Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any of it's characters.
It was the typical party after the typical show.
The base player, with his black hair, black eyes, and dark, mysterious persona, was getting all the girls. The lead guitarist, with that strange pony tail of his, was making out with his girlfriend who always tagged along while they were on the road. The drummer, was sitting around eating, and eating, and eating, while his girlfriend sat next to him nagging about his eating habits.
The blonde singer sighed, 'I thought the singer was supposed to get all the girls...' Not that he wanted all the girls, just one in particular. She's been following them since Chicago 2 months ago. He took another swig of his drink, some mixed drink someone handed him, he wasn't sure what it was exactly, but he knew he could taste rum. He liked rum. He watched the object of his buzzed thoughts, sitting with the rest of the fangirls, fawning over his life long friend Sasuke Uchiha. He sighed again as he ordered another double shot of tequilla. He liked rum, but he liked tequilla more, especially when he was feeling down.
"Oi, Naruto, what's wrong?" asked Shikamaru Nara, another of his friends he's known from childhood. In fact, all four of them had known each other since elementary school. Their drummer, Chouji Akimichi, and Naruto Uzumaki, always went out for ramen when they were home.
"Ah, Shikamaru, it's nothing..." Naruto replied.
"Sure doesn't look like nothing," Temari, Shikamaru's girlfriend, replied, hanging onto his arm, looking a little typsy.
Forcing a smile, "Hey Tem, how as the show tonight?" he asked.
"It was good, you did great up there!" she replied with a reasuring smile.
Grinning sheepishly, while rubbing the back of his head, "Gee, thanks, that means alot to me."
"Hey Tem, wanna head back to our hotel room?" Shikamaru asked.
"Sure, it's getting late anyway. Seeya later Naruto, hope you feel better," she said as she leaned down and kissed him on the cheek.
"Bye Shika, bye Tema, don't stay up too late!" he said to his two friends with a sly smirk on his face. Temari returned the smirk and dragged her boyfriend out the door.
After the two left, the smile left Naruto's face as his thoughts returned to his loneliness, and his drink infront of him. A sudden crash from the corner of the room, draws his attension. He looks out the corner of his eye to see a girl crying, running away from Sasuke. As he turns his head and sees that it's the pink haired girl that they had met in Chicago. She was wearing a forest green blouse and skirt that matched her tear filled eyes. Seeing her tears, he turns to his friend and notices the scowl.
"Damn Sasuke, do you always have to be such a dick?" Naruto asked his raven haired friend.
"What do you care loser?" the basist replied.
Naruto walked over to the crying girl, "Hey, don't worry, he's like that to everyone."
"I'm fine, it's alright," she told him, tears still rolling down her face, trying to wipe them away with the heels of her hands.
"I'm Naruto Uzumaki," he says, as he wipes away ya stray tear she had missed.
"Sakura Haruno," she said between sniffs, "and everyone knows who you are," she added with a smile, sticking her tongue out at him.
"Hehe, ya, I guess so. Hey, you want to go get something to eat? I know this good ramen bar nearby," he proposed with a smile.
She wiped the last of her tears away, smiled and nodded, "Sure, why not?"
As they walk down the street, they talk casually, about random things. A soft breeze blows down the street, causing her to shiver in the night air. Without missing a beat, he takes his black and orange jacket off, and drapes it over her shoulders. She is slightly shocked at the sudden jesture, and blushes slightly. 'He's so much nicer then Sasuke is. All Sasuke did was knock the gift I made him into one of his empty beer bottles.'
"Hey Old man!" Naruto called out as he sat down, Sakura sitting on the stool next to him.
"Hey Naruto, it's been a while, how've you been?" the shop owner replied. "I've heard you've gotten pretty big, but not too big, it seems, to come back to this old dump," he added with a smile.
"Old man, you know you make the best ramen in the world!" He complemented. To this the old man smiled, and took their orders.
After 3 bowls, and 2 beers Naruto sat back and turned to his pink haired companion. "So, Sakura, how'd you hear about our band?"
"Well, my friend that I work with, Tenten, went to high school with your manager Neji Hyuuga. She told me about you guys, and that I should go to one of your shows." she said, finishing her ramen, sipping on her 2nd beer. "After your show in Chicago, I met Sasuke in a bar, and he started to flirt with me, and told me I should follow you guys. We went on a few dates after your shows, and at the stops along the way. But he just seemed to just get drunk and pissed off at nothing." she said looking away, trying to hide the pain the memory brought. When she saw the blonde tense up, with concern and a hint of anger in his deep blue eyes, she added, "Don't worry, he never hit me. He would just... yell at people... at me."
"It's not all his fault," Naruto said, "His parents were caught in a gang shooting when he was 8 years old." Sakura looked at him shocked. "His older brother had joined a local gang to get some 'easy money,' and a rival gang came to their house... looking for him." Naruto added, looking away.
"That's so sad," she replies.
"He's really not that bad, he just acts like a jerk, to hide his pain. Well, it's getting late, can I walk you back to where you're staying?" he asks.
"I'd love that," she answers with a smile, feeling tipsy.
They walk down the sidewalk, chatting and laughing along the way. She, softly at first, lays her head on his shoulder while they walk, leaning a little more on him with each step. He turns his head slightly, looking at the top of her head out of the corner of his eye, smiling gently. Suddenly, she turns her head up, to face him, blushing softly. She pushes herself up, her eyes closed, pressing her lips against his.
A little shocked at the sudden kiss, Naruto hesitates for a moment, before gently kissing her back, putting his arm around her shoulder. A moment after they break the kiss, he feels her weight slump against him. Realizing she had passed out, only a block from her motel, he carries her, bridal style, the rest of the way.
As he reaches her room door, he manages to fish her room key out of her purse and pushes the door open with his foot. Carrying her inside, he shuts the door with the same foot, and uses his elbow to turn the light switch on. He gently lays her on her bed, and removes her shoes, before covering her with the bedsheets. Looking around the room, he finds a spare pillow and blanket in the closet, choosing to lay on the floor.
Ring, ring, ring, ring
Naruto rolled over.
Ring, ring, ring, ring
He moaned, and reached out for the source of the noise. Finding his cell phone a foot away, he opens one eye enough to check the caller ID, and find the connect button. "Wha?"
"Naruto? This is Neji, where are you?" the voice on the other end asked.
"Neji? I'm sleeping," he replied.
"Well you're not in your room."
"Of course I'm in my room, where else would I be?"
"I don't know, but I'm standing in your room right now, looking at your bed, and you're not in it."
Naruto opens both eyes, hearing a soft snore somewhere nearby. Sitting up, he looks around to find the source of the snore. Realizing he's on the floor, he stands up, and finds a pile of pink hair on the nearby bed. "Now I remember, I went out to get ramen with that girl Sakura, from the party after the show. I was walking her back to her motel room when she passed out. I was kinda worried so I stayed here with her."
"Naruto, while I'm happy for you, if she's asleep, it's rape," Neji said with a hint of concern in his voice.
"I didn't do anything with her. I set her on the bed, and I slept on the floor," Naruto replied. "Besides, you know me better then that. You know I wouldn't take advantage of someone like that."
"Yeah, you're right, but I still have the fear that Sasuke has rubbed off on you."
A sudden shift on the bed draws Naruto's attension, hearing the sleeping girl begin to stir from her slumber.
"Neji, I gotta go, she's starting to wake up," the blonde said.
"Well I just wanted to let you know that we're hitting the road for Los Angeles in 4 hours, don't be late," Neji said before hanging up.
Ring, ring, ring, ring
Sakura curls up into the bedsheets.
Ring, ring, ring, ring
She hears a soft voice, a familiar voice, but she can't place it.
The voice is talking to someone. She rolls over, trying to escape the noise, and continue sleeping. The voice continues, quieter now, soft, and friendly. The voice makes her feel warm, and safe. Something soft touches her forehead, moving some hair that had been itching her nose. As the hand grazed over her cheek, she leaned her head into the hand, nuzzling it gently.
After a few moments, she stretches, feeling sleep leaving her, eyes slowly opening.
"Neji, I gotta go, she's starting to wake up," the voice says, before a soft beep.
As her eyes adjust to the light streaming in from the window, she looks over to see who had been talking.
"Good morning," Naruto says as he meets her soft green eyes.
Closing her eyes again for a moment, she realizes who it is, that is standing next to her. She suddenly sits up, eyes wide open. "Wha-what are you doing in my motel room?" she asked surprised. 'And without a shirt on... oh my god, tell me we didn't... I didn't want it to be like this!' Her thoughts flooded her mind, as a tear formed at her eye.
A soft smile formed on his lips, as he wiped away her tear with his thumb. "You don't have to worry, we didn't," he said in a soothing tone.
She looked up at him, astonished "You mean... we didn't sleep together?"
"Nope," he replied with a comforting smile, "I'm not going to take advantage of you like that."
She looked into his eyes, searching for any hint of if what he was saying was a lie, all she saw was sincerity unlike any she had seen in her life.
"You wanna go and get breakfast, after you wash up? I'm leaving in about 4 hours, and wanted to talk with you somemore."
She nodded, and got up, walking to the bathroom, stopping to look back at the blonde boy, blushing slightly. She grabbed the things she would need to bathe and get dressed, and entered the bathroom, turning the shower on, and stepping under the warm water.
Naruto splashed some water from the sink on his face, and ran his wet hands through his hair, before picking his shirt up and pulling it over his head. He heard the water in the shower turn off, and walked away from the bathroom, sitting at the small table on the other side of the motel room.
She soon emerged from the bathroom, looking refreshed and awake. "You look beautifull," he said with a smile.
"But I don't even have makeup on," She replied with a wierd looke of confusion and disbelief on her face.
"Bah, you don't need it, you're beautifull enough as you are," he insisted, seeing her blush at the compliment. She was wearing a green t-shirt, and blue jeans, her pink hair still damp.
She walked over to where he was sitting, and leaned down, lightly kissing him on the cheek. The sudden kiss caused him to blush, staring straight ahead with widened eyes. His mouth hanging open slightly. She giggled softly at him, "Who would have guessed that Naruto Uzumaki of Rasengan would get flustered this easily." His blush only deepened at her teasing.
Desciding to turn the tables on her, he stood up quickly, pressing his lips against hers. As he pulled back, he had a smirk on his face, seeing her blush this time. "Common," he said after a moment of silence, "let's go get breakfast!"
Shaking her head slightly, "Yeah, let's," she replied with a smile.
On their way to breakfast, her hand drifted, causciously, towards his, and his drifted towards hers. When the backs of their hands touched, she started to pull her hand back, but was unable to before it was caught in his. He held her hand gently, mentally remarking at how soft her skin was. "What will you do after we leave here? I can't imagine that you still have that much vacation time to spend following us around like this," he asked.
"I don't know really. Origionally I planned on returning after the show last night, but..." she replied.
"But?"
"I'm not sure if i want to anymore."
"What do you mean?"
"I think I want to stay with you," she said with a blush.
"What about your job? And your friends, and family?" he asked, concerned.
"My job is nothing special, it's just a retail job at clothing store. I was looking for another job anyway. And as for friends and family, my friends will understand, and my family is spread all over the place, only my Aunt lives in Chicago."
"What will you do for money then?" his voice still full of concern for the rose haired girl.
Looking disheartened, she looks down at the ground.
"I have an idea," he proclaims, startling his companion, "Maybe you can get a job with Temari. She works as a graphic design artist, and she makes stuff like posters, and t-shirts for us on the side."
Sakura perked up at the idea, smiling hopefully at the golden haired boy. "I'd love that," she replied.
The two walk hand-in-hand down the sidewalk, walking towards their future, together.