Promise of a life time
Chapter 1 –Our first encounter.
The young boy stood by the playground, full of children's laughter. Everyone seems to be having fun, leaving the boy completely ignored. The children ran around in circles, playing all types of games they could think up of until the sun begun to fall. One by one they were greeted and led away by their anxiously hovering parents. He stood still on the same spot and watched the children each clutching on their mother's hands and eagerly recounting the adventures with their newly made friends, making their way out of the playground and back home. The street lights blinked and clouds gathered as exploding thunders and flashes of lightings covered the sky. The boy sat on the swing while heavy rain drops fell onto the earth, soaking everything in sight. His spiky blond hair and body was all soaked through, but he could care less. He rocked himself on the swing gently as he watched people without an umbrella rushing through the storm to find a shelter and house wives carrying bags of groceries, heading back home in a hurrying speed.
Soon after everyone is out of sight, a brunet ran into the playground, carrying an umbrella above his head. He hurried over to the blond and held his umbrella above the blond's head. The blond raised his head up and met an eye contact with the brunet.
"Are you alright?" The brunet asked in concern.
The blond nodded his head slowly, looking away.
"You're soaked… Are you cold?"
The blond again nodded, looking back down onto the ground.
The brunet reached his hand out, offering help to the shivering blond.
"I'll take you to my home for now, come with me!"
The blond felt that the brunet is harmless and gladly accepted his offer, took his hand and they walked under the same umbrella, back to the brunet's home.
They came to a stop infront of a door and the brunet knocked on it.
"Coming!" There came a voice of a lady and footsteps getting louder as she went up to the door. She opened the door and greeted the brunet with a smile.
"Ah, Sasuke, welcome home! You brought a friend along?"
"I'm home. Mom, I saw him sitting in the huge storm so I thought I should offer some help to him, he's soaking wet." Sasuke then placed the dripping wet umbrella by the door and took the blond's hand, guiding him into the living room and settled him on a chair.
The female walked into a room and took two towels and handed it over to the two boys before bending down infront of the blond, smiling sweetly at him.
"Hi there, what's your name?"
The blond timidly answered before continuing to dry himself up with the towel given, "Naruto… Uzumaki Naruto…"
The female nodded, "I am Mikoto, Sasuke's mother. Where are your parents? Won't they be worried knowing you're missing?"
Naruto stuttered, not knowing how to answer to her question.
"I- Uh…"
"Mom…" Sasuke glanced over at Mikoto, asking her not to ask so much through his expression.
Mikoto smiled and patted both of them on the head, "Okay, I'm sorry. Naruto, would you like to stay here for a night? We have an extra futon here, you can share a room with Sasuke."
"Sure!" Naruto beamed in excitement, which that is his first time staying over in someone's house.
"Alright," Mikoto giggled at Naruto's reaction before standing up and heading towards the bathroom. "I'll go get the bath ready before you guys catch a cold."
"Okay." They answered in unision.
And that was Naruto's first friend ever made, Uchiha Sasuke.
During the time spent in the bath, Sasuke's father, Fugaku came home. Both of them dried themselves up before putting on their clothes. As for Naruto, he borrowed Sasuke's clothes for the night. Naruto and Sasuke joked, laughed and played together, and soon became good friends.
They walked into the living room and saw Fugaku sitting on the sofa by the television, reading newspapers.
"Dad, I brought a friend here." Sasuke would then urge Naruto to greet Fugaku.
Naruto walked up to Fugaku and bowed. "Good evening…" He timidly looked up at Fugaku. Fugaku laid the newpapers a side and nodded at Naruto.
"Dinner is ready!" Mikoto raised her voice as she laid dishes after dishes on the dining table. Naruto would take a peek at the dishes on the table while his mouth watered.
The family would allow Naruto to sit with them and have dinner together. The laughter of family's joy filled the whole house. "Feel free to eat as much as you want, there is still a lot of it left." Mikoto smiled as she watched Naruto wolf down the bowl of rice.
For the first time, Naruto felt so welcomed by others.
After the dinner, the children will be ordered to bed to get ready for school for the next day. Sasuke guided Naruto into his room and laid an extra futon by his own. "You'll sleep here tonight."
Naruto nodded and grinned, "Thank you."
The laid on the futon in the dark as silence followed.
"Hey," Sasuke said as he stared at the dark ceiling's room.
"Yes?" Naruto answered.
"Why were you sitting in the storm?"
"That…? Oh, it was nothing." He laughed sheepishly.
"You looked really sad, did something happen?" Sasuke asked in curiousity.
"No, I'm just bored." He lied.
Soon after a long pause of silence, Sasuke stood up and switched the lights on. Naruto covered his face with the blanket and turned away. "Look at me!" Sasuke raised his voice, feeling angered. Naruto would refuse to move and remained silent.
Sasuke would pull the blanket away by force while Naruto covered his eyes with his left arm. Sasuke would notice a flow of tears by Naruto's cheeks while the blond sniffled softly, barely able to hear him at all.
"Why?" Sasuke questioned.
"I was lonely… I lied, I have no parents… I'm lonely." Naruto sobbed uncontrollably as the tears soaked the sleeves of the shirt.
Sasuke would settle himself beside Naruto and take in a deep breath before grabbing the blond's hand. Sasuke squeezed Naruto's hands tightly before removing them from Naruto's eyes. They met eye contacts with each other, noticing their reflection in each other's eyes.
"From today onwards, you won't be alone anymore!"
Naruto tilted his head, looking at Sasuke, feeling confused.
"I mean… I won't let you be alone anymore, you have me!"
Naruto blinked before smiling and hugged the male tightly.
Sasuke blushed and choked on his words, "H-hey! Uh…"
Tears filled up the blond's eyes again. But this time round, it's the tears of happiness. Oh, how could he describe the feeling bubbling inside his heart after being alone for years?
"Thank you, for that I won't be alone anymore,"
"Thank you..!"