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It was the best-kept secret of Naruto's life. Nothing ever happened. But she left her window unlocked if she wanted him and locked if she didn't. But no matter how bad the day was, the window was never locked. And every morning, he was gone before she awoke. And every night, he was there, holding her close as she fell asleep.

It was the best-kept secret of Sakura's life. Nothing ever happened, and she wasn't sure she wanted it to. She never locked her window. She did not act like it, but she waited for him every night. The nights he didn't come, she didn't sleep. She held him close with the excuse of wanting the warmth. She held him to feel his heartbeat. She held him to listen to every beat as it lulled her to sleep and know that he was strong, healthy and whole, ignoring the old Iryo-nin tradition that said if you could get close enough to feel a heartbeat there was something wrong.

There was something wrong. Every night he held onto her, felt her soft breath against his chest and watched her drift off to sleep, was a night his heart broke knowing she wasn't his. Knowing he had no chance, because her love belonged to another. So one night, he quit the slow waltz to his death.

Sakura never slept again.