Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto... or Sasuke, or Itachi ^_~

~And there is that crushing feeling. It is fleeting. It comes and goes and leaves you breathless, wondering, what was it?~

Summary: In an almost modern day world, Sasuke Uchiha is the last of his clan - except for his psychotic brother that is. Or at least, that's what everyone keeps telling him. Itachi Uchiha is an insane, wanted criminal who had killed off his entire clan 8 years ago, leaving only Sasuke alive. But you know, Sasuke had never really seen it the way that everybody else did....

Fifteen year old Sasuke Uchiha, the last of his clan, silent and dangerous with eyes that sometimes flashed an unexpected crimson. And he was sitting in a crowded cafeteria with a tray full of crap in front of him, just like everybody else there. He let out a quiet, annoyed sigh. How very anticlimactic.

From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a tray identical to his own sliding down the table, and none other than the idiot Naruto Uzumaki sat down next to him. And of course he was accompanied by that pink haired fright, Naruto's girlfriend Sakura, who not-so-secretly had a crush (more like a crazed obsession) with Sasuke despite that. Idly Sasuke wondered if Naruto knew - hell, everybody else did - and then he remembered, oh yeah, he didn't give a shit. Let Naruto worry about Naruto's relationship problems.

You know, before they had come along in Sasuke's life, people had actually left him alone. However, once the student body of this damned high school saw that Sasuke Uchiha would not try to kill anybody who sat down next to him, everyone simply began ignoring him. And he didn't mind that at all. Except for the fact that now a certain chosen few - three in exact - felt the need to talk to him. It was this three he had a problem with - Naruto, his stupid girlfriend, and that one blonde chick who was now setting her tray down across from Sasuke. She smiled at him tentatively, but his cold eyes stared right through her.

Because these three bothered him. He feared that nothing short of death threats would make them leave him be, and maybe not even then.

For a moment, Sasuke hoped beyond hope that today would be different, that today none of the three would actually talk to him. But he always hoped for this, and every day his hope was shattered by Naruto's loud, annoying voice. "Don't you ever cheer up Sasuke?" the blonde guy laughed, throwing an arm around Sasuke's shoulders and shaking him roughly.

Sasuke glared at him dangerously. It was tolerable when people sat next to him, somewhat bearable whenever someone talked to him, annoying whenever Naruto demanded to know why he was never happy - but Sasuke didn't like people ever touching him. Pissed off beyond his invisible limit, Sasuke shoved away from the table, and made his way over to the other side of the cafeteria to dump his tray.

Usually, Sasuke had this thing about keeping appearances. Why? Because if anything ever got the slightest bit out of line, his teachers and therapists would jump on him in an instant. Sasuke was getting tired of them all jumping down his throat, sticking their shit-for-brains noses into his business all the time, holding up little cards with inkblot smears on them and saying in professional tones, "Tell me, what do you see?"

Maybe if he just told them what they wanted to hear they'd leave him alone. "I see my goddamned brother tearing the guts out of one of my deceased family members." Would something like that suffice?

So usually Sasuke stayed in school. He was a straight-A student, though personally he could give a shit less about things like that. It was only for the sake of keeping those assholes off his back that he even maintained such annoyances. Lately though he was at his snapping point. There was a certain place in an Uchiha that, when crossed, they just lost it - Itachi's line had been way over crossed, and Sasuke feared that he was getting to that point too.

But what was the use in keeping up appearances when everyone in high school already knew your darkest secrets? They were always whispering about it, he always heard them as he walked by.

"Isn't that the guy who's brother went crazy and killed his whole family?"

"Yeah. That's Sasuke Uchiha.... Don't mess with him."

Slipping out of the cafeteria unnoticed, Sasuke made his way down one of the side hallways, and stuck his middle finger up nice and tall where the surveillance camera could see just before walking out the door. He was in the side parking lot now, where the teachers parked. Students weren't allowed back here.

It had been quite a while since Sasuke had ditched like this, but he figured he'd have to put up with everyone's shit no matter what he did, so he might as well do whatever he wanted.

Something was off about the parking lot, Sasuke thought, and there was an uncomfortable feeling between his shoulder blades. His back itched like someone was watching him, and he scanned the lot, which was usually empty of people by now.

There. In one of the cars parked -illegally- next to the building just a few steps away. There was a man sitting behind the wheel, and though Sasuke couldn't see his face, he had the distinct feeling that the dude was staring right at him. Normally he might have brought that middle finger back out, just because, but something beckoned him forward suddenly. Curious, feeling drawn to that car like a magnet, Sasuke didn't stop until he was at the tinted driver's side window. All the windows were tinted. He leaned over, his face near the glass, waiting. Slowly, the window rolled down, and Sasuke stared in shock. Suddenly, he was face-to-face with none other than his older brother - Itachi.

The years had not changed Itachi much. He still looked fairly young, though more troubled than Sasuke remembered. And oh yes, his eyes were a dangerous bright red now - a warning sign to anyone coming near. The most surprising thought came to Sasuke then, considering the circumstances; he wished that he had eyes like that, so it would at least scare all the annoying people away. "Get in the car Sasuke," Itachi said, gesturing with a nod to the empty passenger's seat.

Without even the slightest hesitation, Sasuke did as he was told. His life was dull, and full of people who annoyed him, and all the ridiculous things he had to do to satisfy them. Sasuke had waited every day, getting up and going about his detestable daily routine, always waiting.... Something like this is exactly what he'd been waiting for all along.

"Felling suicidal?" Itachi asked with a bitter smile once Sasuke was completely inside with the door shut. As if to show how much he really didn't give a fuck, Sasuke slammed his hand down on the lock of his door. Itachi grinned. "Still the headstrong brother I remember," he commented. "I wasn't actually expecting you to come out for another few hours... you know, when school actually ends for the day. This works fine too I suppose."

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked bluntly.

"Right to the point then?" Itachi replied with a grimace. "You're not afraid I'm going to kill you?"

"Won't you get arrested if we sit here forever?" Sasuke demanded. He wanted to feel the car move, to get some miles between himself and anything that had to do with anyone else. If anything, at least spending some quality time with his deranged, murderous brother would be interesting.

Itachi smiled, and finally started the engine. "Right," he said.

Sasuke waited in silence as the car got moving. His brother kept his eyes on the road, only glancing a few times at Sasuke - at least the guy didn't drive like a total maniac. Neither of them felt the need to flip the radio on of course. Sasuke expected Itachi would start some form of conversation soon enough.

Although, he'd been expecting some sort of comment about how much he'd grown or... something like that an adult might say. But this was Itachi he was talking to. "So what's the word going around these days?" the older brother asked.

"That you're psychotic," Sasuke replied with a shrug.

Itachi laughed lightly. "And what do you think?"

Sasuke was quiet for a moment, thinking on how he could put his thoughts into words. "You knew what you were doing when you did what you did. And you don't regret it either," he pointed out. "I don't know about psychotic, but... more messed up things have happened." He shrugged again.

"So... what, you don't care?"

He hesitated again, searching for a good answer. "I'm just another kid in today's fucked up society," he said finally, glancing out the passenger window. He could feel his brothers eyes on him again though.

They spent the rest of the car ride in silence. Sasuke didn't care enough to ask where they were going, because he didn't care enough to start another conversation. It was a short distance though - they pulled up to a mansion-sized house just outside of town. It seemed to be the only place around for a while. "You have your own place?" Sasuke asked in surprise as Itachi cut off the engine. Was it really okay for a wanted criminal to live in such an ostentation mansion so close to the place where he'd committed the murders?

"I stay here with friends," Itachi replied lightly. As they got out of the car, the front door to the huge house opened, and a guy with long blonde hair stood, arms crossed, in the doorway. "Welcome back Itachi," he greeted Sasuke's brother. Then he spotted Sasuke himself. "You brought a playmate with you?" He grinned, and Sasuke actually felt a little offended. Itachi's 'playmate?' he wondered.

As they passed the blonde guy, Sasuke eyed him with a flat stare. This was one of Itachi's friends? He looked kind of... weird. Not dangerous exactly, but still not someone that Sasuke would want to hang around. The other guy suddenly leaned in closer to him, eyes squinting a little as if to get a better look at Sasuke. Obviously he had recognized the family resemblance between he and Itachi. "Whoa!" he exclaimed. "You brought your brother?"

"Shut up Deidara," Itachi said shortly. He grabbed one of Sasuke's wrists - because he'd stopped while they were passing that guy - and dragged him down the hallway. Things got a little confusing after that. They took many twists and turns down halls that all looked the same, Itachi leading Sasuke through a puzzling labyrinth of hallways. Sasuke wondered, if for some reason he had to leave on the run, would he ever be able to find his way back out? Well, if worse came to worse, he could always just break out a window or something.

They passed several rooms on their way to... wherever it was they were going. A few of the doors were open. Sasuke saw a kitchen, a living room kind of place, and a few empty bedrooms. And he caught glimpses of a few of Itachi's other so-called friends. There was a red headed guy, a creepy looking dude who'd dyed his hair blue, and a few others that Sasuke didn't really see very clearly. There was one thing that he noticed about them all though - they all had the same black jacket on. Each of them, with a single red cloud on the left sleeve. Curious, he glanced over at Itachi's arm and saw that he was wearing it too.

Sasuke snorted with laughter, and slight disbelief. Who did these guys all think they were? And even his brother was involved? They looked like they were trying to be a bunch of bad asses or something. Join the club, we've got jackets, he thought sarcastically, and wondered if all the other guys here were criminals too, like Itachi. His brother glanced back at him then, as if he could tell exactly what he was thinking.

Suddenly, for some reason, Sasuke noticed the hand that was still grasping his wrist. "What's with the purple nail polish?" he asked bluntly. As if ashamed by Sasuke's observation, and of the purple nail polish, Itachi silently released his grip. He did not reply.

Eventually they ended up in a neat looking bedroom. There was a bed with black sheets and a green striped bedspread (strange combination, he thought idly), a green couch, a closet, a TV, and a writing desk. That was all. "This is my room," Itachi said simply. Ah. The color of the bed sheets made more sense now. Black. Kind of typical.

Actually the room looked more like a hotel room than a place where somebody actually lived. Everything was all in order. Well, at least Sasuke's brother wasn't a total slob like him. The only real personal items around that Sasuke could see, was the bottle of purple nail polish, and next to it an old photograph of he and Itachi from years before. Sasuke picked up the photograph while Itachi shut the door behind them, staring down at his own happy, smiling face. A tiny Sasuke with his arms wrapped around the neck of a thirteen-year-old Itachi, small fingers buried in his brother's long hair. Suddenly Sasuke remembered that their father had never liked Itachi's long hair - they'd always fought about it. Wow. He'd thought he'd forgotten most of those things long ago.

"Sentimental, are we?" Sasuke asked, tossing the picture back onto the desk.

"Sometimes," Itachi replied, as if he didn't care, and threw his jacket onto the couch. "Might as well sit down," he muttered, and with that he pushed Sasuke onto the bed. Itachi plopped down on the floor near him with a tired sigh.

"So was there a reason you dragged me here?" Sasuke grumbled as he sat up straight. He didn't like people touching him, or pushing him around. Even as a child that had annoyed him about Itachi.

"Dragged? You came willingly as I recall." Sasuke thought he cold feel a vein throbbing on his forehead. "Actually I'm a little disappointed. No onslaught of questions. You didn't even look surprised to see me." He glanced back at Sasuke with a perfectly straight face.

Sasuke scoffed lightly. "Sorry." When Itachi didn't say anything else, he continued, "I guess I just don't care."

"Is that right?" There was a hint of doubt in his voice. "So how's life been since I left?"

"Dull. Dramatic. Annoying." Sasuke sighed. "You would love my therapist."

"You have a therapist now Sasuke?" His brother smiled up at him slightly, obviously amused. Sasuke didn't care.

"Two of them, actually."

"And... don't you think there's anything that you and I need to discuss?" Itachi held eye contact with him, and Sasuke didn't need to be able to read minds to be able to tell what he was thinking. Itachi wanted to talk about that day. The day, the reason why he had left.

Sasuke looked away, frowning. He couldn't handle that intense stare. Not when his brother's eyes glittered crimson. "Why talk about the past?" There was a flash of memory in his head, a picture of himself crying in Itachi's arms next to the broken, blood-covered bodies of his family members. "It's not like I don't remember it clearly enough."

"You remember that night Sasuke?" Itachi actually had the nerve to sound a little surprised.

"Of course I remember. How could I ever forget?"

.:flashback:.

"Itachi... why did you...." Sasuke's little voice was stuck in his throat at the sight of his older brother, standing above the bodies of their parents, eyes flashing red. Itachi glared dangerously down at him for a moment, and for that moment, terror gripped Sasuke. Maybe Itachi was going to kill him, too.

"Sasuke..." Itachi suddenly breathed, his voice returning to the familiar tones that Sasuke knew so well. The bloody kunai he grasped clattered to the floor, as thunder and lightning interrupted this terrible night. And then Sasuke was being pressed into Itachi's chest, whisked away from the gruesome scene and out into the downpour. Itachi held him close and Sasuke cried on his shoulder, tiny arms tight around his older brother's neck. "Don't look Sasuke," Itachi breathed into his ear. "Don't look at them."

"Why... why did you...?" Sasuke was crying too hard to get the words out. Itachi held him carefully, hushing him and running fingers through his hair.

"Because I had to Sasuke."

And then his brother was pulling him away, grasping Sasuke's little shoulders in his large hands. Sasuke watched with wide eyes as the rain washed the blood from Itachi's face, and lightning blazed through the sky somewhere. "I have to go," Itachi said. "But I'll be back for you. One day, I'll find you again Sasuke." He took Sasuke's face between his hands, and Sasuke grasped his brother's arms, terrified at the thought of his leaving. "I'm sorry."

"No...."

There was a sharp pain to the back of Sasuke's head, and his little body fell limp in Itachi's arms. Sasuke woke the next morning on the couch inside the living room, a pillow under his head and Itachi's bloody jacket covering him.

.:end flashback:.

Sasuke scoffed again, trying unsuccessfully to shake the old memories. Years afterward the very same ones had still caused him pain - what could you really expect from a kid who'd gone through something like that? But he hardly thought about them anymore. He'd thought he'd forgotten most of the details by now. Obviously, he had not. "So what took you so long?" he complained. Itachi looked back at him as if to ask what he meant. "You said you'd find me again. What the hell took you so long? Been around here hanging out with those creep-o friends of yours?"

Suddenly, Itachi laughed. "So you've been waiting around for me all this time?"

Sasuke shifted uncomfortably, not meeting his brother's eyes. "I've been waiting for something. And this is sure a hell of a lot more interesting than anything else that's happened in the past couple of years." He hesitated, then asked, "What is this set up you've got going on here anyway? The big house, the jackets, the weird friends? What's all that about?"

"I've missed you Sasuke," Itachi replied, managing to successfully throw Sasuke off guard and sidestep the question.

"Yeah, well, I guess you would miss your only remaining family member," he grumbled, suddenly embarrassed, and Itachi laughed again.

"You can even joke about the fact that I murdered our family?" His tone was a notch more serious than it had been before. Itachi's eyes went sharply to Sasuke's face, but Sasuke remained unaffected by his brother's careless words. "You used to talk a lot," Itachi said when he realized that Sasuke wasn't going to reply to that last comment. He surprised Sasuke with the sudden change of subject though. "I could never get you to shut up. I guess I was kind of expecting to find the same Sasuke here today."

"Yeah well 'that Sasuke' is gone," Sasuke snapped, suddenly angry. "He died right along with the rest of his clan, and how does that make you feel Itachi?" Really, had his brother actually thought to find him the same innocent child that he had been eight years ago? No, Sasuke didn't talk much anymore and he didn't smile much anymore and he didn't have a whole hell of a lot going on in his life. Had Itachi really expected to find him skipping through the flowers?

"Guilty," Itachi replied indifferently. "I won't regret killing off our family, as you pointed out earlier. But if I killed you, then I am guilty."

"What," Sasuke said, annoyed, "so you just kept me alive back then because I was the only one you liked?" His brother gave him a look that clearly said 'yes.' "Well thanks a lot Itachi! Now I have to deal with all kinds of ridiculous shit for you! All the teachers looking at me like I'm going to explode, therapists and their fucking inkblots, everyone knowing everything about me - talking about me, talking about you.... Jeez. You might as well have killed me back then, too."

It was silent between them for a moment, and after that moment, Sasuke felt a little ashamed of his outburst. He hadn't meant to lose his cool, (he hadn't known he'd had any left to lose), but he wouldn't take his words back either. "I was wondering when you were going to show some emotion," Itachi said quietly, and he wasn't facing his brother when he spoke this time. "You were never very good at hiding how you feel about things Sasuke. I knew you'd be angry. Do you hate me then, little brother?"

Sasuke actually had to think about that. Ever since the... incident... with his clan members' death, everyone he knew had picked up on this image of Itachi in their heads. They all envisioned him as the murderous villain with red eyes - scary, and insane. But Sasuke had never really been able to think of Itachi like that, not even now. No, somehow inside his head he still only saw Itachi as the protective older brother who had held him crying in the rain that night, promising to return. And so Sasuke was tempted to answer with a "sometimes," but what was the point?

"Hmph," he said instead. "Of course I do idiot," he muttered, but he thought he saw Itachi smiling.