Happy Accidents

Chapter 47: Supports

Sasuke spent most of the early morning sleeping, waking up far later into the afternoon than he ever would have. He was still groggy upon rising, making his way downstairs. In his sleepy state, he almost expected to see a freshly-brewed pot of coffee accompanied by a smiling face likely to tease him for sleeping in.

Except... he didn't.

He didn't, because she wasn't there.

Just like that, the detective's mood deflated like a balloon, shoulders dropping as he hung his head. Right... he'd let his anger get the better of him and lashed out at her. Glumly moving to the kitchen, he started brewing a pot of coffee and sat at the kitchen table, going over everything he could in his head. How could he possibly make all of this up to her? He'd not only managed to snap at her--something he'd swore to himself never to do to her--but he'd also entirely disregarded her feelings and life experiences.

He knew why he'd reacted the way he had. It wasn't anger. It was fear. Everything at work seemed to be falling apart; the fact that Itachi got away meant that his entire dream, his hope, his motivation for becoming an officer, for transitioning to a detective, was crushed right before his eyes. His brother, under an alibi, unidentifiable and likely to disappear. Everything he'd worked toward had crumbled right before his eyes.

And just like that, it'd cascaded. He'd been put on administrative leave... and he'd hurt the one important person in his life that he had, deeply.

Even as the coffee finished brewing, he was too deep in his thoughts to notice. He eventually moved and got a cup, carrying it over to the living room as he sat there, staring. He needed to get past some of this. He needed to take it one step at a time. He couldn't talk to Sakura, not yet; he needed to give her some space to let things settle. Not too long, of course; he planned to visit her tomorrow at the office. He'd heard from Naruto that she and Ino were staying in a hotel and that she would be well-protected for the night. He had no reason to worry for her safety.

––––––––––––––––––––––––––

 After a good soak in the hot tub, Sakura and Ino each got comfortable on one of the beds, a bowl of cheap microwave popcorn in a large bowl between them. It was movie time; they both agreed that a comedy flick would be the best choice. They could both use the catharsis that came from a good laugh or two. After the movie was over, it was time for manicures; Ino sat with a hand extended, while Sakura focused on the blonde's manicure, first with removing her old chipped nail polish.

"So," she began, knowing she couldn't let Ino get away without telling her what was really going on. "You'd mentioned you wanted to talk to me about something?" Ino seemed to be lost in her thoughts, snapping back to reality as Sakura asked her question.

"It's the whole... Hagi Yamakichi thing," Ino began, rubbing her forehead with her free hand. "I just... I don't know how to take it." Sakura could understand; the situation was a confusing one to be in. How could she even begin to help? Finding out that you'd been lied to your entire life was a lot to swallow, especially when it was from the people you trusted most.

"What do you mean by that?" Sakura asked for clarification. "I mean, no one's expecting you to take it well, but... It sounds to me like that's not exactly what you mean." Sakura could tell it wasn't the full story from Ino. There was something she wasn't saying, something she was having difficulty admitting to her best friend.

"It's kind of hard to explain, but... It feels like I don't know who I am anymore." And there it was: the real thing that was bothering Ino. "It's like my identity's been stripped away," she continued with a shake of her head. "Like the person I thought I was no longer exists because it's all been a lie." Finishing with one hand, Sakura gestured for Ino to give her the other, working on removing the polish.