dedicated to: Christmas!
prompt: christmas, and the snow doujinshi.
rating: T

summary: "Angels we have heard on high—" Sasuke realizes that his angel has been in front of him all along.

REVISED 6.29.14

Hark, the Angels

It was nearly 20 degrees outside, and Sasuke looked out the window, shivering in a T-shirt and jeans. He had a scarf wrapped around his neck, but other than that and the furry slippers Naruto had gotten for him as a birthday present in the middle of July, he was colder than frozen hell.

Snow fell down like—interestingly enough—dandruff from Naruto's hair when he hadn't washed it in a while. The thought made him wince and Sasuke forced himself to think about other things. It embarrassed him that he knew so much about his friend and his teammate.

He thought about Kakashi, who was probably reading Icha Icha while sipping on hot chocolate in a snuggie, giggling madly. Then, his mind drifted off to Sai, who was probably painting or sketching outside in a tent so that his paper wouldn't get wet. And, of course, he'd still be in his belly shirt, the cold not bothering him at all.

Naruto, on the other hand, would be gorging on ramen to make himself warm. One bowl, two bowls, three bowls…and the stack would pile higher and higher. He'd throw up in the snow and probably convince Konohamaru that it was magic snow, to which he would laugh afterwards. Sasuke growled and shook his head, feeling like he was going to vomit.

But Sakura.

He wondered what Sakura was doing. Was she sitting at the hospital desk working through loads of papers and fixing patients instead of being with her family and friends? He remembered being invited to her house for a cup of tea and saw the Christmas tree being set up and lit brightly, and how there were stacks of presents underneath the pine while he saw his reflection in baubles hanging on the branches.

Sasuke felt guilty that he was complaining at home for being too cold, not bothering to make a warm drink or turn up the thermostat, but Sakura wasn't even getting to enjoy the holiday she wanted to the most. He decided to perform his fire jutsu so that his fireplace would start to burn wood slowly, and warmed his hands in front of it, turning on the TV so that he could watch a movie at the same time.

The TV opened up to the news. Konoha had just gotten its biggest snow storm in around seven or eight years, and although it was still safe to drive and roam around, it wasn't necessarily the smartest thing in the world.

Sasuke was about to sit down on his couch and watch a movie marathon until he heard an incessant knocking at his door. He groaned, got up, and trudged over to the door where he saw Sakura, panting, out of breath. She smiled and held her snowy, mittened hands in his own. He jumped as the ice touched him but was taken aback by Sakura's rosy cheeks and bright smile.

"Come on, Sasuke-kun!" she shouted, her words forming small "dragon" breaths in front of him. "We have to go see the snow fall!"

"Sakura—"

"Come on!" She took a coat from his hanger, wrapped it around his shoulders, and took his hand in her own, running towards the middle of Konoha's square. Sasuke struggled to keep up, tripping in his furry slippers, but he caught his foot and soon managed to stay side by side with her.

"It's beautiful, right?" Sakura said, stopping as soon as they got to the middle of the empty plaza, snow drifting all around them. He could see little white flakes in Sakura's hair, and was reminded of Naruto's dandruff for a second. But when it was on her, it looked like she was covered in sparkles, and he realized then that she was unbelievably beautiful.

"Do I have something on my face?" she asked, using her sleeve to wipe her mouth. Sasuke shook his head. "No."

Her voice was quiet but sharp. He could hear it through the wind and the small crunching of the snow as he shifted his weight. But it was still gentle, and she had the voice of an angel.

In the background, both turned to hear Christmas music whispering from far away. A woman began to sing Hark, the Herald Angels Sing! And although she had a nice voice and her singing was very pretty, it had nothing on Sakura. Whenever Sakura spoke, or laughed, or cried, her voice would pierce through him and he'd always want to hear more. Like he'd never get enough. It was a song that played through his head constantly that he loved and never wanted to stop hearing.

More snow began to fall on her. Sasuke's vision began to get cloudy from the small stars and he wiped them away. Sakura perceived this as crying.

"What's wrong, Sasuke-kun? Are you upset that you don't have your family to be with?" She gave him a hug. "It's okay. I invited you here because I didn't want you to be lonely! And plus, I also wanted to be with someone, too. My family couldn't visit this year, and my friends are with their significant others…" she began, which led Sasuke to pity the girl who was so excited to spend Christmas in her living room.

"I'm not crying," Sasuke said. "But Sakura…" he began, using his thumb to wipe the snowflakes that had fallen onto her cheeks. "You're glowing. Like an angel."

"Really?" she asked.

"Yeah. You look…damn, I don't know how to say it." He turned away, blushing, his cheeks red from both embarrassment and cold.

"Thank you," she said. She hugged Sasuke again—one tight hug—before she let go. "Sorry. I know that you don't like physical touching, so…" she looked away shyly.

There was silence. The woman kept singing until she faded away, and Sakura looked Sasuke straight in the eye. "I love you, Sasuke-kun."

Although he had heard it so many times before, he didn't know how exactly to respond. "Thank you," he simply replied.

Then, without warning, he pulled her into a hug. He rested his chin on top of her head and held one hand behind her head.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Shh." He closed his eyes. "Let's just stay like this for a while."

The snow continued to fall. Their breaths came out like small steams, as if they were dragons trying to learn how to become flamethrowers. Their cheeks were cold and red, and they shivered constantly. The woman in the background kept singing songs, and he swore that he could feel Sakura smile as she wrapped her arms around his waist, having them stay there for longer than a second.

"Hey, Sakura?"

She looked up. "Yeah?"

"Merry Christmas."

Slight changes!