"You know, it's really irritating when you just stare at the back of my head like that." Itachi said as he felt his younger brother's eyes bore holes into the back of his head. Sasuke just hn'd and walked back into the hallway wondering why he couldn't help but stare at his older brother lately. Sasuke walked down the hall to the bathroom.

He shut the door behind him and leaned against it, fighting his rising irritation. However, he found that he wasn't irritated at Itachi, he was irritated at himself. For what, he hadn't quite figured out yet.

"Damn it." He Sasuke muttered to himself. He turned the water on in the shower to just above lukewarm and stripped his clothes off. Stepping in, he shivered as the water hit his tense shoulders and ran down his back. Tenderly, he touched his curse mark, feeling the slightly raised puncture wounds from where Orochimaru had bitten him. Sasuke just stood under the water, letting his mind wander. For some reason his mind kept wandering to Itachi.

Everything about Itachi intrigued Sasuke. The way he moved, the way he spoke, the way his eyes seemed to glisten when he watched Sasuke train. Sasuke loved it when his brother watched him. After years of hating his brother, and wanting revenge, and trying to kill him, when the time came, he found that he couldn't bring himself to kill his brother. He realized that all he had wanted was for his brother to finally look at him. Finally notice him. Sasuke smiled as he recalled all the times that his brother helped him perfect his fighting style when he practiced. Finally having someone to look after him. Make sure he ate breakfast, to bandage his wounds. It was oddly nice.

Finally, the water started to become cold so Sasuke turned the water off and stepped out, but pulled the shower door back swiftly, careful not to slip as he jumped back into the shower when he saw Itachi rummaging under the counter.

"Itachi, there's this new thing I heard about. It's called knocking. Think you should try it." Sasuke growled at his brother who glanced up momentarily before returning to his search under the counter.

"I did, but you didn't answer. Just looking for some toothpaste. I'm out. Ah, here it is. Later." He gave Sasuke a smirk and walked out of the bathroom, leaving the door wide open. Sasuke growled under his breath as he reached for the towel hanging on the bar next to the shower. His hand scraped the wood of the bar and Sasuke growled again. Guess he was gonna have to make a mad dash.

He stepped out and poked his head out the door, looking both ways to make sure the coast was clear, which it was. He ran for his room which was down the hall, take a left and on the right side of the hall. He made a run for it, right past Itachi's office and scraped his shoulder as he turned the corner too fast down the hall towards his room. Making it to his room without incident, Sasuke growled once more under his breath as he dug through his dresser for a pair of boxer shorts and a pair of his cotton lounge pants.

He pulled them on and opened his door back up and ran almost smack into Itachi, who's fist was raised as if to knock. The two brothers stared at each other for a moment.

"Can I help you?" Sasuke asked irately.

"Why is the floor outside my office wet?" He asked.

"Because I just got out of the shower, maybe?" He snapped as he pushed past his older brother to put new towels in the bathroom and brush his teeth.

"Hn, brat." His brother mumbled to Sasuke's retreating back.

"Jackass." He called behind him when he got to the linen closet. He pulled out two white cotton towels and headed back to the bathroom. After hanging the towels up he reached under the counter for his toothbrush and toothpaste. He jumped a little when his fingers brushed something soft and fluffy. Looking into the cupboard, his brows came together in confusion. Why were there towels under the sink? Sasuke pulled them out and looked at them in confusion for a long while. He didn't remember putting them under there. But Itachi wasn't the pranking type. So how did they get there?

Sasuke shook his head, putting the though out of his mind. He or Itachi must have put them there by mistake. As much as they Uchiha's liked to believe themselves above such simple mistakes, Sasuke had learned that everyone makes mistakes. Sitting the towels aside he grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste, and stood back up to brush his teeth.

Falling onto his bed, he gave a sigh. He was wiped. Sasuke flicked the switch on his lamp and pulled the covers up under his chin. There was a quiet tap on the door before it quietly opened a few inches, Itachi's head poking in.

"Sasuke, are you asleep?" He said in a whisper, not wanting to wake him if he was.

"Yes." Sasuke muttered, not having the energy to deal with his brother right now.

"Goodnight then." Itachi pushed the door open and sat on the edge of Sasuke's bed. He brushed a lock of hair away from Sasuke's face and leaned over, giving him a peck on the forehead, his lips tugging up at the corners as he felt Sasuke tense. He stood, letting his fingertips run from Sasuke's shoulder down his arm to his elbow, and shut the door behind him.

Sasuke tried to get his heartbeat to slow down. How many times had Itachi done that? Why did it have the same affect on the young Uchiha every time? At first he thought it was just the idea of having Itachi so close to him. But after noticing that it never happened during training, that idea got shot down.

Sasuke's skin still tingled pleasantly where Itachi touched him. The last thing Sasuke remembered before slipping into sleep was the feeling of Itachi's long hair brushing his neck and his collar bone and his rising erection as he remembered the feel of Itachi's lips on his forehead.

"Good night Itachi." He whispered sleepily to the darkness.