Author's Note: I am sooooo sorry I haven't updated in forever! Things get incredibly busy what with all the AP classes and finals and rot like that. But this is my longest chapter yet (I had some complaints on shortness). I will also be introducing a ton of other characters at the cottage so please dont worry; there will be other characters involved. Anyways this is my last week of school and then I'll be on Christmas break so you can expect more frequent updates and a few more stories will be popping up as well. If you know any spelling errors or anything let me know; i didnt have time to edit and revise. Please review! I love reviews :) Thank you!

The next morning Sakura prepared for her outing with Itachi. After rummaging through her suitcase she found some suitable apparel: a slimming pair of dark wash skinny jeans and a bright pink flowing halter top flattered her body quite nicely. She smiled at herself in the mirror.

"It actually looks like I have boobs!" she thought, "Thank you Victoria's Secret."

She threw on a set of diamond studs paired with a long, golden necklace and then shifted her attention to shoes. Her eyes darted from a gorgeously painful pair of pink pumps to a sensible, dull pair of white ballerina slippers. The slipper were comfortable and made her waddle like a duck, but even though the pumps were going to hurt, they were also incredibly sexy and were sure to catch Itachi's eye . . . but that was wrong. She shouldn't want to catch his eye. Why did she want to anyways? She was in a perfectly happy relationship with Sasuke.

"Happy," she scoffed at her own thought; "Yea . . . that's the word."

An unexpected knock on the door jolted her out of her thoughts and rushed her decision. She quickly grabbed the pumps and hopped to the door as she pulled them onto her feet. She flung the door open, hitting the person on the other side straight in the face.

"Ow!" A man's voice cried out.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry!" Sakura squeaked embarrassedly as she shut the door and came face to face with Itachi Uchiha.

Once they arrived at the mall Sakura felt very hesitant about shopping. Normally she would have been ecstatic, running around spending the money like crazy. But she never had a guy accompany her on her shopping exploits before. Sasuke always refused and perhaps that was for the best; all the attention was making her feel awkward. Itachi, in addition to paying for everything, was following her around to each and every store, happily watching her try on hundreds of different outfits. Even though he looked perfectly content just being with her it just felt so strange to have him around. Much to his dismay she continuously hung around the clearance racks, searching for the best bargains. She picked up a few sweaters, vests, long thick jeans and jackets. Itachi also forced her to buy some cute accessories to go along: hats, gloves, scarves, etc. They finally stopped for lunch in the food court around noon.

"Alright," Itachi said between bites of chicken, "Only one thing left to do: get you a formal gown."

Sakura choked and spat her food out.

"A. . . I'm sorry . . .What?"

"A formal gown," he repeated slowly, "Every time we use our parents' facilities they insist that we participate in some fancy, stuffy cultural event. This year it's an opera. "

"I . . . I couldn't possibly. . ." she stammered.

"Yes you can. And you will. Don't flatter yourself by thinking this is all about you. Several of our parents' friends will be there. You wouldn't want to embarrass my brother and I or our parents by appearing on my brother's arm at an important event wearing a frumpy set of jeans and a t-shirt, would you?" Itachi replied. He knew it sounded harsh, but he also knew that it was the only way to get her to let him buy her a gown.

"Oh no! Of course not. . . " She whispered.

"Ok then, its settled. You will get a gown. Are you finished eating?" He inquired.

"Yes. . . "she mumbled

"Then let's go."

He smiled at her and took her arm, leading her over to into one of the high end dress shops. As she marveled at the gorgeous gowns and their insane prices, Itachi sat back and admired her. Her astonishment amused him. Sakura moved cautiously around the boutique looking terrified of the dresses. He chuckled as he watched her tenderly pick up a price tag, gasp, and then drop it at once. After gasping and gawking for what seemed like hours, she picked up a few dresses and tip-toed over to the dressing room. Itachi pulled up a chair, sat himself in the corner and waited.

And waited. . .

And waited. . .

Twenty minutes passed and Sakura had yet to step out from the dressing room. Itachi was beginning to nod off in the comfortable arm chair. Stretching, he rose from the chair and made his way over to her dressing room door.

"Sakura," he called, rapping lightly on the door, "Sakura, are you alright in there?"

"I'm f-fine!" she squeaked.

"What a lie," Itachi thought. He could hear on the other side of the door: sniffling and whimpering. Her voice had tones of obvious upset and frustration.

"I'm coming in," he warned her firmly as he reached the handle only to discover the door was locked.

"Let me in," Itachi demanded.

"Give me a minute!" she pleaded.

"I've given you twenty. Now unlock the door or I'll kick it in."

His voice was soft, but strong. It frightened her a little; she knew he was not kidding. Much too Itachi's satisfaction, he heard the faint click of the lock after only a few seconds followed by the door opening slightly as an invitation for him. He slid in to find the lovely blossom crammed into a red dress that was 2 sizes too small for her, frustrated and depressed. Gently, he shut the door and stood off to one side unsure of what to do.

"Sakura," he whispered softly, reaching out to touch her shoulder, "Why did you do this?"

"I've never been a store this fancy before! I didn't what my size would be!"she exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air, "All I knew was that Sasuke likes tight, vixen-like dresses and that I wanted him to like whatever I picked out! So I grabbed this thing in a size smaller than what I normally wear and did my best to shove myself into it. Now I can't get out! I was too embarrassed to ask you for help but you insisted on showing up anyways. . . You big jerk!"

She punched him weakly at the end of her rant and began sobbing into her hands. The poor girl was clearly humiliated; the color of her face practically matched her dress and her eyes had yet to leave her feet. He took a slow step towards her and pulled a knife out of his pocket. This turned out to be the exact wrong thing to do; she freaked out even more.

"I'm sorry I hit you!" she screamed "Don't stab me!"

"Shhhh! Quiet, quiet!" he begged, tying to hold in his laughter, "Just calm down. Goodness, what will the owner think? I'm not going to kill you, I promise. Hold still. I'll take care of everything"

He stuck his knife into the silky red fabric and carefully began tearing it apart. The last thing he wanted to do was stab her. Her breathing made it more difficult to cut; the dress was skin tight on her. Eventually, he got it off. With a sigh of relief, Sakura collapsed into the corner, shaking a little. Itachi blushed a little when it suddenly dawned on him that she was now completely undressed. He covered her with the shredded dress and sat down next to her, wrapping his arm around her.

"You really shouldn't take fashion advice from my brother. He's a complete idiot," Itachi teased, "Red doesn't go well with your hair at all. It clashes actually. Green would be much better; it goes well with those lovely eyes of yours. You stay right here. I'll return shortly."

Itachi checked the size of the dress Sakura had squeezed into: a 2. In formal attire that might as well have been a 0. He retrieved a breath-taking, green ball gown in a comfortable size 6. He brought it back and she slipped it on; she looked gorgeous. The green corset with its black embroidery flattered her midsection, pushed her breasts upward, and highlighted her shining, emerald eyes. The bottom was nothing but black tool that poofed out in every direction. She was stunning: simply stunning.

"Wow," Itachi whispered, "We're definitely getting that one."

He left the dressing room and waited for Sakura to change back into her normal clothing. She emerged, dressed and ready, with the green gown in one hand and the torn red one in the other. Itachi took them both from her and went up to the cashier.

"We'll take both of these," he said cooly to the woman, who stared at the ripped remains of the red dress in embarrassment.

"I see you two have enjoyed yourselves," she observed snottily, "Is there anything I need to clean up in there?"

Sakura blushed bright red. This lady actually thought they had sex in that dressing room? That's absurd! She opened her mouth to protest, but Itachi answered before she got a chance.

"No, we took care of it," he replied without missing a beat, "And why yes, we did enjoy ourselves. Thank you for noticing."

With that, he paid for the dresses, wrapped his arm around a crimson face Sakura and disappeared from the shop.