FINALLY, NUMBER SIX!

It was after school, and Sakura was at her preferred grocery store standing in front of a colourful array of vegetables. Eggplant? Carrots? Radishes? She reached a hand tentatively, chipped red nail polish in full view. Out of nowhere another hand grabbed hers and was pulling the startled girl towards the owner's body. "Sakura!" It hollered happily as Sakura's body, at odds with its current condition swayed uncertainly.

It took a moment to place the voice, but as soon as she did, Sakura let her fist fly straight into the boy's face. "Naruto," She yelled, reeling back. "You idiot!"

The hyperactive blond landed in a smoldering heap, only to jump up seconds later grinning widely, an obvious lump appearing on his forehead, where Sakura's punch had connected. "Hey, I haven't seen you since the movie with Hinata!" he straightened, rubbing the back of his head self consciously.

Sakura felt a twinge of guilt at her violent actions, but quickly rationalized to herself that he was in a highly hormonal, pregnant woman's space and had snuck up on her. "That's right, how's Hinata doing anyway?" she asked.

"She's okay, something's up with her cousin though. I don't think they get along very well." Naruto's brows knitted together.

Sakura felt her face morphing into a scowl at the mention of Hinata's cousin. She felt the need to move on, grabbing an eggplant and placing it in her basket she patted Naruto's shoulder as she passed by. "Well, cheer her up, then! I'll see you around, I really have to get this shopping done."

The boy gave her the 'V is for Victory' sign and squeezed his eyes shut in his trademark smile. "No problem!"

Sakura turned down an aisle, shaking her head and laughing softly. Naruto was definitely one of the more insane people she'd met, but it was hard not to like him. When she looked up, she saw someone standing at the end of the aisle, examining canned beans. He was wearing a blue shirt and had black hair and… "Why are you everywhere?" Sakura pointed a finger, slightly horrified, slightly pleased.

Sasuke looked up, stuffing his hands in his pockets and looked blandly back at her. "I'm not everywhere, you're just stalking me." He shrugged.

Sakura felt her grip tightening on her grocery basket and her face reddening. "Don't even begin to think that you're important enough for that! You have a big enough head already."

Sasuke just kept staring, then pivoted on his heel and began walking away.

"W-wait!" Sakura called out. "Um, in science, did…did Ino say anything about me to you?"

The boy's onyx eyes came into view again as he turned his head. "Should she have?" he asked, starting to close the distance between them with alarming speed.

"U-uh…no, just…don't listen to anything she says about me." Sakura said sharply, her stuttering reminding herself of Hinata.

"I already don't, it's hard enough to just be around her…excruciating presence." Sasuke rubbed his temples.

Sakura giggled, then clapped a hand over her mouth, embarrassed at the girly character Sasuke brought out in her.

Just then there was a crashing sound coming from behind Sasuke. He whirled around and Sakura could see him bring his clenched fists up in front of him. She looked past him to see an old man wearing an argyle cardigan, he had dropped a jar of canned beets on the floor, their purplish red juice staining the floor. "Oh dear…" he shook his head, "My grip isn't what it used to be."

Sakura rushed to help the man, deciding to ignore Sasuke's strange behaviour. She took another jar off the shelf and put it in the gentleman's basket. "There you go, I'll go get help from one of the cashiers or something." She chirruped.

The man took her hand and patted it, "Thank you dear." He smiled, then reached into his pocket to produce a candy. "Why don't you have this to match your sweet personality?" With that he ambled off.

She grinned to herself and pocketed the candy skipping (or swaying) back to Sasuke. "What a nice senior citizen!"

His eyes were still dark and narrowed with what looked like suspicion, and while his hands were lax, his jaw was clenched tightly. "Do you have everything you need?" he grunted at her.

Sakura did a mental check list. "Let's see, eggplant, asiago cheese, seasoning…" she ticked them off. "Yeah, that should be good; we're having grilled eggplant tonight."

"Let's go, then." Was Sasuke's terse reply.

He grabbed the basket and marched her towards the check out line, occasionally checking behind them. Absently, when it was their turn to pay Sasuke slapped down a fifty dollar bill and brusquely shoved the items into Sakura's cloth shopping bag. He then grabbed her hand and basically tore out of the store. "S-sasuke!" Sakura's ragged breath coming in short gasps, "I…can't…keep up. What's wro-"

But even before she could ask, Sakura was out like a light-bulb.

Sakura awoke, swaddled in blankets in a strange room. Her head and neck hurt terribly and her vision was slightly hazy.

Reaching up groggily, she rubbed at her eyes and smacked her lips, she was thirsty. "Here." Came no other than Sasuke's monotonous drone, accompanied by himself holding a glass of water out to her.

Sakura took it gratefully, downing half of the glass in one gulp. Looking relieved, Sasuke leaned back into the chair he was sitting on. "Are you okay? You kind of passed out back there."

The pink haired girl struggled to recall what had been happening before she awoke. "But…you were making me run somewhere…you were worried about something, I thought." Only vague visions of the old man in the grocery store, Sasuke pulling her, a sense of panic played in her mind.

Sasuke's face twitched into an unrecognizable expression before he sneered, "You were looking faint, I thought we should get you to the hospital as soon as possible…you never know what could go wrong if you're pregnant."

Sakura thought she heard some sort of undertone to his explanation but said nothing, she watched Sasuke scratch his ear, from where she lay she thought she could see a massive bruise on the side of face where his hair normally covered. And on his forearm there was a wound that looked like it was inflicted with a knife.

He caught her staring and smiled somewhat ruefully, "That isn't from myself, if that's what you're thinking. I know where to cut if I need to. This one's just an accident." He stated bluntly.

Sakura cringed at how honest he could be about his problems; she had noticed it before but hadn't tried to bring it up yet. Then, an alarming realization hit her, she was in Sasuke's room! She jolted up, only to be greeted by a pang of agony searing down her head and neck. She ignored it as she tried to drink in every detail; blue walls, gray carpet, desk, clean, organized. It was not a very exciting room, she was dismayed to find out.

"What, you were expecting more?" he smiled gently, playing with his tongue piercing, the one Sakura had found so amazing when she first noticed it. "I don't spend much time in here, anyways, so there isn't a point."

"Where else would you spend your time?" Sakura asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Sasuke smirked.

But before she could quip a witty retort, what almost seemed like routine, an interruption occurred. "Sasuke, I'm home." A feminine voice called from below the room.

"Crap." Sasuke's hands went directly to his face, rubbing his temples. "Alright…Angela."

Angela? Sakura thought, who is this…woman, in Sasuke's house?

"I'm going out to get something for dinner, I'll be back in ten." 'Angela' said with a warning tone.

"Right." Sasuke replied, a note of strain evident in his voice.

After listening to the door slam Sakura turned on Sasuke, glaring at him. "Is there something you aren't telling me? Who exactly is this…Angela?"

"What, don't tell me you're jealous?" Sasuke widened his eyes in mock surprise.

Sakura turned pink and spluttered, "Of course not! I'm just curious!"

Chortling, the black haired boy stood, "She's my foster mom."

Sakura's face turned an even darker shade of red, "Oh."

"I believe you saw her, actually, in the hospital…" he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Y…yeah, really? Why are you in foster care?" the now very embarrassed pink headed girl asked timidly, trying to veer the subject away from her foolish incidents.

"My parents are dead." Sasuke stated, no hint of emotion.

"O-oh, I'm sorry." Sakura apologized quickly.

"Yeah, well, you didn't know."

A heavy silence fell for a few moments before Sasuke wheeled around, "We'd better get you back to your house."

Sakura looked at the alarm clock beside the bed, 6:45pm, "Shit." Was the comment at realizing she had better prepare herself for the volcano, who was her father that was going to erupt when she got home.

Sasuke pulled up to the driveway, handing the slightly tattered grocery bag to Sakura as she slid out of her seat. "Thanks…" she started to say.

"Yeah, no problem, bye." Sasuke said shortly, pulling the door closed and speeding away.

Upon opening the door she saw a very angry, red father standing in wait. "Just who was that boy you were with right now?" his terse accusation started.

"I…fainted and he helped me get home." Sakura replied.

"Hmph, and he just so happens to be the same one I saw you…flirting with in the hospital the other day?" Mr. Haruno spat 'flirting' out like a dirty word.

In truth, Sakura was surprised her father remembered Sasuke. "Yes, that's him."

"And how am I to know you are telling the truth?" a vein bulged out his forehead.

Sakura wasn't even sure if she was telling the truth, Sasuke's excuse as to why he was so worried and her sudden state of unconsciousness was certainly sketchy, but she was not about to be told she was a liar. "Why can't you just trust me this once? I am not an easy girl that guys just take out for a fun ride! Why would they do that when I'm pregnant, anyways? Sasuke is a friend and I see no problem with me hanging around him, he has never given you reason to be suspicious of him." She yelled.

"Oh, Sasuke, is it? Well you can tell that boy, Sasuke, that if he ever lays a finger on you, he'd better say good bye to both arms." Her parental unit jabbed his own finger at her before swiftly turning around and going back into his den.

But if Sakura wasn't mistaken, she could have sworn the last statement was ridden with fatherly protectiveness. It was most likely wishful thinking, though.

On the roll of reading undertones, Sakura thought back to Sasuke's lame excuse to her fainting. That boy was hiding something, and she was going to find out what it was.

a/n: GUH FINALLY. I'm sorry, I'm a terrible person, terrible, terrible, terrible. Thing is, I started writing and then I was like, 'urgh, mental puking, nothing sounds good' and I couldn't do anything creative for a while. But here is another chapter! Rawr, I love men with tongue piercings.