'Why did I kiss her? She's probably confused,' Sasuke splashed cold water onto his face before glaring at his reflection in the bathroom mirror.

His body had moved on his own out there. It was because Sakura was being her usual supportive self as though her life wasn't quite literally in the balance. He knew his actions were baffling her. One minute he'd be enjoying their time together, and then he'd be struck with the realization that their days are numbered, and his mood falls through the floor. Then, repeat.

'I can't help myself. Not now that there's no reason to hide,' he looked at the closed door and imagined Sakura out there. He frowned, 'It's not fair to force these feelings onto her. She's already sacrificing so much for me.'

Though The Curse had behaved surprisingly well these past days, Sasuke still sent an intimidating sneer at his reflection, knowing he'd be able to see it. He whispered so only he could hear, "She's not to be taken advantage of. There are still ways to punish you if you hurt her."

For the rest of the day, Sakura noticeably attempted to stay out of his way. It was clear she thought she'd done something to offend him, but Sasuke couldn't find the right words to reassure her that wasn't the case. In fact, the quiet young woman had been more than perfect. She cooked, cleaned, and read the books she'd brought along for the trip.

The next morning, Sasuke groaned. He turned onto his side and curled further into a ball. 'I have such a headache…. What is this?' Time passed in a dizzy blur, but then he snapped out of it when something cold touched his forehead. His eyes shot open to see Sakura's concerned face.

She held his hair out of his face while dabbing it with a wet towel, "You have a fever."

Just like yesterday, Sasuke's body moved on its own. Words he wanted to say that he normally would bite back left his lips without hindrance, "I don't get sick." His hand softly landed at her waist, bunching a loose handful of her dress there. Something was wrong with him today, that was for sure. He didn't have the ability to hold back his true thoughts and feelings like usual.

Sakura didn't seem to mind his hand and ignored it. Her frown deepened as she leaned further over to focus on her task, "The body doesn't lie, Sasuke. Please stay in bed today."

The woman helped him drink some water and eat some thin soup, and then she turned to leave the room, but he stopped her, "Stay."

She faced him with a look of evident surprise, cautiously reapproaching his bedside, "You need to rest. I'll just keep you awake."

"Read to me, like you said you would," he mumbled childishly. The pale skin of her cheeks turned a pretty red hue. She visually trembled with nervousness as she retrieved the book she was currently reading before sitting on the edge of the bed and opening it.

'No…. She's too far away. I want to….'

He made an unhappy sound, "Sit beside me. It'll help my fever."

"Sasuke…." The new princess whined under her breath as her blush tripled in brightness, but she didn't argue further. No, she climbed into bed beside him, sitting up with a pillow behind her back.

"What is the genre of this one?"

"...It's also a romance novel," Sakura says while opening the book to the page where she left off.

Sasuke pauses before making an observation, "You read a lot of those. I suppose our engagement hasn't been romantic. My apologies."

"N-No, that's not it!" The woman appeared to forget her bashfulness as she came to his defense, laying a hand on his head with a firm expression, "I just…I like it, is all. It has nothing to do with your actions."

The prince unconsciously leaned into her touch, closing his eyes and turning onto his side. Either Sakura picked up on his fevered wish for affection or forgot they were so tense around one another all day yesterday. She gently ran her fingers through his hair before returning her gaze to the book, not pulling her hand away. Her voice wasn't all that confident as she shyly began to read aloud, "Fudo didn't know what to do. His king had ordered him to assassinate the father of the woman he loves, but if he does that, he'll surely lose her affections…."

Sasuke lulled in and out of sleep, listening to his wife's soft voice and relishing in the mild caresses she was still giving his head. Then, suddenly, he was reminded of a long-forgotten memory. It was from his childhood. He was bedridden with fever, and in Sakura's place was Queen Mikoto Uchiha, his mother.

He vaguely recalled the beautiful sound of her voice as she'd sing and hum to him until he fell asleep. She'd stay by his side until the fever broke, even going as far as sleeping in his childish room rather than in the extravagant room she shared with the king. The prince tried to remember how she smelled, but couldn't and became frustrated. Suddenly, a flash of the wizard Orochimaru's yellow eyes and wicked grin interrupted the fond memories and Sasuke woke up with a start.

"It's alright. It was just a fever dream," Sakura's voice came. His breath caught in his throat as he realized he'd hugged an arm across her lap in his sleep. Rather than push him away, Sakura had managed to scoot slightly lower to ensure his comfort without waking him. He squeezed his eyes closed, his fingers tightening around a handful of the cloth of her skirt near her hip.

For some reason, the man felt like crying. Sure, the dream had shaken him, but to wake up being comforted by his warm and welcoming wife, the one he'd fallen for and will have to kill sometime soon, was worse.

There was a long pause before the hand atop his head slid down into his hair, near the nape of his neck, "It'll be alright, Sasuke. Your nightmare will be over soon, and you'll be able to live the rest of your life happily."

Obviously, her words were meant to comfort him, but they did the opposite. Still somewhat feverish, the prince didn't manage to bite back his natural response, "That is untrue."

The woman tensed, "Are you doubting The Curse will be able to be removed?"

Sasuke's eyes opened again. If he weren't sick, he'd find a way to escape this conversation, but he was mentally and physically weakened by weeks of stress and effort. In the next blink, Sakura was lying beneath him on the mattress, hair wild amongst the pillows as she stared up at him with wide eyes. He frowned at her, hesitantly cupping her cheek, "I'm a selfish man."

The woman's mouth clamped closed. It was clear she wasn't sure what was going on.

"I don't want to choose between you and ridding of The Curse." His thumb brushed against the corner of her lips, his voice becoming quieter, "I want both."

Tears welled in her gorgeous emerald eyes as Sakura appeared to begin comprehending what'd been plaguing the prince's mind these past hours. She laid a hand atop his, the one cupping her cheek. Her brow furrowed, "I'm sorry, but that's simply not possible."

A tear overflowed, and Sasuke frowned while watching it elegantly roll down her pale skin. When he moved his hand to wipe it, his bride sniffled and blinked as though attempting to stop crying. Suddenly, she was visually nervous. Her hands shook as she ran them up to rest against his chest.

'Oh,' he looked down to see how close their bodies were to touching, how close he was to pressing directly against her. His eyes darted back up to his wife's and he swallowed hard, 'I didn't realize what position we're in. She must be uncomfortable.'

When he moved to get off of her, the woman's hands shot up to his shoulders to stop him in his tracks. Electric shock froze his body as he searched Sakura's shy expression. She searched his face in a way that took him off guard.

Moments passed when he realized what she was trying to work up the courage to say. He brought a hand to one of hers on his chest while shaking his head. Self-disgust burnt the pit of his stomach, "I can't ask that of you, Sakura." Her fingers held loose handfuls of his shirt. Obviously, she wasn't convinced. He didn't know what else to do. He kissed her, long and firm. When he pulled back, her cheeks were an attractive pink. "You're already sacrificing your life. I can't put you through something like that, too."

Sasuke went to move away again, but stopped once more when the woman suddenly said, "What you'd do…. It wouldn't be the same as what happened with Hihara, right?" She seemed genuinely scared yet still curious.

Anger flooded the prince's blood and his hesitance temporarily dissipated, "Absolutely not!" He knew she wasn't asking if he was capable of such destruction, but it still felt like it and he had to make her understand he'd never harm her like that. He held her waist, then, running his hand up her body to cup her cheek again, where he stared deep into her eyes as though trying to communicate both with words and touch, "What I'd do and what he did are incomparable, Sakura."

Tears welled in her eyes once again. Her voice cracked, "Show me." Sasuke snapped out of his angry trance and opened his mouth to argue, but she cut him off, "I don't want to die with that being my only experience."

She paused again, and they searched one anothers' faces before she breathed, "I'm scared, but I trust you."

Sasuke's lips moved independently, "I love you."

The woman's eyes widened, her blush returning tenfold, "I-I love you, too." His pulse quickened when she cautiously pulled him down into a kiss. Just by the way she was moving, he could tell she desperately wanted him to take the lead. He couldn't blame her, given their history and all she'd gone through. It didn't bother him to be the dominant one because then he could be sure things proceeded gently. The nervous woman would likely fumble with anxiety, which might lead to accidentally painful moments.

With his resolve strengthened to make this a positive experience for the both of them, Sasuke slid a hand to the blouse of her dress, unbuttoning one button, then two, and then an all-too-familiar pain shot up his spine.

Sakura squeaked in surprise when he suddenly pulled away, cursing under his breath. He sat back on his knees, turning his neck to look at the window and confirm the sun was nearly set. Sighing, he looked down at the heavily-breathing woman, a familiar feeling buzzing in his lower regions at the borderline sensual expression on her pretty face.

She realized what was happening and bashfully brought a hand to her chest to block the sliver of pale skin that'd shown with the undone buttons, "Perhaps tomorrow?"

He sighed, dipping down to kiss her once more, "Tomorrow."

That damn curse ruined it.