Happily

Chapter 1

After a long day of work at the Konoha Hospital, Sakura Uchiha walked happily through the gates of the Uchiha Complex.

Happily - there were a lot of things to be happy about in Sakura's life, she had finally married the man of her dreams, she had a beautiful daughter to come home to after another day as the Head of the Hospital, to come home to a lavishly decorated house much too large for just herself and her daughter, more money than she could ever need.

But she wasn't happy.

Don't get me wrong, Sakura loved her daughter, she did. Nothing could change that. But even Sarada couldn't truly make her happy.

Because at the end of the day, the reality was that the man of her dreams turned out not to be the man of her dreams.

She should've expected it really, what good could ever come from loving an Uchiha? Sakura knew he would bring nothing but trouble and heartbreak. She knew who he truly was.

He had even warned her, standing on one knee, he told her that he could never amount to her expectations, that he wasn't the prince in shining armour that Sakura always thought he was. He had a darkness inside of him that would never vanish.

But being the naive little girl Sakura was, she said yes, told him that it wouldn't matter if he wasn't perfect, that she could handle whatever he threw at her. She didn't care about all that, she just wanted to be with him. So blinded by a one-sided love, she said yes.

But that love faded. Every day she spent raising a daughter all by herself, everyday she spent awake at night in an empty bed, she found herself falling just a little bit more out of love.

But she stayed with him. Because what other choice did she really have? He warned her but she didn't listen. Sakura thought she could change him, but nobody could change Sasuke Uchiha. She said yes and she had to stick by that, even if it made her unhappy.

But Sakura wasn't just unhappy. She was exausted, humiliated, and above of all, miserable.

Exausted - it wasn't easy being a single mother - It was strange thinking of herself as a single mother at first. After all, she was a married woman. But after years and years of raising her daughter all by herself, she had every right to say she was a single mother - As the Head of the Konoha Hospital, Sakura would have to work all day, spending hours healing her patients up to a point of chakra exhaustion. Only to come home to take care of her young daughter. It wasn't easy.

Sakura didn't know when it happened, but soon enough, her life turned into an unrelenting cycle of misery. The bags under her eyes were proof. She was no longer the youthful, vibrant woman that people would envy. Her hands were rough and calloused, her cheeks no longer seemed contain the rosy flush they once did, her eyes... Well let's just say that once upon a time, Sakura used to have sparkling jade eyes. Now they were dull and grey. Years of exaustion aged her into a sickly, old women at 27.

Humiliated - No word could describe it more perfectly. Every time she had visited the academy, only to be questioned because Sarada's father never seemed to show up, every time she spent Valentine's Day with her daughter because Sasuke decided that she was not worth coming home to, every time she talked to her friends, only to be given looks of pity by everyone around her. It was humiliating. And she just wanted it to end.

Miserable - Sakura regretted her life, she decided one day. She regretted not pursuing what she truly wanted. She regretted not standing up for herself and facing her fears. She was scared of the future and so she ended up bottling her feelings.

It was such a strange idea. It confused her to no end. She had never admitted before. But somehow, slowly, just little by little, Naruto Uzumaki stole her heart.
Yes, Naruto Uzumaki, the same dumbass she would yell at, the same dumbass she would end up punching into tomorrow, only to end up healing him. She shouldn't have waited so long, she should've told him earlier. So scared of what may come, Sakura waited, she waited and waited until she watched him fall in love with somebody else.

Hinata was lovely girl, sweet and polite, she was the type of girl that Naruto truly deserved. He had a good life with her and she would be nothing but happy for them. But looking at their happiness and seeing what could have been... even misery wasn't enough to describe her pain.

Sakura Uchiha did not have an easy life, saying it was hard would be an understatement.

But she stayed strong, she had to be. Sakura was miserable. But she would never let it show.

So with a smile on her face, she walked into her home, wrapping her arms around her precious girl, happily.

A/N: Well, what do you think? This isn't my first story but I haven't written that many either so I would be happy to receive any feedback. Thanks for reading!