Happy Accidents

Chapter 19: Bonds

Sasuke found that he spent most of his day distracted and checking his phone periodically. He was worried, though he wouldn't dare admit it to anyone who asked. He'd just tell them he had a lot on his mind with cases. It wasn't entirely a lie, but it would be a lie for him to say that was the primary thing on his mind.

Much to his surprise, there was no call or text. Nothing. He got a short one in the morning in response to his message about the alarm, and then nothing. He assumed that meant she was okay; after all, he'd told her not to hesitate. He caught DA Yamanaka passing by his office with keys in hand. She popped her head in and told him that she would be stopping over to bring Sakura a few things, to which he nodded.

The rest of the day passed without question, and before he knew it, he had managed to catch up on the work he'd thought would take him extra time. That was a good thing; it meant he could take some more time off later on if he needed. With everything out of the way he packed up his things and made his way to his car, happy he'd been able to even get out a little earlier than expected. He had told Sakura he would be back closer to six, but it was only five and he was on his way to his car.

Well... might as well surprise her a little. His house wasn't very far, and within minutes he was there. He picked up one small thing on the way, though: a bottle of cherry wine, non-alcoholic since he knew she was still on medication. It was more for the taste than anything.

Coming up to the door, he could see there were lights on in... the kitchen? Interesting to say the least. He unlocked the door and turned off the alarm, hearing... humming? Singing? He wasn't entirely sure what he heard. And... what was that smell? Curiosity piqued his interest as he came into the kitchen, seeing her standing there in front of the stove. Her hair was tied up in a small ponytail, bangs hanging around her face; she had on a white apron with a pink cherry blossom design, and she was hinging a soft tune to herself while she worked.

It... reminded him of someone. It reminded him of his mother, spending every evening cooking in front of the stove. He never understood why his father spent so much time in the kitchen while his mother was cooking; it seemed sort of redundant, and he chalked it up to his father wanting to steal bites of dinner before it was even finished. He'd always teased him and called him a glutton for it.

Now... he understood why. Feelings he didn't know existed fluttered into his chest as he watched her, seeing the concentrating look on her face; he could see that she was enjoying whatever it was she was making. He hadn't been aware she liked cooking, although he knew her cooking was good; she seemed to always have some kind of snack or extra food for lunch to share whenever they were working together.

"I finished early today," he announced as he made his way into the kitchen. She seemed to startle momentarily; she must have been distracted with her cooking. The soft singing immediately stopped, and he watched as an adorable blush crossed her features.

"I-I'm sorry— I just... um. I thought that, maybe, you know, since I'm staying here and you're kind enough to let me, that I should at least, um... earn my keep I guess," she stammered sheepishly. He let out a small chuckle.

"Of course. I don't mind. It smells good, whatever it is." He wasn't much of a cook himself; he normally just ordered food and ate it, because he couldn't be bothered to cook. Maybe having her around for a little longer wouldn't be so bad... would it?

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Sakura was having the time of her life while she was cooking. She felt incredibly accomplished, and his kitchen was massive. Way larger than hers was! She'd always enjoyed cooking from the time she was young and being able to cook for someone else just made it even better. She planned to make a nice lasagna that could be taken for leftovers since she'd managed to figure out that he liked tomatoes. He always seemed to eat all the tomatoes when she'd brought small vegetable trays down to the kitchenette area near her office. They seemed to magically disappear into his gut faster than she could get to them!