Disclaimer:
Kiba: Lord Rekhyt owns nothing, and is paying me to disclaim for him because he is lazy.
Warnings: Read the previous chapters warnings.
Chapter 2
As the semester dragged on, Sasuke and Naruto began spending more and more time together. For Sasuke, this was getting too familiar, because, loath as he was to admit it, he was developing a strong liking for the blond boy.
One Saturday morning, when the sun was still rising, Sasuke was rudely awoken by Kiba jumping on his bed.
"Time to wake up, Sasuke!" The Inuzuka said in a sing-song voice. Sasuke groaned loudly and put a pillow over his face.
"Go away, Kiba."
"Make me, Sasuke."
Sasuke kicked at his friend, but connected with nothing but air.
"You'll have to try harder than that, ya know."
Sasuke removed the pillow and glared at Kiba.
"Why, in the name of all things good, are you in here this early?"
Kiba rolled his eyes. "I came to fetch you, we're all going out today."
"We are?" Sasuke asked, his interest peeked.
"Yep. We're going to town for the day."
Sasuke nodded. He looked across the room, seeing a very disgruntled Neji trying to get back to sleep. He stood up, wearing nothing but a pair of silk boxers, and stretched.
Kiba giggled, and the Uchiha raised an eyebrow at him.
"Something funny, Kiba?"
"Oh, nothing, Sasu. I'm just thinking of how much Naruto is going to enjoy seeing you like this once the two of you are together."
Sasuke blushed crimson. "Kiba, no!"
After he had gotten dressed, he followed Kiba downstairs to the college gates, where his entire group of friends had assembled.
"It's about time, Sasuke!" Temari complained.
Sasuke waved her off. "It's barely even seven yet. I have a right to be asleep."
"So where are we headed to first?" Gaara asked.
"This is troublesome…" Shikamaru muttered. "Let's hit the market place."
Kiba nodded eagerly, and they began the walk into town. Naruto was walking beside Sasuke and Hinata, not putting much into the conversation.
"I spoke to your brother yesterday, Sasuke." Hinata said.
Sasuke grunted. "And what did perfect Itachi have to say for himself?"
Hinata frowned. "He really isn't so bad, Sasuke."
"Try living with him." Sasuke replied. Only Kiba agreed that Itachi was a lunatic.
"Well, whatever you say, Sasuke, he's still hot."
Sasuke cringed. "Seriously, Hinata, I do not want to think of my brother as hot."
Hinata shrugged. "At least there's one Uchiha that I can actually chase after."
Sasuke laughed. His friends all knew that he was gay, and all took it well. Except for one friend, but Sasuke didn't like to think about him. At all.
"Why don't you chase after Sasuke then?" Naruto asked with a grin.
"I guess no one's told you yet…" Hinata replied, a thoughtful look crossing her face.
"This isn't the time, Hyuuga." Sasuke said in a dangerous tone.
Hinata nodded, not in the least perturbed by Sasuke's use of her family name. Naruto looked between the two of them in confusion, trying to figure out what they were talking about.
"So Naruto," Hinata said suddenly, "have you seen any girls here that you like yet?"
Naruto considered her question, then shook his head.
"How about boys?"
Naruto's mouth fell open. "No."
Hinata shrugged. "Oh well. It's just a matter of time."
Sasuke caught the double meaning behind her words and scowled in her direction, but she ignored him. When they reached the market, they split into smaller groups. Temari and Shikamaru went off to look at the latest strategy games, while Kiba, Gaara and Hinata were in the food court getting snacks.
Sasuke and Naruto were wandering around aimlessly, looking at nothing in particular. Naruto picked up a small metallic box, engraved with an intricate Japanese design, and inspected it.
"What did Hinata mean when she said no one's told me?" the blond asked in a quiet voice.
Sasuke felt as though the temperature in the room sky-rocketed. His thoughts became jumbled, and he started stuttering.
"Um, well, the thing is…"
Perplexed, Naruto put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "Are you okay?"
'Oh God, this isn't helping…'
"I'm fine." Sasuke said, unable to hide his blush. "It's just, well, controversial."
"Controversial? It can't be that bad."
"Well, you see Naruto…"
"Sasuke-kun!"
"Hide me!" Sasuke yelled, ducking past Naruto and into the crowd. He weaved in and out of the people, trying to hide away from Sakura, but to no avail.
"Sasuke!" she said with a smile, "how are you?"
"I'm alright." Sasuke mumbled.
"You know, I haven't seen you much since the semester started. It's almost like you've been avoiding me."
"I wouldn't avoid you, Sakura." Sasuke said, just as Naruto joined them.
"We should get together some time, Sasuke. Maybe go out for lunch or something."
"Yeah, um, sure…"
"I mean, I know that you're gay and all," Sakura prattled on, "but it's not like I'm going to rape you. Well, I'll see you around, Sasuke-kun. I have to go find Ino before your best friend lures her into a dark corner."
Sasuke felt as though the air had been sucked out of the place.
"Yeah… Bye…"
With a wave, Sakura departed, leaving an awkward silence. Sasuke kept his eyes focused on the ground at his feet, not daring to look up.
After several long moments, which seemed to contain an eternity, Naruto spoke.
"Does this place sell books?" he asked in a casual tone.
"Um, yeah. There's a store not far from here."
"Let's head over there."
As they walked, Naruto chattered about his classes again. He seemed to be pretending that nothing had happened.
They walked for several minutes, not saying a word, until Sasuke broke the silence.
"Aren't you going to say anything?"
Naruto looked at him, stared actually. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again.
"Well?"
"Look, there's the book store."
Naruto darted into the shop, but Sasuke walked right past it, wanting to get away.
Sasuke walked until he couldn't walk anymore. It had been hours, and most of the students had already returned to the school by now, but he didn't want to go back. He had walked to the opposite end of the town, a dead look on his face. Naruto's reaction had been bad, and Sasuke was sure that his blonde friend wouldn't want anything to do with him anymore. He found a fountain in the middle of a large park, surrounded by trees, and decided to rest there. He took off his shoes and socks and put his feet in the cool water, feeling the breeze against his skin. The sun was beginning to set now, staining the sky an orange color. Sasuke sighed deeply and closed his eyes, letting his worries fade away.
"Uchiha! There you are!"
Sasuke cringed. Temari's voice echoed around the park, angry and threatening.
Sasuke didn't turn around or acknowledge her. He simply stared down at his feet. A few moments later, she was next to him. She didn't say anything, but Sasuke sensed movement beside him, and a second later Temari had sat down next to him, bare feet in the water.
"Are you alright, Sasuke?" Temari asked in an uncharacteristically quiet voice.
"I suppose I am." Sasuke replied.
"What happened earlier? Naruto said that you suddenly vanished, and he's been going crazy. He was worried that something had happened to you."
"Naruto was worried about me?" Sasuke asked. "Why?"
Temari frowned. "I'm going to go out on a limb here, and say that Naruto was the source of you leaving today."
Sasuke nodded. He sighed, and began telling Temari what happened.
"So he just acted like it didn't happen?" Temari questioned. "What an ass! And I guess he doesn't even know you like him?"
"No, he doesn't – Wait, how did you know that?"
Temari shrugged. "It's kind of obvious, Sasuke."
Sasuke blushed softly. "Well, it turns out that it was pointless. If he freaked out about me being gay, imagine what he'll do when he finds out that I like him."
Temari nodded. "I know. It'll end up like it did with –"
Sasuke growled, cutting her off before she could continue.
"I don't want to talk about him."
Temari quickly changed the subject. "Don't let this get to you, Sasuke. There are plenty of other guys out there. Naruto is the one loosing out here."
Sasuke sighed again and kicked the water, splashing it on the grass beside the fountain.
"Let's go back." Temari said. "The others are still looking for you."
Sasuke smirked. "I bet Kiba is going to kill me."
Temari nodded. "Most likely."
They stood up and began walking, but Sasuke's legs felt like lead. There were plenty of other guys out there, but there was only one Naruto. And Naruto was the one that he wanted.
They arrived back at the college as the sun set. Kiba and Shikamaru were waiting at the gates, with fury written all over Kiba's face.
"Sasuke, you have a lot of explaining to do!"
Sasuke's expression became hard. He pushed past Kiba and headed up toward the dorms. He heard Kiba call out angrily, but then Temari seemed to stop him. She would explain everything, and then Kiba could calm down. Sasuke was not in the mood to deal with anyone at this moment. He stormed up the staircase and barged into his room, scaring Neji, but he didn't care.
"Holy shit, Sasuke!" Neji exclaimed, grabbing his heart. "Don't do that!"
Sasuke merely grunted and turned to his bed, intent on sleeping and forgetting about today, but there was a surprise waiting for him there. Naruto was sitting on the bed, looking apprehensive after Sasuke stormed into the room, but there was a determined set to his jaw.
"We need to talk, Sasuke."
Sasuke ignored him and went to the bathroom. He began brushing his teeth, but Naruto followed him.
"I guess I deserve the silent treatment, so I'll just talk and you can listen." Naruto said, leaning against the door frame.
"I don't want to talk." Sasuke said through a mouthful of toothpaste, glaring at the blond boy in the mirror. Naruto pulled a face at him, and a Sasuke felt one corner of his mouth twitch.
"Look, Sasuke, I'm just not used to people like that. I mean, where I come from, being gay is something that isn't spoken about. We all looked down on it."
"So now you look down on me?" Sasuke shot back.
"I didn't say that!" Naruto yelled defensively, "I'm just saying that I don't know how to react to that kind of information. It's all new to me."
Sasuke spat out the toothpaste and rinsed his mouth out. When he stood up, he kept his back to Naruto. "Then I guess you should rather stay away from me." He said quietly. He turned around, walked past Naruto, and left his dorm room. He didn't go to Kiba, since that would be the first place the blond would check. Instead, he went to Hinata's room. This was risky, since Hinata was sharing a room with Sakura this year, but Sasuke didn't care. The tiny Hyuuga girl was listening to music, bobbing her head in time with the tune. She didn't even notice when her room mate let the young Uchiha in.
Sasuke tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention.
"Sasuke!" Hinata said, pulling her earphones off, "What're you doing here? If the Dean catches you in a girl's room…"
Sasuke shrugged. "He knows I'm here, I told him I needed to speak to you. Besides, he knows I'm gay, remember?"
Hinata sighed. "That's true. He heard about you and –"
"Olay, Hinata." Sasuke said loudly. "Let's leave it there."
Hinata smiled softly. "Still having trouble thinking about him?" she asked.
"Wouldn't you?" Sasuke countered.
"I suppose I would."
Sakura, sitting on her bed, was sifting her eyes back and forth between the two of them.
"Who are you talking about?" she asked.
"No one." Sasuke replied brusquely. "My ex."
"You had a boyfriend and I didn't know?" Sakura asked.
Sasuke snorted. "I didn't exactly advertise it, you know."
"Change the subject." Hinata said. "What's got you worked up, Sasuke?"
"Naruto." Sasuke muttered. He launched into the story, cutting off Sakura every time she interrupted him.
"You told him what?" Hinata gasped when Sasuke had finished. "Sasuke, why did you tell Naruto to stay away from you? That is so stupid."
"It's what he wants." Sasuke grumbled, clearly bristled.
"That isn't going to help you at all, Sasuke. That'll just make it worse."
"Hinata's right." Sakura said. "If you like the boy, then you should keep trying."
"What good will that do, though?" Sasuke asked. "He's a classic homophobe. He wants nothing to do with me."
"You can't know that for sure, Sasuke." Hinata said gently.
Sasuke sighed. "I don't know any more. We'll see what happens."
Hinata and Sakura nodded.
"If he hurts you, let me know." Sakura said. "Then I'll hurt him."
Sasuke laughed. Sakura was a rather good fighter, and one of the top martial arts students.
"Anyway, I'd better go." Sasuke said, standing up. "I need to go find Kiba."
Hinata stood also, letting Sasuke out. As he the corridors of the boy's dormitory, he came face to face with his brother, Itachi.
"Oh great." Sasuke muttered.
Itachi sighed and rolled his eyes. "Hello to you too, Sasuke."
Sasuke grunted. He tried to move past his older brother, but he blocked him.
"I heard a little rumor, brother." Itachi said. "I heard that you like the new guy, Naruto. Is it true?"
Sasuke froze. If Itachi found out about him, and he told their father…
Itachi seemed to be thinking along those lines too.
"If you're worried about father, don't be." Itachi said.
"Why?" Sasuke asked. "You'd be only too happy to run to him."
Itachi laughed. "I wouldn't lead the witch hunt against something I'm guilty of myself. I'm no hypocrite."
"You – you mean you're…"
Itachi chuckled again. "Of course. I'm surprised you never figured it out, little brother."
"Whoa…" Sasuke muttered. "Who's the guy?"
"Sasori." Itachi said proudly. "For two years now."
"Two years? And you never told me?"
"And how long did you not tell me for?" Itachi countered.
"This is, well, wow… I never would have thought that you of all people…"
"That just goes to show you, Sasuke, that you should never judge a book by its cover."
Sasuke nodded. Itachi began to walk past him, but Sasuke stopped him.
"Itachi, can I talk to you? I need some advice."
Itachi looked at him in surprise. "Of course, Sasuke."
They walked out into the courtyard and sat on rough benches. The night air was chilly, and Sasuke had not brought a jersey out with him.
He explained the whole situation with Naruto to his brother, not leaving out any of the details. He explained Naruto's reaction to finding out, and then what he had told the blond. When he was done, Itachi sat silently for a while, thinking.
"I can see the problem." Itachi said quietly. "But then, Sasori was the same at first. He was really homophobic, but in the end I got through to him, hoping to at least keep him as a friend. But I got far more than that."
"So how did you manage that?"
"I just hung out with him, proved that being gay wasn't anything to be ashamed of. I made him see that I was still the same person that I was before I came out to him."
"So that's what I should do with Naruto?"
Itachi nodded.
"I'd better go," he said, "It's getting late."
Sasuke nodded. "Thanks, Itachi. You helped me see things better."
They parted ways, Sasuke heading back to his room. When he got there, Neji was lying on his back and playing around o his cell phone, so Sasuke collapsed on his bed and stared at the roof.
"I don't mean to intrude," Neji said, "But you were a little loud this evening and I heard what you and Naruto were talking about."
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I don't see how that's any of your business."
"It's my business when my room mate is a faggot." Neji shot back rudely.
Sasuke's mind went blank. The events of the day had worn him out, and this was the lsat straw. He launched himself across the room, on top of Neji, and began punching every inch of him that he could reach.
When Sasuke entered the cafeteria the next morning for breakfast, everyone fell silent. He froze and stared at the faces looking up at him, wondering what was going on. When no one moved or said a word, Sasuke began to feel his temper getting the better of him again, but in an instant Kiba and Itachi appeared on either side of him, guiding him out of the room swiftly.
"What's going on?" Sasuke demanded.
"Neji." Kiba said simply.
"What about him?"
"Everyone saw what you did to him." Itachi clarified. "There's talk going around of a nasty break up, though Neji is trying to quash the rumor."
Kiba shot Itachi a scathing look, but Sasuke shook his head.
"It's alright, Kiba. He knows."
Kiba looked flabbergasted. "Itachi knows?"
At that point, Itachi's boyfriend came to check what was happening. He was tall, with lightly tanned skin and bright red hair.
"Is everything alright, Itachi?" Sasori asked.
Itachi smiled at him. "Everything's fine, love. I'll be with you in a second."
Sasori nodded and went back into the cafeteria.
"Love?" Kiba chocked out.
"I didn't get a chance to tell you," Sasuke said with an apologetic smile, "but it turns out that Itachi is also gay. Don't give me that look, Kiba, I only found out last night."
Kiba grumbled.
"Anyway, we'd better get you up to the Dean's office. This thing with Neji is going to be epic, so it's best if you go to the Dean and explain what happened before he calls you there."
Sasuke grunted, but decided to not argue. He walked to the Dean's office with his brother and best friend and tapped lightly on the door.
"Enter." Came the Dean's voice.
Sasuke cringed internally and stepped over the threshold.
"Mr. Uchiha," the Dean said, "To what calamity do I owe this visit?"
"Um, I kind of, er, slightly…"
"Spit it out, Uchiha!" The Dean said in exasperation.
"You see, sir," Itachi said, "Sasuke was provoked into a fight last night."
Mr. Sarutobi sighed deeply, his lined face resigned.
"Itachi, Inuzuka, you may leave. I'll discuss this with Sasuke alone."
Kiba shot Sasuke a worried look before departing, leaving Sasuke to fend for himself.
As the door snapped shut behind them, Sasuke sighed.
"Okay, sir, this is what happened…"
XXXXX
Rekhyt: Well, there's chapter 2, I hope you like it!
Sasuke: Rekhyt would REALLY appreciate it if you'd review!
Kiba: The faster Rekhyt get's reviews, the sooner he updates!
Sasuke: Which means you'll get to the steamy bits faster!
Rekhyt: … Pervert.
REVIEW TIME!!!
