I'm so excited! this is the best writing I've done on here! please review! please... I'll update sooner...:(

okay so some of you may have noticed before that Jay, Tam, Sean and Kerri were characters in the original story... you see... I did write this, but on my microsoft word. I decided I needed real critisisum from people other than my friends telling me that I was great so I decided to post it here. I had to change the name of the characters but it's still my story.

If I did forget any...

KerriSakura

JaySasuke

TamIno

SeanShikamaru

so please read and I hope that this time, I got it all. )

-CHAPTER ONE-

All she could hear was the sound of her pounding heart and the screams of her mother as she was being smashed into the glass cabinets of her home. Her muscles were weak and she could feel the small spasms that ran through them as she continued to watch the horrifying site in front of her.

The blood was dripping from the corners of her mothers' mouth and the spot on her stomach that was stabbed only moments ago. Her mother held it tightly cringing at the pain, as she was still continuously being pushed around. It was hard to breath in such an atmosphere such as this one.

She couldn't move an inch because she was so filled with terror. Helpless. That was the word that explained all she felt through her system. It was a horror to only be able to sit back and watch as her mother slowly bleeds to death, but she was just too scared to move. What if she was next? Why was it her mother that had to endure so much pain right in front of her? Was this man really that heartless? She began to feel dizzy and the dull colors that surrounded her became blurry and mixed.

Another painful screech from her mothers throat as she was for the last time smashed face first into the cabinet, the pieces of glass digging in her face, the face with such a gruesome expression placed on it. Finally her mother's cries began to cease as she fell to the ground for the last time, with a sad and pained expression left on her now blood covered face.

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Cold sweat covered my body entirely like a fine thin sheet of cloth. My breath was uneven and came out in short hard huffs. Such thoughts. Such dreams. They were a blow from the past, a horror of remembrance that came and visited me almost every night. The worst part of it was, that all of it was real, they were all memories of my childhood that I so wished I didn't remember.

I had been dreaming the same way for far too long now. I was twenty-three living in a run down apartment, working on a shack by the beach for minimum wage. I slung my legs over the edge of my slumping bed and began to walk out of the hallway into the kitchen. What I really needed right now was a whisky or something but I would have to settle for a glass of water with some ice instead. Grabbing a cup from the cabinet above the stove, I filled it with water and added some ice from the freezer.

I really needed relaxation, something that soothed me. I always did and there was only one thing to do when it came to felling this crappy. It was too bad that that one thing only came at one part of the day and it was nowhere near now.

Working on the beach had its perks; at the end of the day I would love to watch the sun set. It calmed me, even though it sounded ridiculous that it was the only thing that could possibly sooth me. When the surfers were going home and the partying at the beach was settled down, I was practically alone and things couldn't get better, at least not to what I knew.

I set my now empty glass on the counter by the sink and went to my small living area, and sat in the old worn down recliner and closed my eyes. Just when I was about to drift off to sleep… the phone rang.

I groaned and reached lazily over to the phone on the small wooden side table. "Hello?" My voice was groggy and I cleared my throat. "Sakura? Hey!" I knew that perky up beat voice… It was one of my best friends since we were children, Ino. Ino was a bright, meaning her personality, and perky as stated. Even though Ino and I were sort of opposites, we still had quite a few similarities, so we got along great.

"Hey Ino, what's up? And do you know what time it is?" I said looking up at the clock on the far wall to see that it read that it was three twenty-four.

"Oh I guess that it is early huh?" Ino had herself a little laugh at that one. I blinked and started fiddling with the tearing fabric on the arm of the chair.

"Yeah, so what is your reason for calling so early Ino? I mean I enjoy talking to you, you're my best friend but there must be something important for it to be at this hour." Ino had herself another squeal.

"Well you got that right Sakura! So I was going to wait until tomorrow to tell you but I couldn't hold my excitement any longer." I could feel myself wince at the pitch of Ino's voice. It wasn't something I wasn't used to it's just I was so tired.

"Yeah and…?"

"Well! I got home late last night after Shikamaru and I had our dinner at this really fancy restaurant and you will never guess what I am wearing on my very important finger!" I sat up a bit.

"You mean he…?"

I heard another noise from Ino. "YES! He did he proposed to me and I am telling you Sakura the size of this diamond is just…. Humungo!" It was my turn to have myself a laugh for her.

"This sounds so great Ino, It really, really does…. I can't believe you guys are getting married! That's so exciting, I'm happy for you guys. But like you said it is really early for a phone call so can we talk about details tomorrow or something?" Ino gave a satisfied sigh.

"Yeah I just wanted to tell somebody and you know you are my most important someone! Besides I wouldn't want to keep the fact you are the made of honor from you for too long. But I guess that you are right so I will talk to you tomorrow Sakura, bye-bye!"

"Alright bye Ino."

With that I hung up the phone and moved my weary limbs to push myself from the recliner and walk myself to my shrunken bedroom.

Laying myself on the worn down mattress I pulled the cotton covers over my cold body and shifted positions trying to get comfortable. When I finally gave up on sleep I began to think about Ino's big wedding.

Ino Yamanaka and Shikamaru Nara had been going out for about two years now, not much could be said about them but the fact that they were meant for each other. They acted llike oposites but they still just clicked. Ino acted as if she was on speed, and Shikamaru was sort of lazy and easy going.

It was a big step for a couple to get married, but somehow I knew that Ino and Shikamaru would make it. It was just meant to be for them. They would make it though. They were both just too good to have something bad happen in there relationship. I absolutely hated it when bad things happened to good people; I had seen it too many times…

Every night I would pray to God that nothing bad would happen. That maybe life would get better later on. Of course it never did but I liked to think that what I did, did help in making sure things didn't get any worse. I thought myself selfish sometimes when I wouldn't pray for other people and only for myself, hoping that something good could happen to me someday…

All my work and care had been focused around helping other people because believe it or not, I strongly believe in karma. My life was bad enough as it is, but who knew, if I just acted like a crab about it karma could come back to bite me. So despite my living areas and the way things were going, I was still trying to make the most of it. Although there wasn't much to make the best of, all my known relatives had died by the time I was fourteen anyway so that didn't help much. This was the main reason I volunteered at the children's center every Sunday.

At least things hadn't gotten worse. I just got my paycheck and I still had about twenty dollars to spend for myself. Not to mention I had not been crying myself to sleep as much as usual. There was a plus.

Maybe…. Maybe if I kept praying to God things would eventually get better.

Maybe…

It was a word that I had been saying to myself most of my life. Maybe things will get better. Maybe, Maybe, Maybe. For years I had been saying that word and still nothing. I never gave up though. Hope was the only thing I really had left. I was more then anti-social. The only people that I ever did socialize with were Ino, Shikamaru, The coffee lady Ayame ((a/n: yes the ramen girl)), Hinata the girl I worked with, and the children at the center. It was all just my non-existent luck…

I rolled over into a more comfortable position and slowly let my eyelids droop over my eyes and the world took me into a dreamless sleep.

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The sun in my eyes is what woke me up in the morning. I groaned in discomfort and rolled over placing the pillow I was sleeping with over my head away from the window. When I realized that I couldn't find sleep again, I yawned and stretched while I sat up in bed. Looking around I found the digital clock on my nightstand and saw that it read, nine twenty-three. I was supposed to be at work down on the beach by ten o'clock. Amazing, I thought. I actually woke up before my alarm went off, which was set for nine thirty. Reaching my arm over I turned off the alarm so that it would not go off.

I stood painfully from my bed and felt the same ach in my back that was there every morning. It was actually really sad; I was only twenty-three and I already had some back pain when I woke up in the morning.

I walked over to the bathroom door about ten feet away from my bed, and prepared to take a hot shower. Another long day…

Today I had picked out an outfit that was normal for a repetitive day like today. I had a red tank top and a pair of my old blue jeans and tennis shoes. I grabbed my purse and finished getting ready to leave.

Just when I was about to I saw that my answering machine had one new message. Must have been while I was in the shower. I clicked the button on the machine and listened to Ino's voice on the other end of the line.

"Hey Sakura, I know that I called you last night, or this morning, but you said that we should talk today and I agree so during your lunch break I will meet you at the café so we can do some wedding talking! Meet me at… um… how about one o' clock? Ah! I am so exited! Alright well talk to you later Sakura, Bye-bye!"

I Sighed in deeply and deleted the message. "So at the café again today, all right looks like I'll have to take an early lunch." I thought to myself out loud.

I always went to the café for lunch, but normally I was alone, today I would be having the company of Ino and probably Shikamaru too. I would have to ask Hinata to take over my shift and cover for me, I had lunch normally at one thirty but I could arrange to take it at one. I walked out the door and down the elevator to the apartment parking lot to get into my sad little beat up car to drive to the beach shack.

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It was such a beautiful day in Konoha. The beach was well lit today in the bright sun and those who were there were soaking it up. It was my first summer working in here and actually I hoped to make it my last. It wasn't my favorite place in the world. In fact someday I hoped to get out of this place period.

I was amazed that there was not that many people at the beach today for a hot summer morning. As a result the shack was mainly empty. Oh well, I thought. That just means that there is less work for me. I slumped one elbow on the counter and rested my hand in that palm with half lidded eyes.

Today was only a regular day at the shack other then the lack of customers. Hinata would be taking over my shift when I did go to lunch.

Hinata was only a couple of months younger then I was and she seemed very nice. She had short purplish hair that was of course a color that was… somehow warm. Not to mention she had the most gorgeous and beautiful eyes. They were what I admired about her the most. Her eyes had a blend of a violet clear color with not puples. She was very sweet when you knew her you just had to be really careful to not get on her bad side…

I didn't know too much about Hinata but what I did know was that Hinata didn't like to talk a whole lot about herself I knew the reason must have been that I wasn't the only one having problems in life… Hinata was having some too. I didn't blame Hinata for not wanting to talk about it.

She was still a great person to talk to, fun and full of surprises. She had skin that wasn't pale it was a natural smooth looking whitish color that was the perfect shade that brightened her eyes all the more. I had to admit she was very attractive. So much more then she would ever give herself credit for.

The alarm on my wristwatch went off signaling that it was time for me to go to lunch.

"Hey Hinata?" I asked looking back where she had just finished selling a hot dog from the redecorator to a surfer and his beach 'honey'. She turned her head to catch my eyes and answer. "Yes?"

"Well I told a friend of mine that I would meet them at the café down the road for lunch even though my lunch break shouldn't be for a while, would you mind…?" She nodded her head and looked like she didn't mind at all. "Yeah sure, no problem Sakura." I gave her a smile that was rare and thanked her.

Then I worked my way to the parking lot to get into my car and start driving to the café.

The café was off down from the city in some place not known too well. It was a very small part of town that hardly anyone ever went to and I liked to go to the most. It was quiet and I could eat in peace.

I pulled my car into the small cracked cement parking lot of the café. I got out of my small car and opened the door hearing the bell ring when the door opened and closed.

I chose to sit in the booth near the back that had a lovely view of the parking lot. The place was relatively empty today, no surprise there. I checked my watch to make sure that my lunch hour didn't run out before Ino and Shikamaru got there. I didn't want to make Hinata wait for me longer then she had to.

"So we are here again for lunch, huh?" It was Ayame the coffee lady. She ran the café and kept in pretty good shape for something that hardly got any money at all. Ayame had told people before that even though the café didn't get much business she would not sell the place because it was owned by her grandfather before her, he had died a while back ago… he was murdered and that is what hurt her the most.

She was a very short woman with long brown hair just. She wasn't what most people would call sane if they first met her. She would always end every sentence with the word, 'Huh?' making everything she said sound like a question. Although she was a little strange Ayame still meant well and was one of the few people that I actually socialized with.

"Yes, lunch here again Ayame." I answered. Ayame gave a polite nod and asked, "So we are going with the usual, huh?" I too nodded and Ayame went off behind the counters to get the order that I got every time I went to the café. It wasn't much just a simple sub sandwich and a glass of lemonade.

I started to stare at nothing in particular out the window while I thought of nothing in general. My life was taking no interesting turns as of this current point in time; the only thing I really had to look forward to was Ino's wedding. I yawned and checked my watch.

While I did so the doors of the café swung open and with a small shriek Ino ran over to me. I stood up to accept the hug that Ino had offered me. "Well now we can get down to business with all this wedding stuff." Ino said with a huge smile on her face.

Ino was gorgeous. She long blond hair that ran hardly past her shoulders that was always smooth shiny and it seemed as though she never would have those split ends. Her bright blue eyes shined all the more brightly with the excitement of knowing she was to get married soon. She wasn't as short as I was in fact she was rather tall.

Ino slid in the booth across from me, and just as I had expected Shikamaru was there with her and sat next to her as well. However, someone else was there too. A tall man was standing next to them both and I guessed that he was with them.

"Can you believe this?" Ino sighed happily and took Shikamaru's hand in hers. He returned her sweet smile she had on her face with one of his own. Ino looked in the direction of the man whom I still did not know. "Well Sasuke, why don't you take a seat by Sakura, come on she doesn't bite. Well most of the time anyway, just don't get on her list." Ino was smiling when she made that last comment but she knew it was true. I would bite if I didn't like someone maybe that was why I had hardly any friends. I was amazed that Shikamaru and Ino were my friends because of it.

"Oh! I'm sorry Sakura! Shikamaru, aren't you going to introduce Sasuke to Sakura?" Shikamaru looked up at Ino and then looked at me.

"That's right, I'm sorry" He smiled and motioned toward the still standing 'Sasuke.'

"Sakura, This is my friend Sasuke Uchiha, he came to be one of the grooms men for the wedding, even though I haven't seen him in years." Sasuke gave a small smile toward me and nodded.

"Sasuke this is Ino's best friend Sakura Haruno." I put on a fake smile for him and nodded as well. "Nice to meet you."

I scooted over as close to the window as I could get so that he had all the room away from me. Sasuke sat down in the booth on my side and murmured a word of thanks. It was silent for a while before Sasuke spoke.

"So... Sakura, I've heard a lot about you from Ino." He turned his head so it seemed all his attention was at me. He had Blackish Blue colored hair that just barely went past his ears in the front and spiked in the back. He had dark eyes, and gave me a smile that told me he wasn't really intirested to talk to me and was only being polite.

It was hard to think strait when while Shikamaru and Ino were talking when Sasuke kept steeling glances at me. Sure he wasn't too bad looking in fact he was amazingly good looking, but there was something that I didn't like about him. One of the reasons I didn't socialize much was because I always seemed to find the faults in people when I first met them. Some called me judgmental.

Normally it was nothing special to find a fault right away, but for this guy. Something about him was ominous...

Sometime between the conversations of wedding plans Ayame arrived with my food for lunch and noticed that there were more people with me. She took their orders too and again my mind went off into the wonders of this Sasuke character. What he was really like, maybe it was all an act, this sweet guy, or maybe I was being paranoid Sakura again.

"Is that okay with you Sakura?" Ino's voice interrupted my thoughts.

"I'm sorry Ino. What was that?" I asked hoping that Ino wouldn't be annoyed with me. Ino sighed but showed no emotion on her face that she was angry.

"I said, would it be alright if I picked out your dress for the wedding?" She was making those blue eyes much bigger then they needed to be for me to nod my head yes. Ino had another squeal of excitement. I had a deep sigh. I hope its nothing frilly and definitely not pink. Just because my hair was pink didn't mean I was nuts about the color. Besides it was bad enough that I have to wear a dress at all… None the less I nodded.

"So I was wondering," It was Sasuke's deep and smooth voice. "When will the wedding be?" He was looking at both Ino and Shikamaru waiting for his answer. She quickly brought her smile back and looked at Sasuke. "Well we aren't sure yet. But it will be before the summer is over!"

Sasuke was deep in thought; I could see it on his face.

I checked my wristwatch. I wanted out of there as soon as possible. Not that I didn't enjoy talking about the wedding with Ino and Shikamaru it was more like I didn't enjoy being stared at by Sasuke. It wasn't a constant stair. Actually it was only every now and then he would peak at me out of the corner of his eye and I would see it out of the corner of mine.

Besides Ino had already told me about the plans of shopping. Not necessarily a good thing but not bad either. When Ino went shopping she bought some well actually most of the things she bought on her shopping trips were completely un-necessary. But she did have good taste. The one thing you should never do though, is trusting Ino with a credit card.

The glances from Sasuke were finally getting on my nerve. I didn't know if they were hated glances or glances of interest.

I would admit that Sasuke was rather handsome, actually much more then hot, but the way he kept looking at me was sort of creepy. I finally decided to get out of there.

"Oh sorry Ino. I can't really stay any longer out I am going to be late to go back to work, and Hinata will though a fit." Not that Hinata ever would.

"Aright then we'll let you go." Ino gave her original bright smile. Taking the hint that I needed to get out of the booth Sasuke stood up to let me out. Before I was out though he stopped me.

"So maybe I'll get to see you another time?" He had a gorgeous smirk played upon his lips, and his left hand was pocketed while his other one was blocking my exit from the booth. Though that smirk said confidence his eyes said please no rejection. I didn't want to hurt him, but it would be weird seeing him. So I decided to casually tell him I wasn't intirested... or at least I hoped not...

"Yeah sure I'll see you at the wedding. Bah-bye" I gave him a little wave and a smirk of my own as his disappeared. My way out was now open. I felt pretty guilty after that. I wanted to seem confident though, I was hoping my eyes didn't say I'm trying to put you down to make myself look good... god that sounded horrid.

I gave Ino the money to pay for my lunch when Ayame got back with the bill and left out through the café doors. I strutted through the parking lot all guilty because of the look I was able to leave on Sasuke's face.

Sure, I was a quick one to judge, I had been told so and believed it too. Even when I met Ino, I though that Ino was a stuck up snob that had a serious problem with talking too much. She still did have that problem, but you got used to it after the years that they had been friends and it was just a quality that made Ino, Ino, so that made it positive. I knew it wasn't a real problem; I just wasn't a good listener… Although sometimes it was interesting to listen to some of the wild things Ino had to say.

While in my car on the way back down to the beach shack, sirens were ringing out through the streets. It was normal for this town though so I decided to ignore them. What concern of mine was it anyway? I hated how people had to stop and look at some accident on the road. People really needed to keep to their own business sometimes.

A small way up ahead on the road I pulled into the parking lot by the beach. I had to walk down a small flight of old worn out wooden stairs to get all the way down the hill from the parking lot to the shack and the beach.

When I did come down to the shack I was surprised to see a serious looking policemen talking to Hinata.

alright! chapter one! chapter two will be out SOON! I would love love love some reviews first though! the more reviews the sooner! )

lalagirl