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Her hands balled into fists at her side, nails digging in deep enough to leave white crests when her grip wore off. It was hot and she could feel the heat spreading from her face, to her chest and distal parts of the body. Karin cleaned her glasses vigorously with her apron, her thumb and forefinger alternating back and forth in hopes that her blurred vision was due to dust and not due to her head swimming with thoughts of shock, anger and a heavy pour of jealousy. Resentment tightened in her chest.

She made her way quietly down the hall as to not alert them of her presence and made towards the top of the staircase. As she approached, an unfamiliar voice blared in the foyer followed by ones owned by Sai and Shikamaru telling it to be quiet.

With a hand trailing the wooden banister, Karin began to make her way down the stairs as Sai, Shikamaru and a blonde woman stood in the grand entrance. The blonde, whose name she quickly learned was Ino, was obnoxious. She hated girls who stirred the pot and she especially hated girls who were loud.

“What do you mean you don’t know? This place can’t be that big!” She emphasized with a display of her arms and rise of her voice.

Shikamaru rubber the back of his neck with one hand while the other remain stuffed in his pocket. “I mean, I don’t know. I haven’t seen her since this morning,” he sighed.

Ino let out an exasperated sound of disbelief and Sai came to her side, setting a comforting hand on her shoulder. Shikamaru noticed her blue eyes trail from Sai’s face to looking in the distance beyond. The man followed her gaze to find Karin at the bottom of the staircase.

“Karin,” he started, “Have you seen Sakura? Or even Sasuke, for that matter?”

For a moment, the maid considered outing their little rendezvous, but what would that really do other than rile up the SasuSaku fan club in this damned mansion? She had to be smarter, more strategic than that.

She turned away in a huff, nose sticking up in the air as if Sakura’s name left a rancid stench in her nose. “No, haven’t seen-“

Just then, a melodic giggle echoed from the upper hall. Everyone’s heads turned toward the sound in synchrony and stood silent in anticipation. The couple emerged at the top of the staircase walking casually side by side until they noticed their audience. A wide smile spread across Sakura’s face as she made her way down the stairs hastily towards her friend shouting her name.

“Sakura! We were looking everywhere for you!” The end of her sentence became muffled as Sakura fell into her embrace. While they squeezed each other in a hug Sasuke followed quietly down the stairs, Sai and Shikamaru’s questioning glances set upon him.

Sakura pulled away but still held her friend’s shoulders in her hands, “I’m sorry, I got… A bit tied up with something.”

Ino eyed Sasuke over her friend’s shoulder then back to her. She noticed Sakura’s face seemed a bit different… like she was glowing. Her cheeks were rosy and her skin dewy, which could be a testament to that new face serum she was saving up for. However, that didn’t account for her hair looking a bit disheveled or wrinkles in her favorite sweater which is usually in immaculate shape, ironed and pressed without error.

The pinkette watched as the wheels turned in the blonde’s head, rusty, clunky, and slow. Her blue eyes eyes narrowed questioningly and without resolve. To be frank, she was thankful. Ino’s reactions bordered on unpredictable, but the main area of concern is how loud she could be. As best friends do, she would tell her, but only when the time was right and away from eight other pairs of ears. As seconds passed, Sakura released a steady, slow breath she didn’t even realize she was holding.

Just when she thought she was in the clear, Ino inhaled a gasp so strong she nearly toppled backwards. Her hands covered her mouth and her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets in a mix of surprise and excitement. She let out a high pitched squeal causing those in her immediate vicinity to grimace in pain and Shikamaru’s shoulders to rise instinctively.

“Oh, Sak! You and-“ Her blue eyes flittered towards Sasuke who stood cooly until meeting Ino’s prying look and tore away, flustered. It was enough evidence for it to all make sense. Firmly, she gripped Sakura’s shoulders and shook her with much more force than she intended.

“Oh my god… You didn’t!” Her tone was excitatory, knowing the answer already but searching for confirmation and obviously hoping that the answer would be ‘she did.’

After recovering from being shaken like a martini, Sakura laughed timidly and denied knowing what she was talking about to which Ino only shrieked again. Sai and Shikamaru shot each other a sideways glance and turned to Sasuke skeptically as if to ask if he knew what was unfolding before their eyes. The idol merely shrugged in response while Karin rolled her eyes and slinked away.

_________

“No, if you relax a bit more you can get a smoother motion from your hips, like this,” Sakura’s torso and hips undulated in a controlled, even motion resulting in a body roll.

The raven haired idol watched closely as the crop top she wore teased her midriff, a place he grew accustomed planting kisses to late in the night. After she looked to him for confirmation of his attention he nodded and moved behind her, gripping her hips close to his pelvis. Just as she had, he moved his body in a rolling motion and she moved with him. “Like this?” He lowered his mouth to her ear.

Sakura giggled and pressed her ass teasingly against Sasuke’s hardening member, “Pretty close.”

“Ahem!”

Naruto stood in the doorway of the training studio scratching his head out of habit rather than reaching a legitimate itch. He looked away in discomfort of what he had walked into. “I thought I was here to help film your practice videos, not your porno!”

Sakura laughed airily and removed herself from Sasuke’s orbit to get a sip from her water bottle. Sasuke only glared at Naruto and called him a dobe as the manager made his way front and center of the floor to prop a tripod stand.

“Come on, let’s get to work.” Sakura said encouragingly as she positioned herself at the idol’s side.

He welcomed her back with something resembling a smile and studied her side profile. Since they began privately dating it was easy to note how much happier Sakura has been. That, mixed with a lighter work schedule- one devoid of Sasuke’s once evil intentions- and persistent trips to the practice room had allowed her to build a consistent and balanced week to keep her happy and healthy. Every day, was a chance to learn more about her, her hobbies, her habits, and to fall deeper into her.

“Sasuke,”

“Hm?”

“You’re staring again.”

“Yeah,” he admitted mindlessly.

Naruto fiddled with the camcorder at the tip of the tripod, his head bobbing and weaving as he centered them within frame. The glowing dot on the front of the camera switched from green to red meaning it was actively recording. Naruto puffed out his chest in pride as Sakura gave a slow clap and the idol made a snarky comment about how he did the bare minimum. The blonde deflated slightly and made a jab at Sasuke as he slid to the floor, back against the mirror and facing the couple.

“Whenever you’re ready,” The blonde cued with his thumb hovering over the “play” button on the stereo remote.

With the tip of his head, the steady melody of the song’s intro began. It was entertaining watching them move fluidly like there was some kind of force guiding their movements. Their limbs moved in synchronization and the more in tune they were to one another, the more apparent their chemistry.

From his pocket the blonde produced his cell phone and opened Instagram. Orienting his phone to landscape, the camera zoomed into the bottom half of their bodies recording their movements from the waist down and footwork in perfect sync. Satisfied with the short video, he uploaded it to his story and placed the device off to the side to reorient his attention. As a manager, it was only right for him to do his due diligence and garner some social media traction for his client.

By the end of the three hour training session, the track silenced in exchange for rapid gasps of air. Sakura’s hands clasped above her head as she inhaled deeply trying to regulate her breathing while Sasuke bent over steadying himself on his knees. Across from them, Naruto yawned and turned his neck until it made a soft cracking sound.

“Nice job. Let’s call it a day- I’m hungry!” He said sleepily as his hand reached for his phone without him looking.

As the screen woke up to his touch, there were two things he noticed. The first, a message from Mrs. Mikoto Uchiha and the second being thousands of likes and hundreds of replies to his story post. The latter made his brows raise and conjured a muted sound of pleasant surprise. Being Sasuke’s manager, many of the idol’s fans followed Naruto’s account as a secondhand way of keeping up with the idol so likes and replies weren’t new, however, the quantity of it was.

He thumbed through an actively growing list of likes and comments as the couple approached him with curiosity.

“What is it?” Sasuke asked.

The blonde let out a laugh that aired out his disbelief and turned the screen towards them. He was obviously giddy in doing so. “Have a look for yourself!”

Sasuke took the device in his hands and Sakura inched to his side so she could see the screen.

[“Wow, they’re really talented!”]

[“That is Sasuke-kun for sure, I’d know those legs anywhere.”]

[“Who’s that dancing with him? A new choreographer?”]

[“The new choreographer must be talented, it seems our Sasuke has improved!”]

The idol winced at the jab he felt in his rib. He looked down to see the mischievous grin of Sakura and her elbow jutting into his side. “Looks like I’m not too bad of a coach, huh?”

He rolled his eyes jokingly, “Naruto, you’re giving her a bigger head than she already has.”

“Hey!”

Another jab, another painful wince. The blonde sniggered and the raven leered at him. Together, they packed up the equipment and gathered belongings before switching off the bright studio lights at their leave. With the day’s session ending an hour before dinner, there was downtime to wash up and relax before their meal.

Naruto parted first, making a beeline to the restroom. As usual, Sasuke walked Sakura back to her room, carrying her light gym bag before departing to his own. Despite her ability to carry it herself he refused to let her. He explained how he could never allow it as long as he was present because it wasn’t gentlemanly to let his girlfriend carry anything while he was able bodied. She acquiesced each time, feigning her annoyance while secretly admiring the chivalrous simplicity of his actions.

Their sneakers squeaked against the spotless floor as they made their way down the hall towards Sakura’s room when an ominous energy raised the hair on the back of her neck. She came to an abrupt halt and turned around quickly while holding the back of her neck as if she were protecting herself from some sort of invisible weapon. Her eyes scanned the foyer and hall frantically for any logical reason for feeling this way until Sasuke’s voice rang in concern.

“Are you okay?” He placed his hand on her shoulder.

She made an ambiguous noise in her throat which neither confirmed or denied his question but rather let him know she heard him.

Sasuke set her black gym bag on the wooden chest at the foot of her bed as Sakura closed the door behind her. She framed his name as a question, “Sasuke?”

His dark eyes fell upon her features and could tell something was off. He stayed quiet waiting for her to continue.

“Do you ever feel like we are being watched?”

It’s been a few weeks since they officially started dating in private. Household staff are the only souls on Earth who are aware of their relationship dictated in part by the NDA and memories of how Sasuke had treated ex-staff, and their attempt at getting new jobs after the mansion. And while Sakura wasn’t worried about anyone leaking the news of their relationship, she couldn’t shake the feeling someone wasn’t necessarily happy for them as they appeared.

A black eyebrow quirked. “No, but maybe it’s because I’m used to it. Why, did something happen?” He probed with a tinge of protectiveness in his voice.

Sakura shook her head, “Nothing happened! Maybe it’s just the paranoia of dating someone like you.” This hypothesis she came to seemed to be an attempt to think reasonably and convince herself nothing was off, but the same feeling happened more often than she would like to admit. The most recent one being just that- only the most recent of the many.

Sasuke stepped toward her, mouth slightly ajar and his gaze smoldering. His fingers traced her jaw causing goosebumps to rise in an electric current down her arms. He peered down at her through strands of his dark hair beginning to grow long and somehow making him all the more handsome.

“Someone like me?” He murmured gruffly in the same breath he tilted her chin upwards towards his face.

God, she hated when he did this. Since when did she give him this power over her? Was it when she was fourteen and in need of saving? Or when he moaned her name as he introduced himself to the region between her legs? All she knew was this was abuse of power and she was incapable of taking it back for herself, or rather, doesn’t want it back as long as he’s the one wielding it.

She bit her lip to recenter herself before clarifying, “Someone famous.”

Her head went dizzy as Sasuke leaned down and planted a short, soft kiss to her lips. He paused, pulling away ever so slightly and changing his mind, diving back in for another taste. His lips and tongue tasted sweet, undoubtedly flavored by his favorite electrolyte drink he had during practice. Sakura’s hands rested atop his chest gripping at his black t-shirt.

As he pulled away he tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear tenderly. “I would gladly trade the fame if it meant your comfort.”

Much to her own confusion, Sakura leaned away from his touch in shock at the severity of this statement. “What?! You don’t mean that.”

Sasuke was caught off guard by her flustered reaction. Did he come on too strong? But what he said was sincere: Sakura meant more to him than the money, more than the popularity and fame. And for his sincerity to be met with this reaction nearly felt like rejection, stung like she she slapped him across the face. He was confused. What would she want him to say or do instead?

In realizing what she had done reflected in Sasuke’s contorted expression, she moved closer to him to compensate for the lost space between them, holding onto his elbow to anchor herself from drifting away again. Suddenly she felt panicked and an urgent need to backtrack or at least explain herself.

“What I meant was: I don’t want you to give up on your dream. I’ll be fine, I promise! Just a weird passing feeling.”

Her grip tightened on him when he didn’t say anything immediately, but finally, she watched the hardness of his stare melt away into safe familiarity. One of his lip corners turned upward slightly and he took a single measured breath before replying, “I can have more than one dream, Sakura.”

With that, he kissed her on the forehead and moved towards the door.

“I’ll see you at dinner,” He said just prior to closing it behind him.

Even when his presence was gone, his smell and kiss lingered much to her comfort. Sakura smiled as she lightly touched her fingertips to the exact place he kissed moments ago. She knew it was his favorite spot to kiss her, turning it from the most hated feature of herself to her now favorite. But what she couldn’t figure out was what he meant by that. One day, he would tell her. That, she was sure of.