she hurried out of the room. They beat the crowd downstairs and even made it outside without seeing anyone Sakura knew.
'I need to get out of here before-' "You've got to be fucking kidding me. Are you serious, Sakura?"
Green eyes squeezed closed, dread filling the woman's heart as Sasuke's disgusted voice sounded from behind them. Her feet kept moving, only to stop when the man holding her hand yanked her back to stand at his side. She chanced a peek at the Uchiha man's face, only to step back because it appeared he was ready to murder her. Even when they first met, and she'd dumped wine on him, he didn't look this angry.
"You're just another damn slut, aren't you? I should've known."
Sakura couldn't speak because she was too hurt and terrified, so she lowered her gaze and turned her head to the side. To make a bad situation worse, her ex-boyfriend reached forward with his free hand, "My name's Naruto. What's yours?"
