Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood ❯ Chapter 6

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.

By: emeraldoni

PART VI

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto, not me.

 

“So, your excuse is that you're late because you had to bring some girl to the hospital?”

 

He nodded, eyes narrowed at the woman he hated more than his probation officer.

 

“Do you know how often I've heard that excuse?” She said, voice mocking, “Do you truly think I would buy that? What do you take me for?”

 

Gaara suppressed a growl, knowing that this woman had more control over his life than he had ever allowed anyone before. Not that he had allowed her, but still, it didn't change the fact that she had a strong fist in how his future might turn out. It chafed against him, certainly, and every time she spoke to him in her ridiculously condescending tone it made the small hairs on the back of his neck stand up and his chest to clench in anger as his teeth ground. God, he hated her, the bitch that made his life a living hell. The other little irritations, his siblings, neighbors, everybody in general, they paled in comparison to this living, breathing, demon of a woman.

 

Wasn't a therapist supposed to make a person happy and normal and all the `good' things positive, average people were supposed to be?

 

If anything, the rage to crack a skull open just multiplied—like looking through a magnifying glass—when he was with her. Gaara tried not to jump through a window as her stern voice spoke once again.

 

“You can't answer, eh? Was this girl just a figment of you imagination?”

 

Gaara barely suppressed a growl, “Burns. She was burnt. On her hand.”

 

“Ah.”

 

Gaara waited silently for her to respond more eloquently, balling is fists in a hopeful form of tension relief.

 

“Well.” She said, after a few minutes of seemingly endless torture, “Why don't you bring this girl in? I would desperately love to meet her. Maybe she can help you be a bit more stable.”

 

“No.”

 

“Hm? What was that? I thought I just heard the little mental papers in my desk whispering to me about a special home…”

 

“Fine.”

 

“Ah! Great! So when do I get to meet the lucky little lady? Is she here now?”

 

“Third floor.”

 

“Good. Tell whoever the nurse residing there to let her go, if she's feeling well enough, or if she even exists.”

 

“Hn.”

 

“Okay, go, go-” She made shooing gestures as her gaze fell to pitcher on her desk that he knew certainly didn't contain water, “Go get the stupid girl.”

 

Gaara turned to walk out of the furnished office, freezing at the doorway as the witch's voice rang out once more.

 

“Gaara, we talked about this…”

 

Gaara vaguely wondered how far he could get away before they found the body, but thought better of it. The woman's strength was inhuman.

 

“Gaara.”

 

“Bye.”

 

“And—?”

 

“Tsunade-san.”

 

“Good boy. Now go get your girl.”

 

Oooo000OOO000oooO

 

Oh, man, she felt absolutely horrid. It was like a heavy, woolen fog had drifted over her brain and into her mouth, which was sticky and, well, to say the least, gross.

 

And it felt as though she were drifting in some kind of strange dream where she was in a haze of numbness and sharp jolts shooting up a pressurized limb, her arm, to be exact. Prying her eyes open, Sakura flinched as the blinding white lights shone mercilessly into her unadjusted retina.

 

“Mnnnmmmm.” She said, or something like it, which sounded much more like a squeaky whine that anything else.

 

“Kakashi! Kakashi! She's awake! Look!”

 

Oh God, that really hurt her ears, like sand against the delicate, waxy skin. She let out another pitiful whimper as someone jostled her body on the bed which resulted in a loud, abrupt noise of cackling paper.

 

“Oh, God.” Sakura voiced her thoughts in a moan.

 

“You feeling all right?”

 

Sakura peeked up through her squinted lids to find Kakashi lounging above her, dirty magazine in hand as he offered a reassuring smile. Sort of reassuring. Kind of.

 

Glaring at the two men in the room, she rubbed her forehead with the undamaged hand, trying to ignore the pain that was blossoming behind her eyes and steadily thrumming throughout her arm. This was just not her day; or week; or year, really. Sakura squeezed her eyes shut to avoid the tears lurking just underneath. She didn't need to rocket off in a fit of sobs again, especially with Naruto and Kakashi around. It would just make them uncomfortable. Neither of them could console a girl if their lives depended on it. In the end, she would just feel bad for burdening them over nothing. Both of them had suffered wounds worse than a simple burn on the hand. Ridiculous, really. It was probably the pain-killers that were doing this to her. She had never received drugs very well. Her body just didn't deal well with foreign substances.

 

In all actuality, when she was younger, she had tried to build up her immune system to certain poisons. She had been fanciful then, reading historical fictions and action novels, giving her a warped sense of heroism. It didn't help that at the time she had felt low, weak compared to her family. Kakashi as strong as he was, his life in law enforcement, well known for what he did, and never failing a job…

 

And then Sasuke and Naruto, so determined, so stable, both of them never losing in anything they did. Their bond brotherly, unbreakable; fighting, but in a way that caused no pain, only joy (in a loud, argumentative kind of way)…

 

There had been no place for Sakura, being the only girl in an apartment full of males. She wanted to bring herself up to par with them, and she had been stupid in the way she chose to go about doing it.

 

The hospital visit had been brief. The tongue-lashing she got wasn't.

 

Stupid, stupid, stupid, it was. To this day she regretted it, especially now that she was a nurse, a person in the health field, who, if she saw such an incident, would be nervous about the teen's mental stability, and would probably recommend a psychologist.

 

Sakura sighed as she finally turned to face Naruto and Kakashi again.

 

“I feel like shit.”

 

Kakashi lowered the dirty magazine just a bit more, smiling beneath his veil, “Good, good. Hungry?”

 

She smiled slightly, thinking again about the mess that crusted in her sink from her cooking mishap.

 

“Just a bit.”

 

She wasn't really, but she needed some time of silence, revving her energy up for the fatigue-bringing cloud that was Naruto and Kakashi. Both of them could be so, so—irritating sometimes. Sometimes she had to physically restrain herself from going farther than just a slap against the back of the head.

 

“Okay!” Shouted Naruto, pumping the air with his fist, “Let's go, Kakashi, and get Sakura some ramen.”

 

Sakura groaned, but just nodded her head.

 

“'Kay, `kay, whatever. Just go.” She waved one hand, rolling her eyes as they kissed her cheek and left the room in a rambunctious shuffle (or a lackadaisical one, in Kakashi's case).

 

Letting loose a loud, tense breath, Sakura melted back into the uncomfortable bed, holding her bandaged hand up to inspect the surly white.

 

“Kami…” She said, “How idiotic.”

 

Meanwhile, just a few meters away an even surlier red-head stalked down the pale, fluorescent hallway, shooting harsh glares at every personnel—or patient—who dared to get within a three foot radius of him.

 

Gaara felt absolute anger, irritation, and something else he'd rather not admit to—embarrassment. Really, Sakura, who seemed (outwardly, to strangers) sane, would probably think having a shrink is ridiculous. Not that he cared, but he didn't particularly like having that information spread out to the public. It made him seem weak.

 

And he didn't really want Sakura to meet Tsunade. He was a tad afraid of what they could plot against him. Tsunade would do something that would aggravate him to the grave, and Sakura would do something completely unpredictable, and most likely uncomfortable…for him. Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid…

 

Gaara hesitated at her door, the doorknob somehow jarring to his sense. (Stupid.) Ignoring the overwhelming sense of dread, Gaara quickly walked into the room, turning to face a lounging Sakura.

 

“Ah!” She exclaimed, sitting up with a drowsy smile upon her pale lips, “Gaara, you're still here?”

 

Gaara nodded, trying to ignore the probing feeling of upset at her not-so-great looking appearance. Kind of sickly, really…

 

But he didn't care, because she certainly wasn't his friend, just some girl who happened to live right next to him (and somehow managed, within a week, to invoke more conversations with him that anybody else) and he did not care at all.

 

“Oh,” Said Sakura, sliding her legs off the slide of the bed while cradling her hand, “You don't have to stay, you know, you've done so much already.”

 

She really was shocked he was still there. Sakura didn't see Gaara as the type to stick around, especially after the displeasure he expressed at being there in the first place. And the way he had had to hold her down for the stupid doctor…

 

She shook herself out of the (recent) memories best left forgotten, turning her attention back to Gaara, who stared at her impassively.

 

Slowly she watched as he walked towards her, and though it was hard to tell, she swore she could see a bit of hesitancy in his glance.

 

“Sakura, I have to take you somewhere.”

 

Sakura blinked, “Uhm. What?”

 

“Someone wants to meet you.”

 

“Uh, okay. Gaara, are you okay?”

 

“I am fine, but she wishes to meet you now.”

 

Sakura was silent for the moment, staring at Gaara as though trying to figure out some dazzling puzzle. Was he messing with her? It felt as though he was going to take her to the guillotine or something—something bad. And, really, wasn't she in her hospital bed? People didn't just take patients to other parts of the hospital randomly. It just wasn't done.

 

“Yeah…”

 

Taking that for affirmation, Gaara, in a swift motion, looped is arms around her and picked her up—hanging over his shoulder. Again.

 

Sakura growled.

 

“Gaara.” She said (growled) voice muted, “I know you know how I feel about this position.”

 

Without a word, he slipped her around his body, cradling her bridle style.

 

“That wasn't what I meant.” She muttered, but he didn't listen as they were already pacing down the tiled hallway and into an elevator. The nurse looked at them oddly (though a tad longer at Gaara than Sakura liked) but left them on the fourth floor without a word as she shuffled through some papers on an old clipboard.

 

Sakura sighed as they were left alone on the elevator.

 

“So. Who am I meeting?”

 

Gaara was silent, trying to think up and answer and in the process not answering at all.

 

Sakura humphed and crossed arms as well as she could, which wasn't crossing them at all.

 

The quiet was a bit awkward, and Sakura was relieved when the elevator dinged to a stop, tensing again when she saw what sector they were in.

 

“Hey, Gaara, you aren't taking me to see a therapist are you?”

 

In a manner of speaking, he thought, but said nothing for fear of her misconstruing his words. He would just let Tsunade put things to rights. Though maybe that was such a great idea. She would probably mess everything up.

 

Stopping in front of an off-white door, Gaara set her down, keeping an arm around her waist to ensure her balance.

 

“I'm sorry if I've been bugging you, but really, I don't think it's that bad, is it? I mean, I know I can get a little annoying sometimes, but I don't try to be, and I am certainly not crazy, so I think we should go right back to my apartment. Now.”

 

“Shut up.”

 

Sakura's mouth shut with irritation, “Excuse me—?”

 

“It is my shrink we are seeing.”

 

Sakura immediately calmed, face twisted in something akin to confusion, yet a smidge off…

 

“Oh.” She said.

 

“She did not believe my reason for being late, and she wanted to have proof.” Gaara looked away, “You are the proof.”

 

Sakura was silent, “Oh. Well, okay then. I guess I can vouch for you.”

 

“Hm.”

 

Gaara opened the door, leading Sakura in front of him and shutting the door behind them.

 

Tsunade, who had been writing something at her desk, looked up, surprise in her hazel eyes.

 

“Eh? Sakura? What are you doing here?”

 

Sakura took a step forward, Gaara keeping close behind as to make sure she didn't stumble (all the while regretting bringing Sakura up. She knew the bitch? Heaven help him…) “I should be asking you the same, Tsunade-san. I thought your office was on the second floor. Did you just move?”

 

Tsunade smiled, waving at a plush chair for Sakura to sit in, “Yeah, just a few days ago, actually. But enough about that, what are you doing here? It's your vacation, and with Gaara of all people!” Tsunade snuck a sly glance at him, but he didn't say anything, just tensing his hand on the chair he stood behind—the one Sakura was sitting in.

 

“Well,” Sakura felt slightly sheepish as she held up her burnt hand, “I had a little accident.”

 

“Oh! That's horrible! What happened?”

 

“Uhm. It's just a little burnt. I was cooking and some stuff happened, and well… I ended up with a bit of an owie.”

 

Gaara mentally rolled his eyes at Sakura's reference to an `owie' as Sakura resisted the urge to wince at the throb that reminded her all too much of the stupidity that was her cooking skills. Shooting a hard glance at Gaara, Sakura continued, “I didn't actually have to come to the hospital, but someone forced me to come.”

 

Gaara scowled, and dared Tsunade to contradict his actions. He knew he was in the right and Sakura was just being stubborn. Aggravating girl. He didn't know why he even bothered. There wasn't any gratification in her soul at all. Teach him to help people in trouble…

 

“Gaara.” His eyes snapped back to Tsunade, “Go sit out in the hallway.” For a moment he froze, not actually believing she was telling him to sit in the hall like a troublesome schoolboy. Searching her face, though, revealed that she was not joking at all. With a silent, warning snarl, Gaara stalked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

 

“What was that?” Asked Sakura, frustrated at Gaara's offensive behavior to Tsunade.

 

Tsunade just waved it away, leaning back in her chair with a lazy hand shake, “Oh, nothing, he's always like that. It also seems he didn't like having to leave you here alone with big, bad old me.” With a wry grin upon her lips, she continued, “I don't think he likes me very much.”

 

“Really? No.” Sakura said, sarcasm oozing from her voice like a saturated sponge, “I wouldn't have guessed.”

 

“I know, but enough about that. May I ask about your relationship to Gaara?”

 

Sakura stilled, stunned by the sudden change in conversation, cheeks flushing slightly, “What? Why?”

 

“Well, I'm just a bit curious.”

 

“There's really nothing to be curious about. He's my neighbor. End of story.”

 

“Hmmm.” Tsunade said, but her eyes were riveted upon the door that Gaara had just exited.

 

“And you've never entertained any…ideas?”

 

“Uh. What?” Sakura wondered what time it was and whether she could leave yet. Didn't Tsunade have any other patients?

 

As if reading her mind Tsunade laughed, “No, I don't have any other patients, so forget about running away. I need to know this. This isn't just haphazard curiosity, you know.”

 

Running her good hand through her (very tangled) hair, Sakura furrowed her brows, staring avidly at a desk leg.

 

“Come on, Sakura, I need to know this. You may not have realized it, but Gaara is dangerous. He has a quick temper and not much empathy. He's gotten in a lot of trouble and I don't think he grew up in a very conducive environment. He could hurt you. Easily.”

 

Sakura felt her throat tighten, her voice low and cracked when it came out, “I know he can be dangerous. But he hasn't been to me. At all.” Sakura held up her hand when she noticed Tsunade opening her mouth to jump in, “I have entertained some thoughts, I admit. But it won't happen, I know that. First of, Gaara isn't interested. He's made that clear to me. I'm just an annoyance. Second off, well…”

 

Sakura trailed off, eyes reminiscent as she offered Tsunade a sad smile, “I don't think I could ever do that to him. You know it wouldn't end—yeah, well, you know…”

 

Tsunade smiled in return, eyes solemn, stern, but comforting, “You're going to have to get over that sometime, Sakura. It has been years. Time passes, as well as life. It was over and done with a long time ago.”

 

“I know…”

 

The silence didn't last long until, with a sudden burst of energy, Tsunade stood up with a piercing clap of her hands, “Well, I think this session is over and Gaara has been waiting long enough. Go collect your man and have him bring you home. I'll call the desk and check out for you. That young Hinata is so useful to have down there. She does everything I tell to her to do.”

 

“That's mean, Tsunade-san,” Sakura chastised, “And weren't you just telling me to be careful of Gaara?”

 

“Well, yes, but I've changed my mind. Maybe—just maybe, mind you—he might be good for you—Ah, ah, ah. Don't interrupt. I am not saying for you to pursue the boy, just don't completely close off the option. If you look past the sulk, it's really not that bad. I might be tempted myself if I weren't his therapist.”

 

“That's' gross, Tsunade-san.” Sakura muttered as she shuffled towards the door.

 

“Hm hm.” Said Tsunade.

 

With a wave, Sakura exited the room, only to come face to face with a pair of furious green eyes.

 

Behind her, as she shut the door, Sakura did not hear the muttered words.

 

“Sakura, Sakura, Sakura…how can you be so naïve after all these years?”

 

Rustling though her pockets, Tsunade pulled out a little flask, bringing it to her mouth, “First off: He is interested in you, my dear. And second… I really don't think he'd mind all that much.”

 

She smiled as the warm feeling of sake filled her chest.

 

“I'm sure he's not so innocent either.”

 

Oooo000OOO000oooO

 

Sakura sighed as she mulled over her thoughts, ever aware of the warm body right beside her. Her hand had finally stopped throbbing—probably because of the Vicodin they had given her, along with the instruction to come back in a week—and if it weren't for the cold nipping against her bare arms, she might have even allowed herself to say she was content. Unfortunately, aside from the cold air, she was in too much of a mental—emotional—turmoil to call herself content.

 

With another sigh, she paused in her stride. Gaara stopped with her, hand reaching out slightly in case she decided to swoon.

 

“Gaara,” She said, voice soft, “Thank you.”

 

Gaara was silent, processing her words as the anger that had cloaked him after sitting in the hallway melted off and drained into a sewer grate just a few feet away.

 

“I know I haven't been acting exactly thankful, maybe even a bit rude, but I just wanted you to know I'm really grateful for what you've done for me.”

 

“Hm.”

 

Sakura stilled, body set in anticipation as she tried to gauge his tone and expression.

 

“It didn't bother me much, anyway.”

 

Sakura laughed. Though the words were harsh, his expression was soft, and this time she was sure she saw a slight blush on his pale cheeks as his eyes avoided hers.

 

“Good.” She said, “Because, as you neighbor, I can't be spurned for just a stupid little incident. I have a duty to keep up with, you know. I am here to annoy you, and there's nothin' you can do about it.” With a final gesture of mocking defiance, Sakura poked him in the center of his (toned!) chest and added, “Little man.”

 

Gaara's jaw dropped, just slightly, “What?”

 

Sakura laughed, patting him on the shoulder (she wasn't being too touchy, was she?).

 

“Great! That's wonderful. You finally stopped looking all mad and stuff. Weren't you ever told that your face could get stuck like that?”

 

Gaara scowled, ignoring the question, “Let's go.” He began to walk away, though not fast so she was able to catch up.

 

“You know,” she said, “You're really not so bad.”

 

Glancing at her, Gaara replied, “Have you told me that before?”

 

Putting a finger to her chin, Sakura lifted her face up to the inky sky, “I'm not sure…have I?”

 

Gaara shrugged, before glancing at Sakura's bare, goose-pimpled arms.

 

“You're cold.”

 

Following his gaze, Sakura shrugged, “It's not that bad. Besides, we're almost to home.”

 

“Hm.”

 

In a very daring, and quite shocking move, Gaara wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her to his side, “I do not wish to take you to the hospital again.”

 

Sakura rolled her eyes, but just snuggled into his side, forgetting the thoughts that had plagued her just minutes ago.

 

Oooo000OOO000oooO

 

A/N: Finally! Woosh! That took forever! Sorry about that, everyone. I've just been really busy and I had absolutely no time to write. I shouldn't even be writing this now, since I've got some speeches to write, but I just couldn't put it off any longer.

 

Thank you for the people who reviewed last time (the very few who did). You guys make me feel so much better about myself and much more motivated. I hope this chapter is long enough for you guys. I was considering making it longer, but I figured you'd want this out quicker instead.

 

Please review.

 

Until next time…

 

emeraldoni