Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Sakura hated her life.

She understood that hate was a strong word, and should not be applied liberally. Really, she had it better than most people. A decent paying job, loving parents, supportive friends. Granted, there was the debt situation, and it was not getting any better. Nevertheless, she has never hated her life before. Until a few minutes ago.

Now, sitting here in the opulent lobby of Konoha’s top five star hotel, she hated her existence with a vehement fury. All she could think about was how desperately she wanted to dissolve into the thin air, to disappear back into nothingness, to erase every molecule of her existence upon this world.

Despite the AC, Sakura was sweating profusely. She was pretty sure that her face had already betrayed all her emotions, panic being the foremost one. 

Run! A tiny voice screeched inside her head. Save yourself! Run! She would have done so, if only her legs were not trembling so bad.

Sakura knew that this was a bad idea. She had told Ino as much, using her words and gestures. She had an instinct, a premonition of sorts, that this time, things would not be as easy as the last few times.

Ino, of course, had not listened.

“It’ll be fine” She had laughed airily, waving away Sakura’s concerns with her perfectly manicured hands. “These guys are all privileged buffoons anyway.” And here Sakura was, in her borrowed clothes and borrowed name, about to lose everything she had worked so hard for.

Of all of the nepo babies of Konoha, why did it have to be him?

Sakura never should have taken that cursed phone call from Ino, begging Sakura to show up as her to the latest blind date her father was forcing her to go.

“Dad wouldn’t even tell me his name this time.” Ino had whined. “Just that he’s supposed to be my perfect match or whatever.” That should have been the biggest red flag.

She had said no, obviously. Other than the ethical implications of Sakura impersonating Ino to show up on her blind dates to mess up said dates, they were simply getting too old for these shenanigans. 

“Please, please, my dearest and oldest friend.” Ino had begged. “I need you. Nobody plays a freak like you. After I screw up this date, dad has to give up. As always, I’ll pay you handsomely.” With her mother’s illness flaring up and her dad hiring extra help at the store, Sakura really needed the money. 

Looks like the money situation is only going to get worse from here on.

She could pretend to faint, or start sobbing. That should work right? He would run away, Sakura could slip away unscathed, and no second date for Ino. Everybody wins.

Except that she was unable to move, completely frozen in fear. 

“Ms. Yamanaka?” He asks, interrupting her reverie. “Ms. Yamanaka, are you quite all right?”

Sakura nods weakly, forcing herself to look at the man sitting across her.

He is handsome, Sakura admits to herself grudgingly. Not that she is surprised. She has seen his stoic, unsmiling face plastered all over her office. She had never seen him in person, but her colleagues who had gotten a glimpse of him would often giggle and gossip amongst them afterwards. The phrases "swoon" and "smoking hot" were commonly heard if one passed by such a gathering.

Handsome, and sharply dressed, and he smelled good too. Good enough to distract Sakura from her current predicament. Sakura wondered if her co-workers had ever gotten close enough to smell him.

The thought of her co-workers jolts Sakura back to reality, where she was currently being scrutinized by Sasuke Uchiha, Ino’s blind date, and oh right, CEO to Uchiha Inc., which may sound like a non-issue whatsoever, except it happened to be Sakura’s workplace.

There is no way she keeps her job after this debacle , she thinks to herself gloomily. 

“Ms. Yamanaka?” Her date asks again, tilting his head and studying her thoroughly. “Shall we begin?”

Chapter Text

Ms. Yamanaka. Yes, that is me. Sakura braces herself, forcing a smile on her face and making herself take a sip from her ridiculously expensive coffee. I can do this.

“Yes, let us begin.” She says, with what she hopes is haughty nonchalance.

“I have to admit, I almost Googled you on the way here.” Sasuke Uchiha says pleasantly. “Truth to be told, I find the concept of a blind date quite archaic. What’s the point of living in an age of information if we cannot utilize it?”

“Then why did you come?” Sakura blurts out without thinking.

“I was curious about you.” Sasuke leans forward, his dark eyes examining her as if she was some lab experiment. The scent of his cologne wafts over Sakura's nostrils. Sandalwood, with a hint of expensive aftershave. “The rebellious Yamanaka heiress. I have to ask, whatever made you decide to attend public school?”

What a tool. “You know, I thought it would look good on my resume.” Sakura answers drily.

God, she hadn’t meant to be snarky. The last thing she needed was to anger him.

To her surprise, Sasuke Uchiha smiled. He had a nice smile. Hmmm, maybe she should mention it to the PR department.

That gave Sakura another idea. Clearly, he hadn’t recognized her, and how could he? It’s not like the CEO ever came down to the lower floors to mingle with the mortals. She could play offense. Antagonize him, or at the very least, annoy him enough to cut the date short. 

Yes. Yes, that might just work.

“You’re funny, Ms Yamanaka.” He says. “I apologize if I have offended you. If anything, I respect your decision. People like us, well, we live inside a bubble. The outer world-the real world is far more complicated than we imagine it, and it is admirable that you chose to experience that, difficult as it might have been.”

“Thank you.” Sakura says, slightly taken aback. Who knew Sasuke Uchiha could be so insightful?

“Yes, it was difficult in the beginning.” Sakura admits, remembering Ino sitting alone at lunch, putting on a brave face, trying her best to ignore all the whispers and stares. “But I’m glad I went. I made some great friends.” The last part sounded like a brag, but it was completely true. Only a great friend would agree to do what Sakura is doing right now.

“Then you went to university to study business.” Sasuke continued. “On a scholarship, no less. You’ve certainly carved a path for yourself, haven’t you?”

“Erm yes.” Sakura smiles awkwardly, squirming under his intense gaze. “You seem to have done extensive research on me.” Please, please, be offended and go away.

“Only the basics.” Sasuke holds up his hands. “To get the conversation started.”

“I see.” Sakura replies, slightly deflated, that he did not take the bait.”You went abroad for college, didn’t you?” She asks, desperately scrambling together information she remembered from company newsletters and smitten co-workers.

“Ah, yes.” Sasuke leans back. “Only because of my family’s name and influence. I wouldn’t even have been accepted to community colleges otherwise. My grades were abysmal.”

Sakura found that hard to digest. Ruthless, perfectionist, Sasuke Uchiha who put the fear of God in incompetent executives and interns alike, had less than perfect grades? Hah, as if.

She opens her mouth with another snarky comment, only to find his gaze somewhere far away. He didn’t look his usual dour self, his expression was more like– melancholy. But it is only for a moment. Sasuke steels his expression and looks back at her, his gaze sharp and intent once more.

“You’re working with your father now, yes?” He questions. “What is it like working for the Mr. Yamanaka?”

So many questions. What is this, a job interview? Sakura rolls her eyes internally. 

Then again, it kind of was. Sasuke Uchiha was testing Ino Yamanaka, to see if she was the right fit to be his prim and proper society wife. Just like all the men before him. The only difference was that he was being clever about it.

The realization made her sad for Ino, and all the more determined to ruin the date. But she has to bide her time, wait for the perfect opportunity–

Sakura suddenly realizes that she has been silent for a few minutes.

“Yes, I work for my dad now.” Sakura says awkwardly. “I had other opportunities, but well, he needs me, and I couldn’t– me being there is good for him.” But it was not Ino’s father Sakura was thinking about. It was her own father’s face she saw, craggy with smile lines. Smiling, always smiling, no matter how much the world always kept crumbling around him.

Suddenly, Sakura felt small and guilty. What the hell was she doing in this ostentatious lobby, wearing designer clothes and shoes, when only a few miles away, her parents were working in their restaurant, sweating in the tiny kitchen and serving hordes of customers?

She looks up, only to find Sasuke Uchiha looking at her sympathetic expression. Will wonders never cease?

“I understand.” He says softly. “Family can be–complicated. They can be a source of great joy and great suffering. It is good that you are helping your father.”

Sakura blinks, startled by the sincerity of his words. What does he mean by family being a source of suffering?

Her thoughts are disrupted by a loud vibrating noise, almost making her yelp.

“My apologies.” Sasuke says smoothly, taking his phone out of his suit pocket. He glances at the screen before disconnecting. 

“Now, as I was saying–” He starts, only to be disrupted by another, more persistent sounding vibration. He sighs defeatedly, and picks up his phone.

Whatever was said on the other side must not be good, because it made Sasuke furrow his brows in confusion, then annoyance.

He puts down the phone and shakes his head. Oh boy. Someone somewhere is in trouble.

“Ms. Yamanaka, I’m terribly sorry.” He says, looking distracted. “But I have to go back to my office now. I am so sorry that our evening got ruined. My mother will reach out to your father, and we will do this again.” He goes back to his phone, typing furiously. Probably firing poor souls en masse.

Finally! Her window of opportunity has presented itself. Sakura draws in a deep breath, summoning all her courage.

“Rude!” She spat out.

Sasuke looks up from his phone. “Excuse me?” He asks, astonished.

“You could have told me that you weren’t interested.” Sakura makes her voice wobbly. Damn, she really was a good actress. “You didn’t have to invent a fake emergency to get out of here!”

Sasuke gapes her at her, his mouth slightly hanging open. She almost wanted to laugh at how stupid he looked.

“I assure you, Ms. Yamanaka” He quickly composes himself. “This is not a fake emergency. I will make it up, I promise–”

“Lies!” Sakura stands up, trembling with feigned rage. Everyone has started looking at them now. Good.

“Daddy will hear of this.” She says venomously. “You’ve humiliated me. Never, ever, ever, speak to me again. You men are all self-centered, lying jerks.” 

With that speech, Sakura turns back and starts to stride towards the exit. A few more steps, and this nightmare.

“Ms. Yamanaka, please wait!” She can hear Sasuke Uchiha and that makes her walk faster, her heels clacking dangerously on the polished floor.

As soon as she is out of the hotel, Sakura’s knees almost give way from the relief. She did it. She survived.

As planned, Ino’s car glides right by. Sakura clumsily clambers onto the backseat, where Ino waits for her, blue eyes gleaming with anticipation.

“Did you do it?” She asks pointedly. “Is it over?”

“You crazy wench!” Sakura wails, grabbing her friend by the shoulders and shaking her like a ragdoll. “You almost got me killed in there!”

“OW-ow! Stop shaking me!” Ino cries. “Calm down! What happened?”

The fury saps out of Sakura and she lets, suddenly exhausted. She recounts the evening to Ino, and she has narrowly averted a life-altering disaster. 

“Oh my God” Ino laughs.

“It is not funny.” Sakura glares at her.

“I’m sorry.” Ino pleads. “I swear I had no idea what Dad had planned. I would not have sent you in if I had any clue. I’m sorry. I’ll pay you. Extra for your troubles.”

“Fine.” Sakura grumbles.

“It makes sense.” Ino says absent-mindedly, looking out of the window.

“What does?”

“My family has been eyeing a deal with Uchiha Inc. for quite some time.” Ino observes. “Guess dad thought offering me up would finally get them to lock in a deal.”

“Isn’t your family already loaded?” Sakura asks. “Why do they need someone else?”

“The Uchihas are in a different league.” Ino makes a face. “You should know that, you work there. Besides, they could help us with overseas expansion.”

“I don’t understand how rich people work.” Sakura sighs.

“It’s all about mergers and profits to them.” Ino grimaces. “I am to be given to the man who brings in the most wealth, the most connections to Yamanaka Group. I refuse to be a part of it. I want to be with a man who loves me for who I am, not what my company’s stocks are worth.”

“Yeah, good luck finding him.” Sakura retorts, settling in deeper into the comfortable seat. Ino does not reply, probably already fantasizing about her true love.

Sakura thinks about the evening, about her fake tantrum.

God, what a mess. 

Good thing that she’ll never, ever, have to speak to Sasuke Uchiha again.

Chapter Text

Sakura was not one to believe in divine interference in mortal affairs. She was of the staunch opinion that if god, or gods, did indeed exist, they had far better things to do.

However, as she miserably looked up at the steel and glass monstrosity that was the midtown office of Uchiha Inc., she found it difficult to believe that this situation could have resulted without divine machinations.

And it felt personal.

She could have easily been in one of the other offices, in any other city of the country.

But no, oh no, she had to work right here in the headquarters, where the topmost floor was graced by Mr. CEO himself. 

It will be okay, it will be okay . Sakura chants to herself as she enters the lobby and waits for the elevator to arrive. She has worked here for five years and has never come face to face with him, or any of the top brass, for that matter. There are hundreds of people working in this building, she’ll never–

The elevator arrives with a ding, interrupting Sakura’s thoughts. The steel doors slide open, and–

Oh no, oh fuck no, this isn’t happening, this isn’t real.

Sakura wants to scream. But her voice has died in her throat as she finds herself staring at Sasuke Uchiha, who is looking at her with a vague disinterest. His secretary, Mr. Uzumaki, stands next to him, making a polite bow.

“Well?” Sakura’s blind date asks drily. “Aren’t you getting in?”

“Come on in” Mr. Uzumaki waves brightly. “We’re not that scary, I promise.”

With a sinking heart and heavy legs, Sakura trudges miserably inside the elevator, bows stiffly at both men, and stands as far as the small space would allow her to. She can feel Sasuke’s gaze on her back, which makes her want to shrink and turn into a tiny ball of misery.

He wouldn’t recognize her, would he? On the date, Sakura was wearing designer clothes and quite a lot of makeup. She almost looked like a different person, except–

The hair. Oh god, the hair. Sakura looks up at her head with sudden panic. Did Sasuke Uchiha meet a lot of people with pink hair? Probably not.

Damn college Sakura and her desperate desire to stand out!

“Um, Ms.--” Mr. Uzumaki’s voice drags her back to the present. Sakura turns back to find him staring inquisitively at her. “Your floor?”

“Huh?” Sakura croaks.

“He’s asking which floor you want to get off at” Sasuke side-eyes her.

“Oh.” Sakura gulps. “Eleventh”

“Eleven it is.” Mr. Uzumaki beams at her, pushing the button.

So this is how I die . Sakura thinks to herself, staring at the elevator wall. Trapped in a steel box, suspended in the air. 

“So,” She hears Mr. Uzumaki say. “Didn’t you have a date this weekend? How did it go?”

Oh god. Oh no. Is there any way to jump out of this elevator? Or maybe a nice hole that can suddenly open beneath Sakura’s feet and swallow her in?

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Sasuke says curtly.

“That bad, huh?”

“Maybe this is not the place for this discussion.” 

“Oh, you don’t mind, do you?” Mr. Uzumaki says jovially, addressing Sakura.

“No.” She squeaks, turning back and trying her best to concentrate on the floor.

“He’s having some trouble with his dates lately. It’s obviously not his looks, it’s his personality. I keep telling him to do something about it, but he doesn’t listen–”

“Can you not?” Sasuke snaps.

“Alright, alright.” His secretary puts up his hands. “You know, it’s too bad your date went to the crapper. We’re having such lovely spring weather. So romantic. Don’t you think so?” He asks, looking at Sakura again.

“Er, ye-yes.” Sakura stammers. “The sky today–it’s very blue.”

Blue? What the hell was that?

The elevators mercifully dings at her floor, and it takes all of Sakura’s self-restraint to not bolt but walk with small, dignified steps.

“My heart.” She moans out loud once the elevator has departed. “My heart’s going to explode if things go on like this.”

On an usual day, Sakura liked her job. Really, she did. As a pharmaceutical researcher, she liked to think that her work made people’s lives easier, and she especially liked how her company invested in their R&D wing, more than any of their competitors. And she loved her team, in all its chaos.

But not today. Sakura felt exhausted even before reaching her desk, and all she wanted was to go home, curl up on her bed and curse and weep at her fate.

At least let me have a quiet day. Please. Is that too much to ask for?

Apparently, it was. Her seniors were already bickering, making rude and disturbingly violent gestures at each other. Sakura sighs and knocks on the cubicle next to hers.

Shizune, her only sane co-worker, pokes her head out.

“How long have they been at it?” Sakura asks, pointing at the ongoing spectacle.

“Oh, since I got here.” Shizune replies nonchalantly. “I think they clocked in early today because they had a score to settle.”

“Of course they did.” Sakura mutters, as her seniors finally stop their bickering and notice her.

“Ah, Sakura!” Jiraiya, the second-in-command of their team waves brightly. “Finally, a face worth looking at. This one.” He motions at Tsunade, their team leader, “Is extra prickly today. You know how it is. She’s lonely and old and bitter–”

“I’m still young enough to crack your skull, Jiraiya.” Tsunade gives a saccharine smile. “So I suggest you get back to work.”

“Hag” Jiraiya mumbles before settling down in his cubicle.

“Now that we are all here.” Tsunade clears her throat awkwardly. Oh no, Sakura thinks. She has bad news.

“You all have received the memo from our CEO.” Tsunade continues, fixing her gaze on the ceiling. “How we are supposed to implement tech into our work. We are in the digital age people, and we need to embrace it in our–”

“Say it, woman!” Jiraiya cries out.

“We are being put in a project with the programmers.” Tsunade says curtly. “Well, a small team. We are to collaborate, and yes, be civil to each other.”

A collective groan goes around the room.

“But Ms. Senju.” Sakura protests. “We don’t need them. We’re doing great work on our own. If we upskill ourselves, and-”

“Believe me, I hate it as much as you do.” Tsunade interrupts. “Those tech dudebros think they own the earth because they know how to work a computer. They call us overpaid chemists, right to our faces.” Tsunade exhales, balling her fists. “But, it’s what the boss wants, and who are we to argue? So, we better get started eh? I want us to be at the top of our game before the first meeting.”

Even when he is not present, Sasuke Uchiha keeps bringing more misery to her life. Sakura grimly sets herself for the task, going through the documents Tsunade has prepared, mentally making her own research list.

Halfway through her work, her phone buzzes- a pleasant little chime she has reserved for text messages. She looks at it absent-mindedly, expecting some random animal video from Ino.

However, when she saw the message and the name on top of it, Sakura’s heart skipped a beat.

Can we meet? I’ve missed you.

Chapter Text

He’s missed me! He’s missed me! Sakura thinks giddily as she sips her ice coffee, tapping her feet happily to the pop tune the cafe plays.

This is pathetic. The rational part of her brain tries to reason. How long are we to suffer like this? How many more stories do we have to endure of his flings?

“It’s not pathetic!” Sakura says out loud, earning strange looks from the elderly couple at the nearest table.

Alright, maybe it is a little pathetic. But it’s not like Sakura hasn’t tried. Ever since college, she has tried to outrun her feelings, if it weren’t for damned mixed signals he keeps sending. Were they even mixed signals? He’s like that with everyone, he–

“Where are you off to, my lady?” A soft voice murmurs in her back.

Sakura turns back. “My lord.” She grins.

Sasori. Beautiful Sasori, with his boyish good looks and brown eyes that sometimes look red in the sunlight. Sasori, who had bewitched her since the first day of college and refused to loosen his hold on her heart.

“Sakura” He simply says, clutching her hands against his. 

“You must tell me everything.” Sakura says breathlessly as she sits down, her skin still tingling from his touch. “How is Suna? Ino tells me that you’ve become quite the party boy.”

“That would be an exaggeration.” Sasori smiles coyly. “Speaking of Ino, how is our princess who likes to play the pauper?”

“Do not be mean.” Sakura chides. “You know it’s not like that.”

“What?” Sasori shrugs coolly. “Must be nice to have daddy to fall back on whenever things get a bit difficult. Maybe I’m a little envious of that.”

“Tell me about Suna” Sakura asks, eager to change the subject. “How’s art school? The food, the people, the culture. Tell me everything!”

“School’s just fine.” Sasori waves his hand with a casual grace. Sakura stares at his fingers, his elegant, beautiful fingers that he makes beautiful things with.

“I’m doing well, as derivative as the curriculum is.” Sasori snorts with derision. “The food, well, is as good as you expect desert food to be. The people, well, I don’t want to kiss and tell.”

“You’ve met someone” Sakura forces a smile, her insides turning to ice.

She shouldn’t be surprised, not anymore. As long as she has known him, Sasori was always chasing pretty girls and pretty boys. It would always fizzle out, no matter how much Sasori would gush about them. 

That never made it hurt any less, however. The fact that he would pursue anyone and everyone, except Sakura.

“You’ve met someone, haven’t you?” Sakura repeats, her voice sounding hollow and wooden to her own ears. 

“Since you insist on knowing,” Sasori winks at her. “His name is Deidara. We met in sculpting class. He’s abrasive and a loudmouth, and his art is uh, controversial, to put it mildly. But I can feel it this time Sakura. We have a real connection. This could be it.”

“You’re happy for me, aren’t you Sakura?” Sasori questions.

“Yes.” Sakura forces herself to smile, ignoring the painful lump in her throat that was threatening to choke her words. “I’m happy for you. What kind of a friend would I be if I wasn’t?”

—

“You can go home, you know.” Sasuke says, without removing his eyes from his laptop screen.

“Whaaat?” Naruto throws up his hands, feigning shock. “And miss drowning in paperwork and looking at your dour face every time I look up?”

“You don’t have to be here every time I stay late.” Sasuke sighs. “We’re done for today, anyway.”

“Finally.” Naruto stretches. “You wanna go get ramen?”

“No.” Sasuke says curtly, grabbing his coat. “I’m heading home.”

“Oooh, someone’s catty.” Naruto laughs as they make their way towards the elevator. “Save some of that charisma for your next blind date.”

“There will be no more blind dates.” Sasuke says flatly, pushing the elevator button. “I have made up my mind. Ms. Yamanaka seems agreeable enough. She will do nicely.”

“You’ve lost me. She will do as what?” Naruto questions.

“As my wife, of course.” Sasuke says calmly. He would be lying if the dumbfounded expression on Naruto’s face didn’t give him the tiniest bit of pleasure.

“Well, aren’t you getting in?” Sasuke asks, gesturing to the elevator that has now arrived.

“I’m sorry, what?” 

“The elevator, dumbass. It’ll close.”

“I don’t understand.” Naruto says dazedly as he steps inside. “To be clear, you plan to marry this girl, after going on one date with her. A date that she ran away from.”

“It’s not a big deal.” Sasuke shrugs. “I will turn on the charm and persuade her to see how this agreement benefits us both. She gets the Uchiha name and I will once again, be free to focus on my work.”

“Right.” Naruto nods. “Is this charm here in the room with us right now, or–”

“Save your mockeries.” Sasuke snaps. “I could use your support right now.”

“You know you have it, always. But there is a teeny tiny matter. What if, and hear me out here, Ms. Yamanaka does not want to marry you?”

“She will.” Sasuke nods. “With everything I have to offer, why wouldn’t she?”

—

The gods hated Sakura. Yep, that was it.

Why else would she come home after a long and terrible day, only to find Ino standing on her doorstep, sniffling and wiping her nose?

“What are you doing here?” Sakura asks. 

“What did you do?” Ino demands.

“What?” Sakura blinks, trying to make sense of this bizarre display. “I don’t understand. Hey, stop that-” She flinches as Ino grabs and sniffs her.

“Are you drunk, Sakura?” Ino questions sharply.

“Oh sod off.” Sakura pushes her away. “I had a difficult day at work.”

“I see that Sasori finally told you about his flavor of the week.” Ino peevishly observes. “Honestly, Sakura, I don't understand why you keep doing that to yourself. I’ve told you, he’s not worth it–”

“For fuck’s sake!” Sakura cries out. “Why are you here?”

“I want to know what you did.” Ino crosses her arms petulantly.

“WIth what?” 

“With Sasuke Uchiha, of course.” Ino spat. “Tell me exactly what you did to make him call my father and ask for a second date.”

Chapter Text

“What the hell did you do?” Ino wails as Sakura mechanically unlocks her apartment and walks inside, switching on the lights. Ino’s voice and words seem to come from far away. There’s a buzzing sound in her ears, and her head has already started to throb.

“Answer me!” Ino demands.

“I didn’t do anything!” Sakura snaps, rubbing her face to jolt herself back to reality. “I was paralyzed with fear, okay? I couldn’t think, I couldn’t even blink!”

“Stop rhyming!” Ino screeches.

“It wasn’t intentional!” Sakura screams back.

Ino plops down on the couch, the fight seemingly gone out of her. “What do we do now?” She asks miserably.

“How would I know?” Sakura seethes. She hated the world and everyone in it now. She hated Ino for dragging her into this, she hated Sasori and his handsome new boyfriend, she hated Sasuke Uchiha and his smug face. The list could go on.

“Don’t be like that.” Ino pleads.

“Why not?” Sakura laughs mirthlessly. “I don’t understand why you’re so upset. I’m the one in trouble here. It’s me he’ll fire.”

“You think I’m not worried about that?” Ino asks, hurt brimming in her blue eyes. “Besides, I’m in trouble too. My father will kill me when he finds out, for tarnishing the glorious Yamanaka name. Not to mention how pissed the Uchihas will be with us.”

“So, what do we do now?” Sakura sighs, sitting next to Ino. “I mean, other than shaving our heads and leaving the country under fake identities?”

“Let’s go over that evening.” Ino says gently. “What happened?”

“I don’t really know.” Sakura runs her hand through her hair. “We talked a little, I suppose. All I remember is how hard I was trying not to pass out. Then I grabbed my chance, made myself look like an entitled prat, and I ran away. That should have ended it, for good.”

“Oh my god” Ino groans, putting her head in her hands. “I thought he was going to be like the other one-percent jerks and leave us the hell alone. But I’m telling you Sakura, this one’s sly.”

“What exactly did Mr. Uchiha say to your father?” Sakura asks quietly.

“That he was pleased with our meeting and would like to move things forward.” Ino grimaces. “Wildly romantic, wouldn’t you say?”

“At least your dad’s happy.”

“Oh, he’s ecstatic.” Ino sneers. “He said that I’ve finally made him proud. Can you believe that? Wait till he finds out how I have napalmed that bridge. I almost want to tell him right now just so that I can savor the look on his face. It almost makes all of this worth it.”

“Let’s not do anything rash.” Sakura cautions.

“No, no of course not.” Ino nods. “Look, we can still salvage this. You will go to this date and tell him that you have a secret lover, but dad would never approve–”

“What is this, a soap opera?”

“Let me finish. He’s kind, but he’s working class–”

“Ino, stop!” Sakura cuts in. “Just stop, okay? I told you that this date was a bad idea, you didn’t listen back then. Listen to me now, no more lies. It’s only going to make things worse for us.”

“What do you want me to do then?”

“We tell him the truth.” Sakura says, feeling strangely calm. Shouldn’t she be tearing her hair and cursing her fate right? But here she was, being wise and mature.

“You cannot be serious.” Ino stares at her incredulously. “What about your job?”

“Let’s be honest here, my job is good as gone.” Sakura admits. “Sasuke Uchiha will find out, you know that. Isn’t it better that it happens on our terms, rather than his?”

“You’re right.” Ino agrees. “God, why do you have to be right about this?”

“How do we do this?” Sakura sighs. “Do we go together, begging, or–”

“No! You don’t do anything.” Ino protests. “You’ve done enough already. I will go, confess everything and I’ll say that you’re some random woman I hired through an agency.”

“Think that’ll work?” Sakura asks skeptically.

“Yes. It will.” Ino assures. “Why wouldn’t it? I’m a fantastic liar.”

—

It won’t work. Ino thought to herself gloomily, as she trudged back home later that night. They were both doomed, her and Sakura.

Autumn is almost upon the city, and there’s a slight nip in the air, making her shiver. All around Ino, there are couples and families, no doubt enjoying the chilly, clear night.

Ino watches them listlessly, encased in their little bubbles of happiness.

It’s like the world has decided to celebrate her misery, she thinks bitterly.

At least she’s almost home, and with any luck, she’ll be able to slip to her room without her father noticing. The last thing she needs to hear is him gloating about his new “son-in-law”.

The little convenience store across her house is still open , adding a slight perk to Ino’s step. She could do with some peach lemonade, after the day she has had.

The store is empty except for the bored teenage boy at the register and a man in a suit, with his back turned towards Ino.

Ino pays them little attention, going straight to the freezer. She swings the door open, putting her hand inside to grab the–

No. Oh no.

Ino marches down to the register, where the boy is scrolling his phone.

“Peach lemonade.” Ino demands.

“What about it?” The boy replies, not looking up from his phone.

“There’s none in the freezer.” Ino answers through gritted teeth.

“Must be out.” 

“I understand that.” Ino forces a tight smile. “Could you check the storeroom, please? I know your dad always keeps extra stock.”

The kid finally looks up from his phone, giving her a blank expression.

“Nah.” He shrugs.

“Nah? What do you mean nah?”

“Listen lady. If we’re out, we’re out.”

“Where’s your dad?” Ino demands, tears pricking at her eyes. 

“Not here.” The boy shrugs again, and it takes every ounce of Ino’s self-restraint not to lunge at the little shit. 

“Listen.” She takes a deep breath, an entire day’s worth of frustration simmering right under her skin. “I’m a regular customer here. I’ve had a horrid day, and I need my peach lemonade damn it!”

“If you do not remove yourself from my property” The boy said stubbornly. “I’m going to call the police.”

“That won’t be necessary.” A male voice comes from behind Ino. “She can have mine.”

Ino turns back in surprise. The voice seemed to have come from the other customer, who was standing in front of her with an apologetic look.

“Looks like I got the last one.” He gestures to the can in his hand. “Sorry.”

Oh. I-I” Ino stutters.

Firstly, she’s quite embarrassed. What was she thinking- fighting with a teenager over a stupid beverage?

Secondly, the man is very, very good looking. He’s handsome in an athletic, boy-next-door way, with hair a darker gold than hers. Even under the ghastly fluorescent lights, his eyes sparkle a clear, deep blue.

“Here.” He gently presses the can into Ino’s hands. “Looks like you need this more than I do.”

“Oh no. I can’t.” Ino blushes. “I’m sorry. You must think I’m insane, throwing a tantrum like this.” Behind her, she can hear the kid snort.

“If anything, I understand.” The man laughs. “I have a friend who often gets grumpy, especially when he hasn’t eaten.”

“Thank you.” Ino says gratefully. “I mean it.”

“I hope your day gets better.” He smiles and turns back to leave.

“It already did.” Ino whispers to herself.

“Um- can you ring this up?” Ino asks the kid at the register, feeling self-conscious. 

“No need.” The boy spat. “That guy had already paid.”

His sullen attitude didn’t phase Ino, not anymore. She clutched her precious can of peach lemonade, humming to herself as she walked out of the store, thinking about the man in the suit.

It was only when she was out of the store did Ino remember that she had forgotten to ask his name.

Chapter Text

“I have to do this, I have to do this, Ihavetodothis” Ino chants to herself as she waits in  the lobby of the hotel where she’s supposed to meet Sasuke Uchiha, for their second date.

Ino lightly fans herself with her purse, her armpits growing moist despite her efforts. Ugh, she hates being a nervous sweater!

A feeble hope blooms in Ino’s chest as she checks her watch and it’s three minutes past seven.

Maybe, maybe, Sasuke Uchiha won’t show up. 

Maybe he has lost interest in her, or Sakura, rather. Maybe he has found a better match- a perfect upper class socialite with a greater name than the Yamanakas. Maybe he got hit by a car while crossing the street. Maybe-

“Uh, excuse me, miss-” A male voice from behind startles Ino back into reality. She turns back, to find herself facing–

The cute guy from the convenience store! He was once again, wearing a suit, Ino notices, and holding a briefcase. Is he here for a business meeting?

“It’s you.” He smiles shyly at Ino. “I saw you across the lobby. I-I hope I’m not interrupting, you must be here to meet someone.”

“Oh-oh no.” Ino stammers, blushing at the implication. “Actually, yes, but also no. Wha-what brings you here?”

“I’m accompanying my boss.” He cranes his neck, looking around the lobby. “He’s supposed to be somewhere around here. He’s here for a, erm, business meeting. Sort of.”

“I never got your name.” Ino blurts out.

“Oh.” He looks at her in surprise. “Did I never say it? It’s Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki.”

“Well, Naruto Uzumaki,” Ino bats her eyelashes just subtly enough, a move that she perfected over the years, “My meeting isn’t going to take long. Do you think afterwards, we could grab a drink?”

“Well, I would love that, Ms.--”

“Ino Yamanaka.” A dark haired man emerges behind Naruto, staring at Ino with cold, obsidian eyes.

“Mr. Uchiha.” Ino mutters desolately.

“You’re Ino Yamanaka?” Naruto questions, aghast. Ino cannot bring herself to look at him. Instead she lifts her chin and stares back impudently at Sasuke Uchiha.

“How fortunate of me to finally meet you.” He flashes her a joyless smile. “The real you. Shall we sit?”

__

Ino walks to their table like a condemned man walking to the gallows. Her footsteps felt clunky and awkward, and she could feel Naruto’s eyes drilling into her back the entire time. 

Turns out, Sasuke was the boss he was accompanying.

There goes my one chance of love, Ino thought to herself bitterly. Wilted before it could bloom.

They finally reach their table, after what feels like an eternity. Sasuke sits down, gesturing at Naruto to hand him the briefcase.

“I’ll be nearby.” Naruto clears his throat awkwardly. Then he gives Ino one last pitiful glance, and leaves.

“Ms. Yamanaka.” Sasuke folds his hands in a very CEO-like manner. “Before we begin, is there anything you would like to say?”

“I was going to tell you the truth.” Ino says, not taking her eyes off him. “But I have a feeling that you already know.”

“About your elaborate deceptions?” Sasuke pulls out a tablet from the briefcase. “Indeed I do.”

“How?” Ino says as calmly as she can manage. Depending on how much he knows, she can still keep Sakura out of this mess. 

Sasuke Uchiha gives her a patronizing look.

“I Googled you. Shortly after I made my decision to ask you, well the impersonator you, on a second date.” He said flatly. “I know it was against the rules, but surely I will get a pass?”

“Look,” Ino forces a smile, “I know you’re angry, but I had my reasons–”

“Your reasons do not concern me, Ms. Yamanaka,” Sasuke’s voice was ice now. “Your duplicitousness does. I did some investigation, and this is not the first time you have done this. I am the latest name in your long list of victims. You do know that identity fraud is a federal crime?”

“I-I” Ino stutters.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to sue you.” Sasuke waves his hand dismissively. “As I understand, the Yamanaka Group has enough lawsuits already.”

“Then why call me here?” Ino asks with uncertainty. “You could have simply told my father everything.”

“Since you love theatrics so much,” Sasuke Uchiha shrugs, “I thought I would indulge as well. Besides, I have a few questions for you. First of all, why?”

“Because I don’t want to get married.” Ino’s voice grows small. “Especially not to the men my father likes to set me up with.”

“Men like me, you mean.” Sasuke replies curtly.

“I don’t expect you to understand.” Ino sighs. “You have no idea what it’s like to sit across arrogant, feckless man-babies, to be measured up like a piece of meat. To have no say in my own future. I’m sorry for what I did, but I didn’t have any choice.”

“I see.” Sasuke Uchiha says, his face calculative. “This friend of yours, does she help you out of misguided loyalty, then?”

“M-my friend?” Ino gulps. “Who are you talking about?”

“Your associate, of course.”

“Associate?” Ino questions. “Oh, you mean the woman whom you met? Oh no, I’ve never seen her. I hired an agency, and they sent someone around my age.”

“I thought you wanted to be honest with me, Ms. Yamanaka.” Sasuke cocks an eyebrow. “Tell me, do you make a habit of socializing with all the women you hire through this agency? Or just the ones that happen to be my employees?”

A pit of ice opens inside Ino’s stomach, and she can feel a thousand ants crawling under her skin. No, no, no. This cannot be happening.

“Your employees?” She repeats dumbly.

“There is no agency.” Sasuke switches on the tablet. “You have sent this one woman to all of your blind dates. I have checked all the CCTV footage from all the locations you have sent her to.  On multiple occasions, the two of you have been photographed together by gossip reporters. Here” He points to the photos on the tablet. “I cross-referenced them with your Instagram posts, and–”

“My account is private!” Ino cries out in distress.

“I created an account and sent you a follow request.” Sasuke explains calmly. “You should be more careful about accepting requests.”

“You created a fake profile just to stalk my account!” Ino exclaims, aghast. “That is beyond creepy!”

“I have no interest in you whatsoever.” Sasuke scoffs. “I only did what I had to to uncover the truth, the whole truth. That I did.” He pulls up Ino’s Instagram profile, and sure enough, there’s Sakura’s face plastered all over the grid.

“Sending in my employee to dupe me into thinking she’s you.” Sasuke clicks his tongue. “You do have guts, Ms. Yamanaka. I’ll give you that.”

“Please.” Ino begs. “I basically forced her into this. You can do whatever you want to me, but please, please leave her out of this.”

“Your little games end today, Ms. Yamanaka.” Sasuke says, ignoring her pleas. “I cannot imagine your father will be too pleased after he finds out exactly why your matches fall apart. And as for this Sakura Haruno, I look forward to having a chat with her. Like the one you and I just had.”

Ino finally slumps back in her chair, all the fight drained out of her. It was like she had feared. From the periphery of her vision, she can see Naruto walking back to the table. He gives an uncomfortable look at Sasuke, then Ino, then back to Sasuke again.

“Are we done here?” He clears his throat awkwardly.

“Yes.” Sasuke Uchiha agrees, throwing one last scornful look at Ino. “I would say we are done.”

—

The minute he steps inside the car, Sasuke can feel the tension, practically fogging up the insides. As they make their way through busy Konoha traffic, he chooses to pretend that he does not see the accusatory stares from the front seat, bouncing off of the driver’s mirror.

It was the long, drawn out sighs that finally get to him.

“Nothing to say?” He finally snaps at Naruto, who instead of answering, stares at the yellow light with too much concentration.

“I don’t know.” Naruto finally answers, starting the ignition as the light finally turns green. “Am I speaking as your employee or as your friend?”

“I don’t know. It’s not like you ever respect the distinction between the two.”

“You were an ass tonight.” Naruto blurts out.

“Me?” Sasuke scoffs. “You’re defending her, after everything she did?”

“I’m not saying what she did was okay.” Naruto explains, his tone softer now. “I’m not saying that your anger isn’t justified. But you didn’t have to be all, you know, you.”

“I see.” Sasuke purses his lips.

“What?” Naruto rolls his eyes. “What do you see?”

“I wonder if you would be defending Ms. Yamanaka with such gallantry if she wasn’t young and attractive?”

“That.” Naruto’s ears turn red. “Has nothing to do with this. She had to invent an elaborate lie because her family is forcing a match on her that she does not want. Surely you, of all people, can empathize with that?”

“This is different.” Sasuke disagrees. “I was honest–”

“Maybe a little too honest.” Naruto says pointedly. “To the point of scaring away all your potential wives. Tell me that wasn’t done intentionally.”

“You cannot compare me with Ino Yamanaka.” Sasuke grits his teeth. “You’re making me the bad guy here.”

“You’re not the bad guy, Sasuke.” Naruto sighs. “It’s just that you Uchihas can let anger get the best of you. Speaking of Uchihas, will you be dropping by the house tonight?”

“No.” Sasuke says tersely. “It’s been a long day. I’m going home, my home.”

“Very well.” Naruto agrees.

“Do you want to hang out?” Sasuke asks lamely as Naruto drops him off in front of his apartment. 

“No. It’s been a long day for me too.” Naruto replies. “I still have to go to your basement, park your car, and take a cab home.”

“About Ms. Yamanaka–” Sasuke says hesitantly.

“You’ll figure it out, Sasuke. I know you will, and you will do the right thing. I will see you tomorrow at the office.” Naruto winks, before driving off.

“Why can’t vengeance ever be the right thing?” Sasuke yells, but Naruto was already gone.

Chapter Text

When the dreaded email came, Sakura expected fear, panic, sadness, anger. Anything.

Instead, she felt exactly the same as she had walked into her office that morning. Hollow. In fact, she was a little relieved that it was finally happening.

It was easy to slip away from her desk. Jiraiya and Tsunade were busy fighting. Shizune was busy ignoring them. Sakura didn’t bother interrupting them. They’ll find out soon enough.

As Sakura started her long walk to the elevator, she thought about the mail. The verbiage was polite enough. Ms. Haruno has been invited to a brief meeting with the CEO in about five minutes. Signed by the CEO’s office. Nothing ominous about it to the unsuspecting eye. But of course, Sakura knew.

She had known since Ino had stumbled to her apartment, two nights back, half-sobbing and half-babbling. Sakura had exhausted herself through the wide spectrum of human emotions that night. Perhaps that is why she had nothing left to feel anymore. Only the resigned acceptance to her fate.

How did it come to this? Sakura wonders as the elevator shoots upward, transporting her to the lofty heights where the powers that be reside.

Oh, right. The store. The debt. Ino. Everything.

The elevator finally dings at the last button, thirty-second floor. The doors slide open to reveal a lobby far more opulent than the rest of the lower floors combined together. There’s no crowd, no laughter, no voices. Just a beautiful, lifeless cavern.

“Ms. Haruno?” A pretty young woman approaches Sakura, her long, sleek ponytail swishing.

“Uh-yes?” Sakura gapes at the woman. The dress she’s wearing costs more than Sakura’s yearly income. 

“You are Ms. Haruno, correct?” The woman asks, the politeness in her voice straining.

“Yes. Yes, I am.” Sakura answers firmly, straightening her back. Might as well go down with some dignity.

“Good. Follow me.” Without waiting for an answer, the woman turns back and starts walking, her heels clacking loudly against the dark granite floor.

Sakura follows her, throwing furtive glances around. It seems that the topmost floor really is devoid of life. No offices, no employees. Just a couple of empty meeting rooms, and of course, the room the woman stops in front of.

“He’s inside.” She gestures at the tinted glass doors. Hmm, so he can see everyone but nobody can see him. Not sinister at all.

“Cool.” Sakura says lamely.

The woman gives her a curt bow before walking away.

“There goes my only friend.” Sakura mutters sarcastically. She looks miserably up and down the glass door, and gives a timid knock.

“Come in.” A voice says. His voice.

Sakura slips inside and presses herself flat against the door, as if that would somehow make her invisible. She takes a moment to look around, and well-

It wasn't what Sakura had expected. In her nightmares, this place always had bare white walls, and steel furniture. For some reason, she expected a lot of steel.

In reality, the CEO’s office looked-warm? The walls were painted a deep, aquatic blue, contrasting nicely with the deep brown couch set that occupied the middle of the room. There was a bookshelf almost obscuring one of the walls. There was a glass window - one thing she had anticipated, and sitting right in front is a mahogany desk, and leaning against it- is Sasuke Uchiha, wearing his scowl as naturally as he did his designer suit.

“Ms. Haruno.” He asks, his voice calm. “Do you like pranks?”

“Pranks-I. Sir?” Sakura gulps.

“Pranks, yes. Do you like them?” He crosses his arms. “I assume you do. Why else would you go to such elaborate lengths to create one?”

God, why is he doing this? Why can’t he just fire her, like a normal person?

“It wasn’t a prank.” Sakura says quietly.

“No?” Sasuke raises his brows inquisitively. “Then explain what it was.”

“Then– are you going to fire me?” Sakura asks nervously. In all her nightmare scenarios, Sasuke Uchiha either fired her or flung her from his office window. Sometimes both. He never, ever asked for an explanation. 

“That depends.” Sasuke says curtly. “On the explanation you give. Now, Ms. Haruno. I believe you’ve wasted my time enough.”

“Look, I know you have every right to be angry-”

“Angry?” Sasuke cuts in. “Oh, angry doesn’t even begin to describe what I’m feeling right now. I hate being made a fool of. But you know what is the worst part of this? You wasted my time- time I could have dedicated to my work, to the benefit of my employees, which includes you too. Your explanation, now.”

“Okay, okay.” Sakura pleads, her vision starting to blur now. Dammit, she promised herself she wouldn’t cry. “I needed money.”

The anger seems to dissolve from Sasuke’s face, and he gives her a perplexed look.

“I don’t understand.” He shakes his head. “Are you not being compensated enough for your work?”

“My compensation is fine.” Sakura says quickly, wringing her hands. God, this is so embarrassing. “It’s, my parents– we have this store. It went almost belly-up, twice. We had to take out a second mortgage on the house, and there’s my student loan. So when Ino had this idea– I kind of went along with it to pay back all the debts.”

“Ms. Yamanaka, she could not have simply given you this money?” Sasuke questions, still puzzled.

“No!” Sakura exclaims. It’s not like Ino hadn’t offered. Several times, in fact. “I won’t accept charity.”

“Interesting.” Sasuke remarks shrewdly. “Taking charity from a friend is morally unacceptable, but swindling innocent men is completely fine?”

“There was no swindling!” Sakura protests hotly. “I’m sorry that we lied to you, and you can fire me, or throw me in prison, but all I did was help my friend and yes, help myself a little as well. I didn’t hurt anybody, I just acted a little loony to scare them off.”

“Such as?” Sasuke looks at her expectantly. “Care to illustrate with an example?”

“Oh-I” Sakura stutters, mortified at her recent outburst. As if she wasn’t in enough trouble already.

“Go on.” Sasuke urges.

“This one time.”  Sakura lowers her head. “I pretended to be possessed by a vengeful spirit to drive a potential match away. He was the heir to some shipping company.”

She expected more anger from Sasuke Uchiha. Instead, he seemed busy fixing his watch, and Sakura could have sworn that the corners of his mouth twisted a little.

“I believe I have heard enough.” Sasuke looks up, his face neutral. “You may get back to your work, Ms. Haruno.”

“I’m- not fired?” Sakura asks dubiously.

“Not this time.” Sasuke says in a clipped tone. “Your little enterprise, while annoying, seems to be harmless. A pampered heiress’ juvenile attempt at a rebellion, and you going along with it for monetary interest. I believe it goes without saying that it ends now?”

“Of course!” Sakura cries out, almost sobbing from relief. “Thank you! I will do anything. I will work overtime, I will wipe the floors, I will clean the toilets, anything!”

“Noted.” Sasuke says coolly. “Now go, Ms. Haruno. Before I change my mind.”

That was all the encouragement Sakura needed to practically flee the room. She made it back to the elevator and back to her desk in a dazed state. Everything still felt like one long fever dream.

Jiraiya and Tsunade were still bickering, and Shizune was watching them with rapt attention.

“Where have you been?” She asks Sakura. “You missed all the cuss words.”

“I-” Sakura stutters, still confused about what just happened. “I think I need to buy a lottery ticket.”

Chapter Text

Sasuke takes a deep breath as he stands in front of the Uchiha mansion.

It has been a while since he has been home for Friday night dinners, to his mother’s constant disappointment. Truth to be told, he wasn’t planning on attending this one either. He would have just said that he has to work, like always. But stupid Naruto had to open his stupid mouth.

So here he is, standing in front of the large manor that always seems to loom over Sasuke, no matter how taller or older he gets.

He knocks, and the door is immediately opened by a young, frightened looking maid.

“Is he here?” A deep voice booms from inside the house. “Someone answer me, dammit!”

“Yes, grandfather. I’m here.” Sasuke sighs, handing his coat over to the maid, who flees immediately. He steps inside the foyer. The mansion had originally been built in the traditionalist style, but Sasuke’s grandfather had all but torn it down to remodel it to suit his Western tastes, much to the chagrin of the rest of the clan. But the paintings of generations of Uchiha still hung on the hallway, haughtily staring down at Sasuke.

Sasuke found his grandfather in the living room, sprawled over the couch. Even in his seventies, Madara Uchiha still cut an impressive figure with his well-built, saturnine frame, despite the fact he was currently wearing a pink bathrobe and fuzzy bunny slippers. Sasuke would have laughed, had he not been currently assessed by his grandfather’s piercing dark eyes. My eyes see everything . He would always say when Sasuke was little, and he has learned that it was often true.

“There you are!” Madara Uchiha bellows. “Do you know what it’s like, living in a house of imbeciles?”

“Grandfather.” Sasuke bows curtly. “I see that you’re still torturing the staff.”

“Torture! Hah!” Madara scoffs, adjusting the pillow supporting his neck. “How difficult is it to remember that jojoba oil is not the same as rose oil? My pores were clogged for a week! A week! You’d understand the importance of skincare when you start getting older! Everyone’s too pussy these days, that’s what the problem is!”

“I see.” Sasuke says, awkwardly shuffling his feet around. 

“Sit, sit!” Madara motions at one of the haphazardly arranged chairs. “You’re just in time for my favorite drama. Today we find out if Hana is getting fired or not.”

“Who’s Hana?” Sasuke asks dumbly.

“The secretary, the main character!” His grandfather says impatiently, as if everyone in the world should possess that knowledge. “Her boss, the CEO, is always too hard on her. Obviously he likes her, but–

“Dinner’s ready.” A maid announces.

“All the damn time.” Madara rolls his eyes. “Guess I’ll have to record this. Again.”

_

Sasuke finds his mother at the dinner table, instructing the maids on how to lay the table. 

“Sasuke.” Mikoto Uchiha smiles warmly. “I thought you wouldn’t make it.”

“Mother.” Sasuke says stiffly. “My schedule, uh, cleared up.”

“I see.” His mother’s smile falters. “How nice. Come sit. I made all your favorites.”

Dinner at the Uchiha household was always a tense affair, especially since that day . Sasuke fidgets with his chopsticks, squishing an unfortunate grain of rice over and over again. He knows what’s coming. It’s only a matter of time before they bring it up.

“The Yamanaka girl.” His mother finally speaks up. “Were you- are you happy with her, Sasuke?”

The name instantly brought Sasuke back to that disastrous date, and to her . Sakura Haruno, with her lies, her deceit, her big green eyes-

Merely thinking of her makes Sasuke’s blood boil with liquid fury. His grip on his chopsticks tighten a little more and he almost cusses her out, right there at his mother’s dinner table.

But he cannot let his family know how that wretched girl had wounded his pride. So he simply says, “It did not work out.” 

“Oh, of course.” His mother’s face is neutral, but Sasuke can see the disappointment in her dark eyes. “I was really hoping that she would be the one, but these things happen. We will keep looking.”

“Bullshit!” Madara spat. “What do you mean, it did not work out?”

“Father!” Mikoto says, aghast. “Please calm down.”

“No I won’t!” Madara says angrily, pointing his chopstick at Sasuke. “You’re always bitching about how we’re setting you up with vapid debutantes and socialites. Very well, we think, this Yamanaka girl is educated, has a job, she must have something to offer you. But oh no, His Highness isn’t pleased. Tell us what you want Sasuke, because we’re at our wit’s end!”

“I want you to leave me the hell alone!” Sasuke yells, slamming the table. “I don’t need this, I work so hard-”

“Yes, you do and for what?” Madara cuts in. “You’re thirty, for God’s sake. Who takes over the company after you? A bunch of no-name board members? My legacy, our legacy, is going to vaporize into thin air if there are no future generations to pass it on. You don’t have a girlfriend, you don’t date, what else are we supposed to do?”

“You’re supposed to mind your own business.” Sauke answers through gritted teeth.

“I’m too old for this.” Madara raises his hands in surrender. “Mikoto, you’re his mother. Talk some sense into him.”

“Sasuke.” Mikoto’s voice wavers. “We-I, I only want you to be happy.”

That takes all the fight out of Sasuke.

“I need some air.” He sighs, pushing aside his food.

–

It was his mother who finds Sasuke, as always, sitting on one of the flat rocks that surround the small koi pond, at the corner of the garden. Sasuke ignores her, choosing instead to focus on the fishes’ tails breaking the surface of the pond, making the water ripple silver under the moonlight.

It’s beautiful, and for a moment, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with the world. 

“I knew you’d be here.” Mikoto’s voice breaks the tense silence. “You boys would come here all the time, whenever you-”

“Mother.” Sasuke says softly. “You don’t have to do this.”

Mikoto sighs and sits on a rock next to Sasuke. They had the same face, only hers was softer, and her eyes more haunted. “Sasuke.” She sighs. “I meant what I said back there. I don’t care about fortunes, or names, or business deals. I only want what every mother wants - for her child to be happy and safe.”

“Is that why you keep pushing heiresses at me?” Sasuke laughs joylessly. “How many times must I say no?”

“Sweetheart, it’s not like that.” Mikoto protests. “You don’t have to be married if you don’t want to. But I look at you - consumed with work, pushing everyone away, rejecting companionship at every turn, it frightens me. If Itachi were here, he wouldn’t want this.”

“But he’s not here!” Sasuke yells, his voice reverberating around the garden. “He’s gone. So his wants and needs hardly matter anymore, do they?”

“Of course.” His mother gives him a wan smile, and even in the dim lamplight, Sasuke can see her dark eyes brimming with hurt.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” He sighs, defeated. Why must it always be like this? Why can’t they have a single conversation without tearing each other apart?

“Let’s go back inside.” Mikoto finally says.

“Let’s not.” Sasuke answers simply.

“Your grandfather would be upset.” Mikoto chastises.

“He’s always upset.” Sasuke shakes his head. “Let’s at least give him a reason this time.”

“Well, it is peaceful out here.” Mikoto relents.

“It certainly is.” Sasuke agrees. Together, mother and son sit in the darkness, staring at the koi pond. The fish in the pond keep encircling each other, perfectly happy in their small silver world.

Chapter Text

He’s quiet, awfully quiet. Ino thinks to herself as settles down for breakfast, warily eyeing her father sitting on the opposite end of the large table.

It has been a week since the Uchihas have politely informed, that they will, in fact, not be moving forward with the match. A week spent in anxious anticipation of a display of her father’s famous temper, but it never came.

Not yet, anyway. Ino squirms in her chair as she watches her father, immersed in his tablet, often running his hand through his thinning blond hair. The market must not be doing well today, which meant Ino might not as well.

How did we come to this? Ino wonders as she studies her father’s handsome face, the tight line of his mouth, the worry lines etched around his pale blue eyes. Inoichi Yamanaka had not always been an irascible man. In fact, it was quite the opposite. A jovial friend and a charismatic CEO, he had been a rising star in the nation’s economy, not to mention the object of adoration of many hopeful young interns. But that had all changed, ever since her .

“What was it this time?” Her father’s voice brings Ino out of her reverie.

“I-I don’t understand.”

“What did you do?” Inoichi’s voice was calm, but Ino could feel the venom seeping in. “You must have done something to drive Sasuke Uchiha away.”

“Why do you assume I did something, Dad?” Ino snaps, unable to hold back. Her father always knew how to get under her skin. “Did you ever consider that he might not be a good fit for me?”

“Because it’s always you.” Inoichi’s eyes were like chips of blue ice, fixed on his daughter. “You think I don’t know about your little antics? That friend of yours?”

“I-I” Ino falters.

“You will fix this.” Inoichi says matter-of-factly. “I have some connections inside that family. I’ll get another meeting. You will go, and you will make him like you. Beg him, seduce him, I don’t care. But you will make this happen.”

“I’m not your pawn!” Ino says indignantly. “Are you seriously suggesting that I seduce him?”

“If that’s what it takes, yes!” Inoichi slams his fist on the table. The sound reverberates throughout the room, making Ino flinch.

“For too long, I have been lenient with you.” Inoichi continues, waving his index finger. “You are my daughter, and you have a duty to this family, to this company. We need the Uchihas, to-to fix things.” Inoichi’s voice wavers at the end.

“Whoring me out to Sasuke Uchiha is not going to fix your mistakes.” Ino says quietly, tears brimming at her eyes. “But I could, if you had ever bothered to listen to me. But you never do, just as you never apologize.”

“Apologize? For what?” Inoichi scoffs, waving his hand around the opulent dining room. “For all this? For giving you a life of wealth and privilege - a life others would kill for, a better life than what you deserve?”

“You never apologized for your anger, your cruelty.” Ino says softly, with as much dignity she could muster. She wouldn’t cry in front of her father, that would only amuse him. “You never apologized for making Mama leave.”

Inoichi looks stunned for a moment, before slipping back into the familiar mask of anger.

“Do not speak of that woman.” He spat. “She abandoned us.”

“You drove her away!” Ino cries out. “You cheated on her with anything with a pulse, and you had the audacity to flaunt your affairs. You hurt and humiliated her until she couldn’t take it any more. This is so typical of you Dad, you screw up and then someone else has to take the fall! First it was Mama, and now it’s me!”

“Selfish and spoiled.” Inoichi says with contempt. “Just like her mother. You think you’re better than this, better than me - you ungrateful brat? We’ll see how good you are if I kick you out into the real world.”

“Yeah, why don’t we?” Ino asks calmly, rising from her chair. “I cannot believe it took me so long to say this. I’m moving out.”

—

“Calm down, sheesh.” Sakura sighs as puts her phone a little away from her ears, trying to make sense of Ino’s panicked ramble. “And all this happened over breakfast today?”

“Uh-huh, uh-huh.” Sakura says as Ino continues her rant. She was about to ask her friend follow up questions when her computer pings, indicating a new mail. She opens it mindlessly, expecting it to be something from Shizune or Tsunade.

NO. OH NO.

“Ino.” She says urgently, feeling the panic creep up through her chest. “I-I have to go. I’ll call you back later, I promise. Do not do anything impulsive until you talk to me, okay?”

Sakura hangs up, barely giving up Ino time to respond. She gets up wordlessly, her legs mechanically carrying her to the elevator.

Why now? Why again? Sakura’s mind churns up questions as she takes the dreaded ride up to the thirty-second floor, again. God, what if he has changed his mind? What if he has decided that he was, after all, going to fire her?

The elevator dings, announcing her arrival. With a deep, defeated sigh, Sakura steps into the now-familiar granite floor. As expected, the CEO’s secretary is waiting for her, wearing a sour expression that went particularly well with her designer dress. Wordlessly, she beckoned Sakura to follow. 

The glass doors were open this time, and the secretary showed Sakura in and left, no bow this time. Sakura didn’t mind. Why bother showing courtesy to a lost cause?

Gulping, Sakura steps in. Sasuke Uchiha is sitting at his desk, seemingly lost in a stack of papers. Sakura nervously shifts her weight from one foot to another, unsure how to announce her presence.

“Ms. Haruno,” Sasuke says, without looking up. “I appreciate you meeting me. I hope I’m not taking time away from your work.”

Is he being sarcastic? Sakura opens her mouth to form an appropriate response, but all she manages to produce is a garbled grunt. Sasuke looks up, his brows furrowed in confusion.

“You look pale, Ms. Haruno.” He says, carefully scrutinizing Sakura. “Are you unwell?”

"Am I fired?” Sakura asks flatly.

Sasuke looks confused, then realization dawns on his face.

“No, no. Absolutely not.” He says firmly, rising from his chair. “Ms. Haruno, please have a seat.” He says, gesturing at the brown couch. Sakura perches gingerly on one of the single sofa sets, careful not to put a dent on the expensive leather. 

Sasuke silently strides across the room and sits on the large couch opposite to her, carefully avoiding eye contact with her. He sits silently for an excruciatingly long minute, awkwardly fiddling with his tie.

“Is everything okay?” Sakura gulps, the silence suffocating her.

“Ms. Haruno.” Sasuke finally looks at her, his dark eyes blazing with an unnerving intensity. “When we last spoke, you said that you would do anything to make up for your deceit. Anything , right?”

“Yes, I suppose.” Sakura says warily, unsure of what trap she’s walking into. 

“You did.” Sasuke answers, but something inside him has deflated. He looks away again, staring straight ahead at the wall behind Sakura.

“My family. They’re, well, anxious to see me wed.” Sasuke’s voice is unwavering, but Sakura can see a flush of red creep up his neck and spread till the tips of his ears.

Holy crap, is Sasuke Uchiha…..blushing?

“That’s, erm, nice.” Sakura replies, feeling a little lost. Did he summon her all the way up here to discuss his nuptial plans? “Congratulations?”

“There’s nothing nice about it.” Sasuke mutters darkly. “My mother and grandfather, they mean well, but they don’t understand that I don’t have time for this nonsense. Our blind date–” He scoffs, gesturing between him and Sakura, “Was the last one in the string of equally disastrous blind dates I’ve been on. I need to put an end to it, and soon.”

“Right.” Sakura says dumbly.

“I have devised a plan.” Sasuke nods. “Well, I was inspired by you and Ms. Yamanaka. This will make my family back off and allow me to focus my energy back where it belongs - my work.” 

“Sure.” Sakura answers.

“I’m going to enlist the help of a woman, to, uh, disrupt my next blind date. There will be a scene, my date will leave, and hopefully that fiasco will be enough to ruin my reputation among eligible heiresses and their parents. If it doesn’t work the first time, we will try it a couple more times. Just to solidify the fact that I’m more trouble than it’s worth.” Sasuke explains, looking awfully pleased with himself.

What a dumb idea. Definitely going to bite him back in the ass.

“Well, what do you think?” Sasuke asks, looking at her expectantly.

“Brilliant plan, sir.” Sakura grins. “I think this is going to work.”

"That is good to hear.” Sasuke replies, his shoulders relaxing. “So you’ll do it?”

“Me?” Sakura points at herself, dumbfounded.

“Yes, you.” Sasuke says, brows furrowing. “I’d say you’re a perfect fit for this job, what with your prior experience.”

“Oh, no, no, no.” Sakura says, the weight of it finally sinking in. “No. I’m not doing that again. Not after what happened last time!”

“As I recall, the last time you were here,” Sasuke begins, looking shrewdly at her, “You expected me to fire you. I should have fired you, by all logic and reason. But I showed mercy. And you, Ms. Haruno, said that you would do anything for me. Am I wrong?”

“No.” Sakura mutters, hanging her head in shame and defeat. “But I-I thought it would be something different. Like free overtime.”

“I don’t condone unpaid labor.” Sasuke impatiently waves his hand. “This is what I need you for. You’ll be doing almost the same things you did for Ms. Yamanaka, except I’ll be your employer.”

“I can’t.” Sakura stands up, resisting the urge to flee. “Please, you of all people should know why I can’t do this. I almost lost my job, I-”

“I’ll pay you!” Sasuke leaps out of his couch, a desperate edge in his voice. “Thrice the amount of whatever Ms. Yamanaka was paying. No, more than that. That’s why you started this in the first place, right?”

Sakura stops in her tracks, the cogs in her mind already turning.

“I’ll pay you handsomely.” Sasuke takes a careful step towards her, as if she was a skittish horse. “You can pay off all your debts and still take a nice long vacation. One bad date for me, and all your problems go away. How does that sound, Ms. Haruno?”

Sakura stays silent. Despite her best efforts, her traitorous mind has already started imagining a future - a future where her parents didn’t have to work themselves to the bone, where she had actual savings, where they could all afford nice things from time to time. That wouldn’t be so bad now, would it?

“One bad date.” Sasuke repeats, holding up his index finger. “It’s not a bad deal, Ms. Haruno.”

“It’s a deal.” Sakura can hear herself say, the sentence bouncing around inside her head.

She climbs back down in the elevator and walks back to her desk, still dazed from what just happened. The implications of what she just did finally start to click in, but she pushes the thoughts aside before they can grow and mutate into something ugly. What’s done is done. No backing out now.

Her phone beeps with a text alert. It’s from Ino.

I got an apartment! :) Moving in by this weekend.

Sakura grimaces, picking up the phone.

Chapter Text

It’s not too late to run. Sakura’s inner voice whispers as she smoothens her dress for the thousandth time.

The cafe that Sasuke had chosen was quite a plain one by Uchiha standards, but perhaps that was the point. It was an inconspicuous little place in midtown Konoha, crammed in the middle of old apartments and out-of-business office buildings. A place where the likes of Sasuke Uchiha wouldn’t be caught in.

Holding her head high, she pushes in the creaky wooden door and walks in. A matronly hostess with a kind face greets her, her smile widening when she finds out who Sakura is meeting.

“Of course, you’re here to meet the boys!” The old woman claps her hands in delight. “Come along dear, let me show you to your table.”

The boys? Sakura trails behind the hostess, mystified.

They maneuver their way through shabby wooden tables and rickety looking chairs, with a wizened ceiling fan whirring above. Hmmm, maybe Sasuke felt like the nature of their agreement demanded an equally sketchy venue.

The hostess leads her towards the end of the hall, lined with a row of booths. She finds Sasuke and Naruto occupying one, sitting across from each other and presumably having a heated argument. They were both impeccably dressed in suits, even though it was a Saturday.

“Here’s your guest, boys.” The hostess cheerfully announces. “Why don’t you have a seat dear.” She says sweetly to Sakura. “I’ll be back with the menu.”

“Miss Haruno.” Sasuke greets curtly. “Please, have a seat.”

Sakura slides down awkwardly next to Naruto, who gives her a cheerful smile and a thumbs up.

“The hostess.” Sakura begins awkwardly. “She seems to know you well.”

“She’s a family friend.” Sasuke answers, sipping his coffee. “My brother used to bring me here.”

The tone of his voice encourages no further questions, so Sakura simply nods.

“I’m sorry if I interrupted your conversation.” She turns to Naruto. “I hope it wasn’t anything important.”

“It was just business stuff.” Sasuke quickly replies.

“No it wasn’t.” Naruto scoffs. “I was explaining to him why grass type Pokemon solos every other type, but he refuses to accept the truth.”

“Anyway, to business.” Sasuke interjects, throwing a withering glance at Naruto. “Miss Haruno, you know why I have called this meeting.”

“Yes.” Sakura nods earnestly. “But I don’t understand how I can help. I can’t pretend to be you, obviously.”

“You don’t have to.” Naruto replies “What we’ve come up with” He slyly looks at Sasuke. “Is a little different from what you did at Ms. Yamanaka’s dates.”

“Different how?” Sakura gulps, her eyes darting nervously between the two men.

“Allow us to explain.” Sasuke says smugly, pulling up his laptop.

__

“Oh my god Sakura”, Ino yells at her phone, on her brand new coffee table (okay it was a flea market steal) in her brand new apartment, as she delicately balances a stack of dishes on her hands, “Did you have any idea everything was so expensive? I feel like I spent all my money on moving in.”

“Pipe down, you’re on speaker already.” Sakura sighs from the other end. “Welcome to the real world honey. Living is expensive, especially when you’re broke. But I thought you still had your trust fund.”

“My jerk dad cut me off.” Ino grumbles. “Since I’m not contributing to the Yamanaka future. His words, not mine. Jerk.”

“At least you still have your job with the company.” Sakura offers helpfully.

“That’s because he couldn’t find a legal reason to fire me.” Ino huffs, plopping down on her vintage leather couch (another fabulous flea market find), “But turns out, without my allowance and trust fund, my paycheck doesn’t amount to much.”

“It amounts enough for you to rent a midtown apartment.” Sakura says snarkily.

“Okay, okay. I hear the brattiness.” Ino rolls her eyes. “Tell me, how did it go yesterday with Mr. Stinky CEO?”

“I-I’m not sure.” Sakura sighs. “He has, uh, interesting ideas on how I can assist him in frightening off his potential wives.”

“I hate that he's making you do this. It’s still not too late you know.” Ino says warily. “We can fight back. Don’t let him bully you into some weird shit.”

“It’s fine.” Sakura says. “It’s not anything sketchy, I promise. Besides, I need the money. Especially now that I don’t have you as my meal ticket anymore.”

“Alright. But be careful.” Ino giggles. “I’ll facetime you once the apartment is set up. Love you!”

“Love you more!” Sakura replies, before hanging up.

Ino puts her phone away, the apartment suddenly feeling very large and empty. For the thousandth time, she wonders if she is brave enough to do this. What if it all ends in a disaster? What if she has to go crawling back to her father? What if, what if–

The doorbell rings, a shrill sound echoing through the apartment, making Ino almost jump out of her own skin.

“It’s just the bell, you scaredy cat.” She chuckles nervously. “The food, my food must be here.” She says out loud to no one, making her feel even more stupid.

Ino opens the door, expecting some bored looking delivery guy to be standing outside. Instead, she is greeted by a mop of golden hair, bright blue eyes and a big goofy grin - that was fast disappearing on seeing her.

“Y-you.” Ino stammers, painfully aware of a warm flush was creeping up on her face. “Mr. Uzumaki, wha-what brings you here?”

“I live here.” Naruto points on the door across the hallway. He was dressed in a baggy cardigan, a pale blue shade that made his eyes look darker, and gray sweatpants. He was her neighbor? The whole thing could have been straight out of a romantic comedy, if not for one Sasuke Uchiha.

“The co-op told me that the new neighbor was going to move in today.” Naruto explains awkwardly. 

“Guilty.” Ino says sheepishly. The silence stretches on between, tense and awkward.

“I got brownies.” Naruto says, and suddenly Ino notices the foil wrapped tray he has been holding in his right hand. “Just wanted to say hello to the new neighbor."

“Fantastic! I wanted to say hello to my new neighbors too!” Ino babbles. “Would you like to come in? We can have the brownies, and–”

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” Naruto cuts in. “Given that, you know, everything.”

“Right.” Ino says, her heart plunging into an icy pit in her stomach. “Of course.”

“I’ll be off then.” Naruto all but shoves the tray into her hands. “Welcome to the building, Ms. Yamanaka.”

Ino stands wordlessly, watching him disappear behind his doors. Oh well, it seems like her perfect love story has ended before it had even begun. Somewhere, her father must have been cackling out of glee.

Ino quietly comes back inside, leaning against her door. God, can human beings die from embarrassment?

“Welcome to the real world honey.” She says out loud, mimicking Sakura’s sarcastic voice, before shoving an entire fistful of brownies in her mouth.