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Flower and Ice
x. Chapter Five
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Chapter Recap:
He sighed.
"Alright, Sakura, what's wrong?"
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Sakura rolled her eyes. "What makes you think something's wrong?" she snapped at him, angrily punching numbers into her calculator while scribbling down the answer to number 25 on her homework.
"You're doing math homework," Sasuke replied calmly, driving on smoothly when the light turned green.
Sakura snapped the cover back onto her TI-89 Titanium, shoving the calculator into her bookbag along with her binder. "Shut up," she told him earnestly. "I am not angry. There is nothing wrong with me. I am perfectly happy," she said, throwing her bookbag into the back seat to emphasize her point. The Roxy bag bounced off the seat and hit the ground with a sullen thud.
"Liar. Now tell me what's wrong," Sasuke said to her calmly, jerking his car to the right lane to let a police car whiz past them.
"Nothing is wrong!" Sakura hissed, her mouth slipping into an angry pout as she looked up at the sky. Dark gray clouds were beginning to gather along to azure sky, quickly dimming the sunlight.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Just tell me what's bothering you. I won't mind."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
"N – don't you start this again!"
"Yes."
Sakura huffed, crossing her arms. "Fine. You're submitting to a bunch of psycho whore slut bitches," she told him crossly.
Sasuke cast her a flat look. "Is that all you're mad about?"
"…yes."
"You're so weirddd," he drawled out. "Isn't attracting all of this attention part of your plan to get me away from Kin?" Sasuke asked her, the Uchiha-equivalent of a smirk on his face.
Sakura turned her face away to look out the window. Rain was beginning to fall.
"Isn't it?" Sasuke pressed on gently, his voice velvet-soft.
Sakura sighed. "…yes."
An ambulance roared through the streets, calling for Sasuke to pull over once again.
Forks of lightening flashed through the dark sky, striking a valley far away. Thunder clapped through the skies, making Sakura jump and cringe. She curled herself up in the passenger seat, trembling.
Sasuke glanced to the side at her while he raced through the streets, trying to get home before it started to rain. "Shit…" he muttered. Sakura was deathly afraid of storms. Her grandfather, a pilot, had flown to his death in midst of a thunderstorm, his plane having been struck by a freak bolt of lightening, leaving him to spiral downwards into the sea.
"C'mon Sakura, just don't pay attention to it…think of something else…" Sasuke murmured to his best friend, reaching over to touch her arm hesitantly. She jerked away from his touch, trembling uncontrollably.
It was only five more miles until they reached Sakura's house, pushing the gas pedal even harder, Sasuke flew even faster to the Haruno estate, reaching the mansion in three minutes flat.
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"Oh…my…God…" Sakura breathed out. Her face was being pelted with rain, and she was sure her mascara was running, but she didn't care. It was cold, the wind wrapping it's icy self around her and Sasuke over and over again.
"I'm sorry Miss, but are you the owner of this property?" a police officer asked with authority, his hat shielding him from most of the freezing rain. He was young, his eyes sorrowful.
"My parents are…" Sakura replied automatically, her eyes widening in horror from what she saw.
"Where are they?" the police officer gently pressed.
"The United States. On business."
"Well, we'll give them a call – we have their overseas information on file. Until then, please be safe. Be advised that there's been smoke damage and the foundation may be weak."
"Thank you, Officer," Sasuke said to the policeman as amicably as he could, showing his true Uchiha business side. He wrapped a gentle arm around Sakura, who was shaking more than ever.
"Sorry," he whispered to her.
Sakura just shook her head, as the last of the fire trucks left her driveway, leaving a quarter of her entire home charred and smoking.
"Mom, I don't know how it happened!" Sakura defended into her Sidekick, her voice on the brink of panic. "I was at practice, and…and then I got home, and – !" She abruptly stopped pacing when her mother cut her off. She was in Sasuke's room, the two of them having needed a place quiet so Sakura could cal her parents and inform them of their misfortune.
"Sakura, we're not blaming you. We just wanted to if you knew how it started or anything…" Mrs. Haruno told her daughter with the most soothing voice she could. "Don't worry about it dear, we have it covered."
"I – I – yeah…" Sakura ended soberly, sighing. The spazzing hysteria from moments before had faded away rapidly.
"Which area of the house was damaged?"
Sakura hesitated. "I think it was the wing of the house that had the parlors, the dining quarters, and part of the greenhouse?" she told her mother. "I wasn't allowed to go and look around. The police told me that the foundation was probably ruined and something could collapse."
"Then where are you going to stay?" Mrs. Haruno asked. "We won't let you live in there if it's liable to smash you at any given moment."
"I don't know…with Ino? Hinata?" Sakura said exhaustedly. "Someone will put up with me. But if not, Sasuke said he'd let me stay at his house." She collapsed on Sasuke's bed, sagging wearily into the midnight blue sheets.
"Just stay with Sasuke dear," her mother told her offhandedly. "The Yamankas are a little too catty for my taste, and the Hyuuga family seems to be a bit private and closed."
"Mom!" Sakura argued when she heard her mother complain about her two other best friends. "…Well, you wouldn't mind if I stayed with the Uchihas?"
"No, not really. We trust Sasuke after all. The boy's been screaming homosexual ever since his mother dressed him up in that frilly dress for kicks when he was five," Mrs. Haruno said cheerfully.
Sasuke's ears flamed. He didn't like to be reminded of that particular memory.
"But really," Mrs. Haruno turned serious. "I think it'd be best if you just tried to go back to living like normal. Go pick up some clothes from the house, hell, just buy some more if it'll take your mind off the stress, and just try to forget what happened. Daddy already called for some carpenters to start rebuilding."
"Alright Mother, I'll try," Sakura promised, kicking her Birkenstock clogs off her feet and swinging her legs up onto Sasuke's bed.
Mrs. Haruno smiled into the phone. "That's my girl. Bounce back like a Haruno."
"Thanks Mom."
"Well then, remember to wash all of your makeup off, moisturize daily, and for heaven's sake, don't annoy the Uchihas to death – it's bad for business!" Mrs. Haruno told her daughter with a grin that could be heard through her words.
Sakura rolled her eyes before cracking a smile. "Thanks Mom. Love you, bye!"
"Love you too dear."
Sakura ended the call on her phone. Sighing as she buried herself into Sasuke's sheets. They were tinted with the scent of Drakkair Noir cologne, while his pillow carried a faint hint of Bedhead shampoo. Closing her eyes, Sakura breathed in the intoxicating smell, curling up more.
Sasuke sat down at the headboard of his bed, near Sakura's head, waiting for her to say something.
"Sasuke…can you drive me back up to my house so I can get stuff?" she asked him weakly, voice muffled with his pillow.
"Aa."
"I'll get out of your house as soon as the foundation is finished, and I'm not at risk of being killed, I swear," Sakura promised, dragging her body up off of the bed – it was hard. Sasuke had some damn good cologne going for him.
"Just stay until the renovations are done," Sasuke muttered, going to his closet and pulling out a jacket from the depths – a plain black Northface.
"…you wouldn't mind?" Sakura asked, picking up her purse. The Burberry plaid was too bright for such a grim time, she thought irritably.
"I don't care," Sasuke said earnestly, "Here." He threw a jacket at her. Sakura caught it out of pure reflex.
"Thanks," she mumbled, slipping into the coat. She immediately relaxed when she felt the soft faux fur against her skin. Sasuke had known this was her favorite jacket of his – a dark gray Hollister with a furry inside.
"Aa. Let's go," Sasuke said, twirling his keys around his finger before walking out.
"Ah," Sakura agreed softly, pattering quietly behind him.
"Are you sure you have anything?" Sasuke asked as he placed Sakura's suitcases inside of the trunk of his car. The brown and tan Louis Vuitton cases fit perfectly into his trunk, there being just enough room for three cases.
"Yeah," Sakura said, running through a mental checklist. Casual clothes, formal clothes, several dresses (living with the Uchihas and being a Haruno, you never knew when you'd need them), cosmetics, toiletries, jewelry, accessories, practice clothes, uniform, laptop, chargers… "I'm going to follow you in my car," she told Sasuke. "I don't wanna keep bumming rides off of you forever."
"Hn," Sasuke nodded, "If you want." He walked over to his car.
Sakura nodded in return. "I'll see you in a bit then," she told him, walking over to her own car slowly and opening the diver's door. Twisting the key, Sakura's sky blue BMW quietly hummed to life.
Pulling out of her driveway after Sasuke, Sakura glanced at her passenger seat. She smirked as she stepped on the gas pedal. Sitting comfortably on top of the heated leather seats was a very, very familiar yellow folder.
Ooh, Sasuke was going to kill her when he found out what she had planned next.
Sasuke silently dragged two of the suitcases up his driveway, Sakura grabbing the third. They had parked in the Uchiha's garage. Although the garage was attached to the house, the entrance was in the kitchen. It would be easier to go through the front entrance.
"Where am I staying?" Sakura asked Sasuke as they lifted each suitcase onto the front deck in front of the main entrance.
"It depends on what rooms are free. Some of our guest rooms are being re-renovated because the air conditioning exploded over the summer or something," Sasuke said, punching the security code into the glowing keypad by his door. An audible click was heard and Sasuke flung open the door.
Sakura got up into the doorway and lifted her suitcase up through the double doors.
"Would you like our assistance, Sasuke-san?"
Sasuke looked up and saw his head butler and three other workers standing behind him.
"Aa, thank you," Sasuke nodded to the three men as they hoisted the suitcases up with ease, resting them on their shoulders. "Do you know which rooms are free?" he asked Tadao, his head butler.
Tadao nodded, "One moment…" he pulled out a PDA that had the house layout programmed into it. The small electronic device showed his position and details about rooms in the house. Tabbing up to the third floor, Tadao sifted through guest rooms, searching for one that was vacant.
Sakura took a moment to let her eyes wander around the Uchiha's foyer. The mirrored entrance was familiar to her – she knew all the exits. Turn directly to your left, and you saw a showcase parlor, never used ever. Continue at the right and further into the home a bit, and you reached an artifact room, filled with Uchiha heirlooms and history. If you kept walking straight ahead, you would reach the central staircase, a continuous, twisting, marble ladder. Once at the central staircase, you could wander in three directions. Go straight past the staircase, and you reached the music room. To the left were the kitchen, parlors, dining hall, and ballroom. To the right were the living rooms, den, home theatre, and game room. Up the stairs, you reached the second floor, then the third floor.
"I believe the Daisy Room is free," Tadao interrupted her thoughts. "Would that be okay Haruno-san?" the polite man cocked his head slightly as he waited for her answer.
"Yes, it's fine," Sakura answered, "Third floor, correct?" she started towards the central staircase as Sasuke and Tadao nodded. "Thank you Tadao."
Tadao bowed his head. "Certainly, Miss, if you find that there are any problems, please do not hesitate to ask."
Sakura nodded with a small smile before continuing on to her new room, which, presumably, was accented with daisies.
"Are you sure you have everything?" Sasuke asked Sakura when she was finally finished unpacking. She had dumped half of her wardrobe into the dresser, hung everything else up in the closet, invaded the bathroom with her cosmetics and toiletries, and collapsed exhaustedly on her bed, which was covered in her pillows and her ratty old teddy bear.
"Yes," Sakura told him while she lied down on the bed. She scooted over a little bit closer to the edge of the queen-sized bed and patted the empty space next to her. "You can sit or something. You've been standing for the past two hours."
Sasuke sat down on the edge of the bed. "Are you still up for going to school tomorrow?" he asked, looking at her bookbag – it was laying dejectedly in the corner with seemingly half finished calculus homework inside of it.
"Yeah, why not?" Sakura asked. "I finished all of my homework already during practice. Coach made me run drills, so I just did calculus while the team did plays," she laughed.
"Hn," Sasuke nodded slightly. He looked at the clock. It was 6:30. Dinner would be ready in half an hour.
There was silence for approximately three seconds.
"Hey Sasuke, guess what?"
"Hn?"
"It's time…"
"…What?"
Sakura sprang up like a puppet into her seated position. "THE BOYFRIEND CLINIC, PART TWO OF COURSE!" she proclaimed loudly, pulling the yellow folder of d00m from under her pillow, cackling slightly.
Sasuke cradled his head in one hand and sighed. "Fuck."
"Alright, so we have a possible list of girlfriends made up for you…" Sakura told Sasuke pulling a sheet of notebook paper from the folder. "Ino made it for me."
"Does Yamanaka make the entire clinic?" Sasuke asked irritably, remember the Quizilla quiz.
Sakura shrugged, "Yeah, basically. Now shut up and read the list," she thrust the paper in Sasuke's face.
The Uchiha accepted the paper, snatching it, before Sakura managed to find a way to shove it up his nose. Black eyes scanning the paper, he cringed when he saw many of the names Ino had scrawled down in her bubbly handwriting.
"Any that you may be interested in?" Sakura asked from the bed, lying face down into her Tempurpedic pillow with a sigh. The space foam quickly molded around every curve of her face, enveloping it in softness.
"Ami was…tolerable," Sasuke said awkwardly after about a minute of silence.
Sakura blanched at the girl's name. "Sure she was," she told Sasuke with a sarcastic eye roll, "And my hair isn't pink!" she ended with a broad Crest-white-strip smile.
Sasuke gave her a flat look. "What do you want anyway?" he asked, irritated.
Sakura flipped through her trusted buttercup colored folder. "Well, we just have to set you up on a date, and then we're good for Part Dos," she told him with a satisfied smirk.
"Aa," Sasuke responded, standing up. It was nearly 7:00. "Dinner's in five minutes. Get changed." He turned to leave, glancing back to make sure she got the message.
Sakura sighed and dragged herself up off the bed, meandering into the closet. "I'll meet you at your room," she told Sasuke from inside her closet.
"Aa."
Sakura sighed once more as she pulled a random dress off the hanger. She loved dressing up, but for once, she'd like to just eat in sweat pants and a tee shirt for once, as opposed to a frilly dress and heels.
Turning on her straightening iron to let it heat up, Sakura slowly shrugged out of her warm sweats and pulled on a silky black slip before getting into her dress.
She'd need to find those heels too…
"Why do we always have to dress up for dinner?" Sakura asked Sasuke crossly as she tried to wobble her way over to him down the hall in stilettos.
"Because we were raised to," Sasuke told her grabbing her arm when she almost fell next to him. "New dress?" he asked dryly.
"Yes, actually, bought it during THE Spree with Ino and Hinata," Sakura responded with a lopsided grin. She twirled a little, enjoying the way the material felt as it brushed against her skin. "Diane von Furstenberg, loooove it."
Sasuke glanced at the dress. It was a relatively short, strapless, little black dress, with a tuxedo inspired cummerbund. "It's cocktail-y," he told her, stopping when Sakura almost tripped over her shoes down the stairs.
Sakura nodded. "You're lucky though. You don't need to worry about needing new clothes for freaking dinner," she told him looking at the navy button up shirt and black slacks he wore, with a sky blue tie. "Augh, dammit, these stairs are killing me!" she complained as her ankle gave in to the heels and collapsed beneath her, leaving Sakura to hang off the rail.
"You could've worn different shoes," Sasuke told her, speeding up and ending up a few steps in front of her. "Take them off or something."
"They're too strappy. It was like hell trying to put them on twice," Sakura sighed as she hung onto the stair rail, inching down the stairs in misery. She accomplished edging down one step.
"Get on."
Sakura looked up. Sasuke had his back turned to her and his arms were out behind him, waiting. Smiling slightly, she climbed onto his back, letting him carry her down to the dining hall. She put her chin in the crook between his neck and his shoulder, inhaling slightly. Drakkair Noir and Bedhead, she smelled with a smile.
"So Sasuke…"
"Hn?"
"Ami?"
"Yeah."
"I'll set you up."
I love piggyback rides. : )
Um, yeah. Review?
Oh! And NEW STORY out. It's SasuSaku and entitled Like VitaminWater. Read and review that too?