Chapter 1

Pictures.

The idea of them never intrigued Sasuke. After all, he wasn't a fan of cameras. From a young age, he avoided them like a plague. His father found this…phobia to be a nuisance and ridiculous. Uchihas didn't have phobias. Even the implication of such a weakness drove Fugaku up a wall. So, once Sasuke turned ten years old, Fugaku enrolled him in various photography classes.

Everywhere he went, he'd be forced to pull out a camera, take pictures, repeat. At any time, he could've quit. However, the thought of his father's disappointment made him stay and try to at least accomplish something. Ironically enough, Sasuke ended up becoming good—perfect really, at taking photographs. He won awards, prizes, and titles of recognition. Some among the lot even left him feeling proud.

"16-YEAR-OLD UCHIHA SASUKE NOMINATED FOR BEST PICTURE COLLECTION ON FINE ART"

The announcer shouts happily towards the crowd, and rounds of applause boom in the spacious stadium. Among them stand his family and other strangers. Before he could feel proud of himself for meeting his family's—Fugaku's expectations, he takes note of Itachi's absence. It should've been impossible to even notice with all the people in the crowd, but Sasuke did. The realization left a gnawing reminder in his head. Will I ever be good enough for anyone? He ignored it and moved on.

While he and his brother weren't on the best of terms, he still wanted him to be there.

After all, it was their thing.

To be there on important days.

Just as they had always been during their childhood. His brother had always shown up, protected him, and ultimately cared for him.

Sasuke even messaged him the day before asking if he would make it, while he hadn't gotten a reply the message was at least read. So, screw him, for expecting his presence. A disappointed sigh left his mouth, before he walked up the stage and put his acting facade on. The announcer, a man, likely no less than thirty, gave him a pat on the back before handing him the microphone and leaving him on his own.

Here goes nothing.

"Thank you," he cleared his throat, "I'm glad you could all make it safely."

"Please," His mother, Mikoto Uchiha, begged.

Sasuke sighed irritably; this current situation was driving his mind into a frenzy. Three years later, he was still pushed to meet his family's expectations. Though expected, it was still unwelcome. At least his mother was on the tamer side when it came to her expectations. Currently, he was posed with a ludicrous proposal. Though, could it even count as a proposal if he would have to agree regardless?

No.

All he had to do was say yes, but he didn't want to. He met his father's gaze, even after years of proving his worth, his father's eyes never changed their scrutiny. By now, he doubted they were even capable of change.

He gave the room a look over, it was a typical conference room. Beige walls, wooden floor, paintings, a long glass table, and unfortunately, people. The Hyugas, a rich and powerful family, were on the opposing side of the table. Their postures were stiff and their gazes hardened, awaiting his answer.

His eyes zeroed in on one girl, her hair was dark like midnight with bangs covering her forehead, she was pale and her eyes like all the other Hyugas, opal and almost iridescent. She sat prim and proper, her cheeks becoming flushed while meeting his gaze. Her name was Hinata Hyuga, daughter of Hiashi Hyuga. She was a renowned model in Konoha, and the most likely reason for this proposal.

He never talked to her, and she never talked to him. Not that it bothered him since he didn't care for socialization. For weeks, they would meet constantly at these types of meetings between their families. It just never was about them. So, they'd always go their separate ways and ignore each other.

It wasn't until one day that he found himself in a situation with her that left him no choice but to interject.

It happened two weeks ago.

For months on end, his idiotic friend, Naruto Uzumaki, pestered him over attending their high school reunion. It wasn't until Sasuke finally agreed for the sake of peace that the blonde relented. He knew that the dobe only wanted to attend because Sakura, a former friend of his, would be there.

"Pleaseeee," Naruto begged, while unceremoniously slurping his ramen. They had gone to the blonde's favorite stand, Ichiraku Ramen, a staple of their high school friendship. Sasuke looked between Naruto and his own ramen, contemplating what to say.

While he didn't want to go anywhere near that, he did it simply for Naruto. After all, Naruto was the only person who approached him with good intentions when he entered high school late because of photography school. Sasuke felt like he owed it to the blonde in a way.

"Alright, fine." He reluctantly agreed, and Naruto practically jumped into his arms. "Hey, get off me, dobe." Sasuke tried pushing the blonde off, getting annoyed by the second. Though, the interaction did make him feel pleased.

"This means so much to me dude," Naruto relented his hug, putting his hands up in mock surrender, "Y'know Sakura-chan is going to be there?" He sat back down, continuing to eat his ramen.

Sasuke didn't say anything.

"It's been so long since we've seen her, I missed her." Naruto looks up at Sasuke then, as if wanting an answer.

"Hn." He looks away, detaching himself as the blonde rambles on and on about Sakura.

There was nothing left for him to say once he noticed Naruto still had a crush on the cherry blossom haired woman. In truth, Sasuke didn't want to confront him about it, not as he talked his ear off about her right this moment, or when the day finally came and Naruto wouldn't leave her side even for a second. He found his determination…admirable? After all, they had gone to different universities, so he expected Naruto to have moved on already.

Thinking back, the memory of that day still burned fresh in his mind.

"Hi, Sasuke-san!" Sakura had approached him instantly as he and Naruto stepped in the apartment, she looked flustered. Her hair was as long as he could remember when they were in high school and her eyes were still that bright green. He nodded in acknowledgement and avoided her as he sat down. As if to incite something, she sat right next to him on the comforter and kept staring in his direction.

It was obvious she wanted a reaction from him, but he couldn't give that to her. Or anyone else.

There wasn't anything to give.

Based on her actions, it was clear Sakura did not reciprocate Naruto's feelings. Not during high school and especially not now — it was rather unfortunate. She kept getting annoyed as the blonde tried initiating conversation and completely shut him down.

Sasuke would have preferred if she had moved on from the baseless crush she had on him and given the idiot a chance, but oh well. Just like Sakura didn't see Naruto in a romantic aspect, Sasuke didn't view Sakura in a romantic aspect either.

He cared about her, yes, but it didn't go beyond that. It never went beyond that. He only saw her as a friend, hell, a sister even if it weren't for her obsessive infatuation with him.

It didn't matter if he spelled that out for her, she still wouldn't give up on 'earning' his love.

Sure, others may find her unwavering resolve to accomplish that goal admirable but to Sasuke it was more of a hindrance, the woman was incapable of taking a hint and that alone infuriated him.

Not being able to stay there any longer, he left. He wouldn't hear the end of it from Naruto that was certain, but he physically couldn't bear staying a second longer in there. When push comes to shove, the blonde should be grateful he even partook in that absurdity.

The absurdity in itself was how Ino, another blonde with blue eyes, proposed they all play seven minutes in heaven. To his dismay, everyone agreed as if they were children and not adults with jobs.

Sasuke made it clear he wouldn't participate in such childish games, but everyone pretended he was. So, when Sakura spun the bottle and it landed on him, he blatantly said he wasn't going to entertain it and left. He stood up and practically waltzed out of there, and in the process didn't miss the look on Naruto or Sakura's faces.

Both expressions left him conflicted as he walked the outskirts of Konoha. What was he even supposed to make out of how Naruto looked at him completely bewildered and Sakura just sat there stunned and embarrassed. Sasuke could recognize that what he did was a dick move — but he wasn't going to go into a closet with the woman who his friend liked and who in turn liked him instead, that would've been a complete shitshow.

"Fuck," He muttered under his breath, unable to think clearly.

In the haze of his predicament, something soft collided into his chest and made him stop in his tracks. A woman, much shorter than him, clinged onto him desperately, completely taking him aback. Before he even had a chance to register what was going on — or rather who was clinging onto him with such desperation, a man's voice rang out.

"Hinata, please." A man, most likely twenty or twenty-one years old, pleaded. His skin was pale — inhumanly so, like a vampire almost. His eyes were a vibrant shade of blue that was akin to that of an ocean, and his hair was the same, just much lighter in comparison. Something about him seemed off, but Sasuke couldn't quite place it.

The name sounded familiar and he took initiative to peer over at the person clinging onto him. It was certainly Hinata. Her indigo hair was hard to miss even in the dark of the night, but more importantly, it was unusual to him why she wouldn't relent her vicious grip on him — if that man knew her name, they might have been well acquainted.

So why was she grabbing onto him like her life depended on it?

By now, he would've pushed her off and maintained his personal bubble. However, it seemed rather…difficult to go through with that. He didn't know if it was because of the way she looked up and opal eyes met onyx ones, or because of the tremble in her body as the man neared closer, but Sasuke instinctively became protective.

"Sorry," Hinata muttered into his shirt, grabbing onto him harder.

Jesus.

The man in question stilled at the action, completely caught off guard before he regained his composure and eyed the raven suspiciously. "Who might you be? That's my fiancée you're holding there y'know,"

Oh.

At the revelation, Sasuke faltered slightly, and had it not been for Opal eyes looking up at him as if saying 'Please don't leave' he would've let go of her altogether. He was conflicted about what to do. If what the man was saying was accurate and Hinata was his fiancée — who was Sasuke to stand in the way?

But more importantly, why didn't she want to go with her self-proclaimed fiancée?

"Hinata." The man called out to her, and she visibly shook. "I'm sure you don't want your father to know about this, let's just go." He edged her on, threatening her almost and Sasuke felt Hinata's resolve waver.

This woman.

"Yeah," Sasuke looked between Hinata and the blue haired man, "We're gonna go now."

Without warning, his fingers intertwined with Hinata's and he made a run for it. She struggled to keep up, completely bewildered at the action. Sasuke was too. Just what was he doing? He silently questioned himself, but didn't stop running. He felt like protecting her. It felt like the right thing to do. He wasn't just going to stand there and let her go with someone who made her…scared? He wouldn't have wanted anything to happen to her, regardless of barely knowing her. He obviously had no idea what the dynamic between those two was but it didn't sit right with him leaving Hinata alone. Especially with the man's threatening tone.

Seriously, what even was that?

"Wait," Hinata gasped for air, "Time out." She took her hand out of his own and put them on her knees. She seriously needed a breather. Sasuke stopped to wait for her, letting her calm down as he scoped the surroundings.

"I think we lost him," He chuckled slightly, the situation was rather funny. He thought back to the man yelling out to him as he ran and he put his full attention on Hinata. Her bangs were slightly damp with sweat due to the activity, and her cheeks held a slight hue of pink. It was dark and the stars were surprisingly visible, illuminating her in an angelic way.

She was…pretty.

"What?" She looked up, rather nervously while meeting his gaze.

"Who was that," He paused. Should he really ask her that? It's not like he cared to know. He wasn't one to pry either.

Hinata stared at him, her eyes boring into his. She stood up straight and dusted her skirt. She was dressed rather uncharacteristically for the season. A long white skirt with a matching white blouse, it screamed summer rather than spring. Not that she looked bad — it suited her well.

It seriously wasn't any of his business. Not her dressing choices, or that insane self-proclaimed fiancee. It's best to just forget about it. He convinced himself.

"Nevermind," he broke eye contact and looked around, "I'll take you home?"

It wasn't an actual question, more or so a statement. He watched while her eyes averted him as she looked down and sighed — in what Sasuke assumed was relief. She was…interesting.

"Sure," She nodded at him, and watched as he pulled out his phone. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a forming bruise on her right wrist. As if catching on, she tried to put her hands behind her back. Perhaps she didn't want him to notice.

Let it go, he told himself.

Even now as he thought back, he was surprised to find someone as dignified as her out so late at night. More importantly, sporting a bruise of all things. He didn't grab her with excessive force so he knew he hadn't caused it.

So that left the question about who did? Her fiance? It's not like he was curious or needed to know, it was just strange.

Suddenly, the feeling of everyone's gaze burning through him brought him back from his recollection. How long had it been since he didn't answer?

He's so screwed.

"So? If this bothers you so much we can always hire another photographer, you'll get wrinkles frowning so deeply." Hiashi Hyuga, the owner of one of the biggest modeling agencies, urged him on — rather rudely.

As Fugaku would say however, what would a nineteen year old know? It wasn't like Sasuke was a stranger to being rude. Though, he didn't do it intentionally.

Whether Hiashi urged him to decline or agree, Sasuke had no idea. At least not with the tone the elder man used and he was unsure if that last comment was his attempt to make a 'joke'. One thing was clear, his attempt at humour was horrid.

Mikoto looked up at Sasuke expectantly and his father just stared at him — the kind of stare that usually meant 'don't disappoint me'. He was used to that stare by now. Sasuke couldn't imagine the day where that stare would mean anything else but that.

His gaze unexpectedly landed on Hinata again, the Hyuga he was going to photograph if he agreed. Not that there was an option to begin with. Maybe spending a week in Kyoto wouldn't be all that bad, Hinata was quiet and barely talked. She seemed like good company.

It can't be too bad, right?

He and Hinata didn't become friends after that night, but they didn't ignore each other either. It was subtle with nods and curt acknowledgment, so some things did change between them. Obviously, he wouldn't go out of his way to talk to her. After all, she had a fiance.

In his opinion, a woman who was due for wedlock in a matter of months being seen with a man who wasn't said fiancée left little to the imagination — even if such assumptions were untrue, they would inevitably have them both being perceived in a bad light and possibly shamed.

He could already see the headlines, 'Model Hinata Hyuga spotted with the photographer of the Uchiha Magazine company! What does this entail for the engagement between Toneri Otsutsuki and the Hyugas?'

An absolute calamity.

Sasuke came to find out that the self-proclaimed fiancee of hers was an idol, and their marriage was destined since the day they were both born. Again, he didn't find out because he was curious. His friend, Karin, couldn't stop gushing over the man's meet and greet and bombarded Sasuke with pictures of him.

He ignored it of course, because he didn't care. Okay, maybe just a little. But only because of the bruise she had. He couldn't believe it though, why would the man go to such lengths to do that? If he hadn't been there that day what would have happened? He stopped himself from thinking so much, and Karin gave him a weird look.

Regardless of his inner turmoil, he could see why Fugaku wanted to form a contract with the Hyugas. Their magazine of the season was based on spring and if Sasuke were held at gunpoint, to tell the truth and only the truth, he would admit that Hinata was the embodiment of it.

With that, Sasuke sealed his fate.

"I'll do it."