Chapter 49

-Hinata's POV-

The familiar buzzer sounded through the speakers, signaling for us to go inside. The moment I passed through the door, the distinct scent of fog machines met my nose and I squinted to try and see in the incredibly dark hallway. There was almost no light at all, just enough that I could safely make my way around.

Tentatively, I made my feet move, one step and then another and then repeat until the long hallway came to a "T" with a dull green light providing a bit more vision than before. The moment I got close to the turn off, though, a woman dressed as an incredibly realistic zombie shot out from around the corner and grabbed my arm.

I screamed, tears in my eyes, as she pretended like she was about to bite into my skin. I shakily yanked my limb out of her grasp and then she turned and flitted off down the left hallway to find her next victim.

Despite my very best attempts to keep it together, as I continued through the challenge every single jumpscare pulled a strong reaction from me. Every part of me was trembling in fright as I tiptoed around each corner. Somewhere between ten and fifteen minutes after entering the haunted house, I began to worry I'll never find my way out because I haven't even ran into a single other contestant.

As though the thought conjured them up, I suddenly caught sight of someone's back in the distance, just barely visible with the low green lighting. My steps quickened slightly as a glimmer of hope rose in my chest, only for creepy wooden hands to start shooting out of the walls and floor.

A small sound of shock slipped past my lips as I tripped, but whoever it was managed to catch me before I could tumble to the floor. Shaking like a leaf, I looked up to see it was none other than Sasuke himself.

An amused smirk tugged at his lips as I wiped at my tears with a red face, "T-T-Thank you!"

He chuckled, jokingly nudging one of the wooden hands poking up from the floor with his foot, "How did I know you'd be like this?"

Wordlessly joining ranks, we continued down the hall. Each time something came to scare us, my grip on his arm would tighten and then I'd apologize while trying not to cry. Somehow he seemed completely unfazed by any of it. Lord, how I wish I had his ability to keep a cool facade.

Maybe five minutes later, someone suddenly grabbed my waist from behind, pulling a shrill scream from my lips as I whipped around. Tears ran down my cheeks as I realized it was Hidan standing there, laughing loudly.

"D-Don't touch me!" Not only was I too jumpy for anyone to approach me like that right now, but the thought of him being anywhere near me makes me want to be sick.

The man pretended to wipe a tear as he sobered up and grinned widely, "On edge, are we?" His bright eyes almost seemed to glow as he wordlessly mocked my inability to come clean to Sasuke about what happened between us at that party.

Sasuke didn't say anything, but grabbed my wrist and started to turn so we could continue our way down the hall, but Hidan stopped him, "I keep finding you two alone together. It's a little suspicious, don't you think?"

I made a shushing motion with my free hand and tried to find the words to make him shut up. There aren't many cameras in here, Yamato said that, but we don't know if there's one around here. Talking like that was risky.

Sasuke turned his body to face the Akatsuki member more fully, "What're you trying to say?"

Hidan laughed, "If someone other than me were to see you, they might get the wrong idea."

Finally gathering the strength, I hissed at him, "Please stop, Hidan!" Both of them looked at me and I felt obligated to release my hold on Sasuke's arm, glancing around nervously to see if any of the actors were hiding nearby eavesdropping, "L-Let's just get through this challenge so we-"

"What's this "wrong idea"?" Sasuke cut me off in a threatening voice. Both Hidan and I looked at him in shock.

The Akatsuki man overcame his surprise before I could and laughed in disbelief, "Holy shit, you actually do like her, don't you? That's hilarious!"

Eyes wide, I grit my teeth and stared at the Uchiha man. He avoided my gaze, but scoffed, "If you don't start minding your own business you're going to regret it." Then he grabbed my wrist again and all but dragged me along, down the hall in the way we'd originally been headed and away from Hidan.

We came across a handful of actors that tried to scare us, but they didn't seem nearly as intimidating compared to the angry aura surrounding my bandmate. It hurt a bit, his tight grip on my wrist, but I could tell that saying something might set him off so I kept my mouth shut and let him pull me along in an awkward silence until we finally came upon the exit.

The moment he turned the doorknob, he let me go and stalked wordlessly out of the area as he ignored everyone else. The small group of competitors who finished before us and Yamato quieted down and watched him in confusion before turning their gazes onto me for an explanation.

I wiped at my scared tears and hid my likely-red wrist behind my back so they wouldn't see it as I dipped my head and located Sakura. She pulled me into a hug once I got close enough, quickly trying to change the topic from Sasuke's odd behavior, "Aw, Hina! Did you have a terrible time in there?" I nodded, burying my face in her shoulder and using her excuse for my disheveled appearance.

She rubbed my back a few times before pulling away and leading me to join her and the other competitors so we could wait for those remaining inside. Konan, Yahiko, Gaara, Hidan, and Sasori were all that remained.

As soon as I realized both redheads were inside, I began to worry they might've run into one another and gotten into an argument, or worse, a fight. I'd hate to see what he can do if push came to shove, especially since we all know he wanted to face him in the fighting matches yesterday. We've only ever seen him lose his temper physically when Garrett hit him, but that one punch he threw was enough to tell us he was more than capable of holding his own. Sakura gripped my hand tightly, seeming to have the same thoughts as me.

Our eyes were trained on the door when Deidara and Kisame came over, the blonde speaking in a joking tone, "What's the Uchiha's deal? He looked pissed."

I moved my wrist behind my back again, just to be safe, "I-I think he might just be a little embarrassed that he got scared a couple times is all."

Kisame laughed, thankfully not blushing like he was earlier, "What a moody kid, just like his brother."

I raised an eyebrow at him. Itachi's never appeared anything but professional and composed to me, but I suppose I've never really seen him in a situation that'd be considered trying. I wonder if he's as scary as Sasuke when he's angry.

The door to the haunted house suddenly opened, distracting us, and every single remaining competitor came out.

To my surprise, Konan had a firm grip around Yahiko's arm like I had on Sasuke's. A small smile tugged at my lips at the barely noticeable blush on her cheeks. She tries so hard to come off as hard and badass, but she's still a girl just like me or Sakura. It's honestly kind of adorable. Yahiko seemed unaffected, his face as calm and collected as it always is when she released him.

That's when I saw the dark look on both Gaara and Sasori's faces. Luckily, our bandmate came straight over to us when he located us. He and Sakura shared a short look and he shook his head, likely to reassure her he didn't do anything bad. Then he seemed to go back to his self-proclaimed job of being a bodyguard. Her face was bright red, making me have to bite the inside of my cheek to stop from smiling brightly at how cute they act around one another.

"This concludes our haunted house challenge! Great job everybody! Take a short break if you want. Lunch will be in the break room at noon. We'll announce each team's standings afterwards."

As soon as I was able to sneak away without being noticed, I did and began searching for Sasuke. I ended up near the exit we'd gotten stuck outside of last night when I heard his voice from above, "Here, Hyuuga."

Jumping slightly in fright, I noticed a tall set of stairs that led up to a loft that I didn't see there amidst all the excitement last night. That part of the building wasn't covered in our tour with Yamato.

When I climbed up, I realized it was simply a storage area for props and smaller set pieces. Sasuke was sitting just inside the doorway where he couldn't be seen from the ground level and I felt his eyes on me as I came over to sit on his other side, my back to the wall. His elbows were on his bent knees and an angry, guarded expression still marred his handsome face.

Feeling a bit awkward, I softly nudged him in the ribs with my elbow. He straightened his posture slightly to return the jab, eyes drifting over to my now obviously bruised wrist, "I'm sorry."

I covered it with my other hand and leaned my head against his shoulder bashfully, "I-It's fine. You didn't mean to."

The knee closer to me dropped and he reached over to grab my hand more gently than he had earlier in the haunted house, rubbing his thumb softly over the tinted skin with a guilty expression. I feel bad for him, really. Right now he's going through some serious emotional stress with the anniversary of his mother's death, not to mention whatever the hell's going on between us, and obviously has no clue how to manage it. Not only that, but I can tell just by the look on his face that he's comparing himself to who he thinks is a stranger that bruised my wrists that night of the party.

He's nothing like Hidan, not even close. Sure, he's a pervert but there's no way he'd ever treat a woman how Hidan did that night.

In an attempt to reassure him, I turned my hand over within his and intertwined our fingers. Dark eyes slid closed for a moment as he took a deep breath to calm down. With a red face, I hesitantly whispered, "What're we doing, Sasuke?"

Now's not the time, I know that, but I can't help it. I might never gather the courage to ask again so I have to do it while I have the chance. Unsurprisingly, he simply nodded because he understood that.

We've been skirting around for a couple weeks now. We've even kissed and slept in one another's bed more than once, not to mention all but confessed to one another. The issue, as always, is that we're contractually obligated to avoid this exact type of thing. Even if we weren't, if our fans found out we'd run the risk of angering some of them. While that fact is quite petty and disappointing, in my personal opinion, it's still the truth.

Despite all of that and our glaring difference in personality and experience, I just can't help myself. Yes, Sasuke gets on my last nerve sometimes and can be a real jerk when he isn't thinking, but he can be a real sweetheart, too. Admitting that I've noticed how special he treats me compared to literally everyone else feels a little conceited or selfish, for some reason, but it's true. What's worse is that I've come to really like it. It makes me feel flattered and happy. I wonder if he knows that.

Sasuke's deep voice broke through my scrambled thoughts, "I'm willing to try if you are." My eyes widened and I sat up straight so I could turn my head and look at him, but his gaze was still trained on my wrist. After a moment, he met my eye, stealing my breath with the almost shy glint in his expression, "We'll have to keep it quiet."

Before I could even think of any other pros and cons, I found myself finally giving into my urges after months of holding back and nodded.

Then his lips were pressed against mine, earning a surprised squeak from me. He pulled away before I could react further and closed his eyes as he gently lifted my hand so he could kiss the bruised skin of my wrist. Without another word or look in my direction, he let go, got up, and went back downstairs so we wouldn't be seen leaving together.

I clasped my wrist to my chest, face bright red, and smiled to myself. It may have just been my imagination, but it looked like there was the slightest hint of blush on his face just then.

-Gaara's POV-

A shrill scream came from somewhere else in this haunted house and I could tell by the sound that it was Hinata and turned into the next hallway that went in that direction, jumping slightly when a bloody clown came at me.

Sighing, I stepped around the actor and took a deep breath. My initial reaction each time one of these actors scares me is to defend myself and it's harder to hold that instinct back than it is to not show my surprise.

I wonder if Hinata's going to faint in here. She's gotten a million times better at keeping herself calm, but even I'm on edge so I know she must be struggling. I don't even want to think about how Sakura might be handling all this. I'd look for her, too, but there's no way she'll scream like that so it'd be futile to spend time on it. At least I know what direction Hinata's in.

A taxidermied wolf shot up from the floor in front of me and I clenched my fists at my sides, closing my eyes for a moment before also walking around it. When I turned the next corner, I saw a figure in the distance and prepared myself for them to turn and try to scare me as I got closer, only to be taken back a bit when it turned out to be Sasori.

The moment he realized who I was, he mirrored my lack of enthusiasm, "Fuck off, kid."

The image of that photo Sakura let me see from the hospital put a fire in my blood and I grabbed his arm and shoved him against the wall when he turned to face me, grabbing a fistful of his shirt as I glared at him. We're either the exact same height or somewhere very close.

He only seemed surprised for a moment before he smirked knowingly. The smug look on his face nearly threw me over the edge, but I forced myself to think about Sakura again. She wouldn't want me to do this, not here and not now.

It was extremely difficult, but I somehow managed to pull my shaking hands off him and turned to begin walking off. I couldn't take more than three steps before he taunted me, stopping me in my tracks, "It's cute, you getting jealous like this."

Eyes closed, I took a deep breath to try and fight back the dark shade threatening to come over my vision, but he kept talking when he realized I wasn't going to respond, "You know she's in love with me, right?"

That did it. I turned to face him, but kept my distance for both his and my sake, "Stay away from her." There's not a point in trying to convince him she hates his guts because he likely knows that already and is just trying to get under my skin. I hate to admit that it's working.

Sasori took a few steps closer, slowly, with a grin, "Even if I never touch her again, it's too late. She's never going to be able to forget me." Then he had a handful of my shirt as he shoved me against the wall, knocking the air out of me as he mirrored what I did to him just moments ago.

His voice was barely a whisper as he searched my face, "You'll never be able to experience what I did, even if she does give your sorry ass a chance."

I all but spat in his face, hands on his shoulders in a warning to back up before I forcefully made him, "If you don't let go of me, I'll kill you."

His grip tightened, grin widening, "No you won't. You don't want to make her hate you, right?"

"What's up, you guys?" We both turned our heads to see Hidan approaching, hands behind his head casually as though he was taking a stroll for fun.

Rather than let go like I thought he would, Sasori ignored the new arrival and leaned forward a bit so he could whisper in my ear, "She was so tight, so sweet. Don't you wish you could fuck her, too?"

My body acted before I could get a grip on my anger and I shoved him off of me hard enough that he nearly hit the wall on the other side of the hallway. Smoothing out my shirt, I glared at him warningly before turning and walking in the direction I'd been heading before running into him. He and Hidan followed behind me and I tried to ignore them as my blood boiled wildly. It's taking every single iota of my energy to not turn around and beat him to a pulp.

"What's got him so worked up?" Hidan asked casually as though he didn't witness the two of us about to fight.

Sasori's voice was dripping with amusement, "Sakura."

An actor dressed as a bloodied mummy jumped out to scare us, making Sasori and Hidan laugh, but I completely ignored them and kept walking. Once they were out of earshot, Sasori tried to taunt me again, "Does she know you're in love with her yet? She's not the brightest so you'll have to make it obvious."

Just as I was about to turn around and finally give in to my urges to punch his face in, a familiar voice came from in front of me a ways, "Shut up, Sasori. Behave." We all looked up to see Konan and Yahiko, the former being the one to scold her drummer for causing trouble.

I almost sighed out loud with relief. He won't say stuff like that in front of these two, I'm sure.

Once we got close enough, Konan gave me a very muted look of apology that I would've missed if I wasn't looking for it before we all wordlessly continued to search for the exit. She was the only one to react to anything the rest of the time in the haunted house.

The moment we stepped out the exit and I met Sakura's eye, I went to her side and gave her a look to reassure her that I didn't lose my temper inside even though it was a close call. She didn't have to say a word for me to understand she appreciated it.

If I gave in and tried to kill Sasori like I wanted to, I'd have to explain why I did it and then everyone would know what happened to her. That, and the fact that me getting into another fight on her behalf will upset her, is the only reason I kept it together.

Sasori met my eye from across the crowd of competitors and my eyes narrowed into a hateful glare when he grinned. Next time, if there aren't any cameras around, he's a dead man.