Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any related characters, logos or other proper nouns.
A/N: Contrary to all evidence, I am not actually dead. I merely have been beaten with a stick (which was then shoved places it was not designed to go) by all the AP classes I'm taking this year. And as much as my fellow yaoi fanatics might want me to, I refuse to go off and die for writing SasuSaku. The summary says it all; I have no illusions that there is true love between them, except as part of a Team 7 OT3. Oh yeah, and I'll probably post an uncastrated version of this (possibly with a second chapter) on my LJ eventually.
He hasn't seen her in three years, and they've both grown. When he left, she was a pretty girl; now she is a beautiful young woman. He doesn't know if he's grown more attractive himself; he knows that his hair is longer, he's far taller, and he can feel power coursing through his veins every waking moment.
He feels strong and vital, capable of doing anything, but he is not complete. There is something missing; a longing that he cannot put his finger on, that he can hardly describe. It has plagued him more and more for the past two years; sometimes it is hardly there, but other times it is all-consuming.
Their eyes meet, late at night on a street in a village neither of them has ever called home, and their gaze holds the pent-up intensity of a million unspoken feelings, and one unexpected understanding. His eyes are drawn to the round curve of her bosom; it's hard not to stare, really, considering how she's dressed. He knows she is looking him up and down in return, taking in everything that's changed about him.
Finally, she crosses the gap between them and speaks softly. "I won't ask you to come back… that's your choice. Just talk to me for a while."
He notices her eyes are about the level of his chin now, as he nods slightly. She reaches out confidently and takes his hand, her fingers weaving between his. Her skin is warm, almost to feeling like it should be burning him, and it excites him in a way he doesn't remember it doing before. For some reason, he doesn't pull away.
She leads him to the edge of the town, to a deserted wooden pier. They walk hand in hand to the end of it, then sit down side by side on some crates. At some point, he realizes that they could easily be mistaken for a teenage couple out on a date; oddly, he doesn't mind.
She looks him in the eyes again, and he braces for some sort of teary confession, but it never comes. Instead, she tells him, frankly and without drama, of the hurt he's caused. She tells him how broken their companion is, how often he mentions Sasuke in the letters he sends. She tells of her half-hearted attempt at a relationship with Lee, and her passionate but doomed fling she and Naruto had a year ago. She tells him of her training, how much stronger she's become, and he's impressed by her knowledge of medical ninjutsu.
As she describes these things, he slowly realizes what the hunger he feels inside is: he longs for a lover's touch. And he begins to see her for the person she is now, not the weak little girl he knew long ago. And he admires this person; he wants to be close to this person. For she is strong, and not afraid to show the courage and honesty which part of him always knew lurked behind her coy façade. He has always recognized her intelligence, but now it is evident front and center as they talk, whereas before she had some fear that he wouldn't like a girl who was his intellectual rival.
And now he can't help but be drawn to the lines of her face, the sad smile which often graces her lips, the way her tongue occasionally flicks over her lips, pink on pink against creamy skin, her whole face framed by her (now slightly darker) hair.
And without even realizing what he's doing, he leans towards her, and their eyes meet again. She stops talking, but he doesn't really notice.
And then suddenly his lips are on hers, and the dam that's been holding back his need has cracked.
For her, it's the culmination of years of desire, a fantasy she's had many times, but never quite like this. It's far better than kissing Lee, but that is no surprise. It's not better or worse than kissing Naruto; it's just different. If kissing were a skill, she thinks, Naruto would probably be better at it; he certainly seemed more experienced. Where as Naruto's kisses were aggressive and insistent, moving almost straight to a duel of tongues, kissing Sasuke is a more subtle experience. Their lips touch only softly at first, but soon they begin to press harder. After a moment, though, he presses harder, and the sensation overwhelms them. He leans further towards her, wrapping an arm around her, but the kiss is still dry and chaste. She realizes then that he has no idea what to do, and decides to give him a little help. Tentatively, she opens her mouth and slides her tongue out, slowly running it along his bottom lip. Once he understands what to do, his lips part, and they slowly explore each other's mouths.
Eventually, they part. Another moment of lustfully gazing into one another's eyes ensues, and they both are breathing heavily.
"Sasuke…" she begins, still panting slightly.
He makes one of his quietly expressive grunts, somehow imbuing it with pure lust.
"Stay with me… just for tonight?" She looks hopeful, but on the inside she has braced herself: she will not let him hurt her.
Eventually, he nods, and they walk off into the night. Somehow they both believe, or at the very least, they hope that she is leading him back to himself.
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