SALUTATIONS EVERYONE!
Another year comes to an end, and it has been wild for me. NOt what I expected but what ever is. There are so many new projects, from a new business, to new stories, and a newsletter I've started which I'll be sharing soon. It'll all be on my Tublr Page for updates and voting.
As I wrap up this year, I'm already prepping for next year 2026, where I hope I can create more delights of works for you all.
Enjoy the Chapter!
CHAPTER 39
The eventful day left everyone with little energy for further interaction, and the group decided to return to the inn for a proper rest before continuing their journey. Sharrkan would have some time to prepare to leave Heliohapt with the group, and everyone else would be given a chance to recuperate from their dive into the dungeon. Sakura and Sinbad had gone to their room that night, early like everyone else, but unlike the rest of them, they weren't intended on sleeping right away. With their other priorities cleared out, it was time to confront some other issues.
"He was interested in you."
"He was not."
"Yes, he was.
"No, he wasn't."
This had been the mantra for the last few minutes between Sinbad and Sakura. When they were out of sight, Sinbad immediately went to address what had happened early that afternoon with Armakan, attempting to find the reason behind his sudden interest in the pink-haired girl.
"Sakura, as someone with a bit of a colourful past-
Sakura let out a loud 'hah' as she set her metal vessels on the drawer with Sinbad's, taking off her gloves and boots. "Colorful? You have more colors than the rainbow."
He winced because he knew she wasn't exactly wrong. Although he knew he was one of the last people to be giving this kind of lecture, logic was kind of a null point when your girlfriend nearly pushed you into letting her stay in a foreign country with its king.
"My point is, I know what a situation looks like when you're interested in someone beyond a platonic or professional point," Sinbad said, slowing down a bit to allow the words to really sink in. "And King Armakan was about to cross it."
Sakura sighed, running her hands over her face before turning back to Sinbad, who was sitting on the edge of the bed. "Well, maybe that's just from your standpoint-
"Because it was happening right in front of me!" Sinbad exclaimed, throwing his arms out. His eyes narrowed at Sakura for her behaviour. "I don't know whether you chose not to see it or if you were just enjoying it."
Raising her eyebrow, Sakura took a deadly stride towards Sinbad, shifting her head as if she wanted her chin to touch her chest, but her eyes were looking straight into his. "What?"
Sinbad coughed, rubbing the bottom of his chin. "I think you know what. You were leading Armakan on to get back at me."
"For what?" Sakura asked, crossing her arms in disbelief.
"For all the times I made you jealous."
Sakura opened her mouth but then closed it, as if another thought occurred to her. She started stepping backwards.
"Okay." She took three steps back. "Because I don't want any witnesses when I kill you…" She reached for the door handle and threw the door open. Ja'far, Hinahoho, Mystras, Masrur, Drakon, Sahel, and Tamira all stumbled to the front but didn't fall forward.
"Oh, wrong room," Sakura and Sinbad watched as they all scurried off in one of the two directions in the hallway, back to the safety of their rooms.
Sakura closed the door again. She stomped back over to Sinbad till she was able to lean forward so that their faces were inches apart. "Let's get this straight. I did not intend to make King Armakan give a sliver of interest towards me. I only spoke when I thought I needed to, and I didn't make any lame attempt at light conversation as a way to flirt, just so that I could get you back for all your sleazy behaviour."
Sinbad smirked, leaning forward so that their noses were touching. "Well, if that's the case, then I suppose that you weren't jealous either when Princess Serendine offered to marry me?"
"Oh, please." Sakura rolled her eyes, though she was pouting now.
"Don't worry, Sakura," Sinbad teased, "The princess is very beautiful but my attention will always come back to you."
"Who would worry about that?!" Pulling away, Sakura scoffed, blushing now. "I was just shocked, because I thought she would make a better choice in a husband than some womanizer that flirts with every female he catches in sight."
Laughing, Sinbad threw himself to the back, his arms spread out. "What about your decision when you agreed to stay with me?"
"You clouded my judgment," Sakura said back.
"Mmm." Sinbad replied with a sarcastic tinge in his wordless tone. "Sure-that was it."
"Hey, don't try to turn this on me just because you were jealous for nothing," Sakura said, raising her hands up as a sign of surrender, although her intentions were far from it. Although Sinbad's words really hit a painful mark. She wouldn't admit to any more than she had in that dungeon. That wound was still fresh and going to take a lot more than chakra to heal.
As the tension grew, instead of a retort or snarky comment, Sinbad swung his legs and lifted himself from the bed. Sakura took a step back when she caught the look on his face. His presence became intimidating. Her heart thrummed vigorously against her chest as she backed away.
"Sinbad…?" Sakura called warily. She continued to move to the back until cold touched her, and she couldn't move any further. She looked back up and gasped at Sinbad's close proximity.
"Jealous of nothing? You think I'm jealous of nothing?" He asked, not bothered that he admitted to being jealous. He extended his arms on both sides of her head, so that he was literally at arm's length from her.
"Sinbad-
"Tell me about him again." Sinbad cut her off, and when her eyebrows furrowed and her lip jutted out in confusion, he explained. "Tell me about Sasuke again."
Now frowning, Sakura attempted to create a little more distance from Sinbad. "I told you about him already-
"You told me he left your village and that you weren't able to stop him," Sinbad confirmed. "But that was the vaguest explanation."
"Again, why?" Sakura asked, beginning to sound annoyed.
"Because!" Sinbad's voice rose a little; he kept his eyes averted with his face down and bangs covering most of it. "I want to know more about the first guy that managed to get you to fall for him."
Sinbad had finalized with himself that if he wanted to learn everything there was to know about Sakura. He was going to have to start chipping away at her with harder questions. Their relationship couldn't appear as impersonal as it did to King Armakan today. He didn't want that, but he knew he couldn't ask her for full disclosure either or she would clamp up on him. When they had first started travelling together, she was like that, but it was different now, and he did not want it to go back to that. He had only caught snippets of her then. Her past didn't sound like anything to be fond of; he knew this because she really seemed to despise her past self. He figured whatever was holding her back, he would find it, even if it meant chipping at her piece by piece.
Sakura's heart sped; it felt like it doubled again; she had told Sinbad about Sasuke before, but it was as if this change in their relationship had turned certain subjects that were once easy to digest suddenly became too sour to even swallow. Despite that, she decided to tell him. "Sasuke Uchiha; I have known him since I was a child. The first time I saw him, I couldn't take my eyes off him. He was so cool and good at everything he did. I admired him just as every other girl in our village did. Like all of them, I claimed to be madly in love with him."
Sakura had unconsciously smiled, and Sinbad clenched his fists beside her head. "And when I ended up being placed on the same team with him, I was so happy. I thought, thought-this is fate, we'll definitely end up together-I'm going to win-all these childish fantasies." Sakura shook her head, her hand trailing to her bare neck, brushing a few strands. "I even grew my hair because I thought it would impress him."
Sinbad was suddenly glad she had short hair, but he remembered her telling him that long hair reminded her of the worst version of herself. Said it represented her own weakness. Was he also a factor behind why she didn't want to have long hair?
Sakura blinked when she realized that tears were blurring her vision. "I never looked past that stoic face; if I did, I would have been able to see how he was suffering. If I had been smart enough or deep enough to look beyond the surface back then, I might have been able to see it. His pain. His loss. His sadness. How he was dealing with that all on his own."
Sinbad was taken aback when he saw tears rolling down Sakura's face, but in contrast to that, she was smiling. "When he left the village, I begged him not to; I told him I was so in love with him I couldn't take it." Sakura let out a bitter laugh, slamming her wrist on her forehead. "I acted like a complete fool, and in the end, it did nothing to stop him from leaving. I still didn't try to understand his pain and solitude and just said whatever I thought would suit me-the-the last thing he said to me was, Sakura, thank you for everything."
Sinbad's eyes widened as he recalled their time back in Reim.
"Just say Sakura thank you-the rest should be easy…"
Now he understood where that came from. Someone she cared for dearly had said that to her before abandoning her. That was why she told him to say it to her. She was reliving a bitter memory to punish herself. If he brought up the rest of her past, what would that bring? Would she be able to handle all of it? He knew he still didn't understand everything, but she was suffering. Still suffering even when she didn't see it herself.
"I was so desperate to get him back that I even made his best friend promise me to bring him back. His best friend, who I knew cared for me. To set aside his own feelings, endure this pain, and go after Sasuke for me. To bring him back to me." Sakura cried gently. "I used his best friend, and what's worse, even without me there, he's still probably going to chase after him for me. Because that's just the kind of guy he is. If he makes a promise, he'll keep it."
He knew one thing for certain now. Sakura really loved Sasuke. It wasn't just a simple flicker of affection-no, this was pure, dedicated love she had for Sasuke, and for whatever reason, he had found something more important and left her-wounded, but still in love. Even now.
"Revenge," Sakura's breath came out shaky. "That's why he left. He wanted power to get revenge. On his older brother."
Sinbad did his best to keep a calm face, but it was hard when hearing something like that. Especially after dealing with Armakan and Sharrkan today.
"Sasuke's brother murdered their entire clan, including their parents. Sasuke was the only one he left alive. Sasuke has never gotten past what happened. The worst kind of betrayal always comes from those you care about." Sakura took a breath again, wiping her eyes. "Sasuke wants to kill his brother to get revenge for his entire clan. That's all he has ever focused on; for years, it was his only motive and goal. I never realized just how far he was willing to go to achieve it."
Although Sinbad wanted to know all he could about Sakura. He had no idea that this was the kind of burden and pain that had been endured. He didn't know exactly what kind of person she had fallen in love with. Hearing about Sasuke, he honestly couldn't understand how exactly.
"I wanted to go with him." Sakura continued softly, her voice steady as if she was balancing it on a thin thread, and at any moment she would waver and it would fall, cracking. "Even though I knew I would have been miserable and probably hated it with every fibre of my being, I still would have gone. I wanted to be with him. I offered to leave everything behind, my friends, my family, but it wasn't enough."
Sakura didn't understand; she didn't know why Sinbad had brought up Sasuke like this, and she didn't understand why she was continuing to tell him about Sasuke, but she couldn't bring herself to stop. When it came to those you loved, your emotions took hold of you, and you were no longer in control of your own thoughts. Talking about Sasuke brought up her past, and her past came attached with painful feelings. Even though she had tried to keep those memories at bay.
"I haven't seen him in years, and I won't see him ever again." Sakura finished, sniffing softly.
"It hurts when you have someone in your heart but you can't have them in your arms."
It was Sasuke she had been referring to back then in the dungeon. He could tell just by looking at her grief-stricken expression on her face. It twisted her features further than any physical pain could ever cause a person.
"You really love him, don't you, Sakura?" His heart gave a painful clench. These feelings weren't the kind that you could get rid of-not even in a lifetime. "And you always will."
Sinbad realized something else as well-Serendine must have made her feel that same pain toward him when she put Sakura's heart and mind against each other. She had lost Sasuke to his own ambitions and she thought she would lose Sinbad to his as well. She was willing to put everything on the line for him, but when she was asked to give him up, she couldn't do it. She said it was because she was selfish, because she didn't want just half of him. He didn't really read between the lines then. To realize what she was saying. His eyes widened, and he felt an entirely new sensation filling him.
'She loves me.'
"I'm sorry, I said too much," Sakura said, attempting to wipe her face in vain as her tears continued to pour. She had just talked about Sasuke with such passion that she forgot to take into consideration Sinbad's feelings and filter. Still wiping her face, Sakura moved her body to the side, heading for the door. "I'm just going to go sleep in Masrur's room."
When Sakura's fingertips touched the doorknob, her arms were pushed against her body, and Sinbad gathered her in his arms tightly from behind.
"Sinbad-
"Don't." He cut her off, pulling her close. His face rested on the back of her neck.
"What?"
"Don't go," he said. Keeping his eyes closed as he drew her nearer. "Please…..stay."
Sakura didn't understand. Sinbad just discerned that she still loved Sasuke, and she hadn't even told Sinbad that she loved him as well. She had come to understand that more than one person could hold the same position in your heart, but that didn't mean it was easy to share. After Zepar's dungeon, that prospect became clear to her. If Sinbad knew she had the same feelings for Sasuke as she had for him, why would he ask her to stay with him? When she couldn't even do the same for him and Serendine?
Reaching up to grasp the arms wrapped around her, Sakura whispered. "Why? I don't understand. Why-why would you want me to-to stay with you?"
For once, Sinbad's answer was quick and simple.
"Because I love you."
..
..
..
The words weren't much, but to Sakura, they were enough to move her to tears and make her feel as if time had stopped. It was a phrase that many used too often for deceit instead of what it was intended for. But having this said directly to her. She had forgotten all about those deceits. About the people who took that phrase for granted as she basked in it.
Sakura was frozen, taking small, silent breaths as she allowed Sinbad to turn her around so that she was facing him. Lifting her chin so that they were eye to eye. She felt like she was being lifted as he spoke.
"Sakura, I love you." Sinbad pressed his forehead against her own; there were tears in the corner of his eyes. He didn't repeat it for the sake of reminding her, or for pressing a case. No, he did it because he wanted her to know. He didn't expect anything else from this confession. No return of any kind. He just wanted her to know without having to second-guess. No false hopes or promises. Just the truth.
Fresh tears were now falling down Sakura's face. The happiness she felt in that moment caused a flood; the tears kept pouring, but her eyes were far from sad.
"So, will you stay with me?" Sinbad asked again, his voice barely above a whisper.
Without knowing which words to form an answer, Sakura wrapped her arms around Sinbad's shoulders, leaning forward until their lips were on top of one another. Both of their breathing grew deeper as they held on as long as they could, drawing back barely a second before coming back. Their lips heated against each other, cheeks flushed red. The intensity is only growing instead of simmering down as it usually does. Becoming more insistent. Sakura began stepping forward, while Sinbad stepped back, moving in sync as if an unknown force was controlling their movements. When his legs hit the front of the bed, Sinbad lay down, keeping his arms around Sakura's waist as she now hovered above him.
Finally, Sakura pulled away, her breathing heavy as was Sinbad's. Their noses are touching at close proximity. Nothing in their line of vision now but emerald or gold.
With unknown courage that seemed to gather, allowing her to resolve this one matter, she spoke. "I love you, Sinbad."
The nurturing warmth that Sakura had felt when Sinbad said those words to her was reciprocated. The rukh was fluttering wildly, and Sakura had to smile. Running her hands over his face, down his neck, and on top of his chest.
Sinbad moved his head up as Sakura leaned down. When their lips connected again, he carefully shifted them so that he was now hovering above, and Sakura allowed him. Her back now resting against the cool sheets as she peered up at Sinbad, who was staring down at her, his cheeks flushed, eyes glossy, and ironically enough, the most vulnerable position she had ever seen him in.
Sakura could feel her heart still beating heavily against her chest; it hadn't gone down for a good while, and she wondered if Sinbad's heart was beating like this as well. Lifting her hand, she pressed her palm against his chest. Meeting a rapid patter-just like that day. She withdrew her hand, panting softly. She closed her eyes when Sinbad caressed her face, sliding down her cheek to her neck.
"Sakura…." Sakura exhaled. Looking down at the girl he had come to love.
She smiled at him, brightly, reassuringly, before touching his face. Her thumb was running across his cheek. In that moment, they felt that everything would be alright. There was nothing weighing on them in this room. They were not dungeon capturers, they were not merchants, not an interloper, or an aspiring future king. They were just a boy and a girl. Sinbad and Sakura.
And that's how it was going to be for the night.
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