Naruto trudged back through the village, it'd been a long week and there was nothing more that he wanted that a shower and his own bed. Of course the mission had taken longer than expected, nothing all that unusual anymore. As he inched closer to his apartment he felt a sense of relief, knowing he was just that much closer. Unlike most people, Naruto seemed to be slowing down as soon as he saw the familiar building, but something wasn't quite what he'd expected. He caught the barest of light shining through the back window, brighter than it might normally seem, the lack of other light made it stand out.
When he noticed it Naruto picked up his pace heading for the stairs as fast as he could manage in his exhausted state.
"Iruka has a key, but he wouldn't still be there this late…" Naruto mumbled to himself trying to figure out where the light was from.
He fumbled through his bag as he dragged himself up the stairs, almost tripping on the last step as he focused on the door just a few feet down. He slipped the key into the keyhole after missing it just barely a few times first.
His sense of danger eluded him as he opened the door to see what was awaiting him.
There at his table sat three things, a bowl of ramen, most likely from Ichiraku's, a cake, candles burning low, and Sasuke, asleep resting on his arms. Naruto smiled softly closing his door behind him. He could tell he was really late with the candles almost burned into the cake, the source of light he'd seem minutes before.
Naruto stared at the scene for a few minutes processing it all. A few hours ago it'd still been his birthday, and this cried out present. Sasuke had probably assumed he'd make it back before the night was out, since for so many years Naruto had tried to be overly excited for the day.
It was the day when most people looked at him with more distain than usual since it was the same day as the Nine Tails attack, but he worked hard to counter their hate with equal exuberance. When he'd grown closer to Iruka, the man always made his birthday special, a cake baked especially for him and a few presents here and there. He guessed it was something that Iruka felt was important to a child, the teacher spending more than his fair share of birthday's alone.
Sasuke grumbled in his sleep as he started to bury his head into his arms. A light chuckle rang through the silent room as Naruto walked towards his sleeping friend. He pet his hand through the dark hair, leaning on the table. The head beneath his hand started backing into the pets as Sasuke groaned, eyes fluttering open. He jumped back when he saw the blonde haired teen standing next to him.
"You're back" Sasuke said surprised, at which Naruto couldn't keep a straight face.
He started laughing, not quite able to respond right away, "Yeah, I'm back. How long have you been waiting?"
Sasuke looked around noticing the candles as he looked for the clock. "A few hours, Kakashi took Iruka home about 2 hours ago. I lit the candles just after that…"
Naruto looked at the cake again, noticing that it was definitely a signature Iruka one, just like usual. He smiled at Sasuke again before responding, "Want to spend the night, you look like you might pass out if you walk home." He said as Sasuke's eyes agreed with him, closing involuntarily as they talked, "Not to mention you seem to be a little loose lipped," He teased the usually silent teen.
"Hnn, sure" Sasuke responded with a usual Uchiha glare, making a point to say as little as possible this time. He got up disappearing into the darkness near the bed.
Naruto looked at the table. The cold ramen, no matter how much it hurt to say, just wouldn't keep, but he'd take care of it in the morning. He turned to the cake; candles still barely burning, picked it up and headed to the fridge. Just before putting it away he looked at the candles and took a deep breath, and blew them out. He placed it into the fridge as he followed into the darkness of his room, mumbling to himself.
"Happy Birthday to me," he said with a soft smile ready to pass out in his bed.
AN: As nevis said "Written for the "Cold Ramen Challenge" on Banana Pajamas – For Naruto-kun's Birthday. Drabble 1,000 words or less utilizing one of the following: Ramen, cake, and/or Sasuke."
Got a bit inspired by the pure name of the challenge, but it was fun to write.