Cut Your Eyes

A/N: Welcome to chapter three! No apologies 'cause I finally updated my other fic (insert drunken cheer) THANK YOU to everyone who commented...I'm sort of at the airport or I'd look up all your wonderful names and list them to show my gratitude!

Chapter three brought to you by Katy Perry 'I kissed a girl' (why didn't anyone tell me about this song earlier?)Natasha Bedingfield 'Who knows', and all those awesome people who left comments for chaps 1 and 2.


Chapter Three...

The next day’s paper read ‘ADA Uchiha Threatens Press’ and had one enormous picture of Sasuke waving a sheaf of papers and an empty file folder, surrounded by the chaos documents being swirled by a sudden wind.

Sasuke was not a happy person when he slammed into his office to find a slew of stress balls, bags of de-caf coffee (and not even a brand he liked), and a dart-board on the wall of the anchor who had taken the ordeal straight to television. There was a small TV set up on his desk that showed the clip;

“And in Local New there was somewhat of an altercation between our usually poised ADA Uchiha and the press.” She looked to the side and the clip played. Sasuke watched himself suddenly getting up close and personal to the lights and the camera, his hair flying in all directions and his face flushed as he scowled ferociously…Sasuke hung his head, sighed and picked up the complementary Advil and glass of water on his desk as he listened to himself rant.

“-confidential papers! You *beeeeep* use one *single* *beeeeeeeeep* line and you’ll find yourself in the drunk tank getting *beeeep* faster than you can ‘*beeeeeeeeeeee –and-eeeeeeeee-your-eeeeeep’*. I swear to *beeeeep* Christ *beeeeep*…. don’t give me that beeee-and-eeeeeep innocent look! I can see them shoved down your shorts and your beeep isn’t big enough to bee-a-eeeep a sheet let alone a folder! Take them *out* of your pants, you sick* beeeeeeep*…and out of *your* underwire, there’s already enough padding as it is you little *beeeep* and you can both go *beeeep* your *beeeeeeeeeep* mother… get the hell out of my way! *beeeeep* reporters, I swear to-”

Sasuke knew that somewhere his brother was laughing himself sick.

The television faded back to the blonde who was smiling at her co-anchor who said, “We can only assume that ADA Uchiha picked up those expressions while he was the Warden at Konoha Penitentiary.”

The blonde smiled and looked down at a paper, “The official statement from the District Attorney’s office states that while they do not agree with or approve of any part of ADA Uchiha’s statement, that they are going to strongly suggest that their most capable attorney use some of his accumulated vacation time. They ask that the public remember that ADA Uchiha has been the lead attorney in a long list of recent high-profile cases, and also that he has succeeded in every instance to ensure the safety of the public.”

She straightened the papers in front of her, and looked up with a grin saying, “Personally, I would suggest someplace warm.”

The entire set burst into laughter before the show could cut to commercial.

And finally the DVD ended. Sasuke went over to take the disk out and smash it into a billion pieces and found an envelope resting on the top. He sighed heavily but opened it up, fully expecting to find the date to a disciplinary hearing, but instead there was only a short note. ‘Look in you desk drawer’.

Sasuke went to his desk drawer to find a travel guide and a fist-class ticket to Hawaii, and under them a list for reservations at one of the better hotels on one of the less-visited islands.

The door opened and Sasuke turned to see DA Tsunade leaning against the frame with a small smile and a raised eyebrow. Sasuke sighed, looking and feeling far, far too pathetic.

“Is this part of my resignation package?” Sasuke dropped the papers on his desk and Tsunade rolled her eyes and walked in, closing the door behind her.

“You wrestled the Orochimaru case from the feds, got a sociopath to plead guilty, picked up Kabuto and destroyed his black-market organ exchange,” She was ticking them off on her fingers, “Nailed Kidomaru on his underage porno and generally being a sick-as-fuck pimp, ripping the case away from the feds *again*, and pretty much intimidated the shit out of the gangs in this state and beyond…you think I’m going to *fire* you?”

“Um,” Put that way Sasuke’s anxiety did look a little ridiculous. He glanced down at the tickets again, “Where did these come from?”

“Our sweet little senator,” Tsunade smirked, “and a few other grateful parties, vetted to make sure they didn’t belong to someone who wants to kill you. And, of course, the mayor who’s feeling a little hot under the collar…” Tsunade raised an eyebrow, “Rumor has it that the DA is worried she’s going to be kicked out of her job by a little genius upstart.”

Sasuke frowned, “I don’t want your job.”

“Of course not,” Tsunade laughed, “you have far too much fun doing what you do now, but-”
She stepped closer and leaned forward a little, whispering, “Rumor also has it that the DA is looking to be the next mayor…and elections are up in a year.”

Now *that* could be something to look forward to. The current mayor was vicious, but Tsunade was too. It’d be an interesting war and Sasuke certainly wouldn’t mind getting involved in a few battles. It must have shown on his face because Tsunade looked suddenly triumphant as she stood, still keeping her voice down.

“You could still fight the good fight as DA, Sasuke, and who knows…you might be itching for a padded seat in D.C., and the DA, or mayor, would be a great place to start.”

Sasuke flushed, far too excited by the thought. Itachi was the genius family lawyer, taking the corporation international…but if Sasuke applied himself…Sasuke grinned, a sly little smile and Tsunade laughed.

“That’s what I thought. We’ll talk it over when you get back from vacation, so get your rest. We’ll have plenty to do to get to elections.”

She left the room and Sasuke looked down at his tickets, feeling much better about the whole ordeal. He was good at his job, so good, in fact, that his life in general was starting to get a little boring.

Sasuke would go on vacation, enjoy himself, and then come back and scheme with Tsunade. He picked up his tickets, locked his door, and after a few grinning goodbyes, went home and packed his suitcase.

****

Sasuke slept so deeply on the flight to Hawaii that when the stewardess woke him the plane was empty and it took him a few seconds for him to remember where he was and why the lights were so bright.

“Sorry,” He murmured, trying to get the creases from the chair off of his face. He wiped his cheek and frowned, looking down to see that half of his shoulder was wet. Sasuke flushed so brightly in embarrassment that the woman giggled and said, “At least you don’t snore, right?”

He nodded back but that didn’t stem the urge he had to crawl into a hole and die. The very second he was out in the terminal he took his damp coat off and let it hang off of his forearm as if he had intended to wear it that way all along. Sasuke looked around and was surprised to realize that he was drastically overdressed. The maw of humanity where clad in mostly neon colors, some hung with strings and strings of bright flowers around their necks. Sandals scuffed against the ground and white, pasty legs were proudly revealed to the world. The men were clad with large cameras swinging on their rounded bellies and the women wore elaborate straw hats coupled with enormous sunglasses.

Their spawn were mostly screaming, whining, or looking at something juicy and green on their finger. Sasuke had to fight his gag reflex a little when that finger disappeared into a mouth sticky with candy.

Sasuke exchanged an understanding nod with a man in a three-piece, hoping that he didn’t look quite as shell-shocked as he loosened his tie for the heat. A woman laughed, a long braying noise, and Sasuke shied away like a startled colt. He kept his eye on her as he walked by, hoping to be able to brace himself in time for a repeat performance. Thankfully she was still listening intently to a rambling joke as Sasuke rounded the corner.

The signs above weren’t particularly helpful and he got lost a number of times. Sasuke finally saw the baggage claim as he was stuck on the escalator with no way to run back through a number of men and women blocking the way with their luggage. Sasuke had to go down another escalator, up a few steep steps, and by the time he made it to his terminal it was just in time to see his single black bag, caught helplessly in reds and greens and yellows, stickered and ribboned atrocities, make a turn and disappear around the side.

Everyone from the plane who had gotten there before him had formed a single mass, a human wall around the oval conveyer belt. He tried to get through it a few times, using his most polite language and only raising his voice to be heard above the crowd, but all he got were a few looks. The front row was continually surging forward and, finally triumphant, usually tossed their massive, heavy luggage behind them to their nearby relatives.

Sasuke got clipped on the face by a Minnie Mouse car seat and finally lost his temper.

Mothers put their hands over the ears of their children, men blanched, and a security officer started walking forward with his hand on a taser, but Sasuke finally got his bag. He clutched it to his chest with an enormous sigh of relief and walked right past the officer and out the sliding doors, ignoring the one sudden hysterical laugh that followed.

****

“I’m sorry, sir, all we have left is an adjoined twin, will that be alright?” Sasuke looked at the woman and wondered what he’d done in his previous life to deserve his day of hell.

“This is supposed to be a vacation-” Sasuke sighed again, holding his head up with his hands, his elbows on the desk. The hostess frowned in such a way that Sasuke knew she was completely sympathetic and not just fucking around with him.

“It could be only for three nights,” She promised, “We’re sincerely sorry for the mix-up with the reservations, we had some important guests drop by suddenly…” She whispered the names and Sasuke couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows, finally nodding in agreement. He felt, suddenly, like he should be apologizing to *her*.

“My father has done business with…them,” The receptionist’s eyes widened and Sasuke leaned closer to whisper, “If their kid starts making trouble drop my name. Neji’s a complete prick, but if he thinks he’s being watched by someone important…”

“The maids have been up there five times already, and they just came in,” She grinned so widely that Sasuke was a little dazzled by the sparkle. “The girl’s alright but the kid and the father-”

“Hinata is pretty sweet,” Sasuke smiled, thinking of the shy little girl he’d played with as kids, “Just get someone to say that they heard a rumor that Itachi and Fugaku Uchiha are around. That’ll make Hiashi shit his pants. They might even leave.”

The girl snorted and then put her hands over her mouth, blushing, before giggling. She looked over to her boss and back with a sly smile.

“If they do leave you might find yourself in the executive suite,” She winked but then she sighed, “but in the meantime…”

“The twin is fine,” Sasuke shrugged and signed the paperwork, “I’ll just keep the adjoining door locked.”

“Wonderful, now, if you have any problems ask for Ino.” She smiled again, very pretty even in her uniform, “In the meantime food service, movies, and local calls will be comped. Please enjoy your stay Mr. Uchiha.”

Sasuke grabbed the little plastic card that passed as a key and left, watching out of the corner of his eye as the manager stood up straight, looked his way, then back at Ino and yelled, “Uchiha!? Which one?!”

Sasuke got in the elevator, ducked his head, and smiled.

***

Just as he was about to put the key in his door it opened to reveal a sweating waiter, huffing softly as he gasped, “Mr. Uchiha, compliments of the manager,” and swept his hands to reveal a room full of fresh flowers, sumptuous bed covers, and two large bottles of iced champagne with what looked like caviar and other dishes set on the cheap-looking desk. Sasuke leaned his head forward and saw that there was movement in the bathroom too.

“You’re fast!” Sasuke blurted, amazed. It had taken him roughly five minutes to get from the first floor to his room. A girl came out of the bathroom, bowing with her counterpart, and Sasuke said, “Hold on a second” and tried to find his wallet.

“No thank you, sir.” They both bowed, smiling. “Compliments of the house are entirely free.”

“Bullshit.” Sasuke stood in the doorway so they couldn’t get out and handed them each two hundred dollar bills. He might not make a lot of money at his job, but he *was* an Uchiha. The manager had jumped into action for a reason.

They both took the bills, eyes wide, as Sasuke murmured, “I wish I had more-” and they stared at him as if he were god, descended down from the heavens.

“Here, wait,” Sasuke grabbed a chilled bottle of champagne and handed it forward, “It’s not like I’m having company.”

“Thank you, sir-” they started off again, but Sasuke just waved them out the door with a smile, locking it firmly behind him.

Then Sasuke walked forward, toed off his shoes, and collapsed face first into his bed.

***

There was a knock on the door around eight just as Sasuke was getting nice and settled with CNN, taking sips of champagne from the bottle. He ignored it but whoever it was knocked again, so he rolled his eyes and went to open the door in his boxers and his socks. Sasuke peeked his head around the door and winced at the light in the hall.

“Oh, god,” Ino was standing in front of the door, looking mortified in a slinky black dress.

“Um,” Sasuke kept behind the door, perking up at the sight of the receptionist looking *very* different out from behind the desk. “I was just about to take a shower,” he lied lied lied, and she sighed in relief.

“Well, I caught you just in time then.” She smiled and opened a small purse, handing him a single business card.

“I’m inviting you to dinner tonight, courtesy of the manager.” Ino smiled again, and put her hands behind her back nervously. It was attractive because she wasn’t trying to coquettish, just beautiful and eager to please. Sasuke smiled and looked at the card. He usually blew off the management but he was on the island to enjoy himself and tuck away ADA Uchiha for a little while.

Sasuke looked up and lied again, “I have a girlfriend Ms. Yamanaka.”

Ino leaned forward again and leaned over to wink and whisper, “Then we have something in common, Mr. Uchiha.”

Sasuke smiled and from Ino’s laugh she hadn’t seen the usual male lasciviousness at such a confession. Then Ino arched an eyebrow, “You didn’t look down my shirt even once.”

Sasuke opened the door and let her in, flipping on the lights so it didn’t look like a cave.

“Is it that obvious?” He wandered into the bathroom and was pleased that he didn’t look haggard and bloodshot, but his hair was going to be irredeemable no matter what he did.

“Well,” Ino settled on the end of his bed and poured herself some champagne, “Only to someone who knows what to look for…I’m sure with a briefcase and a tie you pass easily, but most guys don’t whisper at a girl without taking a peek at the twins. Don’t worry, I won’t tell.”

Sasuke walked back in his slacks and his good, grey-blue shirt. He put on his cuff-links and said, “Don’t worry, I don’t care.”

“Oh?” Ino crossed her legs and bounced on up and down, her heels abandoned at the doorway.

“Out and proud?”

Sasuke snorted and slid on the corresponding tie, “Angry and unapproachable.”

“You don’t seem too mean,” Ino tilted her head and said, “No, the other tie tack, silver.”

Sasuke did as he was told and asked, “Have you committed a felony lately?”

Ino’s eyes widened and she said, “Noooo, I don’t think so.”

“Then I think I can contain the festering rage,” He said wryly, “I’m an ADA in my own state. People are too intimidated to even try, men or women.”

Ino burst into laughter, apparently delighted, and Sasuke finished dressing. He escorted her down the stairs on his arm to the delight of the manager who gave an unsubtle wink and bowed back.

“Pig,” Ino murmured through grin.

They picked up a cab and Sasuke was extremely relieved that the silence was a companionable one, and he sighed deeply, letting himself finally believe that he was actually truly half a country away from the people who would be gleeful if he accidently caught a bullet with his head. He watched the scenery go by and remembered the little things he had enjoyed by just being Uchiha Sasuke, stuck-up rich kid from upstate. Yes, he got special service, but it wasn’t because the establishment thought he was going to rain down the law like some vengeful god of justice.

And besides, growing up Uchiha…he was pretty used to the kid gloves and respectful bows.

They arrived at the restaurant in about half an hour at a little piece of land that seemed to be separate from the main island’s tourism traps. The façade was lit dramatically with torches and Ino guided him past the line and right through them, winking at the man who pulled away the velvet rope. Inside the hostess took them to a table a good ways from the musical entertainment and in a nice, secluded corner. There was already a woman there waiting and she stood to give Ino a peck on the cheek.

“TenTen, Mr. Uchiha. Mr. Uchiha, Ten Ten.”

Sasuke nodded and was allowed to help them both with their chairs, Ino murmuring, “The feminists got some things wrong…what’s wrong with letting the guy do all the work?”

Sasuke took his own seat and picked up the menu, “Call me Sasuke. Mr. Uchiha makes me feel like I’m in front of a reporter.”

“Of course,” Ten Ten gave him a smile, and brushed her long brown hair over a shoulder. “Ino tells me you’re a big-shot, Sasuke.”

Sasuke put the wine list down and said, “I am, in fact, a big shot.” And moved on to the dinner menu, making a wry note that none of the dishes had prices next to them. He’d gotten used to chilli dogs and Chinese takeout and the excess felt like a little bit much.

“Don’t frown at the menu, Sasuke, it’ll give you wrinkles.”

“Hm.” Sasuke looked at the menu and the wine list and then back again, trying to remember what went with which. He realized it was all in French and his frown deepened as interpretation got stuck in the mix. Tilting the thing into the light of the tea-lamp didn’t help at all.

“Good god,” Ino reached forward and snatched both away, “Just let me do the talking, Mr. Big Shot.”

Soon they were being served with good wine and appetizers that made Sasuke’s eyes widen. It was all he could do to not shove it all in at once, as he realized how hungry his wild trip through the airport had made him. The girls laughed at him and only nibbled, chatting about this and that and people Sasuke didn’t know. They seemed content to let Sasuke enjoy himself in silence, appreciating the delicacy of the quartet and the happy atmosphere.

Warm with the wine and halfway through his fillet mingon Sasuke was half asleep again when a sudden flash of gold made him sit straight up in his seat, nearly upsetting the glasses on the table.

“Sasuke- What?” Ino looked where Sasuke was staring and looked back in confusion.

“Just- Just wait-” Sasuke got free of the table and disrupted the entire room by running to the doorway

He turned the corner only to find a young woman with short, golden hair and a startled look on her face. It hurt more than he thought it would when it wasn’t blue eyes he was looking into, not tanned skin and silver scars.

The feeling of regret was akin to the moment Sasuke had felt Gaara’s hands around his throat and knew that he was about to die.

“Can I help you?” The woman was under the arm of her husband…boyfriend…it didn’t matter.
Sasuke made his apologies about the misunderstanding and knew he looked absolutely pathetic when both the man’s and woman’s face softened before he could turn his back and walk away. It seemed the whole room was staring at him as he walked back through the restaurant, but Sasuke pulled his cool composure on, gave a few hard glances, and suddenly everyone found their dinners to be intensely fascinating.

Ino sat back down as Sasuke took his place again and stared sightlessly at his food. He didn’t bother, he knew it would taste like ash in his mouth after the backlash of memory.
He hadn’t even thought…he’d just sprinted away from the table in a ridiculously refined restaurant at just the hint that…Sasuke closed his eyes and took a deep drink of wine, grateful, so grateful that neither woman made a comment while he pulled himself together.

After a while Sasuke could open his eyes and be safe from the grip of sorrow, but he still waited, wary and sipping from his glass. When he opened his eyes Ino looked worried, her hand on her girlfriend’s arm.

“Are you alright?”

“Fine,” Sasuke pushed his plate away and wished he had someone to put in jail.

“Are you sure?”

“No.”

Ino looked over to Ten Ten who shrugged.

“Do you want to leave?”

“Give me a minute.” Sasuke sighed and resisted putting his face in his hands and just-
He tried to stop, he clenched his jaw, bit hard on the inside of his cheeks, but the room went blurry. His place setting melded together and Sasuke turned his face towards the window.

After a long few minutes Sasuke finally gave up and whispered, “I want to go back now. I’m done.”

“Alright.” Ino took his arm and they walked carefully through the tables as Sasuke found he was a little too drunk for navigating by himself. When they finally made it outside, Ten Ten was holding the door of a town car open and after a quick kiss with Ino they were off, driving down the slithering road. They were at the hotel and in the elevator when Sasuke finally put his hands over his face and desperately grasped at just a little more – a little more…Ino whispered her concern but Sasuke just wished her goodnight, stumbling into the bedroom and shutting the door with a hand.

Then he sat down, leaned up against the wall and cried himself back to sleep.

***

The sun seemed to have a different quality on the beach. It seemed brighter, warmer, and it probably was considering that Sasuke lived in a place that had the regular temperature of one of the inner circles of hell. After a few giggled offers to put lotion on his back Sasuke put his shirt back on, feeling sticky and uncomfortable in his trunks and sandals. It was just too hot.

He had been informed that he had arrived during one of the lulls of the tourist season but Sasuke couldn’t tell. It seemed every patch of sun was already taken up by either a sprawling family or a group of toned twenty-somethings playing volleyball. Sasuke watched in fascination as bikini tops stayed in place even during a few gymnastic moves that probably weren’t regulation.

“Enjoying the show?” One of the girls sidled up to him and he pushed her gently out of his personal space. She didn’t seem to mind, in fact when he touched her-
“
I was just wondering how those girls manage to keep their tops on.” Being away from anyone who knew him gave Sasuke a delicious bite of anonymity. He could pretty much say or do anything he liked because no one knew who the hell he was.

“Well,” The girl giggled, leaning in as close as she could, “They come off for the right hottie…want to see my apartment?”

“Do you have a toned young man hiding there?”

For a moment Sasuke stood, stunned that the girl had actually *slapped* him…and then he burst out laughing, watching as she stomped away to a group of cat-calling co-eds. She said something to them, arms crossed in anger, and they listened for a moment before bursting into laughter too, their hands going up to keep kicked sand out of their eyes. One of them you men who was, in fact, toned pointed to his own chest and mouthed ‘my place?’

Sasuke just batted the proposition away, shaking his head with a smile as he slogged back through the sand and wondered why he didn’t have half that much fun during the University years.

When he finally, finally found a place to sit away from the general mass of insanity it was in one of the less beautiful parts of the beach. Sasuke wasn’t really there to swim, he just put a towel down, took his shirt off, and made absolutely sure his corpse-white skin was covered with three layers of sun-screen, and then opened his book. It was dry reading for sure, one of the more obscure law manuals, but he dutifully went through each chapter with his red pen.

After a few hours the heat finally got to him, before his eyes could lull shut he took another swig of water, put his book over his face, and fell asleep to the sound of water lapping against the rocks.

Sasuke dreamt of odd things; walking through the penitentiary only to find it empty, his feet echoing, he was at his desk making paper airplanes while Sakura prattled gibberish, and then the dream he’d been having more often…reaching over his bed and finding no one there and being afraid, very afraid. He woke up a few hours later feeling scratchy and weird and panicked about how long he’d been sleeping under the sun. Sasuke pushed his book off and sat up to assess the burn damage…only to find that he’d been covered with another towel.

No one around seemed to watching, no one thought it odd to see him sitting up covered in towels. There was no one he recognized from anywhere, no note, just a thin blue towel with dolphins swimming over the fabric.

He called out to the woman sitting closest to him and caught her attention long enough to ask, “Did you see the person who left this?”

She looked up, searching her memory as her children arrived muddy and wet to crawl over her and their pristine blanket.

“Nope –Johnny don’t –sorry –I just told you- didn’t see anyone- you’re going to be in such trouble when your father-“

Sasuke sighed and looked back at the towel but it gave him no answers. He stared out at the ocean for a long, long time before walking through the waves and jumping in the water.

Next up...know-it-all brothers, a little too much fun with the natives, and a Hyuuga Industries/UchihaCorp showdown...sasuke-style
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