Gaara of the Desert × Reader (Complete)

Chapter 6

"What?! Why?! I'm sorry if I did something! I just don't understand?! Why so suddenly?!"
"Because I can't work when I'm around you. There's a fuzzy feeling around you, I constantly feel the need to have you near me. I really want you to hold on to me. Ever since I saw that smile of yours I thought you were like Naruto and I wanted to be friends. But the more I knew you, the more I wanted to know. I realized you were just Naruto, but more than him. Your smile, your illusions. I observe you through my eye. I didn't realize how bad I felt when you made the sad face when I broke my jutsu. I was so worried about you when you passed out, but I had to leave your side because of my duties. I haven't been able to think properly because suddenly you have become the centre of my attention all the time." He was gasping for breath at this point of time.
Seriously? The Kazekage and the One Tail Jinchuriki is confessing his love disguised as anger. That's probably how he knows it. I mean anger and frustration is how he knows love. That's how he has experienced it.
I smiled at him, struggling to look at him through the blur of tears.
"Gaara," I looked at him warmly and pulled him into my embrace. "I will wait for you Gaara." I said releasing him, "I will wait for you to cope with these feelings." I smiled at him.
"I don't know if I will come back to you." He was crying too. "Gaara," I smiled wiping the tears off his cheeks, "I will wait for you. If you ever feel like coming back, I'm here for you. Also, I don't mind you not coming back either. It's your decision. You should think and take it yourself" I smiled again.
"Let's get back to work for now?" I said smiling and still not being able to hold back my tears.
"You won't be able to work like this" he said coldly wiping off a year off my cheek. "Don't cry. It gives me a pain here." He said placing his hand on his heart.
I wiped my tears, strengthen myself and shook my entire body. "Oof. Okay" I breathed. "Let's go! Yosh!"
We both returned to the premises and he kept avoiding me. Our talks got restricted to just formal talking about work and small talk. I would tell my new friends it felt bad during dinner but I never bothered him with it. I didn't want to influence his feelings. I wanted him to recognize and decide for himself.
I felt a familiar feeling again. I knew this. Gaara's eye. I knew it was Gaara's eye. I knew exactly why it was there but I ignored and I did everything I would if the eye weren't here. I knew the eye was following me around to know how I behaved, what I felt and how I dealt with it.
I entered my workspace and turned on the lights, "Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!" I gasped and screamed until the guards came running. I pointed to an empty room.
"There's nothing here!" One of the guard said.
"Exactly! I wasn't finished with Temari-san's dress! The mannequin should be here! Secure the perimeter. Check every luggage. It's a mannequin. Where's it gonna go?!" I dropped and clutch my head in my hands.
"Temari-san's dress!" I whispered to myself. "I have to find it. This is the most important order of my life and nobody is going to mess it up for me.
Okay. Think. Who wouldn't want Temari-san to have that beautiful marriage dress? Rebels? She only has brothers, so no sister jealousy. Matsuri? But she was so happy she was helping Temari-san prepare and everything. The nurse? Any of the employees? Nevermind. I'll just look for clues first."
I started looking around the room for anything that might be unusual, but seemed like the thief was a Shinobi. He made sure not to leave any clues or anything that could possibly lead us to him.
I still felt the need to check the surroundings just incase. We didn't know when this happened, so securing the perimeter might not yield results. I can't ask Shikamaru-san for help because otherwise the surprise, obviously can't let Temari-san know because she's gonna panic and maybe injure a few soldiers. We need to keep this a secret. Whoever it was, they were well acquainted with the security layout and design. A traitor would be most likely explanation.
Something lying down on the floor got my attention, "This lace?" I was perplexed. It was the lace I was putting up yesterday on the dress, but if the lace is here then where's the dress? Why would they explicitly remove the laces... Or do they want to... Wait a minute.
I ran up to the terrace usually where Gaara sits and saw someone over there. "Return the dress and no harm will come to you." I warned as they held the dress in their hands.
"Return it?! Oh you make me laugh." They said.
"I do not intend to fight. Please, I request you. Please return it. I don't want to hurt you"
"You don't want to hurt me? What else can you do to hurt me? What else can you do, huh? You've already done enough. I'm gonna kill you twice. Once by ripping this dress to shreds in front of you, and next by ripping you to shreds."
"Listen, we have spent so much time together! We gossiped! We ate dinner together! You took care of me when I was passed out! Why are you doing this?!"
"Don't act so innocent. You know exactly. We specifically talked about you staying away from this. You stole everything. They give only one promotion in the office every year, and I will not allow you to smooth talk over my years of service to the country!"
"Listen, I honestly have no idea what you are talking about but please, I won't accept whatever promotion it is. Please, just return the dress and we can forget this ever happened!"
"Forget this happened? Oh no one will ever know! You will be too dead to forget!" She said with a villainous grin on her face.
"You are a nurse! You care for people!" I yelled as my last attempt to stop her.
"Tell that to the people who have been watching me work tirelessly and ignore all my efforts." Her grin changer to a frown and she got out a kunai.
"Please. Please. Don't do someth-"
"One more step and this dress is gone"
I immediately stopped getting close to her and stood there with tears in my eyes full of helplessness. She threw a kunai towards me but it turned out to be an illusion and the real kunai hit my thigh.
I winced a little. She took out another kunai and before I could even say anything she tore the dress into halves. Took one half and kept on halving it until it was nothing but pieces of cloth that couldn't even be stitched together. She took the other half and did the same with it.
"T-t-the dress" I mumbled. My heart broken into as many pieces as the dress. I just gaped with my mouth wide open at the pieces of cloth lying on the ground. My knees couldn't support me anymore and I just dropped to the ground. I glanced at her face once, and once at the cloth.
"It's your turn now." She said and weaved signs. I didn't care. My life, the dress was gone. Why would I want to defend myself. She weaved sign and "Fuuton: Kamaitachi no Jutsu" I knew this was Temari-san's jutsu. It was known to cut things into so many small pieces that joining back was impossible. I had accepted my fate to become like the very dress I was making.
Suddenly something blocked the wind coming my way. Only the pieces were in my sight as an aftereffect.
"This is not the way to get your work recognized." A voice roared.
"K-k-kazekage-sama" she gasped, "I beg for forgiveness." She fell to her feet apologizing.
"I could've forgiven you for the dress, but what you have done to your friend cannot be forgiven. You shall get the appropriate punishment upon trial.
"Sabaku Kyu" and she was bound in  Gaara's Sand Binding Jutsu.
I still was sitting there a Kunai in my thigh, bleeding profusely, tearing profusely and a complete expressionless face.
"T-T-The dress" I looked up to match his gaze already upon me.
"We can start working again once you have had the leg checked." Gaara said sternly.
"I won't be able to finish." I said still looking at him and barely being able to speak.
"You will be. I know. That's why we got you." He said formally.
"I won't." I looked down.
I looked back up to look at Gaara, but instead I felt intense pain on my left cheek, me looking the other way.
"Gaara?" I looked at him kneeling in front of me with my hand on my cheek.
"I apologize for slapping you. I know it hurt but you need to get this done. You don't have the time to wallow over a dress that can be made again. We have the plan ready. We'll make it in time." He said as he stood up. "Well, let's go now. Let's get that checked." He offered a hand.
I didn't have anything to say. I understood what he said, even agreed with it in my brain but that dress was a big part of me. I put a lot of effort, my dreams and Temari-san's happiness was woven in every stitch in that dress.
I strengthened my resolve, I took Gaara's hand and stood up.
"This blood won't be for naught." I said pulling out the Kunai from my thigh. "I will make Temari-san's dream wedding dress a reality for her." I said as I stood up and blood sprung from my thigh.
"Let's go, Kazekage-sama. We have work to do" I looked at him. He smiled at me and we both got back to my workspace.
"So, you're magically okay, now?" Gaara said pointing to my bleeding thigh.
"Well, it doesn't hurt." I shrugged.
He put me over his sand and made me levitate sitting on it. He took a piece of cloth put on the soft board beside the large dress drawing and wrapped it around my wound.
"I'm not a doctor but this will atleast stop you from bleeding too much and help clean it." He said coldly.
"Thank you." I managed to break a smile.
I got off the sand pedestal and was motivated more than ever now. "You watch. I will make Temari-san's wedding dress even better then her dreams!" I said and got the measurements. I drew the outline of her dress and held it up.
"Ready to things the old fashioned way?" I smirked at him.
"Ofcourse." He smirked back.