Essentially Essential
@pianocoat held a special writing session recently on the SasuHina Month discord server where participants learned about the “essential scene” in writing. Part of the class was to create an essential scene in 20 minutes. Aside from giving me high anxiety from the surprise exercise, pianocoat was an excellent instructor. 😜 Thank you, pianocoat!- And with that, I present my contribution.
Essential Things
Background: After Sakura breaks up with Naruto, Hinata attempts to provide him some solace. Although in a stable relationship, Sasuke allows his jealousy to get the best of him, and he starts an argument with Hinata. It has now been days since they’ve last spoken...
~~~~~~~~~~
The silence in the large, empty room is only broken by rhythmic ticking of the second hand of the old grandfather clock.
Sasuke sits on the couch, staring blankly at the tv screen where nothing plays.
He hasn’t seen her in days. Hasn’t heard her voice in so long he begins to hear her in his mind.
“Come eat your dinner, Sasuke,” she breathily whispers in his ear, except she’s not there.
RIIINNNGG
The noise is blaringly loud, interrupting his sulking.
By the second ring he picks up.
“Hello?”
“Sasuke!” The urgent voice on the other end calls out.
“Naruto?”
“Yeah! It’s Hinata. Something’s happened.”
His heart speeds up and fear seizes his body and floods his veins with ice.
“Where is she?” Sasuke demands.
“She’s at the hospital Sakura works. She…”
Sasuke released the phone. No more words needed, and he was gone in a flash.
He drove in a blaze of panic and fury in the dark of night. Blowing past red lights with screeching tires, ignoring the pissed off drivers who cursed and flipped him the bird.
Parking at the entrance of the hospital, uncaring of it being a tow-away zone, he ran through the entrance. Cutting off several other customers in line, he slammed his palms on the receptionist’s desk and gruffly stated, “Hinata. Hyuga.”
“Sir, you’ll have to wait your turn.”
“Get me the room number for Hinata Hyuga or so help me I will-“
“SASUKE!”
Turning abruptly, his anger and panic melted seeing the very person he sought. Rushing to where she stood, all he wanted was to wrap her in his arms, but at the last minute he refrained. Remembering how they left things.
Stopping a comfortable distance away, his eyes scanned her from head to toe, noting nothing out of order.
“What happened?” He asked.
Her eyes turned soft at the thinly veiled worry in his tone. “I was staying with Sakura, and I have not been eating well. Naruto came over to apologize to her and while I was cleaning up, I fainted.”
He let out a deep sigh. “Are you okay?”
Her unexpected caress to his cheek left him feeling undone. She asked, “Are you?”
Relenting, he admitted, “I’ve missed you… and I haven’t been eating well either.”
She smiled.
He grabbed her hand from his face and kissed her palm.
“Sasuke?”
“Mm-hmm…”
“There’s one more thing.”
Pulling her into his arms he said, “I don’t care. I’m just glad you’re okay.”
“Mmm.” She hummed. “Sasuke, we’re going to be parents…”
The End