He was having trouble concentrating, and for Sasuke Uchiha to have problems concentrating, was saying something.
He had already tried all of the "writer-block" remedies that he knew of, he even sat down and read a few short stories from various books, trying to find inspiration, but to no avail. He went to the extend of going trough his playlist in search of that song that would inspire him, but found none.
His new next door neighbor was blaring the same song over and over again.
'Obsessive-compulsive much?'- thought Sasuke with a tint of sarcasm dripping from it.
He had to admit though that the song seem to be a good one and since he himself liked Suga Shikao as well didn't complaint much about it. What was distracting him was the creaking and scratching on the other side of the wall.
He could almost see it on his mind:
A blond blue eyed athletic man pacing through his small new apartment arranging and rearranging all of his few possessions and furniture.
When he re-read what he had written he thought he liked it. So he kept going:
It was his first time living on his own and that made him very proud.
He stopped his writing letting his fingers still suspended on top of his keyboard, trying to grasp with his metaphorical hand that idea, that phrase which would be just perfect as a continuation of his new found inspiration.
A loud muffled thump was heard and then a yelp.
He heard a muted "ittai" through his wall and then the music on the other side stopped… and so did he. His sudden strike of inspiration had left as easily as it came.
-"Stupid… I hate… this is…"- on the other side of the wall his neighbor was bickering, probably with himself, but he couldn't make out the conversation the blond was having with himself.
On the Japanese tradition, he was supposed to go over there and welcome him, but he never really abide himself by those things. However, if he went there he would get to see the blond and probably his inspiration would come back.
He rummaged through his cupboards looking for something that he could give him.
-"Stupid old traditions…"- he mumbled to himself. He found a box of cookies that his editor had given him sometime last week: -"This will have to do"- he said dusting it a little.
He stared at the apartment number a while longer than he should have and finally knocked the door, on the other side of it, he heard its occupant drop something and swear.
-"Hai, hai. Chotto matte"- he heard and could easily recognize the American accent dripping from the other's voice.
The door was thrown open so suddenly that Sasuke had no time to school his expression to one of kindness and so the blond was staring at a very surprised and confused expression on the raven's face.
Sasuke stored away in his memory the way the blonds' blue eyes seem to sparkle when the little sunlight that filtered through the corridor hit them and that gave the illusion of his eyes being made out of different blue colored crystals with different hues.
-"Hello… Oh, I mean… Konnichiwa! Hehehe!"- said the blond scratching the back of his head in what Sasuke found himself considering a very naïve and endearing manner.
Then the blond made a contemplative gesture as if considering what to say next and Sasuke made a mental note to give his character that same expression the blond was sporting as his blue eyes looked up as if the next phrase would come flying from the sky.
-"How do you say it?... I think is…"- was mumbling the blond to himself as he scratched his chin in a very pensive manner.
-"Hajimemashite"- said Sasuke and forced a smile, but suddenly realize that he wasn't really faking it seeing that the blond returned the smile as well.
-"Hajimemashite…"- repeated the blue eyed man with difficulty.
-"Welcome. I'm Uchiha Sasuke"- said the raven with a perfect accent in English as he extended his right hand towards the blond.
-"Oh, great you speak english!! Naruto, nice to meet you!"- said the blond shaking the other's hand and grinning widely.
Sasuke took mental note of the way his grin seem to brighten his face and his eyes seem to sparkle even more, he also noted the softness of the other's skin as he held his hand in a firm hand shake. His skin also appeared to have an appealing tan to it, it almost seem fake.
'It probably is'- thought Sasuke to himself as he let go of the hand and all of the sudden he found himself missing the softness of it.
-"Please come on in. If you're not in a hurry"- said Naruto (and how good it felt to finally give a name to his character) and step back inviting Sasuke in.
Now, normally Sasuke would have decline and gone back home, but see, he was now intrigued by the blond and so he decided to take Naruto on his invitation.
-"Sure, why not?"- said the raven and step into the small room. It didn't look any different from his.
There were several boxes scattered all over the place, 3 suitcases laid open near the entrance of what he thought to be the bedroom, a big sofa, a table and two chairs stood there with no particular arrange. Sasuke briefly wondered what was it that he was moving a few minutes ago.
-"I'm finding it really hard to make everything look the way I want it to look"- said the blond as he stared searching through the boxes for something: -"Was I being too loud?"- he asked turning towards Sasuke.
-"Not much"- answered Sasuke shortly noticing instead the many photos that already covered all of the walls. He walked towards one that showed the most beautiful full moon he had ever seen, it looked so big, so reachable.
He felt Naruto watching him and so he turned to return the gesture, but found Naruto rummaging too intently into the boxes.
'Was he looking at me or not?'- wondered Sasuke to himself, but continue admiring the picture.
He then heard the blonds' voice right behind him and even felt the heat radiating from the tan body, he also found himself storing this thought for further analyzing.
-"I took that picture on Mexico… on October actually… They're famous, the October moons…"- said Naruto and again stepped back giving the raven his own personal space, but Sasuke noted that he missed the warm of it.
The dark haired man turned around to find Naruto holding a kettle while filling it with hot water. He wanted to make small talk, because that's what people expect him to do, but somehow he didn't feel like he needed to do this with him; and so he continued observing him.
He noticed the locks of blond hair where going everywhere on his hair giving him a kind of scruffy look to his all appearance, but some how he made that look work for him. He wondered if those blue eyes were his, there couldn't possibly be anyone with that shade of blue.
-"Is green tea okay?"- asked Naruto restarting the rummaging trough his boxes: -"I heard is quite popular here"- he said as he finally found a small plastic bag filled with what seem to be an assortment of various teas.
-"Yeah, green tea is okay"- mumbled Sasuke turning around again to continue on his musing of the various photographs hanging from the walls.
As he paced around the small apartment gazing the photographs he could hear Naruto brewing some tea.
He stopped in front of a particular picture that showed a couple walking away on barely lighten empty lonely street and somehow that made Sasuke think of love; ne took notice of the hands
barely touching, as it was a custom on his culture not to have public display of affection, but he somehow had the feeling that he really wanted to hold her hand and was only waiting for more darkness to shield them.
-"That one I took it on this last August"- said Naruto from behind and when the raven turned he found the blue eyed man standing with two mugs of hot tea: -"Douzo"-said Naruto extending the mug towards Sasuke and smiling sincerely.
-"Is beautiful"- said Sasuke and it sounded like a whisper, as if he didn't want the other to know it.
-"Thanks! Is one of my favorites. Is called August Serenade"- said the blond taking a sip of his own mug while contemplating the image: -"Let's eat the cookies you brought with you"- called out and made his way to the table in which he had placed the box of cookies.
-"Are you a photographer?"- asked Sasuke suddenly more intrigued than he had been at the beginning.
-"Well… You could say hehehe"- said the other smiling awkwardly: -"I have a pseudonym though"- and again he scratched the back of his head.
-"Really? What is it?"- asked Sasuke trying really hard not to sound to intrigued.
-"mmmm… I don't know if I should tell you. I mean I just met you; for all I know you could be a stalker of some sort."- said the blond smirking and Sasuke was overjoyed to find a new facet to his character.
-"Well how about this, I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours"- responded Sasuke and, has his voice sounded flirtatious?
-"Oh you have one as well? What do you do?"- asked Naruto offering from the box one of the cookies that were sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon.
-"A writer… You could say"- he answered and gave the other man half a smile, almost as if he hadn't earn just yet the right to see his full smile: -"Though I don't think you would know any of my work"- and he ventured to take one of the cookies out of courtesy, but he knew he was going to hate it anyways.
-"Well you never know. I could surprise you"- stated Naruto as he himself took a cookie from the box and stuffed in his mouth.
-"Sai Bankai"- said Sasuke staring directly into Naruto's blue eyes.
The cookie that Naruto was about to bite fell to the floor breaking into pieces and crumbles scattered allover the wooden floor. Naruto had residues of sugar on the corner of his mouth and Sasuke felt this strange impulse to use his tongue to wipe it off the other's mouth.
-"You're kidding right?!"- said Naruto in something that sounded like a whisper. The look of utter shock on the blonds face was something that Sasuke also decide to store away in his memory.
-"No. I'm pretty sure is me"- answered Sasuke this time letting a full smile to take place on his lips. Naruto kept looking at him as if he had grown a second head: -"'He didn't realize he had started to cry until he felt the wetness reach his lips. He brushed the tears away from his lips but made no attempt to dry them from his eyes; he relished on the feeling of his fingertips on his lips, almost feeling Nikos' own lips on his.' I think that's how I wrote it"- said Sasuke with an arrogant smirk plastered on his features.
-"Arrogant bastard…"-muttered Naruto half pouting half snickering at the comment: -"I absolutely LOVE your books! I actually started hearing Suga Shikao's music because I read that Sai Bankai wrote his masterpieces while hearing to it"- said while pointing towards the CD player that the raven had failed to notice.
-"Well. Thank you"- said Sasuke feeling all of the sudden very self-conscious for the first time: -"Now is your turn"- commented Sasuke trying to take importance out of the matter.
-"After that little confession, mine seems like childishness hehehe"- answered the blond and Sasuke could almost predict the trajectory of the hand going to the back of the blond head to scratch it: -"I'm Kyūbi…"- murmured Naruto and Sasuke saw a hint of blush on the blonds' checks.
-"The photographer"- said Sasuke and Naruto's eyes got bigger.
-"You heard of me?"- asked Naruto taking a step towards the raven, but Sasuke though that the blond didn't notice it.
-"Of course. Your work is worldly known"- and as Sasuke said this he could feel the heat radiating from the blond a few steps away from him: -"But this picture I haven't seen it before"- and then he turned his attention back to the picture when he came to notice he was staring to intently to Naruto's lips.
-"Oh yeah! That one is kind of new, since I took that picture on this year, but we had an exhibition on New York like two weeks ago"- as Naruto was speaking Sasuke felt a shifting on the air, as if Naruto's words made all the difference in the atmosphere.
-"I really like it"- said Sasuke and felt that he was definitely invading Naruto's personal space, but the blond neither complaint nor moved away from him and so they stood there not quite contemplating the photograph but more like musing over this feeling of thrill and excitement that ran trough them.
-"When is your new book coming out? I can wait to read it!"- said Naruto tilting his head just a little, enough to make eye contact.
-"Well, I've been having some trouble with it"- confessed Sasuke feeling at ease with the complete strange that asked nothing of him other than his response.
-"Really? How so?"- asked the blond and accidentally brushed his hand with the other's.
-"I can't seem to find the right inspiration to start the new novel"- answered Sasuke and allowed his hand to very discreetly reach over and brush, also "accidently", the other's hand.
Naruto, though reluctantly, walked towards the CD player and hit play.
The piano notes echoed through the small room.
Moshimo kimi ga inaku natte shimattara
If you were to pass away
Tatoeba neko ya imomushi ni natte shimattara
If you were, for example, to become a cat or a caterpillar
Dark eyes met blue and both spoke a language that neither understood.
-"So that was the song you were playing over and over again"- said Sasuke still locked onto Naruto's blue eyes.
-"Yeah, obsessive-compulsive much, ne?"- and as Naruto was saying this a light laugh escape the raven's lips.
-"A little"- said the faired skin man as he realized how good it felt to laugh like this.
-"I named that photo in honor of that song"- said Naruto and took another cookie from the box.
Nee dakara kyou ha sanpo ni ikou
So, please, today, let's go on a stroll
Daremo inai yoru no machi
Through the empty night town
Tsuki no hikari de taitei no koto ha
Because, in the moonlight, the usual things
Utsukushiku mieru kara...
Can look so beautiful...
-"I was thinking of writing a story about you and maybe name it after the song"- said Sasuke and made Naruto choke on his cookie because of the bluntness in which he had spoken.
Naruto stared at him pondering if he was joking or being serious, but Sasuke's expression remained unchangeable.
-"Are you serious?"- asked Naruto still feeling confused by the other man's words.
-"Never been more serious in my whole life"- said Sasuke with a very sober look plastered on his face and he marveled at the fact that he was indeed being serious about it.
-"And what would you write about me?"- again asked Naruto not quite sure were this was heading to, but felt intrigued nonetheless.
Sasuke found himself wanting to tell him what little had he wrote of him and the real reason of his visit, but decided against it.
-"Well I was thinking of starting with the obvious, that is blond blue eyed athletic man next door"- said Sasuke smirking.
-"Oh and you forgot GAY"- said Naruto and looked at Sasuke expectantly.
-"Gay…"- repeated Sasuke arching an eyebrow on a very flirtatious manner.
-"Yes, Gay"- restated Naruto and reached for his abandoned mug of tea and this time very intentionally he brushed his hand on Sasuke's arm.
-"I'll rephrase then: 'gay quite attractive blond blue eyed athletic man next door'. How does that sound?"- was he flirting with his neighbor? And when he saw the smile form on the blonds' lips and felt the sudden urge to wipe it off with a mind blowing kiss he knew that he was, indeed, flirting with his very appealing new neighbor.
-"And so what happens then?"- said Naruto as he got impossibly closer to the raven.
Tsuki no hikari de taitei no koto ha
Because, in the moonlight, the usual things
Utsukushiku mieru kara...
Can look so beautiful...
And as he heard the last chords of the song being played he felt like he should do something, reach out and touch him, just to make sure that he was indeed there.
-"This is going to sound so cliché, but you look so beautiful right now that it makes me wonder what you would look like under the moonlight"- said Sasuke as he reached and finally touched the other's face. The skin on his face was as soft as the one on his hand.
-"You could stay and find that out tonight"- and he closed the small distance that separated them as he placed his own lips on the raven's ones.
When their lips finally parted again in need of air, their glazed eyes held each other's in a very meaningful look.
-"I've been wondering how they would look under the first sunshine on the morning as well"- said Sasuke and this time it was him the one that restore the distance that separated their lips.
And when once again they broke the kiss, this time letting theirs hand roamed towards southern territories of the human anatomy, they still kept looking at each other.
-"Well you could stay forever and find that out every morning"- mumbled Naruto as he buried his face on Sasuke's neck trying to muffle a grunt from escaping his lips as Sasuke grabbed a very sensitive part on Naruto's anatomy.
-"Yeah… I could"- said Sasuke as he started leading the way to what he thought to be the bedroom.
