SasuHina: Beyond The Camera

Chapter 39

-Gaara's POV-

I heard the shower running when I came home, which took me by surprise because it's well after midnight.

This Christmas with Temari and Kankuro was the best one I've ever had, so I'm riding high on the warm and happy emotions that brought with it. Normally at least of us have to work at some dead end job for the holiday to reap the benefits of double pay, but this time it was different.

I pay for both of their housing, a fact both of my siblings were and still are completely against, but there's nothing they can do to stop me. I have more than enough money to do that, and more, so it's not like I'm putting myself in a place to financially struggle. Plus, it just feels right to pay them back for all the trouble I've caused and how much effort both of them have put into raising me when our parents no longer could.

Once I finished unpacking, I looked at the small cactus Temari gifted me with a small smile. As a child, the three of us had one and I loved taking care of it because it's kind of hard to kill one. She remembered that and surprised me with the nostalgic plant.

I'll have to order a lamp or something so it can get the warmth and sunlight it needs in my room because I don't have any windows or maybe I can put it in the living room or Sakura's room. She has a giant window with a wide ledge perfect for plants. The water shut off in the bathroom a few minutes ago and I heard her leave, likely to go to bed. I'll ask her tomorrow.

My fingers absently rose to the smooth stone resting against my chest under my shirt: the necklace she gave me for Christmas. It's one of the souvenirs they sell at the karaoke bar we met at for the first time and she had the exact date engraved on the back of it. Someone else might've gotten offended that she chose something much less pricey or flashy than what she'd gotten Hinata and Sasuke, but it's my favorite gift out of all the wonderful things I've been given.

Sure, she likely remembers the date because it was the same day that Tenten recruited her, but it still makes me so happy that she knows me well enough to know I'd love something like this. To be honest, she could've given me just a card and I'd treasure it.

I thought that maybe, somehow, my feelings for her would weaken after she began dating Sasori, but that's very much not the case. If anything, it makes me want her even more because she deserves to be treated so much better than how he does and I desperately want to be the one to show her that. With that thought in mind, I layed down to try and force myself asleep.

In the morning, I woke up to be pleasantly surprised to find I'd slept for almost eight hours, something incredibly rare for me.

Rubbing my eyes, I trudged into the bathroom to shower and brush my teeth, only to hiss when I stepped on something sharp. Kneeling down, I picked the item up and realized it was a necklace with a broken chain. When I saw that it had a little bit of blood on it, I checked my foot, only to get that much more confused when it was uninjured.

It's Sakura's, obviously, but it's rare for her to leave things around carelessly like that, especially something that at least looks like it'd be expensive like this necklace. She must've been exhausted last night and not realized where it was, but that left the question of why there's blood on it. I'll ask her when I'm done. Maybe it's not even blood and it's makeup or something. Who knows.

Sighing, I washed it in the sink before placing it on a hand towel to dry properly before showering and brushing my teeth like I originally planned. When I was finished, I went out into the kitchen to scrounge for something to snack on with my coffee. No one else's around even though it's almost noon. I know Sakura's home and I'm pretty sure Hinata is as well, but from where I'm standing near the island, this house could be deserted.