Finding Home - Uchiha Sasuke Fanfic

3 - Konohagakure

Hyun Jae pov:

My sleep had been dreamless, as it had been for the past few months, unlike how I had had nightmares every single night since I escaped from the assassins. The mental and physical torture had tormented me until I had wholeheartedly accepted it as my past, and then let go of it. I had not forgotten a single detail, of course, but had forcefully changed the way it affected me. I had numbed out the pain and ignored the dread of the memories and anything that reminded me of them, crushing the emotions that stirred but remaining passive.

Stepping out of bed after turning off my alarm that, as always, went off exactly five minutes after I had awoken, I got ready for the day. After showering and putting on a t-shirt and a pair of jeans, I headed to the dining hall of the guesthouse. All of those who resided here were gathered and were chattering over breakfast. Being someone with nearly no liking for social interaction, I got myself a sandwich and a hand size carton of almond milk before I left the guesthouse.

Upon finishing my sandwich and throwing the empty carton in a bin on the side of the street, I continued on to the restaurant where I worked. It was a small family restaurant owned and run by an elderly couple. Though not very large scale or famous, the foods they prepared and served were exceptionally delicious. The restaurant had a few regulars along with floating customers during the day, the crowd peaking during lunch and dinner hours.

The pay was menial, but more than enough for my boring lifestyle. Even after paying for rent and meals, I still had a little to save. It was adding up slowly and I was beginning to think of it as something that I could use to one day buy a house of my own.

Upon entering the restaurant, I was greeted by the elderly couple. They always welcomed me so warmly, treated me with such care and affection that I had come to think of them as family. I returned their greetings with a smile of my own before stepping to the small room at the back to put on the simple uniform and apron. Then stepping into the kitchen, I reached for the menus and headed over to the dining floor to begin my work for the day.

When the regulars trickled in during the morning rush, I began service. Though everyone was friendly, having seen me working here a while, I could only manage halfhearted smiles and awkward one line answers to anything they spoke with me about besides their meal orders. I was glad that they hadn't considered my reserved personality as anything rude enough to stop coming to the restaurant, and I was grateful that they didn't force me to be any more interactive than what I already was.

Despite being silent, most people considered me as pleasant and charming, even complimenting me that my smiles were pretty. I suppose it wasn't anything surprising - I did not intend to brag, but as someone who had been a child artist, I knew that I had been scouted for not just my skills in singing and acting but also for my appearance. I was pretty enough, from what I could see in a mirror, and I always thanked anyone who said anything nice about me from the bottom of my heart.

Most of the day went by in a blur, as it usually did, with customers coming in, being served, paying and leaving. In the time I wasn't serving customers, I took care of doing the dishes and helping out in the kitchen. Soon, it was the end of my shift and I was heading home after eating a delicious supper in the restaurant.

While most people would surely call my life boring and monotonous, it was a piece of heaven for me. I did not want anything more than a slow, peaceful life, though I did sometimes feel envious of the people I saw around me who had not suffered like me and trusted easily and lived without a heavy heart. I was most envious of girls my age, those who were just stepping into college and had friends and crushes, hung out together watching movies and shopping and all that. That life looked so normal, so out of reach for me most of the time. I wondered if I would have been like them had I not been a celebrity, had I not been the victim of jealousy of rivals in the industry.