One Red Balloon

Characters~ Sasuke U. and Naruto U.

Disclaimer~ Owning Naruto is Sasuke's job, not mine. =w=";

Warnings~ Fluff drabble, chibi Sasu and Naru, shounen-ai, balloons, some OOC 'cause they're kids XD

Music on My Mind~ Here (In Your Arms) by hellogoodbye

Notes from the KIT-chan~

Lawl—haven't written SasuNaru for more than a while now. ^^"; But I'm back (for now), though I'm not abandoning ArthurxMerlin at the same time. XD

Gift-fic for Aka-chan~ :D A short fluff drabble for her belated birthday. ~wO

Inspiration came from a random doodle in Spanish class and a great SasuNaru picture on deviantART I can't find anymore called "Don't Go," or something like that… ^^";

*Sasuke's Japanese-American in this story, btw. XD

Enjoy~ =^w^=

.::.*~Kitsune~*.::.

~o~

It all began when Sasuke was about seven years old. It was a Monday evening, and he was sitting alone on the docks of Boston, watching the sun begin to set on the other side of the lake.

Not a soul was there to accompany him at any cost, and one would think he'd at least have a parent with him considering how young he was to be out by himself, but none of this was new at all to the raven, for he was an Uchiha after all. He'd often do this every day after school to settle down at his favorite spot and isolate himself from the rest of the world, taking some time to spend for contemplating at the back of his mind.

Besides, his parents were still at work at this time, and ever since Itachi, his older brother and only friend, had left for boarding school in England days ago, he'd pretty much pushed everyone else out of his life, anyone who he felt he didn't need.

At this point, he'd had absolutely no friends…except for a red balloon that floated next to him, his small alabaster hand clasped around its thin string.

And yes—it indeed was an ordinary, rounded balloon that one would often see at birthday parties. However, this one just happened to be special to Sasuke himself.

The young raven sighed, then glanced up to look at the face drawn on the front of the red balloon. Itachi had drawn it with a Sharpie marker a few days ago after he'd given the balloon to him as a gift, before he'd gotten in the car to be driven off to the airport for London.

His "substitute," the older Uchiha had said, smiling down at his younger brother as he turned to pick up his bags. His substitute that he had entrusted Sasuke to look after, just until the day he'd come back again to play with him once more.

In reality, he had meant well and did this mainly in order to keep the little raven from giving his parents a hard time while he was gone, but Sasuke, who loved Itachi very much and believed everything he'd always say, had taken his sibling's words literally and kept the balloon by his side every day, never letting go of it even once except when he'd have to go to the bathroom or take a bath.

Aka had become the raven's companion, and so he had guarded it from that day forth, as he earnestly waited for his big brother's return much later on in the month of February.

But as Sasuke knew himself, it was only October, and it would be a very long while before any of this would change.

So he kept his distance from the rest of the world, letting time just pass on by. Before long, he was no longer talking to any of his classmates and grew to become more introverted than he was before.

The raven's eyes grew sad, and he turned away from the balloon to stare back out at the orange sapphire sky. Pretty soon, it would be getting late, and his mother and father would be home from work.

But that didn't faze him one bit. He closed his eyes and let out a small sigh.

Then suddenly, he'd heard quiet footsteps from behind, and immediately glanced back to see a boy about two years younger than him standing a few feet away from him with a sheepish expression on his face.

He was scratching the back of his head, chuckling nervously at the Uchiha with closed eyes. "Hi…you're Sasuke, right?"

Sasuke merely blinked with nothing more than a blank countenance. "Hn."

His hair was messy and as blonde as sunshine gold, while his cheeks were caramel tan with faint whiskers on either one. He frowned to think. The latter looked rather familiar, too, but the raven couldn't quite remember where he'd last seen him.

That was when he finally opened his eyes to look at him, sparkling pools of majestic azure—clearer than the waters of the vast lake in front of him.

Only then did he recall the vaguest memories of being watched by him during different times of day, from glancing at him at the school playground from a lone swing hidden under a tree to walking past him on the path on other frequent occasions when he'd be alone on the local docks throwing small pebbles across the water's surface.

At that moment, Sasuke tilted his head curiously and stared at the blonde.

Now that he'd thought of it, he was the new kid who'd just moved in from California few days ago and recently transferred to his school—the only other black sheep from the rest of the class, though he was loud and hyperactive unlike the Uchiha.

Naruto Uzumaki.

Most of the time, he'd always see him getting in trouble with the teachers in the hallways during the times he'd pass them on the way to the bathroom…but it wasn't like he ever cared about it in the first place. It never was any of his business…and he had held no grudges against the boy.

Though then again, deep down in his heart, he couldn't help but feel a bit of sympathy for the blonde because he was, after all, a diamond in the rough like him—if not more than that.

Sasuke exhaled sharply, then looked away from him with closed eyes.

In that instant, Naruto shrank back and stared timidly at the latter, half-peering over his shoulder. "Er…"

"What do you want?" the Uchiha spoke in a stable, unwavering tone.

At that moment, the blonde hesitated for a minute, then replied in a more hushed voice. "Uh…nothing, really. Just…" he swallowed, then chuckled softly. "Can I…sit next to you?"

At that, there was a long pause between them. Then Sasuke lowered his head and shifted over slightly, causing Aka to bob a little beside him.

Naruto pursed his lips, quietly sitting down at the edge of the dock.

After that, a barrier of silence had grown once again, with the exception of the soft sound of rippling waves below them.

That was when the blonde looked up at the evening sky and smiled. "Wow…it's beautiful out here, isn't it?"

For a minute, Sasuke was quiet. Then he felt his mouth twitch awkwardly, and he casually took a tiny pebble beside him, tossing across the surface of the lake.

"…yeah. I guess so," he murmured reluctantly just below a whisper.

Another pause, then a light breeze of wind.

~o~

There was more talking after that.

Later on, it had come to a point where the raven began to feel weird inside—something he'd never felt before, like an unfamiliar warmth in his heart. It was nothing like how he'd felt when Itachi was around…but maybe it was because no one else had been sitting this close to him before. It felt nice for once, really, but awkward at the same time.

He took a deep breath and pursed his lips. He'd hardly even known the kid…

What was going on? Why was he feeling like this just now?

After a long while, the Uchiha slowly raised his head to look up at Naruto…only to see that he was staring right back at him, with bouncing irises of sapphire.

~o~

The next hour was filled with more conversations, some about school and some about life experiences in general.

At the same time, Sasuke began to feel even more warmth inside and comfortable to speak openly for once. This was probably the first person he'd actually enjoyed as company right now, considering just how affable and interesting he was. And it was safe to say that he was the only one who he hadn't decided to push away.

His carefree grin was contagious, along with that happy-go-lucky laughter of his…and it had almost made the raven smile himself.

Finally, the blonde sighed, and got up from his seat to look back towards the path. "Uh-oh, looks like it's getting late. Mr. Iruka's probably waiting for me now at home." He paused, then reluctantly took a few steps away from the raven. "See you tomorrow, okay?"

"Hn," the Uchiha nodded once, glancing back at the half-sunken sun in the distance.

~o~

That evening had not been the only time they'd talked to each other like that. Before long, they found themselves meeting up with one another at those same docks during the same time of day, sharing stories and watching sunsets…

It was great, Sasuke would think. He forced himself to smile slightly as Naruto broke out into yet another wave of laughter.

"Ahahahaha..."

"…hn."

The raven took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he faced the orange sunset.

For the first time in a long time...he had never felt this happy—ever since the day Itachi had left him. This was quite…interesting.

He paused to look into the evening horizon and blinked.

But it wasn't long before it finally came to a point where the barrier between them had finally broken for good.

It was a Thursday afternoon when he stiffened as soon as he noticed the blonde staring curiously at the red balloon he was holding at that moment.

After that, he'd begun to point at Aka, his mouth open with awe. "Wow…that balloon looks really shiny," he cooed, eagerly reaching for the balloon to touch the drawn face.

In that instant, Sasuke instinctively pulled Aka away, a bit of wariness in his eyes. "Don't touch," he spat out abruptly, frowning.

Immediately, Naruto flinched. Then he grinned sheepishly and slowly pulled his hand back. "Sorry about that," he apologized genuinely. "I was just kinda curious, that's all."

At that moment, the raven eased up gradually and took a sharp exhale, hanging his head.

Silence.

Then the blonde had begun to speak again. "…do you bring that around with you all the time?"

For a minute, the Uchiha paused. "Yeah," he replied unwaveringly. He turned to see Naruto looking back at him again with his head tilted to the side eagerly.

"But…why?" he asked, his eyes glimmering. "Is there anything special about it? You've had that balloon for days now."

Without looking up, Sasuke sighed and slowly shook his head. "Of course it is. My brother gave it to me. It's mine."

No response.

After a while, the raven darted his eyes at Naruto, then looked back down at the lake.

"Sasuke—you…have a brother?"

The Uchiha pursed his lips. "…yeah. But he's gone now." He paused and turned to tug on the string. "He was the one who gave me Aka so I wouldn't be alone…until he'd get back from far away." His voice faltered slightly on those last few words.

The blonde nodded once. "Oh. So you're just keeping it safe for him until he returns?"

"...you could say that," the raven replied softly.

Soon, it was silent again.

~o~

"Do you have a brother?" Sasuke found himself asking Naruto after a few minutes. "Or even a sister?"

At first, there was no reply.

Then, before long, he had noticed the blonde wince slightly and speak just below a hushed whisper.

"Uh…I don't have a family," the younger one murmured quietly. Then, he looked up at the raven, whose eyes softened as he met his gaze, and spoke in a more stable tone.

"My mom and dad died after I was born, so I don't know what it's like to have parents or siblings," Naruto continued with a small shrug. "But I have Mr. Iruka, if that still counts as family."

At this, Sasuke winced and suddenly began to feel bad for what he'd said. "Oh…sorry I asked. I didn't know."

But the blonde only laughed. "That's okay," he replied with a bigger grin on his face. "I kinda get that a lot."

The raven smirked.

The two sighed and looked up at the stars that gradually appeared in the parts of the sky where night had already fallen.

Nothing but more silence followed after that, with the exception of the crickets that chirped in the tall grass beside the lake.

Then, the Uchiha couldn't help but let out a yawn, and Naruto had taken that time to speak up in a quiet voice.

"I kind of think of you as family, too," he murmured.

At this, the raven held his breath and stiffened as a small grin grew on the blonde's face, his eyes sparkling.

He chuckled softly. "I may not know what it's like to have brothers or sisters, but…when you're here with me all the time, I…well, I sort of think of you as my brother."

In that instant, Sasuke's eyes widened upon hearing those words. And for once, he couldn't help but turn away from the conversation.

Not another word was said in the hour that had passed.

~o~

Soon, the Uchiha found that it was getting late again, and he began to get up to leave.

But that wasn't until he noticed a bit of weight on his shoulder and turned to see a mess of golden blonde hair leaning against him.

"Naruto," Sasuke uttered, staring blankly at the latter before him.

No reply.

The raven sighed and glanced down at his face. But as soon as he lifted up the bangs that covered his friend's small, tan complexion, he realized that the blonde was sound asleep—almost dead to the world, for all he'd care, though his countenance was calm and peaceful.

After a few minutes, Sasuke's eyes softened, and he shifted his gaze away from Naruto to glance over at his red balloon, a shooting star darting past in the midnight blue above it.

~o~

The next morning, the Uchiha had not seen the blonde in school. The same went for that evening when he had left home for the dock.

At first, he had found it to be quite strange of him, but he shook the idea off his mind after convincing himself of how trivial the difference would be. After all, he still had Aka, and nothing could change the plain fact about that.

However…when Naruto's absence had grown constant throughout the week, Sasuke had begun to feel a very big difference in the days that passed.

For one thing, evenings had grown oddly quiet without the blonde to keep him company, and for once, the raven became slightly worried for his friend.

He hadn't heard from the boy in more than three days now, and this had made him apprehensive indeed, if it had been something he'd said that other night or when he'd slightly pushed him away from Aka after he'd tried to touch it.

Sasuke bit his lip and glanced up at the balloon. Without his friend there to be with him anymore…it had felt like something was missing.

Even during the times where he'd actually looked for Naruto, he was still nowhere to be found.

Although everything had changed when he had finally seen the blonde hiding from him on a windy autumn morning.

~o~

It was raining, and the sky was dark. Not to mention the fact that the winds were outrageously strong that morning.

He had been running to school that day when he'd noticed the latter crouching down behind a bunch of bushes, a timid expression on his face.

Immediately, Sasuke had turned around and called to his friend at that moment.

"Naruto!"

In that instant, the blonde shrank back from the raven and sprinted out of the bushes to run away. But the Uchiha only exhaled sharply and chased after him.

"Naruto! Wait!" he shouted.

The blonde didn't turn around.

At that moment, Sasuke ran even faster and grabbed the latter's shirt sleeve to pull him back.

"Naruto," he spoke again.

Immediately, the five-year-old had stiffened, turning his head to gaze at the raven with wide, terrified eyes.

"S—sasuke…" he whispered in a soft voice.

In that instant, the Uchiha held his breath upon seeing the frightened look on the other's face.

"…what's wrong?" he calmly asked, in a slow but tentative manner.

But before Naruto could say anything, a gust of wind blew right past the two of them, causing Sasuke to lose his grip on the red balloon he was holding.

"Aka!" the raven cried with wide eyes, reaching for the latter.

"Don't worry—I got it!"

Instinctively, the blonde boldly grabbed onto the balloon's string and almost sighed in relief until suddenly, he found himself being blown into the air, away from where the Uchiha was standing.

At that moment, Sasuke's eyes bulged, and he frantically reached out to grab Naruto's hand before the wind could take him up any further.

But it was too late. The breeze was too strong.

"No! Naruto, come back!" the raven shouted, running after the blonde.

Naruto whimpered and reached for the other's hand, though he knew he would not be able to reach it at that point.

"Help me!" the little one cried.

Sasuke clenched his teeth and began to break into a sprint, desperately jumping up to grab at least his friend's foot.

But it was useless. They were too far away now.

"Sasuke!" the blonde yelled.

"Naruto!"

Before long, the Uchiha had grown exhausted and dropped to his knees as he began to drift farther and farther away with Aka in his hand.

Things had become more than dangerous now. If Naruto ended up letting go of the balloon, he'd be done for at this point.

Sasuke clenched his fists on his lap and closed his eyes.

Please don't take him away, too…he's the only friend I've got.

"Naruto!" he cried out again in a loud voice. "Don't go!"

"Sasuke!" the blonde shouted faintly.

Pretty soon, the storm had drowned out their voices.

But that wasn't until the Uchiha had heard a crash and whipped his head up to see a tree standing more than a few feet away from him, where he could see a small figure dangling from one of its branches.

Oh no, the raven thought to himself, rushing over to the tall tree in the distance.

At that moment, the balloon had popped, its remains hanging all over the tree's branches. However, Sasuke's only concern at that point was how Naruto was desperately holding on to a lone branch with one hand, his eyes wide with fear.

"Help!" the blonde screamed.

In that instant, the raven froze where he was and held his breath.

And after only a mere three seconds, Naruto had lost his grip on the branch and began to fall to the ground below…

Thud.

~o~

Before long, the Uchiha found himself lying on the ground, his best friend entangled in his arms.

Immediately, he sat up to look at the latter's face to make sure that he was okay.

However, he soon found to see that Naruto…was crying.

He stared at the blonde as he sniffled and felt his eyes soften for him as he listened to the words that poured out of his mouth that instant.

"I broke it…" he'd heard him sob. "I broke it, Sasuke, and I'm sorry. I broke Aka…" Another sniffle. "I didn't mean to touch your balloon…I just wanted to be friends with you…"

At that moment, the raven winced as he felt the blonde shiver in his arms.

"I'm so sorry…" he began to wail. "I didn't mean to…to…"

Before Naruto knew it, small arms of ivory were comfortingly wrapped around him at that point and he had stopped mid-sentence before he could finish.

Then he looked up to see the Uchiha burying his face in his right shoulder and held his breath.

A long pause.

In that instant, the blonde's cerulean eyes widened with surprise. "Sasuke…you…"

At that moment, he had heard his best friend's breath waver slightly. Then he had spoken in a hoarse and concerned voice, and the words had immediately stuck to the very core of the younger one's heart.

"Don't you dare leave me like that again…you hear me?"

Naruto pursed his lips to say something, but then lowered his eyes as the raven exhaled sharply and held him even closer under the tree that they were sitting under at that point.

A low rumble of thunder had resounded in the air, and this time, Sasuke was the one who had begun to tremble.

The blonde's eyes softened and he hugged the latter back, murmured quietly in his ear.

"Sasuke…"

Another breeze of wind.

This time, the Uchiha had clutched on to the back of the other's shirt at that moment.

And that was when Naruto had finally smiled as he embraced his best friend dearly.

"…I'll always be here for you."

~o~

After a couple of weeks had passed, Sasuke looked up at the calendar in his room to see that it was now the first day of November, which meant that it would only be a few months before Itachi would return from London.

The raven closed his eyes and let out a sigh.

Of course it still seemed like a pretty long time to him in that perspective.

But now he wouldn't have any trouble waiting for those months to pass because after all, he had found a friend to play with.

"Sasuke!" a voice called from outside.

In that instant, the raven paused and turned to look out of his bedroom window to see Naruto Uzumaki waving at him from below on the sidewalk with a huge grin on his tan face.

At that moment, the Uchiha couldn't help but smile himself as well.

A friend who'd gone so far for him unlike any other…

"I'll be right down!" he called, rushing over to grab his jacket to go downstairs.

…one not even the best balloon in the world could ever replace.

~o~

Notes from the KIT-chan~

Lawl—this probably had a lot of holes in it, but I'll do the best I can to cover up at least one of them here. ^^";

For one thing, Naruto disappeared for a few days because he was trying to avoid Sasuke (he thought he'd hurt his feelings by trying to grab his balloon or saying that he thought of him as a brother).

Other than that, hope you guys enjoyed~ :D ('specially you, Aka-chan XD)

.::.*~Kitsune~*.::.