Author's Note: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. I own only the plot, and any OCs if I choose to create some. The cover picture is by asksasunaru/carrotcakebadnit. This is a yaoi fanfiction. If you do not like it, please read something else. Also, I apologize in advance for my misspellings, unsatisfactory grammar, or confusing parts. Practice makes perfect, right?
Pairings: SasuNaru (past), ItaNaru (later), KakaIru.
Chapter Rating: T for language
Enjoy.
- Flashback -
"You will marry Hinata, Sasuke, and that is final!" yelled Uchiha Fugaku as he lost his temper. "You are my son and you will listen to me. The Uchiha Corporation will merge with the Hyuuga's and your marriage will finalize it. There is no backing out, there is already a contract. In two months, after you graduate, you two will be married."
Azure eyes widened in shock, his breath stopped as he hesitantly averted his eyes to look at Uchiha Sasuke, his boyfriend of three years. "What?"
"F-father, are you serious?" Sasuke asked, standing up.
"Yes. Hiashi and I agreed," Fugaku firmly responded.
"N-no way, you did this without my permission, father?!" Hinata spoke up, standing up as well.
"This is bullshit! You cannot do this! What parent decides this without their child's permission? Do you even care about my fucking feelings? You know I'm with Naruto!" shouted Sasuke. "I love him! H-how could you do this to me? To us!"
"Hinata and you will further expand our companies," started Hyuuga Hiashi.
"Yes, you cannot have an heir with a man, Sasuke. It's impossible. You will take over my company, as Itachi wishes to pursue in the field of law. You will take his responsibilities. If you do not, you will be disowned and never contacted by any Uchiha again," glared Fugaku as he intertwines his hands.
"The same goes to you, Hinata. You are the perfect person for this. Your punishment will be the same as Sasuke's, as you will never be able to survive on your own in the world," Hiashi said calmly, looking at Hinata with eyes that screamed for superiority.
"You can't do this! You can't just interfere with their lives, as well as mine!" Naruto finally spoke up, coming out of his shock. You can't take Sasuke away from me, he thought.
"Oh, but we can. You see, the Uchiha and Hyuuga families have lots of power… even law will bend our way if the people in charge are… satisfied correctly. You cannot stop this," Fugaku said, smirking along with Hiashi.
"…This is why mother left you. This is why she got into that accident! You always tried to control her and us when we were kids, and that's what drove her insane—," Sasuke started screaming, tears brimming his dark eyes.
"Shut the fuck up right now, Uchiha Sasuke, or you will get a beating," Fugaku said, knife and fork gripped in his hands.
"You can't do this to me, father. Marriage is about love! I don't love Sasuke!" Hinata screeched, throwing her napkin onto her plate, making her glass tilt and drop to the floor, shattering it into hundreds of pieces.
"It has been decided," Hiashi stated. "There is absolutely nothing any of you can do no matter how much you try."
"Exactly. There is no loophole," Fugaku said with eyes gleaming with victory as the maids started to walk into the dining room, taking away their half finished plates, not looking at anyone in the eyes.
A few minutes later, the dining table was cleared except for on new clean, white tablecloth. The rest of the dining table sat Hyuuga Neji, Sabaku Gaara, and Nara Shikamaru, whose relatives' companies are partners of the Uchiha and Hyuuga companies. They were furious, but had to keep their mouth shut. Their companies were on the line, one sentence could forever ruin them, leaving thousands unemployed and themselves bankrupt. Their families and workers were important, so no matter how angry they were at such an unfair act, they must not speak up. Luckily for them, it was as if their presences were forgotten.
"This conversation is over," said Fugaku solidly.
"But father—," started Sasuke.
"No!" he yelled with a murderous glare.
Knowing what will happen, Sasuke promptly shut his mouth. Eyes going downwards, he noticed that his hands shook in anger, and his vision was starting to become blurry due to unwanted tears.
"Naruto. Leave and do not step into this house again… if you know what is good for you," Fugaku said before he walked upstairs with Hiashi.
Naruto nodded, voice stuck in his throat. After the two's backs retreated into the mansion, he ran to Sasuke.
"Fuck… Sasuke. I-I didn't expect this from tonight," Naruto whispered, wrapping his arms around his love as if to protect him from everything.
"I'm… I'm so fucking sorry, Naruto, I can't believe he did this, I can't fucking believe it," Sasuke said, burying his face into the crook of his lover's neck.
"Hush, S'uke. It's not your fault. Your father is to blame."
"I don't want to do this… I love you. Not her, not anyone else. I don't want to marry her."
"I know, S'uke. I know."
"I love you."
"I know. And I you."
- End Flashback -
That was approximately six months ago, although Naruto stopped counting after the love of his life, Sasuke, became a husband, he could not simply forget. He could only contact Sasuke during school, trying to spend as much time as he could before they had to go separate ways. Two months felt like two days, if not two hours.
He cannot remember Sasuke's scent anymore. He misses his warm touches, the way Sasuke would only smile genuinely all the time when they were alone. The memory of what their kisses felt like were fading, and he could not help but know they will soon be forgotten.
He could not blame Sasuke for what happened. It was all Fugaku's fault. In Naruto's mind, he is a man who does not deserve the title of a father.
But the truth is… deep inside his mind, he wished Sasuke would run away. He could not help but think selfishly. Does he value his father, someone who thinks his company is more significant than his son, over me?
Naruto knew without even being told that Sasuke tried contacting him. But things will never be the same. He knew Hinata and Sasuke do not love each other, but that did not keep him from thinking the "what if's". What if Sasuke stops loving me? We already broke up anyway… What if Sasuke and Hinata come to love each other in the future? What if they have kids? What if they forget me? What if we never see each other again? It's been four months since the wedding – the one he was not invited to – and he was still miserable. Each day was spent remembering the day Naruto broke up with Sasuke. He could not be in a relationship with a married man, even if said man does not love his wife. Of course, Sasuke did not take it lightly, and the sight of him cursing his absent father out will forever be carved in his mind. They cried as they held each other for the last time, which was the day before the wedding. Naruto was not used to seeing Sasuke cry so much; his boyfriend was – is – strong.
Sighing, Naruto thought over his options. They have been on his mind for the past week, and they were becoming more logical as time passed. He could either a) stay miserable and cry every morning and night, b) get into an accident and hope he somehow gets amnesia so he won't remember Sasuke anymore, c) find a rebound, or d) finally take up his grandmother's offer of studying abroad in the U.S.
Naruto is thankfully, still somewhat rational. D seemed like the wisest choice. He's always wanted to study abroad in America, going into either law or business. He also wanted to teach Japanese to kids during his free time. It's a good thing that Naruto studied English during high school. Fortunately, America's school schedules were different from Japan's, meaning that this month was when college applications were due. November seemed extremely welcoming to him. After spending his birthday in October with his grandmother (who is probably in her 40s but look not a day older than 30, even Naruto doesn't know her real age), he wanted something new, something to distract him. Maybe this was the opportunity to find that "something".
After two more days, Naruto came to a decision. He will move on without Sasuke. He does not want Sasuke to choose between leaving his family or staying with him, knowing it would be unjust. There was… nothing for him in Japan. He could not do anything without remembering. He needed fresh air, and going to the U.S. is the perfect opportunity.
As soon as Naruto made his decision, knowing perfectly well that he could not back down, he dialed in the number to his grandmother.
"Hello?" said Tsunade.
"Baa-chan, it's me," replied Naruto.
"How are you feeling, brat?"
"Same old, same old."
"I bet you gained weight with all that rocky road ice cream, haha!"
"I'm not fat… but on a serious note, I decided to take up your offer."
"Good for you. Are you sure though?"
"Yeah."
"Not going to explain?"
"I'm pretty sure you know why."
"I see. We leave in two days. Pack everything you need, I'll prepare the rest. Meet us at the airport at 6pm then."
"How do you know which time?"
"…I already ordered the tickets."
"Damn woman, you knew I was going to choose to go with you."
"Well of course, who else knows you better?"
"…"
"See you in two days, kid. 6pm at the airport! Don't forget that. Make sure to check how many pounds of luggage you can bring with you!"
"Okay… thank you, Baa-chan."
"Any time, brat. That's what family's for."
Naruto smiled for the first time in months. He now had something to look forward to.
