Day to Day
A Naruto fan-fiction
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Chapter 1: Crying out to the Astronaut
It's so late at night, but she's used to it.
Her cherry lips smile silently, watching the moons and the stars, holding her knees to her chest, sitting on her window seat up in her small apartment. With soft eyes gazing at the night skies, she leaned her head down on the top of her knees, making her hair fall to the sides of her face and over her knees and legs.
Her overlarge sweater covered her tiny hands, and curved around her bottom and over her jean pants. She rubbed her nose with the gray sleeve, and smiled as she found Orion's belt.
It was a nightly tradition to sit in the window seat and star gaze, pointing out the constellations, both of her own imagination and the textbook, with a long delicate finger. She usually traced it out on the window, cold from the winter weather, and then given herself a little pat on the back for every time she found one.
It had been so long since she had lived in her parent's home. After graduating to chunin, they all knew it would come soon; but she ended up not moving out until she was about to apply for jounin, along with Ino, Shikamaru, Kiba, and just about every other ninja her age in Konoha-with the exception of Sasuke and Naruto, since they were already living alone.
Smiling again, she remembered Naruto and Sasuke's antics as they helped her move in.
The rest of team seven had volunteered to help Sakura move into her new apartment, and things had been strange as usual.
Naruto had grabbed one end of a couch while Sasuke grabbed the other. The two had carried the furniture up the side of the apartment using their chakra, and then heaved it through the window with the help of Kakashi. And then, even after achieving the feat of carrying a couch up the side of a wall, Naruto had taken a whiff of the homemade ramen Sakura was making them in her new kitchen as a thank you; so he dropped the couch on Sasuke's feet and ran to the kitchen like his life depended on it.
Stupid head.
Kakashi had commented on Sakura's book collection, asking if she had ever considered reading more "adult" books since she was now older.
She later swept up ashes of a certain gross book.
Rolling her eyes, she traced Orion's belt on the cold glass, and sighed. Even though they were now sixteen, Naruto was still a dunce, and Sasuke was still the hot hero.
As for Sakura, she had never understood herself to begin with, so how could she place her change?
Although, she did always think of herself as the smart one; weaker, yes, but what is brawns without brain? She figured that through the years she had gained three things: experience, looks, and a certain gentleness that was uncanny; it even appalled her! She used to be so demanding, so out-there all the time; now she had so many times were she was so gentle, like beautiful pink porcelain glass that might break. Although these times were few and far between, they still left her unnerved. After long hours of thinking, which was a habit, she had concluded that it was because of her battle experience, and, God-forbid, her first killing.
Killing people no longer bothered her, but it used to. It used to give her nightmares, and make her throw-up; she later learned that this was what every ninja went through; the jounins called it "breaking". Like, for instance, leaders of each team had to break their students before they could split the group up or let them apply for jounin.
Kakashi's way was that he took his three students with him on one of his A-rank missions, and had them each kill one target. Sasuke had done it without hesitating, Naruto had hesitated, but followed suit; Sakura, however, had shook, cried, and even had to swallow puke to keep from giving away her position. Each had killed their targets, and each had had a period of time where they had to deal with the emotion black lash. Sasuke had simply spent a day in his room. Naruto had trained non-stop for two days.
Sakura, however, locked herself in her room and starved herself for three days, until Ino force-fed her, and Sasuke comforted her.
It was then that things had started to change between her and Sasuke.
Somehow, killing someone else had given Sasuke a reason to think about himself and his emotions. He had picked himself apart for a day, and examined each piece and part, contemplating the reason for it and how it makes him who he was.
Needless to say, it was regrouping from an emotional break down Sasuke-style.
Three days later, Sasuke had met Ino on the street. She had been carrying twice the groceries than normal, and had replied angrily when he asked her about it,
"Oh, Sakura-chan's so depressed she won't eat, so I've been force-feeding her-and that means getting her groceries, sadly." She rolled her eyes, and then shoved some groceries into the Uchiha's arms, demanding that he help her since Shikamaru was no where to be found.
The two had entered Sakura's apartment to find her curled up in her bed, staring at the wall.
Sasuke had walked up to her after unloading the groceries. She wouldn't move or looked up at him. Surprised, his eyes furrowed, and he left for a moment.
She looked up, wondering where he was going for a moment, and then looked back at the wall when she heard footsteps approaching. 'What the hell?' she had thought, 'Sasuke-kun, at my house?'
Sasuke walked back in, put a chair next to where she was laying, and looked at her. After a moment, he stroked her face with his gentle fingers, but she still didn't look up.
He stayed with her for the rest of the day. When night came, he started to find his chair too uncomfortable to sleep in. As if it was totally normal, he slipped off his sandals, and crawled into bed next to her. He had pulled the covers over them, and pulled her so close to him their noses touched. Her eyes had opened slowly, and she looked at him, her eyes desperate and confused.
"Sasuke-kun, I can't sleep."
Her reply was the most odd to Sasuke, who would've thought she'd ask about him holding her when he normally wouldn't speak to her, but he replied.
"Why not?" he had asked softly.
"He's there. I killed him, and he won't go away."
"Sakura," he replied, and stroked the side of her face with his other arm still around her waist. "Why did you kill that man?"
She paused, and then said, "Because Master Kakashi told me."
"Why did Master Kakashi tell you to?"
"Because it was the mission assignment."
"So why was it a mission assignment?"
She paused longer this time, and then said, "Because he murdered three mist children."
Sasuke had nodded, and continued to stroke her cheek. "We're here to keep things like that from happening, and from happening again, Sakura. If killing them is what needs to happen, we should be glad to do it. If we hadn't killed him, he could've killed us, or Konoha children. What would you have done if your children were murdered, Sakura-chan?"
Sakura nodded, and a tear ran down her cheek.
Sasuke frowned. "Hey, don't cry. You saved them. And, as far as I'm concerned, your children, if you have any, are mine as well."
Sakura looked at him, and her brows furrowed, but Sasuke never explained himself, he just closed his eyes, and said, "Sleep, Sakura-chan."
"But I can't sleep."
"Is he still there?" Sasuke asked, opening his eyes again.
"No. I just can't."
Sasuke paused, looking down, and then back up at her. "Have you ever heard the song 'Astronaut'?"
"No."
"You will now."
Sasuke had done the most un-Sasuke like things that night, but as of late, he had been known for them.
"I've been sleeping with ghosts
I've been watching stars
crawling out of the sky
and I've been hoping
I'm close to the space man movies
I call my life."
Sakura sang the song quietly. She could remember every word of it, since she had asked him to sing it to her many a time. She loved that song!
"And I've been climbing ladders through time
I've got tunnel vision
but I'm doing fine
and I've been
watching stars coming off of the wall
and maybe if I'm lucky I can catch them
before you fall
and you are not alone."
Her eyes closed in bliss as the lyrics came rushing back to her, his smooth voice echoing them in her head.
"Calling out to the astronaut
I need some of what you've got
I need to be high
crawling out of the world she brought
calling out to the astronaut
I need to be high."
Her voice, unlike Sasuke's, was smooth and sweet, like the color orange; high yet smooth.
"And I've been holding
this microphone
and I've been channeling out
but I think we're alone
and I've got platinum vision
innocent for the touch
I've got you to propel me
but I still need so much
not to be alone."
Sasuke had told her that the song was from a band he liked to listen to a lot called Something Corporate. She had asked him if he liked any other band, and he had shrugged. He said he normally stuck to anything on the radio, and the only other band he liked as much as Something Corporate was Dashboard Confessional. She had been surprised, since this was Emo punk, but he had shrugged. "I've had enough of hard-core stuff. I get it on every mission I go to; I don't need to listen to it all the time too."
"Calling out to the astronaut
I need some of what you've got
I need to be high
crawling out of the world she brought
calling out to the astronaut
I need to be high."
She had smiled at him, and said, "I never knew you to be so open, Sasuke-kun."
Again he had shrugged. "Don't push it." Rolling her eyes and bumping into him playfully, she wondered if it was because of her. He had smirked at her, and replied, "Oh, is this a wrestling challenge?" Laughing, he pushed her into the snow, and then tackled the fellow ninja into the white snow. The two had flipped over and over each other, until the stronger one won; Sasuke. He was over top of her, his face emotionless but his eyes soft. Sakura blushed as she realized where they were.
"And you are not alone
you are not alone
you are not alone."
He then leaned down, and kissed her softly.
"Calling out to the astronaut
I need some of what you've got
I need to be high
crawling out of the world she brought
calling out to the astronaut
I need to be high
calling out to the astronaut
I need some of what you've got
I need to be high
disappear in the world she brought
calling out to the astronaut
I need to be high."
Sakura blushed just thinking about that day; thank the Lord they weren't in public.
Although, even in public, Sasuke had been quiet open on the fact that he and she were together.
They walked together a lot hand-in-hand, or with his arm around her waist. Rock Lee had tried to entice her into a date, and Sasuke had stepped in, threatening to beat him until no one knew what was an organ or a swelling flesh. Rock Lee, seeing his "beautiful princess Sakura" was taken, had baked off like a dog with his tail between his legs; Naruto, however, had laughed his ass off, wishing he could've given Rock Lee the same brush off for Hinata.
"And I've got you to propel me
but I still need so much."
Sakura had never truly thought that Sasuke would ever want to be with her, but the tables had turned. Sasuke was now her boyfriend, and one of her best friends. The two had spent nights on the front lawn of the apartment complex or in the treetops talking, and keeping warm by huddling together. After seeing the two together for many a time, Ino had started shouting and declaring that the couple should go on a double date with her and Shikamaru, or, "Shii-chan", as she so lovingly calls her boyfriend.
Shikamaru and Ino were two highly different people, but somehow, that made them the perfect couple. For weeks there had been talk of Shikamaru proposing on Ino's eighteenth birthday, about a year and six months from now. Ino had blushed madly at the thought, and murmured aimlessly about not wanting to be some stupid housewife.
"I love you, Sasuke-kun." Sakura murmured, and dragged her finger down the window until it hit the seal softly, and then she pulled it away.
Smiling softly again, she got off the window seal, and walked over to her bed. She slipped in, and imagined Sasuke was next to her, holding her close like he did that night, and slowly slipped into deep sleep.
"Calling out to the Astronaut
I need some of what you've got
I need to be high
Crawling out of the world she bought
Calling out to the Astronaut
I need to be high."
Thank you for reading "Day to Day", and please review!
I'm not sure if I will make this a story, or keep it a one-shot. Let me know in reviews what you think of this, and of how its written, and also if you want it to continue. Although, it may be hard for me to get back into this Emo mood of mine, I'll try if you ask me to! But I need a high number of you to ask-well, okay, I MIGHT do it for one person...who knows.
"The Astronaut" really is a song by Something Corporate (which is a real band), and Dashboard Confessional is also a real band. This story is completely influenced and inspired by emo bands such as Dashboard Confessional, Something Corporate, The Starting Line (are they really emo?), and a few others.
Again, thanks to anyone who has taken the time out of his or her lives to read this, and I sincerely hope you enjoyed it! (And understood my big words!)
Review, please!
-IHearVoices