A/N: So. Close.

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summer lovers
by: ohwhatsherface

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Sakura yawned widely, not bothering to cover her mouth with her hand. She sat on the porch swing in the back patio with one leg crossed over the other. Bored, she slowly twirled around her ankle, frowning when the back strap of her pointy sandal slipped down and the shoe hung off her foot only to be help up by her toes.

It was nearly eleven at night and as she sat in the backyard, waiting for her family to clear out so she could take a nice warm shower and go to sleep. She was still quite drained from the jetlag and her hair felt particularly oily, much to her dismay. It was her first night staying in her mother's hometown of Konoha to visit her Aunt Kushina, Uncle Minato and baby cousin Naruto and thus, they seemed to feel a family reunion was in order.

Sakura was not happy.

She and her parents had arrived their earlier, around noon or so. The plan was that her parents would leave her there for the summer so that they could go on some couples cruise. Sakura couldn't help but frown as she mentally called her parents traitors for abandoning her. She didn't mind her aunt and uncle but more often than not, Naruto got on her nerves after a good few days.

Her frown deepened when two and a half twirls later, the shoe hanging at the top of her foot fell off.

"Damnit," she cursed, lazily glowering at the flat pointy sandal.

She sighed and decided it would be easier to simply slip off the matching shoe than to bend over, pick the sandal up and then slip it back on. Suddenly now more comfortable, Sakura brought up her legs and sat cross-legged on the swing. She was tempted to just lie down so she did.

"Mm…"

The sound of the backdoor opening caught her attention and she looked up.

Whoever came out was very pretty, Sakura mentally declared as she shamelessly let her eyes rove over the boy's tall figure.

"You have pretty eyes," she said while looking into them.

He snorted. "Are you drunk?"

Sakura sat up straight with a scoff and politely moved over in case the stranger wanted to sit down. She had no idea who he was but really, she had no idea who anyone else at this reunion was either. The last time she was in Konoha and saw most of her family, she was only seven. Now, at seventeen, most faces and names were faded from her mind.

"Hells no," Sakura drawled. She ran a hand through her messy hair and yawned once more. "Who drinks with their mom in the room? Definitely not me, that's for sure!"

"Hn."

He then sat down on the porch swing, although not exactly beside her. Sakura noticed how he seemed to make the effort to sit as far away from her as possible.

"Did I make you nervous?" Sakura asked, a small smile pulling at her lips. "I wasn't hitting on you, if that's what you thinking—"

"That's not what I'm thinking!" he snapped before she would finish speaking. There was a bit of a flush on his cheeks and Sakura wondered if it was because the damned summer heat or simply because of her. He looked to the opposite side and glowered at the wood. "It's not."

Sakura shrugged. "It's not like I would hit on you." She stood up from the swing and went over to the railings, leaning against them in hopes of making him feel a bit more comfortable. "I mean, aren't you like, a cousin of mine or something?" Sakura scratched her head awkwardly. "Or well, second or third cousin… whatever."

"Why would you think that?" he asked, frowning.

She shrugged once again. "Well, this is a family reunion," Sakura explained, "the Uzumaki family reunion. My mom and Auntie K only have me and Naruto, so you'd have to be some distant relative or whatever." She sighed, taking in his amused look. "…Am I just thinking too hard?"

"Yes."

"Damn." Sakura sighed and went to sit down again, this time, a bit too close to the boy who was already stuck against the arm of the chair. "Sorry, what was your name, again?"

"Sasuke Uchiha."

"Ah, Sasuke…" she repeated, testing the name on her lips. "Now that's something to scream…"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Do you normally talk to people like this?"

"Well…" Sakura giggled, shaking her head in reply, "No, never, actually. I'm just really bored and you're really easy to pick on, flirt with – whatever you want to call it." She turned her face to look him in the eye and was almost intimidated by their touching shoulders. "So if you're not family, then why are you here?"

"Naruto invited me," he replied. "We're neighbours." Sasuke pointed to the house across the street. "We've been best friends since we were kids."

Sakura smiled evilly out of habit. "Like… Sexy Friends?"

She thought he looked positively adorable when he blushed like that. With the soft pink hue on his cheeks and his flustered sputtering, Sakura couldn't help but poke fun at him light on the arm while chuckling at his embarrassment.

"No," hissed Sasuke, eyes narrowed furiously. "Just friends."

Sakura snickered. "So then you're single?"

"…Yes."

Her grin widened. "And you're straight?"

"Yes."

"Great!" Sakura chirped.

Sasuke was quickly beginning to feel terribly uncomfortable. The girl was so close to him. Her arm was pressing against his and their legs were touching. She had the other leg crossed over the one that was sitting along his, and with the tiny kick she made with her dangling foot, she was sensually rubbing against his calf.

Slowly, he turned his head and swallowed when he caught her eyes.

They were beautiful. They were a light shade of green that was just so clear. She had pale skin and a small tan he assumed she gained from staying out so much in the summer sun. Her long, pink hair was messy but still seemed neat, in a sense as it fell over her shoulders.

She was beautiful. Kind of—

She smirked when he continued staring.

—Not really.

When she suddenly began bringing her face closer to his, Sasuke jumped up from the swing and leaned against the porch railings, glaring at her as she continued to smile. She brought both feet back to the ground and slowly pushed herself back and forth on the swing.

"Who are you, again?" he asked wearily.

Sakura merely bit her lip to control her smile as she stood up from the swing and went to the front door.

"Your new neighbour."

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fin