Leon blamed the cool air and the rush of the play for his restless feet.

He peeked up at the bleachers when he didn't think anyone else was sparing him a thought, and every time he looked he was always surprised she was still here. At the game. Wearing his sweatshirt that fit her just short of snug.

Hoooooo boy.

And now they had to win tonight. Not that the team hadn't been trying to do that since the beginning, because Northeast could suck their dicks, but this was probably Sakura's first game and like hell he was going to give a disappointing show.

So if he just so happened to play more aggressively and happened to stop an interception with a tackle so full of oomph it could rival one of the Boulder's, he could blame that on wanting to hear the howling cheers from the rest of the team on the sidelines.

::

"Looks like getting run into the ground by Redfield and your coach paid off," Sakura mused as she leaned over the barrier separating the field from the stands. There was a chain dangling from one cartilage piercing down to the earlobe, and the high neck of her forest green shirt poked out of his sweatshirt's wide collar.

Oh no, she looks like an adorable pumpkin.

"What if it was those nuggets I had last night?"

"Ah. How could I forget," she remarked dryly. "A meal of champions."

"I'm built on Sweet n' Sour sauce and this win just proved that you can't tell me any different," he shrugged. Her lips quirk, and his eyes unintentionally traced the motion.

"I think you gave someone a concussion."

"Did I look cool?"

"Taylor from English almost fainted from how much she was screaming, so I would think so."

Leon glimpsed over his shoulder and at the lingering cheerleaders across the field to see them staring his way and whispering to each other behind their poms poms, giggling every now and again. He rubbed the back of his head and turned to Sakura, who looked as amused as she could with her usual, pretty aloofness.

The first time he'd seen her was in AP World History their sophomore year. It was about a month into the year and it had already gone around school that there were a few transfer students joining this year, freshly moved from Japan and starting their first day on some day that wasn't Friday. Kiba and Shino hadn't been in the same period as her, and he'd never forget her introduction as she stood in front of the class of Mr. W's beckoning of 'you just need to say your name and a fun fact about yourself.'

Face blank, tone even, and hair shockingly pink, she'd said with just the faintest accent, "My name is Sakura Hoshigaki, and my fun fact is that I'd like to sit in the back."

"Y'know, I think one of the guys has a crush on her. He might be thinking of asking her out to the Winter Formal in a couple months," he mentioned off-handedly and shit, the Winter Formal. It wasn't really the season to have any dance-posals, but maybe around then he'd be able to ask—

"Hey, Back Row," a new voice greeted, and it took all the rest of Leon's energy not to sink down as Chris sauntered over with a half-confused smile and his black helmet tucked under one arm. "I didn't think I'd see you around here."

Sakura tipped her head. "Redfield. I was in the area."

"Huh. Well, I guess I've only really seen you in Vasquez's class." Chris turned to Leon and jutted a thumb over his shoulder. "We both ended up in art last year and sat at the same table. I had my headphones in the whole time and she'd sleep from bell to bell."

"I was awake for the macaroni necklaces."

"My sister hates that I framed mine."

"I thought that was something one of you guys did in kindergarten," Leon murmured, thinking back to the bright blue frame hanging in his friends' kitchen. "But this makes a lot more sense."

"Don't think I won't make your ass run fifteen extra laps on Monday," Chris said. Leon mimed zipping his mouth shut as Sakura's climbed up probably less than a quarter of a centimeter and... he guessed he didn't really know how he used to think that it'd be too hard to try and talk to her.

He had to admit she was a natural at appearing distant and her short replies sometimes threw others in for a loop, though in all the hours they spent over burgers or fried rice or pasta, she'd never been cold. Blunt, maybe. Stoic, definitely. But he could've spent hours sitting in the bean bag next to hers at the library, their laptops asleep on their laps as they went back and forth between Trivia Crack and 8 Ball and Draw Something, and he'd try to hide his smile whenever he got her to almost-chuckle at one of his horrible scribbles.

He blinked and re-focused when Chris snapped his fingers. "Actually, I don't think you need those fifteen extra laps. What the hell kind of steroids did you knock before the game? You sent 47 to the fucking moon."

"I just—" His gaze unwittingly gravitated toward her again, and for a split second he was drawn to dark eyes sparked with a teasing light that had him yanking his attention back to the team captain before his fingers got too jittery. Except that didn't save him from said team captain's eyebrows shooting up to his hairline. Dammit. "—y'know, had a good feeling about this game."

Chris leveled him with that same look Claire gave him when he stole her fudge stripes. "Is that what we're calling it?"

"Okay, can you be cool for two seconds—"

Sakura's phone buzzed in her pocket and she hummed as she answered the call. "Already?... Just make sure you hide everyone's keys better this time, I found Sasori's resin scorpion in the eggs... I'll be there in ten... Mm. Thanks."

She hung up and met a pair of curious looks.

"I have to go," she said, and Chris blinked at her bluntness. "Kennedy, about your sweatshirt—"

"I-I don't need it back anytime soon," Leon stammered, dutifully avoiding the stupid smile the captain's throwing his way. "Hang onto it for as long as you want."

"Then I'll see you later." She turned, then cast them one of her usual blank stares. "Congrats on the win."

She raised a hand before walking past one of the exits, and it wasn't until she was swept out of view between the milling crowd that Chris cleared his throat.

"So when did you start simping for—"

"I don't want to fucking hear it—"

::

"You gave her your sweatshirt?!"

"She could've been cold!"

"And she showed up at Northeast wearing your sweatshirt that you gave her and you haven't asked her out yet?!" Claire half-heartedly swung her notebook at her best friend. "What the hell is wrong with you? Forget Dopey Romeo, you're Dopey, period—"

Chris quietly spooned more soup into his mouth from a tupperware straight from the fridge, but his ears were keen on the drama unfolding just a couple feet away. He had the safety of the kitchen, the bastard, and Leon was this close to committing homie-cide.

"Hey, I'm trying!" He defended, though his resolve was steadily crumbling under her unimpressed glare. "I am! You're making it sound like I proposed!"

"No," Chris munched. "But you've got it so bad it's embarrassing."

"It's so embarrassing!"

Leon scowled. Sakura was—Sakura was hard to get a read on. Not that it was a bad thing, but there was no way she didn't know the flirting was totally serious. Right? Like, maybe the first few times she'd passed them off as jokes, but then why wear his sweatshirt? But he was still learning her expressions and still loving every time she smiled—wait. What?

He sunk down.

Oh god, he was embarrassing.

"I'm glad you're finally getting with the program, blockhead," Claire sighed, bopping a throw pillow against his arm. "I don't know what you're waiting for, the worst thing she could say is no."

"My point exactly."

"Leon."

"Claire."

"Chris," Chris mumbled absentmindedly as he raised the tupperware to his mouth and gulped down the remaining broth. Honestly, Leon was fighting a losing battle between the most annoying siblings he'd ever met. And the worst part about them was that they had a point. He couldn't just pine forever.

"Fine," he relented despite the dull churning in his stomach. "I'll ask her Monday."

::

Except when Monday came, neither Sakura, Kiba, or Shino showed up.

::

Monday

Me: Are u coming 2 skool 2day? [10:32 am]

Tuesday

Sakura: no [1:12 am]

Sakura: sorry [1:15 am]

Sakura: caught up in some things [1:23 am]

Me: Are you okay? [6:30 am]

Sakura: don't worry too much. you'll give yourself wrinkles [6:34 am]

Wednesday

Me: englishnotes1.png [4:45 pm]

Me: englishnotes2.png [4:45 pm]

Me: apchemnotes.png [4:46 pm]

Sakura: you don't take ap chem [4:52 pm]

Me: Some1 on the team does! U havent come bac k yet sooo... [4:53 pm]

Me: Do Shino or Kiba need any notes? I can get theirs 2! [4:53 pm]

Sakura: they're good [4:54 pm]

Sakura: but thank you [4:56 pm]

Thursday

Me: English is so borrrrring w out u [1:22 pm]

Sakura: miss me already? [1:27 pm]

Me: yes :( [1:30 pm]

Sakura: pfft [1:31 pm]

::

They were gone Friday, too.

So Leon was left dumbfounded on the edge of South High football field decked in his hazard of an orange uniform, staring at the back of the home-side bleachers and the only lone figure waiting for the start of the game. Black jeans, black hoodie, pink poking out from her pulled up hood.

A heavy hand dropped on his shoulder and shook him. "You look like an idiot, so that means Back Row's here somewhere..." Chris scanned the crowd for a moment, as his gaze landed up and far back, he smiled. "Oh, wow. Wouldja' look at that."

"If you don't shut your fu—"

"HEY BACK ROW!" His friend bellowed right by his ear. "WHAT'S UP?!"

"Jesus fucking Christ," Leon hissed, his right ear left ringing. Sakura was a bit fuzzy in the distance, but he swore her shoulders were shaking as she waved in reply. "And I'm the embarrassing one?"

"I'm not the one pre-maturely whipped."

"Why can't you just let me live?"

"You kidding me?" Chris nudged him toward the locker room before Coach had the chance to rip them both a new one for running off so close to the start of the game. Leon snuck a last glance at the bleachers as he was led away. "You've been sulking because she's been absent all week and she still came tonight. You sure you aren't already dating? Because this is ridiculous."

"Hey!"

"But you better play as well as you did last week." And here was the Captain leaking through, the joking mostly brushed aside as he embodied the spirit of a drill instructor at basic training. "Now that I know you've been holding out on me, I'd like to see at least one guy's shit pushed in."

He rolled his eyes. "Sir, yes, sir."

He knew he said Monday, but Friday night should work just as well, right?

::

Me: I dont know if ur busy but can I talk 2 u about somthing after the game? [6:51 pm]

Sakura: sure [6:52 pm]

Sakura: i'm by your truck [9:54 pm]

Leon opened her most recent text as he ducked his way out the locker room. With his duffel over one shoulder and his eyes glued to his screen, he wove around his teammates and only zipped to freedom when Chris' back faced the exit. He wasn't going to let anything get him down, and he'd finally get Claire to stop her nagging even though he couldn't just will her to come to school.

As he finally slipped to freedom of the school's parking lot. A couple students were still chatting and the traffic was starting to thin out, but he only had eyes for the person crouched by his truck's front wheel. Her hair was out of its lazy ponytail and curtained her face as she bent over her phone, the white glare of the field lights just bright enough she almost glowed.

He could feel the smile pulling on his cheeks the entire time it took him to close their distance, just him in sweats and a tee and his damp hair from his lightning quick shower sticking to his forehead.

"Hey!" He called out. "Where've you been? Your lunch table's almost—"

Sakura looked up.

"—taken ov... er..."

Fading yellow bruises splattered across the right side of her face, mottled darker along her jaw and close to the bridge of her nose. The couple cuts on her brow were scabbed over and her split lip was so close to healed that he almost hadn't noticed it. And when she stood and flexed her fingers, it gave him a full view of her calluses and the bandages that wrapped around each digit.

He dropped his duffel.

"Kiba can scare off the freshman," she said, like nothing was wrong. Like she wasn't hurt. Like there weren't a million questions screaming through his head because whatever this was must've been part of why she'd been absent for so long. She tilted her head. "What's wrong?"

What's wr—

"You said you were okay," he murmured. He raised a hand and ran his thumb across one of the lighter bruises, his touch feather light against her cheek, and... her eyes were so clear so close up. "Is that why you've been gone? You've been recovering?"

"It usually isn't this bad." She waved off his growing alarm. "Ah, my dad owns an MMA gym and hosts an exhibition match weekend once a month. I went against my friend Hidan, and we're known to go overboard."

Jesus.

He brushed some of her hair behind her ear, and from here he spied the thin, silvery scars glancing her right jaw creeping down her neck and disappearing somewhere down her hoodie. It suddenly dawned on him just how much he didn't know, about her home, her life, her past, her present. And he supposed he hadn't expected to, not when he'd still fallen regardless of all her quiet.

"So it's true?" She asked, Leon's hand gentle against her face. "You like me?"

He blushed, and he had nowhere to hide. "Y-Yeah."

Silence.

He braced himself as they stood toe to toe and he didn't dare move as much as an inch as he watched what he could of the little emotion that leaked out. She didn't look happy, but he didn't think she was upset either. Not even the least bit angry or disgusted. And when he watched her for longer, it was confusion in her small, growing frown and the way she stared at him with her dark eyes that could be maybe-almost green in the right light.

"Why?" was her reply.

It might have been the most sincere thing he'd ever heard her say.

There... That was a lot. Even in their easy conversations in the bed of his pick-up sipping hot drinks, she might have maybe mentioned her dad once in passing and never mentioned anyone else by name. And when he'd been texting her this whole week, every answer she gave him when he asked how she'd been doing generally had the same air of 'I'm well enough to be texting back, aren't I?' that he couldn't do much about. So she was secretive, was that supposed to be a surprise? He didn't start to like her because she was a puzzle that needed to be solved, he liked her because...

Well, it wasn't a hard answer to give.

"Because I'm happy when I'm with you," he said. "And if you'll let me, do you think it'll be okay if I can make you happy too?"

A beat passed between them as the last few cars trickled out of the lot.

Sakura raised a few fingers to her mouth and snorted, her eyes widening and her mouth stretching up farther than he'd ever seen it. Her face lost its sharp edges and a new sort of softness crept through, and he pressed his palm flush against the side of her face, careful to mind the pressure.

"What happens if I say yes?"

Leon's chest fluttered, and he leaned forward just as the field lights went dark.

::

Sakura: you're still awake aren't you [1:37 am]

Me: You literally arent allowed to talk [1:37 am]

Sakura: you ran for two hours. go to bed [1:38 am]

Me: Fineeeeeeee [1:38 am]

Me: Can I come see u sometime this weekend? [1:38 am]

Sakura: i'm free sunday evening [1:40 am]

Me: Pho place by the water park? [1:40 am]

Sakura: and then the boba place right next to it [1:41 am]

Me: {smiling-face-with-smiling-eyes emoji} [1:41 am]

Me: Ok, ok, Ill sleep now. Goodnight! [1:41 am]

Sakura: goodnight leon [1:42 am]

Contact Name Change: Sakura to Sakura <3

::

In the Works - part 2/4 of "the lemonade stand" series: mint limeade

Kisame spat coffee into his lap when Kiba came into the kitchen yelling about Sakura's new boyfriend.