Sakura and I waited outside the mall for Naori. I had never met her before, but Sakura always spoke highly of her.

"Naruko, here she is! Hey Naori!" She shouted happily with a wave.

Naori was a beautiful small framed girl. She had long wavy purple hair and bangs that covered a part of her forehead. She looked like a rich princess, but what else would you expect from a girl who went to Saint Madara.

Naori smiled at Sakura and then at me. "Hi, I'm Naori. Sakura's told me all about you, Uzumaki-san."

Uzumaki-san? No one's been this formal with me before in my life! This girl really is from a completely different world from us.

I tried to force a smile, but it didn't work out as well as I thought. "H-hi Naori...you can just call me Naruko. There's no need to be so formal." I don't know how I feel about this girl...

"Oh okay, Naruko," she said with a smile.

My eyes narrowed at the girl who tried to befriend me. I don't trust these Saint Madara kids...

I felt Sakura slap the back of my head with a terrifying smile. "Now that you guys have met, let's go shopping!" shouted Sakura happily as she pushed us through the sliding doors.

While she pushed us inside she whispered in my war with a devilish tone, "Be nice to Naori, or else."

I laughed awkwardly as the three of us walked into the mall to find our perfect dress.

***

Hours had passed by and we each finally found a dress. I tried my best to be kind towards Naori, but my dislike towards Saint Madara clouded my judgment.

"Why don't we eat something before we leave?" asked Sakura cheerfully while finding a table for us to eat in the food court.

"Sound great," Naori said softly while sitting down at the table Sakura had picked.

I nodded my head as I took the seat from across Naori.

"Great, I'll leave you two here while I go wait in line~. Text me your orders," she stated while walking away.

I watched Sakura run away, leaving me behind with little miss princess.

She did this on purpose! Ughhh Sakura-chan!

We sat in silence as I crossed my arms in anger, ignoring the rich girl who sat before me. I didn't know her, but I also didn't want to get to know her. Saint Madara kids were known for their elite status and wealth. Everyone in that school practically had everything given to them on a golden plate; their lives were basically perfect. What would they know about the life of a normal person that has to struggle to get by?

Ugh, why'd Sakura-chan leave me here with little rich princess? Hmph.

"I can tell you don't really like me," said Naori with a sad smile, "You haven't stopped glaring at me all day."

"Hmph, I guess you can say that. I'm not a big fan of Saint Madara kids," I admitted shamelessly.

"Yeah, most people don't like us, so I understand."

As I saw her expression begin to darken, the glare I held at her softened. What am I doing...?

I began to feel guilty for disliking her without a reason. Maybe I wasn't giving her a chance because I was jealous of the life she must be living. Or, I was jealous that she had gotten the attention of my closest friend.

"I'm sorry...I'm just being a prick..." I admitted, "I guess I'm just jealous of you..."

"Jealous?" She asked.

"Yeah...I mean you're basically a princess."

She chuckled at my remark. "I'm more of a deviant princess in all honesty."

"Really? I guess that makes both us," I replied with a genuine laugh.

"You know," she began, "Everyone thinks Saint Madara kids have it all: money, status, a future in whatever field they want to go into, but that's not the reality of it. Some of us--no-- I have been forced into a mold that I wish I could escape. When your parents have money, people expect you to look and act a certain way, and that's not who I am...So I hope that one day you'll be able to look past the shell created by my family's name, and see me for who I am, Naori."

All this time I had been creating a false picture in my head about the kids in that school. I owed her an apology. She deserved to be treated normally. Besides, in reality, we were very similar.

"I guess I was wrong...There are some good Saint Madara kids out there, huh?"

I gave her an understanding smile and she did the same to me.

"Let's start over," I stated while showing her my hand, "My name's Naruko Uzumaki, Deviant Princess of Konoha High!"

She reached for my hand and smiled, "Naori, Deviant princess of Saint Madara Academy."

"You're not gonna say your last name?" I asked in confusion.

"I...I don't want to be associated with my family name, so I'm just Naori."

"A girl that's fighting her family, I like that!"

We giggled happily as Sakura approached the table with our food.

"Looks like you guys are getting along~" Sakura complimented happily.

"Yeah, Naori's pretty cool," I stated while grabbing my sandwich off the tray.

"Naruko's pretty sweet herself," added Naori with a giggle.

Sakura smiled as she took a bite of her sandwich. "I'm glad you guys are getting along. Oh, Naori, I forgot to ask: when's your school dance?"

"Mine? It's the day after yours. Why? Would you like to come?"

"Yes!" She shouted instantly, "I want to see if that hot guy we see in the morning is gonna be there!"

Naori's expression darkened almost the same way Sasuke's did whenever something he didn't want to discuss came up. Does Naori know Sakura-chan's crush?

"Oh, I doubt he'll go...he's not much of a social butterfly, ha ha..."

"Awww you think? I remember I asked you last time but did you ever find out his name?" Sakura asked.

"Oh uh...his name is Sas--"

The P.A system in the mall went off, cutting Naori's sentence short. "The mall will be closing in 10 minutes..."

"We should get going," Naori said in relief.

I looked at her in suspicion. She really acts a lot like Sasuke when he's trying to hide something...I wonder what it could be...?

***

Sakura and Naori were going to cut by Saint Madara, and as much as I would have loved to go with them, I knew Sasuke would have flipped a tit if I did. I waved goodbye and headed on my way home.

While walking, I noticed a cute book sleeve in the window of a store. Kakashi-senpai would love that!

As I stared at the window, my phone suddenly vibrated. I quickly took it out to see a message from my senpai.

Senpai

Hey Naruko

It's Kakashi

What's up?

I squealed happily to myself as I held my phone to my chest. He texted me first~

Naruko

Hey senpai!!!

I'm at a store rn.

I actually just found something I think you would like!

Senpai

Oh?

What is it?

Naruko

A book sleeve

I sent him a picture of the sleeve and he replied with a happy face.

Senpai

You know me so well

I smiled to myself as I hugged my phone. Can I marry you already?

I put my phone away and made my way into the store. I grabbed the sleeve from off the shelf and went to pay for my item.

"That'll be $10.98. Cash or credit?" asked the cashier.

"Cash." I reached into my bag to pull out my wallet. As I went through my adorable frog wallet, I noticed a pen with a smiling rice ball on top. Maybe I should get Sasuke something...

I grabbed the pen and placed it down on the counter. "I'll take this too."

The lady scanned the pen and placed it into the bag. "Your total is now $12.38."

I gave her the exact amount in cash. She then passed me the small bag which held my newly purchased items, and I stuffed it in the bag that held my dress.

I waved goodbye to the worker, leaving the store to head back home. Knowing Sasuke, he'll just look at it and walk away like a little kid, but at least that'll tell me he likes it.

A smile crossed my face as I thought about Sasuke. I wonder if he's made any food.

***

"I'm back," I said with a yawn. I slowly removed my shoes and entered my home.

"Welcome back. I left your food on top of the table," he said from the couch. He was surfing through the channels of the T.V, not paying me much attention.

What a jerk...the least he can do is acknowledge my existence...I wonder if he does that to me in the future too.

I sighed as I placed my bags on the floor. I then walked over to the table and sat down to eat. As I unwrapped the saran wrap from the bowl of soup, I breathed in the sweet smell of the homemade ramen.

"Ramen?" I asked as I turned to look at him, "I thought you didn't like Ramen."

"I never said I didn't like it. I'm just not obsessed with it like you."

I smiled to myself as I picked up my chopsticks to start eating. "Thank you Sasuke~" I dug into the bowl and enjoyed his homemade noodles. Oh my gosh...he should work at Ichiraku's!

While I slurped on my noddles happily, I heard Sasuke clear his throat. "So...how was your day?" he asked shyly.

My jaw dropped in surprise when he started the conversation. I dropped my chopsticks onto the table, stood up in a rush, and ran towards him, jumping onto the couch beside him. "D-did you just start a conversation?" I asked in shock.

He looked at me with a blushed expression as I brought my face closer to him in surprise. Sweat began to form on his brow as he tried to push me away. "You're too close..."

I was snapped back to reality, causing me to notice our lack of personal space. I quickly moved away from him, standing up from the couch in embarrassment. "Sorry bout that..." I laughed awkwardly.

His face was still blushed, and my heart was beating in my chest. Ugh, his face is even cuter up close!

The mood was getting awkward, so I tried to change the subject by running towards the bag which held his present. "I-I got you something from a store on my way here..." I took the pen out of the bag and walked back to him, "It's not much, but I thought you would like it."

I passed him the pen and he took it in his hand. He twirled the pen, analyzing every inch of it with his cole colored eyes. He then closed his eyes while giving a rare smile. "Thank you, Naruko."

His small smile made my heart run miles. Ugh, why is my heart doing that?! It needs to stop! I'm practically cheating on Kakashi-senpai, ugabxujns!

I quickly turned around and back towards my bag so I could avoid his smile. "No problem, I just wanted to get you something to thank you for everything you're doing for me." I then reached into the bag again to take out the dress I had just bought. "Look Sasuke! This is the dress I got!"

I showed him my beautiful, strapless, orange dress. The top was a light orange, bejeweled with silver diamonds and sparkles; the skirt flowed like a grape-fruit colored waterfall: short in the front, long in the back.

"Isn't it pretty?!" I asked excitedly.

Sasuke smiled, standing up from his seat to get a better look at the dress. He approached me, taking a small portion of the dress in his hands with a bittersweet smile. "It's beautiful..." he said. He then looked up at me from the dress, gazing at me with eyes that showed love for me. "You'll look beautiful..."

My heart continued to beat quickly as our eyes locked. Sasuke...please don't look at me like that...you're confusing me...

No matter what I tried, my heart wouldn't calm down. Just change the subject, Naruko.

I cleared my throat to try and break the romantic mood. "T-thanks! Oh, let me show you how it looks," I said as I ran to change into it in the bathroom. I slammed the bathroom door shut, sighing as I hugged my dress. I need to calm down...you're in love with Kakashi-senpai, not Sasuke.

I looked up from the ground and noticed my reflection in the mirror. Your happiness relies on Kakashi-senpai, not Sasuke, so get your act together!

The words I shoved into my brain could only trick me to a certain extent because the feelings I felt in my heart were slowly starting to take over. I can't fall for Sasuke...I can't no matter what!

***

I walked outside the bathroom with the dress. I twirled happily as I showed off my beauty to Sasuke. "You can't tell me I don't have good taste," I said playfully.

He chuckled as he grabbed my hand. "You do." He then pulled me into his arms like a prince.

"Sa-Sasuke?! What're you doing?!" I shouted completely flustered.

"Dancing," he said casually as he spun me around. "When we were dating, you never knew how to slow dance, so I had to teach you for our wedding..."

"You taught me...?" I asked as I gazed at him. He placed my hands around his neck, and his hands gently wrapped around my waist.

"Yeah, you were the worst..." His cold expression softened as he looked at me. His frown became a genuine smile, his eyes pierced my soul with affection, and his hold on my waist showed he never wanted to let me go. Oh no...

My heart continued to sing as he held me; my cheeks became warm as my skin glowed with a red tint. As we slowly swayed to the imaginary music that filled my apartment, I knew I had just broken the promise I had made to him. I think I'm falling for him...and I'm falling hard ...

"What're you gawking at," he asked with a small chuckle. "You look like a dork." His words were harsh, yet for some reason, they seemed to carry a type of affection for me.

I quickly looked away in embarrassment, not wanting to let him know that he had just claimed my heart.

"You know..." he said with a melancholic tone, "You did the same thing when we first slow danced...You wouldn't stop staring at me as we practiced, and when I would call you out on it, you would turn away completely flustered." A bittersweet smile crossed his face as he remembered his precious memory. "You were always so cute..." he whispered as we came to a stop.

One of Sasuke's hands slowly left my waist and came up to my cheek. He cupped my cheeks as his thumb slowly caressed it with affection. "Naruko..." he whispered sweetly.

The way he looked at me showed how much he truly loved me. He didn't need words to tell me he was in love with me, so it confused me on why he would even try to stop us from meeting. I knew what I felt for him was real, and looking at him now made me realize he felt the same way, so why did he want to stop us from happening?

I couldn't find the words to use to ask him for his reasoning. Instead, I just wanted to take in this moment because I knew this would be our last dance together.

His face slowly approached mine, and I allowed him to get close to me. I wanted him to kiss me and say that we were going to be alright. That in the future we could work things out and be happy, but none of those words left his mouth, and neither did the kiss I was anticipating.

He quickly backed away, letting me go as he turned to walk to his room. "It's getting late. Make sure to hang the dress so it won't wrinkle by the time you have to wear it."

What...? Why did he stop?

"Sasuke--" as soon as I tried to call his name, he shut the door to his room without another word. Is he upset...?

I looked at the ground in regret. Why did I decide to wear this dress...?

That night, the orange dress I had bought for my school dance brought out the true feelings that we both locked away deep within us. I think I'm in love with him, and I don't know how to stop it...

His rude manner of speaking, his delicious cooking, his thoughtfulness that he would try to hide, his cute way to try and hide his embarrassment, the small smiles he would give when he was happy, everything...I loved everything about him. And if I felt this strongly about him now after spending so little time with him, I'm certain I had to have felt a stronger love for him in the future.

Sasuke is clearly still in love with me, so why is he trying so hard to break us apart? Is our future together really doomed? Maybe it is best if I keep these feelings hidden...I need to love Kakashi-senpai the same way I love him.