Disclaimer: All the characters used in the story are owned by Masashi Kishimoto

A/N: First fanfic ever so please be kind! Enjoy reading and don't forget to review!

Naruto couldn't believe it. This isn't real, he thought as he stared at a piece of paper in front of him. All of his plans - plans he had conceived in hopes of attaining his much-longed for dream – seemed to have crumpled underneath his very feet. All of his idiot-proof plans seemed to have been crushed. And all because of what? A simple, seemingly harmless invitation?

He shook his head "No, no, NO!" Au contraire, the letter was evil. I ought to burn it, he thought vehemently. His fingers shook as he started to reach for the paper, carefully taking in the ornate gold frames and the elaborate print. The teme was telling the truth, for once. He took an extra gulp of air before starting to read the contents. For good measure, he thought.

You are cordially invited to witness the engagement of

Itachi Uchiha

And

Ino Yamanaka

September 23, 20xx

21st floor, Konoha Towers

15th Avenue

Hosted by the Uchiha family

Naruto's eye twitched. Oh God, no. THIS. CANNOT. BE. HAPPENING. He can feel beads of cold sweat forming on his forehead as he continued to stare at the revolting piece of paper. Except, no matter how much he used the Uchiha glare that he learned from his best friend, the paper was still in his hands. It didn't burn. It was still fucking there and it was driving him crazy! Naruto had loved Itachi all his life. He just couldn't accept that Itachi will be someone else's in two weeks time!

This must be a dream. Yes, that's it. This is a dream, Naruto silently kept intoning to himself, trying to convince himself that all of this cannot be happening in real life. This is just a dream, some kind of nightmare, right?

Sasuke silently stared at his best friend while the other was preoccupied by the piece of paper. It has been a while since the blond had opened and read it. He had expected Naruto to make a fuss, yet the person in question was quiet. Or just plain shocked. Hn, he's probably thinking of burning it, Sasuke thought. Predictable ass.

He knew that Naruto had been in love with his older brother ever since they met and that Naruto had plans to snare Itachi after gaining enough courage and confidence. He clearly remembered that day when Naruto suddenly asked him on how to make Itachi love him back. It was out of the blue, but what else would you expect from the blond idiot? He even helped Naruto create those stupid plans. But then again, they didn't expect this sudden turn of events.

Sasuke continued watching Naruto. It had been minutes and Naruto still hadn't looked up from the paper. He probably can't believe it's true, Sasuke said to himself as he watched the latter do the famous Uchiha glare aimed at the paper, Heh, it's not going to burn no matter how much you glare at it. Stupid. He can just read how the blond's mind was working.

"Naruto," Sasuke called out, and slowly, as if possessed by something, the blond looked up. Sasuke could see the hopeful question in the other person's cerulean eyes. He shook his head slowly. "No dobe, this isn't a dream."

Naruto felt like a truck had just hit him after hearing those words. He had already slightly recovered after telling himself that Itachi getting engaged is really far from reality. But no, the bastard had to ruin it. That bastard he had once proudly proclaimed as his best friend even said the words Naruto didn't want to hear, with a straight face at that! "No consideration, no hesitation at all!", he mumbled grouchily. "I hope you get lost in the Sahara and piranhas tear you and your duck hair from limb to limb!"

"Your university education's useless if you still haven't figured out that piranhas don't live in the Sahara, stupid blond,"Sasuke replied drily, taking a small sip from his almost forgotten coffee as he furtively glanced at the nearest mirror. Duck hair, looking perfect as usual. He didn't like admitting he was self-conscious about it. "And besides," he continued, "I was just telling the truth."

"Bastard..." Naruto gritted out, which Sasuke just rolled his eyes at.

"You know," Sasuke started again as he continued to sip, clearly enjoying his cooled coffee, "Instead of getting mad at me, which I have no idea why since none of this is clearly my fault, you should be worrying about Itachi's engagement."

Naruto's shoulders slumped. Of course, he knew that Sasuke wasn't the one at fault. "But," he mumbled, "that's not helping me either." 'He's still getting engaged to some weird, unknown girl. Butt-ugly too, I bet.'

Sasuke sighed while putting down his cup of coffee. "Hn."

Somehow, amidst Naruto's chaotic mind, he interpreted Sasuke's 'hn' as 'You have no choice but to accept it, it's the truth after all.' He suddenly felt hopeless. And he rarely felt hopeless. He didn't like the feeling of hopelessness, not one bit. He hadn't fully accepted the truth but what can he do?

Sasuke stared at his best friend who was simply staring at his own cup of now cold and stagnant coffee. Sasuke let out a heavy sigh. He wasn't used to seeing the blond like that. He was much more used to seeing Naruto smiling like the dobe he was. "Naruto."

Naruto looked up, expecting to meet Sasuke's eyes, only to get his forehead flicked by Sasuke's index finger.

"Wha-"

"Dobe! I thought I already told you before that it's no use for you think. You have no brain after all." Sasuke scolded.

"Bastard! What are you saying that I have no brain!? Everyone has one!" Naruto half-shouted. Luckily, they were the only ones inside the café. Sasuke hid a smile. Those lines never failed to get that reaction out of the blond.

Naruto continued, but this time in a much-hushed tone, "But yeah, you're right. Maybe I don't have one." He's stupid after all… No matter how much he squeezed his brain for something, nothing would just come out. No juice. Perhaps I really can't do a thing about Itachi's engagement.

Sasuke facepalmed. He hadn't expected Naruto to agree with him on that one. "Dobe…"

Naruto carried on looking down at his coffee as if nothing happened, wallowing in self-pity.

Silence reigned over the two after that only to be broken by Naruto's minute-after-minute sighs. Ten, twenty minutes passed. Sasuke finally had enough. "Naruto."

This time, Naruto didn't look up. Still, Sasuke continued. "Dobe, stop acting like it's the end of the world." Still no reaction.

Sasuke sighed. "To tell you the truth, I don't know why you're making such a big fuss over this." Naruto looked up at that. What? How could Naruto not feel depressed over Itachi getting engaged?

"What do mean by that?" Naruto asked in a small voice.

Sasuke shrugged. "It's just Itachi's engagement, after all."

"Just an engagement party? What do you mean by 'just an engagement party'? My life's already ruined!"
"Honestly, how on earth are you still even alive if you're this slow? I meant, it is JUST an engagement party."

Yeah, it's JUST an engagement party. It's not like Itachi's already married. Naruto eyes widen at the realization. "Then what do I do?"

"Congratulations, the Wizard of Oz finally gave the scarecrow a brain." Sasuke smirked as he picked up his cup of coffee in thought. "Hn…"

Something inside Naruto lit up again. It was hope. And hope got him edging over his seat as he watched Sasuke savor his coffee. Nevermind the insult to his intelligence, even though that still hurt, Sasuke, you bitch.

Sasuke stopped sipping for a second and asked, "You remember those idiotic plans you created to make Itachi yours?"

"Of course," Naruto sniffed, " And no, idiot-teme, my plans are not idiotic!"

"Oh, shut it. And heh, I believe it's never too late to put those plans into action."

TBC :D