The windows were spotless, as were there sills. The garden had been trimmed and weeded. They were even caught up on laundry, probably the single hardest task to stay ahead of. But the laundry room was empty and the clean laundry had actually made its way back to its furniture, instead of sitting in a pile on the floor.

Sasuke had been gone for two weeks on an A-rank and she had heard nothing from him or his team. It was not unusual for a team to go dark during more complicated missions, but she was feeling listless as she waited for the days to pass. He could take of himself, she knew. No one could defy death like her husband. Mostly, she was just bored.

Rounds at the hospital were steady, with most of her patients having long-term needs. She saw them every day, saw the few children who had caught colds and assured their nervous parents that no, they were not about to drop dead from a cough.

She had even had time to spend with Ino, catching up on life and tidbits of gossip. Why yes, she had heard that Akamaru was to be congratulated on his first litter. No, she did not know Shikamaru had again refused to take a genin team, but neither was she surprised. When she had picked up a broom and begun to sweep the Yamanaka flower shop, Ino had promptly taken the appliance, shoved her to the steps and told her to find a hobby.

Years had passed since she had taken orders from Ino, though, which was how she found herself at home in the late afternoon making a simple dinner of rice balls and oden. The plethora of fish were already cooking, stewing in dashi as she wrapped her first handful of rice around a cherry tomato.

She sensed him before she heard him. Her hands continued to mold rice and seaweed. Smiling, she glanced over her shoulder and spoke kindly, "Welcome back." He was already much closer than she anticipated, fully geared with the black turtleneck and white vest. He stepped in, smelling of earth and copper and Sasuke, as one arm snaked past her waist. She grinned, readying to return the embrace, but his reach stopped short. He grabbed the first, the only, completed rice ball and stepped back.

Twisting, she caught his arm before he cleared her personal space. A quick step to her toes, and she sealed the distance between them. His lips were warm and chapped, tolerant. Her desire died before it could be kindled. Maybe he saw the disappointment in her eyes, or maybe the kiss woke something in him. He leaned forward and returned it with emotion she was more familiar with. By the time he leaned away, she was smiling again.

"I missed you," she whispered against his cheek, content to stay there for a while.

"Mm," he answered, his arms comfortable around her shoulders.

"Did you miss me?" she asked playfully, her momentary hurt forgotten.

"You know I did," he answered quietly, as if someone might be walking past the unopened window and hear them. Sakura smiled, content again, and turned back to her task.

Quietly he spoke, "Thank you," and she nodded. His presence was already fading from the kitchen. Two weeks he had been gone.

"If you want," she called while turning back to the other rice balls, "go ahead and clean up while dinner finishes cooking." A moment later her response came as water ran through the pipes, shower water beating against the tiles.

Dinner was quiet, quieter than she had hoped or even expected. The wet sound of oden and chewing peppered the silence until she asked, "How did everything go?"

"We finished. There were no casualties," he answered between bites. She served another piece of fried tofu into his bowl, masking daikon beneath it. He ate the tofu and hesitated at the radish.

"Did everything go according to your standards?" she teased, trying to dig a little deeper, to maybe pull some substance into the conversation.

"There were no casualties," he said again, and she wondered if that was supposed to pass for a new answer. The man who had kissed her not even an hour ago had vanished again. Sighing, she finished the rest of her rice and began to clear the table. Sasuke did not complain as she cleared away his not-quite-empty bowl. When she returned for her second set of dish clearing, he had excused himself.

After she finished cleaning dinner away, she found him in bed, already tucked beneath the slate-blue sheets and comforter. His eyes were closed. She stared at him for a moment, wondering how badly the mission had really gone. Why else would he be so tired? He had gone on missions like this before without the same kind of fatigue. Why wouldn't he just open up to her?

She crawled into bed, aware of the dark eyes that opened as she pulled the sheets back up to her shoulders. He sighed gently as her fingers danced over his lips, rolling a small round between them.

"Open up," she whispered gently, and he complied, taking the small tomato between his teeth. Sakura smiled as he chewed, brushing her arm back down to his chest, fingers playing idle melodies.

Her eyes fell to the strap of muscle in his neck, flexing and relaxing as he worked the tomato into something to swallow. She leaned forward and placed two slow kisses against his neck, first against the muscle and then higher at his pulse point. Her lips lingered, tongue darting over the skin and artery. He tasted like soap, smelled like tomatoes. The fingers on his chest grazed the skin playfully.

"Sakura," he sighed. It was the first time he had spoken her name since he had returned, and she smiled toothily, nipping at his neck. His hand met hers, fingers intertwining to guide her. Then they were quickly weighed down, anchored to his chest. He turned his head away from her before, quickly looking back down at the confusion on her face. "I am very, very tired," he explained. He brought their hands to his mouth, giving the back of her palm a small peck, then pulled the limbs back under the covers, where they settled between their two bodies.

Sakura sighed and disengaged her fingers, rolling away from her husband slowly. A minute later she cleared her throat quietly.

"You know," she said calmly, "a normal man who hadn't had sex for two weeks, when finding a beautiful woman throwing herself at him, would probably make more of an effort." He said nothing, and she rolled her eyes at his passive-aggressive bullshit. This was ridiculous. Two weeks!

Soft, lulled breathing caressed her ears, and she frowned, glancing over her shoulder. His eyes were closed, his mouth slightly open. Had he fallen asleep? In the middle of her words? Or worse, was he pretending?

Forcing her clenched jaw to relax, she turned back to her side and pushed the thoughts away. Now she was being ridiculous. He was tired, that was all. He had said so himself. Besides, the thought of him pretending just for the sake of avoiding her was too painful to consider.

"I love you," she whispered to the darkness. "Sometimes I feel like my body is going to explode and shoot all the way to the stars just on the power of what I feel for you. I would- could move mountains for you… I believe you love me too… but sometimes I wish you would show it." Her volume had risen to almost normal volume as she finished, consumed in her declaration.

"Sakura," Sasuke muttered sleepily. "Please be quiet. 'M tryin' to slee…"

She tensed… then did as he asked

Dun dun dun.

Just a prologue, a whetting, if you will. More notes in my bio.