This is my new story, Jelly Babies. Do not ask why i have called it that, i have no proper answer.
beleive it or not, this started out as a 'The Girl Next Door' story but that's too mainstream.
This is an AU, beware of the OOC. Also i've made it first person, following both Sasori and Deidara, why? because i can and i wanted to and so i did.
WARNINGS: eventual Yaoi/Shounen-ai = SasoDei & other Akatsuki pairings. Deidara and Itachi actually getting along. Itachi talking. don't like don't read.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto/Shippuden or any of it's characters. if i did, Sasori and Deidara would've skipped the Kazekage Rescue arc and gotten married instead. No Jelly babies were eaten in the writing of this story.
JELLYBABIES
CHAPTER ONE – Deidara's P.O.V
The fight with my parents – or my step father, to be specific – is a really long, dull story. To sum it all up, my father is a prick, he's always hated everything I've done, even if I haven't done a whole lot of respectable things in my life, I still think I should get recognition for trying. And well, my mother, she just goes along with what he says, she's weak that way I guess. Thank god I didn't inherit that weakness; I don't think I'd be able to live with myself if I just blindly followed what other people said.
That's one thing – among many – that I hate about society. They say you've gotta stand in line, listen and do what you're told, you've gotta blend in.
Whatever, I don't believe any of that.
We should all be individuals; we should all make our own ways in the world.
But that's not what this story is about.
See, after my parents kicked me out, I had to find another place to stay, I didn't have a job or any money, and practically all I had were my clothes and my jelly babies. I ended up having to move in with my old high school buddy, who unfortunately lived halfway across the country. I'd be paying that one off for years.
Itachi was waiting for me when I got off the plane, I was extremely grateful for him taking me in but I just knew he was going to force me to get my life together. Personally I didn't see the point in living a life I knew I wasn't going to enjoy.
I'd much rather be a hobo then have a job.
"'sup?" I said once he was in hearing range, I had only one bag besides my carry on and it was easy enough to spot among the usual black and brown bags. Mine just happened to be yellow.
"You haven't changed a bit since high school," he commented, looking me up and down with onyx eyes.
I rolled my eyes and said, "Well you're one to talk, un."
He looked just as I remembered him; long dark hair tied back loosely with bangs that framed his face, pale skin and obsidian eyes, not to mention the strange lines going down his face which he insisted weren't wrinkles.
"Ah, but the difference is, I've grown up."
I gave him a challenging smirk and said, "oh yeah un, how's that?"
"Well, I've got a job."
"Uh-huh."
"I've got my own place."
"Yeah…?"
"And I've got enough money to take in my lazy bum of a friend."
I shook my head, "no way, I'm way more grown up then that, un!"
He gave me a disbelieving look rather than voicing his skepticism and I tried to think of something that made me more mature then he was. No job, no money, no employable skills, I lit fires for fun and went through at least one pack of jelly babies a day – hey, I love jelly babies, they're like little jelly bundles of happiness.
"Hah, I got it un! I can burp the entire alphabet!"
"Without stopping?"
"Without stopping, un."
"Go on then."
So I stood there, in the middle of the airport and burped the entire alphabet, only losing track of which letter I was up to, twice. When I was done, Itachi didn't look impressed. He was definitely amused, but not impressed.
"You're still just a kid."
I decided to ignore his comment, for the time being. After all, we were going to be living with each other now, so there would be plenty of time to get him back. We went outside where his car was waiting, all the way on the other end of the parking lot. He drove a black Audi, a pretty nice car for someone who claimed to work as an assistant.
"You should get a motorcycle," I said absently once we were in and I had located my jelly babies.
"Those are dangerous."
"Well, live dangerously then."
Itachi gave the smallest of smiles and said, "That's what I have you for."
It was true; I had lived more on the edge when we were in high school, always getting into trouble in and out of class. They called me an attention whore – though some of them just called me a whore – but I didn't mind at all, bad attention still counts for something, after all. And center stage alongside me was mine and Itachi's best friend, Hidan, another bad influence, attention whore type person, though he went above and beyond and not always just to get noticed. Some of the things he did were scary.
Tobi usually came along for the ride with us, he wasn't necessarily a friend so much as he was a fall guy, but still fun to have a round. And Itachi, when he didn't have anything better to do – which was most of the time – would let us drag him down with us.
Lots of good mucking around in school did me. But even if I had the chance to relive it all, I don't think I'd change a thing. Actually I'm just glad I didn't end up in prison like Hidan.
The car stopped outside a five story brick building, it looked pretty old and just by looking around I could tell we weren't exactly in the good part of town, but I suppose it was better than living under a bridge.
"This it, un?" I asked, getting out and staring up.
"Uh-huh," he kept the car running and didn't get out. I looked back at him questioningly and he said, "Can't park here," in explanation.
I nodded, "I'll head up then, what number?"
"13B."
I headed inside, my yellow backpack slung over my shoulder and my carry on full of jelly babies suspended on my other shoulder. I was disappointed to see there were no elevators and decided right then that I might not leave the apartment very often.
The walls were a simple beige colour and the floors a sickly grey, there were sections where dry wall had been torn away and the original brick work was visible. On the left wall were the mail slots and at the end of the narrow little room were the stairs. A single light hung in the middle of the room and a security camera was positioned where it would get a perfect view of the room, probably to look over the single bike someone had left out here.
I began my climb.
There were four doors in each hall I went through, all a bright orange colour. Each hall only illuminated by a single light. I saw a few people; an old woman and her dog, what looked like a teen mum and her kid and what I'm pretty sure was a drugged up hooker.
I was definitely going to fit in here.
Our room was on the fourth floor and the entire hall smelled of smoke. Our apartment was the first door on the left. I walked up to it, happy to finally have somewhere to live; I reached out to open the door when I realized Itachi had neglected to give me a key.
Dammit!
I banged my head against the wall a couple of times, thoroughly frustrated, until it started to hurt, at which point I decided to just sit down. With my back pressed against the wall, I repositioned my bag so I had better access to my jelly babies. My iPod was flat, unfortunately so music would have to wait, but as long as I had my candy I was happy.
I sat contently, waiting for Itachi and ignoring the sound of a door opening, I could only imagine the kind of neighbors you'd get in a place like this.
"You waiting for someone, Ms.?" the voice sounded bored and as though the person didn't really care whether I answered or not. I heard the all too familiar sound of a lighter and the hall was soon filled with the smell of fresh smoke.
I frowned, not looking up but feeling anger swell under the surface.
"actually un, I'm a boy," I said, trying not to let it show that not only was I angry, but I got that sort of thing a lot.
"Sorry," he said, not sounding very sorry at all. He paused to exhale a thick cloud of smoke before continuing, "It's just that, you look really feminine, especially with that long hair."
Without really meaning to, I puffed out my cheeks, pouting down at my jelly babies. My hair wasn't that long.
"So are you waiting for Itachi?" the guy asked.
"Maybe I am, un, what's it to you?"
"He's out, probably won't be back for a while."
"Are you trying to get rid of me, un?"
"Clever kid," the guy said, "if Pein sees you out here… well it won't be pretty. Really I'm just looking out for you."
By then I'd had enough and looked up to yell at whoever was talking to me like I was a child, but before I could, Itachi interrupted.
"Sasori, I thought you had given up smoking."
I caught a glimpse of red before my attention was stolen by Itachi.
"Quitting isn't in my nature."
My eyes flitted between the two; my own roommate looking on with his kind obsidian eyes, and this sexy stranger – god I'd only been here ten minutes and I was already starting – with bored chocolate brown eyes and blood red hair.
"Just don't let Pein catch you," Itachi warned.
Sasori only nodded in response, barely sparing me a second glance.
Itachi pulled out his key and began to unlock the door. Moments later, I was inside but my new red-headed neighbor hadn't once left my mind.
Sasori's P.O.V
I entered my apartment, placing the light down on the counter and heading to the fridge, in the hopes of finding it fully stocked but instead finding only inedible trash and cans of Pepsi. I would've had one to substitute a meal, but I had done that for the last three meals and was already fighting down sugar hype.
"What took you so long?"
My roommate sat on the couch watching one of those crime shows, for some reason he got really into them.
"I was meeting or new neighbor," I said casually.
He turned around, eyes sparking with interest, "'Tachi's roommate?" he asked, I nodded and he said, "So what's he like?"
I shrugged, "looks like a girl," I said, "seems like a brat. Nothing to worry about."
Kisame smiled, showing off his sharp teeth, before going back to his T.V shows.
I knew I should probably go shopping, but I had to wait for my pay to get transferred.
As for the whole situation with Itachi and his new blonde roommate, well I could only hope the kid didn't get in the way or anything. I liked my life the way it was – well, most of the time but I tried not to think about the times I hated it – and I didn't need some brat coming in here and ruining that.
I could remember when Itachi first moved in; the apartment next to ours was the only one vacant, the poor boy. It was about three days after he moved in that Pein noticed him, the results of that particular meeting would've been worse had Kisame not taken an immediate liking to the kid, now he's one of us.
He's alright I guess; quiet most of the time, polite as well and he makes Kisame happy. I suppose Pein has softened some since I met him, but I couldn't see him accepting this one in as well; he doesn't like many people, hell he barely even likes us.
This new kid, he seemed like a loud one, defiant as well and I guess that aspect of him was sort of exciting.
I didn't recall ever hearing his name though we all knew about him; we all knew how he and Itachi had gone to high school together and how he had been kicked out of his parent's house. But that was all any of us knew.
Right then as I stood in the kitchen, contemplating whether or not to order out and give the delivery guy an IOU, I wasn't sure whether I felt unprecedented hate for the kid or curiosity as to who he was, but I made a conscious decision right then to keep as far away from him as I could.
It scared me – and I won't admit that to anyone else – a little the way his image remained fresh in my mind, even if I'd only caught a glimpse of him. I even began to up play the depth of his visible blue eye, the glow of the hair that covered his other eye and hung back tied in a loose half ponytail, his annoying speech impediment, the childish smile he gave his jelly babies.
Whatever. What kind of a person eats jelly babies, anyway?
"Hey, why don't you sit down?" Kisame asked, snapping me out of my thoughts and cancelling my inner monologue, which could've gone on forever.
I shook my head, "I think I'm coming down with something, I should probably go lie down."
With that, I walked off to my room, praying deep down to any deity that would listen, that I really was just coming down with something.
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