dedicated to: all my sasusaku fans :)
prompt: fmylife!
rating: M
story: eighty-six. sasuke's pov.
FML o86: Today, for our anniversary, I had made a small treasure hunt for my boyfriend, tying roses with notes of poetry to lampposts across campus to lead him to where we would have a romantic dinner. He couldn't find it because people had stolen the roses, or simply ripped them to pieces and thrown them away. FML - Headless
note: i decided to do one chapter: sakura's POV. 2nd chapter: sasuke's POV. 3rd chapter: third person. and so on and so forth. REPEAT until we REACH THE ENDDD.
summary: Today, as an anniversary surprise, Sakura set up a small scavenger hunt for me. She tied roses with love letters across town for me to find, which would ultimately lead me to the ending surprise. It should have been easy. It wasn't. FML.
.o86.
by
SasuSaku Forever and Ever
Roses are Red
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It's never a good sign when Sakura has that look on her face. Eyebrows up, saluting, cheeks raised in a mischievous grin, and the occasional unflattering snort she lets out every so often to know that she's hatching up a plan that she finds appealing—which means I won't.
"Guess what, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked. She teetered on the balls of her feet, back and forth, and I feared that if she swayed any more she'd fall face first into the coffee table. It wouldn't be the first time she'd hurt herself from sheer delight.
"What?" I replied, though she knew damn well I had no clue what to guess about.
"As you know, tomorrow is our six year anniversary." She shot me a sharp glare, in case I had "forgotten" about such a memorable day. (I'd never let her know that I treasured that day more than she did).
She continued. "And because you've always been the one to do something nice for me ahead of time, I thought I'd surprise you!"
I peeked to the side to see if she was holding some kind of gift behind her back. Nothing.
"What's the surprise?"
"You'll find out tomorrow! I've got the whole day set up. If you just follow the rules and guidelines I give you, everything will go off without a hitch, and I guarantee that this year will be the best year of all—not to say that yours weren't good before, they were," she quickly added. "But it's special because I did it all by myself."
I shook my head and chuckled, reaching out to clasp her wrists and pull her onto my lap. "I love how excited you are. It makes me eager to see what you have in store." Pushing away her pink fringe, I kissed that smooth, wide forehead she used to hate so much six years ago.
"And if you're still not tired at the end tomorrow," she added, "there's an even bigger surprise I've got for you."
"Mm," I smirked, my eyes glancing down at her lovely bottom and back up to her face. "I can't wait."
.
.
.
Sakura wasn't in bed when I woke up. I turned onto my side, arm sprawled out on her half of the mattress to find any sign of her, but only clasped empty wrinkled sheets. With one eye half open, I scanned our room for any sign of Sakura and, with a muffled cry in my pillow, called out her name.
No response.
"Sa-ra," I groaned. I smashed my face deep into the pillow and let out a bestial moan. "Way are ya?"
Despite my calls, I doubted she could hear me anyway. So, after a few minutes of half my brain persuading me to get my lazy ass up, and the other half wanting to lie in bed for a bit more, I slid ungracefully onto the floor and searched for my shirt.
"Hn?" I perked, my eyes catching notice of her curly handwriting.
She'd left a note, as she usually did when she went out on errands without waking me. I reached for it and scanned the contents of the page rapidly.
Happy anniversary, Sasuke-kun! I'm sorry I left early, but I wanted to make sure everything will go just right for you.
I've laid out six roses (courtesy a la Pig) with clues across town to the places that mean the most in our relationship. What you have to do is go on a little scavenger hunt—I know you're rolling your eyes. Don't worry, it'll be fun!—and use the clue to lead you to the treasure. Aka, me.
Can't wait. Love you!
xoxo Sakura
P.S. I'm not answering any of your calls or texts. You have to figure this out on your own. Don't expect any help from me!
By the time I was done reading, my face was contorted into a mixture of pride, admiration, love, and most of all—really? I figured Sakura was trying to somewhat embarrass me with this showy display of our affection, but so be it. If it mean getting to spend the rest of the night with her (since, of course, my day would be occupied by this "hunt"), that was reason enough for me to go on a little trip.
After, of course, I put my pants on.
.
.
.
On the back of the note, she gave me the first clue: although it's daytime, we come here every festival to watch the fireworks.
That was easy enough. I pocketed the note and walked towards the lake. The weather outside was pleasant; lovely sun, somewhat dimmed behind feathery clouds, and a fond breeze breathing against my neck. The lake was not far off—I could see it from the street, and began to pick up my pace to reach my destination and search for the next clue.
So here I was. Standing next to a giant body of water and, while looking around me to see children playing near the edge and people walking their dogs, I had no fucking clue where I was supposed to find a rose.
Although Sakura said she wouldn't take my calls, I knew that she went back on her word, especially if it involved me. I called her, holding the phone up to my ear, only to have her hang up on the first ring.
"Tch," I muttered. I'd never seen her so serious about something. "Annoying."
I began to walk alongside the water in efforts to search for a rose. And I swore, if I had to get my clothes wet and go swimming for a stupid flower, she wouldn't hear the end of it.
"He loves me, he loves me not…"
"Karin?" I asked. "What are you doing?"
"Sasuke!" she squealed. I braced myself for an unwanted hug, but she merely smiled at me and held up a half-plucked rose to my face—my rose, actually.
"I'm picking the petals off this rose I found tied to the lamppost nearby. Some guy was going to give it to his girlfriend, but, you know, I figure that if I can't have a boyfriend, they don't deserve to be happy either." She noticed my disturbed face, and laughed. "Kidding. I'm kidding. No, I just took it from some kids who were going to throw it in the water. I was just seeing if…well, if Suigetsu likes me."
"I'm sure he does." I really needed that rose. Actually, I just needed the clue, but the supposed note was nowhere in sight.
"Yeah, I'm over you. Don't cry about it," she joked. "Sakura is wonderful."
"I know. Anyway, was there a paper tied with that rose?"
"Hm? Oh, yeah. There was. I gave it to those kids to use as a paper boat instead. Look, if you squint, it's actually managing to sail!"
Fuck. By now, it was a tiny little white dot in the middle of the water.
"Thanks, Karin," I said, leaving her to her lovelorn business.
I approached the edge of the water, but knew that I couldn't reach for it or even use a fishing rod to pry it back without getting wet. Sighing, I rolled up my pants to mid-thigh, took off my socks and shoes, buried my phone and first note somewhere among that pile, and cursed.
"The things I do for you, Sakura…"
I waded into the water and began to feel the thick, green water seep between my toes and caress the back of my knee. I wasn't even halfway there to reaching the boat and already, water began to eat at the hems of my pants.
"Shit." It was all or nothing, at this point. I knew I had to get wet, so I might as well finish quick. Quickly, I waddled awkwardly through the resistance of the water until I grasped the edges of the paper boat. With a huge sigh of relief, I made sure the unfold it tenderly so as not to tear it, and looked anxiously for the next clue.
"…it's blank," I said. I turned it over several times to make sure I wasn't just imagining a blank sheet of paper, until Karin called out from dry land, "Sasuke-kun, it wasn't those kids I gave it to! It was them!" she pointed to a group of children half a mile from where we were, and the real paper clue just as far away.
I was about to let out another curse in frustration, but once I felt something scaly rub against my inner thigh, I got the hell out.
.
.
.
Two and a half hours of my anniversary were dedicated to me attempting to rescue a paper boat—which I finally got, at the cost of being soaked from head to toe in disgusting water and refuse. I read the next clue, hoping my searching would be much more lax for the next ones.
Hope that wasn't too bad! I scoffed. I always liked the lake. You always let me rest my head on your shoulder during the fireworks, and walk hand-in-hand with me alongside the coast.
Here is your next clue: this is where we had our first dinner date. Sounds easy, right? I'm not done. What did I order that night, before I asked you to trade with me? Have Ayame be your waitress.
Love you,
Sakura
My eye twitched. How was I supposed to remember what she ordered? I consider myself a good boyfriend, but I don't know what she's expecting from me. I had the mind to text Naruto—he was there, after all, trying to get us to kiss after he'd had one too many sakes—but figured that Naruto couldn't even remember last week, let alone six years ago.
Anyway, I guessed that I deserved a hearty lunch after all that swimming.
.
.
.
"I'm sorry, Ayame is busy right now. Can I get you someone else?" the woman at the counter said, looking at me with heart-shaped eyes. I ignored her advances and pressed on.
"I need Ayame. Who is she busy with?"
"Why do you need her so badly? Isn't any one of us good enough?" she motioned to the other line of girls looking at me with the same face she had. "What's so special about her?"
This was ridiculous. I shook my head in frustration. "Look, I'm seeing someone already. I just need Ayame here with me for thirty minutes, max."
The girl at the counter frowned, but finally gave in. "Alright," she said. "Follow me." She reached for a menu and practically shoved it into my chest as some kind of passive-aggressive fuck you, and seated me at the dingiest corner of the restaurant. I ignored her rudeness and thought hard to myself about what Sakura would have hated so much to have wanted to trade with me.
"Can I help you?"
"Aya—" I began. Instead, I was met with her father, Teuchi.
"Ah, Uchiha-san! I haven't seen you in a long time. Where's your lady friend?" he asked, a wide grin plastered on his face. "Don't tell me you guys—"
"No, we're still together. Anyway, is your daughter around?"
"Ayame? No, she's actually not in today. She was feeling ill so I let her stay home. But it shouldn't be a problem. I'll take care of you!"
Right now, it seemed as if Sakura designed this scavenger hunt specifically to fuck me over. And she was doing a damn good job, as I started to lose my cool and clench the ends of the menu a little too hard.
"Are you okay, Uchiha-san?"
"You wouldn't happen to recall what Sakura ordered six years ago on our date, right? Naruto was there, drunk as a—"
Teuchi laughed, his stomach rumbling. "That Naruto, always causing me trouble. But yes, Sakura-chan ordered a shark fin bowl. I do remember her twisting her face in disgust and trying to convince me she liked it. I remember it because she was so cute, trying to please me without hurting my feelings. Ah, she was funny."
At least I had the dish sorted out. But why was Ayame needed and where was that next clue?
"Did a rose come in with a note attached to it?"
"Hm? Did you send that?" Teuchi asked with a raised eyebrow. "I figured it was for Ayame, from a secret admirer. Why? Are you…interested in her?"
"Where did that rose go, then?" I asked, all the while ignoring his other question.
"I had one of the girls keep it to give to Ayame later. I think it was Suki. She's the one at the counter. Why don't you ask her about it?"
As if on cue, Suki appeared right behind me, hearts radiating from her person. It seemed that she had forgotten about my blowing her off.
"What can I do for you, customer-sama?" she cooed.
.
.
.
Two (disgusting) shark fin bowls later in a forced lunch date where I was held captive, I finally had my next clue, a rose, and a bloated stomach forcefully resisting the confines of my belt.
I told you that shark fin soup wasn't the best. Hopefully you didn't have to eat too much of it. (smile)
Here's the next clue: it was at this store where you bought me a beautiful necklace (which was super sweet, of course). Find a new necklace that has the same gem matching the one in my necklace (don't worry, I don't expect you to buy it!), bring it to the cashier, and exchange it for the clue.
Cheers!
Sakura
"Heh," I smirked. This would be easy—I happened to know what jewel I bought for Sakura. Instead of diamonds, I got her a ruby. She'd always liked the color red (there were countless red clothes and dresses in her closet), and it was the birthstone of July. I figured she wasn't too big a fan of aquamarines, and was tired of emeralds, so I offered her this new outlook and she ate it up.
I was almost halfway done. I ran to the store, with the hard, dried fabric of my pants bunching up against my skin in an incessant itching friction, and searched for the jewelry store on the second level.
What I found instead was a pet store, with Kiba managing the counter and Shino bringing out boxes from the back.
"Hey, Sasuke!" Kiba shouted. "What's up?" he eyed me and my dirty appearance with confusion while Akamaru began to pace around me, sniffing dangerously near my crotch.
"Isn't this the jewelry store?" I asked. "I'm sure there used to be a jewelry store here."
"That closed down a while ago," Shino interrupted. He set the boxes down on the counter and began to tend to the crickets. "We just moved in last month."
As if this treasure hunt could get any worse.
"Well, where did they relocate to?" I couldn't hide the frustration creeping up in my voice.
"I think Suna, but I'm not sure. The owners decided to go there for a vacation and I guess never came back."
"I can't possibly go to Suna today."
Kiba smirked. "Is this for Sakura?"
I growled, unknowingly baring my own fangs as Akamaru gave me an equally defiant look. "Don't say her name like that."
"Hey, man, we're cool. It's fine. You might want to check downstairs, though. There's a different shop you can go to get something nice for the missus."
"Thanks." I gave a nod of acknowledgment to Shino, ignored Kiba, and awkwardly pet Akamaru's snout before running downstairs and seeking out this supposed store.
Akimichi's Jewelry
Thankfully, it was right underneath the pet store. I burst in, holding onto one of the counters for support to catch my breath, and saw Chouji eating consommé chips without a care in the world for his business.
"Oh, hey Sasuke!" Chouji waved, his fingers oiled with grease. "Whatcha looking for?"
"…You guys own this place?" I asked, slightly suspicious.
"Yup!" Then, he narrowed his eyes. "Why, did you think we'd own a restaurant or something? Is it just because we're fat?"
"No, that's not it at all," I replied. "I was just surprised. I never figured you guys would own a jewelry store."
"Well, we do, and we also own a few restaurants, to answer your question! Anyway, what are you looking for?"
"A ruby necklace." I noticed a small glimmer of red lodged in the frame of a silver chain, and I pointed to it. "That one."
Chouji smiled while chewing. "You want it?"
"Actually, did Sakura drop off a rose and note here?" Please say yes, because damnit Sakura, I don't know where to look next.
"Oh! Yeah! She did. But—" Chouji started. "You'd have to buy something, sorry. I need to get my commission so I can move up from this dump into the fast casual restaurant business where I belong."
My eye twitched. "Then…what's the cheapest thing here?"
"That, probably," Chouji pointed. The oil from his finger stained the glass compartment, and I winced inside.
He showed me a plain silver band that, in reality, should have cost more than the necklace, but was only forty dollars.
"I can engrave it to her if you want," Chouji offered.
"…no thanks." I handed him the money, albeit unwillingly, and waited for him to go into the back and retrieve the ring. A few minutes later, he handed me the wrapped box and my rose and note.
"Thank you, Sasuke!" he smiled. "And, as a favor to a newly dedicated customer…" he offered me the rest of the chips in his bag, which were only crumbs by then. I had to politely decline.
"No thanks," I said. "But thanks anyway."
And with that, I was onto the next clue.
.
.
.
I still wear the necklace, although you probably don't notice. Anyway, congratulations on being halfway done! Here's the 4th clue: we did it for the first time in this hotel room. You were so sweet and worried that you were going to hurt me, and yet you yourself tried to hide the fact that you were a virgin (laughs). I rolled my eyes. You told me you loved me here. Find the next clue on the bed.
How could I forget? I remembered how she looked like a goddess splayed out on the sheets under me, cheeks and nose and breasts flushed with a light dust of red. My confession came so suddenly—I always assumed she'd be the one to confess first—but that wasn't the case.
Hotel 39 was a lavish hotel stuck in a dank part of town. From the outside, you wouldn't expect shiny marble on the floors and lavish decoration. Sakura and I had come here when we were trying to get out of the rain and our phones weren't getting signal, and we ended up…doing what we did to pass the time.
As soon as I arrived, I approached the concierge and asked for the room key to 296, persuading him to believe that I "forgot" it and needed a spare.
"Oh, that's alright Mr…" he eyed me warily. "What's your name again? Just so I can verify it with the information."
I gulped.
"Your name, sir?" I was sure he knew I was a fraud. Nevertheless, I kept my calm composure and, through gritted teeth, responded, "Uzumaki Naruto."
The concierge's eyes widened in shock, and I wondered what I had done wrong. "I apologize, Mr. Uzumaki. Here is another key. Please don't hesitate to call the front desk if something happens again."
You've got to be shitting me. What luck.
I made sure to get the hell out of there before the guy realized I wasn't a blonde, blue-eyed airhead, raced up stairs without bothering to wait for the elevator, and began to jam the card into the door lock.
Instead of being met with a single rose laid on a made bed, I had walked right into seeing Naruto's—thankfully clothed—rump in my line of vision, and his hands under Hinata's shirt.
"Sasuke-san!" she squealed, shielding herself. Naruto turned towards me.
"Teme, what the hell are you doing? How did you get in?"
"Never mind," I muttered. "Where's the rose?"
"Ah, you mean this?" Hinata asked. She pulled it from under the pillow, with the note still attached. "I thought it was from you, Naruto-kun."
Naruto gave a sheepish laugh and scratched the back of his neck. "I'm, uh, not that romantic. Sorry for taking credit."
I snatched it from her, a little more rudely than I had hoped it would be.
"Have fun," I shot back, before leaving them to their business.
.
.
.
Can you imagine how many people we might know who have shared that room? No, Sakura, I don't want to imagine now that I've seen it. Sorry. I tried to be romantic.
Your fifth clue: if we didn't have college classes, we would come here and you would play me a song on your guitar. There were lots of shade and pretty flowers. I'd make you a flower crown with peach blossoms. Find the next clue there. You're almost done! (heart)
It should have been smooth sailing from here. The peach tree wasn't far off at all. In fact, from this part of town, I could see the park it was in.
After this, I was almost done with this cat and mouse game she laid out for me, and I'd finally embrace her and give her the long list of grievances of what went wrong and how it barred me from getting to actually see her—
"Oh, hello Sasuke-kun," Sai smiled. He held out his pencil in front of his face and began to measure me with one eye closed.
This second-hand duplicate of me was sitting under the tree and possibly with the rose thorns up his ass.
"…Don't call me that," I said. "What are you doing here?"
"Relaxing, as usual. Drawing." He measured me again and began to sketch, eyes glancing at me and back at the paper until he showed me his work.
"Done! It's you, on the body of Michelangelo's David. I gave you a smaller weewee, just in case."
This guy definitely had his issues, but I wasn't here to learn about them.
"Did you see a rose anywhere around here?" I asked impatiently.
"Ah, yes. From Sakura. No, I don't have the rose anymore, but I do have the paper." Sai reached into his pocket to grab the crumpled sheet. He smoothed out the folds on his sketchbook and held up the note, which was illegible underneath the scratches of pen drawings. It was impossible to decipher.
I grabbed the note from him and tried to make out the handwriting underneath that would lead me to Sakura, rotating the paper in all different directions and even looking at the reflection underneath.
"What did it say?" I asked. I was about to grab pretty boy by his collar and shake him dry. "What was on it?"
"I don't know, Sasuke-kun," he responded with that eerily cool demeanor, as if he weren't being shaken to death by a (handsomer) look-alike. "Sorry."
There was no use threatening Sai any further. "Fine," I said, releasing him. "Do you at least have the rose? Actually—never mind. And don't call me Sasuke-kun."
Where else was there to turn to now? It was evening. I'd been through hell and back—more than once today—and yet I couldn't accomplish this elaborate labyrinthine booby-death trap Sakura had planned out for me.
I know Sakura said she wouldn't answer any of my calls or texts, but I wanted to let her know I couldn't finish and that I was sorry I'd let her down on our anniversary. I stopped to take a seat down on a stone bench and stretch out my legs. The ring was safe in its velvet box, free of harm unlike me. I was still damp from the lake, sick from the ramen, forty dollars short, scarred forever with Naruto's ass in my face, and had my dick made fun of not just in a playful tease by Sakura, but by Sai of all people. To top it all off, I was frustrated out of my damn mind.
"You're here," Sakura smiled. She was teetering on her feet again, with her red dress rippling against the soft wind. Her beautiful hair flowed behind her, and she looked like everything I could ever want and more.
Suddenly, I realized where I was. It was this bench. Our bench.
"Clue six: where did I tell you I love you?"
I fell to my knees and embraced her with my head against her stomach. She was surprised, but ran her hands through my hair and held me close to her.
"You can't believe the day I've had looking for you." I buried my head in her stomach. "All of this, Sakura. You wouldn't believe the trouble I've been through just for you."
She pulled me up to my feet and kissed me, hands on my chest. Another tender smile.
"I'm sorry. You can tell me all about it later. I'm just glad you're here with me." She took my hands and pressed kisses to my knuckles. "I love you, Sasuke-kun."
And just like that, everything horrible today seemed to be worth it all. I felt warm through our connection, and a flurry of my love for her radiating through my skin.
"I have something for you," I said. I reached for the box in my pocket and held it to her. She gasped and brought her hand up over her mouth.
"Sasuke-kun, I—"
"Oh, wait, no, I'm not asking you to marry—I mean, not now—the third clue made me buy—" I sighed. "Just take it."
"It says something," Sakura whispered. She pulled the ring out of the box and peered at it. "It's inscribed: to Uchiha Sasuke and Sakura—may your love last forever."
Damn Chouji. "I'm sorry, I told him not to engrave it—"
"It's beautiful." She slid it onto her right ring finger, letting me know that she understood my misguided ramblings. "I love it."
Sakura said nothing about the lack of Haruno behind her name, but she gave this sneaky little smile that she knew exactly what Chouji was getting at. She led me to the bench and placed her hand over mine. In return, I brought her closer to me—despite my swampy odor—and brushed my fingers through her hair.
"I'll get you a real one someday," I promised. "Happy anniversary."
I thought this was kind of funny lol, having Sasuke get into lots of troubles and obstacles along the way, althoughI always seem to make him a bit ooc.
Once again I apologize for the late update. I've pretty much taken a hiatus from writing regularly unfortunately, after what happened last summer that made me want to stop, but an anon on my tumblr asked when the next chapter was coming and I don't want to disappoint you guys (my loves) any longer. So, I hope you enjoy. It's extra long for you (lol).
It was fun doing this, although tiring af. Anyway, I hope you like it. Reviews are appreciated. :)