𝐀 𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐂𝐇 𝐓𝐎 𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐄 ━━ S. UCHIHA

LIII

※Sasuke POV※

I didn't know what to think when I saw her. My brain goes blank the moment she comes into view. To tell you, that rarely ever happens.

Hime, the girl I recognized from the Antique Shop, leads (Y/n) over in my direction. Upon pointing at me, the girl finally looks my way and freezes. Her eyes stay on me for a while as Hime talks to her. The female Uehara then leaves (Y/n) standing amid people, utterly confused. Her gaze follows Hime before reverting to mine.

It's been a while since the last she and I met eyes. After Wednesday, everything became tense and awkward for us, neither one of us knew what to do when the other was around. I didn't want this to last all through summer. I'm not sure what would happen to me if I didn't walk over there and try to confront her.

When I approach her, I nearly feel myself faltering. Sure, (Y/n) is an average-looking girl. She doesn't stand out. Maybe it's because I've only ever seen her in her school uniform or some casual clothes. I've never seen her dress up once or put effort into her hair other than brushing it, and tonight, she looks well put together. No matter if her appearance is simple, she's stunning.

"(Y/n)," I say to get her attention.

The girl turns her head to me and just stares at me, wordless. Even if no one else was able to pick it up, I caught a light shade of red flash across her cheeks.

That didn't make me feel cocky. Not at all. This feeling is different.

"S-Sasuke," she stutters, finally finding her ability to speak. Her (e/c) eyes gape into mine, leaving me to be tongue-tied as well.

"I..." I force myself to start, not knowing where it'll lead me. It doesn't lead me anywhere.

"W-what are you doing here?" she asks, her head tilting slightly.

I almost forgot that it's a surprise I'm at the very party I urged (Y/n) not to come to. "Naruto dragged me here," I answer honestly. After Naruto somehow managed to persuade me, I ended up saying I'd come under certain conditions.

"Naruto? He's here, too?"

I sigh. "He heard Sakura was coming, so he didn't hesitate to jump."

"Oh, I didn't know."

"It was a last-minute decision"

She awkwardly nods, looking around. She twiddles her fingers. She senses the tension as much as I do. "S-so... how have you been?"

I raise a brow. Is she trying to make small talk? Not that I mind. Any conversation might help erase nervousness. "I'm fine. You?"

"I'm fine, too."

"That's good."

"Yeah. How do you think did on the finals?"

"I think I did fine," I answer, getting a little more confused with every reply she musters. She's really trying to keep this going, isn't she?

"Me, too."

Well, how am I supposed to respond to that? So much for a distracting conversation.

The more I stare at (Y/n), the more anxious I get. I stand there for a moment, contemplating whether or not I should bring up the topic here or later. If I wait, will I get a chance to talk to her later? We didn't even exchange words when we saw each other every day at school, what's going to change during summer when we see each other less and less?

There shouldn't be any harm, right? "About Saturday—"

"Don't." Her eyes lift to mine with fierce seriousness.