I recently got a like on this story that I had COMPLETELY forgotten about lol. I've been itching to write anyway lately, so let me get down to it! YEARS LATER lol

"Sure. You're welcome to come along, Sakura." Sasuke offered as nonchalantly as he could. Inside, he was ecstatic. But why? Sakura grinned, nodding happily. Naruto dusted himself off. His earlier hangover that was written all over his face now gone and replaced with a look of triumph.

"I've been waiting so long for this moment! Let's go!" He cried. Turning on his heel, he stomped down the way towards the Hokage's mansion. Sakura giggled. "Some thing's never change" she whispered quietly to herself. Had Sasuke not been completely engulfed in his presence at the moment, he probably would not have heard her. He took this moment to observe her. He had never noticed before how rosy her cheeks got when she was happy or how her hair fell loosely around her face when it was up and shaped it perfectly. He had never noticed how long and beautiful her eyelashes were or how she – "ARE YOU GUYS COMING?" Naruto screamed from down the road.

Idiot…

Sasuke and Sakura strolled down the road, not taking too long before they were caught up with Naruto.

"Sakura, I heard you kicked ass on your mission!" Naruto exclaimed as they continued on their way. Sakura blushed, clearing her throat.

"I did alright."

Sasuke listened on as Naruto tried to pull details out of Sakura about her mission. He had never seen Sakura as the type to be put on an S-rank mission. The last time he had done any missions with her, she spent most of her time following him around and crying anytime he stubbed his toe. She was the weakest link in the group…but time had obviously worked in her favor. She must have trained really hard. He wondered what her specialty now was. She was always the genjutsu type. Maybe she continued down that route. She always was the play it safe type.

"Did you punch a hole through the guy like you did on the last mission we went on?"

What?

Sasuke stopped in his tracks. "Punch a hole through the guy?" He asked. Sakura and Naruto came to a stop, staring at Sasuke. The lightbulb finally went off in Naruto's head.

"Oh yeah! You weren't here for Sakura's transformation into a total badass!" Now Sasuke felt out of place. He hated being reminded of what a little shit he used to be. "Sakura trained for months with Granny and now she's one of the top Kunoichi's in Konoha! Right, Sakura?" Sakura laughed loudly, her cheeks turning red with joy. I want to make her laugh like that. He mentally scowled.

"I mean, I trained hard, but I definitely wouldn't say that I'm one of the top Kunoichi's. I just do my job like everyone else."

"Yeah, but I can't name too many people who can kill someone with a flick of their finger." Naruto teased. By now, Sasuke was completely in the dark and felt left out. He realized now that he really didn't know Sakura at all. The person he knew when he left was completely gone.

That would explain why that guy from last night almost keeled over when she grabbed his arm. So she channels her chakra to create super strength. Not many ninja are capable of that kind of control. That's just

"Amazing." Sasuke stiffened. He hadn't meant to say that aloud for them to hear. Bringing his gaze up, he was met with wide eyes – both Naruto's and Sakura's. He had to save face from this moment. "I mean, training with the Hokage. Every ninja here dreams of that and she chose you of all people." He stiffened again. Shit. He definitely didn't mean for that to come out. Good job, moron. The tension was palpable now. Sasuke shifted nervously from side to side as he tried to find his words. He looked at Sakura who smiled a smile that didn't reach her eyes. It sent shivers up his spine…and Sasuke wasn't one to scare easily.

"Me of all people…" She said quietly. Naruto took a step back.

"That's not what I meant."

"Enlighten me, then" Her quiet, sweet tone made Sasuke uncomfortable. Why did she make him feel so uneasy?

"I just meant that…I meant…"

"I'm just gonna…yeah" Naruto took another step back…and another…and another. "See you, guys!" And with a quick wave, he ran until he was out of sight. What an asshole. Sasuke sighed.

"Sakura, I just meant that that was unexpected. I haven't seen you in four years and you're very different from who I remember." Damnit. Why is this so hard?

"Well, it's been four years since we've even seen each other, Sasuke. Of course I'm different. I can't assume that you're the same person you were back then, can I?" Her expression softened. Maybe she felt she was being too hard on him.

Sasuke shifted uncomfortably. "No…" When did she become so outspoken? She really is different. "I guess…let me start over."

Sakura held up her hand. She smiled, this time letting her smile reach her eyes. Sasuke visibly relaxed. "It's okay." She said as she glanced around. "I'm not trying to pick a fight with you, Sasuke. I just, I don't want you to see me as the girl that I was when you left because I'm not that girl anymore. At all."

I can see that.

"Anyway, Naruto ditched us. We should catch up with him." She said.

Hmm. Did he want to spend his time listening to Naruto's incessant babble and whining to the Hokage begging for this giant party that he wanted or did he want to get to know this new Sakura? The choice was obvious to him.

"Actually, I'm kind of hungry. You want to grab a bite to eat?" He hoped so badly that she would go for this. Please.

Sakura's brows raised in surprise. With a nod, she took a step forward and waved for Sasuke to follow. "Sure." Sasuke fell in step with her. "There's this new barbeque place that I've been dying to try since Chouji told me about it."

Sasuke snorted. "Chouji? You sure he's the best person to trust on the opinion of a restaurant? I mean, he's not particularly picky." Sakura laughed loudly. Sasuke's stomach tightened. Wow… It felt even better than he had imagined getting that reaction out of her on his own. Especially when he was so used to only ever making her sad.

They talked the entire way to the restaurant. Sakura told him about her mission, the details of it all and how it was successful, Sasuke told her about how he and his brother mended their relationship and how they had helped each other get their lives back on track after returning to the village. Sakura confirmed that her specialty was in fact channeling her chakra for strength and that she was also a medic. Sasuke was so impressed by how much she had changed and how easy it was to talk to her. He wondered about one thing in particular though.

After getting comfortable in a booth at the restaurant, Sasuke took a sip of his drink. The restaurant was fairly quiet at the moment. It was a small and cozy place with dim lighting that made the atmosphere relaxing. It was the perfect place for them to just talk. "So…" He wanted to ask her, but he didn't want to overstep his boundaries and make her uncomfortable. Besides, it wasn't any of his business.

"So?" Sakura repeated. She took a bite of her food. Sasuke couldn't take his eyes off of her. Every little thing she did felt like a big deal to him. She was perfect for lack of a better word.

He cleared his throat and took a bite of his own food. "You and that guy from last night…"

Sakura stopped chewing, putting her fork down. Crap. "Yeah, Sai. What about him?" She resumed eating.

"What's the deal with him? He didn't seem to know that you guys weren't together anymore." Did Sasuke want to know? Part of him did, part of him didn't because just the thought of Sakura with him made him feel...weird. He didn't understand these feelings. In just a day, Sakura had made him feel things he had never thought about feeling before. Especially for her.

She let out a soft sigh. Playing with her food, she looked down at her plate. "Sai and I were together for a couple of years. Everything was going well and while I was out on my mission, he came out with a supply team. I was excited because I really missed him. We spent the next couple of weeks doing everything together. I thought everything was going well and when his team was set to leave, he just dumped me. Out of nowhere. His reasoning was that he just wasn't that into it anymore. He was in a different place now and we were 'heading in different directions'" She used her fingers to make air quotes. "But I just knew it was more than that. Sai had never been the monogamous type. I didn't care to find out, though. I thought we had something great. It was the first time since…" She sat up in her seat and took a deep breath. Sasuke watched her intently, unsure of what she was going to say next. Sakura closed her eyes and let the breath out. When she opened them again, for a brief second Sasuke saw her pain. Had she been hurting this whole time? Why hadn't she said anything?

"Sakura…" He whispered. He watched her expression change from hurt to resilience. Her nose was a little red now and her cheeks were flushed. She shook her head and wiped at her eyes. Asshole…

"It was the first time since you left that I felt like I was becoming myself again. Sai made me feel normal. He helped me to find myself outside of the love that I had for you all those years ago." Had? So maybe she didn't feel that way for him anymore. For some reason, this disappointed him. But more than anything, he was pissed. Pissed off that this Sai guy could hurt her so easily when she clearly gave her all in their relationship. How could he just throw that all away and leave her? Do you have any room to talk? Sasuke mentally kicked himself. Sakura's quiet sniffle brought him back from his thoughts.

"He was there for me in my darkest moments and it just felt like he built me up and tore me down all in a couple of weeks when I saw him. I just don't know what I did wrong."

"Nothing." Sasuke interrupted before he could stop himself. "The guy's an idiot to dump you. Seems to me that he realizes that now and thinks he can just waltz back in to your life. You're not to blame."

"I guess so. I spent the last two years after that on the same mission and I think in that time, I was able to find myself again. Sai is old news." Sakura laughed quietly. She sighed, her shoulders sagging as she relaxed. "Who would've thought I'd be coming to you and venting about my ex?"

Now Sasuke laughed quietly. "A little ironic, I suppose." Sakura smiled and Sasuke couldn't help but smile back. He didn't do this often. He didn't have many friends. He kept his circle pretty small as he always had done. Sasuke never thought the day would come where he would be out having lunch with Sakura Haruno willingly. Especially after the way that he treated her when they were younger.

"Sakura."

"Hmm?"

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"Everything."

She stared at him silently for what felt like forever. "I forgave you a long time ago, Sasuke. Let's move forward. I don't want to look back anymore."

Sasuke nodded. "Okay. Forward."

This girl…she's amazing. I can't believe after everything that I put her through, she doesn't hold a single grudge.

The silence filled between them as they continued to eat, but it was a comfortable silence. Sasuke was enjoying himself. He hoped Sakura was too.

"Wow, the sun is already going down?"

Sasuke glanced out the window. It was starting to get dark outside.

"We've been here for hours. Crazy." He said, eyeing how the soft glow of the setting sun highlighted the best of Sakura's features which was…everything.

"Well, we did have a lot of catching up to do." Sakura said.

"We should go." He suggested reluctantly. I really don't want to. "I have to be up early tomorrow for work."

Nodding, Sakura slid out of her seat in the booth. Sasuke placed money down on the table and followed after Sakura. Outside of the restaurant, he struggled to find his words. How could he tell her he wanted to see her again without seeming desperate?

"I want to do this again." That'll do it.

Blushing, Sakura cleared her throat. "Sure. Maybe Naruto can come next time? Or we could do a group outing?"

That's not what I meant.

"Yeah…sounds good."

They stood outside of the restaurant and said their goodbyes, but not before exchanging phone numbers.

"I'll text you?" Sasuke asked hopefully.

"Yeah. Just text me. I'm not doing anything for a while."

"Okay."

"See you later, Sasuke. Thanks for this. It was really nice catching up."

"I'm glad you had a good time."

"Goodnight." Sakura said softly. Very smoothly, she turned on her heel and left in the direction of her house? Apartment? Loft? Where did she even live? He forgot to ask. But he watched her leave anyway until he could no longer see her and then he himself headed home.

Opening the door to his apartment, Sasuke tossed his keys aside on to a small table. He wasted no time stripping down in to a pair of shorts and throwing himself on to his bed. He was all smiles. He couldn't help himself. Why was he so giddy all of a sudden? Was it really just because he had spent most of the day sitting around and talking to Sakura? That had to be it. He couldn't keep his mind off of her. As he lay in his bed staring up at the ceiling. Today sealed the deal for him. He had to be with her. He had to show her that he could give her what she wanted and be everything that she wanted, whatever that was. Her taste in men had obviously changed since the last time they talked so he had to try harder now.

Sakura was a no-nonsense woman now. Maybe a straight forward approach would work with her.

Reaching over to his bedside table, he grabbed his cell phone and typed up a message:

*Today was fun. I'd really like to do it again.

No Naruto.

Friday?* - Sasuke

He hit send and put his phone down on the bedside table before falling asleep and dreaming of nothing but cherry blossoms.

Hope you guys enjoyed that! I'm hoping it won't take me too long to update AGAIN (like years too long). Thanks for reading!

-Lexi