To get to you

Four

It took four months for Sasuke to finally talk to her, and it wasn't by choice. For those months, it seemed as though Sasuke was purposely avoiding talking to her and looking at her, not that she noticed. She just assumed Sasuke was shy.

(___'s pov briefly)

"Okay, for this lesson, you'll be working in pairs on a project. This project will take up eleven or so in-class days, and requires you to work outside of school-" I stopped listening after that. I yawned quietly and leaned on my hand as Kakashi sensei talked about our projects and stuff.

"The next pair will be _____ Nanase and Sasuke Uchiha. Now, go and sit with your partner so I can and out these packets.

I looked over at Sasuke, whose eyes were glued to his desk. 'He's so shy, it's kinda cute,' I thought with a small chuckle. I packed my stuff into my bookbag, then pushed the nearest desk next to his. "Hi!"

Sasuke looked up at me and stared at me for a moment before he spoke. "Hi." I sat down and smiled. "Sasuke, right? I don't think we've actually met yet. I'm ____."

"Nice to meet you," he said as he stared down at his hand. I cocked my head to the side. "What is it?"

"Do you believe in soulmates?" He blurted out.

I nodded. "You mean the red string of fate? Yeah, I wish I had it, though. My friend Sai does. He said I could have a soulmate and just not be able to see my string, but," I sighed. "I doubt it, but I'd like to meet them one day."

"You could know your soulmate already and not know it," Sasuke said. "But, fate will eventually bring you together."

I nodded and smiled. "You're completely right, Sasuke."

................

Sasuke and Naruto sat together in their next class.

"So?"

"So?" Sasuke repeated.

"You finally met ____," Naruto said. "You've been too chicken to even look at her for months now. Is she the one?"

Sasuke nodded. "Yeah," he muttered. "But, she can't see her string."

"You told her?!"

"No, idiot! Shut up before you get us in trouble. Look, I just asked her about soulmates. She wishes she had one, but can't see her string."

"Ah, just like mom," Naruto said. "So, what are you gonna do?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?!"

Sasuke nodded. "She's my soulmate, so she's bound to fall for me eventually, right? If I just become her friend, then it'll happen naturally."

"That could take years!" Naruto hissed quietly. "You've gotta at least try! Compliment her, hang out with her, flirt! Do something."

Sasuke sighed. "You know I've never-"

"The guys and I will give you some tips!"

"Guys?"

"Me, Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, Sai, Neji-"

"Sai? Isn't he ___'s friend?"

"Best friend! And they live together."

"Why?"

"Both of their parents aren't around, meaning that you'll be able to go to her house to hang out and work on your project! Just more time to get close to her."

"Possibly," Sasuke said. "I don't want to talk to your friends about this, though."

"They're OUR friends."

"I don't even know half of them,"

"So? We've got this! Operation Soulmate!"

"Not another one."

.........................

At lunch, Naruto got a few of the guys in their grade to sit with them at lunch. "Okay, Sasuke needs our help."

"Why would he need our help?" Kiba said.

"What a drag."

"Oh, I thought Sasuke didn't know who we are," Sai said.

"Listen," Naruto said. "Sasuke has the red string of fate."

"So do I," Sai said. "It's connected to that blonde girl over there," he said as he pointed to Ino.

"What? Why didn't you tell me?!" Naruto exclaimed. Then, he shook his head. "Hold on, we'll deal with that in a second. Sasuke's found his soulmate, but she can't see her string."

"I've heard about that," Shikamaru said. "My mother used to tell me stories about soulmates and the string of fate. When two soulmates are separated for a lifetime, at any point, one of their strings becomes invisible."

"How would I get her to see it?" Sasuke said.

"I would assume she'll be able to see it when she falls in love with you," Choji added while munching on a bag of chips.

Sasuke sighed. "How do I get her to like me?"

"Just be yourself," Shikamaru said. "Your soulmate will love you for who you are, eventually. It's fate."

"Don't listen to that! You've gotta show out! Show her that you like her and get her attention," Kiba said.

"Don't listen to this idiot."

The guys started arguing.

Sasuke sighed and leaned back in his seat.

"Hey," Sai said. "I agree with that first guy. You should just be yourself. You're rich and good-looking. What's there not to like? Besides your lack of personality and obvious shyness."

Naruto wheezed. "S-sai!"