Flowers, tattoos and I love you's

3.hibiscus*

"Another one?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow as Gaara handed him yet another flower, a beautiful pink hibiscus, accompanied by the customary note. It had been two weeks since the first flower arrived, and each day brought a new gift from the anonymous sender, signing off as a secret admirer. The mystery was starting to consume Sasuke's thoughts, and he couldn't help but feel a growing anticipation when he received these daily surprises.

"This secret admirer of yours is really a dumbass, isn't he? It's been what? A week or two, and he still can't get the locker right," Gaara remarked, leaning against the cold metal lockers and placing a hand on his hip.

"Hn." He replied nonchalantly, ot particularly paying attention to Gaara's words. With each passing day, he grew more curious about the flowers he would receive, but it was the accompanying notes that truly captivated him. A smile crept onto his face as he read the familiar messy handwriting on the small card.

Despite the sun-filled days, your complexion is pale and contrasts against your beautiful rich black waves. Sorry, I'm not a poet, I just want to say that you are beautiful. When I look at you, all I see is an angel. You are the beautiful angel in my dreams and I believe God must have taken his sweet time creating you. Every time I look at you my heart skips a beat and I get short of breath. Your delicate beauty blinds me. You are perfect in every way.

-S.A

"Damn, Sasuke, what kind of love potion are you using? I want some!" Gaara exclaimed, appearing over Sasuke's shoulder to read the note.

"Fuck off!" Sasuke brushed the redhead aside more forcefully than intended, causing him to crash into the lockers with a resounding thud.

"Jeez, you're as delicate as a horse kick." He grumbled, rubbing his shoulder.

"Shut the fuck up!" Sasuke snapped, placing the flower and the note on his locker before closing it and huffing tiredly.

"Violence is not the answer you hot-headed prick!"

"Violence is not an answer, it's a question and the answer is always yes." Sasuke smirked. Before Gaara could conjure up a snarky comeback, Sasuke's phone buzzed in his pocket. He quickly retrieved it, answering the call without bothering to check the caller ID.

"Sasuke sweetie?" The familiar sweet voice of his mother reached his ears.

"Hey mom, what do you need?"

"Sasuke, honey, I need you to pick up an order on your way home, please!" Sasuke let out a frustrated exhale.

"Hn."

"Great! Thank you! It's from the flower shop near the academy. I already paid for everything, you just need to pick it up. The order is under the name Mikoto Uchiha." Sasuke froze. The flower shop belonged to Naruto's father. What if Naruto happened to be working there today? What would he say? What would he do? His breathing grew heavier, causing Gaara to shoot him a worried look as he silently mouthed, 'Are you okay?'

"Sasuke, are you still there?"

"Ye-s, Mom. I go-tta go." He ended the call and clutched the phone tightly against his chest, feeling his hand tremble slightly. Leaning against the lockers, he attempted to calm his breathing.

"Hey, Sasuke, breathe. Everything is fine. Breathe with me," Gaara instructed, inhaling and exhaling slowly while Sasuke attempted to regulate his own breathing, following Gaara's lead. After a few minutes, his pulse began to stabilize.

"Thank you."

"Do you get these a lot?" Sasuke nodded, contemplating therapy but knowing his father would never allow it. He had overheard his father dismissing therapy as something only "crazy" people sought.