All right. There was enough feedback for me to continue the story, so here's the next chapter. Read and enjoy. Oh yeah. There is nothing graphic in this chapter aside from the actual word "rape". That's it. I tried to make it as clean as possible.
Disclaimer: Still don't own Naruto.
Episode 2. Yaki-soba
Naruto groaned softly; someone was shaking his shoulders and his topsy-turvy stomach felt like it had gone through liquefaction phase on high speed.
"Lemma go." he said.
Then he rolled over, quite promptly, into a puddle of his own vomit. The horrible smell sent his gut into overdrive. He grabbed his stomach as a convulsion seized him and then puked again. A thick green ejecta coated the ground.
Raindrops washed the taste from his mouth, but that didn't stop the shaking process. A hiss escaped his lips as his legs twisted, the pain reigniting with a furious passion.
"Mm..." he whimpered.
Something warm touched Naruto's shiver frame before he felt weightless. Someone, presumably a stranger, had picked him up and was now carrying him off to some unknown destination. He hoped with every aching muscle in his body that it wasn't Orochimaru.
Somewhere along the way, Naruto passed out on the person's shoulder. The rest of the journey was a blur from traveling between the conscious world and the unconscious world.
Suddenly he heard a sound out of the corner of his mind. It sounded distinctly like a key being put into a lock, but there was something different about it. Almost like a hollow ringing object in his ear.
"Ish...wro key." he uttered from his scratchy voice.
A warm chuckle cut through the dim mist fogging his thoughts. For a moment, he could think clearly, but all that ended when he walked through the door. A delicious heat immediately made him go limp.
"Whosh...whoshardo?" he asked right before falling asleep.
He was placed on a couch near a swiveling heater and blankets were loaded up on top of his as though it were below zero outside. Comfortable despite his soggy clothes, Naruto descended quickly into a dead sleep.
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Itachi sat silently across from the sleeping teenager with a steaming cup of pitch black coffee and watched expressions flicker transversely on the other's face.
He was deep in thought. So deep in thought, actually, that he didn't even notice the blonde's sapphire eyes gazing mistily at him.
"Wha...cough cough...How'd I get here?"
He barely managed to speak above a whisper, but it was enough to catch the older man's attention. Instantly he was by Naruto's side. He noted the pale, sweaty face and held his hand out against his forehead. Heat radiated against his palm.
"I don't...cough...feel good. Who...wait a minute..." Naruto squinted his feverish eyes at the man before him. "You're that...cough...guy...from the bar. I...Itachi, no?"
Naruto coughed sharply and Itachi took back his hand. He examined his blood-flecked hand with a sigh.
"Do not speak anymore. You've torn the lining of your throat so you will probably be coughing blood until you heal. I'll draw a bath. Come with me."
Naruto got shakily to his feet. He was about to fall when a strong supporting arm under his helped him stand.
"I'll help. Come on."
He limped to the bathroom, muscles still sore from the ordeal he'd faced only mere hours before.
"Shit." the swear word escaped his lips accidentally, triggering a coughing fit that made him double over as pain sliced through his lower half.
He fell to his knees, silent tears streaming down his face.
"Mm sorry...Mm sorry." he whimpered, forehead touching the floor.
Itachi sat down beside the kid and cuddled him to his chest, allowing him to cry into his shirt. He didn't give a damn whether his shirt got wet or not. Naruto need comfort, support, a loving embrace, and although he was a complete and total stranger, a strange attraction compelled him to do anything he could to comfort the boy.
He stroked at the golden locks before moving down to rub his shoulders. He daren't go any further for fear of upsetting the boy. He knew, both from instinct and experience, how things like rape affected you. Oddly enough, he found himself speaking to Naruto.
"Shhh. It's okay. He can't hurt you now. The soreness will leave. Just accept it and move on. You must be strong. He can't hurt you ever again."
Naruto was shaking like a lone leaf on a branch ravished by frigid winter winds.
"Mm sorry...Mm sorry." he repeated again and again.
Itachi stood, picked Naruto up, and carried him to the bath where he set him down in the cold porcelain tub. He then helped Naruto removed his sopping clothes. The drippy faucet squeaked horribly as he turned it. In spite of the faucet's condition, warm water immediately began to fill the tub.
The man knew that hot water would intensify the pain, so he settled for leaving it the way it was now. Naruto was still crying as the water hit his bare legs and began to deepen. He hissed as the water touched the tender area around his nether regions.
Itachi held his hand out and allowed the kid to squeeze it as hard as he liked as the water continued to rise around his hips. Any remaining blood was mercifully washed away by the lukewarm water.
"Mm. Sorry." he whimpered again while gazing absently towards the wall.
"It wasn't your fault. Whatever happened." Itachi spoke vaguely so as not to upset the already distraught teen.
He helped the boy relax by gently massaging his shoulders with Axe: Phoenix shower gel. The gentle scent helped both of them relax after a long tense night. He noticed that Naruto was still quivering slightly, but that could have been from the memories or because of his illness due to the foul weather outside.
Just then the lights flickered and went out. Both men were left in the darkness. Naruto began to hyperventilate; his rasping breath cut through the deep silence. Lightning illuminated the windows in a vibrant flash of hot white brilliance.
The blonde jerked away from Itachi's ministrations as thunder shook the tiny apartment. It was obvious that he held a fear for thunderstorms. A rush of sympathy overcame the older man.
Wrapping a towel around the shaking teen, Itachi picked him up bridal style gently and pulled the drain plug. He set the silent blonde down upon his mattress cover and then went about searching for an older pair of clothes to give him.
Pushing work suits aside, he found a torn pair of black jeans that he often wore while cleaning the apartment. The man pulled it from its home on the hanger and randomly grabbed a plain black long sleeve shirt with "Otep" scribbled across the front. A women dressed in thin gauzy veils looked down with sorrow in her eyes.
"You can wear these while I put your clothes in the dryer."
Naruto mouthed a thanks and accepted the clothes from Itachi.
"Come out when you're done. I'm going to make something to eat. Do you like Yaki-soba?"
Naruto's eyes lit up like a fireworks festival.
"I haven't had it in ages." he whispered happily.
Itachi nodded and left to prepare the yaki-soba while Naruto dressed himself out.
'I hope he doesn't mind me borrowing a pair of boxer shorts. I don't want to wear wet ones.' he thought while tugging them on.
The pants fit comfortably, but the shirt was a little loose. Still, he liked the band, so it didn't matter to him at all.
He came out to the smell of cooking pork. A stream of drool trickled comically down his cheek. Itachi saw this and cocked an eyebrow. Naruto grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head with his hand.
"Sorry." he whispered lowly. "I just have--"
"Save your voice. I heard you before. I don't want you straining your voice, understand."
Itachi's words were filled with a grave sort of kindness. Naruto gave a silent nod and sat down on a couch made of the softest white leather he'd ever felt before. Strangely enough, imprinted on the leather were tiny little black bats. Their wide glowing eyes bored into Naruto's own. Slightly afraid, he turned away and instead focused on Itachi.
Before he had time to blink, a bowl of yaki-soba was placed before him.
"Sweet!" he mouthed.
He was about to take a bite when Itachi's arm shot out and caught his hand. Fingers holding the chopsticks relinquished their hold and little wooden eating utensils clattered to the coffee table.
"Wait until it cools." the raven-haired man explained gently. "The heat will scald your throat and extend the time of healing.
Naruto nodded and sat back, a content grin on his face. Even if it was cold, he couldn't wait to eat to eat yaki-sobi.