Midnight

Chapter Thirteen

He placed her body in the black couch. This felt familiar. He had done it before. Even if she had passed out it felt like the roles were reversed this time. The woman had heard too much. Things that was meant only for him. He lost his cool when he saw the pinkette in his best friends arms. He knew Naruto loved their former teammate, yet he wished he had seen something on the girl that was sleeping beside him. That he had found someone who interest him more. Sasuke was a logical person. Hyuga would have been the perfect partner for his idiot friend. She cared about him, even more than she should. He had heard the stories about giving her life for the future Hogake and that he respected. Sasuke would do the same now. He owned Naruto his life. It was one of the reasons he would never approach Sakura as long as he knew that there was still a space in the blonde's heart for her. It was a relief when he started talking about the Hyuga princess. Still he didn't want to force him into her for his own reasons. When she rejected him, he felt he betrayed Naruto again. He redirected his anger on her not wanting to put his thoughts into place.
He found Sakura annoying at first. An idiotic girl fanning over him. A shallow person who disregarded anyone's feelings. But slowly as their team bonded she left behind that kid who was always consious about how she looked or the things she should say. She mature in a way that kept her lightness. That what she brought in their team, their made up family. She was their anchor to the real world, one that was beyond the fights and the hate. It was refreshing how easy it seemed to her that he himself could leave all his bloody past behind. He was fond of the fact that a normal girl like her liked him. He remembered how easy it was to stop her tantrums against Naruto with only the mention of her name. It was surprising that after everything that they been through, it was easy for her to accept it and move forward. He could see it in her eyes, everything went back to normal the moment he returned. He learnt the news of her life. She had matured of course but she still found joy in trivial things like a coffee with a friend, a dinner with a guy. Sakura Haruno was his chance in a normal life if he ever decided he wanted one. He understood that on his journey. Sasuke wanted to continue to protect the peace Naruto had created. He wasn't ready to stay in the village and land in a position of power. That was his friends destiny. But he knew Sakura would accept that. In the future when a family may be his wish, he could have his own normal life in the village when he needed a break. Sakura would wait for his return, accept the long journeys and raise a child as normal as her. Maybe Sasuke would be delighted when he stopped in his house, taking a quick stop of uprooting the constant darkness of the world. He would observe how normal people live before he throw himself back in the battle. He wouldn't grow tired of her loud, outgoing self because he wouldn't stay long enough for it to happen. They would have a stable relationship with Sakura not probing in things she wouldn't like. He smirked, realising that Hyuga was right. Sakura would never knew him truly because it was something that he didn't want. There were parts of himself ugly enough to scare even Naruto. She would see him in the way she always did. She would shove away the thoughts she didn't like, the parts about him she would hate because she was willing to do so. In her eyes he was another person, not fake but not real either. He was cool and strong. A man fearless who never cried, never hesitated. Someone who could offer a tiny bit of his heart and that was fine.
The only problem was that he miscalculated. The years he was away his best friends bonded without him. It was clear how she cared about Naruto. How it was possible that she saw him more than her annoying best friend. He saw it the night she brought him at Sasuke's house, then when she yelled at Hyuga for hurting him. The protection she unconsciously had over him. He guessed it was fine. He wasn't sure he would ever want to be with her anyway. It was selfish of him to expect her to wait on something he wasn't sure he wanted in the first place.
He looked behind him at the bright moon. A few more hours before the sun rose again. He turned on the sleeping figure of the woman. She fit under the dim light better than the bright sunshine of the day. It was as if someone had catched little pieces of the night and placed them on her features. Her midnight hair resembled the night sky, her eyes mirrored the moon. Who thought of giving her a name that was so out of place. Her last words rang in his head. The understanding of her statement drove him to speak his name. To invite her in the more familiar term. He had someone that deserved to live more than him too. Now he regretted it. He wasn't her friend and he didn't plan to be. When he cast the genjutsu on her it was out of sheer spite. He wanted to drive her into a corner, to advert his mind of his own thoughts. He seeked the dispair on her eyes when she realised that she was drinking hot water when she claimed she liked the taste of it so much. He wanted her to lie, to challenge him to be cruel. Yet she spoke of a truth Sasuke knew very well. The sencirety of her voice, her abnormal behaviour on their mission fitted into place. It took that mere second to crack his wall and catch her before she fall.
He throwed his head on the back of the couch. Few more hours and he could finally sleep. He needed the rest to regain his composure. He hoped she would stay so he could throw her out. He wished she would speak to him casual as he asked her in his moment of weakness to laugh at her face. He closed his eyes and prayed tomorrow he would view the usual fake shyness hers held not the agonizing view that stared back at him of a person hanging from a thread. He wished she would stay.