No, I've seriously no idea why or how this crept into my mind. I mean, I do, but...nevermind all that. Thanks to my (apparently really quite perverted ;P) beta, MikoGoddess. And once again, of course nothing's mine except for the stupid plot. (...Does this have one at all?)


They were just regaining consciousness after having dozed off. The lovemaking was long and passionate; not raw, not animalistic, not rushed. It was well past midnight. Though there wasn't a single cloud in the sky, Konoha was dark: the slim crescent moon couldn't possibly give enough light to see by. It was dark and silent, as the citizens had long ago retreated to their homes and were fast asleep. Sasuke could actually hear the silence if he listened, lying on the bed under the open window. The air was comfortably cool, especially compared to the day's heat of summer.

He felt Naruto stir next to him: his right arm was getting numb under the boy's shoulder, but he didn't mind at all. The blonde turned, facing him, and flung an arm over his body, thus indicating that he didn't want any distance between their bodies. They kissed and nibbled each other's lips and got lost in each other's eyes.

"You know, Sasuke…" Naruto spoke, his voice almost a whisper. "I've been meaning to ask this for a while, so… um… well… why me?"

Sasuke took a deep breath as if he was going to reply immediately, but the air got stuck in his lungs for a few long seconds, only to leave as one heavy sigh as the teen rolled to his back, placing his left hand under his head, as if staring at the ceiling. Actually, whatever he could, or could not see, didn't even get to his brain from his eyes: he was somewhere deep in his thoughts, far away from the room, far away from Naruto.

"I'm… I'm sorry, I don't … I don't wanna be a bother, I just… don't understand," Naruto went on, blinking puzzled as he looked at his lover. "You could… get anyone, really, and they'd… pee their pants… or skirts, even… to be with you, and-…"

"That means you didn't pee your pants at all? Not even once?" Sasuke interrupted, despite his wandering mind, in the same low voice. No cold, no malice in his words, just genuine inquiry.

"D…d-don't twist my words," Naruto stuttered, putting his head down on Sasuke's chest, as if that was the world's best, softest pillow. The truth of course was, at least partly, much more prosaic: he didn't want to give the other the slightest chance of discovering the blush that started creeping on his face. Of course he peed his pants when the Uchiha picked him, his mind was blown away actually, mainly when it turned out that he hadn't just been a one-night stand. Or lay, rather.

"I'm not twisting your words, Naruto," Sasuke said, assuring him and closing the gap between his mouth and the blonde locks to plant a kiss on that silly head.

'He's calling me by name…and we aren't even mid-sex…' Naruto thought, still not used to this kind of intimacy between them.

"W-well… Um… I mean… I've known you for like… ever… It's not just that I know your face and know your name and know what happened to your family…"

Sasuke absentmindedly caressed Naruto's hair as he went on explaining, but neither of them seemed to be aware of this: it was an unconscious interaction.

"…and we've been through hell and heaven together… and have saved each other's hide so many times we've lost count…"

There was shifting under his head as his "pillow" propped himself up on his elbows and with the same momentum laid Naruto gently on his back. The latter's eyes were one big question mark as the other's face hovered just inches above his own.

"See," Sasuke started, kissing Naruto's forehead, "that's exactly why," another kiss, this time on his lips, "it's you," another, on his right eye, "and no one else," and yet another one, on his left eye. Their faces were less than an inch apart as Sasuke just stared at his boyfriend; they could each feel the other's warm breath on their lips.

"You know me, Naruto," he whispered, emphasizing every single word. "You see my rights and wrongs…my light and my dark… and I can trust you. I can trust you and know that I won't be disappointed, no matter what. You're the only one who actually makes me feel alive. Without having to worry about not finding you the next morning… I can rely on you and not feel weak."