The Flower Shop [A Gaara Love Story]

46: His or Not

"You should have seen it- the both of them were beet red and they shook hands!" Kankuro laughed, "It was ridiculous! At this rate, they won't be married until they're 60!"

Early this morning the Leaf shinobi had finally departed for home. After nearly a month of staying by her side, the duties of life called to them again and so they decided to return back to their respective village. Naruto and Sakura had been a little more reluctant to go, insisting that they could stay longer and very nearly doing so, if it wasn't for the message from the Hokage requesting their return. Reluctantly, and sadly, the trio took their leave.

They had come to say goodbye to her the night before, Shikamaru only staying for an hour or so while Sakura and Naruto stayed through the night. They tried to make the most of it, tried to cheer her up and reassure her that things would get better soon, but the cloud that hung over her was too dark even for them to navigate through.

Everyone knew- Momoko knew that they did. She could see it in their eyes: the pity, the sorrow, the secondhand loss. As soon as Sakura heard from the nurses, she burst into her hospital room and didn't leave her side for the next few days. Sakura knew better than anyone how much pain Momoko was in; they had spent their whole lives talking about the families they would have and the children they would raise, Momoko far more adamantly than she. Naruto hadn't said much about it, but from the way he held her hand so tight and stared at her with dreary eyes, he knew the weight of this loss as well.

Though she couldn't find the strength or the words to express it, Momoko was glad they had been here at all. Sakura had been an anchor her whole life, there from the very beginning and would be until the very end. Though she and Naruto had decided to part ways, he remained as loyal of a friend as ever. Their presence was a reminder of better days, of sunshine and a happy life. They were here for her in the ways they had always been and Momoko only wished she could have told them how much it meant to her.

As much as she had wished it so, the world didn't stop for her. Life carried on beyond the window of her hospital room; her friends had lives to resume, duties to tend to, and she had to try very hard to remind herself that her pain was not their burden to carry. Time moved slowly in the hospital- it could have been years and Momoko wouldn't have even noticed. The days melted together in a grey blur, like she was flipping through an old book with water-damaged pictures. The only thing that would sometimes stand out was the therapist that would come and talk to her multiple times a week, but she paid her little mind and so most of the words fell on deaf ears.

Gaara was here often but they never spoke, never touched. Momoko laid with her back to him, and after the first few days of not receiving a single word in response, Gaara finally settled for silence. He was here for a lot of the therapy sessions, trying his best to be receptive but failing so many times. Mostly, he sat quietly at her side, tears welling in his eyes but never falling, and stared at the ceiling as the hours dragged along. He was allowed two weeks by his council to mourn, but once that time had run out he was expected back in the office; the world carried on, unfortunately that applied to the Kazekage as well.

When Gaara was gone, Kankuro was there to take his place. Gaara would stop by in the mornings before work and again afterwards, and Kankuro was there every moment between. He did his best to make the most of the situation, trying to lighten her mood by telling her silly jokes or weird things he saw on the walk there. He would bring her books sometimes, and though they went untouched, he never stopped setting a new one on her side table every few days. Gaara was grateful that Kankuro was there for her when he couldn't be, glad that someone was there to distract her from her thoughts.

That's where he was now, sitting at her side as they sat in the courtyard of the hospital. She had been allowed to leave her room once in a while with some assistance, so Kankuro would help her into a wheelchair and together they would head outside. The fresh air was nice- it did little for her mood but it was a change of scenery, and for that she was grateful.