Reaching Her

Home sweet home?

It was late by the time you and Sakura returned home to the hidden leave village. You were sure that Sarada would be fast asleep in bed but that was not the case.

"(y/n)!!! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL DAY AND NIGHT!? WE WERE WORRIED SICK!!" Like mother like daughter. When you saw Sarada, she was in her pajamas; she was waiting for you two to come back home. She was in the living room watching tv. You took a deep breath and walked over to Sarada and gently put your hands on her shoulders.

"Sarada. I am. So. Sorry for what I did today. I needed some space and time away from everything but I did not do it in the right way. I ended up very far out in the village to the point that you mother and school principal had to go searching for me. I'm alright but I made the people I love worried sick. For that, you have my sincerest apology. I won't do that do you again. I'll tell you ahead of time if I am going to be away for a while."

Her face that was once covered in anger and irritation was not covered in relief.

"You promise?" You hugged her tightly to answer her question. The last thing you wanted to do was worry her. The last thing you wanted to do was worry her mother. The last thing you wanted to do was lose them in any way, shape, or form. You loved them both dearly. You were so sorry. You didn't mean to hurt anyone and you did for being so careless.

"I promise, Sarada." She hugged you back just as tight. You could tell even more so how worried she was and how much she was missing you by the way she hugged you. You felt worse but you knew things were better. You two hugged for a little while until Sarada felt secure enough to let go, tell her goodnights and headed off to bed.

"It's late. If you want you can sleep in our guest room." Sakura offered.

"That'd be great. Thank you, Sakura. Again, I'm sorry."

"I know you are. I'm just glad you're alright and you're home. We'll talk more in the morning. Have a good night."

"Goodnight, Sakura." You said in a sweet tone. You stretched your arms up as high as they could go as you let out a soft yawn. It was late. You walked to the refrigerator, drank a tall glass of water, and made your way to their guest bedroom. You removed enough clothing to be comfortable and laid your body underneath the covers. You felt all warm and snuggly in their guest bed. This was the most comfortable you felt all day.

                                                                       **

Hours passed and you heard something in the kitchen. You eyes shot wide open and your body swiftly got out of bed. You grabbed a kunai in case you would need it. You made your way stealthy into the kitchen and saw a tall silhouette. You wondered who it could be at this hour. "Someone seriously broke into, Sakura's home?" You thought to yourself as you studied the intruder.

"Who's there? You're not, Sakura or Sarada." You recognized that voice. You couldn't believe it. Tonight of all nights. You walked out in plain sight to turn on the kitchen light. When flicking the switch, your eyes locked with his, Sasuke Uchiha.

"Sasuke? You're...home."

"I am. And may I ask who are you and what are you doing in my home basically half naked?"

"I'm one of Sakura's best friends and we went to the ninja academy together, Sasuke. I know it's been a while but sheesh." Sasuke's face looked like it spent some time processing. Some time turned into a lot of time and you started to get irritated.

"Sasuke?!"

"Sorry. It'll come to me eventually. I think Sakura has told me something about a best friend in our letters that wasn't Ino but I wasn't expecting her other best friend to be a guy. Forgive me."

"Does it bother you?"

"Not necessarily."

"Oh...So...getting something to eat?

"To drink. I'm making some tea. You can feel free to join me."

"That's...nice of you. I'll take you up on your offer then."

Sasuke finished up brewing the tea and served himself. He left a cup out for you to serve yourself. You did and joined him at the dining table. You two sat there in silence for a little while. As you sat in silence, you thought about why he was home and when he arrived home. You couldn't help but think that maybe he has been in the village for most of the day and was able to come home not very long ago. You watched as Sasuke blew on his tea and took small sips. You didn't do the same quite yet since you were trailing through your thoughts. It would make sense why you were in such a sour mood all day. A part of you knew that Sasuke wasn't very far and it was only a matter of time until he got back home.

"When did you get back home?"

"Not long ago. How come you're spending the night?"

"I ended up making the girls worry. I disappeared for a little bit to clear my head. Sakura ended up finding me and we came back here together to see Sarada. Sakura mentioned that it was too late for me to head home and offered me the guest bedroom."

"You're awfully honest. Telling me that you worried my wife and daughter. My wife resorted to looking for you, bringing you back home and kept my daughter up."

"When you put it that way you make it sound much worse than what it seems."

"It's exactly as it seems." You took a long sip of your tea.

"As long as everyone is alright, I guess no harm done," Sasuke said as he sipped more of his tea. You rested your tea on the small tea plate. You observed Sasuke for a little bit because you could have sworn he was concerned for a fragment of a second. He mainly looked tired and wore out. You couldn't help but feel intimated though. You only had so much to defend yourself with when it came to Sasuke. Sasuke is around the level of lord Hokage. You knew if you were to ever be in a fight with, Sasuke, you couldn't stand a chance. You can only hope that things would never get violent with him.

Sasuke took a long sip of his tea, finished and stood up to walk over to the kitchen.

"I think you and I have caught up enough and have stayed up long enough. I'm going to get some sleep. I suggest you do the same. I'll see you later. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Sasuke." You said while still working on your tea. You watched as he placed the tea in the sink and made his way to Sakura's room. After hearing the door close, you heard a yelp of joy. You knew Sakura would be thrilled to see Sasuke. You just didn't expect her to sound that happy for some reason. You let out a long and disappointing sigh. You finished up your tea as well. You washed the teacups, put them where they belong and headed for the guest bedroom. You gathered all of your belongs and sneaked out the house unnoticed. The last thing you wanted to be around for was Sakura welcoming home her beloved husband.