Title: The Pretty Substitute's Secret
Author: BlackSMILES
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but I own the plot of this fic!
A/N: If you people noticed, I changed Sakura's personality in this rewritten version. Sakura was rasher and somewhat braver in the first version. Now she's a little timid. And I hope Gaara seems crueler, instead of just being fierce. T.T
Chapter Two- Ecchi Schoolgirl (Part 1)
Gaara stared at that pink-haired nerd who stood up so abruptly. Both of them had red faces, but from different reasons. Gaara was boiling with unappeased anger, while Sakura's face burned due to embarrassment and an impending sense of doom.
Yes. She would be doomed soon. Gaara let go of- more like flung away- the arm of the poor boy he was openly bullying right in front of a teacher. She peeked at Kakashi-sensei who stopped teaching and began to watch the interesting spectacle unfolding before his eyes (correction: eye). This made her had an itching feeling of hitting her new teacher.
Gaara literally stalked to her like a lion approaching a cornered prey. Yes. That was the situation Sakura was in- cornered with no way to escape anymore. The whole class was quiet, but the atmosphere was tense with anticipation. Those cold-blooded heartless brats actually did not bother to help her at all. Surely someone had the power to stop Gaara. Sakura could feel her gaze land on everyone's eyes, and they all successfully managed to avoid hers. She looked pleadingly at Hinata, who flushed and shook her head back at her.
Sakura felt lonely somehow. She did expect Hinata to say something to protect her, or hold her hand under their joined tables (they sit in pairs) to give her some moral support without the scrutiny of her classmates. She felt as if she was about to cry with panic and loneliness.
Gaara walked and stopped just beside her. Sakura flinched at his sudden stop in movement. Something must be coming her way soon. A slap, a punch or a kick? She braced herself for an injury, shutting her eyes.
There was nothing. Nothing hit her face or any part of her body. Gaara merely sat down on the empty seat beside her. Lucky girl, she thought, to have someone she offended on the first day of school beside her. AND that SOMEONE had to be a merciless kind of guy. Sakura opened her eyes when she heard the rough scratching sound of chair being pulled against the ground. That fearsome lion did not do anything to her? Weird. Timidly, she peeked at Gaara from the corners of her eyes and gulped. Etched on Gaara's face was a cold smirk which seemed to only convey one message: You are so dead.
The tension in the class seemed to ease a bit when Gaara did nothing. A few boys sighed in disappointment while Hinata sighed with relief. Sakura glanced at Hinata, not blaming Hinata for her mood swings previously. Hinata was someone she met just a couple of minutes ago. No one would bravely help and protect a mere acquaintance.
"S-sorry Sakura-chan, I-I couldn't h-help," Hinata stuttered, remorseful.
Sakura tried to smile, but her smile ended up bitter.
She tried paying attention to class. Kakashi had begun teaching again, as though nothing had happened at all. She saw Neji turning slightly to her and giving her the same smirk Gaara had given her minutes ago. She trembled slightly in her seat. Gaara was still studying her nerdy self with his aquamarine eyes. She could feel it in her bones. Letting a curtain of roseate hair slide down the side of her face, she tried to cover herself from Gaara's strong gaze.
The rest of the day passed quickly for Sakura, with her paying almost NO attention to the lessons due to her uneasiness and the killing aura Gaara exuded every second. Other than that, she could say she was pretty safe for the day.
The only mishap that happened to her was someone, she was sure, intentionally tripped her when she was on her way to the lockers.
"Ow!" Sakura exclaimed in pain when her knee hit the hard marble floor suddenly and her textbooks flew out of her hands, landing somewhere near her. She looked up but everything was a mass of blur. People walking in the hallways were pretending to be oblivious from the racket she caused and continued with their lives as though she did not exist. No one came to help. Some tears welled up in Sakura's emerald green eyes as she felt around for her black rimmed glasses in vain.
She was alone, with Hinata or without, as long as she was in this school.
A loud ring from her handphone snapped her away from her depressing thoughts. Following the sound of her phone, she rummaged her bag and found it rather quickly. Pressing a green button to accept the call, she put the phone against her ear.
"Sakura-chan. Director Aoi's assistant here. I have something to pass to you which can help you in tomorrow's job. Could you meet me at the entrance of your school?" A gentle voice spoke through the phone.
"Hm, ok. See you there in ten minutes," Sakura replied and ended the call.
She continued searching the ground for her glasses futilely. It was a few minutes later when someone handed a pair of glasses into one of her searching hands. The person was a mass of black to Sakura, but she still smiled gratefully at the first Good Samaritan she had met in school. Although the stranger's hand was large and cold, it warmed her. She hurriedly put on her glasses to see the person who helped her, but the person was gone before she could take a good look at him.
Sakura sighed in disappointment. Her only clue was a black blur and large hands, which could mean that person was a male with dark coloured hair. Did everyone want to avoid her so much?
A pink-haired girl was seen rushing to the gates of Konoha Gakuen and meeting a voluptuous woman who handed her a paper bag which contained various things that should not be seen by other people in the country.
"This is something which can help you. Be sure to see it! Director Aoi said it'll help you managed the scenes better when you obtain more experience. This thing is not hard-core at all, but it is still hot stuff," the woman said and winked naughtily and suddenly Sakura felt like throwing the bag away. Of course, Sakura had an inkling of the contents of the bag. Adult Videos, Sakura grimaced inwardly. Even though she was of age, she still blushed whenever she did the scenes or even watched couples on big screen kiss. Adult Videos might just melt her from the embarrassment.
"Thank you, Mika-san," Sakura said, not really meaning it.
Sakura bided farewell to Mika and held on to the braided strings of the bag as though it was her dirty secret. It WAS her dirty secret. How could she ever let someone in her school know she was watching ecchi videos?
She walked to her bicycle and unlocked the chains securing it. Hurriedly, she left the school grounds with the black bag hanging precariously on the handle of her bicycle.
When Sakura reached the apartment complex, her current sanctuary, she finally heaved a sigh of relief which made her realise how tensed up she was for the whole day in school. She returned the landlady the bento box and thanked her profusely, skipping the part about wasting the lunch. She felt guilty and knew she should not bother the landlady with her own minor problems. She was really grateful. No one had ever shown her this much compassion and love since her parents died. She had no home, really. The so-called home she lived in was rented.
Opening the door of her apartment, she was met with the stillness she hated so much. In school, she felt alone. At home, she felt that too. There was no one else for her.
"I am home!" Sakura said with mock cheerfulness to the photo frame at the side of her futon. It was a picture of her mother and her father, their wedding photo. Looking at the beautiful woman and handsome man smile blissfully in the picture, she could feel the tears that had been accumulating fall, dropping onto the glass covering the photograph of her parents, blurring their smiles. She laid down on her futon and hugged the picture to her chest, wishing it could cover the hole in her heart.
The landlady's sharp voice calling her name broke Sakura's sobs. Sakura wiped her tears away and stood up from her futon. She opened the door.
"Yes? Obasan?" Sakura asked wearily.
"Don't call me an Obasan! Call me by my name, Yuki! We have a new tenant today! His name is Uzumaki Naruto, just living beside you. Why don't you come out and say hello?" Yuki chirped in a sing-song voice.
Sakura's jade eyes widened at the familiarity of the name Yuki has just mentioned. Uzumaki Naruto, her first and longtime crush…
"Naruto-kun, I miss Daddy and Mummy so much that it hurts," an eight year old Sakura said, clutching a tiny hand to her chest, tears continuing streaming down her already tear streaked cheeks
"If it hurts, I'll be there to soothe your pain," the blonde boy said, holding out a tiny daisy he had plucked from the roadside to the crying girl.
"Where's your mummy and daddy? Are they gone too?" Sakura enquired, taking the flower in her hands with utmost gentleness, afraid to crush the flower.
Naruto nodded sadly. "But we have each other! We will stay together," He said, a good-natured smile lighting up his face. He took a blue checkered handkerchief and wiped the snot and tears off Sakura's face.
"Forever?" Sakura asked hesitantly, stroking the wilting daisy in her hands.
"Forever," Naruto replied confidently.
"Promise?" She held up her pinky, a slow breeze starting, swaying the two little ponytails on her hair along.
"Promise," and her childhood friend put up his own pinky to link with hers.
Sakura smiled slightly as she indulged in reminiscence of her fondest childhood memories. She could feel her heart pound in anticipation of seeing someone who knew, loved and cared for her in such a depressing situation. Then she realised, she was nervous. Would he forget their promise, their childish naïve love and perhaps even her?
Yuki then pushed a lanky boy into Sakura's apartment. She looked at her childhood friend carefully, pleasantly surprised at how he had grown taller and his shoulders broader. His bright sunny smile still remained, as though he was still Sakura's sun, lighting up her life. He had grown to look more rugged and tanned, and more like a man. She recognized his characteristic blonde hair and azure eyes immediately.
"Haruno Sakura?" A boyish and recognizable voice asked, a bigger smile growing on Sakura's face almost immediately. He remembered her!
"So you both know each other!" Yuki exclaimed, relieved to skip the formalities to introduce both the adolescences to each other.
"Why did you move here from Osaka?" Sakura asked. Did he come to Tokyo to see her? And to fulfill his promise?
He smiled proudly and said, "I am going to live near my girlfriend. She stays around here. Do you have a boyfriend too?"
Girlfriend.
Mechanically, Sakura shook her head. She could feel her lifted spirits drop to a point lower than it was before. She forced a smile, who was teasingly smug about him being attached faster than her.
"That's good," was all Sakura managed to say without her voice breaking. Her chest ached dully while she smiled at Naruto.
"Let's talk more tomorrow. I am tired from moving stuff here and there," Naruto stuck a tongue out and winked at Sakura. She smiled, trying not to break her cheerful façade built to hide her true reactions.
When Yuki and Naruto left, Sakura leaned on the wooden door and slid down to the cool tiled ground. The tears started flowing again. Her heart ached with another hole. Even Naruto had left her with a broken promise. He could never be with her again, holding out a daisy and wiping her wet eyes with his handkerchief. She missed the old him who would never make her cry.
She spent the night lying on her futon, depressed, soaking her pillow while holding her parent's photograph and a pressed flower bookmark containing a browned daisy to her chest.
The next day came quickly and Sakura had absolutely no desire to go to that dreaded Konoha Gakuen she was supposed to 'belong' to. She did her daily routine of cleaning up in the morning. She was about to leave the apartment when a black paper bag caught her gaze.
DANG it. She was supposed to watch that ecchi video the previous day but Naruto's hurtful revelation made her forget about everything else.
Grabbing the video out from the paper bag, Sakura stuffed it into her black haversack and zipped it up. She unlocked the lock of her door and flung herself out of the apartment, hurriedly leaving.
"Sakura-chan!" A voice she used to love called her. The same voice which brought her despair and tears. She halted and turned away, pushing a small smile to her lips. "Good morning, Naruto-kun!" Her eyes were puffy, but Naruto was too inobservant to notice the eyes that were hidden by a pair of black rimmed glasses.
"Woooah, Konoha Gakuen!" Naruto appraised enviously, looking at her uniform.
"I am not rich and you know it. I got a scholarship," Sakura said truthfully.
"I can guess," Naruto said straightforwardly, reminding Sakura of the reason why she was an outcast in school again. Sakura looked down to the ground, cheerless.
"…" There was awkwardness between the pair and it was not long that Naruto finally realized he was a little too blunt with his words.
"Ahh. Sorry about what I said previously… Hey! You know what? My girlfriend's in the same school as you! Maybe you know her!" Naruto said optimistically, trying to change the mood between them.
"Really? Who?" Sakura's eyes immediately widened with interest. She was interested to know which girl had the power to take her Naruto away from her. Was the girl better than her? If yes, in what way? It would probably be looks anyway, since Sakura knew she was not some big beauty with her nerdish appearance.
"Hyuuga Hinata," Naruto replied, blushing slightly while Sakura visibly paled. She struggled not to let the confusion and anguish show on her face. Why Hinata? Why not someone she did not know at all? Why her only friend in Konoha Gakuen? Sakura could feel her face heat up and her eyes fill up as she said, "she sits beside me," and Naruto gave a yelp of joy from the coincidence.
She hastily bid goodbye to her first crush and left the complex, swallowing her tears and all and cycling to Konoha Gakuen.
A long and arduous day had begun for Haruno Sakura again, alone in school and trying to avoid her newest friend because seeing Hinata reminded her of her supposed "joyful" reunion with Naruto and made her want to cry again. It was not easy to stay civil at Hinata and the slightest things could start Sakura snapping at the poor girl.
"Did you just open my textbook?" Sakura asked, trying to keep her voice even.
"Ye-es. I f-forgot to bring m-mine," Hinata stuttered, afraid Sakura would flare once more that day.
"Every time I open my book, I do it with care! Don't you think you should do it too? This book is not yours! I hate the creases on the spines of books the most! I use my hard-earned money to buy my textbooks, but you used your parents' money! Of course you won't understand how I feel," Sakura ranted, aggravated.
"S-sorry, Sakura-chan," Hinata whimpered, the rims of her pearl-coloured eyes turning red.
Sakura felt guilty all of the sudden. She was bullying Hinata for reasons the shy and sweet girl did not know. She felt like a villain, like a girl consumed by jealousy plotting against the good-natured female lead in a coming-of-age film. But still, she did not want to apologise for her silly outbursts.
"Don't do it again," Sakura said simply.
Sakura turned away, refusing not to look at Hinata anymore. However she did not know Neji was observing her intently, displeased at her daring acts of insolence to his beloved cousin.
The school bell rang finally. Relieved that she did not need to face Hinata anymore, Sakura packed her things quickly. In the midst of putting her cheap pens into her D-I-Y pencil case, Sakura heard Hinata's cell phone ring. Her ears perked up when she heard Naruto's name.
"N-Naruto-kun?"
"Ah, I know her."
"She's quite a n-nice person."
"D-don't worry about me."
Her chest hurts like someone had just punched her. It pained her to know Naruto cared about someone more than he cared for her. She stuffed her pencil case roughly into her bag and zipped it up too quickly, hurting her finger in the process.
"Ow!" Sakura shouted suddenly.
"Ah, Sakura-chan! A-are you alright?" Hinata asked worriedly.
"I'm alright," Sakura replied coolly, when she wanted to reply, "I don't need your concern."
Quickly, she swung her bag to her shoulder and left the classroom, leaving Hinata still talking on the phone to her boyfriend. She hated the fact that Hinata was so gentle and gracious. She hated Hinata for forgiving her and telling Naruto she was nice.
She would rather be hated.
Haruno Sakura, 18 years old, heartbroken.
Sakura walked to an empty classroom with a laptop on the teacher's desk and locked the door of the classroom. It was Chemistry lab, with rows of chemicals on the shelves and racks filled with well-used pipettes and burettes. She settled herself on a chair and pulled out the ecchi video she had brought. There was NO WAY she would watch this in her apartment, especially with Naruto moving in next to her.
"Geisha's one night stand" Sakura snorted at the cheesy title and slotted the VCD into the laptop.
Loud moans and soft whimpers emanated from the speakers of the laptop as Sakura watched the screen of the laptop, her expression of absolute concentration. A woman in a ripped yukata writhed underneath the heated body of the middle-aged male lead. Sakura grimaced. It was nice that her role would be being a geisha and she could wear a pretty kimono. However, the thought of her kissing a middle-aged and potbellied man made her shudder.
No way was that going to happen… How could a movie about Ino making love with some random middle-aged man be popular? Sakura assured herself.
The woman on the screen climaxed in a matter of minutes and she let out scream sounding like a beaten horse, earning another snort from Sakura. What a cheesy movie despite its explicit scenes, Sakura thought to herself, wondering whether it would actually help her. The director probably wanted to find an excuse pollute her mind, she sulked.
A cold yet familiar voice rang out in the room, sending vibrations to her eardrums.
"Enjoying yourself? My dear transfer student…"
Sakura froze at the sound of the voice. Someone discovered her! She would be expelled! She hastily turned her head to the source of the voice to find the three devils Hinata had told her about during her first day of school… Neji, Sasuke and Gaara.
To Be Continued…
A/N: Somehow I had a writer's block sorta thing and I COULD NOT THINK OF a nice scene for childhood Naruto and Sakura AND used a horrible excuse of a textbook for Sakura to snap poor Hina-chan. T.T Could not think of big words to use too. ARGH. I suck. I should read more to get my inspiration back.
AHH. Gave Naruto a bigger role this time. 3
I didn't edit this at all. SO PARDON ME FOR THE MISTAKES
Please review.