𝐻𝒾𝓈 𝒮𝓅𝓇𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒮𝓊𝓃𝓈𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑒 | 𝗦𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗸𝗲 𝘅 𝗦𝗮𝗸𝘂𝗿𝗮

4

Naruto choked on his tea, spitting it right towards Sasuke who barely managed to dodge the sudden attack.

"You've been here for more than a day and only come here now?!," the appalled Uzumaki male exclaimed in pure disbelief, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, "Stupid teme..."

Sasuke huffed and rolled his eyes, taking another sip of his own tea before replying casually, "Give me a break, dobe. I needed to... look around first." The Uchiha's dark orbs met Sakura's green ones for a split second before he looked down at his cup, stirring his black tea to distract himself from the attention he was receiving.

Naruto, however, noticed the sudden glance and raised his eyebrows in suspicion. A huge grin formed on his face as he let out a long 'ah' sound, his blue eyes darting back and forth from the suddenly shy Uchiha and flushed Haruno.

The pinkette covered her pink cheeks with her hands, kicking Naruto's ankle under the table as he yelped in surprise. "B-baka!" she stammered desperately, trying to ease the thick tension at the table.

Naruto's wife, Hinata Uzumaki, was sitting beside her whining husband, gently patting his shoulder as she spoke in a soft voice, "Tell me, Sasuke-san, where are you staying?"

Her question caused the Uchiha to raise his head just a bit, meeting her pale eyes. Sasuke thought for a moment before eventually answering, his voice low and quiet, "Hostel."

Yet another chuckle escaped the Uzumaki male's lips as he stared at his former teammates intently. "Sakura-chan could take you in. Right?" Naruto asked in a smug tone, his eyebrows wiggling at her reaction.

"I-," she stated quickly but found herself at a loss for words. The Haruno looked around slowly, her gaze meeting Sasuke's. He looked at her without objecting, his normally intense eyes softening visibly as they kept staring at eachother.

"None of your business, stupid Naruto!"

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On their way back to Sakura's house, the walk was quiet once more, resembling their first stroll this morning. But this time... the silence was uncomfortable and cramped.

Sakura nervously fiddled with her fingers, not daring to even look at the Uchiha. She regretted the way she had snapped earlier, but she couldn't help it around Naruto.

Deep down, she knew. She knew that she wanted him with her. Sakura knew she wanted to share everything with him; her house, her life, her heart.

But she was scared, scared that he would reject her again.

Sasuke, on the other hand, felt weirdly triggered. His heart felt heavy, not as light and at ease anymore. He had never regretted anything as much as hurting Sakura. It was the last thing he had ever intended.

But he was scared, scared that she didn't want him close to her any longer.

Once at the Haruno's doorstep, they stopped to look at eachother. Sakura swallowed hard, feeling a shiver run down her spine from the seriousness she saw there.

"I'll... go now," he murmured hesitantly before looking away, not bearing to look into her eyes any longer. They were so warm, like a pleasant breeze during spring wafting through the cherry blossoms.

Sakura watched the ravenhead turn around and continuing to walk, his hand shoved into one of his pockets as always. For just a moment, she saw the young boy who had left the village, craving more power and strength. She saw him leave her behind without a doubt again, and it made her heart ache.

The pinkette wouldn't let him leave again. Not now, not ever.

"S-Sasuke-kun...," Sakura called out softly, her voice trembling from the cold. Sasuke stopped in his tracks, turning his head slightly to look back at her.