It was freezing, and Sakura didn't know why. If she told Itachi, he would probably just snarkily reply,

"Probably because it's, you know, winter."

Speaking of Itachi, Sakura was starting to wonder if he was right. As much as she hated to admit it, she needed friends. Her mother would have said the same thing, just in a much more passive-aggressive manner. Sakura paced in front of the bar. It wasn't just any bar, but the one where she met Sasuke—where she saved his life. Maybe, she thought, I should ask him out instead of the other way around. She started pacing, shivering slightly as the snow fell around her, and—she would never admit this—unconsciously avoiding the cracks in the sidewalk. She paused. But maybe I shouldn't. What if he says no?

She could practically hear Itachi face-palming. Okay, he probably won't reject me...but should I do it anyway? She didn't even get to make a decision before she heard a familiar voice saying, "Sakura!" Her head whipped to the side and she fought off the sudden bout of dizziness. At least Sasuke didn't notice. He came closer, a nervous smile on his face. "How are you—"

"Do you want to hang out this afternoon?" she asked, cutting him off. Sasuke blinked, obviously startled. He stared at her blankly for a second, then a smile slowly grew on his face.

"Uh, yeah, I do! Are your parents okay with that?"

Sakura immediately shook her head. "Don't worry, they won't be a problem." Sasuke gave her a weird, suspicious look, but it disappeared as quickly as it came.

"Okay. How about... Well you see..." he trailed off a bit, "my brother is in the hospital," he finally said. "Do you want to come with me to visit him?" Sakura blinked then quickly opened her mouth to say something, only to be cut off by Sasuke's phone.

Sakura blinked, smirking a bit, "Is that the first Menma ending?"

Sasuke nodded. "Yep, it's Breeze. Sorry, give me a second." Sasuke pulled the phone out of his pocket, then frowned slightly. "Why would she be calling at this time?" Shrugging, he answered and put the phone up to his ear. "Hey, Hi-" he paused. "What do you mean?" His eyes widened. "Are you saying that—" More silence.

Sakura, sensing something sensitive was going on, said, "I'll go now. You have my number, right?"

Sasuke absentmindedly replied, "Yeah," before going back to listening to whoever was on the other end of the phone. Deciding not to look a gift horse in the mouth, Sakura turned and walked away after a quick goodbye. How do I tell him that I don't want to visit his brother in the hospital? Or that I already know his brother, who's in the hospital? Sakura could not think of an answer.

-

Sasuke hung up his phone, then stared down at it blankly. Why... Life wasn't fair, but it felt like it seemed to be extra hard on his family. Why can't something just go right for once? Deciding not to think about it, he moved on to his next task.

Me:

Sorry about that. It was kind of important. Anyway, we're going to the hospital, right?

Sakura:

It's alright. I can't go to the hospital with you, though. I have some important family business. Sorry!

Me:

Okay. Hope everything is fine!

With that, Sasuke turned his phone off. He stood there in silence for a few seconds. I thought Itachi would have liked to see a face other than mine or the nurses. No, don't feel bitter. Sakura has her own life to live. Shaking his head, Sasuke turned and walked toward the building he had been visiting nearly every day: the hospital. He would have gone later, but...

Sakura opened her mouth to say something, only to be cut off by Sasuke's phone. Sasuke frowned slightly, wondering who would be calling him, but then Sakura asked, "Is that the first Menma ending?"

Sasuke smiled at the mention of his favorite show. "Yeah, it's Breeze. Sorry, give me a second." Sasuke pulled his phone out of his pocket and glanced at the screen: Hinata Hyuuga. "Why would she be calling at this time?" Actually, why would she be calling at all? She wasn't the type of girl who called, preferring texting over all else. Shrugging, he picked up and put the phone next to his ear. "Hey, Hi—"

"Sasuke, he's gotten worse."

Sasuke paused. "What do you mean?" He could hear labored breaths on the other end. Crying, he realized. Hinata was crying.

"Itachi's gotten worse."

"Are you saying that—"

"What the hell do you think I'm saying?!" she suddenly exploded. "Itachi's gotten worse and...and..."

"I'll go now. You have my number, right?" Sakura asked, but it felt like she was a hundred miles away.

Sasuke absentmindedly muttered, "Yeah." As Sakura walked away, Sasuke's mind was entirely on Hinata. "Who told you?"

"My dad. Aunt... Aunt Mikoto told him." He could tell that she was still crying.

"Why did my mom tell him first instead of me?"

"I don't know. Just...just go to him, okay? Take care of him since I can't."

"That's what I've been doing this whole time."

"Well, it obviously isn't enough."

Silence. Then, Sasuke spoke in a low voice. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"...nothing, Sasuke. I'm not thinking straight. Just...give him my good wishes. Bye." And she hung up on him.

Sasuke's eyes refocused on the road and he made a beeline for the hospital—for Itachi.

-

Sasuke didn't know what he expected to see when he opened the door to his brother's hospital room. Maybe it would be full of nurses, maybe Itachi would be incapacitated on his bed. Turned out that it was neither. Instead, he found his brother sitting in one of the guest chairs, holding something up to both of his eyes and staring into the ceiling light. When the door was fully open, Itachi turned to him, still keeping the things—they were tube-shaped, thought that didn't help much to figure out what they were—firmly attached to his eyes. "Look, Sasuke," he said cheerfully. "I've got kaleidoscopes on both of my eyes! Now they're kaleidoscope eyes. Like, not eyes, just kaleidoscopes. Kaleidaception."

Sasuke stared. Then, quietly, he said, "Why didn't anyone tell me?" Itachi just went back to looking at the light through the kaleidoscopes. Sasuke pressed on. "Do you know who told me? Hinata. She knew before I did. Why didn't anyone else tell me?"

Itachi paused. "I don't know," he said finally.

"Do you know how it felt to have my cousin tell me instead of my own mother? Mom told Uncle Hiashi and didn't even think about telling me! It's like I don't deserve to know how you're doing!"

"Wait, are you mad at me or at Mom?"

"I...I don't know," Sasuke said. "I'm just...mad."

"Why?"

"You're getting worse! It's like the universe is actively conspiring against us! Nothing ever seems to go right!"

"Well," Itachi mused, bringing the kaleidoscopes down, "I don't know about that. You already said that someone saved you from getting hit by a truck."

"Yeah, I almost got hit by a truck! What could possibly be worse?" Sasuke winced slightly as he remembered where he was, why he was there, and how the man sitting in the guest chairs wasn't exactly lucky.

Itachi seemed unperturbed, though. "Maybe, but then a supposedly cute girl saved your life. What could possibly be better?"

Fighting down his blush, Sasuke said, "A billion dollars."

"Ah, but you can't put a price on love."

"Yes, I can. And it's less than a billion dollars."

Itachi rolled his eyes. "Just as bratty, as usual."

"Hey!" Sasuke protested, a small smile on his face. It was bittersweet, though. After all, Itachi wasn't getting any better. He was getting worse, in fact, and Sasuke couldn't do a damn thing about it. At least Itachi would never change.

-

As Sasuke walked past the bar—yes, that bar, the one where he nearly died—he didn't expect to see Sakura. Of course, Sasuke didn't expect a lot of things, but what were the odds that he would run into Sakura at the same place they had met to discuss plans yesterday? Pretty good, apparently, seeing as how he had literally run into her. It all happened so fast. One second, Sasuke was walking along looking at memes—er...studying for the upcoming test—on his phone, and the next he slammed into someone and was falling to the ground. Luckily, a hand grabbed his elbow and pulled him up, steadying him. He glanced up then blinked. "Oh. Thanks for saving me... A second time."

Sakura smiled back at him. "You're quite welcome." Sasuke chuckled and stood up straighter, dusting off his clothes.

"So," he said conversationally, "everything good with you? The family business was nothing too bad, right?"

Sakura pursed her lips, seemingly deep in thought, before suddenly blurting out, "My mother's in the hospital."

Sasuke froze. "Oh. Oh! Is she alright? What am I saying, she's in the hospital, she isn't alright.  How...how is she?"

"It's serious, but she's strong."

"Do you...do you want to come with me? To the hospital, I mean. We can visit your mom and my brother."

"No," Sakura said, and it was so blunt that Sasuke flinched. "I'll visit her on my own." She then bit her lip and glanced away. "And I won't be able to hang out for a while. You know, more family business."

Sasuke stared. Is...is she telling the truth? Is she blowing me off? Does it even matter? Either way, she won't be spending time with me. Forcing a smile onto his face, he said, "Okay. I hope everything's fine!" 

"Thank you." Sakura turned to walk away, then stopped. She looked at him and quietly said, "Happy Holidays, Sasuke." And then she walked away. As Sasuke watched her retreating figure, he couldn't help the feeling of anger that overcame him. He didn't know why it was there, but it was. Maybe it was the fact that she basically rejected him. Maybe it was because he didn't have the courage to go after her. Or maybe the cold was getting to him. 

His grip on his phone tightened. Happy goddamn Holidays. 

~~~ 

Written by SSSRHA2