-XXX-

SASUKE

Our wedding dinner that Minato and Kushina had prepared for us was coming to an end. Lots of more hugs, congratulations, marriage jokes and annoying whistling awaited us as we left. We said our farewells and since I drank alcohol minimally, I declined Minato's driver and opened the door for Sakura so she could get in the car.

We were both silent in the car on the way home. "How are you?" I kept glancing over at Sakura until I decided to ask how she was feeling, because she had a smile on her face all night, but I wanted to know just how she was doing. It had been a tough day after all.

"Hm? What did you say?" She turned her head away from the window, obviously lost in her thoughts. "How are you holding up?" I've amended my question and she leaned back and shrugged. "I'm perfectly fine." There was another moment of silence before she finished her thought. "It's been a beautiful day."

I snorted and replied with a bit of sarcasm in my voice. "Forced marriage to such a jerk was to your liking?" Sakura started giggling unexpectedly, a completely genuine smile conjured up on her face.

"In my book, it's one of the best days." I smirked at her answer. Her sense of humor was showing more and more every day. I loved it. Especially when she was open with me and not afraid to let her guard down.

"Where do you think Minato and Kushina met?" Sakura suddenly changed the subject. "At school." I answered simply, since Minato had told me about it once. "So they were school lovebirds?" Sakura said dreamily, looking over at me, waiting for confirmation.

"Hn..." I nodded. "Kushina's family moved around a lot, and when she started the academy here in town, they were in the same class together." I told her as Minato told me, while concentrating on driving.

"It's amazing how well they get along when you consider that she is feisty and lively by nature and he is such a calm and gentle man." I thought about it and added. "Too bad Naruto didn't inherit more of his father's qualities." Apparently I said what she was thinking too, because she burst out laughing. "You're right about that, Sasuke-kun. But I like them all."

"They like you too."

"I'm trying not to feel guilty about lying to them." She admitted wistfully, her gaze fixed on the road ahead. "They're very kind and good to us." I couldn't help but agree. Even I had been surprised not long ago at how caring and helpful they were to both of us, even though they hardly knew us at all.

"It won't hurt anyone." I tried to calm her down. "I'll do everything I can for the Namikaze Group. I will be be an asset to it." I said confidently as I was aware of my determination. If I was serious about anything, it was my work. "Still, when this is over..." Sakura whispered, worried about something that could come tomorrow or maybe a year from now. Neither of us had any idea when or how it would end.

"We'll deal with that later. We still have a few months, so don't think about it." I think she took my assurance to heart because she looked at me and nodded with a soft smile. Again we sat in silence, but this time the atmosphere was better.

"Thank you for offering to spend time with my aunt." I shrugged as if it was a given. However, I was glad she mentioned it. "Like I said, I'm free that day." The truth was, I wanted to get to know her more and, through Tsunade, get to know my newlywed wife a little better.

"Isn't that normal? I'm your husband, after all." She simply nodded in agreement. "Yes, you've convinced them all with that." She added, as if my decision was just a cover to look good in front of people.

I didn't know if I had impressed people with that and I didn't care because I hadn't offered to take Tsunade to a game night because of it. "It wasn't about that. I just have time on Tuesday, that's all."

I wanted to believe Sakura would understand my intent, but I added anyway: "Whatever... People liked what they saw. Good job, Miss Haruno." I wanted to tease her a little, knowing how embarrassed she was when I addressed her in any way. I didn't expect my intentions to turn against me though.

Sakura cleared her throat noticeably. "I'm sorry, but I have to correct you. It's Mrs. Uchiha now." A strange feeling immediately welled up in my chest at her words. Especially when it came out of her mouth with a mischievous sparkle in her eyes. "It won't happen again." I said and she turned her face away after my statement and stared out the window again.

"It was a beautiful day, Sasuke-kun..." she whispered so softly I almost overheard. I couldn't find the right words, so for some strange reason I reached for her palm in the dimness and squeezed it. Sakura kept her gaze averted and watched everything we passed, but our hands stayed linked for the rest of the ride home.

...

By the time we arrived in front of our house, Sakura had fallen asleep on the seat next to me. I understood that she was exhausted after last night and today's events, so I decided to let her sleep.

I opened the passenger door and gently picked her up under her thighs and and around her waist, so I could take her in my arms. Her head rested on my shoulder and as she was propped against my chest she seemed tiny and fragile.

With the help of Kabuto, who went ahead of me and opened the doors for us, I quietly carried her up the stairs to her room. I couldn't take my eyes off her the whole time.

Once we were in her room, I laid her carefully on the bed and slowly removed the shoes from her feet and placed them beside the bed.

But then a problem arose that I never thought I would have to deal with. I didn't know what to do with her dress. She couldn't sleep comfortably in a frilly, tight clothing. She lifted herself up a little and half opened her eyes while trying to roll over onto her other side.

This gave me courage and so I stalled her, took the hem of her dress and together we got her dress over her head. Then she laid back down and was fast asleep again.

She was lying in front of me in just her underwear without realizing it. Bending over the bed, I studied her in her slumber. Lace, similar to that on her dress, covered her breasts and a triangle of the same silk hid her untouched sex from my gaze.

Heat flooded my entire body and I felt a cool sweat on the back of my neck. I knew my ears were flushed as my face was, but I didn't mind. Anyone would have lost their mind over the sight I had before me.

Although I had always been convinced that she was not my type at all, to my surprise I have now become persuaded that her beauty lies not only in her character. I found her delicate curves and physique dangerously alluring and attractive.

I brushed back the fallen strands of hair from her forehead. I couldn't help but to examined her face and I gently stroked her cheek. Just faintly enough not to wake her. Her skin was soft as velvet to the touch and she looked serene. I watched in detail the face that had seemed so ordinary to me before. But now I saw how wrong I was.

Her cheekbones were still too prominent and she was still too thin. But I knew she was safe and cared for now. She can eat properly and has less to worry about, so she will surely soon round out a bit. The tired circles under her eyes began to fade and the real beauty that others had seen in her, and I had only just discovered, would shine through fully.

I shook my head at the strange thoughts I was having about Sakura. I honestly startled myself. Today had been filled with emotions I rarely, if ever, experienced. I knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they were caused by the woman lying in front of me. Yet I still didn't understand why.

The sight of her made my body shiver and a new wave of shame washed over me. I shouldn't be staring at her hungrily while she sleeps, even though she looks most seductive this way, half-naked. So I quickly pulled the covers up to her chin and turned off the light as I walked out of her room. I left the door to her bedroom wide open and walked along the hallway to my room.

I was going to have a very restless night. The fact that she had fallen asleep from exhaustion in the car had only caused a brief delay in what I had promised her. It was clear to me that first thing in the morning she was going to ask me again about my story and my childhood. And it was also clear that I would have to tell it to her, because I actually owed her.

I took a shower and looked in the mirror at my reflection. My outward appearance would be the envy of many. The one that hid the empty and lost man that resided within. I had ignored him and buried him deep inside until now Sakura wanted to bring him to the surface.

I was dreading this conversation. I sighed, dried off and hung the towel on the handle. I crossed the room and opened the door to my room wide as well, even though I knew I wouldn't be giving Sakura any soothing snoozes today. I climbed into bed with my head full of longing thoughts of her. Actually, I found myself wishing she was lying here next to me right now.

...

The next day, Sunday morning, I was sitting in the kitchen clutching my third cup of coffee when Sakura came downstairs for breakfast. She also grabbed a mug off the shelf and set it on the counter, but since I still hadn't learned how to properly use the coffee maker she bought last week, she had to make her own coffee. While she waited for the coffee maker to work its magic, I could feel her shooting me some strange looks.

After a while the stuffiness in the room became uncomfortable, so I decided to start first. "Is something wrong?" I sipped from my cup and waited for her answer. "You tell me, Sasuke." Sakura leaned her back against the counter and crossed her arms at her chest. "I fell asleep."

Probably the last thing she remembered from the previous night was falling asleep in the car on the way home. "You were too tired." I stated a simple fact and she went on. "I woke up in bed. Without my dress on." She put emphasis on the word without and eyed me like a predator watches its prey, that she plans to kill at any moment.

"Isn't it a custom that on the wedding night the husband carries the bride over the doorstep and they spend the night together?"

"We... You and I, we..." She gasped in horror. A dark flush spread across her cheeks and I smirked, because I knew exactly what thoughts were going through her mind.

I decided not to tease her so much in the morning. "You helped me take them down yourself, Sakura. Then you fell right back asleep. I just covered you up and left. I thought you might have trouble sleeping."

"I see... You should have said that at the beginning, shannaro!" Her whole body relaxed as if a stone had fallen from her heart. She poured herself a coffee and sat down across from me. That's when she noticed the wrapped box sitting on the counter. "What's that?" I pushed the package toward her.

"A gift."

"For me?"

"Hn..."

I discovered that Sakura is quite the paper shredding enthusiast. Instead of gently removing the adhesive tape and carefully unwrapping the paper, she grabbed it by the corner and vigorously ripped it open. I smiled as she just remained gawking.

"It's a waffle iron." She stated in shock and I winced at her amazement. "Think of it as a wedding present." She looked up at me with those green eyes full of quiet joy and that was a present for me too.

She took her hands off her present and with a somewhat serious face she said: "The gift I wanted isn't worth more than a small piece of your time, Sasuke-kun." And that was where she was wrong. I knew what she wanted, and what I had promised her in return for marrying me.

"You're not giving up, huh?" I said resignedly. "No. You already know my story, and I want to know yours." She raised her chin defiantly and furrowed her eyebrows. "You promised me." My coffee cup hit the counter probably too hard as I put it down. "Fine."

I slid out of my chair, tense and irritated. Tiredly, I walked to the window and looked out at the city with the figures of people on the streets, just the way I wanted to see my memories: small and distant.

"My father was the strictest man I have ever met. He was a great leader, flawless, strong and tough. He always had to have his way." I snorted and turned to Sakura, giving her a meaningful look. "Like father, like son, I guess..." Sakura walked over to the sofa, sat down, but said nothing. I turned back to the window again.

"I don't quite know what you expect to find out about me." I shook my head and focused on the view out the window. "There's nothing interesting about my childhood." I took a deep breath while trying to sum up my story somehow.

"I've lived my entire life in a filthy rich, success-oriented family and spent my childhood in my brother's shadow. My grandfather and my father wanted a child to carry on the family name and take over the family business."

I smiled crookedly. "And that's exactly what they got, the perfect son." I may have said it a little venomously, but I knew it was true. Itachi was truly everything my father wanted. He was perfect. Still is.

I glanced back and sought her gaze. "I was not born of love, but of a mistake. A son no one counted on. A son who is and always will be a cheap copy of Itachi." I gritted my teeth and clenched my hands into fists at the thought.

"You mean your parents didn't like you?" She muttered, sad and breathless at the same time. "I thought so my whole childhood."

I went to sit on the sofa opposite her. "All my childhood, I just listened to how I should be more like Itachi. Smart like him, physically strong like him, a leader type like him, imaginative like him, and so on."

Sakura was quiet, listening to my every word. She nodded in understanding and indicated for me to continue. "As soon as I was old enough, they put me in boarding school. I hated the loneliness there."

"I wasn't welcome, even when I came home for school holidays. All anyone cared about was how my brother was doing. I have learned over my entire life that the only person I can rely on is myself. " Sakura sniffled and whispered to me. "It must have been hard for you, Sasuke-kun..."

I leaned forward and put my hands on my knees. "I tried so hard to get my father to like me. I was obedient. I excelled in school. I did what I could to get my father to notice me. It wasn't enough."

I paused for a moment. "I don't remember any hugs, any good-night kisses, or him reading me a bedtime story. I didn't find him sympathetic even with a busted knee or a rough day."

I shook my head at the talk of my father and tried to change the subject. "The only one who stood up for me was my mother, who married into my father's side. But she was always oppressed, her word meant nothing. But she was everything to me."

A smile appeared at the corners of my lips as I remembered the times I spent with my mother. "She was kind and treated me differently. She read to me, played and talked with me, listened to my crazy stories... She told me she loved me."

"What about your brother, Itachi? Did you two at least get along?" She asked carefully, trying not to upset me. I thought about her question. "I always wanted to be like him. And spend time with him." She smiled softly and I continued.

"And before he was sent abroad to continue his studies, we were together every day. Playing and learning. We competed and laughed. He was my best friend, more than a brother..." I said quietly, but Sakura heard every word clearly because a tear ran down her cheek and the sight of her startled me a little. A strange sound came from her throat and she lowered her head for a moment. I found her reaction strange. She seemed very upset.

"I learned as a child that love is an emotion I don't care about. That it weakens me. And so I focused only on myself and my career." She furrowed her brow, but said nothing. I wanted to stop talking about it, so I tried to wrap it up.

"So you and Itachi are in contact? What about your mother?" Sakura clearly had a lot of questions and didn't know what to ask first.

"After my father's death, Itachi and I became closer. Sometimes we call or text each other to see how the other is doing. With my mother, too. He's on the other side of the planet now, managing my father's businesses with my mother."

Neither Itachi nor my mother knew about our wedding, and since I wasn't particularly proud of my actions of the past couple of weeks, I didn't tell either of them about Sakura.

"My father died five years ago in a car accident, and Itachi inherited everything he could." Sakura looked at me in disbelief and asked. "So all this..." She looked around the house. "You earned your house and other stuff with your own work?" I smiled a little and shook my head. "No. Itachi passed my father's inheritance on to me."

"Oh, so that's why you can afford your expensive lifestyle..." She looked at me again. "Not exactly. I rarely touch these finances. I use it for important things like buying this house and education expenses. I never wanted to lead a life like my father, shallow and vain. I like to work and I know I can take care of myself. I don't want to be obligated to anyone."

"Is that why you're paying me?" I rubbed the back of my neck. I could feel myself sweating from all the stress. "I thought it was important, so yes." She lowered her head again. Her hair fell forward from her bangs and covered her face. I sat down next to her and looked at her upright.

"Look at me." She hesitated for a moment, but then raised her head. Her cheeks were wet with tears, her eyes dilated, and her hands gripped the fluffy cushion on the sofa so hard her knuckles were white. "Why are you upset?"

"Do you expect me to remain calm when I hear how you had a loveless childhood, Sasuke?" I shrugged. "I told you it wasn't pretty." I let out a sigh and finished my sentence. "It just doesn't mean anything now. Like I said, my brother and mother are on good terms with me now. So that story was unnecessary..."

"I don't agree with that. I'm sure it wasn't unnecessary, Sasuke-kun."

I shook my head, because I didn't understand what all this was for. "Telling you about my life doesn't change anything." Sakura wiped her cheeks with her palm and looked me straight in the eye. "Maybe not for you." I frowned over her vague explanation. "I don't understand."

She laughed derisively with a sigh. "Yeah, I'm not surprised." And I didn't like that reaction. "What the hell do you mean by that?" Her mouth formed a tiny little smile.

"It explained a lot of things to me. Why you act the way you do when you interact with people. Why you can't connect with anyone in your life." I frowned and looked away from her. "Don't start analyzing me."

"I'm not analyzing you. I'm just saying what I think, that's all, Sasuke..."

"I don't want your tears or your pity."

"Too bad, Sasuke-kun, because you already have both. As a child, you didn't deserve to be treated and ignored like this by the man you wanted approval and love from." She said with sadness in her voice.

"But now you've chosen your own way of life. You think you've overcome the past by getting along with Itachi, but it's not true." She spoke clearly, from the heart and without a single hesitation. "How you see the world around you, how you treat people, is influenced by how you felt as a child."

Sakura put down the pillow she had on her lap and stood up. "If you'd at least give yourself permission to try, I think you'd find that people aren't as horrible as you think. Some of us are quite nice."

Her words caught me off guard. "I never said you weren't a nice person. In fact, quite the opposite. I'm the one who deserves contempt." I clenched my teeth, annoyed with myself.

"No, Sasuke-kun. You don't deserve contempt. I think you're just..."

She searched for the right word. "Lost." I looked at her uncomprehendingly, and she caught my look and launched into an explanation without me having to ask. She really knew me well already.

"You don't allow yourself any feelings. If you ever try, if you ever get close to someone, I'm sure you'll see for yourself, how much love for another person can do for you. Love will not weaken you. True, sincere love will make you stronger."

With those words, she leaned closer to me and kissed me briefly on the cheek. It only lasted for a small fleeting moment, but in that split second she managed to stop my breathing.

I could feel the evidence of her sadness on my skin, her hot tears. "Thank you for telling me, Sasuke-kun." She whispered and walked away towards the staircase.

Halfway there, she turned over her shoulder and said: "And by the way, I don't think you're like your father. I think you just think you are because you don't know any different."

She slumped her shoulders like it was the simplest thing in the world. "I'm convinced you're a wonderful man, you just don't see it in yourself." As she finished her last words, she turned back and walked up the stairs to her room. She left me sitting there, watching her disappearing figure. I had a lot to think about tonight again...

-XXX-

End of Chapter 22