My Snippets: Part 2

Reassurance

Sometimes all you need is a little reassurance to feel at ease.

A sasusaku blank-period snippet.

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Her hair had been in slight disarray for quite some time as the night wore on and Sakura carefully extracted it from a rose clip Ino had lent her that was holding it in place, only to shake it out lazily with her right hand. She smiled at the blonde who was going on and on about some random sap who'd wandered into her flower shop the morning prior; a little tipsy as she leaned into Sai's left hand side.

Sakura laughed at some mundane joke; the alcohol in her system loosening the tension from today's huge workload. She felt a pair of eyes lingering on her from the far side of the room near the bar and knew instantaneously who they belonged to.

Feeling suddenly emboldened, the kunoichi turned slightly in her seat, revealing the side of her face and gave her ex- teammate a small smile, followed quickly by a sly flirtatious wink before returning her gaze back to the group in front of her. She bit down gently on her bottom lip and brought her drink to her lips when Ino hit the punch line...an attempt to hide her grin and reddening cheeks.

Rambunctious, boisterous laughter caught her attention in the next moment and brought it back to the bar where she witnessed Naruto playfully slapping Sasuke on the left arm while his cheeks were tinted a bright shade of red; both his obnoxious behavior and complexion indicative of his highly intoxicated state. Shikamaru rested on the opposite side of him, silently enjoying his own beer while the duo chatted to themselves... his cheekbones however were a light shade of dusty rose, giving away that he too was on the precipice of full intoxication.

Her attention returned to Sasuke, who's gaze was focused on his own perspiring glass; the amber liquid only a third of the way gone. He wasn't much of a drinker she'd found out on their last excursion with the old team seven. His ebony- colored hair was slightly longer than he'd normally keep it; though it remained just as spikey and wayward as always, with a few new "stragglers" resting limply on the center of his forehead. His chakra was settled, but the aura around him remained the same; scaring off a few of the bar-goers nearest to him. He didn't seem to notice as he took a slow sip of his beverage and her gaze followed it down, the few drops that clung to his lips when he pulled the glass away and a few that trickled down his chin; the slow bob of his Adam's apple as he swallowed.

It was her turn to swallow.

'Is it getting hot in here?! Cuz daaaamn.'

Sakura felt someone settle in next to her, nudging her right shoulder gently, and she swiftly averted her gaze back to the group; only to be met with the playful smirk on her best friend's lips. She'd been caught. 'Seriously?! Shannaro!!!' Ino inclines her head towards the bar. "Why don't you go and talk to him, forehead." Sakura shook her head rapidly and lifted her hands up while her cheeks flamed like she'd just jumped into the hottest pits of hell.

"W-what?! No, no way! Sasuke-kun is busy. I can't just—"

"Yes, you can," Ino hissed; leaning in so only Sakura could hear. "You can and will...because YOU are Sakura mother fucking Haruno. You are the most badass kunoichi in Kona and the only woman here who can get any kind of reaction (physical or otherwise) from the ever stoic Uchiha."

Another nudge before Ino practically shoved her out of the booth they'd claimed occupancy of several hours ago. The blonde-haired playfully shooed Sakura away and gave her a genuinely encouraging smile before turning her attention back to the group of shinobi gathered around them.

Sakura let out a deep sigh as her gaze shifted to the bar; to Sasuke. Ino was right. What was she so worried about? She shook off her nerves with a gentle shake of her head before slowly making her way through the throng of people gathered on the dance floor separating her from her target. The closer she got, the more her confidence grew and she was only a few feet away when a blur to her right caught her attention.

Red hair.

Glasses.

Karin.

She watched as the red-head leaned into Sasuke's side, a huge grin splitting across her face and lifting her cheeks. It gave her pause, one foot positioned behind her as if ready to pull her closer to the scene unfolding in front of her. Her shoulders began to slump when Karin's laughter reached her ears and her arms fell to her sides in defeat. With one final, sorrowful smile, she turned on her heel and headed towards the exit.

She was standing on the bridge overlooking the night sky, whose reflection shimmered on the softly rippling surface of the water below, when he found her. She didn't turn her gaze towards him at first, the moon constantly reflecting in the pools of her eyes, and only indicated that she'd noticed him at all by the slight twisting of her body toward him. She tried to refrain from seeming too giddy that he had actually followed her out here... even though she totally was. Inner Sakura was fist pumping the air in celebration, while outer Sakura was surprisingly calm and at ease; relaxed in her current state of inebriation.

She finally broke the silence by asking, "So, why did you decide to come tonight? I didn't think gatherings like this were your thing." He nudged her playfully; lingering next to her with his shoulder pressed against hers and she felt her cheeks flushing from the fixated contact of their bare flesh touching. Sasuke didn't drink very much... that was a well- known fact... but when he did decide to indulge a little, she noticed that he was much keener with his affections than normal, and not as afraid to show a little bit of intimacy in their— well, could it be considered a budding relationship? Sakura wasn't quite sure. They hadn't put a label on it yet, and had only just begun exploring things that would border on the threshold of something that was considered "more than friends".

"Naruto was very... persuasive."

"Oh... really," she questioned him curiously, but he didn't elaborate further and only gave a low hum as a response. Their chatter continued naturally, with topics bleeding into work, training, and the next team seven dinner (which had already been canceled numerous times due to everyone's busier than usual schedules) until finally silence reigned once again.

But just then, as she's looking up at the moon, he nudges her with his shoe, and as she turns towards him, noticing the light blush on his cheeks darken before his head tilted forward to shield his face from her piercing gaze. She tilts her head slightly in curiosity and waits for him to proceed. He sighs, it's barely detectable to the naked ear, but she still picks up on it easily with her shinobi senses. 'Is... is he nervous?'

"You have nothing to worry about."

She blinks at him slowly before recognition finally sets in. Sakura quickly shifts away, her blush darkening, before a smile makes its way to her lips. So he had noticed that she witnessed his little interaction with his old Taka teammate. Of course that's why he'd come out here. To ease some of her worries and doubts. She felt her body relax further and took a slow, deep breath to gain some courage to ask her next question.

"Does she know?"

He snorts indignantly and shifts on his feet. "Yes. But not always when she's consumed too much alcohol." Sasuke turned to her slightly, and brushed his fingertips along her cheek and jaw; she blushed harder and turned toward him as he said, "I just wanted you to know, Sakura, that you've got nothing to worry about. If I haven't made my intentions clear to you already, then I wish this does so now."

She nodded and smiled softly before reaching for his hand to hold it before they both turned to look back at the moon and the stars... content in the knowledge that they're both on the same page, and that their relationship can continue to grow and blossom for years to come.