Lea's POV
That old man was going to die. And I was the one who was going to kill him.
My whole body was sore. I never pushed myself so hard before and I don't think I ever will again. All I wanted to do right now was go to sleep and never wake up. I was close to my apartment. I could already feel the soft bed comforting my sore back.
I dragged myself forward, passing a bunch of people. None of them said a word to me and I was grateful for it. I had used up so much chakra and my body was in so much pain, I don't think I would have had the energy to open my mouth to answer them.
"Yo, Lea."
It was Sasuke. At least, I think it was Sasuke. I wasn't really sure since I didn't lift my head at the greeting. Too much energy. It sounded like Sasuke though.
"Hey." His voice was nearer this time and laced with something else. I still didn't lift my head, nor did I stop walking. "Are you okay?"
I dragged my feet along, hoping that if I didn't answer he would leave me alone. No such luck however. Instead, he grabbed my arms and shook me. My head bobbed backwards.
"What's wrong with you?" he asked, frowning at me. I frowned too. Did he sound ... concerned?
"Nn ... nothing," I muttered, shaking my head slightly. "Just ... tired, that's all."
"You look like you're about to die to me," Sasuke said, but I just stared at him. I not sure if that was supposed to be a joke.
I pushed a feeble hand on his chest. "Let me go," I whispered. "I ... I need to sleep."
I was about to push him away again, but this time all my strength left me. My feet buckled and I collapsed. He caught me.
"Woah there," he said, wrapping his arms around my limp body. "Up you go."
He tucked his arm under my knee and lifted me up. I didn't protest. I couldn't. I was just too damn tired.
"What the hell were you doing?" he asked me.
It took me a while to answer. His arms were so warm and comfortable. I snuggled closer to him, resting my hand against his heart. His heartbeat was lulling me to sleep.
"Training," I answered eventually. Weird, his heartbeat was moving faster and faster...
"Damn it, Lea!" he shouted and I jerked. He sounded angry. Why was he angry? "You shouldn't be overexerting yourself like that! It's dangerous."
"I'm sorry," I whispered. I had no energy to argue. I had no energy to point out that he did that too, not so long ago. Why was his heartbeat beating so erratically? It felt as if it would beat right out of his chest.
"Promise me that next time you'll pace yourself," he said to me.
"I promise." Sasuke was getting hot. Why was he so hot? I opened my eyes and looked up at him. He was looking straight ahead and was avoiding my eyes. I know he knows that I'm looking at him.
"Sasuke?"
He swallowed. "Yeah?"
"Do you have a fever?" My voice was barely audible but I knew he heard me. "You're so hot and you're heart is beating so fast. And ... and your face is red. Sasuke you shouldn't be carrying me if you're sick."
I tried getting out of his arms but I was just too weak. Sasuke smirked.
"Even if I did have a fever, you wouldn't make it any worse. You're as light as a feather."
I frowned slightly and poked him. "Stop joking about it. If you're sick then let me down."
"Don't worry, I'm not sick."
My frown deepened and I peered up at him again. "Are you sure? Then why are you so hot and why is your heart - ?"
"This is your apartment, right?" he asked, cutting me off. I blinked and turned my head. Joy filled me.
"Yes it is, Thanks for helping me." I tried getting out of his arms but he tightened his hold on me.
"Which floor?"
I shook my head immediately. "No, no that's okay Sasuke. I can make it on my own from here."
This time he did meet my eyes. "Which floor?" he asked again.
I shook my head again. "It's on the top floor so don't worry. I can make it myself." I tried getting out of his arms but because I was so weak and he had no plans of letting me go, I failed. I rested my head against his chest again.
"You don't have to do this, Sasuke," I said, as he began ascending the staircase.
"You can thank me later."
"How?" I asked, bewildered. A shadow was blocking his face from view so I couldn't see his face, but his voice sounded thick and loaded.
"You'll know when the time comes," he answered.
I frowned but decided not to question it. We made the rest of the journey in silence but his heartbeat did not slow down one bit and his body was still hot. It even came to a point where I could no longer stand it and I was about to ask him to put me down when he spoke.
"This it?"
I looked over at the door and breathed a sigh of relief. My bed ... just a few steps away.
"Yeah, thank you." I tried getting out of his grip for one last time but again he kept firm hold of me. I looked at him with a frown. This time he looked down at me, with a smirk.
"I made it this far," he said, and kicked the door open. He walked over to the bed and laid me down, surprisingly gentle. As soon as I touched the mattress a sigh of contentment escaped my lips. I didn't even notice when I fell asleep.
Sasuke's POV
She fell asleep as soon as I laid her down. I looked down at her, her mouth slightly opened and her silver hair fanned out around her. The moonlight was shining through the window and the way it made her look ... it was like an angel on earth.
I had finally accepted the fact that I liked Lea. The feeling was foreign to me but there was no denying the fact that I thought her to be the strongest, and most beautiful person in Konoha. And I wanted her to be mine. This was just a petty crush, I'm sure. After I've had my fill of her I'd forget all about her. That had to be the case.
But, at the present moment, she was lying before me, sleeping peacefully. My heartbeat didn't lessen at all but continued to beat so fast, it became painful. I could only imagine what had been going through her head when she laid her cheek on my chest.
Damn it, I do not get mushy. I'm Sasuke Uchiha. If I wanted that guy to die from my hands, then feelings could not get involved. What was I thinking? I couldn't fulfill my ambition and have Lea at the same time.
But I couldn't forget about her either...
Well, not until I grew bored of her, as I'm sure I will.
I brushed a lock of hair from her face. At my touch she shuddered a little and turned her head to the side with a murmur. I continued to stare.
I sighed and sat in the chair at her bedside. Maybe I could speed the process up. If I thought about all her flaws, I'm sure I won't like her as much anymore.
She was lazy.
She was bitchy.
She was very, very untidy. There were stacks of opened instant ramen on the table and, soon, I know it will be attracting flies.
She was too hot headed.
Yet, she was also too laid back and uncaring.
She was friends with Naruto the Baka. That was way too much of a bad influence on her.
She had too many secrets, although I wasn't sure that was such a bad thing. I'll just add it to the list anyway. The more the merrier.
I struggled to think of more. The few that I had made me feel weary, as if liking such a girl would only cause me too much stress and wasn't worth it. Maybe it was working. My heart wasn't beating so fast anymore. I was beginning to feel mellow now. I knew the list would work.
I smiled, watching her, confident that me liking her was now out the window.
Lea's POV
The birds were singing and the sun was too bright. There was no way of sleeping in today. I sat up and stretched, feeling well rested and healthy again after such a hard training last night.
I swung my feet over the edge of the bed and spotted Sasuke sitting in the nearby chair, his head hanging down. I frowned. He didn't go home last night?
I knelt on the floor, peering up to see his face. "Sasuke?"
His eyes shot opened and he drew back. The chair toppled over with him. I stood up as he rolled over on the floor.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, genuinely curious.
He looked up at me then looked around the room. He got to his feet quickly. "Just making sure you're fine after seeing how drained you were last night." His coolness looked a little forced today.
"I'm fine now," I told him. He nodded and tucked his hands into his pocket.
"Good. I have enough of Naruto bringing our team down. No need to add you too"
I sighed and walked by him, towards the kitchen. "As I said before, I'm fine." I set the kettle on the fire and turned to him. "That still doesn't explain why you were sleeping in that chair."
He shrugged, looking away. "I'm an early riser."
I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, is that it?"
"You were expecting something different?" he asked me, mimicking my raised eyebrow.
"The story's just weird, that's all." I gave him a fake smile. "Thank you for checking on me. You may leave now."
He gritted his teeth and I held back a real smile. It was such fun messing with him.
"Whatever," he said with a raised hand. And he left, his hands still in his pocket.