The Amazing Doodle Presents:
Thank Goodness You've Forgotten

Disclaimer: Naruto and characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto and Shonen Jump

Chapter One; The Teme Who Let His Love Slip Away.

[FB]

"Geez, Sasuke. Why do you always have to be so rough on me? I'm fragile, ya know?" Naruto had complained.

Back then, it seemed routine. Every Tuesday, Naruto would find himself being carried home on Sasuke's back. Embarrassing. Naruto hadn't minded that much because 1, It meant that Sasuke had cared. 2, At least people weren't around to witness such an act, and 3, It was the only time he had gotten to be truly close to him, without desires getting in the way. He had still found it quite odd, though.

"Because you deserve it, dobe. You can't expect to act like that and not get it bad," the boy had replied.

"I gave you a taste of your own medicine. Now you know what it's like to be teased."

Sasuke hadn't replied. It wasn't like him, acting that way. Heck, he wasn't even supposed to be a bit attached to Naruto, but for some reason, he was. Something kept him coming back, and he hadn't known what.

Naruto yawned. "Sasuke, I'm getting sleepy..."

"Then sleep. Why do you need my permission?"

Sasuke felt the blond lightly shrug. "Dunno... Not sure one bit."

"Go to sleep, dobe. You're making it obvious."

Naruto had settled his head comfortably on Sasuke's back. It was just another Tuesday.

[/FB]

"...Sasuke?"

"Hmm?" The raven replied, still lost in memories of years before.

"Really Hokage-sama, you should stop daydreaming and get your work done!" Sakura complained.

Sasuke sighed, "Whatever..."

Sakura stared at him in worry. For as long as she can remember, Sasuke had always acted like this. So lost in memories and such with no comprehension of what was happening around him. In a way it made her a bit uneasy as she wondered who could've done this to one of her closest friends. "What's really been bothering you, Sasuke?" She asked, expression turning serious.

Sasuke stared at her. "I really don't think you want to know that, Sakura."

"I wouldn't ask if I didn't. Tell me."

"... I... I was thinking of him again." He admitted after minutes of silence.

Sakura 'humphed', "I don't see why. He's long gone, Sasuke. And you know why? He couldn't take losing to you or the lifestyle that came with being involved with the Hokage. That's why."

"Still," Sasuke said, somewhat defensively. "I stole his dream. The only thing that really drove him forward."

Sakura turned and faced the door. "Don't forget that you have a meeting to attend to, Hokage-sama. Don't be late because you're too busy daydreaming about someone who left you behind. Got it?"

Sasuke turned his attention from her to the view of the village from the window. "Whatever, Sakura. Believe what you wish. Dismissed."

After the so-called 'emergency' meeting with the council, Sasuke stopped by his office one last time to collect some of the paperwork he had yet to complete. Taking paperwork home with him was something that Sasuke strongly disliked, seeming that it took away any and every chance he had to escape work, even for a little while. But of course, Sakura was always there to make sure he did it.

She had told him after the meeting, seeming that she made herself into his assistant without his knowing, that she'd follow him home to make sure he completed it, but he shrugged her off and said that he didn't need to be babysat tonight, that he'd get it done, and maybe, just once for her benefit, he'd do it correctly, that way he wouldn't have to hear her complain about having to go through all of the documents to correct them because of his laziness. Sakura really couldn't blame him. He didn't want to be the Hokage in the first place. The main reason being that he didn't want to abandon the one person, at the time, he cared most about, wanting to spend every moment together. Well, mainly keeping the idiot from getting in trouble with Tsunade, when she was still in the position of power, and the villagers as well.

Sakura kept pushing the title of Hokage on him, saying that he owed it to the people of Konoha to do so; not stopping until he had to accept. He never wanted to, and once he did, his life had been torn apart. The one person he adored and cared about had left, fled at the sight of his dream being ripped out of his hands. He knew that he had cut his love deep, something he despised himself for. Tore away the one thing that kept him alive. It hurt Sasuke as well, much more than the idiot himself.

All Sasuke knows is that he fled to Suna, where in the he did not know. He thought he'd let the idiot blow off steam, though he knew that the man was not coming back to him. That times that they had shared were gone and meaningless. And although Sasuke treasured them, he sometimes wished they'd disappear, letting him sleep at night without dreaming of the boy, waking in cold sweats when they were nightmares or waking with... problems at the dreams he hated his mind for. Not saying he disliked them, he just wished they weren't as often as they have been lately.

Sighing, Sasuke reluctantly grabbed the monstrous pile of folders. Maybe if he worked hard enough, he'd get them done before he went to bed. Glancing at the pile in his hands, he knew it'd take everything he had and then some. It seemed impossible already.

Sasuke had been going at it for what seemed like an eternity: scribbling here, adding something educational there, and he even threw in several sophisticated words to add to the quality. Even after all of that, he was only halfway done. His wrist and hand cramped, he was running out of ink, he had to use the bathroom like a friggin' racehorse because he wanted to get the stuff done without any delay, and now, for Kami's sake, he was thirsty. Could anything else go wrong?

Sasuke let the pen drop from his grasp as he put his hands on his knees and stood. Stretching, he willed himself to walk into the kitchen where he took out a glass and filled it with cold water from the sink. Drinking it in big gulps, he quickly refilled it, needing to quench his thirst as quickly as possible so he could get back to work. When he finished, he walked back into the living and resumed his work.

He nearly spilled the ink when his phone rang. Dang thing. It'd be the death of him one day!

Nonetheless, he answered, "Hello?"

"Hey, Hokage-sama."

Sakura. "What? If you wish for me to finish my work, then you must make this quick and not waste my time."

"Yes. I stayed after for a bit when you left the office, you know, checking to make things were in order and whatnot. The reason for my call is that Izumo stopped me just as I was about to leave, saying that the Kazekage has sent a message for you. What of, I don't know. I'm on my way to your place now to give it to you."

Sasuke was quiet for a bit before answering, "Odd. I never pictured Gaara would send something to me directly like that. Are you close by?"

"Yes, at your door actually. I'll just leave the letter on the doorstep, seeming you wish not to be disturbed further."

"Thank you," he said, setting the phone on the receiver. He got off of the couch once again, walking outside to pick up the letter Sakura had left. He took a seat on the couch once again, opening the white sheet of paper:

I will be calling soon, Uchiha. Count on it.

Sasuke stared at the letter in disbelief. Thee Gaara was going to call his house. Not only did he think that it was improbable, but they guy didn't even have his number. Explain that.

Almost as if to prove him wrong, the phone just happened to ring. He checked the ID: it was Sakura. He knew it.

"Hello?" He asked.

"I was just wondering what Gaara-sama wrote you about, if that's okay."

Sasuke sighed out of frustration. Man, he couldn't stand this woman. "Not much, Sakura. It really is not an issue. Also, if you don't mind, I need to work. So if you would just stop calling me---" The phone beeped. "Goodbye, Sakura." Sasuke irritatedly switched to the other caller. "Hello?" He asked again.

"Told you to count on it, Uchiha."

Sasuke arched an eyebrow. "Ah, Gaara. Is there something you wish to speak with me about? I really need to return to work." He said, not bothering to bring up how Gaara got his number in the first place.

He heard chuckling. "It is not me that has a problem with you, Uchiha. There is someone here, actually. A little lost puppy wandering the streets."

"Who, then?"

"Well, why don't you make it interesting for us and guess? Hmm?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I am not in the mood to play games, Gaara. I was not lying when I said I had work to do."

Gaara was silent.

"If that is all, then---"

"Asshole..."

Sasuke froze. The little lost puppy Gaara had mention couldn't be... there was no possible way...

"You know, bastard, it's rude to ignore people."

Sasuke laughed softly. "You have no room to talk, dobe. What exactly have you been doing for the past 4 years, eh?"

"Can it, Teme. I had a good reason to. Stealing my dream like that. It was a hit below the belt, Sasuke."

Sasuke smiled at his name. "It's not like I wanted to. You wouldn't even let me say a word to you. You were as cooperative as a rock. No matter how hard I tried to explain, you wouldn't listen."

" What was there to explain, huh? The situation seemed pretty self-explanatory to me. I remember you saying that you'd help me obtain my dream, not rip it away."

Sasuke remained cool. "If you want the title so badly, come back and take it. I'd be happy to be out of this position of power. I'm not a really patient person, Naruto, which someone needs to be to really live up to being a Hokage."

The blond was silent for a moment. "It's not just the fact that you took my dream. It also proved that you lied to me."

"Like I said, dobe, it's not like I---"

"You don't understand, Sasuke. A long time ago you promised, on your life, that you wouldn't leave my side as long as it made me happy. Then, you go off being Hokage and practically abandoned me. I tried to cope, Sasuke, I did. Staying up until 3 in the morning to welcome you home, living with the fact that I had to eat and sleep alone. I did try. You lied to me, like you always do."

Sasuke said nothing. The blond was making it seem that it was all Sasuke's doing, and maybe about 95 of it was. But he acts as though when he was with him, he had payed no attention to him at all. "You make it seem like I basically had nothing to do with you anymore."

"Because you really didn't. It was like I meant nothing, just another thing for you to worry about. I didn't feel as loved as I did before. When you actually said you loved me, when you'd really smile instead of replacing it with a fake one. When you paid attention to me and my needs, Sasuke. I had those. Don't think that I just stopped wanting to be touched, that I stopped longing for you. I didn't. And when you did come home, you looked so tired and worn out that I didn't want to bother you about it. I figured it wasn't important enough to make you do something that you weren't going to be up for. I put my needs, whatever they were, aside so I was able to tend to yours. You have no idea how much that took out of me."

Sasuke sat and listened, guilt quickly rising. To think that his dobe had felt so neglected and unneeded. Sasuke didn't deserve him back then. What he did deserve was that Naruto wasn't with him now. "I can't really say I'm sorry, as that won't mean much. I did need you, and was very grateful you were there with me. If you really felt that low, I figured you would have said something about it, instead of keeping it quiet. That's not like you."

"Heh, I know. Some things were meant to not be said. My need was one of them. I' m not weak, Sasuke. And though I may have wanted you, there was no way I was going to act upon my desires like that. Now normally, I would have, but seeming that you had a duty to the village and country, I wasn't going to affect your ability to work by telling you my problems. That's where the friends came in. The people who did acknowledge me. But the only true thing they could do was listen. It wasn't them I wanted something from, and they knew it. They respected it enough to keep it quiet. To be honest, I'm not all too sure why I'm even speaking to you. I guess it was about time I owned up to it, I guess."

"I'm glad you are. I really need it."

" I'm glad your needs are being fulfilled." He heard the boy huff.

"If you want to have sex so badly, get rid of that tension of yours, why don't you find someone to relieve yourself with?"

" You see, there you go. I don't want it from them. I wanted it from you. There's a difference when you're... associating with someone you love, then when you associate with someone you don't."

"So basically, you can't because you're still in love with me?"

"Yes, Teme. That is what I am saying. Not that it will do anything."

Sasuke genuinely smiled. To hear that was a giant relief. He had always thought that Naruto had hated him, that being the reason he left. But the boy didn't hate him, he still loved him. So then... "Why did you leave me?"

There was no response for a minute or two. "I needed to cool down. You would, too, if you were in my position, Teme."

The smile on the raven's face grew. "I suppose you're not going to come back to me, eh?"

He could feel the blond's worry. "I don't think so."

"I deserve it," Sasuke admitted to the boy and himself. "I should have noticed it sooner rather than later. You just have to promise me that you'll stay out of trouble and be happy. Happier than you were with me, is that clear?"

He sensed Naruto hesitate. "...Yeah, okay. I can live with that."

"Good." Sasuke put the phone up. Whether or not Naruto wanted to respond, he didn't know. He heard his love's voice, and in the end, that's all he really wanted...

[FB]

Sasuke pushed open the door, obviously pissed beyond reason, and slouched on the couch. Naruto, noticing this, sighed and stood in front of the man.

"What's wrong now?" He asked.

Sasuke glanced at him then back at the floor. "That little bi--- I mean, how dare she? Send me on a mission like that. Do you have any idea how sore I am?"

Naruto smirked, "Well, serves ya right. You wanted a challenge, Tsunade gave you one. Why complain?"

"You don't get it! Yeah, I said challenging, but not life threatening! There is a difference you know."

Naruto sighed. He maneuvered his way around the raven so he sat on his knees behind the taller boy. "What do you think you're doing, dobe?" Sasuke questioned.

"I'm going to give you a massage, bastard. Can I do that?" The blond huffed. "Geez, it'll make you feel better."

Sasuke sighed as he leaned into the smaller boy's touch. It was on very rare occasions that Naruto pampered him, especially when he came home like that, so he should be grateful. Grateful that Naruto cared enough. That he took the time to worry about his well-being.

Thankful that he was loved by someone like the idiot he couldn't help but adore.

--

Fixed grammar/tense mistakes.