Out Of My Mind 4/? (AU, GaaSaku)

[AngelOfDeath]

Um. Yeah. Here's more.

Kind of poorly planned, but this was intended to be *comedy*/romance, etc. And you all know just how high the quality is of comedy. ::snerk::

Disclaimer: (see part 1)


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Most of the time Sakura had a pretty good idea what was bugging Gaara. It was easy to assume was agitated, since there was always something. She had put it all under the general category of ?life?, but now and again it seemed to be even more exacting than his catch all malaise. When she walked in to find him sitting in her apartment poking the tip of one of his favorite knives into her pastel couch cushion she figured that something out of the ordinary was bothering him. He usually stuck to destroying his own things when he was in a bad mood. Still, she didn?t really want to have the couch reupholstered so this had to stop.

?Gaara,? She tried to keep her voice light as she moved towards the kitchen with her grocery bags rustling. ?I wasn?t expecting you today.? Mustn?t get angry. Mustn?t lash out. Must save couch. . .

?Huh.? It wasn?t any real sort of response, simply him acknowledging that she had entered the room. The tip of his knife sunk in a little deeper and Sakura almost burst a yogurt container in her fist while watching him.

She poured out some apple juice from a freshly opened carton and glided over, glasses in hand, to try to give him something else to do that didn?t involve turning her pretty and moderately expensive couch into an oversized pincushion. ?I had a pretty easy day today, now that my test is over. And the lab was. . . STOP THAT!? Sakura had reached her limit, she caught his hand on a downward swing and he gave her a particularly murderous look.

?I don?t expect you to tell me what?s wrong, but I?m not going to continue sitting here while you??

?My father is coming.?

Some part of her had known he had had parents. After all, he had a brother and a sister, so these mythical parental units had wanted kids enough to raise several of them. Somehow, though, while she could picture Temari and Kankuro being children Gaara alone refused to become one. It?s as if he had sprung fully formed from out of the womb, surly and violent with more eye makeup on than Tammy Faye Baker.

?Just your father? What about your mother??

?She?s dead.?

Sakura?s throat seemed to try to close up on her. He was talking at the moment so she found herself capitalizing on the opportunity. Any moment he would close up like a clam again and she would be stuck with cooking dinner in dead silence. ?I?m sorry, when did she. . .?

?When I was born.? The knife descended into the cushion again with more force. She might be able to fix that one with her sewing kit once he?d gone. It was as if he?d gotten used to anticipating her questions because she didn?t even have to prompt him for more. ?He?s coming tomorrow to have dinner. I already called in to work to tell them I?m not going to be there.?

?If it?s just dinner then I?m sure you can get through it without too much trouble.?

Gaara turned the full force of his stare upon her and Sakura tried not to flinch. There was such intensity to him at the best of times that sometimes he unnerved her. Right now was much worse.

?I want you to be there too.?

Her nearly empty glass missed the coaster and hit the wood coffee table with a thunk as she processed Gaara?s commanding question. ?Oh.? Was all she came up with at first.

There were many conflicting thoughts inside of Sakura concerning this, and most of them were not very flattering to Gaara. She hoped that he wanted her there for moral support, to bolster his confidence for whatever reason, because she would be glad to do that for him. However, if she was simply a thing on display then that was another matter. It seemed like Gaara and his father had not been on good terms in the past, to say the least, judging from his reaction now. It was possible that she was something he could use as a trophy for his new life. She didn?t know enough about any of this, so it was better to put her trust in him rather than not.

?Ok. I can do that. Where are we going??

Gaara looked relieved, something that only Sakura might have noticed due to the shift of his body language being so subtle. That and the knife was finally concealed again in the folds of one of his many zippered pockets. He stood up, as if she had taken a huge weight off of him and marched right over to the door. Sakura frowned; she had hoped he would stay for dinner at least since she had just bought all that food. Emotional crisis aside, they really didn?t get much alone time these days what with her midterms coming up.

?We?re going to the Excelsior. I?ll pick you up at seven.? The door slammed behind him as Sakura felt her eyes cross. That was not any old place to eat; that was a formal dress only sort of establishment. That was somewhere that would probably have at least four different pieces of silverware on each side of the plate, each set more expensive than all of Sakura?s flatware put together. The idea that she was part of some sort of attempt to prove that life for Gaara and his siblings was better than their father had provided was drilled into her head again. Desperately, she pushed it back.

Maybe she was just thinking the worst of all this. Maybe they wanted to show that they were doing well. Maybe this visit from their father was a positive thing. To assume makes an ?ass? of ?u? and ?me?, or so they say.

A tuft of white stuffing from the middle couch cushion caught her eye and made her cough and change the subject of her attention to finishing unloading her groceries into their cupboards.


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It had taken hours of preparation, a Saturday wasted when she could have been out doing something fun with Naruto and Hinata, or maybe shopping with Ino or Tenten, but she felt that it would no doubt be worth the effort. Her body, scrubbed all over with stuff that seemed as harsh as a brillo pad but guaranteed to exfoliate every inch of her skin made her tingle still. There were face masks that had happened after that, at least three different types of moisturizer that specialized in specific parts of the body, and some sort of wrap that was supposed to keep her face oil free for at least twelve hours. That was in addition to shaving (no time for waxing unless she wanted red legs). Then she had picked out her best dress, pale pink and navy blue, and some strappy shoes that were too cold for mid October but would have to do. Lapis lazuli choker and earrings plus a large rose quartz ring and she finally felt liked she was prepared for the evening.

?He had better be grateful. . .? She mumbled to herself not for the first time this evening. She hadn?t gotten this dressed up since her senior prom. There was no way she would forget that night. After all, Naruto had thrown up that spiked punch down her side and she had helped him lurch home while he apologized and vaguely hit on her while calling her Sara. It had only bothered her a little in retrospect even though she was sure at the time that her dreams had been crushed. Being the princess of the ball had always been one of those fond wishes. . .

The knock at the door found her with her head in the clouds and a tube of lipstick poised near her chin. She clicked into action, applied the glossy substance with a practiced motion, blotted, and hurried to open the door. Gaara?s frozen look of shock was all the compliment she could expect from him, she supposed, but it was a pretty nice one. The way his eyes narrowed and his mouth curled up as he reached for her told her what he had in mind, but she wasn?t about to let him get her mussed up.

?No! Maybe if you behave yourself later, but right now I?m ready for dinner. . . and nothing else. Got it?? She waggled one painted nail at him and he relented with a dissatisfied grunt.

On her part all she could do was stare at him. If she had thought this all important dinner with his family would finally reveal to her, under good lighting, what his face looked like without makeup she was sorely disappointed. Raccoon eyes more bloodshot than normal told her how well he had slept the night before. If it was possible, they looked like he had added another layer of black, as if for protection. The outfit was pretty tame, for him, with combat boots under plain black pants. Ragged black dress shirt with the sleeves torn into long strips, black vest, red tie. . . it was probably the fanciest thing he would bother to get into. Someday she would see him in a real suit, she swore to herself. Why would he complain? She had seen him wear more uncomfortable and complicated things on almost a daily basis.

?Shall we??

Gaara made a noise in the back of his throat, seemingly unwilling to step back outside and climb into his car. Nondescript grey with tinted windows so dark they were a hairsbreadth away from being illegal, even his car had black on its eyes. Sakura suppressed a nervous impulse to giggle. Her thought hadn?t been funny, she was simply starting to feel the pressure that Gaara was exuding in waves in addition to a natural nervousness over meeting Gaara?s father. She was meeting his parent. This was a big step for any normal couple. She still hadn?t been able to tell her own rather typical and slightly conservative parents anything besides ?I?m seeing someone, and he?s very unique. Artistic, I guess you could say. Very visual.? They were going to get the shock of their lives when she finally had them meet her significant other.

At the stoplight she noticed that Gaara was visibly twitching. This boded very ill.

A valet took their car in front of the restaurant building, and after a brief exchange with the host, they were seated in a part of the ground floor by a rather fetching rock fountain. Everything was done in muted dark colors and the strains of something classical and vaguely familiar found their way over. Sakura couldn?t tell if it came from speakers or live musicians, and in a place like this she wouldn?t hazard a guess. Gaara?s siblings were already sitting at the table. Kankuro, sans face paint, and looking like every other businessman she had ever seen in his navy suit was checking messages on his cell phone. Temari was at least three fourths of the way into a rather exotically colored cocktail. She tapped lacquered nails onto the table impatiently and barely gave Gaara and Sakura a nod when they sat down.

?Where is he?? Gaara asked, as if accusing her of hiding their father somewhere.

?Obviously, when he told us to be here by 7:00 he really meant that he wanted us to wait for him until 7:30. Since you had the grace to show up fifteen minutes late, he?s on the ball as usual.? Temari raised an eyebrow as she noticed Sakura finally, a pale but pretty shadow next to Gaara. ?If it isn?t the preppy girl. . . I didn?t know you were still. . .? A look from Gaara cut her off.

Kankuro swore and tugged at the tie around his neck. ?He had to choose a weekend night, didn?t he? As if he didn?t know this is the busy time of the week for the club.?

?He likes showing us he still has power to make us all drop whatever we?re doing.? Temari made a gesture in the air and a waiter almost seemed to materialize in front of them. She ordered another drink, as did Kankuro. Sakura didn?t think her now acidic stomach would thank her for such a move, but got a glass of wine anyway. Drinks arrived quickly.

They sat there, uncomfortable in their collective silence, when an older man strode over to the table. All of the siblings rose automatically, and Sakura hastily put down her wine to do the same. He looked like an older version of Kankuro, lines in all the places that people get when they are cross all the time. It wasn?t just a frown he offered the world, it was the sense that he saw everything and it didn?t meet with his approval. Once he had sat down, then the rest of them followed suit.

?You all look healthy enough.? He said. Now well, not happy, nothing so personal. . . just healthy. Sakura tried not to let herself stare. ?Who are you? State your name.? It was said so mildly, but the order was ribbed with steel.

Gaara unfroze from his comatose state next to her. ?This is my girlfriend, Sakura. . . sir.? The last was an ungracious addition that was delayed enough to be purposefully rude.

?I see.? The lines of disapproval deepened.

Menus came and they were all mercifully silent as they decided what to eat. Sakura tried not to cringe at the prices. Good thing she had her credit card with her. No way did she carry enough cash to cover more than soup and salad. Their orders were taken and suddenly they were all left to what she would later term in her head as ?the interrogation?. Question after question came, from tiny decisions Kankuro made about his business to Temari?s search for new employment after being fired from her last job for, from what Sakura understood, disrespecting her supervisor. It felt like they were giving reports about their lives. Sakura wondered if their father was in the military, and if so then what rank.

In a way it made sense. Gaara?s strange fondness for weapons, the odd number of military or camouflage uniforms in his collection of clothing, and of course that fateful paintball excursion she would never ever forget as long as she lived. He had almost made Lee cry. If he had been trained from an early age to be a weapon by his father, then his peculiar strengths were less confusing.

The interrogation reached Gaara, and here their father paused. He scratched his neck and took a deep breath. ?Judging from your appearance, I still believe they let you out too early. If it weren?t for the fact that you were given the option for release as soon as you reached eighteen I would have had you living your life in that institution. Rehabilitated my ass.?

?It was better than another military school,? Gaara spat. Storm clouds gathered in his father?s eyes before he added the deadpan, ?sir.?

?You?re insane so far as I?m concerned, and an eternal disappointment to this family.?

Sakura tried not to rip her cloth napkin in two as she clenched it under the table. Gaara had gone silent and serious, signs that he was at his own edge. It was just a short jump off a tall emotional cliff once this mask of his cracked. Sakura wondered if she could have survived through such a childhood. Hell, she wanted to take the knife sitting in front of her on the table to this horrible man?s throat and she didn?t even have any history of instability. . . that anyone knew about anyway. (The fact that she held two sided arguments in her head was something she had always kept to herself.)

?Are we quite done?? Gaara was almost shaking with the effort not to run mad and prove his father?s assertions correct. Sakura snuck her hand over to him and he clung to it painfully as soon as their skin made contact. She would have rather died than even hint at how much pain it caused her.

?Yes. You?re not going to change. No matter how normal looking your woman, everyone in this family knows that you?re just a monster.?

Sakura watched as Temari and Kankuro refused to look in their direction of either their little brother or their father. They refused to take a side in their matter, obviously as cowed by their father as they were by Gaara. For Sakura, she had no such trouble choosing sides, and a fire lit under her to protect the person that she loved.

?I?m not his ?woman?, I am his girlfriend. We are together because I like and trust him, and if you had half the faith in him that I do you would see that the only monster in Gaara is the one your image of him forces him to be.?

?You have no place to speak of things you don?t understand, girl.?

?Sakura. . .? Gaara said trying to warn her away, but she didn?t like bullies. She had experienced enough of them as a child. No longer being a child, she felt it was her duty to right these kind of wrongs since she had become a stronger person.

She inflated, spirit of the fight coursing through her veins. ?I shudder to think what life with you would have been like. For my part, I don?t think I need to sit here and suffer your condescension or verbal abuse. I am leaving before I do or say something unladylike. You don?t deserve any more of my energy.?

Dragging Gaara up with her by the hand with which they were still connected, Sakura led them out as the penetrating glare from Gaara?s father practically bored holes into their backs. Gaara followed, stunned, as if he couldn?t process what she had just done. By the time the valet appeared with Gaara?s car and they climbed in, he was slightly more capable and aware enough to start up the car.

In the passenger seat, Sakura seethed and proceeded to enumerate all the reasons she hated Gaara?s father despite the fact that she barely knew him. When she had calmed down her overloaded system, Sakura tried to comfort her stunned boyfriend who was obviously trying to get his own sense of balance back.

?Did it ever occur to you that you didn?t have to go to dinner??

?No one says ?no? to the General.?

Sakura felt a sick sensation. It was easier when he was just ?Gaara?s horrible father?. Giving him a rank made her suddenly feel small and insignificant. She had just told off a man who could have planes and tanks converge on her house if he were properly motivated for all she knew. He was a man who had apparently had his son committed before he was eighteen.

Gaara smiled, leaning over to give her a kiss on the cheek as she sat and pondered her fate while the car sat in the parking lot of her apartment building. The uncommon and very nearly public sign of affection forced her out of her reverie. She smiled weakly at her gothicly inclined boyfriend and sighed, climbing out of the car as gracefully as she could.

?Coming up?? She asked.

?Not tonight.? Sakura didn?t blame him. The mood of the evening hadn?t exactly been a deal closer for an intimate night between them.

Nodding and closing the door, she caught the window of the passenger side roll down. Turning back to see what Gaara wanted she saw him lean over as far as he could so that he didn?t have to raise his voice as he gave her some parting words to chew over as she made herself dinner in her nicest dress. That salmon had looked like such a good choice, but spaghetti it would be instead.

?I think I love you.?

And after dropping that bomb he left her open mouthed on the asphalt. This evening was definitely not to be believed. It felt like she was the one who needed to be committed.

[Kuroi Ruy]

The fuck wrong with ppl?! Aswesome chappie keep at it! Note I read 'am always!

[Kane Shi Megami]

First off let me just say that I love ALL of your work and this story is the reason why now I like the idea of Gaara and Sakura together. The ending to this chapter was my fav.

[Baby Girl90210]

Vary cute. I'm not one for the sappy stuff... ok this isn't sappy, but the line is.
I love the Gaara you've set up here, not to mention the Sakura, it may be different the the origanal, but the charactures are still in character, Good job.