Happy Accidents

Chapter 56: Mistakes

Sasuke rushed home early after his shift, ensuring he was back before Sakura was. He awkwardly fumbled his way around the house, changing into more comfortable clothes. He opted for one of the shirts Sakura had mentioned she liked; it was tighter in the upper arms and across the chest, enough that it could show off the ridges of his muscles. Girls wanted that kind of thing, right? Sakura would like it... right?

He hoped so.

Okay... now, what else had Suigetsu suggested? Dinner... oh, Sakura knew he couldn't cook, so he wasn't even going to try. He quickly called and put in an order for her favourite place; there was a local pasta restaurant that she loved, and he didn't mind it, either. With that out of the way, he set the table and brought some wood in from outside, setting it beside the fireplace. Even the thought of lighting it made him anxious, but he was at least able to prepare it for Sakura to take care of. He was trying to go through the rest of the advice Suigetsu had given him, but he found a bit of it might be dubious.

For once, he felt like he should have asked Naruto for advice but quickly shut that idea down. Naruto wouldn't have had any better advice; the guy wasn't the brightest, not to mention if he dared even bring it up, Naruto would have laughed him to the moon and back. He would have never heard the end of it. Naruto would have mocked him for weeks afterward about it.

Hearing the door handle turn, he turned to see Sakura there, awkwardly shoving his hands in his pockets. "Hey," he greeted, shifting his weight side to side. Sakura stared at him from the doorway, mildly curious; she'd known he would make it home before she did, but she could also tell that something was up. Seeing Sasuke had set the table, she figured he'd ordered food; this wasn't the first time he'd set things up like this. Was he planning another one of his adorable date nights? If so, she certainly appreciated it.

"Hey yourself," she greeted with a chuckle, setting her things down. "Sorry I'm so late. When you're dealing with bu-- um... victims like what we dealt with today, things get a little more difficult." She was pretty glad that he hadn't tried to cook; she might have wanted to throw up at the burning smell. She could separate it while she was at work, but she didn't like the charred smell following her home. "I'm just going to head upstairs and change, and by what I see down here, I'm guessing you have something planned for tonight." He was so adorably sweet when he tried to be romantic. Sakura could tell he wasn't the most experienced at it, but it was the thought that counted in the end. The fact that he wanted to try and make her happy mattered more than anything else.

Their evening was no different than any other evening they'd spent together: they had dinner, laughed and chatted while they did, then sat down to watch the movie. There was... a little more going on during the film than usual; they spent more time admiring one another and locking lips than they did watching the movie. Sakura was intrigued by Sasuke's sudden change in demeanour. Maybe he did want something more tonight than what had happened before. She felt a little nervous, but she was confident she could weather it. They just had to take things slow and steady.

By the time Sasuke and Sakura finished the movie, the fire had burned out, given they'd mostly ignored it except for the occasional check. Sasuke smiled down at Sakura, climbing off the couch and turning back toward her after he'd double-checked the fire and closed the doors on the fireplace. He reached underneath her legs and back, hoisting her up in a bridal carry. Sakura was surprised by the gesture, squealing momentarily then laughing as she was carried up the stairs to the bedroom. Sasuke set her down on the bed, giving her a sly smile as he held a finger up to his lips, indicating for her to wait as he disappeared into the bathroom. He scrambled around momentarily in the drawers, going through Suigetsu's instructions in his head. So far, everything had worked out fine. He just had one last thing to take care of, holding the bottle of cologne in his hand.