Sand Won't Keep You Warm

A story by Songstone

Songstone: Heeeeeey! XD Well, I've wanted to write this for quite some time, and now I finally got myself to do it! I've been re-reading Diplomatic Relations (second time and STILL totally amazing, might I add!), so I've been really inspired lately. I would give you guys' who have never read it a link if I could, but I can't, sadly. But you really need to look for it! Wonderful story written by an amazing author. My hero, in fact! XD So, anyway, enough of my gushing. I really hope that this story is good!

P.S: I had to repost this since I got kicked out of my other account.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

"H-h-h-how a-are you h-holding u-u-up?" Lee's teeth were chattering violently as he spoke, and his whole body was convulsing sharply once every five seconds. Gaara could hear the rattling of the kunai in the older man's pockets when that happened, so that was how he was keeping track of Lee's health.

The redhead pulled his head out from beneath the blanket he had pulled up over his head when he heard the question and turned to face Lee. He saw that the older man's skin had gone pale, and that his cheeks were a bright pink from the harsh winds hitting his face. "Lee, d-don't be a fool. C-c-cover your face." Gaara tried to keep his voice calm and controlled as best he could, though he still stammered occasionally.

The redhead couldn't believe the situation he was stuck in. Maybe he should have listened to Kankuro when he said that the Kazekage shouldn't leave his village, no matter what kind of mission was waiting. It had been an S-rank mission. A team of Jounin from Konoha had arrived in Suna for assistance and Gaara had ordered a few troops for them to lead. However, Gaara had been cooped up in his office for months on end and was desperate to get out and complete a mission. When he offered to go along and help, a very energetic green blur had literally thrown its arms around the Kazekage's neck and had dragged him away saying that they could be a team.

Gaara didn't think that he had ever seen Rock Lee so excited before. The man was bouncing and wiggling every which way and it was nearly nauseating to watch. Gaara tried to refuse the taller man's offer, but when he insisted that he didn't need Lee's help, he was shocked to see his friend pout. An honest to goodness pout. Lee's lower lip had stuck out and he had crossed his arms over his chest, nodding slowly to Gaara's words. He had muttered something like 'I see' but Gaara was so distracted by the face he was making to pay attention. In the end, the Kazekage ended up being dragged away by Lee towards the Mist village.

Perhaps Gaara should have expected something like this to happen. After all, it was the middle of December and even though it was constantly hot in Suna, it snowed in Mist. Nonetheless, when the cold air and ice had hit the redhead's face, it was a huge shock. The weather was drastically different from Suna's, and Gaara had never before seen so much snow. Of course, he had heard of it and had seen pictures, but he had never actually touched or walked through any of it. Lee, however, seemed perfectly at ease. At least, at first. He was throwing snow balls at the back of Naruto's head and had managed to hit Neji in the face with one, though a scolding from the Hyuuga made Lee stop.

"I-I'm fine. H-h-h-how are y-you? K-K-K-Ka-Kaze-Kaze-" It was obvious that Lee was trying to form the respectful title Gaara held, but his teeth were hitting against each other so harshly that he couldn't manage to spit it out all the way.

"I h-have been better." Cursed snow storm. Why did they have to get separated? Gaara should have never stayed behind to wait for Lee while the other gathered up the belongings that he had dropped from his pack. The other's had sped up, so when the two of them had stopped, the group easily left them in the dust. And then this cursed snow storm had to come and force both men into hiding! They had found a small cave, not even very big, that was partly concealed by rocks from the winds. Good thinking on Lee's part, Gaara would give him that. The only thing that the redhead didn't like about their arrangements was the fact that he had to leave his gourd just outside of the mouth of the cave. He hated to have it apart from him, but there was just no way that it could fit inside. Besides, if something would prove to be a danger to him, the Sand would be slithering to Gaara's defense in an instant. But the Kazekage highly doubted that anything worthy of a threat would be out in the middle of a snow storm.

At least they had their backpacks with them. They had canned food and water, not to mention extra clothing and blankets. But even with their jackets pulled all the way up and their blankets wrapped tightly around their bodies, the two men were freezing. Who knows how low the temperture had dropped? It was nearing nine o' clock, if Gaara guessed correctly, so the sun was long gone from view, leaving them at the mercy of the darkness and wet, icy winds. It wasn't like Gaara hadn't tried to use his Sand to keep the wind out of their small cavern; he had. But it got insanely dark inside of the cave, and after quite a long time working to keep the grainy material up as a door, Gaara could feel the fatigue of travelling without rest closing in on him. He was tired, physically and mentally, so he had told Lee and the other had told him it as all right; drop the Sand. So he did, and he was able to breathe easier and relax a bit, but it let in all of the cold air again.

"K-K-Ka-a-azeka-g-g-g-g-" Lee made a frustrated groan and shook his head roughly from side to side. "G-Gaara." He spat out. "I c-can't seem to form the p-p-pr-proper title for y-y-you." He laughed shortly and then gulped down a mouthful of saliva.

The Kazekage looked up at Lee from the corner of his eye and narrowed the pale orbs in what might have been something like sympathy. Lee had shoved Gaara to the far end of the cave, where it would be warmer, he had said, and had taken a seat near the opening of the small tavern. The winds were hitting him in the face, making his whole body buck and quiver with cold. Anymore of that and Lee would surely die of frostbite or something equally horrible. "L-Lee . . ." Gaara spoke up after a moment, looking up from beneath his red bangs at the ebony haired male by his side. "Y-you need to get out of t-t-the way of the w-w-wind." He was horrified to find that his voice was breaking and that he sounded suddenly very small and meek. Try as he might, Gaara couldn't get his voice to pick up another octive. It was like his vocal chords were stuck on one volume.

"There i-isn't any s-s-sp-sp-space." Lee groaned, turning his head slightly to meet the other's awaiting aqua eyes. "A-a-anymore movement on my p-part would mean us being . . . being . . ." He shuddered once, violently, and the weapons in his pouch all cried out from being thrown against each other. " . . . I-I c-c-can't stand this a-anymore." Lee finally moved, dragging his behind against the ground so that he could edge closer to the Kazekage besides him. With a bit of rearranging, Lee and Gaara were pressed up against each other, backs to the rocks on either side while their faces were only inches apart. Lee curled his legs up, away from the invading wind, and burried his face into the protection of his blanket. "I-if it's uncomfortable p-p-please tell me and I w-w-w-will m-move." Lee told Gaara quietly. No need to shout over the howling winds when they were so close together.

Gaara shook his head to those words and mimicked Lee; Hiding his nose and mouth with the blanket around his body. "Y-you're warm . . ." He said in the same hushed tone that he hated to hear with his voice. But it was true. Now that Lee had moved and they were both in close proximity of one another, Gaara could feel the body heat that the other was letting off. It wasn't much, but it was there and it made the cold feel more far away than it really was. There were a few moments that passed in silence, in which both men had shut their eyes to try and gather themselves together, and Gaara suddenly found himself moving. His body was inching closer to Lee's and soon his hands had escaped the safe prison of his blanket and were tugging, asking enterance, to Lee's own.

The onyx colored eyes opened slowly and fixed themselves on the Kazekage. Lee's large eyebrows met together in the middle of his forehead and he pushed one of his large, bandaged hands out to greet both of Gaara's. It seemed that almost instantly after doing that, the redhead shoved his small hands into Lee's blanket, feeling how the palms of his hands rested on the taijutsu master's strong chest. Lee was still cold, but inside of the blanket it was warm with his body heat. "You're warm . . ." Gaara repeated, tucking his head down to his chest and bringing his legs up to where his knees were pressed to his abdomen. His hands stayed where they were, however. He very much enjoyed the warmth that Lee was letting off.

"God's sake, G-Gaara . . . Y-you're hands are f-f-f-freezing." Lee mumbled, yanking his hand back into his blanket and enclosing it around his friend's two hands. Gaara couldn't see where he was touching anymore, but he could feel how much better it was now that the air wasn't leaking into Lee's blanket. He decided to just enjoy it since the heat was making him feel much better. But after a moment, his hands were seized by two larger one's, unintentionally rough yet so amazingly warm, and Lee was tugging at him; his fingers brushed beneath the sleeves of Gaara's jacket and shirt, touching his smooth, frozen skin. "A-are you this c-cold everywhere else?" He asked, concern obvious as he spoke.

"Mm . . . No way to warm up. H-how are you so . . . s-s-so . . ." He gestured under the blanket with his hands, and Lee tilted his head to the side.

"I-I don't know. But get over here. Y-you'll die if your body t-t-temperture drops too far." Lee tugged at the redhead's hands again, working to tug him forward towards himself. But Gaara didn't want to move. He knew that he probably should move and get closer to the source of warmth Lee was letting off, but he couldn't find the energy, frankly. He shook his head once, red, blazing bangs falling into his pale eyes. That didn't seem to please Lee at all, since the older man made an aggravated noise and then scooted forward himself; his blanket made an unpleasant scrapping noise against the rock and thin layer of snow as he inched as close as he could to Gaara. "C-c-come here, I said. Quite being s-stubborn." Lee's lips were indeed darkening a new color of blue and his face was deathly ashen, and yet he still opened up his blanket, letting the wind come inside to attack any skin that was showing on him, as well as Gaara's hands.

The Kazekage withdrew his two hands quickly, as if he had been electrocuted, and tucked them safely back into his own blanket. But his eyes widened and he looked Lee up and down. The other hadn't closed his blanket. He was waiting for something . . .

"C-c'mere." Lee whispered, swallowing thickly and nodding his head. "I'll k-keep you warm." He managed a small smile, and nodded his head down at himself. He extended his hands, still gripping his blanket, and wrapped his arms around the Kazekage's waist. He gave one extra tug, pulling Gaara forward; not even that far since they were close together to begin with. But now . . . Oh, now Gaara was leaning into something so Heavenly warm and it was embracing him. All of his cold seemed to be melting away, just like the snow beneath their bodies, wetting the blankets and soaking the sides of their clothes. "Oh! God, Gaara . . . Y-you're l-l-legs are cold. Even t-through your pants . . ." Lee made a slight wrinkle of the nose (Gaara could see it easily since Lee's nose was close enough to be touching his), and then began to rub his hands up and down the redhead's back.

Gaara gave a heavy shudder that made Lee stiffen for a moment, but then the younger man sank into that action. He slipped one leg between Lee's on instinct since the other had mentioned them and reminded Gaara that he was still partially numb from the waist down. Gaara was unconsciously trying to soak up more of that delicious friction and heat that Lee held within himself, greedily wanting it all for himself but trying to think of a way for them both to share. Perhaps he moved his leg too far up, though, since Lee gave a start and shuffled upwards, away from the limb between his thighs.

"B-b-better, I take?" Lee asked, half joking and the other part of him wanting to make sure that his friend was warm where he lay.

"Mm . . ." Gaara dipped his chin slightly in answer and hunched his shoulders while his fingers found Lee's green jacket; they flexed into the fabric and pulled a little as he moved himself further into the blanket and Lee's embrace. "You're warm . . ." He whispered for the third time. He was so close to the older man; he had his stomach and chest pressed against Lee's own and their legs were wrapped around one another. Gaara could feel the taller man's heart beating in his chest against his own, and he was sure that if he strained his ears hard enough over the wind, he would be able to make out the faint thump as well.

"Yeah. Just stay close. K-keep your blanket wrapped around yourself a-and I'll warm you up." Lee mumbled back, keeping his voice low so as not to startle Gaara. It was odd to hear him speak that way. Lee's voice was always loud and he always spoke fast, so to hear him whisper in a low, unhurried tone was something Gaara wasn't used to at all. But he nodded his head to his friend's words and lowered his head again.

He tucked himself away beneath the blankets and found his cheek pressed against Lee's chest. Now that he was there, he could clearly hear the strong, steady beating of the other's heart and it soothed him, in a strange way. "M'tired." He heard himself say. His lips parted unintentionally and he sucked in lungfuls of air as he yawed, long and loud. When he had exhaled again, he curled back into Lee's offered warmth and felt his eyes slide shut.

"Hey. Gaara." Lee gave Gaara's smaller body a slight shake and the Kazekage grunted out a noise, showing that he was listening. "Don't fall asleep. I know that you're tired, but don't fall asleep." Lee spoke rather urgently, and his tone surprised Gaara more than anything.

Finally though, the redhead opened his eyes and got his mouth to work; he spoke softly, much to his dismay. "I won't." He heard and felt Lee take in a deep breath and then release it before relaxing back into the rocks behind himself. Gaara also allowed his black ringed eyes to close and just lay there, pressed as close as he could against Lee's body.

The Kazekage tried not to move too much so that he wouldn't startle Lee; he was using the other's hearbeat to monitor the seconds that ticked away. It was a steady rhythm and it relaxed Gaara's nerves, but it was strong and loud enough so that he wouldn't fall asleep so easily. Estimating by the number of heartbeats, Gaara guessed that at least two hours had passed them by this way. He didn't dare to get up and peek his head out from beneath the blankets for two reasons: he didn't want to expose himself to the cold air again; he had just gotten pleasantly warm and he wasn't about to lose that. And second, he didn't want to make Lee move or start because that would mean he would move his arms away from around Gaara, and the redhead didn't want that, either.

The Kazekage sighed, feeling the welcomed weight of the other male's arms over his waist, and settled back into a better position. He kept his eyes shut and tried to go back to counting Lee's heartbeats, but suddenly frowned when he realized that he had a problem. He pressed his ear right up against Lee's chest and listened, blocking out the howling winds outside of the cave, but still he encountered the same thing; silence. Gaara couldn't hear Lee's heart anymore. No matter where he positioned himself and no matter how hard he concentrated, there was only an eerie silence that greeted him.

Gaara felt how his eyes snapped open and widened and he heard himself gasp. Quickly, he began to squirm and wiggle beneath the weight of Lee's arms and legs (which strangely didn't try to hold him near), and pushed himself up from the ground. Lee's arm slipped off of Gaara's body and fell to the cold rocky floor with a loud thud. He didn't move to try and right himself and he didn't scramble into a sitting position to see what was the matter with the Kazekage. Lee just . . . lie there, unmoving and silent.

Gaara could feel, now that he had left the safety of warmth that Lee had kept him in, the cold that still swirled in the cave. The wind seemed louder now, almost deafening, and it was nearly picth black where he sat; yet Gaara could make out Lee's larger form pressed back against the wall of the cave. Cautiously, Gaara reached out with his now shaking hand and placed his palm against Lee's shoulder. ". . . Lee . . ." Gaara managed to say, though his voice was hoarse and cracked. His throat was dry since neither he or Lee had wanted to move earlier and get some water from their backpacks to drink. He gave his friend's shoulder a shake. "Lee. Wake up."

Surprisingly, Lee didn't do as ordered. He did the exact opposite and just lie curled up on the ground, his blanket stretched and pulled where he had wrapped it around Gaara's body. The Kazekage could feel how his own heart quickened in pace when he put two and two together; Lee wasn't moving, and Gaara couldn't find a hearbeat. Not moving, no heartbeat. Gaara repeated the words a few times to himself, just so they would sink in properly.

". . .L . . . Lee." Gaara shook the raven haired man again, harder this time. His body felt colder; way colder than the snow and wind outside. "Lee. W-wake up. Wake up. Lee! Wake up!" His words echoed around him when he shouted in the small space, making his head throb with pain. He could feel how anger was building up inside of his chest and he knew that he was gripping Lee's arm too tight; but when he was sure that he had unintentionally cut through spandex and skin and there was no blood, he knew that it didn't matter anymore.

Lee isn't waking up.

Waking up . . .

Wake up . . .

Wake up . . .

Up . . .

There was a change and a sudden virtigo had Gaara's head swimming. He clenched his eyes shut tightly and grumbled something, still trying his hardest to try and hold onto Lee's body even though he was sure it was empty. His small hands clenched in the spandex roughly, pulling it nearly to the point of ripping. He could feel the warmth that came from the body under the clothing and the rapidly increasing thump from inside of the other's chest, but he tried to ignore that and just hold on. Hold on to . . . Lee? Wait. What happened to his heartbeat? He--he hadn't had one earlier!

"Gaara. Wake up. Wake up, Gaara. Hey, open your eyes!" There was motion; rough, quick motion, and the Kazekage felt his head bobbing back and forth along with something else. But it was the voice calling to him that made him try and force his eyes open. The redhead

uttered a soft sound and furrowed his brow, struggling against the weight of his own eyelids. They were heavy all of a sudden. They weren't like that before . . .

With some difficulty, Gaara finally managed to open his eyes and focus. He found himself lying flat on his back, to his surprise, and he was staring up at the roof of the cave. Something black suddenly blocked his view, however, and he blinked a few times before he could make out what it was. ". . . L . . . uhgnnn . . ." The redhead groaned aloud and clenched his hands, which still held handfuls of green spandex. "Wha . . . y . . . you were . . ."

"Try and stay awake this time." Lee's voice was right next to his ear, sounding all sorts of worried and relived at the same time. "You dozed off. Oh God, you scared me half to death, Gaara." He let out a breath and Gaara felt it against his cheek and lips, which suddenly felt icy and frozen. "Are you all right? Can you sit up?" Lee moved away slowly and grabbed Gaara's hands, pulling them away from his suit and tugging him upwards.

"I . . ." Gaara swallowed thickly and cleared his throat, blinking a few times and then reaching up to rub his eyes. His vision went hazy for a moment after he was moved, but that all faded away rather quickly after he had shaken his head. ". . . fell asleep?" He stared up at Lee for a long moment, his face probably showing just how utterly confused he was. But he was also so very glad. He was happy to know that what he'd seen hadn't been real. No, Lee hadn't died; and he was very much alive right at this instant. Just knowing that, Gaara felt ten times better about his situation.

The Kazekage stood up on his knees and reached out on an impulse, his arms spread out wide. Lee startled for a second, his hands in front of himself, ready to catch Gaara if he had to. But Gaara had no intention of falling over; he inched forward slightly and then just put his arms on Lee's shoulders, wrapping them around his neck and leaning against him heavily, endlessly pleased that he felt warmth emmiting from his friend's body. He could feel a distant heartbeat too, if he payed extra attention. "Nevermind. Thank you for waking me." Gaara mumbled into Lee's ear. He shut his eyes for a while, smirking only slightly when he felt that his friend had returned his embrace and was keeping him close again.

"You're . . . welcome." Lee said, half as a question. But he didn't protest about any of Gaara's actions. He just held him there, rubbing his hands up and down in a soothing motion that might have made Gaara drowsy if he hadn't been so insistant to himself about staying alert . . . "But Gaara . . ." Lee began, tapping the redhead on the back. "Did you see? Look." He gently moved back, towards the mouth of the cave. Gaara was about to protest and demand that Lee get back to where he was before, but stopped himself when he finally got a good look outside. He couldn't believe that he hadn't noticed before . . . There was daylight. The sun was shining outside and the freezing weather was gone, though the air still had pleanty of bite too it.

The Kazekage just stared blankly out of the cave, his mouth slightly open. "It's morning." He muttered to himself, shock obvious on his face. "We made it?"

Lee grinned proudly and nodded his head. "I made it. You kept dozing off all night long. I let you rest for about ten minutes, but then you didn't want to wake up again . . . You really frightened me, Gaara. But I'm glad that you're all right." He chuckled to himself and then grabbed his blanket, wrapping it around the Kazekage's shoulders. "Come on. We should get going and try to make it into Mist before it gets any later. Everyone is probably really worried." He grabbed his bag as well as Gaara's and motioned for the redhead to follow him outside of the cave.

Gaara crawled out after Lee and then stood up, feeling his bones creaking and muscles streching after being cramped tightly together all night long. Looking down to his side, Gaara caught sight of his gourd, which had survived the night with only a few icicles hanging off of it in the morning. He picked it up easily and slung it over his shoulder, not bothering to buckle it onto his back all the way yet. "Lee, take your blanket." He said, slipping the covers off of his back and holding it out to the raven haired man.

Lee took the cloth, but only for a moment. He walked around Gaara and somehow managed to slide the blanket between the younger man and the gourd. He wrapped it nicely around Gaara's body and smiled down at the redhead. Motioning for Gaara to follow him, Lee began walking towards the Mist Village at a steady pace. "You hold onto it. It's still cold out here, and sand won't keep you warm."

Songstone: Oh goodness, this one is so LONG! XD But I really, really like how this turned out! It took forever to write, but at last I'm done! At . . . 1:32 a.m. XD Anyway, I hope that you all enjoyed reading this because I had loads of fun writing it. So, as always, I ask you guys to please review so that my sanity can stay safely in my head and so I can continue to be inspired and write some more! Hmm . . . been thinking that if a good number of you guys like this story then maybe I should write a sequel. Like . . . have Gaara wondering why he was so worried if Lee died. You know; it leads to them eventually getting together. XD Well, you tell me if that's a good idea or not. R&R please!