Ball and chain|| Sasusaku

Chapter 10

//tw: rape mention//

Night stills around him.

Sasuke taps the steering wheel with his index finger, the wind blowing right in his face. He combs his fingers through his hairs and for what he knows to be the hundredth time, glances back at his wristwatch.

9:47.Still no sign of Sakura.

Sasuke contemplates driving to the hospital—Sakura has never taken this long and she would not forget to tell him about late night shifts—but stays; he might miss her in case she is about to arrive.

Sasuke clicks open the car door and steps outside, leaning against the cold metal as he allows the wind to ruffle his hair. He grabs his phone and fiddles with it, chewing on his lower lip while his thumb lingers over the call button. Maybe he should message her instead. Or would that come out as too casual?

He clicks his tongue and slips the phone back inside his pocket, persistently tapping his foot, letting his lips shape into a tiny pout. What if he was late and she went home already? No, she would have told him if so, and he always makes sure to come half an hour before her shift ends.

"Where is she?" He says under his breath when his leg starts to cramp from the consistent shaking.

It makes him restless: not having seen her when he is supposed to have. Normally, she would have been here, right beside him, at an arm's distance, beaming at a new tidbit she discovered or whistling a melody he didn't recognize. He isn't sure what having a wife is supposed to feel like.

It must be like finding a cavern in a snowstorm.

Or at least, that's how he feels. Sasuke is sure he hasn't talked so much in the last 8 years. Or just, felt at peace. Felt light. For the first time in 8 years, he found someone who heard him when he had complete belief he had been living in a void where no one could hear his voice echo. Not even him. Sakura heard him, reaching out to him in that void, sitting beside him, not too close but always within reach. And she accepted what he said. For the first time, he found someone who didn't force him to heal when he wasn't even sure exactly which part of him was unhurt. For the first time, he found a friend. A true friend.

He pushes himself off the car door and paces around, back and forth, when the sound of an approaching car stops him in his tracks and he dips his head to get a look at who's inside. Sasuke feels his heart clench, and he barely knows why, but he feels suffocated at the sight of Sakura beside Itachi, her shoulders invisible under his jacket. The wetness in his eyes is no stranger but this visit is unannounced. There's no reason for him to feel this devastated. Itachi is his brother, Sakura... She is a friend.

Right.

A friend.

Sasuke gulps down the knot in his throat and tries to make sense of why they must be together so late but the reasoning only infuriates him further and he can't help it if his face betrays him, transparent over his anguish, and if his eyes stage feelings he desperately wants to hide. He sees Itachi stride over to him, but the sole target of his ire is Sakura, and again, he has no inkling why. Before he speculates any further, he feels the force through his face as his feet stagger and lose their balance, and he finds himself crashing down the road. The impact rips of the skin on his palm and he knows his cheek will swell, but what truly hurts him is inside his chest, and in front of his eyes whilst he finds it hard to tear his gaze away from the woman desperately avoiding his.