“Oh my god,” sixteen year old pink-haired sophomore Haruno Sakura breathed. “This—it’s amazing!”

“Do you like it dear?”

Sakura glanced at the smiling woman next to her. “Thank you so much for letting me stay here!”

Before Uchiha Mikoto could comprehend what was happening, the younger girl had encircled her arms around the woman’s neck. Surprised by the girl’s actions, she laughed wholeheartedly before patting her on the back in return.

This girl would definitely make things interesting.

XXXXXXXXXX

“Tell me again why we’re letting some random stranger stay here again,” Uchiha Sasuke, also sixteen years of age, mumbled.

His father, Uchiha Fugaku, sat across from him, hands crossed and an impatient look upon his face. “Be quiet Sasuke,” he snapped. “This stranger is a daughter of one of my old colleagues, and if she’s anything like him, she will make a great addition to this household. You be honored to have a member of such a prestigious family be staying here.”

Sasuke scoffed and looked away. “If they’re so famous, how come I’ve never heard of them before?”

“Watch your tone, young man! Remember who you’re speaking to!” Fugaku stood up, a look of pity and regret suddenly on his face. “Haruno was such a talented man. He could have done anything he wanted to. He could have become the best of the best.”

“But…” Sasuke was a tad curious now.

“But he threw it all away!” Sasuke watched impassively as his father threw his hands into the air. “He decided that being a pediatrician in some small unknown town was more worth it than working as one at one of the world’s best hospitals. It was such a foolish choice! I couldn’t even believe he—“

His father would have continued, if the sound of the front door opening had not been heard.

“Hello?” Sasuke could hear his mother’s voice through the cracks of the door. “Hold on a minute Sakura, dear. Now where is that husband and son of mine?”

So Sakura is her name?

“We’re in the parlor,” his father called, as he reseated himself on the chair he was sitting on before.

What kind of girl would be named Sakura? Immediately, pink came into his mind.

The parlor door opened.

No, that’s impossible. There’s no way in the world that anybody would have pink—

“Nice to meet you, Uchiha-sama!”

Oh my god. She has pink hair. What kind of freak is living here?

“Haruno-san,” his father was getting up. “I’m so glad to finally be able to meet you.” He reached out his hand to shake, only to be enveloped in a crushing hug by the petite girl. “My, don’t you have a grip!”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” the girl repeated over and over again, finally letting the elder man go before she turned her gaze on Sasuke. “Is this the son you were talking about, Mikoto-san?”

Uchiha Mikoto chuckled. “Yes, that there is grumpy old Sasuke.”

“That’s Sasuke!” Her eyes widened. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. What was there to be so surprised about? “I’m sorry. I thought he was Itachi.”

His eyes narrowed even more. Itachi? Me?

“It’s just you said he was the same age as me,” she laughed nervously under the Uchiha boy’s scrutinizing gaze, “and Sasuke-kun looked so much older than I imagined him to be.”

Sasuke-kun? What the heck?

Fugaku cleared his throat, drawing all attention to him. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Sakura. But if you’ll excuse, I have an urgent meeting I have to attend in thirty minutes.”

Sakura widened her eyes, before bending down into a low bow. “Thank you for staying all this time just to meet me, Uchiha-sama!”

A small, barely visible smile found its way onto Uchiha Fugaku’s lips, much to Sasuke’s horror. “You’re welcome Sakura.”

Don’t tell me she’s already won his approval. Sasuke found himself glaring at the smiling girl.

“So, why don’t we show you to your room? “ Uchiha Mikoto suggested, once her husband had left the room.

“That would be wonderful,” Sakura flashed the Uchiha a smile. “Thank you, Uchiha-san.”

“Oh, please,” Sasuke’s mother put a hand to her mouth. “You must call me Mikoto, dear.”

“Thank you, Mikoto-san.”

“Now…Sasuke!” The Uchiha boy, who had been spacing out of their conversation, snapped to attention. “Take Sakura to her room, won’t you?”

“But—“

“Do as I say, Sasuke,” to any stranger, her mother would have sounded fine. But to the trained ears of Uchiha Sasuke, he could hear the underlying threat in her tone. God, for such a nice woman, his mother sure was scary.

Muttering something incoherent, he opened the door and stepped out into the foyer.

“Sasuke’s room is right down the hall from yours if you ever need anything!” he heard his mother tell the girl before, she too, stepped out after him.

“Where’s your luggage?” he all but snapped, but the girl didn’t seem to take notice to his bad mood.

“Right here!”

It was then he noticed the small duffle bag she had slung over her shoulder. Only that much? She does know she’s going to be staying here for the entire school year?

“Follow me,” he grunted.

“So…” she was speaking again, and he tried to concentrate on anything else but her voice. Of all the girls that had to stay here, why in the world did it have to be one that talked this much? “You’re name is Sasuke right?” she let out another strained laugh. Sasuke realized that under her cheery and friendly exterior, this girl was actually a lot more nervous that she showed.

“Hn.”

“Well, my name is Haruno Sakura!” she let out another smile, and if Sasuke wasn’t so busy being annoyed with her chatter at the moment, he might have noticed how breathtaking her smile actually was. “So…what are some of your hobbies?”

“…”

“Likes?”

“…”

“Dislikes?”

“…”

“Goals?”

“…”

“Oh, well…” Sasuke saw the girl bite her lip out of the corner of his eye. She looked down onto the ground, probably disappointed that she was unable to make conversation.

“I have one certain goal.”

The girl’s eyes snapped up.

“I wouldn’t call it goal, but an ambition. It’s to…surpass a certain man.”

“Surpass?” the girl repeated his words. “A certain man?”

He didn’t grace her with a reply, as he suddenly stopped in front of a door. “This is your room.”

“Oh!” she stopped beside him and opened the door, stepping inside.

“Hn.” He turned to leave.

“Sasuke-kun!” her voice stopped him, and he turned around. She gave out another smile, and this time, he noticed it was more sincere and relaxed. “Thank you.”

He gave the barest of nods before turning back around and heading back to his own room.

At least she hadn’t immediately started drooling, like most of the girls did when they caught sight of him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Haruno Sakura slumped against the door of her room, finally safe in her quarters.

That was close! She sighed, wiping some of the sweat in her palms onto her pants. He was drop-dead gorgeous! I’m surprised I was able to refrain from drooling!

She groaned. I can’t believe I have to live with him for a whole year! A guy like him probably has a ton of girls chasing after him, not to mention, he probably already has an insanely beautiful girlfriend.

Shannaro! We’ll just have to beat the hell out of all of them, won’t we? Inner Sakura was fired up, but she quickly pushed her other ‘side’ back to the back of her mind.

With another groan, she covered her face with her hands. What have I gotten myself into?

She had always wanted to be like her father, the smartest and kindest man she had ever known in her entire life. When she found out she had been accepted in the best school in the entire Country of Fire, she was ecstatic. But of course, boarding at the prestigious school was going to cost a lot, and she didn’t want her family wasting all that money just for her education.

She would have declined the school’s offer, but somehow, her father had made contact with an old friend who lived up near the school area. Apparently, one of their sons was in the University, and the other was in the same grade as her.

When she had arrived, she nearly choked at the size of the mansion they lived in! It was amazing.

But when she saw the son, she was sure she was going to die. Why had her father neglected to mention that she would need to bring a blindfold with her on her journey? There was no way she could stare at something as gorgeous as that all day for an entire school year.

What was she going to do?

XXXXXXXXXX

The dinner actually went better than she expected. The Uchiha head had not returned from his meeting yet, so it was only Mikoto, Sakura, and Sasuke.

“Excuse me, Mikoto-san?”

“Yes dear?”

“Well,” Sakura took a sip of her drink. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but you have another son, don’t you? Itachi? Would it be rude of me to ask where he is?”

“Oh Itachi?” Mikoto gave a laugh. “He comes and goes as he pleases. I think he has some before school student council meeting tonight. He’s president of the entire student body you know.”

“Really?” Sakura let out a gasp of awe. “But isn’t he only a junior in the University? He must really be a prodigy.”

Mikoto smiled. “Oh Sakura, Itachi has been the student body president since the moment he entered the University.”

“That’s—that’s amazing!” Sakura was in shock. “He was president during freshmen year!” She was completely oblivious to the younger Uchiha sitting next to her, who was currently clutching his napkin so hard that his knuckles were turning white.

When dinner (which had been delicious,) was over, Sakura immediately vanished into the adjacent room after collecting everyone’s plates.

When Sasuke and Mikoto wandered in after her, they saw her getting ready to wash all the dishes.

“Oh Sakura,” Mikoto took the plates from her. “We have a dishwasher, you know.”

“I know,” she smiled. “But my father and mother always taught me that we shouldn’t always depend on machines for something that should be done by our own hands. And besides, it is the least I can do since you’re offering me such hospitality to your home.”

“Nonsense!” Mikoto laughed. “We’re glad to have you, Sakura. I’m sure your parents are great people, Sakura, but at the Uchiha household, you are a guest. And there is no possibly way that I will let a guest do the dishes.”

“If you say so,” the girl sounded unsure, but nevertheless, turned the water off. “I just remembered I still have some things I did not unpack yet. If you’ll excuse me.”

Mikoto watched the girl leave with a smile on her face. “She has grown up well, ne Sasuke? Perhaps you could learn a few things from her.”

When her son responded with a glare, she chuckled before walking over, and ruffling his hair. “I’m just kidding.”

Putting the dishes into the dishwasher, she also exited, leaving Sasuke alone in the kitchen.

She’s already fitting in so well. He smirked to himself. Not bad…Haruno.

But will Itachi accept her?

XXXXXXXXXX

Sakura awoke in the middle of the night, with a sudden urge to go use the bathroom.

Still half-asleep, she wandered outside of her room.

Wait! She stopped in her steps. Where in the world is the bathroom?

She looked around, and to her dismay, realized that all the doors looked the same. She couldn’t just open any random doors. What if she was disturbing someone’s privacy?

Suddenly, Mikoto-san’s words flashed in her mind. “Sasuke’s room is right down the hall from yours if you ever need anything!”

“I hope he isn’t mad at me for barging in on him so late,” she whispered to herself. Please don’t sleep without a shirt. Please don’t sleep without a shirt.

PLEASE SLEEP WITHOUT A SHIRT. PLEASE SLEEP WITHOUT A SHIRT. The treacherous Inner Sakura was completely thinking the opposite.

To her complete and utter dismay, she was greeted by at least five equally similar-looking doors at ‘the end of the hall.’

Which one is Sasuke-kun’s? She was beginning to panic. After all, she did have a bit of an emergency here.

She took a deep breath, and chose the door all the way at the end. Please be him. Please be him. She reached for the knob and—

“Do you want me to call the authorities?”

She jumped at least ten feet in the air as she felt someone behind her.

“What do you think you’re doing?” the voice was also deep, like Sasuke’s, but it was a lot more emotionless and colder than his, and that was really sayingsomething.

She turned around slowly, and was stared up at the man before her.

He looked strikingly familiar to Sasuke, with those deep onyx eyes. His hair looked more black than blue, unlike Sasuke, and was tied in a loose hanging ponytail. Realization came to Sakura. This must be—!

“I never knew fan girls have become insane enough to start breaking into houses.” The older Sasuke look-alike was saying.

“I—I um…” Sakura couldn’t bring herself to say much. “S-Sasuke?”

He looked down at her. “Excuse me?”

His eyes were so devoid of anything that Sakura felt herself shudder. She cleared her thought. “I—um, may I speak to Sasuke-kun?”

“No.”

“Please, I need to speak with him!”

If Sakura had been in another state of mind, she might have realized that it might have just cleared all the confusion if she had stated her name and said she was a guest.

Seemingly sensing the girl’s desperation, the man, who was obviously Itachi, gently pushed her aside, and pushed open the door she had been about to open.

The room was pitch black, but Sakura could make out the figure of a boy sleeping on a bed. He bolted up so fast at the sound of the door opening that Sakura covered her mouth to stifle her gasp of surprise. She had never met such a light sleeper before.

“Who’s there!” Sasuke demanded into the darkness, before he spotted his brother. “Itachi?”

No…it wasn’t just Itachi. On a second look, he saw the pink-haired girl behind his brother, and his eyes immediately narrowed. What in the world is going on?

With a quick glance at his clock, he saw that it was only two in the morning.

“What do you want?” the question was mostly directed at his brother.

Itachi gestured to Sakura. “One of your fan girls broke into the house. She seemed desperate to see you.”

Sasuke looked at Sakura. Fan girl?

“Sasuke-kun!” Sakura squeaked, bowing low. “I’m so sorry to be bothering you at this time of night! But I…I just…” her face turned red as she mumbled something inaudible.

“What is it?” Sasuke sighed, getting out of bed.

“I…I woke up…and I needed to use…”

“Speak louder.”

“Where is the bathroom?”

If it had been any other situation, Sasuke would have laughed. Except, one: Sasuke never laughed, and two: he was slightly annoyed that he was awakened for this purpose.

“Use my bathroom for now.” He said.

“Your bathroom…?”

He pointed to the smaller door against the wall of his room.

“Oh!” the girl realized what he was saying and bowed again, before cautiously stepping into his room. “Thank you.”

YOU KNOW HE’S NOT WEARING A SHIRT! Inner Sakura was squealing in delight.

Her body moved of its own accord, and Sakura turned around to stare at the delicious abs of Uchiha Sasuke. Now that was a washboard.

Holy…

“Are you going to use my bathroom or not?” Sasuke’s un-amused deadpanned voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

“Y-Yes!” she squeaked again before hurrying into the bathroom.

Sasuke shook his head. All this trouble for a bathroom?

“Care to clarify, little brother?”

Sasuke had almost forgotten that Itachi was standing in the doorway.

“She’s the girl that’s going to be staying here.”

Itachi raised an eyebrow. “Interesting little creature, no?”

Sasuke scowled. “Get out of my room.”

Itachi stepped back into the shadows. “As you wish, foolish little brother.”

“I told you not to call me that!”

XXXXXXXXXX

I loved writing this chapter. Don't worry, Sakura won't just be a useless fangirl. She's got some brawn under that cheery exterior of hers. And Sasuke...eh..what can I say? He's just a lovable jerk.

Please leave your comments and review!