Enamoured (Sasuke Uchiha)

XXI

The ride on the way to Naruto and Hinata's house was mostly silent, except for the low sound of the radio. Sakura sat in the passenger on her phone, most likely texting Ino to let her know they were on their way. He had picked her up about ten minutes ago, so they'd arrive to their friends' new home in roughly fifteen minutes.

Though he had recently—recently meaning yesterday—come to the realization that he was no longer interested in the pink haired woman, Sasuke had yet to say anything. In fact, he had acted as he normally did, greeting the woman with a hug and even giving returning the brief kiss she had given him in greeting.

He wanted to end their relationship, so he could be with Kimi, but he wasn't sure how or when to. Even if he no longer had romantic feelings for Sakura, he stilled cared about her as a friend he'd known for many years of his life. She obviously was still head over heels for him, which made it even worse. The old Sasuke wouldn't have cared, but the last thing the him now wanted to do was hurt her. He knew she would cry, and he couldn't deal with crying women. Sasuke also knew that he couldn't lead her on and drag out a meaningless relationship. He would have to end it soon, but for now he was focused on getting through tonight's dinner.

The Uzumaki home was a quaint house, that fit the couple perfectly. Judging by the cars in the driveway, they were the last to arrive. He was forced to park in the grass beside the mailbox. Getting out, Sasuke helped Sakura and led her up the driveway, up short cobblestone path, and to the front door, where he rang the bell. In a few seconds, the door opened and they were greeted by the warm smile of Hinata.

"Good evening, Sasuke, Sakura," she greeted stepping to the side. "Please, come in."

"Good evening, Hinata," Sakura returned, stepping in first to give the woman a quick hug before slipping her heels off. Sasuke grunted in acknowledgement and entered after, closing the door behind him. He followed suit and took off his shoes, leaving them with the several other shoes near the door.

"You guys are the last to arrive, everyone's already seated and having drinks," Hinata stated as she led the pair through the house.

"Wow, Hinata!" Sakura exclaimed, her eyes looking all over. "The place looks great! You guys really did a great job."

The black haired woman turned back, giving her a smile. "Thank you."

When they reached the dining area, everyone was indeed drinking and having friendly conversation. The dining room was a good size and the table itself was large and round. Hinata took her seat beside her husband, and Sasuke and Sakura took the only available seats which were between Ino and Shikamaru. Sasuke pulled the chair next to Ino out for Sakura, and then took the seat next to Shikamaru.

"Hey, man," Shikamaru greeted with a nod of his chin.

"Hey," Sasuke returned. He grabbed one of the bottles of red wine that was on the table near him and began to pour some for himself. He then turned to his pink haired companion, "Want some?"

"Yes, please." She smiled, offering her glass to him. Sasuke filled it three-quarters of the way before setting the bottle back down.

"Well, now that everyone's here, let's eat!" Naruto announced with a grin. All the food was already set out in the center of the table, so they only had to pass things around to dish it out. Everyone chorused in agreement and began passing dishes around and plating their food.

Within another thirty minutes, everyone was finishing up dinner and conversing.

"So, how's the married life treating you?" Shikamaru asked to the not so newly wedded couple as he took a sip of his wine.