A/N: Hello everyone, I'm back! Sorry I went MIA and all; I was busy with the last week of school and what not. But the good news is, now I have plenty of time to sit here and write, and I've got a lot of ideas!
The Get Away Trip
Chapter 8
True to his word, Lee slept soundly at Sakura's side well into the morning. It wasn't until nearly nine o'clock that Sakura finally woke back up. She had slept well; all her dreams had had something to do with Lee.
'Speaking of which…' Sakura thought, looking to her right. With a sigh of relief, she saw that Lee was still there, just like he promised.
"Morning again, Sakura." Lee greeted, sounding almost nervous.
"What's up? Is something wrong?" Sakura asked, looking around the beach house. Everything seemed normal…
"Um, Sakura, did you know you…sleep talk?" Lee sat up as he spoke, tapping his fingers on the white blanket. Sakura's eyes widened; she knew what had happened. Whenever she stayed up to think about very serious things, Sakura's subconscious often continued to think about it, causing her to talk in her sleep. Though it hardly ever happened, it was mortifying for Sakura to hear what she had been saying.
"W-What did I say?" Sakura asked bleakly, already feeling her face blushing. Lee had trouble spitting the words out.
"Well, um, you mentioned…my name several- er, a few times." Lee said, avoiding Sakura's face. Sakura groaned.
"Don't try to make this easier; what exactly did I say?" she didn't want to know, but then again she had to know.
"You kept muttering 'Lee-kun, my adorable Lee-kun', and 'Ino, you can have Sasuke. I like guys with fuzzy eyebrows now.' After that, it was hard to understand what you were saying…" Lee spoke quickly, feeling awful about the whole thing.
'This has to be the very upsetting for poor Sakura. I wish I were a better actor. Then she wouldn't have known anything was wrong.' Lee thought to himself, frowning at his fingers. He would never mention this to Sakura, but there was another reason her sleep talk made him melancholy.
As everyone in Konoha knew, he still had a major crush on the pink haired girl. When he heard her muttering about how she liked him more, Lee could have died from joy. But then he remembered that she was asleep, and that she wouldn't be saying that if she were awake. It didn't seem fair that his feelings be played like that. He understood it wasn't her fault, but it really made him feel good to hear Sakura say she wanted him more then Sasuke.
'Stupid. I have always known that she prefers Sasuke. Why should she feel any different? I can not compete with him…' Lee heard a sharp intake of breath and looked up. Sakura's jade green eyes were staring into his own.
"Lee, I…" Sakura's voice trailed off; after all, what could she say?
'You could tell him how you feel. Or better yet, let me show him!' Sakura's inner voice said excitedly. Sakura ignored her inner self. This was it, if she was going to save their relationship now was to be the time.
"I love you Lee!" Sakura said in one breath before leaning forward and pecking him on the cheek. That was an overload. Lee stood up and took a step back only to trip and crash into the coffee table.
"Ow…" he whispered, rubbing a baseball sized bump on his head. Sakura felt her mouth drop open and she jumped out of bed to help. Lee winced as Sakura helped him onto the couch. She had him lay down with his head on her lap.
"You should be careful!" Sakura muttered as she focused chakra into her hand. Lee remained quiet while Sakura healed the bump. When she was finished, they stayed in those positions, listening to the waves crashing off the shore.
"Sakura, do you really feel that way? Please do not try to make me feel better by lying." Lee said quietly, closing his eyes. Sakura hesitated before running a few fingers through his hair.
"Yes, Lee, I do. I'm not lying, or trying to make you feel better. I love you. I'd still love you even if I was trapped in a sauna with a hundred shirtless Sasukes." Sakura smiled to help Lee believe she was telling the truth. Lee felt himself starting to grin and when he opened his eyes the first thing he saw was his beautiful flower.
"I have something for you." He said, slowly getting up to avoid motion sickness.
"Wait here." Lee told Sakura, turning to dig through his suitcase. He put something in his hand and walked back to the couch. Lee sat down and held out his hand. Sakura saw the seashell Lee had found for her before, the pretty one with cherry blossom shaped markings on the inside. Lee had carefully strung it so that Sakura could wear it as a necklace. Sakura was speechless as Lee put it around her neck.
"Do you like it, then?" Lee asked.
"Oh Lee!" Sakura threw her arms around his neck and kissed him again, this time on the lips. It was a very sweet kiss, one that both shinobi enjoyed immensely.
"You know, Lee, I've been thinking; maybe we should skip the last few days of our vacation. I think I've had enough of the sun." Sakura said once she finally pulled away. She panted a little bit from lack of air. Lee was rendered speechless and only nodded in agreement. That kiss was something he had been waiting for since the first time they met.
'It was well worth the wait!' Lee thought. They quickly kissed again before getting ready for their return trip. Lee called and made the necessary arrangements. When their luggage was packed and ready, Elizabeth came knocking at their door.
"I hope you enjoyed yourselves." She said with a warm smile.
"We did, thank you." Lee said as he and Sakura put on their shoes. Elizabeth led them down a path and towards the dock where they first arrived at. When Sakura didn't think the tour guide was looking, she reached out and took Lee's hand.
He squeezed it and felt his heart skip a beat. When they got to the dock, their luggage was already on the boat. It was rather odd to see that nobody else was there. The shinobi sat down on the boat and off they went.
"Goodbye Kamalame Kay!" Sakura waved at the island until it was out of sight.
"I think I will miss being here." Lee said, giving Sakura a sad smile.
"Me, too." Sakura replied, blushing when she saw Elizabeth giggle at them. When the ride was over they got in a taxi and drove back to the airport.
"You be having your passports, ya?" The latest man on desk duty asked in the tiny yellow building from before. When all the paperwork was taken care of, they boarded the private jet from the previous flight. John was their pilot again.
"How was the trip? Did you two friends have fun?" John asked with a wink in Lee's direction. He still didn't believe that, at first, Sakura and Lee were only friends.
"Yeah, it was lots of fun." Sakura replied before climbing into the jet and taking a seat. Lee followed after her, and unlike before he sat down in the seat beside her. John gave them the same couple's treatment as before, so Sakura and Lee were free to hold hands in peace. The flight home didn't seem to take very long. It felt like only an hour before they were flying over the land of fire. John landed outside the village gates and helped get the luggage out.
"Thank you for flying with us!" John waved goodbye, went back in the jet, and flew up towards the sky.
"Well, Sakura, I hate to leave you, but I must return home and unpack my things." Lee said as they walked into Konoha.
"That's fine. I have to speak with a certain blond haired soon-to-be dead woman anyway." Lee laughed and pecked Sakura's cheek goodbye.
"I will see you tomorrow!" He said before turning and walking down a street. Sakura headed right for the Hokage's tower, feeling very content. Tsunade heard a knock at her door and looked up from a newspaper she was reading.
"Come in. Ah, Sakura! You're back early." The Hokage grinned as Sakura walked inside and dropped her suitcase.
"Yeah, Lee and I decided we missed Konoha." Sakura took a step forward, and Tsunade froze.
"Hey, you aren't mad about the whole romance thing right? I was just trying to help you find your soul mate!" the Hokage looked to Shizune for help, but the said girl only laughed and backed out of the room.
"Well, it worked. Lee and I are now together." Sakura cracked her knuckles and smirked.
"But you've still got to learn not to play cupid." Sakura reached out and picked up a wooden object.
"Oh shi-!" Tsunade ducked as a chair came flying in her direction. The entire village could hear the shouts, crashes, and thumps coming from the Hokage's tower, but none dared to come near. Hey, it was better then pushing Tsunade off a cliff, right?
A/N: Well, that's all folks. I hope my fellow SakuLee fans enjoyed yourselves. I have to confess something though. My readers will probably count me as a traitor after this, but I'm really glad I finished this story. I got a really cute and fluffy idea for…um…for a Sasuke and Sakura fanfiction. Heh heh heh –awkward silence- I'm waiting for the sharp and pointed objects to be thrown…!