The Flower and the Avenger

Chapter 32

Sakura flinched as another beautiful piece of jewelry went flying.

Because she was a nice person at heart, she let Ino borrow some of her jewelry. Hell, she didn't even know how much she had at this point, she practically shoved it to Ino when she asked the first time.

She was regretting it. Badly.

While Ino could be a neat and orderly person when it came to organizing everyday things, that didn't seem to apply to jewelry or dresses as the entire room became a wreck as soon as she got her hands on them.

The ground was littered with gold and silver chains and rings and bracelets and things Sakura couldn't even describe, though she was sure that if she picked one up from the ground Ino would be able to tell her the carat of the gold, the type, the brand, even to the century it was made.

"Aha!"

Sakura's mind spiraled back to reality as she stared at the long, very long necklace. "That?"

"Yeah! It looks beautiful, don't you think?" Ino turned it over to admire it. It was pretty, sure, but way too flashy. It had jewels dripping from the delicate chain, flashing in the light every few seconds. "Won't that look a little tacky?"

"No way. My dress has a really big neckline so it'll look good."

Sakura sighed as she began to pick up the jewelry from the carpeted floor and set them aside to sort later. Again. "All right, just help me pick it all up. It is your mess, after all."

"Sorry."

The two girls gathered the jewelry in silence until Sakura broke it, a sly thought going through her mind. "So how's you and Sai?"

Ino's cheeks tinted red as she hid behind her curtain of blonde hair. "We're fine." Sakura playfully bumped her shoulder. "Come on. What really happened?"

"We didn't go out, if that's what you're saying."

"Oho, so something did happen."

"Shut up, Sakura."

Sakura waited for her to elaborate, but she put it off until she picked up the last few pieces. "Well?" she prompted. Ino dropped them in the box as she said in a rush, "SaikissedmeandtoldmethatIwasbeautiful."

"Hold on, what?"

"Sai kissed me," said Ino, reddening cheeks growing brighter, "and told me that I was beautiful."

Sakura processed it before tackling her into a hug. "Congratulations, Ino! I call dibs on godmother!" Ino shoved her away laughing as she said, "Shut up, Sakura! There's not much going on!"

"What, do you think that he's just playing you?"

Ino hid her face as she said, "No."

"Then what's the damn problem? Go out there, girl! And you were super flirty with Sasuke too," she scoffed. "Get that confidence wall back up and steal that guy's heart!" before she added a quick, "though I don't like him."

Ino considered it before saying, "You think?"

"Yeah! Get that annoying ass out there and show yourself to the world!"

Ino started to smile as she said, "Yeah, yeah. I get the point."

Sakura sniffed as she said snootily, "Good."

-

-

-

Sasuke was excited.

He wasn't the typical lover. He wasn't all cute when his girl came around. He didn't like to give chocolates or teddy bears, and he definitely was not going to be sappy.

However, that didn't mean he treated her the same way as everyone else.

Sasuke made dumplings. Every Friday, Sakura had come to his room to cook him whatever he wanted and talked about whatever he wanted, but he wanted to cook for her for once. He would pass it off as nothing special; say that he just made some and couldn't finish it by himself. Something along those lines.

But his entire cover got blown when she stepped through the doorframe, sniffed at the air, and brightened as she said, "You cooked dumplings for me?"

Well, that plan just went down the drain.

"U-Uh, yeah. I just thought... that I would give it a try," he fumbled with his words. She took off her apron and sat down on the couch right next to him. "If it tastes bad, don't hesitate to throw it out-"

Too late, she already popped one into her mouth and was chewing with gusto. "This is really good!" she exclaimed when she finished. Thank God. "Is it really? I thought I burnt them," he said, chewing one thoughtfully and congratulating himself on his own work.

"They're amazing! Have you ever cooked these before?"

"No," said Sasuke, usually cold eyes warming. "I just followed the instructions on the packet."

"Oh, really? That explains the flavor." She bit into another one, then took out her bag. "Oh, Sasuke, I wanted to show you something."

"Hmm? What is it?"

She took out a fairly thick book and placed it on the little glass table that he had installed just a while back. "It's a book that I found interesting. Have you ever read this one?"

"Please. It's my library. How could I have missed a book?" Even as he said this, his eyes glanced over the unfamiliar book cover as he took it carefully and slid it into his desk drawer. "I'll take a look at it anyway."

Sakura smiled. "Thank you! I find the story plot very interesting, though I'm not too sure if you would find it the same. It's an adventure/romance/sci-fi type of book."

"Really?"

"Yes! It's called the Hunger Games, and I just found it to be really good! You should read it sometime."

"I told you, it's my property," he grumbled, but his iciness was already melting away. "Of course I've read it."

"If you say so, Sasuke," she said in a tone that got on his nerves.

"Don't say that."

She batted her eyelashes. "Or what, Sasuke?"

"I said stop." Inside, he was enjoying the way she was teasing him. It was- might he say it?- fun.

"Make me, Sasuke- uumph!" Her emerald eyes widened as he took one hand behind her back, and another in front of her mouth, and kissed her. Indirectly, of course.

She stayed shocked as he kissed his own hand, but feeling Sakura's plump lips brushing against his fingers. Oh, how he wanted to remove them and kiss them fully... but no. He didn't want to, not just yet.

When he stopped, she was blushing furiously. "Wh-what was that for?" she said, embarrassed. He raised an eyebrow. "It was to shut you up, Sakura." She scowled at him. "Don't copy me."

"Deja vu."

-

-

-

HI!

I just went back to school T--T I don't like it... but eh, right? :D

The ball would probably chapter 35 because the next chapter would be the ball decorations, then chapter 34 would be completely focused on the way Sakura and the girls dress. Of course, I'm going to add Sasuke in too ^-~

Thank you for reading!

-Storywriter-