[AU, fluff, angst]

I looked outside of the window, watching as blurs of scenery went past me. Mix of greens and blue, clashing with each other as the train kept moving.

My chin rest on the palm of my hand. The beat of my heart is getting faster by the minute. My hands started trembling. I held it together, trying to stop it from shaking.

I'm not trembling out of fear, no. I'm trembling out of nervousness.

Few more minutes

I'm visiting my grandfather from the place I grew up in. I left the place around the age of 7 and only came to visit during summer. It was in that place where I met Him.

The boy that made that place special to me.

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My legs hurt but I kept on running, I was lost. Lost in this forest. I have no clue on where to go. "Grandpa!" I called out for him again. Shouting is useless but I need to try. The tears in my eyes is making my vision blurry.

I stopped, my whole body gave up. I can't keep running. I feel like I'm running in circles. "Someone please help me!" my tears started pouring down my face. "Wahhhh!!!"

I kept on crying, hoping that someone will find me. My screams echoed throughout the forest, disappearing after a second. "Gr-grandpa" I'm such an idiot! This is my fault! My fault I'm lost to begin with.

I escaped the house when grandpa wasn't looking at my direction. I went after the cat that went in the forest. I didn't noticed that I was running deeper, it was too late when I suspected something is wrong.

My stomach grumbled because of hunger. I can't die in this place. I tried to stand up but it was useless. I'm too tired to do anything except for crying. A snap of a twig got my attention. A shadow loomed over my tiny form, I looked up and saw a man with a mask.

He crouched down to match my eye level, "are you lost?" I nodded my head. He stood up and beckon me to follow him. I quickly ran after him when he started walking away. I went to grab his hand but he pulled it away from my reach.

"What's wrong?" I reached out for him again but he kept on dodging. I soon gave up and glared at him.

I heard him sigh, "don't touch him" a weird voice said. I turned to look at the direction where the voice came from. A black looking spirit was staring deeply at me. My eyes widened in shock, my whole body trembled out of fear."If you do, he will disappear"

The spirit vanished after that. Disappear? What does it mean? My body stopped trembling after a few seconds. I looked at the man, he was staring at the place where the spirit used to be.

He then started walking again. Unlike last time, I didn't try to reach out for him again. I started babbling nonsense, I told him how I got lost in the first place. He laughed at my idiotic actions. I couldn't blame him, it was my fault why I'm here. Me and my stupid brain.

We walked for a few more minutes and we finally arrived outside the forest. I ran past him, thanking the gods for helping me. I turned around to thank him too but he was gone. Not a trace of him was left.

I panicked and ran back to grandpa's house.

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I decided to go back in the forest. Grandpa scolded me for escaping, he said he almost got a heart attack when he didn't see me. Well not my fault though, it was so boring inside the house. And besides, I need to give my thanks to the masked man.

I ran back in the forest, hoping he will show up again. I then started walking, looking around the forest. It was beautiful, I didn't get to enjoy it because I got lost. But now, I know he will save me again.

"You're here again" right on time. I smiled at him, running towards him but made sure we have distance. "What are you doing here child?"

"First of all, my name is Sakura," I said "second, I wanted to thank you for saving me" I couldn't see his expression, but judging from his movements, he got surprised by my words. "If you don't mind, can you tell me a little about yourself while exploring the forest?"

I didn't get my hopes up, he barely knows me. He hesitated at first, I was about to speak but he beat me to it. "My name is Sasuke" I didn't know what to say. I didn't expect him to answer but I'm not complaining. A smile crept on my face, this is a good start.

The both of us started exploring the forest, it seems scary at first but if you took the time to observe everything, you will see the beauty nature created. He took me to an open field in the center of the forest. Words cannot describe this place.

The field is surrounded by trees, hundreds of flower are scattered around the green grass. A tiny pond with little fishes was near us, birds are singing while a bunch of squirrels are fighting over their food.

I was too busy admiring the beauty of the place that I didn't notice Sasuke lying down on the grass. He looks peaceful like that, even though I can't see his face. I want to know what he looks like.

I walked slowly towards him, not making a single noise. My hands started sweating and my heart is beating faster. When I got near him, I crouched down and slowly reached out for his mask. I can finally feel it under my fingertips, I gently lifted the mask off his face. My eyes widened in shock. He looks human!

He looks... Beautiful. I wonder what color his eyes are? Is it the color yellow? I can't believe I'm seeing his face right now. "Eeekkk!" I screamed out when he suddenly opened his eyes. His dark onyx eyes looking at me. I slammed the mask back at his face, which results to him holding it in pain.

"Ummm... I ne-need to g-go home!" I squeaked out of embarrassment. He scratched the back of his neck, nodding at me. We walked back silently, I can't believe he caught me doing that. But I kept imagining his beautiful face.

'What exactly are you Sasuke?'

Don't touch him. If you do, he will disappear.

The spirit's voice echoed inside my head. Sasuke is walking in front of me, giving me the chance to observe him. He acts and looks human, so why will he disappear if I touched him?

I didn't dare ask him, I will wait for him to open up. We arrived outside the forest, this time I was able to thank him. A goofy smile was planted on my face and I skipped back at the house. Grandpa looked at me weirdly but said nothing.

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I got to know Sasuke more and more as time passed. I spend most of my time hanging out with him. I learned that he will disappear if he touched a human. The spirits were the ones who found him in the forest as a baby.

They didn't meant any harm, they were glad that Sasuke was finally able to spend time with a human. But as time passed, I soon realized I need to leave this place.

"My parents live in the city and I need to return because of school" I said while we were watching the sunset. My vision was starting to get blurry. I didn't want to leave this place. I didn't want to leave him.

"Will you return?"

"Yeah... But only during summer"

We sat in silence, not knowing what to say. I'm not ready to leave yet. My cheeks felt wet. I started crying without even realizing it. Sasuke was about to wipe it away, but stopped. "Don't even dare" I jokingly said, I wiped the tears away. He took of his mask and laid it on the grass.

"Promise me you'll visit again"

I smiled at him. "I promise"

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And that's how it went, during summer, I'll visit him and grandpa. We became closer than ever. I started sharing stories about my highschool life. Time really flies. It felt like yesterday when he found me crying in the middle of the forest.

While I'm aging, Sasuke stayed the same. He isn't growing up, staying at that form forever. I thought we formed a sibling relationship. But I was wrong, so damn wrong.

Whenever I'm with him, I felt butterflies in my stomach. My cheeks reddening when he tease me about my love life. At first it was a silly crush, but is soon turned into love. I don't want to let him know. We can't love each other because of his situation.

I come and go, I grow up while he stayed like that. What I'm feeling right now is wrong, but it felt right at the same time.

He then invited me to a festival hosted by spirits. I got really excited. I wore a light pink kimono, with cherry blossoms designing it at the bottom. I tied my hair in a simple bun, pinning it in place with metal chopsticks that has a cherry blossom in the end. Sasuke gave it to me as a present.

We walked together, finally arriving in the festival. There was a lot of people which got me confused. But Sasuke told me most of the people here are like him. He warned me not to touch anyone. I nodded. We agreed to tie the end of the handkerchief on one of our wrist so that we won't get separated.

The festival is fun. I got to eat foods I didn't know existed. Played games and watched plays. After a few hours, we went to the open fields. It was a perfect night.

"Thank you for being my date Sakura" I suddenly stopped. My eyes widen. A date? I didn't think that he will see me as one. He took of his mask and put it on my face. He smiled at me, he went closer, my heart beating faster than ever before.

I could feel his breath on my ears, I thanked the mask for covering my reddening face. "Thank you" I felt the tears forming.

He couldn't see the goofy smile because of the mask. But I feel like he knows. We continued walking after that. There were children running around the place but we didn't mind.

We were peaceful until one child almost tripped. Sasuke was able to catch him by the arm, the child thanking him and running away.

I watched as the child went with his friends, but a sudden light got my attention. I turned to look at Sasuke, about to ask him where the light is coming from. But what I saw made my whole world stop.

Sasuke is staring at his hand, the hand he used to grab the child. It was emitting blue light which was disappearing. "Sasuke!"

No! No! No! I can't lose him now.

"That child... was a human" my tears are streaming down my face by now. Sasuke turned to look at me with a smile on his face. It was sincere, not a hint of pain is seen.

"I guess this is goodbye" he spread his arms out for me to hug him. I took of the mask and ran into his arms. Holding him tight, not wanting to let go.

"I love you" we told each other at the same time. Then I felt nothing anymore. I held his kimono tight, I cried a river. He felt the same, if only I told him sooner. I can't believe this is happening. I kept on crying, not knowing what to do. Funny how the first and last time he saw me I am crying. I looked around me, stopping at his mask.

I reached out for his mask, hugging it close in my chest. I stood up, tears staining my face. The spirits showed up, hiding behind the trees. "Thank you for making him happy, child. He finally got to feel a humans warmth"

They vanished. But unlike him, they can still return. I walked away from that place, hoping to get rid of the pain I'm feeling right now.

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I went back to the city after a few days. I didn't talk to anyone for awhile. But I know Sasuke wouldn't be happy if I stayed like that.

My face felt wet, I started crying again. I wiped it away with my hands. Luckily no one is sitting beside me. The train came to a stop. I went down and walked towards grandpa's house.

I hugged him tight, missing him dearly. I went to my room, shutting the door behind me. I laid down my bag on the bed, I opened it and saw his mask. I smiled at it. I grabbed it and went outside of the house. I went in the forest, I felt the spirits watching me.

I kept on walking, going to my favorite part of the forest. The pain I felt earlier is slowly disappearing with every step I take.

I went to the open fields, closing my eyes as I felt the sun's heat on my face.

"I promised to visit you every summer, right Sasuke?" I didn't hear anything except for the wind. I smiled, knowing he is watching over me.

I love you, Sasuke.

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Author's note: This oneshot is inspired by Hotarubi no mori e. If you haven't watched it yet, I recommend it for you to try. It is a short movie but it is worth your time. I didn't completely followed the story for this oneshot but I'm happy on how it turned out. The title is actually a song, I discovered this wonderful anime because someone created a video which shows Hotarubi no mori e with the song King. It is sung by Lauren Aquilina and I highly recommend for you to listen to it. I hope all of you guys are satisfied with this oneshot!

Written by: Cherrysanro