Sasuke sat with his head between his hands. An endless flow of people walked passed him casually, a few stopped and tried to talk to him, but their voices sounded so distant, so unimportant. The white hospital walls started to close in on him when a women in a blue robe walked over.
"Sasuke? Sasuke please look at me." The women crouched down to his level and pried his hands away from his tear streaked face. His eyes bored into hers, the pain and disbelief in them was no surprise to the women.
"Ms. Shizune, where are they?" Sasuke whispered desperately. Shizune bit her tongue and sighed.
"I'm sorry Sasuke, there was nothing we could do. They were…..gone, before they arrived at the hospital. I'm so sorry." She repeated quietly to the thirteen year old boy. He gazed at her for a moment, before he screamed in grief, pulling at his hair as fresh tears slid out of his eyes and onto his pale cheeks and shirt.
"No, no please." He whispered to himself more than Shizune. She held back the tears that threatened to escape her own eyes. "I want to see them." he said a bit louder. Shizune shook her head sadly.
"I'm sorry, but Dr. Tsunade wants to check you for any injuries. Then after that, Ms. Kurenai is going to pick you up, and take you to the Foster center." She stood up and offered him her hand. He glanced at it, but stood up on his own and walked in front of her.
XXX
"Sasuke this is Kurenai, the women in charge of the Foster Center." Tsunade introduced Sasuke to a tall woman. She had a classic beauty, long nose, black hair, pale skin. Sasuke was transfixed by her blood red eyes.
"Hey." He said quietly, slinging the duffle bag of his belongings farther up his shoulder. Shizune had went to his house while he was being examined by Tsunade and filled a bag with clothes, a photo album, the key to his house, a large amount of cash she found in his drawer, a locket with his mother's picture in it, and Itachi's necklace that had a red cloud that symbolized the gang he had joined when he turned thirteen.
"We should be going, so he can settle in before everyone returns from school." Kurenai said, placing a hand on his shoulder lightly. "When does he have to return for a follow up?"
"Hm, well he doesn't have any serious injuries. Bring him back in about two weeks, and ask for me." Tsunade ordered. Kurenai nodded in understanding, glancing down at Sasuke momentarily before returning Tsunade's gaze. "And Sasuke?"
"Yeah." He asked looking up at her through his uncut bangs.
"The pain? It gets better after a while." Tsunade whispered as she hugged him tightly. Sasuke felt something in his stomach coil and tighten around his heart as he gently hugged her back.
XXX
Kurenai gently guided Sasuke to a small tan Volvo, and popped the trunk and threw Sasuke's duffle bag inside beside a larger yellow bag.
"That's full of other things that we brought from your house." She explained when she saw him staring at it.
"Who said you could go in there?" He asked in a low tone. His voice had taken a more defensive, dark, and angry edge than before. Kurenai flinched at the change, but was used to the mood swings of newly orphaned teenagers and recovered quickly but choose not to answer.
"Get in, you can sit up front if you like." She said softly and walked around to the drivers seat. Sasuke froze, his skin paled and his raven eyes darkened.
"No." He said, stepping away from the car. Once again Kurenai looked up at him, wondering what had gotten into him. Most orphaned teenagers ran to the car as if it were the only thing keeping them sane.
"Sasuke…" She said, taking a step towards him.
"I'm not getting in that thing!" He snapped, stepping further away from the car with each word. Kurenai bit her lip. I should have expected this, she thought, after the way his parents died its only natural that he should react like this.
"Sasuke, it's alright. I can promise you that nothing will happen while I'm driving." She tried again to approach him. He ran forward quickly, grabbed the duffle bag, and ran back again.
"No, I'm not getting in one of those things ever again!" He snapped. Kurenai sighed, but continued to walk towards him.
"Sasuke, you're not thinking clearly. How do you plan on getting anywhere if you don't get in a car. The Center is more than an hour walk away. And your house is not even in the same district." She tried to reason with him, but he ignored her.
Turning on his heels he ran blindly towards the highway.
"Sasuke!" Kurenai dashed after him. She was normally able to catch up to anyone, but Sasuke wasn't just anyone, and her high heels were making it excruciatingly hard to jump over curbs. The boy kept on running, quickly changing directions and running towards a large shopping complex on the other side of the road, filled with hundreds of teenagers enjoying their summer break. Kurenai stopped when he disappeared into the crowd. Cursing she turned back to the hospital and drove off to find him.
XXX
Sasuke stopped momentarily after running with no direction for twenty minutes. He took in deep breaths of air, then slouched against one of the brick wall that made up Ramen King. Slipping his bag off his shoulder he stuck his hand in the opening. Pulling out the ruby red locket in the shape of the family crest and his brothers necklace Sasuke set the bag to his side. Unclipping the chain, Sasuke slipped the locket on the necklace. It jingled when it ran into the cloud. Sasuke moaned when he felt his stomach growling. He hadn't eaten since yesterday morning. The day of the accident.
Sasuke brought the chain around his neck and clipped it in place. Leaning his head against the wall he closed his eyes tightly, trying to forget everything that happened in the past two days.
Someone cleared his throat loudly in front of him. Sasuke didn't open his eyes, he already knew who it was.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be taking over my father's job?" Sasuke growled.
"Shouldn't you be at the Orphan Center with Ms. Kurenai?" The lazy voice asked, as the man came closer. Sasuke didn't flinch when the man took a seat next to him.
"Kakashi, I don't need your help if that's why you're here." Sasuke growled at him, finally opening his eyes. The white spiky hair was the first thing that Sasuke noticed of course, then the man's lazy eye and mask.
"Then why did you freak out when Kurenai asked you to get in her car?" Kakashi asked, watching the people walk by. Sasuke looked down, the green and brown leaves fell gently around them.
"I didn't freak. What are you even doing here?"
"I was actually waiting at the Center, for you." He added the last part quickly. Sasuke snorted. Kakashi shook his head. "When Ms. Kurenai called and told me what happened I rushed over here. You're kind of predicable like that, I knew you would be over here. It's where Itachi abandon you five years ago." There was silence for a moment.
"He didn't abandon me. He had to go, and it wasn't safe for me to go with him then is all. He told me that if I ever needed help, then to wait here for him, and he'd send someone to come and get me." Sasuke said quietly, pulling his knees up to his chest.
"And take you were? To the Akatski head quarters? Where you'll have to steal and murder to pay rent? Sounds like he really cares about you if he's willing to jeopardize your safety to such a level." Kakashi said darkly.
"You don't understand." Sasuke sighed. Kakashi nodded.
"That's true, I've never had a brother, so I don't know how you feel. So why don't you tell me something I can understand, like what happened between you and Ms. Kurenai." Kakashi turned to face Sasuke this time. Sasuke only glared harder at the ground, twisting his hand so it caught a leaf that was slowly falling to the ground. Holding it between his fingers he twisted it in the light.
"Nothing happened. I don't have anything against her if that's what you think."
"No, no I didn't say that." he paused, then continued in a quiet whisper. "What happened yesterday? I know what the police guessed at, but you're the only person alive with the real story." Sasuke stiffened.
"No." he growled, crushing the leaf in his palm. It made a crunching noise before he turned his palm to the side and dropped the smaller pieces to the ground.
"Sasuke, look at me." Kakashi ordered sternly at him. Sasuke grunted and turned, glaring at him. "It won't get any better until you talk about it."
"Who says I want it to get better. Even if I did, why would I want to talk about it with you?" snapped Sasuke. Then his face fell into a regretful frown. "Besides what if it hurts to much to talk about it?"
"Well to answer your first question would you rather talk to me, your godfather, or some stranger who is getting paid by the hour? And to the second one, the sooner you talk about it the less it will hurt later." Kakashi said lightly, placing a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. The boy's body began to shake and jerk as he let out uncontrollable sobs. After ten minutes he used his arm to wipe away stray tears, Kakashi murmured comforting words and rubbing his back while he did.
"It wasn't their fault," Sasuke whispered when he had control over his body again, "When we came onto the bridge, some guy in a Volvo swerved into our lane. I think he was either drunk or suicidal. Father tried to drive around it, but the truck hit our bumper. The people who act out car wrecks in movies are way off, we started spinning and smashing into other cars. Mother started screaming…." Another tear fell, "And she threw something back at me, and told me to swallow it."
"Did you?" Kakashi interrupted quietly.
"Yeah. It was some of her sleeping medication, I think. Father let go of the steering wheel when another car toppled over us and it's tire slammed into the dashboard. His head snapped to the side and hit the door. There was so much blood." Sasuke whispered, squeezing his eyes closed as he tried to force the picture out of his head. "Mother stopped screaming when some kind of pole shot into the car, and hit him in the chest. He started coughing up blood, and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. And he stopped breathing." Sasuke's eyes glazed over.
"Then what happened?" Kakashi urged him.
"Mother just stared at him. The car jerked to a stop as a couple of cars boxed us in against the rail. It started creaking. I was so sure we were going to fall, but she did something. I know she was the one that pushed me through the glass and out of the car." Sasuke said, looking Kakashi straight in the eye.
"Sasuke," Kakashi said, "She couldn't have done anything, she was in the front, she wouldn't have been able to get to you." Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he glared at him, he jumped up and stared down at Kakashi.
"No, it was her!" His voice choked. "It had to be. After what she said…..It had to have been her." Sasuke said it with such finality, Kakashi didn't dare argue.
"…..What did she say?" Kakashi grabbed Sasuke's wrist, and pulled him back down beside him. Sasuke looked up.
"She said, 'As a mother and wife, up to this point I've done nothing right. I know I haven't shown it, but I love you as much as your father loved Itachi. I'm sorry that you had to watch your family slowly break apart. I'm so sorry Sasuke, but hopefully, this can make up for at least some of my mistakes.'…..that's what she said."
Silence
Silence
Silence.
"Then what?"
"Nothing, the medicine started to take effect. All I can remember is being in the car with mother leaning over the seat, and then being on the outside sitting in a bunch of glass and the car fell over into the lake with her still inside." Sasuke covered his face with the palms of his hands. Kakashi said nothing. He could tell that Sasuke was holding all the gorier details back, more for Sasuke's own mental health than Kakashi's protection. "I don't want to live anymore." Sasuke whispered. Kakashi's eyes darted to the boy. He roughly grabbed his chin and forced him to look him in the eye.
"Do you know what you just said?" Kakashi hissed angrily at him. Sasuke struggled to be released from his grip.
"That I don't want to live? Is that really such a bad thing? I have nothing to live for." Sasuke spat, then locked his fingers around Kakashi's thumb and yanked this hand off Sasuke's chin.
"That's a terrible thing Sasuke, it would be tragic if you were to die. You have so much going for you, you have so much to live for." Kakashi tried to persuade Sasuke, shaking his hands in emphasis at the child.
"Like what? My mother died saving me, my father's dead. My brother ran off, and probably forgot all about me. The rest of my family doesn't even know I exist. My one uncle that does know of me only wants to use me to get control over the Uchiha Protection Agency. And you….you're here for the same reason." Sasuke growled angrily. Kakashi sighed.
"No Sasuke, that's not why I'm here. I'm here because you need help. As your Godfather I know you just as well as your own father did, if not better. You're strong, clever, extremely good looking like your mother," Kakashi paused when Sasuke glared at him for the last comment. "And you're a great friend, after all where would Naruto be with out you?"
"He'd be with all the other drop out and losers, where he belongs." Sasuke smirked, insulting Naruto always made him feel better.
"Sasuke I'll make a deal with you. If you come and stay with me, you'll try and continue your life as normal, and I'll work on making sure the ownership of the Uchiha Protection Acency stays in your possession. Of course I'll take charge of it until you graduate from collage. You will also agree not to come looking for your brother, I'll do everything I can to find him myself. And lastly, you'll stop trying to glare people into ashes when they're trying to help you. Deal?" Kakashi stuck out his hand to Sasuke. Sasuke stared at it for a moment, biting his lower lip. He shot a look at the ally behind him, where he was supposed to meet his brother. Sasuke should have been terrified to be this close to the territory of one of the deadliest gangs in all of Kohana, Japan but around Kakashi he felt safe, almost untouchable. Sasuke took in a deep breath and grabbed Kakashi's hand.
"Deal, and I do not glare people to ashes." Sasuke said. Kakashi let out a relived laugh.
"Good, now let's get you home, I'll talk with the Orphan Center tomorrow. And you need take a bath, you stink worse than Pakkun did when I found him." Kakashi ruffled his hair and helped him stand up. The sun was setting, but the moon was already high in the sky. A small stream of people walked around for last minute shopping.
"Thanks, that really helped my self esteem. Telling me I stink worse than a dog you found on the street. You know I hate dogs. Can I get a cat?" Sasuke asked, as they approached the car. Sasuke paused mid step. Kakashi continued walking, looking back at him.
"Come on Sasuke." Kakashi said motioning to him as if he were a dog. Sasuke shook his head. "Sasuke, don't worry, nothing will happen to you while you are in this car with me." Sasuke relaxed slightly, but still continued to glare loathingly at the vehicle. Kakashi sighed. "If you get in, I'll get you a hawk, and send all my dogs except Pakkun to live with Iruka. He gets along with birds." Now Sasuke had a real problem, he loved hawks especially red ones, more than cats and a heck lot more than dogs. The untouchable feeling came back to Sasuke, as he walked to the passenger seat and placed his fingers on the handle. Tracing them slightly along the side of the car, taking a deep breath and quickly releasing it Sasuke opened the door to the black Ferrari, and sat down.
XXX
I wrote this for xbleedinglotusx's contest for Sasuke and Kakashi fatherly moments. I hope I'm not to late but if I am, I had fun writing this anyway. Thaneks for reading and have a good summer, or winter depending where you are at!