Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Sasuke, alleyways or chocolate cigarettes.


Chocolate Cigarettes - Part 2

Naruto looked up at the plastic clock that hung loosely from the wall for what must have been the umpteenth time that afternoon. It read 5:52. Naruto watched as the small red seconds hand moved rhythmically around the area of the small circle and sighed, realising the impossibility of time stopping more and more with each passing second. The blonde glanced down at the table he was busting and slowly began picking up the plates and rubbish that littered the surface of it. He carried the plates absent-mindedly towards the kitchen, not really noticing where he was walking as he lost himself in his own thoughts.

Naruto's sudden outburst in the alleyway the previous afternoon had left the blonde dread facing the Uchiha again. He had got very little sleep due to his mind wandering back and forth between what he had said and the surprised and wordless reaction he had gotten from it. Granted he didn't give Sasuke much time to react in his desperate attempt to escape humiliation by bolting out of the alleyway, but the immediate reaction was still etched into Naruto's mind.

Why had he said that? 'I won't let you leave me like that'? 'I can't lose you'? Why? Why would he say that out loud? Why did Sasuke have to get him so riled up that he blurted out something as stupid and careless as that? Worse yet, how was Sasuke going to interpret it? It couldn't be good, in any case. Sasuke was one for over analysing things and Naruto knew that this was one thing that he definitely didn't want Sasuke to analyse at all.

Naruto recognised that what he said wasn't a lie; he had meant ever word. What he feared, however, was the fact that Sasuke now knew the reason for Naruto's obsession with attempting to force him to quit smoking. That and what was going to happen between them now that he knew. Would it make things better? Would Sasuke actually stop? The sudden prospect of that made Naruto happy but only for a millisecond, as he remembered whom he was dealing with. This would probably make things a lot worse. In fact, Naruto knew for a fact that Sasuke did not enjoy hearing about any feelings what-so-ever and, from what Naruto could tell, the warmth on his face and the strange knot that was forming in his stomach was all part of a 'feeling' the he himself still could not fully identify.

The blonde looked up at the clock again. 5:58pm. Naruto cringed. Damn, time was moving fast. Soon he would have to meet up with Sasuke like he usually would. He'd probably be scolded for the things he had said but Naruto had made up his mind the previous night that he was not going to run away from this problem. He would face it head on, like he did most things, and get it over with. Whether that meant Sasuke giving him a good punch in the chin for his 'more-than-friendly' words or Sasuke shunning him and refusing to speak to him for the rest of his life, Naruto would take it.

The clock read 6:00 now and Naruto felt a lump rise in his throat. He sauntered slowly towards the back of the restaurant to gather his things before the night-time staff turned the closed sign back to open for the dinner rush. Picking up his backpack, the blonde gave a small wave to a few of his workmates before pushing open the door to begin his walk towards the alleyway.

Although Naruto had taken the longest route possible and stopped as often as he could in procrastination, he still managed to only be 5 minutes later than he would have usually turned up at the alley. Fate was not on his side today.

Naruto stopped just beside the alleyway, suddenly very aware of his loud breathing and his slightly shaking hands. He held onto the straps of his backpack firmly in an attempt to steady them and took a deep inhale.

Naruto could smell tobacco as it wafted down the alleyway.

He exhaled slowly, his shoulders slouching as he not only got the confirmation of Sasuke's being in the alley but also the affirmation that he was still smoking, despite Naruto's outburst. The blond was both relieved and disappointed by this realisation. Relieved as it could mean that everything would stay the same and they would continue as they had before, and disappointed for the same reason. Naruto ran a hand through his hair and sighed, a small sad smile gracing his features, and he turned down the alleyway.

Naruto saw Sasuke immediately as he rounded the corner of the passageway. He was standing with his back leaning against the usual space of stone wall, an unlit cigarette in his hand, presumably his second one as Naruto could smell the tobacco more prominently as he walked towards the dark haired boy. Trying to control his heavy breathing, Naruto watched as Sasuke brought the cigarette to his lips but he didn't light it. Sasuke glanced at Naruto as the blonde approached and pushed himself off the wall, pulling his cigarette out of his mouth and putting it in his pocket in the process. Sasuke took a couple of steps forward and then stopped, watching Naruto as he closed the distance. The tanned boy didn't want to push his luck with his pale companion so he stopped a couple of meters away, as to not invade Sasuke's personal space.

Naruto let his hands fall to his sides as he looked at Sasuke, and Sasuke, whose hands were in the pockets of his jeans, met the blonde's gaze. After a few moments, Naruto looked away before bringing his hand up to scratch the back of his head sheepishly. He plastered on the best grin he could muster and looked towards Sasuke again, but didn't meet his eyes.

"Eh, Sasuke," Naruto began, his throat suddenly feeling dry. "How's it going? I guess I should probably explain about yesterday..." Naruto's grin faltered when he noticed the boys' dark eyes narrow slightly. Sasuke took a stride towards Naruto.

Naruto, noticing this, took an involuntary half step back but otherwise remained in the same position, determined not to look too intimidated. He cleared his throat. Sasuke took another step forward.

"You see," Naruto continued, his voice cracking slightly, "yesterday, with all that stuff I said about you, I, uh, didn't mean it the way it sounded..." Naruto was talking very quickly but the Uchiha's was unfazed. Sasuke seemed unconcerned with what Naruto was saying in general, and as blue eyes met black ones while Sasuke slowly closed the distance between them, Naruto could see that anything he said now was futile. Sasuke's eyes seemed glazed over and intense, locked on Naruto's in such a way that caused the blonde to inadvertently take another half step back. This time however, Sasuke was close enough to grab one of Naruto's wrists to stop him.

In contrast to the speed at which time was travelling as he checked the clock at work, time seemed to stand still over the next few moments. Naruto watched as Sasuke closed the remaining distance between them and stood in front of him, still keeping a firm grip on the blonde's wrist. Then, just as smoothly and calmly as he had been walking a few moments ago, Sasuke brought a hand to Naruto's jaw and lifted it slightly, causing Naruto's eyes to widened slightly in confusion. Then, without hesitation, the pale hand on Naruto's jaw moved swiftly behind his head. A fistful of light blonde hair was gripped tightly and Naruto was pulled forward, all hopes of personal space lost.

Naruto's eyes went wide as he felt the soft sensation of Sasuke's lips press against his own. The blonde tensed at the unexpected contact but didn't move, unsure of what to do. As Sasuke deepened the kiss, Naruto's body reacted on its own and he found himself kissing back. The blondes azure eyes became half lidded as he lost himself in this moment; this moment that didn't seem real, but the tight, almost painful grip Sasuke had on the blonde's hair convinced him it couldn't be a dream. He closed his eyes completely, realising that Sasuke had long since done the same. He left his hands at his side, afraid that any sudden movements on his part might suddenly jolt Sasuke into a realisation of what he was doing. So he simply relaxed, relishing in the warmth of Sasuke's skin so close to his. The pale hand that was gripping Naruto hair loosened and dropped to the back of his neck, but the other hand remained tight around Naruto's wrist, as if to make sure the blonde didn't run away.

Something wet darted across Naruto's bottom lip and his lips parted involuntarily in surprise. Sasuke dipped his tongue in teasingly and Naruto felt what was close to a surge of electricity coarse through his body at the contact. Not to be outdone, Naruto, with a sudden rush of confidence, teased back, almost linking his tongue with Sasuke in an attempt to keep the contact. They fought for dominance, neither one wanting to be beaten, and Naruto leant forwards more, bringing their chest together, as the passion in their kiss filled him and urged him forward. Sasuke gripped the back of Naruto's neck, making sure the blonde didn't make them lose their balance and finally dropped Naruto's wrist.

Sasuke brought both his hand to either side of Naruto's jaw, holding the blonde's head in place as he kissed him deeply, and with finality. Naruto, hands finally free, forgot about his previous fears of touching the pale boy and grabbed the front of Sasuke shirt. Sensing the finality of this kiss, Naruto kissed back forcefully and passionately, feeling Sasuke's heartbeat from underneath his hands.

It was just as fast as his own.

Sasuke pulled back and, despite Naruto's efforts, the kiss was broken. The blonde opened his eyes slowly, hesitantly, suddenly worried as to what he might see, and looked Sasuke in the eyes. He loosened his grip on Sasuke's shirt. Finally registering completely what had just occurred, Naruto gazed at Sasuke dumbfounded, unsure as to what to think.

Nervously, Naruto bit his bottom lip, sucking on it slightly. He froze, staring at Sasuke in disbelief, his eyes darting back and forth between the Uchiha's black ones.

Sasuke smiled, a small genuine smile, and tilted his head to one side, looking at Naruto.

"We'll make a compromise," he said, pulling a cigarette from his pocket. Naruto's eyes softened.

The blonde smiled, licking his lip again and, watching Sasuke as he put the cigarette in his mouth, he tasted the unmistakable flavour of chocolate and cigarette's.

Fin


A/N: Well, i hope you enjoyed that short story. It was in my head and now it's on the internet. I quite like it actually, which is suprising because I don't usually like my own stuff. Hopefully this isn't too short...

Anyway, hope everyone's okay with a happy ending, I'm a sucker for them, and I like writing them. Thank you for reading!