I came up with the idea a long time ago while watching Walk the Line starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. Started it awhile ago and finally got around to it again.
Little editing.
Enjoy
"Now I've asked you 40 different ways and it's time you come up with a fresh answer. I'm asking you to marry me." ~ Joaquin Phoenix when playing Johnny Cash in Walk the Line
I
When Naruto was younger, a naïve boy of twelve, he had a rather jaded view of his future. At the time, all he wanted was to be the best. He was to be the Hokage no matter what; there was no alternative. Then, when he met and joined team seven, he found a sense of belonging and hope that had been previously missing. With his determined mindset and newfound hope, his future seemed set.
But things don't always work out exactly as planned, though that is not necessarily a bad thing Naruto soon found out. Things got a little messy with the whole "Sasuke Revenge" drama, but the raven returned to the village, by choice, when they were sixteen. He struggled within the transition back into the village but, like Naruto always thought they would, things worked out.
Team Seven, as well as the other Teams, soon matured. At twenty-five years old, they each were in separate places in their lives, but still close to one another. Despite being in different places, they still get together often to train with one another, Kakashi included. Sakura was a soon-to-be jounin level medic nin. She's currently the best medic around, having surpassed Tsunade a long while back, and feared throughout the ninja ranks because of her strength and short temper. Naruto himself was a jounin. He had been given the choice between trying for ANBU and getting his own genin team to which he had chose the genin team. They were a bunch of brats who thought they were the shit but Naruto proved to be a strong leader that they respected despite the constant battle of wills between the four of them. Of course Naruto has not discarded his dream of Hokage, but rather was mature enough to see that he still needed more knowledge and experience before he was ready for that responsibility. It is for that reason that he decided to make small steps at a time, starting with his own genin team or two, then maybe ANBU, before he hoped to be ready for such as job. As for Sasuke, he had chosen the route of ANBU. He worked his way up despite having to start from scratch after returning to the village. He works on a team captained by Neji Hyuga, but has started a more individual based training with said Hyuga to get him ready for the promotion from ANBU to ANBU Captain.
Naruto also didn't imagine falling in love. Yes, he had silly romantic notions about Sakura, but he hadn't imagined them in a serious committed relationship in the future. His dream had been strictly focused on being Hokage; love had not been a part of the equation. But now, Naruto was madly and irrecoverably in love with a rather unexpected source. Although, it was sort of bound to happen at some point, he reasoned later. He and Sasuke, his best friend and love of his life, were always closer to one another than people were able to truly understand. With their rocky, unique relationship, there was just too much of this special connection between them to be nothing more than just good friends.
They every easily made the transition from rivals to best friends to lovers. Of course, even though they started an intimate relationship, their relationship didn't truly change. They were still rivals and still best friends, but now closer now than ever because they were in a committed relationship. Of course, Sasuke was still a cold and closed off person, so being with him wasn't easy. Some things were like pulling teeth, such as finally moving in together about year after they started their relationship. Even though it was obvious to both of them that neither would want another, or that they had found their special person, Sasuke was still reluctant to make the big steps.
Naruto knew Sasuke well enough to know why he fought against the changes. For Sasuke, it was hard for him to let other people in. Yes, he and Naruto were similar in that they had lost their families at an early age and thus clung to one another now. However, with Sasuke, it was different. While Naruto lost his family, it had been too early into his life for him to remember them. With Sasuke, he remembered his family- the good and the bad. He knew the feeling of having a family, unlike Naruto, and he also knew what it was like to have it suddenly ripped from him. He felt a pain that Naruto hadn't –the pain of losing the only important people in his life- and since then has been reluctant to allow himself to get close to others. With Naruto, it was an unstoppable force that brought them together. But that still didn't mean that Sasuke didn't take steps to protect himself from getting hurt. With each step they took in their relationship, Naruto got closer to Sasuke and thus, more of his family. And with each step they took, he got more afraid of the pain he would feel if he was to lose him. It would be worse than the pain he felt when his family died, a thousand times worse and one he would not recover from. So, as a defense mechanism, he fought against Naruto when the blonde wanted to take these large leaps.
But Naruto understood him. He knew the reasons and knew that all he needed was time with each step they took. So he waited, patiently, and gave gentle nudges to express what he wanted. After six months of dating, Naruto had expressed wanting to move in with one another. Sasuke had blatantly refused, but Naruto waited and bought his time. With gentle nudges, whispered promises and reassures, and decisive and valid arguments to express the positivity of his reasoning, he wore Sasuke down. With each passing month he was met with less resistance until finally, six months after he first mentioned it and a year into their relationship, Sasuke finally agreed.
That had been when they were twenty, and now, five years later, they were still going strong. Naruto had been taking his time with the next step, waiting for a reasonable time for each of them. There was no doubt in his mind that this next step was meant to happen, though Sasuke probably had never even considered it. But Naruto waited, postponing the inevitable, in order to find the right time. Not only did he need to be sure that Sasuke was ready for the next step, but himself as well. He wanted to be mature enough, and capable, as well as being in to the right position to handle it.
The first time he brought it up to his raven lover, it had just been blurted out without much thought. Of course, he had already thought about it and with more increasing intensity in the past year. But he hadn't planned for it to come out then. He hadn't planned for it to just be a spur of the moment thing. He had been planning to do it soon, but not in that moment.
But the moment had been just too perfect to pass up. It was the early morning, the sky outside beginning to lighten with the rays of the coming day. Naruto had awoken by chance a half hour earlier when the room was still dark and hadn't been able to recapture sleep. But the bed had been too comfy, too warm with Sasuke beside him to get up. Instead, he lie on his side, facing Sasuke, with his head propped up on his elbow.
He lay there for a long while, observing the lovely raven. He was lying on his stomach, his arms folded on the pillow and cushioning his head that he turned towards him. His long, dark lashes casted a shadow over his cheeks in the faint light of the beginning day. He wore nothing but a loose pair of sleeping shorts with the sheets tangled over his lower half, one bare foot sticking out while the other was trapped underneath. Idly Naruto observed that the shirt that Sasuke had worn to bed had been discarded on the floor during the night, a regular occurrence actually. Sasuke had once expressed that Naruto, who ran degrees warmer than the normal person because of the fox demon inside of him, didn't know how to keep his distance from him at night and often left Sasuke in a layer of sweat while engulfed in a smothering hold.
Naruto sighed blissfully, reaching out and gently ghosting his fingertips over the bare skin of Sasuke's back. The skin was soft under his touch, but not smooth. Unlike him whose skin healed unnaturally fast and with no scars, Sasuke was left with many brutal scars over his once delicate skin. Still, Naruto found the raven to be unnaturally beautiful, though he never expressed it to him in fear that the raven would punch him for daring to brand him with such a girly term as beautiful. But that was exactly what Sasuke was and he would not be the only person who thought so. Sasuke entranced him, filling him with so much love and contentment that he thought he would burst. Still, Naruto feared that it would never be enough for him. No matter his feelings, he knew that he would still never get tired of the feeling, never wish it to stop no matter how much it hurt sometimes to love someone so deeply.
Sasuke was his forever, his future, his soul. And even if Sasuke never said it aloud, his actions spoke that to Naruto that he was the same.
Sasuke sucked in a large breath, the light touches rousing him from his sleep. He let out a small groan, a sound of displeasure at being torn from his sleep. Naruto smiled as Sasuke shifted his head slightly to hide his face in the pillow and his arms. The blonde applied more pressure to his touches, keeping the raven from drifting back to sleep. Sasuke groaned again but lifted his head again to look at him sleepily. The blonde only smiled softly and then leaned in for a kiss.
It was a simple kiss, chaste and over after a few seconds. "Good morning," the blonde whispered.
"Morning," Sasuke said in a halfhearted disgruntled tone.
Naruto smiled, watching as Sasuke stretched out and rolled onto his back, inadvertently rolling over so that he was flush against Naruto's heated flesh. The blonde ran a loving hand over the raven's cheek before pushing the hair out of his face so he could properly see his dark gray, almost black, eyes.
"We should get married," he blurted out suddenly, unplanned even to himself. Still, he felt no regret, feeling the moment was perfect for such a topic.
Sasuke snorted, rolling his eyes and then quickly moving away from him. He pulled himself out of bed and padded his bare feet over the hard wood floor to their master attached bath. "Funny," he drawled out tiredly as he started up the shower.
Naruto remained in bed, watching through the open bathroom door as his lover stripped his clothes and stepped into the shower stall. He oddly didn't feel hurt by Sasuke's brush off. Honestly, he hadn't really expected anything less. Sasuke had done the same thing when he suggested they go on their first date. Naruto just laid back against the pillows as he watched his lover calmly wash his body. He would wait, and eventually, Sasuke would realize he was serious and want him.
II
Months had passed since Naruto's first proposal. At first, Sasuke hadn't thought him serious. He soon realized just how serious the blonde was. Naruto hadn't brought it up again until the week after the bedroom proposal, giving Sasuke the time he needed. But when it became clear that Sasuke wasn't even thinking about it Naruto had stepped back in.
"So, when do you think we should take the leap and get married?" Naruto asked while he eyed the tray with the diced ingredients. They were in the kitchen, the afternoon light bathing the kitchen in nice warmth while Sasuke prepared them a lunch. He had been trying to get Naruto to eat healthier so he was currently standing at the counter dicing up ingredients for a mixed salad. Naruto sat on the counter beside him, out of the way, but close. He grabbed a piece of boiled egg and plopped it in his mouth.
Sasuke snorted again as he continued about his business, intent on ignoring the blonde's comment. However, when he noticed the silence that the kitchen lapsed into as well as his lover's unwavering stare, he was forced to look up at him. He blinked in surprise at the serious, intense look in his boyfriend's eyes. "You're serious, aren't you?" he asked in wonder.
The blonde nodded and then gave a small, nervous smile. "Yeah, I love you and I want to take the next step."
Sasuke stared at him uneasily, having since stopped all motions of chopping. "Can't we take a smaller step?" he asked.
Naruto raised an eyebrow at him. "Like what?"
Sasuke shrugged in an exasperated manner. "I don't know. Adopt a stray cat or get a dog. Kiba was bitching about how one of his domesticated dogs had gotten out and mated with a wolf. Now he has a small litter of wolf mutts that no one will touch."
Naruto stared at him, derailed for a moment. "You want to get a wolf?"
Sasuke shrugged and then resumed chopping. "It's just a puppy and only half wolf. Plus, we could train him with Kiba's help. You always go nuts about those damn puppies you see every time you visit Kiba."
"You would let me bring a puppy home?" Naruto asked excitedly. In the past Naruto hadn't even dared to ask if he could get one. Sasuke hadn't been too keen on the many pups the Inuzuka Clan was constantly breeding.
"Sure," Sasuke said simply before he scraped newly diced ingredients into a neat pile. Naruto happily jumped off the counter and walked around to hug the raven from behind. He held him tightly, pressing a kiss to his shoulder, then his neck, before pressing one more to his ear. With a gentle nimble, he rocked their bodies slowly, drifting from a cheery celebration to a sensual grind.
"I still want to get married," Naruto whispered into the raven's ear, unwilling to be deterred from what he wanted just because Sasuke agreed to get a pup.
He felt the raven tense in his arms and let out a shuttering breath. "Naruto," he whispered languidly, seeming exhausted by the idea of marriage. "No," he stated in a regretful manner.
Naruto smiled sadly, not having expected anything less but still happy that he hadn't been indifferently dismissed. While Sasuke wasn't known for his caring personality, the blonde could see that the raven really disliked telling him no in this subject. It made Naruto feel sort of good that while Sasuke clearly wasn't ready for this large leap, he cared enough to consider Naruto's feelings on the subject.
Naruto kissed his lover's cheek calmly. "Its fine," he assured, not wanting to pressure him. Naruto was good at gentle nudges, letting Sasuke know what he wanted, but he would never force him. All the nudges did was get Sasuke thinking, and when he was thinking rather than dismissing the subject than he came to realize the truth to what Naruto said and his own shared interest that had been hiding behind his fear.
"I'm so excited about this pup," Naruto said, pulling away from the embrace and releasing the tension in the kitchen by changing the subject.
III
The couple did indeed get one of the puppies, much to Kiba's pleasure since he didn't know what to do with them. Because it was one of the domesticated dogs and not a ninja dogs, the puppies would not really large like Akamaru. Instead, they would get no large than a regular sized medium to large dogs. Still, people in the village were reluctant to take in a wolf mutt so Kiba was very happy when Sasuke and Naruto approached him about wanting to take one. Luckily, it was a small litter so once they took one, they were able to convince Kakashi to take one and Sakura took another after Naruto begged her (wanting Team Seven each to have one). After Kakashi took one, Shikamaru reluctantly took one for him and Ino, who had recently moved in together. Tenten took the final pup after Kiba had promised to help her train it.
Naruto and Sasuke took the oddball pup. Most of the pups were mostly gray, but Sasuke liked the white pup the most. It was mostly white with the very light gray dusting starting from the pup's crown and going down its spine. Naruto had immediately named him Miso, after his favorite flavor of ramen, but Sasuke refused to accept the name and had instead called him Pup. After a month of calling him Miso, Naruto finally gave in since the puppy seemed to respond to Pup more readily than Miso.
It took four months to properly train the dog. Kiba helped all of them to which he decided it would be easier to train them all together rather than separately. For those four months of training, Kiba had all the owners meet up together each week and they did group training sessions. After each session, since they were all close friends, they often went out to eat somewhere. Soon the other members of the original teams caught wind of the weekly lunches or dinners and started joining them. By the end of the training, it was a regular occurrence for all of the teams to get together each week- missions and such warranting, of course- for a loud and wild dinner.
During the four months, Naruto has continued to nudge Sasuke with proposals. He never pushed, always conceding when he was refused. But he still mentioned it frequently, though not frequently enough to annoy the raven. He did notice that it seemed to be getting harder and harder for Sasuke to refuse him and sometimes the blonde wondered if he should just give it a rest for a bit longer. The subject seemed to upset Sasuke, who was obviously very afraid of this step. He wasn't sure if it was a good or a bad thing that Sasuke was having a hard time refusing him.
Like they have done many times before, Sasuke and Naruto found themselves seated in a familiar restaurant. Their friends, enjoying a loud dinner in which too many loud personalities were crammed in a small space at one time, surrounded them. Everyone was relaxed, enjoying drinks, good food, and stupid stories and conversations among friends.
Naruto laughed loudly at the climax of a story Ino and Tenten were telling. He looked at Sasuke to his left, who was quietly sipping his drink while hiding his smirk behind the glass. The restaurant had a series of overhanging lights with alternating red and gold light covers above their table. The alternating colors gave off a faint glow of each respective color though it was not bright enough to make seeing hard. Sasuke was currently sitting the perfect spot in which the glow of each color was shining on him, making him look almost heavenly sitting beside him.
Naruto studied him, his heart beating wildly while his stomach bubbled in all too familiar butterflies. He sometimes wondered if he would ever get used to the butterflies after all this time. If wondered if they would ever go away, but then he soon realized they wouldn't. Because he would never stop wondering and staring at Sasuke in awe, knowing that somehow he chose him when he could have his pick at anyone.
He turned his body to face Sasuke, leaning his elbow on the table and resting his head into the propped limb. His other hand reached out to grab one of Sasuke's hands, who looked at him in surprise. He blinked in confusion at his serious expression, almost instantly wondering if he should be alarmed.
"When are you going to agree to marry me?" he asked loudly, unaware that he had just caught everyone's attention. They conversation had lulled after the laughter from Ino and Tenten's story when Naruto spoke. Everyone turned then, watching in wonder as Naruto focused on Sasuke, who looked like a deer in headlights.
Sasuke sat frozen for a long moment before he turned his body to face Naruto's, dropping his gaze to their linked hands. His drink was placed on the table and then his now free hand joined his other one in holding one of Naruto's. They sat this way for a long time, Naruto simply waiting for any sort of answer while Sasuke warred with himself. The idea of marrying Naruto scared the shit out of him; he was terrified by the idea. But still, he couldn't deny the appeal of the idea either. It tore him in two, dividing him into two warring halves.
After a long moment Sasuke moved his arms to wrap them around the blonde. One settled around Naruto's neck while the other held a shoulder. He pressed his face right next to Naruto's, his lips close to the blonde's ear but unable to focus the words he needed to get out. A hand settled on his waist while the other was still supporting his head on the propped elbow.
Sasuke moved his head to press his lips against Naruto's relaxed ones. It was an apologetic kiss, a kiss given to express the words he couldn't speak. Completely disregarding the fact that Sasuke didn't like to show public displays of affection, the raven planted many, quick apologetic kisses all over the blonde's face. Throughout the entire process Naruto made no movement, making it so much harder for Sasuke.
He planted a final deep kiss to Naruto's lips, finally receiving a response as Naruto melted into the kiss. He kissed him back with equal vigor, expressing to Sasuke every feeling of love and devotion he felt. Sasuke tired to express his own love, but also his fear, as well as his regret that he just couldn't give him what he wanted, what he deserved. He just couldn't and it broke his heart more with each dismissal he gave.
"Naruto," he muttered against his lips once they broke apart from their deep kiss.
"I know," Naruto interrupted, holding him tightly before giving him a few forgiving chaste kisses. "I know," he repeated, pulling back to push hair away from Sasuke's face with his hand that had held him up before. He looked deeply into his eyes, letting him know that he would not push him. He would wait for him to be ready.
Sasuke kissed him once more, a thankful kiss, before he pulled away. The two turned back to the face the table. With hands linked under the table, they gave a small awkward smile at seeing that everyone had watched the exchange. Sasuke looked away, embarrassed, and took a large gulp of his drink.
"So," Kiba asked conversationally, "does this mean you two are engaged now?" he asked.
To everyone at the table, it had looked like an unconventional marriage proposal from Naruto. And then they had all watched as Sasuke planted kiss after kiss, unable to deceiver the true meaning behind them. To them, the kisses had looked like an acceptance as no one had ever seen Sasuke so overcome with any sort of emotion, let alone uncaringly give everyone a public display of their relationship.
Naruto laughed easily, effortlessly hiding any sort of discomfort he may feel. "Nah," he said. "I actually think you and Hinata will be the first to marry," he stated, turning the conversation away from them.
Sasuke discreetly squeezed his hand under the table. Naruto smiled and leaned over to give him another kiss, just to tell him it was fine once more, before he pulled away again to join in mocking Kiba. He faltered for a moment when he noticed Neji glaring at him harshly from across the table.
"Ah, fuck you all," Kiba muttered and then looked to Naruto. "You two have the weirdest and most complicated relationship I have ever seen," he said.
Naruto only laughed. It was true.
IV
"Hey, do you know what the hell is Neji's problem?" Naruto shouted from the bathroom before putting his toothpaste-covered toothbrush back into his mouth. He gave a few good scrubs while he waited for an answer from his boyfriend in the bedroom whom was getting ready for bed.
"What do you mean?" his voice asked while Naruto spat out the foaming paste.
"He's just been a dick to me whenever I see him for the last few months," he stated.
It had been almost five months since the weekly dinner proposal. Since then, Naruto had noted that Neji glared at him harshly every chance he got. He didn't hang out with the brunette often, thank god, besides when they all went to the weekly dinners. But still, he saw more of his harsh glares than he was comfortable with. Additionally, since Neji worked with and trained Sasuke, he sometimes saw him when he went to check in with Sasuke during the day. Since the dinner Neji seemed to be incapable of having even an awkward, civil conversation with the blonde, who simply could not think of what he did to make him so mad at him.
Naruto saw Sasuke shrug as he walked by the opened bathroom door. "Maybe because he's been waiting for us to break up," he muttered coolly as if he was speaking of the weather.
Naruto jumped away from the sink, rushing to the doorway with his forgotten toothbrush still in his hand. "What!? Why!?" he asked in alarm.
Sasuke pivoted to look at him in surprise. "Because he wants me. I thought you knew," he stated, his confusion at his ignorance evident.
Naruto blinked in alarm and then found himself getting angry. It wasn't so much that he was angry at Sasuke, but rather at Neji and at himself for being so ignorant. Neji and Sasuke saw each other almost every day, they were close as friends, comrades, and mentor and mentee. All this time, though, and Neji had been just bidding his time, waiting for him and Sasuke break up so he could have him. How could he not have known about this?
"How was I supposed to know? For how long has he wanted you?" Naruto yelled.
Sasuke sank down on the bed where Pup jumped up next to him. He rubbed his furry head against Sasuke's hand, begging to be pet but the raven ignored him to focus on his lover instead.
"I don't know. I guess since I slept with him. I just assumed that you knew because Kakashi and Sakura both knew. I figured they would have told you," he stated.
Naruto visibly flinched and his anger double. A horrible jolt went through him, a green streak of jealousy suddenly propelling him over to the bed to yell at him. "You slept with him!? What the fuck!? When!? Did you cheat on me!?" he yelled in an outrage.
Sasuke stood up as well, glaring at him harshly. "Of course I didn't cheat on you. It was shortly after I returned to the village, before you and I started. It was a onetime thing, a stupid drunken mistake that we both put behind us. I put an end to it, made sure it didn't happen again. I'm not a cheat, you ass. I don't know why you are getting so upset about this. It was years ago."
"You don't know why I'm getting upset? You slept with another man and now you see him practically every day! Not to mention not a single person told me and this other man still wants you!"
Sasuke stepped away from him, wanting distance from the raging blonde. "Calm down. I thought you already knew and it just never came up."
"How could I have known and do you really think I would have been okay with this if I had known?"
Sasuke shrugged as he moved away from him. He seemed to hesitate for a moment before he glanced at the blonde for a moment. "I don't know."
The raven then moved over to the dresser to remove the Uchiha pendent he had hanging around his neck. Naruto stood frozen in his place for a long moment before he turned to face the Uchiha who had his back to him. "Has he ever tried anything since we've been together?"
Sasuke sighed, his body sagging. He had been hoping his lover wouldn't ask that question because he knew he couldn't lie to him. He hesitated in answering, refusing to turn to face his lover. But his silence was enough of an answer.
"He has, hasn't he!? That prick! Next time I see him I'm going to kill him! How dare him! What did he do!? Tell me!" Naruto yelled, rushing up to Sasuke and forcing him to face him.
Sasuke knew that no matter how angry Naruto got he would never hurt him, but he wrenched himself from the blonde's grip. "Calm down. It was nothing. He put his hand on me but I brushed it away and set him straight. It was handled so don't worry about it."
"He put his hand on you!? Where!? Was it innocent or was it inappropriate? It was inappropriate, wasn't it!? That fucking asshole! I'm going to kill him!" Naruto raged, pacing to release some of the angry energy bubbling inside of him.
Sasuke sighed and moved close to him, grabbing his arm to stop him from moving. "Stop, I handled it."
"Where did he touch you?" Naruto asked, his voice softening from the yell but no less menacing.
Sasuke hesitated but spoke, knowing Naruto would not give in until he knew. "My thigh, but I handled it. Calm down."
"Your thigh! Your thigh! Seriously!?" Naruto yelled again, outraged that Neji would dare touch him. It was bad enough that Neji was trying things on him when he was in a serious committed relationship. The guy had some nerve to do so, even if it had been in an innocent place like a knee or a shoulder. But his thigh? That was a very large leap over the very clear line in the sand that he shouldn't have crossed at all.
"He crossed a line. How dare he disrespect our relationship!"
Sasuke sighed, rubbing a hand over his forehead. "I'm not arguing with you about that, he did cross a line. But calm down, it was a while ago and I took care of it. I set him straight."
Naruto took a deep breath. "Fine, you took care of it, but that doesn't change the fact that he still disrespects our relationship by just waiting for me to mess up or something. He has to see that we aren't going to just break up any day now. We are in a committed relationship and it isn't going anywhere."
Sasuke nodded, trying to appease the blonde. He hadn't expected them have a fight tonight. If anything, he had wanted sex but right now sex was the farthest thing from his mind. "Yeah, I get it."
"Then marry me," Naruto demanded.
Sasuke paused, about to agree with the blonde to appease him when he froze. "Ye- wait, what?"
Naruto gently took a hold of him, a hand coming to rest in the curve of his neck so that he could direct his stare at him. "Yes, if you marry me, it will show him how serious we are. It'll get rid of him."
Sasuke face morphed into one of anger. "What? Are you serious?" He tried to push him away from him.
Naruto put a restraining hand on his arm. "It will show everyone how serious we are so we should get married. It makes perfect sense," Naruto explained, still so angry he wasn't thinking clearly.
Sasuke gave him a harsh shove. "You're kidding me, right? You did not just propose to me during a fight. You did not just propose to me so that you can prove to Neji and everyone else that I'm yours. I'm not some fucking trophy to lay claim to. That isn't what marriage is about, you asshole."
"I know what marriage is about," Naruto started, realizing his mistake and quickly trying to backtrack and save his ass. Sasuke, however, didn't give him a chance.
"You don't spring a proposal in the middle of a fight or a jealous rant. A proposal is supposed to be thought out, a subtle build up to some giant grand gesture. There is supposed to be a thousand yellow flowers and candles or something else stupidly romantic like that. It's not an out to a fight, a desperate need to end a fight, or to send a message to someone else outside of the relationship. No one else should ever factor into a proposal. This should be just about the love between you and me, not some spur of the moment plot to get me to yourself when you already have me. Get over yourself," Sasuke snarled and then pivoted to rush out of the room.
Naruto waited, listening to a door slam closed distantly. He sighed, knowing that Sasuke had locked himself in his office. Behind him, Pup jumped off the bed to chase after Sasuke. The dog loved Sasuke, instantly attaching himself to the raven when the two of them got him. Naruto slumped miserably on the bed, waiting for his lover to calm down before he approached him again.
He waited fifteen minutes to gather himself before he ventured out of the bedroom to apologize to his hopefully calmer boyfriend. He made his way down stairs of their shared house, going down the hall to where the office was. Pup was sitting outside the closed door, scratching at the door pathetically, quietly begging to be let in. Naruto sighed and leaned against the door before lightly strumming his knuckles over the wooden surface.
"Sasuke, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking clearly. You're right, I'm so sorry. That wasn't the right time, at all, to bring that up. I'm so sorry. Please, open the door," he begged.
Naruto waited for a half hour more quietly begging and apologizing through the door before it opened. Naruto sprang up already gushing more apologizes while Sasuke leaned against the doorframe. "Shut up already," Sasuke finally muttered. "I know you didn't mean it like it came out. You're a jealous idiot, but you're not stupid enough to want to enter into marriage just to stake a claim on me. I know you."
Naruto nodded energetically, taking a hold of Sasuke by the curve of his neck. "I love you and I want to marry you. But not because of Neji or anyone else. Because this thing that we have, this strange and powerful relationship, it's too big and too good to waste. So I want to marry you, and make you mine forever. I want to start a family and spend the rest of my life with you. I love you, Sasuke, and I'm sorry that I ruined a proposal by spitting it out during a fight. I'm sorry."
Sasuke leaned forward and kissed the blonde. "I know, I forgive you," he muttered against his lips.
"Never again, I promise," he muttered between kisses.
Sasuke wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's neck and deepened the kiss, allowing Naruto to guide him into the office. Sasuke hummed in agreement to Naruto's promise while Naruto pressed him against the desk. Effortlessly, the blonde lifted the raven up onto the desk, hitching his legs around his waist. Sasuke groaned, pressed flush against the blonde and his head spinning with lust.
Naruto suddenly pulled away from the kiss. "A thousand yellow flowers?"
Sasuke blinked in confusion before he remembered his earlier rant. "What? I don't know. It was the first thing I thought of."
"Do you secretly have a thing for yellow flowers?" Naruto teased.
Sasuke glared at him. "No, shut up. Sex now, talk later. Just fuck me already, I need you."
Well, Naruto couldn't really argue with that.
V
Naruto spent the week that followed the fight thinking. In his reflections, he realized with a start that that had been the only time in which he had proposed and Sasuke hadn't flat out refused him- the very first time not counting because he hadn't even realized it was a serious idea. In fact, Sasuke had given him ideas on a proper proposal. In the past, Naruto had always gone for the subtle approach. This time, he was going to make "a grand gesture".
Naruto was careful to take note of Sasuke's little habits and routines, things he had already known but needed to be sure of if he wanted this to be perfect. Naruto also recruited the help of some friends. After visiting Ino's family flower shop with an order that she hated him for, he enlisted the help of Sakura to help him pick out rings while Kakashi took Sasuke out to train so he would be busy. Together, Naruto and Sakura poured over the jewelry case, trying to pinpoint the perfect ring for their raven-haired teammate.
Finally, when the night arrived that Naruto decided to make his move, he had Sakura and Kakashi keep Sasuke out of the house for a little while. Sakura had insisted that Sasuke come into the hospital for a checkup, something the raven hated but deemed a necessary evil after a particularly bad mission a few weeks back that left his left knee aching as it slowly healed. From there, Naruto arranged for Kakashi to "run into them" and rope them into helping him with a bookshelf at his apartment. For Naruto, it kept Sasuke busy and out of the house while he prepared while also helping Kakashi with the bookshelf he has been too lazy to put up himself.
By the time Sasuke reached the front door of their shared home, he was completely irritated for being roped into doing Kakashi's work. Tired from training to the point of exhaustion the day before and only having a few hours to recover with sleep before he spent the day with his annoying teammates, all he wanted to do was relax. He sighed as he entered the quiet house, groaning as his muscles ached with each movement.
He paused at the entryway of the house, staring at the dimly lit hallway in front of him. The entire hallway was lined with flowers, bundles and bundles of bright yellow daises. The scent of the flowers was heavy in the air, prompting Sasuke to step slowly into the house to investigate further. The flowers blocked the doorways to the kitchen and living room as well as the other doors in the hall that were closed. Sasuke stepped closer, noticing that on the floor there were red and white daisies in the middle of the hallway, carefully arranged in a line.
Taking cautious steps to avoid stepping on the flowers, Sasuke followed the line of flowers. They led to the stairs, going up with the yellow daisies lining the walls on each side. Sasuke climbed the stairs, pausing for only a moment to take in the sight up the upper hallway. Like the downstairs hallway, the walls were lined with the yellow daises with a single line of red and white alternating daises. The line led to the bedroom, which the raven followed quickly.
The bedroom was empty with an overwhelming amount of yellow daises on the floor and the furniture. The bed had flower petals, red and white, scattered around the soft surface, but the alternating line of flowers led to the opened bathroom door. From where he stood, he could see that there was a light coming from the bathroom, too dim to be the fluorescent but still bright with an orangey glow. Hesitantly, he followed the flowers into the bathroom.
The bathroom was lit in an abundance of candles, the air hot from plethora of fire and the steaming tub that was filled with warm water with flower petals sprinkled on top. Sasuke took in every detail slowly, breathing in the sweet scent of the flowers and some sort of oil that had been added to the water.
"A thousand yellow flowers and candles," Sasuke whispered to himself as the situation finally dawned on him.
"Yup, I thought I would go for the sappy lover thing this time," a familiar voice said from behind him and Sasuke quickly whirled around to see Naruto kneeling on one knee in the doorway to the bedroom.
He was smiling at him sweetly, his blue eyes shining in the candlelight. He was wearing his best shirt, a blue button up, and a pair of plain black pants. Extended in his hand was a velvet box opened to reveal a simple silver band with an intricate design etched into it so lightly that at first glance Sasuke hadn't even seen it.
"Will you marry me?" Naruto asked simply, bypassing any sort of sappy speech.
Sasuke stared at him incomprehensibly for a moment before he looked around the bathroom, surrounded by candles and sprinkled with flowers, then to the ring that was shining dimly in the light, and then back to Naruto's too blue eyes. His gaze flicked back to the ring, which somehow looked so much more daunting than just moments ago, and soon began to feel dizzy. He swayed slightly, reaching up to cover his eyes with one of his hands while the other reached behind him for balance.
"I need to sit down," he groaned, slumping gracelessly on the edge of the bathtub.
Naruto let out a surprised noise and jumped up from his kneeling position. "Are you okay?" he asked in concern while he settled himself at Sasuke's feet and placed steadying hands on his waist and the other on his arm.
Sasuke took a moment to composure himself before he nodded slowly. "Yeah . . . just overwhelmed, I think," he muttered at last.
Naruto smiled nervously. "Sorry, was this too much?"
Sasuke shook his head, meeting blue eyes for only a moment. "No, it's perfect," he said, staring at the floor. His hand idly ran over his brow, his body tense and anxious. "It's so cheesy and sappy, but it's perfect . . ." he trailed off.
Naruto studied his boyfriend and smiled sadly. "But it's still a no," he whispered.
Sasuke let out a chocked sob, actual tears of frustration welling up in his eyes. He sank down into Naruto's awaiting arms, tucking his face into his neck while hugging him tightly. His hand fisted blonde hair and clutched at the blue shirt. Naruto rubbed comforting circles on his back, trying to calm the man in his arms.
"I'm so sorry, Naruto, I'm so sorry. I want you, I want only you. So why can't I just say yes? What the hell is wrong with me?" Sasuke ranted, head still buried as he fought to keep the tears from spilling from his eyes.
"You're just not ready, Sasuke. Nothing is wrong with you," Naruto assured.
"I'm so sorry," Sasuke whispered.
Naruto shook his head and then forced Sasuke to pull way to look at him. He cupped the raven's face, looking into glassy eyes, and lovingly caressed the pale cheek. "Sasuke, I love you. It's okay if you're not ready. That isn't going to make me love you less. Just take some time and think it through. I'm not going anywhere, so I'll wait. You are worth the wait."
Sasuke took a long moment, studying the blonde's face before he spoke. "I don't deserve you."
Naruto shook his head and smiled brightly. "Nah, we are the perfect match. You push me and I push you. We need each other."
VI
After the self-proclaimed "sappy proposal" Naruto decided to give Sasuke some time to think. He put the velvet box away in the junk drawer in the kitchen because they hardly ever went into it and together, they handed out daisies to as many people as they came across until they had gotten rid of them all. Their days went back to normal, their routines still set and nothing changed.
Weeks had passed in contemplation for Sasuke. He spent his night lying awake while Naruto snored next to him, thinking of his family. His father probably would have hated Naruto. He would have called him an obnoxious fool of little worth before his blonde lover would have inevitably proved himself as he always did. His father would begrudgingly admit his worth but never give him an inch. Itachi would have liked him but, as the protective older brother, try to intimidate him whenever he saw him. His mother would have probably been wary of their relationship from the start but inevitably give her blessing after seeing how happy his blonde best friend made him.
And he is happy. Naruto made him happy in a way that no other person could ever hope to. His blonde best friend gave him hope, breathed life into him, and kept him going when he would have given up a long time ago. He knew that if, god forbid, Naruto was to pass on tomorrow Sasuke knew he would follow him blindly. He would follow him anywhere.
It wasn't that Sasuke didn't want to have a future with Naruto, because he did. In fact, he dreamed about perfect little children that were a combination of the two of them. Never mind that they are both male, he had sleepily woke up and said that he would find a way to make that happen. He dreamed about their kids, dreamed about growing old together- or at least as old as shinobi can expect to get before their death. He wanted a life with Naruto.
So why was he holding back? Was he so afraid of losing Naruto that he would stop him from getting closer? Was he really willing to stop future happiness because he was afraid?
Sasuke sighed as he entered the kitchen. Naruto, however charming he was, had skipped out on doing the housework once again. Sasuke had given him the task of making a grocery list so he could go shopping tomorrow on the way home but that blonde had conveniently forgotten, leaving the task to Sasuke. Somehow it seemed like Sasuke was the one always stuck with the household tasks. Naruto liked to make the messes, like the many, many flowers or candle wax the blonde had managed to spill on seemingly every surface of the bathroom. As it turned out, Sasuke ended up cleaning it up like always.
Sasuke went to the junk drawer and pulled it open. The legal notepad was sitting atop the random assortment of everyday items that accumulated. He pulled the pad out, reaching in to shift through the mess to grab a pen when his fingers brushed over a velvet box. Sasuke stilled, hesitating when he realized what his hand was resting over. After a quick debate, he grabbed the box, leaving the note pad on the counter where it was quickly forgotten.
The box opened with a slight creak, revealing the ring once more. Under the lighting of normal day versus the orangey glow of romantic candles, it somehow looked different to the raven. While it still had the same shape he remembered, it looked smaller now, more beautiful. The design etched into it was light, but intricate. The whole thing looked less threatening for some reason.
"Yo, I'm home! And I brought ramen. I ran into Sakura today and we went out to eat; she paid of course. And since she was paying, I figured, what the hell, ramen to-go for dinner," Naruto was shouting as he entered the kitchen, carrying two plastic bags.
Sasuke jumped and snapped the box closed. He turned quickly to face the blonde with the small box held behind his back. He took a deep breath, putting on his best poker face and trying to calm the flutter of his beating heart. "You know, you forgot to make the list again," he stated before turning back to the drawer. He tossed the box back in quickly, but gently because it seemed as if it was a crime to mistreat the thing even if it was an inanimate object.
Naruto must have been watching him because the blonde was instantly beside him. "What was that? Why did you have the ring?" he questioned.
"No reason," Sasuke said while grabbing notepad again and quickly fishing out the pen he needed. He turned away from the blonde while attempting to turn away from the conversation.
Naruto grabbed his arm to stop him from walking away. "No, no, no, no, don't walk away. We are not done here."
Sasuke struggled to get out of his boyfriend's grip. "Let me go," he demanded avoiding eye contact with the other man. He tried to pull away again, but while Sasuke was definitely the more highly trained one of the couple, Naruto had more brute strength. While Sasuke could easily avoid his boyfriend most times, he was already caught now and there was little he could do now without resorting to a real fight between them.
"Talk to me for once," Naruto pleaded.
"I have to make the list," Sasuke muttered while trying to get away but Naruto only gripped him tighter, wrapping an arm around his waist loosely.
"No you don't. Put the pad down. Put it down," he urged while using his grip on his arm to try and shake Sasuke's pad out of his hand.
Sasuke groaned in frustration and tried to get loose. When that failed, he elbowed Naruto in the gut and hooked a leg behind Naruto's, hoping that would dislodge him. However, the plan backfired when Naruto's grip didn't loosen but instead sent from both plummeting to the ground. Sasuke, being in front of Naruto, was pushed to the floor with Naruto on his back. With his arms fairly restrained by Naruto, he went headfirst.
Sasuke's head hit the ground with a large thump and Naruto quickly rolled off of him. Sasuke groaned and then rolled over onto his back, reaching up to rub his forehead while his notepad laid forgotten on the floor. Naruto was soon pushed up against his side, nervous hands fluttering over his face and head.
"I'm so sorry. Are you okay? Should I get Sakura?"
Sasuke shook his head. "No, I'm fine," he assured in a whisper. He lay back, letting his hands drop to his side while Naruto's careful hands replaced his. His worried blue eyes stared down at him, fretting over him. His gentle hands rubbed and soothed, relieving the pain. Sasuke's dark eyes traced his features, taking in the loving and worried look in his soft eyes, the defined line of his firm jaw, the light blonde, coarse stubble he hadn't gotten around to shaving this morning. He was beautiful, much too perfect to want him and yet he was always there, loving him and supporting him.
"Ask me again," Sasuke whispered.
Confusion lit up his face. "What?" Naruto asked, a look clearly questioning if his head was right after the fall.
"You've asked me a thousand different times in a thousand different ways and I've always given you the same answer. I wasn't ready to give you wanted," he stated calmly and then lifted his hand to caress the tanned skin. "But I have a different answer now," he added with a small smirk.
Naruto stared back at him with wide eyes, blinking incomprehensibly for a few moments. A hopeful expression crossed his face, hopeful but still wary as if he was afraid of the inevitable rejection he seemed to face. Sasuke felt a twinge of guilt, knowing that he has given him no indication that he would ever say yes, let alone start the conversation. But he waited, giving his lover a steady look to let him know he was not kidding.
"You're sure about this?" the blonde asked warily. Sasuke only nodded and waited.
Naruto smiled, a breathing taking smile of pure happiness that displayed his all of his white teeth and spread across his whole face. He leaned forward and captured a passionate kiss, his lips happily dancing across his own. He pulled back quickly and gave the same bright smile. He took a deep breath, trying to compose his excitement before he spoke.
"Sasuke, will you marry me?" he managed after a moment, his voice cracking in excitement only once.
Sasuke nodded wordlessly before Naruto's lips were on his own again. Their lips meshed in frenzy, expressing every emotion they have ever felt. They clutched at each other, gripping at one another desperately. Soon they were forced to end the kiss as air became a necessity but they kept each other in a tight grasp.
"I love you so much," Naruto whispered, letting out a laugh. Naruto had proposed so many different ways and yet the time Sasuke finally say yes was after a fall in the kitchen where he nearly bashed his face in. How was he supposed to tell people that? Oh, well, I kept asking and he kept saying no. But after I smacked his head into the floor he finally said yes. That doesn't sound suspicious at all.
"I love you too," Sasuke murmured and then added, "And not just because you made me hit my head."
The blonde groaned, resting his head against Sasuke's shoulder. "I'm so sorry," he murmured.
Sasuke waved a dismissive hand and then gave a chaste kiss. "So, is the ring part of the deal or is it just going to sit in that damn drawer forever."
Naruto smiled and jumped up before running over to the drawer. Sasuke slowly stood and followed the blonde at a saner pace, pausing as Naruto rushed back over to him. With that same bright smile, he removed the ring from the box and took Sasuke's pale left hand. Taking a deep breath and a moment to look Sasuke in the eyes, he slowly slid the ring into place on his ring finger. If possible, his smile seemed to widen as he took in the sight of the ring clad finger.
"A perfect fit," he murmured.
Sasuke nodded and then smiled as well. "Like us," he whispered before drawing the blonde in for another kiss.
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