[FANFIC - HBD, SASUKE(?)] WILDFIRE; (SK)
now uploaded in fanfiction.net~! here; if you wish to comment but can't do so here, please feel free to review over there~!481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxz6DEOZAKt
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By: Kanae (Goth-Punk88 @ ff.net)481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe97g5lD7n9
Rating: M (some suggestive scenes, and some violence.)481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzwdHc4Cg6z
Word Count: 8.810481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIGorbmjYVX
Author's Notes: I got this plot-bunny a couple of months ago; the idea was to sit down and carefully plan it, but… well, life happened. So I decided to let it write itself instead. Posting it for Sasuke’s birthday project because, while his birthday is not the focus of this, it does get briefly mentioned (:hurr)~ Also, there are some credits, but I’ll be giving them at the end of the fic in order to not spoil anyone.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIb4IXWHelB
Warning: Some OOC-ness due to the fact that I'm working with future SK... among other things you will soon realize lol481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJt4BRdVNob
Summary: It is a flame that was set ablaze by a smile. A fire that consumes everything in its wake. A wildfire that burnt them to ashes, down to their roots.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgcaXB3e6Kx
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A heartbeat that awakens from the ashes.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Uut7HN48z
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To the stars that played with the darkness481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlSjuPWfqzn
I sang of love and burned up completely
Wildfire481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr3AOMoXUKh
by Kanae481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmNfKXCyN34
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It happens a hot Thursday afternoon as he goes through the tourniquets of the subway and catches a glimpse of red from the corner of his eye.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPLbKE1lBw
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Something in his chest tightens.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vhVnZDfgm
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He is looking back before he knows it, uncharacteristically standing still as his eyes seek the source of the red; a girl’s ponytail.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEyGVljVcDp
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Just a girl.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAilhmcFYQ
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Sasuke all but snorts, mildly shaking his head and turning away in wonderment.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU13krshnKD
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He misses the way the girl stops, her back straightening as if bolted.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRq95Hb9l8h
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He has almost reached the escalators when someone steps in front of him, blocking his way—and he can’t help the slight widening of his eyes as he realizes who it is.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsi9a4LteQ1
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The girl.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuNiZajbDYb
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The redhead.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwegi20klkB
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“Sorry,” she says, and she is a little out of breath. Had she run to catch up with him? “Do I know you?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcDeIrl44os
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An alien reply makes its way from his chest up to the tip of his tongue, but Sasuke does not recognize it—and before he can even deem it worth his time, it is gone. And all that remains is the same disinterest from before. Just a girl.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPiBmjjnMeM
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“Don’t think so,” he replies, trying to sidestep her—but the girl blocks his way again.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7vP7UhMzqL
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“No, I do know you. I mean—” Sasuke narrows his eyes, irritated, but the girl looks too caught up in her thoughts to notice, “I have dreamed of you.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhKIxCldqom
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Sasuke gives her a blank stare and the girl turns a little pink. “I-I mean,” she stammers, pushing her glasses further up her nose. The gesture stirs something inside of Sasuke, and it is powerful enough to the point he almost misses her next words “I know it sounds weird, but—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDKeQkA7vUl
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“You’re right,” Sasuke agrees, clenching his jaw and walking past her.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1e20PlccVy
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“Wait!” she calls, and Sasuke finds his legs answering in kind even before his name comes out of her lips. “Y—your name is… Sasuke, isn’t it? Uchiha Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQioMoZSGBk
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“… So what?” his reply is brisk, and it comes out through gritted teeth. This was ridiculous; both the girl and his reactions to her. What had come over him, anyway? He has never seen this chick. Ever. “Knowing that is no feat.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwZV42qfpw6
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It wasn’t. More than a quarter of the city knew his family’s name. Knowing who he was simply was part of the package.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNx9hqtNTLC
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She falls quiet—and Sasuke thinks the odd conversation has come to an end.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShEF08HfBL
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He was severely mistaken.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHhuqVSWhDF
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“And, when you were eight…” she suddenly whispers, her voice vague, “when you were eight, your mom gave you a dinosaur-shaped toy.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRXAsQhV8vP
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Sasuke’s eyes widen, his body freezing upright. Her voice gains momentum. “You said it was childish, and pretended to have thrown it away; but you still have it.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡddJFQOXiu8
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It is slowly that he turns towards her, eyes narrowed and heart galloping inside his chest. “How…?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNltRpzUUZD
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Obsidian meets pointed red, and it is something in the calculating edge of her gaze more than her words that which turns Sasuke’s skin into gooseflesh. “…You keep it locked in a box inside your closet, just like you keep locked away that irrational fear of yours of losing them someday.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsethO1Hts
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Them. His parents. The one thing he has never told anyone—not even his brother. The one thing he has never been able to face, regardless of how much he has tried to do so.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVgZvuD0oO6
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He wants to say something—anything—but words just won’t come. He feels utterly intimidated and exposed before this stranger; before this redhead whose lips quirk up in the barest traces of a smile, her shoulders relaxing.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlbW1CiaWX
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“Come on, there’s a café down the street, we can talk there.” She does not wait for a reply, simply reaching out and taking a hold of his sleeve—and as she pulls him towards the escalators, Sasuke feels an unexplainable sense of déjà vu.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOlM6xfkQlz
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“Let me go,” he mutters, though he can’t find it in himself to oppose any resistance. “I can walk by myself.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFRlDJ7zqcw
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She does not let go of him.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1voITo6Fa4
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And the déjà vu only worsens.
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“Come with me, Karin. I need you.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLZndiwAYmb
“Huh?! Why should I go anywhere? I’m in charge of this place!”
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“They started… around 3 months ago, I think,” the girl—Karin—says, after the waitress has brought them their respective orders; Sasuke, a black coffee, Karin, a cappuccino with amaretto.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3adZNcOGU4
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“The… dreams?” he questions, and feels utterly ridiculous just by saying it.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEesBz0lD4Y
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“Yeah, the dreams,” Karin agrees, taking a sip of her coffee and giving him a pointed look over the brim of the cup. “At first they were sporadic. Just once every few nights or so, but then I started to get them every night… every single night.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW9jxZuf9dt
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“And these… dreams, of yours. They were about me?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡklyV8hrQxb
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“Not all of them,” she retorts thoughtfully, if not a little defensively; but then she shrugs. “But you were always there.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQQDSBUJl2k
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“Doing what, exactly?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmKrypLCFnU
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“A lot of things. Fighting, mostly. You were a ninja, sometimes. Both of us were.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxDouxwgS4T
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“…A ninja?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Nsz9vQE1P
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“Yeah. A very powerful one, at that. Don’t—” she warns, before Sasuke could have the chance to interrupt with a snide remark. “I know how ridiculous it sounds, but it’s the truth.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCdmN6MOnoN
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He crosses his arms with an eye roll. “That still does not explain how you knew about the dinosaur.” Just mentioning the toy makes a wave of embarrassment wash over him, but he tries to keep at bay and not let it show.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZJJHYZdl5l
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Karin smiles, and the gesture looks sour. “Not every dream took place in the same world, Sasuke. Those—the ones where we were shinobi, those were the firsts, and also the most recurrent. But I have seen you as you are, too. And as you were.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtIjjnRyloy
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“… What do you mean, exactly?” he prods with narrowed eyes.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx8hmaTMa92
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It’s her turn to cross her arms. “Tch, you already know, don’t you? You’re smart, Sasuke. Don’t take me for a fool.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZaI2aWSdSB
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Sasuke frowns. He didn’t like her tone, and neither did he like where she was going with this. “Reincarnations?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsV9cW73fXm
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Karin snaps her fingers, “Bingo.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG7BvBBnaAQ
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Sasuke snorts. “That’s ridiculous.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb98Wfh0Jna
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“I know you don’t believe in them, Sasuke. But that doesn’t mean they do not exist.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLrIewCbTDn
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“Stop,” Sasuke demands, his patience running thin at being lectured by a complete stranger. “Stop talking as if you know me, Karin. You don’t.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡap0XAojI0Q
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“Actually, I do,” Karin shoots back without missing a beat, her red eyes steadily holding his even despite his threatening glare. “And from the looks of it, I know you better than you know yourself—stay there, Sasuke,” she stresses, and his glare only intensifies. He hadn’t even had the enough time to move a muscle. “I am not finished yet.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHvbmb4FRod
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“But I am done hearing your bullshit.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKN9fhQZZaf
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Karin blinks at him and then promptly snorts. “The you in my dreams was nicer to be around, I’ll give you that.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5CQhsl4t4Y
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He feels insulted, but he stays. And a little smirk quirks up Karin’s lips; as expected, that smirk said.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOjHbcUcjnk
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But any comments he may have had about her arrogance promptly disappear as the redhead utters her next words.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ95EYgS7qaS
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“I know why you’re so afraid of losing your parents, someday.”
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“Shhh” she coos, cradling his trembling form in her arms and making him sink his face on her chest. It’s her favorite new shirt and it’s getting soaked and soiled by his tears and the soot, but her heart is too busy breaking over him and his pain and her mind is too shaken by the explosion and the death—by the smell of burnt flesh, by the screaming figures of his parents and brother as they were consumed by the fire.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjv2STpPBkL
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“Shhh, Sasuke, it will be alright,” she isn’t sure if she believes what she is saying. Not when there are tears beginning to leak from her own eyes and dripping onto his hair—not when his sobs twist her soul and worsen the despair. Why did this have to happen to them? Why did they have to—? “I promise you, it will be alright, we will get through this.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt6uFpSN7Ys
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They. Because that was all that was left, now. She was all he had left.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC93TJA2HTB
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“We will get through this,” she repeats, because they would. They had to.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyI45jd7hG9
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“You’re not alone. I’m with you, Sasuke. I won’t ever leave you,”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJtQcTfiNrX
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Despite her bravado her voice breaks at the end and Sasuke clutches her shirt—holds onto her for dear life and hastily pulls her together again.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyN6tm4W0LU
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“I promise.”
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Sasuke fists his hands to prevent them from shaking as his very soul seemed to be doing. He sets his jaw, tries to regularize his breathing and his pulse—tries to not show any signs of inward struggle.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDuZS832p5t
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No that it would make much of a difference, since Karin was deliberately keeping her attention elsewhere. She had barely looked at him from the moment she started to tell him all she knew—all she had seen—about his parents, and weren’t he so troubled by everything he heard, he would have realized he was thankful for her tact.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡob8VsD8XzK
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As things were, however, his brain was having troubles assimilating Karin’s words; how his parents had died over and over again. Killed by his brother (by his brother, out of all people! What kind of bullshit was that?), in an accident, in a fire—Sasuke had tuned out, then. The images such stories enticed were too vivid, too troubling—they made the hairs on his arms stand on end, made cold droplets of sweat roll down his neck.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZyb8cPjQRR
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Everything was preposterous, absolutely unbelievable—and even then he could not dismiss a word she had said, even though he desperately wanted to. Something in the way she had spoken—in the way her voice had quivered, her stare grave and set on her lap—and even more so, something in the things she had known; habits that Mikoto and Fugaku had and that no one but him and Itachi would know about, made her words all the harder to shake off.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1GCfBFGUYc
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So he aims for the next best thing—he tries to push the thought aside and latches onto another one, one that has slowly but surely been demanding his attention.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrujpU1RjOP
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“… Where do you fit into all that?” he murmurs, and has to swallow to help ease his dry throat. “Why is it you, and not me, who is having these dreams?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy7err4D6Gf
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The ghost of a smile touches her lips, “I don’t know. I guess it’s because you’ve closed yourself off, again,” it fades. “You always close yourself up.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuNN4wiQIWm
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He has really run out of patience. “Stop with the riddles, will you? Just answer!”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡahBrDa48AP
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Karin hardens her expression, her eyes squarely meeting his own. “In that first world, I was your teammate. In the second, I was your friend. In the third, your lover.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNIWii3cRLn
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Sasuke cannot really help the way he feels his throat clog up, his cheeks warm. So he fakes a cough, looks away; “And this is the fourth?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQoNZtCs59Y
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Karin shrugs, unfazed.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCWKBblVROx
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“I don’t know, I guess there may be more. I haven’t remembered them yet, though.” Her voice lowers, “…I don’t know if I want to, either.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEUij49kh9
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That catches his attention. “What do you mean?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoPbDAWhrK9
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“… They weren’t always nice, Sasuke. They rarely were.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7f9lw0DILL
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Sasuke arches one eyebrow, curious. “What weren’t?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQl8MNDU87n
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For the first time since they got there, Karin squirms in her seat.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTi9XW79kYa
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“...You.”
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There is lighting prickling her skin and piercing her chest; it has missed her heart by an inch, a miracle improbable enough to be deliberate—but one that is a curse in disguise, for his eyes do not miss the mark.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡczfW6PZMCI
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They hit the bulls-eye dead on its center, and she feels it freeze and then wither and die, disintegrating into a worthless pile of ashes that, with every single word he says, scatter like the wind—never to be recovered again.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡorJBPRJd7z
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“Karin… the moment you were taken hostage, you became an encumbrance.”
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She leans her head on her propped up palm, and the pair of red eyes that were fixed into his look sage and tired all of a sudden. “…But I guess it never made much of a difference.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOCQq9iaLyu
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzJhdnmDWvN
Sasuke hates it; having to repeat himself. But he moodily does, anyway. “What do you mean?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxTlgjMBItU
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI96qEuBWNk
Karin does not reply right away; and when she does, her voice is the softest Sasuke has heard it sound so far.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgaRhu3i4YG
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQeqpjgnFEP
“I always ended up loving you all the same,” she admits.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtLYEDHKc0P
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ89qPxFMgmo
Then she looks at him again, and Sasuke finds that he can’t look away.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNFiwXVhtJP
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGs9d1X6FwX
“Always.”
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuJHTFYyBFQ
It happens on a rainy night.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjWXE0bWCB3
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEIl7222Ho
The rain had started pouring out of nowhere. What a minute ago had been a clear sky became a gray maze of plump clouds and then thick, cold droplets of rain had started to cascade down over the town.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVQagIsZ2CX
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJfkv1pxq2D
Ever so slowly, the crowded street was left almost empty; for the exception of a few pedestrians who had been keen enough to bring an umbrella with them.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyUp8sVAZse
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiIfLNKbfd0
She hadn’t been.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw4l2jXEm3h
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDcGv5afJ7V
As the traffic light begins to turn, she dashes out from under the improvised shelter of an awning only to stop dead in her tracks—in her haste, she had not realized the light included an advanced left-turn signal.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsLuiczdohw
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZWKWUFq4eY
So much for not getting wet, she thinks, and it’s then that an umbrella is placed above her.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeDJKAM6GaU
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLVYyPLQxbb
Startled, the girl flickers her gaze upward only to find a dark-haired business man casually speaking into his cellphone, his eyes focused on the traffic light ahead. Their arms are touching, the warmth of his body seeping through to hers despite the long sleeves of his expensive-looking cloak, and she finds her cheeks warming up, her heart quickening at the unexpected gesture of kindness.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8jyOzbONy
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkzBlIUVa7C
The light changes and he moves ahead without hesitation, with the same kind of firm grace with which he had come to shelter her—and she is so transfixed by him that she almost forgets she is supposed to walk, too.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0EsoZgw5W9
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOquwRaa2vB
When they get to the other side of the street, the business man wordlessly leads her to an awning and then parts ways with her, not once glancing at her.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDjcjk1aHrd
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqL5cH30IcA
But she can’t look away from him—and before she knows it her legs are moving and the rain no longer matters.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMcSp9WhCw
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRHhWdtBU14
By the time he has hung up, they’re standing at the next intersection and she is soaked from head to toe.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfMnk1s3G5h
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4roJk2cdC
“Hey, you! Wait!”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeBurqyClzj
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzMo2uD3qoS
The business man slowly turns around, painfully so, confusion apparent on his face.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lIm1OvtRj
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZ2QanfO3l
Onyx meets red and her heart skips a beat as his eyes widen ever so slightly.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8HgR6nABnP
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ22Fyg1eZbd
“Thank you,” she breathes out jaggedly and not exactly from the chasing, “for before.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoHzlJpsxiy
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR4yBI3fNMk
“… It’s nothing,” he states, and though his words are nothing but an astonished murmur she hears them loud and clear over the thunders. “And it doesn’t seem to have helped much.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhUhSL4PkMH
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwbWZ5j2ph
Her blush worsens under his pointed look, but the hint of amusement in those deep eyes of his edges her on. “I-I know of a good café down the street. If you aren’t in a hurry, how about I invite you something while we wait for the rain to let up?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUtdPr9oi1D
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR3A5VEaSEU
He tilts his head to the side, long bangs falling across his face. “… Hn, down the street, you say?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuGTZDz3quX
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5bhRO2K3dB
“Yeah. It’s less than a minute away,” she gulps, “so, what do you say?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwkSGGM1rM
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzFRKPAbiE6
He smiles, and his whole face lights up. “I’d like that.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQUcLHJyLr
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQvD7sXhLD
By the time they place their orders, she is already in love with him.
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfJ2AZ1q63E
He thinks that maybe he should be surprised, but the truth is that he isn’t.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeEmysgLHRX
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡboZy9jKf8B
Somehow, it felt like he had been waiting for it—waiting to see her walking through that door, ever since they had parted ways at that Café a little over a week ago.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxAUf8ToO3S
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs7ICt7zAdF
“… You did this on purpose, didn’t you?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvraor7h8c9
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZXqm1FrAU4
Karin blinks innocently, a direct contrast with the amused smirk shamelessly painted across her lips. “What do you mean, Uchiha-san?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtIEWpmpflM
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoTDJINjBeU
“Drop the act,” he glares, matter-of-fact. “You knew I worked here.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ86DZweQ1oT
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKnbgEAVFpS
“Oh, don’t be so conceited, Sasuke,” Karin waves a hand, puts the other on her hip and sways to the side. The movement is every bit of a taunt as it is sensual, and Sasuke finds himself blushing like a preschooler as a recurrent memory slips itself uninvited into his mind again.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDZkqpJSm6H
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtzKZOfJd1k
'Always'.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV68C00F2hg
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwWnKbYnPZs
“—so not my fault you basically own the damn city,” Karin finishes, and Sasuke blinks.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNtfthgaOQ0
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Arn5t4wQi
“Huh?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN5RaxyUReG
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyNbo0Xtaps
She deadpans. “You weren’t listening, were you?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvyq0GEx2hr
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcOF8H4m60Y
“I was,” he lies through gritted teeth, prodded by some unexplainable force. Damn, why did he always have to bicker with this girl?481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk14KcrEm93
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ugmYleC9N
“You are a terrible liar, Sasuke,” she remarks, and suddenly her face lights up. “Hey, did I tell you about the time I was a lie-detector and—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKsfasNcSv3
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡavgq9BqavG
He all but groans. “Stop, Karin. Don’t bring that kind of talk here, someone may hear you.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwBgzNCoWgx
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOZ1xd3RFqU
“Pft, so what?” she huffs, crossing her arms and swaying her hips again. “It’s not like I work here, right?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFz8X9kNddi
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmpFoqUDt8
Her tone and most specially the glimmer in her eye as she looks at him told him otherwise.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIZxnvxyezZ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy2aOb6m8ZT
Damn her.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgRTQ9OkMpB
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvddXeeqGTe
“Talk to Nara on the second floor, he will give you your contract. And Karin—not a word to anyone about… about—” he refused to say us. There wasn’t an us. “—about what you told me. Understood?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSjzSGPtMil
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7pHUt6hKNN
She does a mock salute, “Right, Uchiha-san!” and Sasuke massages his temple, wondering what had made him agree to give her the job in the first place.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYNKLlY6iHC
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSG9l7hk04v
As if reading his thoughts, Karin calls out to him from the door.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzgw6lfYFI
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbUsIB8YiNH
“Cheer up, Sasuke,” and Sasuke can catch a glimpse of her playful smirk before she closes the door behind her. “This isn’t the first time we work together, you know?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYjvQA7H11N
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFAjEaLP0Qp
And for some unknown reason, Sasuke finds himself blushing.
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9LqesVUh48
“I brought you the papers you requested,”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj76amdaULi
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlhmZvmjHav
She has barely finished the sentence when he has her pressed against the door and is claiming her mouth with his own, his hands roaming across her back and then down as she skillfully locks the door.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHc0og8iHJa
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvFiyLo8Idp
“Idiot,” she manages to reprimand between kisses, “what if someone sees us?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb3icfgP5Ue
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLBXagS7bP3
“Who cares,” he retorts, his voice a throaty murmur that worsens the heat settled in the lower part of her abdomen, “let them watch if they want.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3m1rLPz6QV
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJRAUgdKqZV
“Hmmm that’s kinky,” she teases, and her blood boils as he raises his face from her belly in order to give her a roguish look.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqCipBZagb1
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqkoHOuaO5C
“Any complains?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUcakxST9ah
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuvS6xnKwCp
“Yeah… stop teasing me and get on with—ahh” she moans, her nails scrapping at the door as his head gets lost inside her skirt, his hands spreading her thighs apart.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYy880bTR8L
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlAXM3Gdxo1
She has a mission to accomplish—but he makes her forget soon enough.
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfCuMOH47Bb
“I’ll have some Okonomiyaki, please.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOkeeignXts
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJvoC1hHs0h
The waitress nods and leaves—but not without giving Sasuke a hurt look from underneath her long lashes. He hopes Karin will let it slide; so of course Karin does exactly the opposite, her slim eyebrows arched high.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbXsvYWHAad
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKp18vEQ1S
“Whoa, Sasuke, That girl totally has a thing for you!”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRjlvqAkjvJ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzuSPpo62eO
Sasuke rolls his eyes; he was so over this subject. “Tch, she and every other employee, what else is new.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Oc08rz7C9
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeMann6Q5yZ
Karin snorts, “Cocky, aren’t we? Do I need to remind you that I am one of your employees, too?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡowcrZVnYPT
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnil2LJFh47
'Always'.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNCTY49GP2
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4gLriUo1BG
Against his better judgment, he can feel all too easily the way his cheeks start to warm up. What was up with him and blushing around this girl? He was never like this, ever.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡatCDrjsUf7
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaKt02nQQg
“Whatever,” he ends up taking the easy way out. Sitting across from him, Karin pouts, leans her chin on her hand and lazily waves a finger in his face.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT86Q1xXhse
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHLfhUEaM4R
“You really are no fun, Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwVy4GM2xwB
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvFbHja73r
“Forget about that, Karin. You said you would tell me more about—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfhawgVFzc7
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWStHI3yKBF
“Right, right,” she sighs, and her faked annoyance swiftly gives way to a leer. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to see you so interested in us, but it wouldn’t hurt to focus on the current us.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8418GG3aw
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGK0oSAxs4
“Karin.”
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx1XwOgHiSe
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5wAZ4V61Z6
“This is enough for today, thank you for your cooperation, Karin,” she knows better than to give weight to his agreeable words. The way he doesn’t even look at her, too busy being transfixed by her blood instead, says everything she needs to know.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaSJqHcNOnj
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVVoZPufLhx
So she recoils when he reaches out to bandage her—scowls, sidesteps him and stumbles her way out of the room, hating herself for the numbness in her legs.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbT0lFLeRfC
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbNP3HwAYqb
He is the first thing she sees when she comes out of the room.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz8KkgeNJFm
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWX9Mj34Th6
He is leaning against the wall, arms crossed against his chest—and then her knees give up and he is draping her arm around his neck and helping her walk, revealing the bandages held in his hands.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBtkxwuoGAa
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj4RRsZlqMy
“…I can walk by myself, Sasuke,” she lies, but he does not let go and she lets herself lean a little closer. Close enough to feel the dampness in his side. She looks down and finds blood—and then she is glaring at him from behind her half-lidded eyes.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhRNWAl4vsS
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYeNdFbv6XY
“Idiot,” she hisses, and means it. “You are hurt, let me—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxLep0q9Lg
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFe2IQ6QJub
“You can’t heal anyone in your current state, Karin,” came his reply, calm and even despite the open wound in his side, and Karin hates the fact that he is right.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm133pvqGSZ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXrdhRbnuH7
“…You should’ve gone to bandage yourself, Sasuke. I don’t need you to babysit me,” she says faintly, both embarrassed and touched at once.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBgUONy0wj9
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4GaX1JCMbK
To her surprise, Sasuke snorts.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnoJHqQq1d
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpeuPaKr2t9
“What?” she snaps.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQD0XTmqcS
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwZ2lTyjBKG
“Nothing,” he says, and he is smirking. “Just, you’re the last person I want to hear that from, Karin.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsde25rfcD1
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBrlZmIMps0
She frowns, but her cheeks go red. She has a feeling she knows where he is going with this. “Tch, what is that supposed to mean?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaEGNeqcsze
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyihVaBbsIC
He looks down at her from the corner of his eye, his smirk softening around the edges. “…I wonder.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwYtbafZQWl
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ6zHLRdbnm
And despite her blood loss, her blush only deepens.
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUycZizg8Ee
“Would you like more tea, Karin-chan?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ26cDBolFzQ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFEn2plcWPT
Sasuke can’t hold back an eye-roll as Karin politely declines; this was the fifth time in a row, and he didn’t know what surprised him more—Karin’s sudden faultless manners, or the lengths to which his mother was going to please her. Hell, one would think it was the redhead’s birthday rather than his.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHL4YrPeGtU
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwhX50EmxY
“Don’t be like that, little brother,” the voice comes from behind him, and is accompanied by a hand that affectionately ruffles his hair. “You know it’s not often that mother gets to attend a girl.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIp6WVBiV0n
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA2SLjI1VGw
Sasuke huffs, halfheartedly batting his brother’s hands away. “I know that—moreover, when will you stop treating me like a child, Itachi?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI6FNU0AnjV
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc0zmZgQidU
“Probably when you stop acting like one,” chimes in a female voice, and Sasuke sends her an airy look as Itachi chuckles behind him. He was definitely starting to regret having brought her along; what had he been thinking?481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbx7z2vC0Hl
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm5LgCBJaTs
He does not get to say it aloud however, as Karin is now looking at Itachi with curious eyes. “Don’t tell me this is Sasuke’s first time bringing a girl home?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlbgeHyPpDf
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlwZh74NxTD
Great. So she had been listening in, huh? He should have guessed.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChOQmeXlLv
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpkcnShqvAt
“Not quite,” Itachi replies, but Sasuke’s triumphant smirk is short-lived as his brother adds, “But almost.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1VBTCkR6Vl
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpOK3x0WzAH
“Brother!” he reproaches, causing the older boy to chuckle again and Karin to smirk widely.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkUBRmsobxw
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIquBu1WSrD
“You’re unbelievable, Sasuke; I mean, I knew you were an unsocial prude, but almost no girlfriends? Seriously?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1yJQDWKOwy
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9yOltzP7na
He glares, mortified to feel the by-now familiar sensation of his cheeks heating up. “Shut up, Karin.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPgDEMXNamH
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMemHEtULqG
“I would say that more than that, what is so remarkable is that this is the first time he brings home a girl who isn’t his girlfriend.” Itachi comments, his tone kind but knowing—and as Karin looks away from the older Uchiha and towards Sasuke, giving him a look that seemed to be clearly flaunting a oh, is that so? Sasuke airily looks away.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWTj04ibBYk
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqsy4rjvCr6
Damn you, brother.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPh2b8zz5Wy
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbe97O1zbef
“Hn, I don’t know what Itachi is talking about.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEQSA3FKIA9
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ97rKUdQq1m
A twinkling laughter resounds through the room, effectively cutting the argument short; and the three of them turn only to find Mikoto standing by the doorway, a tray of biscuits in her hands and a happy beam in her beautiful face.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo9RI9ib9Jt
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9espjmWZug
“It seems you three are having fun,” she merrily observes, graciously moving to leave the tray on the tea-table. “I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen Sasuke enjoy himself this much.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmXSJK6LaFw
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwRHpnG3lhG
Despite his better judgment, Sasuke can feel himself blushing. “Who said I’m enjoying myself?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv48Y1PL4gm
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZbBqDTNu90
But his indignant mutter remains promptly ignored as Mikoto takes Karin’s hands in hers and gives her a glowing smile. “You’re good for my son, Karin-chan.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6c0tnrfkna
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4bjjVVnPA3
For a moment, the room is submerged in silence—even Karin herself is rendered speechless, and while in any other circumstance Sasuke would have reveled in seeing the girl this flustered—widened eyes, a pink hue in her cheeks—the truth is this time, it only adds to his own awkwardness.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1o3gN1Omgn
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGOe1MYrwpN
“… Mother, you just met her,” he lamely ends up saying once he has found his voice, but he sounds more astonished than reproaching; and Mikoto rewards him with a thoughtful smile before setting her gaze back on Karin.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHYAFF62dUx
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLZJdglZ4NL
“I know, dear. But, somehow… it feels like you two have known each other for a long time.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGz4uK1K8SZ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK12oj12hne
Itachi says nothing—but the way in which he warmly squeezes Sasuke’s shoulder is eloquent enough.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBFjRqHjjn3
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZTL4pc2pXh
Wordlessly, Sasuke and Karin seek each other’s eyes across the room—and he wishes he wasn’t aware of the way he was slowly starting to mirror her smile.
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“It’s so stupid,” she assesses, looking at the field with apparent disinterest, “I mean, running like idiots after a ball, really? Pft, where’s the fun in that?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvVLxszqcsI
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI2i0T9ddS8
Sasuke would have been inclined to agree; if only he were listening to what she was saying. Instead, he has found himself distracted from his own homework by the way the sun seemed to be lighting her hair just so—by the way her ponytail exposed the stark whiteness of the nape of her neck; by the way she absentmindedly bit on her pencil from time to time as she read, brows furrowed in confusion or eyes light up with understanding—and she would tilt her head to the side then, stick her chin out with self-satisfaction—and Sasuke—481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0CZFttb68H
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgdrA3kSOuP
“Sasuke—hey, earth to Sasuke, are you listening? I was just saying that—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOT8KIiLuOv
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDCQjkBpGKS
But Sasuke doesn’t get to hear it, because his body is too busy being pulled to her like a moth to a flame and his brain is too busy shutting down as his lips meet hers. She freezes, and he is too much of a novice so the kiss isn’t much of a kiss—but he doesn’t quite mind.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdHg7r4mXL8
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3rMmjEUjeP
When he leans back he finds Karin staring at him, point-blank. He figures that perhaps he should try and say something; but he doesn’t feel the need to, so he just licks the lip-gloss off his lips instead.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5jK5DhjZu
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn3EtjdzF9l
“Raspberries,” he states, and that seems to get Karin off her trance, because she blinks at him.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg74tGD5BxD
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYonP5u5eyj
And then she is grinning.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNq9C62wWvW
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8g8HwTYhjJ
“Had I known you would finally kiss me today, I’d have worn something less sweet.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXg61vq0PiV
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL6BjBfco6N
He can’t help but smile back. “I almost did, yesterday,” he reveals, as he carefully takes her glasses off. “And the day before that. And the one before that.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpZsyUjFn8p
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeTK2PO364p
“I know,” and her grin becomes a husky smirk as she tangles her fingers in his hair. “You’re too easy to read, Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF7aUCay4Bg
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡErQae1N12X
“Hn, you could have helped, then,” he says, but the truth is he is too lost in her to really mind.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqwxjlBA5rD
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPU5LKBA6xJ
“Not a chance,” their noses touch and her voice lowers to a mere brush of air against his lips, “…it’s too fun to watch you squirm.”
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV733Bsn1tm
“You won’t find anything better for a more reasonable price, I assure you, Uchiha-san. This is the absolute best—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPsdrgmJSsh
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyfjCsqO328
He goes on and on, but the words of the realtor start to become nothing but background noises as Sasuke’s gaze is caught by Karin’s vibrant red hair.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeCZBTtr9ry
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAoKkl48VNM
“Excuse me.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxERKJNnFNc
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbJ7zQHlhVd
Not waiting for a reply, Sasuke makes his way to the windowsill; Karin was standing in front of it, her eyes closed and her face showered by the rays of the sun filtering in through the glass. It occurs to him then that he has never seen her looking so serene—so at peace with herself and the world. So taken is he by the realization, that he does not notice he has stopped breathing until Karin’s eyes flutter open and she smiles at him.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlyW2sq5R4X
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡId37x76Tdf
“This house is ours, Sasuke,”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡngKMOCKbZ8
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJ0PHyL964
Her fingers find their way around his, and Sasuke gives them a squeeze as he nods, his expression naturally mirroring her own.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfbdKTAWABZ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVTG02wG19x
He could feel it, too.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CQzsoiK9s
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3G2BGGv2hx
Behind them, the realtor clears his throat but Karin cuts him short before he could get a single word out.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf1GUM0aQSt
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdcICOuKuCB
“We’re buying it,” she states loud and clear, and she is positively glowing.
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She can hardly believe it.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNPxFWxUfaY
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPYEgXFp6A8
Can hardly believe this. That the guy she once chased down a street in the pouring rain is holding her in his arms, his head sunk in her neck as he breathes in the scent of her hair.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBAcNW1Frp0
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwN3i4rMcl0
It seemed like something straight out of one of those dramas she used to love to ridicule and secretly watch at the same time.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZaZopg7p56
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDZyBkWgL4
Her kind businessman had turned out to be a gentleman through and through; smooth, reliable and above all, capable. He was everything she wanted in a man and then some; and to top it all off, he seemed to be as crazy about her as she was about him.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9jh0vUHdQW
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthfaSQqC7b
Now that she thought about it, it seemed more like something straight out from a dream rather than a mere drama. The thought makes her giggle, and she feels him smile against her neck, his arms holding her just a little bit closer so that she has to readjust her own hold around his neck.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnzVjKM7ZqQ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfysSFw8PVT
“What’s so funny?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVIVyTWw9ad
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3kCL20wVc7
She tells him; because even though the thought is childish, she has learnt that she does not have to keep anything from him. She trusted him with even the most embarrassing and ridiculous sides of her; those she wouldn’t show to anyone else.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ65j8wVIc4m
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkGFWx60lWb
“There’s just one thing off, though—” she observes, as an afterthought, “where’s my rival in love?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg30lOwIeUo
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDtxkl6golG
“Nowhere,” he asserts, grave like only he could be about even the most foolish of things. “I am yours.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9NaRKBM4vT
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQZE53osop
The line would have sounded corny in anyone else’s lips, but in his it sounds just like it is—a statement. A truth being bluntly spoken as he caresses her cheek and looks into her eyes with the barest traces of a smile.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYtXFEel9zq
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyOdlXB1ZUZ
She has barely begun to smile back when he is sinking his face on her hair again and brushing his lips against her ear—“And you are mine.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKBCvxyyFMT
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaNp2gzR7d
And he is breathing in her scent and tightly holding her in his arms—so tightly in fact that she can hardly breathe.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnc4JL5jKHa
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqJcI9eoDxG
“S-asuke—” she chokes.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6WSaIEUyM8
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5TUooS3IIg
But he does not listen.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6MxE7t0A92
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCF1Liikv5v
“…mine.”
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4UYvGGEKvc
She soundlessly sneaks behind him and leans her chin on his shoulder.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYbM7hfVo62
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWw1x9HpYRZ
“Sewing again?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ47zCowdNV1
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7wXq1l0ttP
“Not my fault you have so many clothes,” is his simple reply as he continues to work the needle and the thread, slowly-but surely creating what would be a white and red fan.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWn8nAzvn9M
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8n2FTmDYvL
Her fingers come to play with his hair, pulling and twisting some strands of raven black; “I don’t get why you do it manually, Sasuke. Sewing machines exist just for this kind of thing, in case you forgot.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgAzFXcyiT1
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8c1BECNNs3
“I told you, Karin. It’s an Uchiha tradition, it’s supposed be done manually.” His voice is as light as her warm breathing against his neck, and they remain like that—he calmly sewing, she silently watching—until she suddenly straightens.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH1F1fLALUr
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA2DFM6wbCd
“Where are you going?” he can’t help but ask, and hopes the way he is already missing her doesn’t seep into his voice.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkOrf68Xwbx
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡED8XCW8iG6
“For the sewing kit,” comes her matter-of-fact reply, and surprised, Sasuke arches one eyebrow. “Since I’m becoming an Uchiha myself, I may as well learn, right?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOm1ElUbSFS
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRAGGy88IG0
She shoots him a playful smirk that looks too much like a smile before leaving the room, and Sasuke cannot help the way his pulse quickens at its sight.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIi31J1H96Z
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWmp2slPk4J
And he finds himself smiling at her back, like one of those love-sick fools he always used to make fun of.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZvZm3A4psU
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTURMzyAnP
But it’s just, back then—he had never thought someone could actually make him this happy.
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“Stop doing that, Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPN9AWjbQPc
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIV8cpIhRQ8
“Doing what?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFs4HY1ocmD
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeLlVSrSqmL
“This—making me happy,” her eyes are stern as she looks at him, but he does not take her honesty as seriously as he probably should.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAiPVD43Y9h
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡurUhFAz7cy
“Or what?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVMGHWkTUfP
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDOcQbitvPd
“…Or I may fall in love with you, Uchiha.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjPldc6e1D
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNNKeVyosQV
She is both elated and horrified to see how soft and harmless his usual menacing and intimidating smirk looks as he replies.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJSx9hIBLFt
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLHsxIzxBbE
“… Maybe I wouldn’t mind that.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtkWhDCdO2a
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMbKup7MOXw
His naked form is gone before she can gather herself enough to reply; gone to the living room of the luxury-hotel-room to call for room service—and as she hears his voice drifting over to her from the other room, Karin digs her nails into her palms.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrTfw09a3Ae
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡas5XYFgOiU
She was alone in the room, his suitcase forgotten on a nearby chair and his laptop on the table—she knows his passwords; has the knowledge and tools to get through what she does not know, and above all, she has the time to do so.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNos9GZhiko
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWvATf067Po
Only a minute would be enough for a spy as skilled as herself.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPbaHvCErIa
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIeIUo7PWE8
By the he would come back into the room and make love to her again, it would be too late for him; and he wouldn’t suspect a thing.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQWilFvjRE
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbZCAe3ssIU
She could get away with it, if she were to go through it. She should go through it. This is what they sent her for—this is what she is getting paid for, not for screwing the target all night long.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtVX5qOnssQ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbHzqUfanau
She sighs, lays back down on the bed and thinks of his pathetic attempt at a smirk. It makes it easier to forget her duties, to forget the papers she should be revising, the documents she should be hacking into—481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8wK4xhUOWw
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi2xtQ2v3vH
To forget the atrocities she would find if she did.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzdL8NIoaKx
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6QP0op6DxE
And, really—who would have thought that a monster like Uchiha Sasuke was capable of making a face like that?
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Sasuke was just putting a plate aside when the sound of porcelain breaking reaches his ears.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmuq5dAWtGx
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmRctLbWWQW
With a start, he turns only to find Karin crouched on the ground, her feet surrounded by tiny pieces of what had just been one of her favorite sets of dishes.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡua6JqsAlAa
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0lWFU8MWUF
“Karin,” he calls, drying his hands on his pants—and he misses the way Karin’s shoulders tense, her back stiffening. “Are you alright?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXYCV4oSf3
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfxTCLHW5gF
“Yeah,” she murmurs after a moment, and Sasuke blinks. She didn’t sound alright.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDT4zYS3IFR
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlflZe8c5RO
“Karin,” he calls again, approaching her. “Leave that be, I’ll take care of it.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwzgNcj4lV
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡce7u6nHhew
“I told you, it’s fine.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOKKYM3jIPR
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He frowns, concerned. “Karin—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsr5LZhTg7w
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lzll2eSRs
But the words freeze in his throat as Karin yelps and slaps away the hand he had been about to reassuringly place on her shoulder.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTzEzsUDy3
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWXnG7x76dI
For a long moment, all they do is stare at each other—Sasuke staggered by Karin’s frightened eyes, by the raw fear contorting her features—and then the moment ends and Karin is standing up and taking a loud breath.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTw9rcaYcO
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡirSHsBlZOi
“Sorry, Sasuke—I think I’ll go and lie down for a while.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwHCOfHQU4e
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvupetEvt6q
Her voice is even, but Sasuke knows her better than that; and so he can’t bring himself to watch her as she leaves the kitchen.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQKckf3FkJr
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAoN5IVv9No
He doesn’t know what he would do if he were to see that same fright reflected in her eyes again.
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUKY2vGcdRF
She jolts back as the lights go on and the shadows melt away into an all too familiar figure—one that is sitting on the one-man couch and that tilts his head to the side, dark bangs falling across his face and eyes as black as abysses centered on her.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHuzacMgI8O
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOEGEYgon9C
“S-sasuke, what—?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA1Z5jNGUL2
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4HRwbwlPTN
“Where were you, Karin?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzEJiKB5cHn
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡad60J14w3F
His question is smooth and steady; placid, even. Except that Karin knows him well enough; has gotten to know this side of him—this terrifying side of him, twisted and manipulative, brutally honest in order to hurt rather than to please—well enough lately. Enough to be able to see beyond and into the brewing storm.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJTGq9lxTBp
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ49oLeiu4S2
It reeks of lighting and promises pain—it frankly terrifies her.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB5a7JsO4JT
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But she holds her ground.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLZmkWgRldX
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKWEEiVwzRM
“I—I was having lunch with my parents, Sasuke. They called to invite us today but you were at—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZmcydZisNV
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5oeYrnXxSF
“Liar,” he grits out, and Karin’s blood runs cold. “I called them myself. You were not with them. So, where were you?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcZ9S5vUZtF
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt4OdKHS65Z
It is trying to keep her voice and hands from shaking that she says the truth. “I was out with the girls, Sasuke—but we were just eating and talking! We did nothing w—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡokNaTa8QXU
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Q4uAZRB0N
“Then why didn’t you say so from the start, Karin?” she freezes, like a deer caught in headlights—and then lowers his eyes. Slowly, Sasuke stands. “… Do you not trust me, Karin? Do you think I do not trust you? Is that it?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMxAINWvnH
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV6y2PjfWdn
“Sasuke, I—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgAIh5QFpyq
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDUItHhPDL6
“Because I do, Karin,” he is standing before her now, his hand lovingly caressing her face, his eyes warm—and though Karin knows better, her body remains as loyal to him as ever and it betrays her; closing its eyes and leaning into the touch. “I trust you, because I love you. Do you not love me, Karin?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaJtd1OsmGE
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiiScF5zP9A
A part of her hates herself for how easily the answer comes forth to her lips. For how true it remains. “… I do, Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL1sVLtYCqG
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl6RXWKmGNY
She hears his smile, “Good. Then, you will stop seeing them, won’t you? Those girls.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKwUse8PNe
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBow1hxm1tU
Her eyes snap open—and the Sasuke that greets them is once again back to being rough oceans and thunderstorms. “You’re better than them, Karin.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ10jqRKRIIe
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡirZoLQpfYy
I want you all for myself—is what Karin hears instead, and she frowns. “Sasuke, you can’t be serious—they are my friends!”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnVbOvhbEd1
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJyjYijYiN7
She comes to regret her words almost immediately, as his features snap into a mad grimace and his hand shots to her wrist, grasping it tightly enough to make her yelp—“And I not enough for you, Karin?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMTZZyCdwaY
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdU66BMaiTR
“I—” yes, he is—was. Is.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZvptmPPLY
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP4EWXO8a0o
And that frightens her more than he possibly could.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7fIPNxnZjm
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsM8KDyjCEv
“—alright, Sasuke… you win.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCmFsr0MmJe
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZBI8D8PbQM
His features relax and his hands come to cup her cheeks again, a soft, almost child-like smile in his lips. Innocent enough to trick anyone.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9JjgKP8JAG
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ86tfllUMZV
Even himself.
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWzBqeSxilG
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuzlbOUCmZ1
The silence is deafening. The unsaid drawing knots with his vocal chords, until he decides that enough has been enough.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsGqoyXBDAF
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡptOWQNlsYn
“Karin, about yesterday….” He trails off, figures he will give her the chance to own up to what happened by herself, rather than attempting to play the game of pretend like she has been doing all day.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmOvLB0gsvu
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOBiayIelCY
She doesn’t bulge. “What?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL930o7XlsH
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjV179PHv8d
And perhaps that’s what worries Sasuke the most.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡajyVqIcAQ5
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOcrZUSo2GW
It takes him a few moments before he is able to gain control of the ominous feeling pooling in his stomach; the one making it hard to speak.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqqemfR22i8
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTM7L4iTugC
“Don’t try to avoid the subject, Karin. There is something you aren’t telling me, isn’t there?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB0FO0lOPm8
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm5jGbYoTUG
Karin’s hands pause for half a second—and then she is moving the chopsticks again, her lips curving in a mystifying smile that does not reach her eyes.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPGZ8qnivq
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡILnihtel42
And Sasuke wants nothing more than to ask her to stop—but he is too scared to do so.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRnL1dPpAxD
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXFo6e8ww9y
“Eat, Sasuke. It’s going to get cold.”
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnuJbGA78Yc
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROejVsY7TZ
He rolls the raspberries between his fingers, memories swirling in his head.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡehXFgZKRWS
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfe9e1s6yQV
He has always had a very good memory; and throughout his life, it has proved to be a curse more often than a blessing.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6l56jwRfu9
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡexReNHwltg
In this case, it is both at once.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4dhdRRdoPY
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6Ee8pW5cf
A redheaded toddler pulls him along to play on the backyard; a young girl holds him as he weeps for his parents and brother; a teenager kissing the raspberry lipstick off his lips.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZxPXkGTeOA
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUcoHURoijk
A girl sending him off with a sad smile, and never looking back.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6c1PFS5t3
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFTdNWYKzy8
Broken promises.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRQU6EpGle
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmmdxfKm3yQ
A call. A funeral.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr2IrKD0w36
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSoZRNmjxCt
And tears.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYlKSy8BGWh
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSb9sXiovu3
Heartbreak.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzvsMdHgyW4
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3GPi308iSV
Loneliness.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Wbxd1a1HH
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYO0mAbpPAl
…then there was nothing else.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9kMXqBjUP
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYWbktCzUPN
And then there was everything all over again.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCdRY1lWihE
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPx2LAH7Sce
Rinse and repeat over and over; relieving both the good and the bad, but not feeling the sunlight warm nor the pain sting. It was like a movie etched on his corneas—he saw it over and over whenever he had his eyes open, whenever he had his eyes closed. And by now he has seen it enough times to know every turn, every scene—and yet he can’t stop.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNATeXRPOph
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU70bSvSnu1
He can’t stop.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpyUFUHEWEF
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGW4f8GUd6
He does not want to.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnqzvEep716
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA0nQbUJUFe
One of the raspberries snaps, juice rolling down his fingers—but he does nothing to clean it up.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeqpJU89ZXc
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSDooZPCQzq
The door creaks open.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQdWV1g7TQL
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfZFrydiVlM
“Uchiha-san, you have to eat.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgIG2RpHoL5
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcUxwji6EC9
The nurse says, more out of habit than anything else; but he is too far away to hear—481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp1cpCkU8Ke
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdFDAIO0vye
(“I’ll see you around… Sasuke,” comes her goodbye—and then there is a whirlwind of colors and images as the roll film reels back to their beginning.)481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpzvK1jVRBZ
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx2t23UHVwJ
—and it’s been a year since the patient of the room 723 has pronounced a single word.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiSUBJLDlXs
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ17z4bJsoeK
(And a five-year old Karin is smiling.)
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoBYSSlQA6y
When the first rays of the sun slip through the open curtains, Sasuke awakens only to find that it was one of those rare days when Karin has woken up first.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcGF9UsUnjB
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqgUSOhnhh
For a blissful moment, he is ignorant; forgetful. He does not remember how weird she has been acting, does not remember the silences from the past couple of days—and so he is about to tease her about waking up so early when he realizes there was something very, very wrong—and any drowsiness is suddenly yanked from underneath him like a rug.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQrT3j4DkTK
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiGvE6Fc3ap
Karin was sitting on the bed, unnaturally straight and still; her eyes vacant and unseeing, telltale trails of dried tears on her cheeks.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB0Z1E4Hc9e
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjgmMdiRb7
For an excruciatingly long moment, Sasuke is frozen in place—at a complete loss as to what to do. This was the first time he has ever seen Karin cry, and the sight makes an ugly feeling curl up in his gut.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc3puWn8J6w
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjr8Y2yX8x7
“Karin…” his voice is faint; a tentative call more to spur himself into motion than to reach her. “Karin, what’s wrong?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfoQpeV3bvB
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Ppo7PfLIN
She does not react—gives no signs of having heard him, and Sasuke is filled with a sense of foreboding so potent that it robs him of his breathing.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXY9BtjFRw
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgXmerNx4dd
And then she parts her lips.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5VVm5lL5B6
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS4hbGKM4hR
“Sasuke… I had a dream… a new one.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEAIcpF9BqL
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkCdtlrIeLU
Sasuke swallows; what could she have possibly seen to put her in such a state?481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80lNO1rK6c
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPDHSCDzD46
“Karin, I…” the redhead simply shakes her head, and to his ever-growing alarm there are fresh tears dripping from her eyes.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPHoDSQGXuy
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPuu2YdBiZE
“Forget it, Sasuke… it’s better if you do.”
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiBpiKKHAXa
.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTw2XecTbRL
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RCbWLsW2b
She chokes on a distraught sob as she gathers his body in her arms, his blood seeping into her shirt and tainting it as crimson as her hair.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMJB1uK4A71
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHDqPxsCApl
“Stop it, Karin. You were not supposed to care about him—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2JegG4DzlY
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOilFmvTojC
“And you weren’t supposed to kill him! This was my job!” she growls, her sight blurry by unleashed tears—and despite it she can still clearly see the apathy in her coworker’s face.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKt7UT8U21p
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWIDCv8Iqp
It makes something in her tightly clench.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFo752Sghwd
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIdy5nk4Si2
“Hn, you took too long. We couldn’t keep waiting for you to remember your roots. Did you forget you’re a spy, Karin? You’re trained for riding the world of bastards like these.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbkQQfEgW1
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNxB6KKBjB
And then he distastefully kicks him—he kicks Sasuke’s side, as if he were nothing but a sack of bones and skin—and something in her snaps.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg1Qodb2ziK
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxdAWsFue5c
She is taking her gun out and blowing his brains out before he has got time to even think—and as the body falls to the ground with a sick thud, Karin wipes off her tears—smearing her cheeks with Sasuke’s blood—and loads the gun again.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqWB4KFDeQp
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhDuvzmGo72
She can hear them coming from her, and she knows she won’t be able to escape—but that was fine.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX4njnHJZWX
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKBrT9rI8Zl
She would take as many of them as she possibly could before going down, and—481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR185Z6RKjI
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2I6wSVWVvW
“…we’ll meet soon, Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs5mX88Nm8K
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR63vB3aznT
—and Sasuke had always liked souvenirs.
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzFihkIABw
He is crudely woken up by Karin screaming his name.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxPcJ8dSIaR
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡceXa38fWGS
Her yells are shrill and terrified; and they do not stop, no matter how much he shakes her, how much he calls out to her.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA4Jwqp3wnh
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUmrLEHbdTl
In fact—she seemed to only be getting worse.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh24akUt6Tr
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPfWGSIjpq
“Sasuke, no—!”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrHfxL5lZk
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmXNw3pFGxC
“Karin! Karin, wake up!” he has her seized by her shoulders, but Karin trashes in his hold; so he brushes the bangs off her forehead instead, trying to soothe her nightmares with his touch. “It’s fine, I’m here, I won’t let anyone hurt—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYE0H4vpyV
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz2s8CTqxl6
But his sincere promise is cut short by her terrified sob.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuqgSIR8QeY
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrPlBnbxXK
“N-no, Sasuke—get away from me!”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnz9BTskTzS
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGXd89tFvO
Sasuke jumps back, as if burnt. “W-what…?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLJoAwZp4GH
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2xQndnslQV
He could not believe his ears—she was frightened—of him?481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpyS9mhFJQq
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5M8qjaCqgV
He leans back; backs off the bed and steps into the cold floor, his mind whirling—and it’s then a memory sneaks into his conscious. Uninvited, and terrible with the clarity it brings him.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0TwINS4hDU
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOtcKlDXvZo
‘… They weren’t always nice, Sasuke. They rarely were.’481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPhudPa1SlC
‘What weren’t?’481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7qmHC4C1w
‘...You.’481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡouWHNYVMPO
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgxjR3RJLL
The thought makes trepidation mercilessly grip his heart—and he can do nothing but helplessly watch as Karin twists and turns in her sleep, battling against ghosts he cannot see.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTL1B9Z0O6k
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhczIHVpeQo
Ghosts he has started to fear, too.
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm7462xRvQC
“Karin,” he whispers affectionately, caressing her cheek with his right hand, “I need you.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlVlXELTR8J
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKTpFib0lOj
Karin swallows the knot in her throat and forces her knees to remain firm, “I—I know, so plea—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzfzPAdbd8c
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjPlxrrPLJ
“You’re the only one for me,” he talks over her, as if she hadn’t said a word. And Karin cannot fight the shiver that runs down her spine as something cold is pressed to her ribcage, right in between her breasts. “That’s why… I must to do this.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzY0FzIDwfL
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVTpNTWZ2Dg
“Sasuke,” her voice is hoarse, her eyes begging him to rethink this—to be reasonable. But Sasuke simply shakes his head and smiles an impossibly sad smile, his thumb tracing her bottom lip, which has started to quiver.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVXPJ1AX4cV
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQkYTIW696H
“I’ll see you soon… Karin.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡilnTv8ediL
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ghzjWOYg1
He says, and his words are as loud as the gunshot that follows.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnm8vawU3l
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp2YWoAdmrX
And then her lifeless body is crumbling to the ground, his soon to follow.
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNlFS5mHIV
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481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTmntaI9UD
“What was I doing to you?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRoulPWETEM
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0R5NUb3Wvr
“… I don’t remember.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwnB4LXXzyX
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRXmnJBDrez
Sasuke shuts his eyes close, his hands gripping the sheets. It would be so much easier to pretend to believe her; to pretend there was nothing wrong. To pretend he didn’t spend the whole night fighting the desperation gripping at his core as he watched her shake in her turmoil-filled sleep; longing for it to end, dreading what would happen once it did.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu6F2KkoVhq
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ60TCmg7DS6
But he has played that game long enough.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXloHYVomf8
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqR35kY0wZ
He cannot continue to allow himself to remain blissfully unaware while she battles on her own.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCkw0QmaKvI
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8WD6y2bb21
“Don’t lie to me, Karin.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHlk6I08iSq
481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡda1yRTqi5A
“I’m not lying, Sasuke… I can’t remember what I dreamed,” Karin whispers, and a shiver runs down his spine as she places her cold hand atop of his own; it was trembling. “…But I can remember the rest.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnTtEWVDpAE
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He is shaking, too—and so he uncurls his fists and entwines his fingers with hers, and makes the one request that would surely change everything.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjExjZirF0p
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“…Tell me the truth, Karin.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJL6fkvcvKr
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Karin takes a deep breath, and Sasuke braces himself.
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The world seems to slow to a halt as she coughs up blood, the sword cleanly piercing her chest and stopping dangerously close to his own heart.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyi5f00SMkl
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He can only stare, eyes wide, at the back of her head—the vibrant strands of hair tickling his face as she takes an involuntary step backward—and then there is a cold flush of liquid splaying all over his shirt as the sword is pulled out and she begins to crumble down like a leaf—481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQqu3l5jhyo
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And her name leaves his lips in the form of a horrified call—one that is cut short by her strained smile.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCnOjZN4fMd
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“Idiot, I… told you… to move, Sasuke…”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡubwSyKmSgq
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“Stop talking, Karin,” he ushers, and his vision blurs. Despite it he thinks he sees her smile widening, and he cradles her closer to his chest, tries to ignore the blood seeping from her body at an alarmingly fast pace. “You need to save your strength, Sakura is c—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNh1ltR0n2G
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“Sa…suke,” and though her voice is nothing but a dying whisper, he is rendered silent at once. “Promise me… you won’t… die.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKhVQHoL9dy
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His teeth clatter and sink on his lip, drawing blood—and suddenly he is yelling. “You are the idiot, Karin! Why?! Why would you do that for me? Did you forget what I did to you? I thought you said you wouldn’t! I thought you said you would—”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPU4geh6frX
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“—make you… regret it… I know,” her smile looks like unleashed tears. “I admit… this… wasn’t exactly… what I had… in mind.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFASSpNW6sV
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There is a choked sob—and he barely registers it is his own.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLeIvmZJXMD
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She does, though—and her fingertips come to softly brush away the tears from the corner of his eyes, leaving telltale traces of crimson instead.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3taTmmBxYF
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“Don’t… all I want…ed… is for you… to smile… like that day.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVIuLPgaGgx
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He knows at once what she means—but the memories feel light-years away; they are colored in grays and smeared with blood, and for the life of him—for the life of her—he cannot find it in himself the will to smile.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWuwK1kyqez
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And she slips away through his hesitation like he had always slipped through her fingers.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECJbcCNldK
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“See ya… Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡekxGSbAK3h
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Her hand drops and her body goes cold, and all his lips seem to be able to do is call her name—a name accompanied by lonesome apologies and regrets that would never get either of them anywhere.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2eGjCovQo
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He never seems to be able to get anywhere, ever, not even when he is trying to—but if he could—if only he could do it all over again, he—481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjK6RvGwgHN
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Mere hours later, his body is the one to drop lifelessly to the ground—and it’s all over before he can realize the smile that grazes his lips.
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A terrible silence has descended upon them.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs9G1R3S7PC
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He has retreated to the edge of the bed, his elbows sinking on his knees and his horrified face cradled in his shaking hands.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVHTl8fztAS
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“Why…?” and he does not know it, but it always seemed to come to this very question. “Why are you with me, despite all the things I’ve done to you?”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHncOOG8s6g
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Karin watches his desolated back and has a hard time swallowing the lump in her throat, “Because… they are not you, Sasuke.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFwCAfOAqy
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He says nothing in response—can not possibly wrap his mind around her words, Karin knows. And so she softly crawls to him and drapes her arms around his neck, leans her cheek on the side of his head, closes her eyes, and smiles.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMyf9kuZx8s
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“And, above all…”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIKEgMAtdlk
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The smile is strained—but resolute. Serene. It says nothing and everything at once. And despite himself, Sasuke finds solace in her touch—his own hand coming to seize her own as her words carry over to him, a simple truth that at once gives him hope and clogs his throat with trepidation.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGVIIZwlA9
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“…Above all, I want to see how this one ends.”
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It happens a sunny morning as she trips and a bear lunges at her, its roar so deafening that she thought her head would burst before the beast would get to sink its teeth on her flesh.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCdHvsuWWLP
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Except that it doesn’t get to.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLqxINh4ux5
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And when she puts her glasses back on, her sight is met by a smile that would carve itself on her mind and set ablaze a flame that would burn just as strongly and lastingly as the eyes of the boy she would never, ever forget.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSPtYiPJHu
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“See ya.”481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJUOdPAMrlb
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This is what I give,481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2EWdpVdgJx
A circle is complete.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6CsLHsi4Xg
Another circle spins481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZhqGQshi8
There's life within,481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIbSm0mYj9u
Within
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end.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq4NlmNqPfl
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Ok! Now you guys should understand what I meant by the warnings at the beginning; I tried to make each SK set of reincarnations distinctly different from each other, both in personalities, dynamics, and backgrounds; so they indeed diverge from the Sasuke and Karin we're used to, as they have all grown in different environments. All the same, I tried to keep some traits of their canon personalities, so hopefully, they aren't absurdly OOC.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIaEVEJaEk
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That said~! The song used at the beginning is Kitade Nana’s Tsukihana, and the one at the end is Blue Foundation’s Bonfires. Now, onto random details about the fic~ there are five versions of SasuKarin total in the fic; the originals, and 4 pairs of reincarnations.481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnY5CdV7qxZ
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The format of the fic didn’t allow me to expand and truly explain each particular set, so if you are curious about any of them drop me a comment and I’ll tell you their background and/or explain anything you may be wondering about~!481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBQMJzPk0g7
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For now, though, I must mention a couple of things about the 4th SK pair (aka, the most controversial - the one with cute!Karin and businessman!Sasuke); their meeting (the umbrella thing) was completely inspired by a real-life story I read here, and overly-jealous-and-possessive-Sasuke was inspired by might 'Anyone's Ghost' SK AMV, here. I debated a bit about this version because it's kind of hard to imagine a Karin who would allow Sasuke to be that way with her; but then again, this particular Karin is less headstrong than the one we know and love. So I decided to leave it as it lol Also, his overdone “I love you(s)” and cheesiness, while sincere, were meant to be creepy and manipulative; I really hope they came out that way lol481Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVfdAxX7prA
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Thanks for reading! ♥
Tags: fanfic, karin, naruto, sasukarin, sasuke
ns18.118.171.161da2
