Summary: "Don't change. I'm capable of tolerating you just the way you are," he mumbled. "So, you love me?" She was quite fluent in Sasuke-ese. [SasuSaku]

Warnings: Possibly some OOC-ness going on. Lame attempts at humor. Major Oop failure.

A/N: I got inspired. It's not for Christmas or anything, but just a winter fic. (And I have a lot of stories I want to post, but I'm going to finish them first. Consider this… a temporary appeasement.) Enjoy! (And I know it's short, damnit! Leave me alone!)

And thank you to my wonderfully fantastic beta, rawrchelle. (Really, you're the best!)

Marry Me?

Author: Alley-Oop

"Why is your hair pink?"

"Why does your hair stick out in the back?"

"Hn."

"That's what I thought." Sakura took a sip from her hot chocolate, sighing in contentment. Sasuke was looking out the window over his shoulder, at the traffic of passers-by walking past steadily. He held his coffee in his long, pale fingers, warming them.

"Why don't you sleep at night?"

His dark gaze slid over to her, calculating but mirthful. "Why do you go on walks at midnight?"

"Touché." She smiled, looking into the swirling depths of her frothy chocolate delight. She always walked by his apartment, and he always watched her from his window. To most, this would seem incomparably creepy, but to them, it was a way of knowing that they were thinking about each other. Of course, she always thought about Sasuke.

"Why aren't you married yet?" This question startled Sakura, and she looked up, green eyes wide, to find Sasuke watching her, the very slightest of smirks perched on those thin lips of his. She wondered how his lips had looked before he spent years pressing them into scant lines. Either they'd been that way since she'd first met him, or she couldn't remember. Sakura preferred to believe the first option.

"Why aren't you?" Of course, Sakura had a real answer: because the right person hadn't asked. Naruto had asked her, of course, several months before, after they'd been dating for a while, but she hadn't felt the moment was right. They weren't together anymore, but he still loved her (or so he said).

"Who would marry me?" Sasuke gazed at her with amusement. He leaned forward to rest his elbows on the wooden table between them.

"Ino-"

"Is already married," he finished. "And pregnant." He grimaced. "Next."

"Temari-"

"Is dating Shikamaru."

"Hinata-"

"Is in love with Naruto."

"No she's not!" Sakura stated. Hinata was still single, and she would make Sasuke a wonderful wife, if he could get permission from her fickle father and win her heart. Soft spoken, intelligent, and beautiful, she could think of no better match. And Hinata did not love Naruto.

"You're blind." She'd obviously not noticed that the Hyuuga heiress had been head over heels since their genin days. (He discounted the fact that he still was a genin, technically.) He'd always been able to tell, and it wasn't because of his Sharingan or because he was a ninja. How hard was it to notice that she blushed whenever the blonde spoke to her, or to notice that her stammer returned around him? No wonder he'd gone to Orochimaru - these people were too thick to notice anything!

"But-" Sakura started, but Sasuke's look silenced her. He was right, of course, now that she thought about it. She suddenly felt guilty. She had dated Naruto, and hadn't even been sure if she loved him or not.

"Next," Sasuke stated with finality.

With a sigh, Sakura complied. "Tenten?"

Sasuke didn't even grace her with an answer, just gave her a hard look.

"Right. I should've figured. I think she's got something for Neji, anyway… How about… Well, there's… Um…"

"Exactly. There's only one woman you didn't mention." And not even she would marry me. Almost under his breath, he added to himself, "Especially not her."

Sakura's head was reeling, trying to figure out whom he was talking about. There weren't many kunoichi in the village, and she doubted Sasuke would settle for just any woman. He had a prestigious clan to rebuild, after all. But… who?

Sasuke gave her an exasperated look. "You don't know who I'm referring to?"

Sakura's blank look must have given her away.

"You."

"Me?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes and sighed. "I wasn't talking to the wall."

She might have said something clever that insulted his mental stability, but her heart was doing somersaults and her mind whirled. "But I-"

"Deserve better than me." He swirled a finger absently around the rim of his Styrofoam cup.

Sakura glared at him. "If you'd let me finish my own sentences…"

He couldn't hide his smirk from her, and it infuriated her and made her cheerful at the same time, despite the somewhat awkward (who was she kidding? The very awkward) situation.

"But I would marry you, if you asked."

Sasuke's eyes widened in surprise. "But-"

"I love you," Sakura blurted. His eyes continued growing. "I always have."

"But-"

"I know that you've made bad choices, and I know that I annoy you most of the time, but-" She was nearly frantic, talking so fast that even Sasuke could barely understand her.

"Sakura."

"-I'll try harder to be less annoying and-"

"Sakura."

"-I'll try my hardest to make you happy and-"

"Sakura!" Finally, she shut up, looking up at him with watery eyes, like it hurt to reveal all of this to him after so long. And it probably did, after all he'd put her through. "Don't change. I'm capable of tolerating you just the way you are," he mumbled, looking away and, was it just her, or was he blushing slightly (something Sakura had only ever prayed to see)?

Sakura's visage brightened instantly. "So, you love me?" She was quite fluent in Sasuke-ese.

"Hn," he said, irritation evident in his grumble. But it wasn't a denial.

"So let's get married!"

Sasuke almost choked on absolutely nothing. "Excuse me?"

Sakura jumped up, and Sasuke's hand darted across the table to steady her teetering cup of hot chocolate, fast as only a ninja of his caliber could move. However, in saving her from the scalding liquid, he had leaned over so that his face was very near to hers. He looked up slowly, finding her green eyes only inches away. So green…

"Sasuke. Let's get married." She was smiling at him, and sounded breathless, but he knew she was serious. And now that she had the idea, he knew he'd never be able to refuse her without hurting her.

"…Okay…"

Her hands came up and clasped his face between them, which made Sasuke flinch a little. At least her hands were warm, he supposed.

"Really?" Her cheeks became rosy with joy, her eyes swimming. She looked so happy that Sasuke felt a pang of guilt. He didn't deserve her. But she had chosen him, despite his faults, and he had accepted her offer after countless years of persistence.

He nodded his head as best he could with her hands on either side of his face. She laughed, and before he could think, she kissed him. He blushed again, and became the one that was breathless when she pulled away, grabbing him by the hand.

"Let's go get rings!"

He allowed her to pull him out of the coffee shop and out onto the wintry street. She looped her arm through his (though this wasn't anything new). "So, I was just wondering…" she started, eyes looking up to Sasuke.

"Hm?" he didn't bother glancing down at her, since he was trying to steer them away from oncoming pedestrian traffic.

"Why does your hair stick up?"