𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐘 𝐘𝐎𝐔.

Chapter XX - Stars

The two sat together on the bleachers, one leaning their head back up to the sky, while the other was staring at his open palms.

She watched as the clouds moved along, the wind whispering its own melody as it blew through the people and the objects. She shut her eyes, inhaling the fresh air, before she rose her head and looked at her partner.

"What did you want to say earlier, Sasuke?"

He looked over, folding his hands together in his lap. He was confused for a moment, before realizing the question.

"..You could act as if you're my--"

"Okay, everyone! Now that you all uh-- have gotten to know your partners, we have to talk about kimonos!"

Sasuke clamped his mouth shut, and the pinkette could have sworn that she'd seen him twitch. She chose to ignore it, and stood, making her way down the steps, the raven following behind her. 

Once every member of the group had gotten together, into a wide circle, - Most were grumbling, I will add - Ino began to speak again. "We should all be wearing kimonos that match our corresponding aesthetics." She glanced around. "Tell me you all know what aesthetics are."

There was a chorus of yes's and yeah's, and that seemed to satisfy Ino, who walked over to a duo of teenagers - Temari and Shikamaru, to be precise - and began explaining what colors she'd like them to wear, and what specific brands and designs they'd be.

"Sasuke, a white under-kimono, with a dark blue montsuki, and --I'm assuming you have this already, your clan's crest." The platinum blond stated, earning silence from the Uchiha, which, apparently, she took as a yes. 

She moved on to the pinkette.

"Sakura! I'd like you to wear a white kimono, with a cerise sash, and a french rose robe. If you can find one, maybe try and get it with a few cherry blossom petals lining the bottom." The blond was reading off a list, and that made it all the more confusing for the pinkette.

"Before you look at me like that, I'm paying--" She leaned close to Sakura's ear. "--I trust you to make sure he actually gets a kimono."

She leaned away, and moved on to Naruto and Hinata. 

- - - - -

Sakura ran her fingers through her hair, walking back to the dorm room, following the Uchiha, who was just a few feet in front of her. 

It was late-- maybe around nine o'clock, and Sakura's mind had already been whizzing the entire day. She was exhausted enough as it was, and when the Uchiha had pinched the bridge of his nose, and sighed dramatically, she snapped out of her reverie. 

She grabbed his wrist, and began dragging him back to the dorm.

"What the fuck are you doi-" 

"..shut up." She cut him off, matching his urgent whispering with her own.

She glanced around the hall, filled with students, just like before, but then realized that a lot of them were staring at the her hand, which was clutching her dormmate's wrist with some sort of urgency that she could barely understand herself.

They got to the door, and Sakura fumbled for her key, slipping it into the lock and stepping in. She stepped straight in, taking him in with her.

"What have you been trying to tell me?"

He stared at her for a moment, and just like before, he seemed confused for a moment, before his eyes widened. 

"--eh, no, never mind. It's not the best idea, anyway."

She blinked at him, her eyes narrowing as she gave him a look of exasperation. 

"Tell me, anyway. I'm sure it's not that bad.

He blinked right back at her, crossing his arms as he tried his best to formulate a proper sentence. She stared at him, an amused expression on her face, before she laughed.

"I'm kidding, you don't have to tell me."

She could've sworn she'd seen a twitch, and figured that was enough of a sign for her to stop talking. She knew she was getting under his skin, and it was actually pretty fun. 

"Good night, Sasuke."

She didn't wait for a response, walking past him as she went her merry way along the small 'path' that lead to her room. She'd just reached the doorknob, before remembering something.

"..You have no idea what I've gone through."

She stopped, and spun around, seeing the Uchiha on his way to the couch at the other end of the room.

"Hey, Sasuke?"

He looked at her.

"..you wanna go on a walk?"

- - - - - 

Stars.

One star is connected to another, connected to another and another and another, ultimately creating constellations, which are shapes, the ending products of combined entities that have decided to work together. Maybe that's where the idea of love originated from, in the sense that two people must work together to create a whole.

And he'd thought that he had completely erased her from his consciousness, but then— Sakura arrived, and she turned out to be different than the ones he'd known for so long. She's been hurt, too. She knows what it feels like. 

And because she knows what it feels like, she knows the darkness that follows. 

And she wants to fix it-- she wants to get rid of the darkness that's been surrounding him for so long. She has no idea why, but it's simply a part of her nature. 

To help people.

And as they walked through the campus on that late Friday night, she'd realized something; 

They're not as different as she'd thought they were.