AN: So I had started a story called Needed Me, and as I was brainstorming over ideas and writing some of the content, the whole thing turned into something completely different from what I originally had planned. So I ended up scrapping that story to start this one. Thus, Monster Circle was born.
My plan for this story is to explore the dynamics between two people who have a deep connection but are both suffering from mental illnesses. Naruto, who has DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder), meets Sasuke, who has Manic Bipolar Disorder. It's sure to be a challenge to write, but I like that sort of thing. So if you're into dark, psychological shit check this story out.
However, If you're a melodrama type of reader, I urge you to check out my story "The Hard Year". I assure you the conflict that is going on in that story will keep you interested.
Review and Follow!
Summary: What took 5 years for Naruto to repress is being summoned by a new dark and dangerous friend.
Ch1
The Boy on the Roof
There was something menacing crawling under Naruto's skin, but no matter how hard he dug his nails into his arm the itch would not go away. The girl sitting next to him made a comment about getting fresh air before averting her eyes to the floor. She had been watching Naruto scratch himself for the past thirty minutes, and by the look on her face, she was somewhat creeped out.
Awkwardly, Naruto apologized, slipping his hands under his thighs. Small group had gone 10 minutes over the allotted time it was supposed to last. The counselor had managed to rabbit hole his way into another rant about the brain, claiming the power of thought was the key to stability. Naruto rolled his eyes; not exactly keen on learning how to be like the little engine that could. Not thinking about his problems was the reason why he didn't have as many issues as he use to. The only disorder he was dealing with now was general anxiety and minor depression, but that was manageable. Soon, he wouldn't have to attend any more group therapy sessions.
A passive aggressive remark on the weather outside caused Naruto to bite the inside of his cheek. His nails were scratching the bottom of his chair, earning him a series of complain filled moans from various students all around the room. The girl sitting next to him leaned over and stared at his face.
"Ok. fresh air. On it," he whispered with a weak smile which caused his neighbor to back off and return her attention to the counselor.
When the meeting ended, Naruto grabbed his book bag and escaped to the stairwell that led to the rooftop. He shoved the door open and was greeted by a large gust of wind. Stumbling forward, his hands shot up to block the sunlight from his eyes.
"Whoa," he breathed as he took in the view.
The hills rolled like waves, traveling out towards the horizon until they seemed to crash against the shores of the distant city. For a moment Naruto was lost in a trance, mesmerized by the land, the beauty it held, and the sound of the whistling wind. He slowly walked towards the ledge, contemplating the world and all of its mysteries. He barely noticed the shadow hovering several feet away from him. He turned his attention towards the looming figure then froze. A pale, teenage boy was trapezing on the railing. Naruto's heart immediately started to race. Did the boy not recognize the danger he was putting himself in? All it took was one wrong step and then... They would be cleaning the pavement for days, weeks even. Naruto didn't make any sudden movements; afraid he would startle the boy and thus become the antecedent to his demise. Having been a resident of a psychiatric ward in the past, Naruto was familiar with how these types of people thought and behaved. There had even been several suicide attempts on his floor. Somehow he had to make the boy aware of his presence, then maybe he could de-escalate the situation.
"Um," Naruto whispered, and the boy immediately snapped his head back, revealing eyes as black as ash. He stared for a moment then returned his focus to the railing. One foot, the left, ascended into a suspension.
Naruto could feel the hair on the back of his neck rising as he watched the provocative balancing act. "Y-you got some talent there," he spoke out as his book bag slipped off his shoulder and onto the ground.
The tall figure straightened his posture before turning and offering Naruto a smug smirk.
Naruto didn't understand the gesture but decided if the boy wasn't going to step down from the railing then he would just have to step up. It wouldn't be the smartest thing he ever did, but it was all Naruto could think of doing because there was no telling what would happen if he left, and he wasn't about to have this kid's blood on his hands.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the stranger finally responded, watching as Naruto clumsily climbed onto the ledge and attempted to pull himself up on the railing.
"Well, you're sort of leaving me no choice," Naruto answered and slowly lifted himself onto the pole; first straddling it then lifting his right leg to the top.
The dark-eyed boy watched in fascination as Naruto struggled to stand
"So, this is a lot harder than it looks."
"Maybe for you."
Naruto peeked up at the mysterious teenager who was still watching him in anticipation. With a hesitant breath, Naruto erected himself on the railing, throwing out his arms for balance.
The pale boy returned his left foot to the pole and crossed his arms. "Impressive," he simpered, giving Naruto a short, slow applause. "Now move towards me."
"What?" Naruto tried not to panic as he struggled to keep himself steady.
"Walk to me."
Naruto had been using his feet as a focal point, but when his ankles stopped shaking, he lifted his head to look at the face of the other boy. It was quite strange, the feeling Naruto felt when his blue eyes met with black ones. He felt a pulse; as if something was beginning to stir deep within his chest. It was tangible and electrifying.
"Do you feel that?" he asked.
"Yah,"
"What is it?"
"It's called adrenaline."
Naruto could feel his pupils dilate.
"Now, walk to me."
Naruto hesitated then took one step forward. When he felt he had a grip on how to move he took another step.
"That's it. Keep going."
Without any more hesitation, Naruto made a dash to where the other boy stood and instantly wrapped his arms around him. The force of the impact caused the pale teenager to lose his footing, and together the two boys started to sway back and forth. Naruto was the first to completely lose his balance, leaning towards open air until the pale boy purposely forced his body to fall in the opposite direction. He grabbed Naruto's collar and allowed gravity to drop them off the ledge and onto the roof.
"Holy shit!" Naruto yelled; as a jolt of pain shot up his spine. "Ow."
The pale boy took a deep breath before he emitted a low, quiet chuckle
"That was just dumb. Dumb!" Naruto complained and slowly pushed himself into a seated position.
"Maybe you're not too far off from the truth."
"Just what the hell were you doing?"
The stranger shrugged, tucking a loose strand of black hair behind his ear.
Naruto tensed up, unsure of what to say next.
"I wasn't trying to kill myself if that's what you're thinking…" the pale boy lifted both of his eyebrows than smirked.
Naruto just looked at the pale teenager in disbelief. Was this guy serious? "Right, who would ever think such a thing?"
The boy met Naruto's glare with a look of indifference.
"Really, what's your deal?" Naruto asked.
"I was bored."
"Bored?"
"Stupid and hard of hearing," the teenager mumbled while rolling his eyes.
"Excuse me?"
"You didn't mishear me."
Naruto blinked several times, feeling somewhat shocked. "You know I have to report this to a teacher or an administrator, right?" Actually, he wasn't even sure the guy attended his high school. He had never seen him before. "What's your name? Do you even go here?".
The pale figure sighed and stood to his feet, apparently finished with the conversation. He dusted off his jeans and started walking towards the exit.
"Hey!" Naruto scurried to his feet, reaching out to grab a hold of the guy's shoulder. It was immediately knocked away.
"Unless you want to lose a limb, I would advise you to never touch me again." The boy warned, and by the look on his face, Naruto knew he wasn't kidding.
Suddenly, a fluff of milkweed floated between the two boys and landed gracefully on the pale teenager's collar. Without thinking, Naruto delicately retrieved the specimen from his shirt and sent it back off into the wind. He watched it hover away before returning his attention to the mysterious person standing in front of him.
The boy didn't say a word. He just stared.
"What?" Naruto asked, fully aware that the atmosphere was becoming rather awkward.
The stranger didn't respond. He just blinked before turning on his heel to walk away.
This time Naruto watched him leave. "Alrighty then," he scoffed as he heard the exit door close.
Nothing in Naruto Uzumaki's life had ever been normal. He was born an orphan, became a victim of the foster care system at 5, and was diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder at the age of 12. He had a childhood fit for a drug dealer and often fought to repress it; even the memories that weren't traumatic. From his first breath statistics had been working against him, predestining his future to be dark, violent, and meaningless. But one day, salvation decided to pay Naruto a visit, arriving in the form of a sensitive and lonely man; a man who had never made an effort to marry or form a family of his own. This salvation adopted Naruto, saving him from a life that would have undoubtedly ended in misery.
Naruto only ever called this man Iruka; acknowledging him as a father figure, but always aware that they weren't actually related. Their relationship was good; healthy, but Naruto could never shake the feeling that something was missing. Iruka suspected it had something to do with the fact that he didn't have a wife.
He was a single father with an adopted son.
While progressive, it wasn't exactly satisfying.
"Hey, you feeling alright," Iruka asked as Naruto stared mindlessly out the passenger car window. It wasn't like the teen to be so quiet and introspective.
The boy took a deep breath before leaning back in his seat and propping his shoes up on the dashboard. To be honest, I'm not sure.
"Want to talk about it?"
Naruto shook his head. "I don't know. It was just so weird."
They came to a halt at a stop light which allowed the older man to turn his whole head towards the teenager. He immediately noticed dirty, black converses. "Feet, Naruto."
"Oh yeah. Right. Sorry," he said while maneuvering his legs towards the floor. "I'm just so used to sitting like this in Sakura's car."
"Makes sense, considering the car she drives is about 100 miles away from entering the big toolbox in the sky."
"Tch, it is a piece of shit isn't it?" Naruto grinned.
Iruka rolled his eyes, ignoring the language. "Talk to me. What was so weird?"
Naruto scratched the back of his head, his hand sifting through soft blond locks. He wasn't sure how Iruka would react if he told him he stopped someone from committing suicide on the school rooftop. Actually, Naruto was having a hard time deciding whether or not what he saw was an actual attempt at self-inflicting death or just some spontaneous form of twisted chaos. Iruka had always been one of his go-to confidants; so it wasn't like he didn't trust him. But this situation was different. Suicide, intentional or unintentional, was not something Iruka would idly sit by and ponder about. No, phone calls would be made, meetings with school administrators would have to take place, and parents would ultimately be notified. Who was Naruto to do that to someone's life? Then again, he didn't know how he would handle a death that he ultimately had the power to stop.
"Some girl kept staring at me in group today." He explained, diverting the conversation to an irrelevant topic. Maybe he could find another, more exclusive, way to deal with the crazy boy he met.
Iruka smirked before emitting a soft chuckle. "Well, you're a good-looking kid Naruto. Don't be so surprised. Some girls are bound to look at you."
"It's not exactly my goal to be checked out by girls in the crazy club."
"Crazy girls need love too."
"I guess," Naruto sighed and retrieved his cell phone from his pocket. He scrolled through some social media posts until he stumbled upon a picture that he knew had been taken inside his house. With his thumb, he flipped the screen to the messages page. Where are you? he quickly typed, then pressed send. Seconds later, he received a selfie of a pink haired girl eating a bowl of popcorn on his couch.
Breaking and entering now, are we? Naruto typed with a smirk.
More like breaking and eating. Your guys' pantry is always stocked with the best snacks.
You're ridiculous. We're almost at the house.
Yay! Soon you'll be able to join me in the binge watching of Riverdale. Season 3 just came out on Netflix!
Dude, I'm not watching that chicky, soap opera garbage with you.
It's not garbage. It's brilliant television!
Ok, no.
Whatever. How was group today?
About that. Something really weird happened afterward.
Oooo, you've peaked my interest.
I'll tell you about it when I get home.
Cool beans!
Naruto closed the screen on his phone and looked outside at the road. "Hey Iruka, is it ok if Sakura comes over?"
"What's the point of asking if she's already there?"
Naruto lifted his hands in surrender. "Hey, I'm just trying to be the perfect little angel you've always wanted me to be."
"Oh, well, if that's the case keep up the good work," Iruka replied sarcastically. "I swear, I'm gonna start making that girl pay rent."
"It's not a bad idea," Naruto agreed.
It was about a ten-minute drive from the high school to Iruka and Naruto's home. The small bungalow resided just outside the city in a peaceful neighborhood that had a large man-made pond. Inside were two levels. The top half held Naruto's bedroom suite while the bottom half consisted of a kitchen, living room, Iruka's bedroom, and a guest bathroom. The backyard had a patio that opened up to the pond and the yards of 30 other neighbors. Naruto was particularly fond of summer nights, as someone was always having a barbeque or a dinner party and inviting anyone who was outside to join in on the feast. It was the type of life Naruto never expected to have, yet he was living it and living it unashamedly. Sure, there were times he felt out of place and undeserving, but he was always quick to ignore those negative thoughts; indulging himself on a hefty rack of ribs or a smoked chicken leg.
When Iruka pulled into the driveway he snatched his garage door opener off of the rearview mirror and pointed it at the garage. With a subtle click, the large metal door lifted, whining as the hinges rolled into motion. The groan prompted Naruto to jump out of the vehicle and duck his way through the entrance. "Honey I'm home," he announced as he stepped into the kitchen. He placed his book bag on the counter and strolled into the living room.
Sakura immediately paused her tv show and gasped "Omigosh! You won't believe what just happened. Archie was like-"
"Imma stop you right there," Naruto interrupted his female friend in mid-sentence. He tossed himself over the back of the couch; his head falling into her lap. "because I don't care," he finished and rammed his hand inside the popcorn bowl. He grabbed a large handful and poured it into his mouth.
"Get off." Sakura snapped, shoving him to the floor. "And keep your grimy hands off my popcorn."
"I hope you're not making a mess in there." Iruka's voice could be heard from the kitchen; along with the sound of the fridge opening and closing.
"We're not," the two teens answered simultaneously.
Naruto glanced back at Sakura. "You're rude," he laughed as he rolled onto his stomach.
"No, what's rude is you dissing my all time favorite show."
"Yeah right. You were saying the same shit about vampire diaries two years ago, and that show was doo doo."
"Remind me why we're friends again," Sakura sighed as she poked a single kernel between her lips.
"Because we're not lovers?"
"Gross."
"Hey, don't bump it till you try it."
"You wish,"
Naruto took a moment to pretend to think about it. His fingers curled under his chin. "Nah, not really," he teased.
This earned him a kick to his side.
"Ow," he winced in real pain.
"Stop being so cheeky and get to the good stuff. What happened after group today?"
"Geez, at least give me a chance to settle in," he complained while sitting up to cross his legs. "I haven't even had my afterschool snack or a chance to take my after-school dump."
"TMI," Sakura grimaced as she dropped the bowl of popcorn onto Naruto's thighs. Naruto was quick to wrap his hands around the dish just as it was about to spill its contents all over the carpet.
"There you are being reckless again," he tsked.
Just then Iruka entered the room with a glass of iced coffee and a magazine. "Alright kiddos, it's grown up time. Take it somewhere else," he said while taking a seat in his recliner. He placed his drink on an end table before pulling a pair of reading glasses out the drawer.
"Can we call you Old Man Jenkins from now on?" Naruto asked as he watched his guardian behave 20 years past his age.
"Seriously Iruka, next thing you know you'll be handing out mints," Sakura added.
With a smug smirk on his lips, Iruka proceeded to dig into his shirt pocket and pull out two green peppermints. He held them out on the palm of his hand. "Now shoo," he commanded with a side nod. Naruto and Sakura looked at one another in disbelief before taking a piece of candy and walking towards the stairs.
"He's got to get out more." Naruto's friend shook her head as she untwisted the wrapper around the small mint. They traveled up to Naruto's room that, unsurprisingly, was a disaster. Sakura sighed as she kicked a pile of clothes out of the doorway. "Seriously dude?" She rolled the candy against her teeth then turned to look at her friend who was still standing in the hallway.
"Calm down, It's not that bad."
Sakura rolled her eyes before plopping herself onto Naruto's bed. "Come now, let us have a chat." She patted the open spot beside her.
Naruto rubbed the back of his neck before walking over and dropping himself directly on top of the smaller girl. He rested his cheek on the space right above her chest and wrapped his arms around her waist. A large sigh poured from his mouth as he squeezed the soft body closer to himself. Sakura pulled out her arm that was crushed underneath Naruto's stomach and began to gently rub his back. "Um, are you ok?"
Naruto could hear the concern in her tone. While it wasn't unusual for him to exhibit such behavior towards the pink haired girl, it wasn't something he did often. "I think I almost killed myself today," he whispered. Those were words he didn't expect himself to say. He could feel the girl tense up under his shoulder.
"What do you mean?" she asked softly.
"I don't know. It all happened so suddenly. I went to the roof after group to catch some fresh air, and there was this strange boy standing on the railing. I wasn't sure what to do so I stood on the railing too, and then we both started to lose our balance. But just as I was about to fall, he pulled me back. In the end, we just fell on our asses."
"Hmm, that's kind of strange," she responded as she mindlessly drew circles over his shirt.
"I asked the guy what his deal was, and he proceeded to answer with 'I was bored'... what the hell?"
"What did this guy look like?"
"Kinda tall, maybe the same height as me. White skin, with black hair, and black eyes."
"Sounds like a vampire."
Naruto chuckled. "No, I think he was Asian."
"Ah, that makes sense. Asians and Vampires they're basically one in the same."
Naruto grinned, but couldn't stop the thick silence that started to develop between them. For several minutes he lied in wait, unsure if he wanted to ask the question that was running through his mind.
"Did you tell Iruka?" Sakura interrupted his thoughts
"No."
"Are you going to?"
"Maybe. I'm not sure; not until I figure some stuff out." He paused. "What do you think Sakura? Am I losing my shit again?
"What do you mean?"
Naruto could feel himself growing anxious. He didn't appreciate the way Sakura was playing dumb. She knew exactly what he meant. "Do you think the boy on the roof was real?"
The girl took a deep breath before pushing Naruto off of her chest and sitting up on the bed. She looked down at his head as he rolled onto his back. Her fingers pushed back several strands of gold-tinted fringe.
"I don't know," she finally answered then leaned down and kissed the top of his forehead. "I don't know Naruto."