Le gasp! Two chapters in one go. I...will most likely never do this again XD Sorry, just being truthful. I'd like to say I have all this typed out already, but I am kind of going with the flow and seeing where this one takes me.

Backstory of the two boys! They are young and easily influenced by the adults around them (and before you think too much into that statement NO, THIS ISNT SHOTA.)

WARNING: MALEXMALE SITUATIONS, YAOI, DUDES LOVING OTHER DUDES.

Chapter 2: Familial Expectations and the Fragility of a Child's Mind

"When love is suppressed hate takes its place" ~Havelock Ellis

Sasuke:

I hate Naruto.

I hate the way he smells.

And he doesn't even fucking stink...he doesn't even have a very distinguishable smell to him at all. That pisses me off the most.

I could spend hours sitting next to him while he yaps away about something pointless and I can't pay attention to what he's saying because I am too busy trying to figure out what he fucking smells like.

And why he smells so god damn good—No! I mean, why he smells so bad!

It's like he smells like something girly like those damned flowers you see in those flower stands—like lavender or rosemary or some shit—as well as that male muskthat some guys have.

I normally hate those kind of smells, yet for some reason...I don't it when he smells like them.

I hate his voice.

I hate that he can continue talking about something for hours and hours and I don't do anything to stop him. I hate that his voice almost sounds sing song in tempo and lilt and it doesn't drive me up a fucking wall.

I hate that I don't notice the time flying by when I listen to him talk.

I hate the way he looks.

With his god awful golden blond hair, that always seems to fall in such a way that reflects the most amount of light from the sun. And that the strands manage to look absolutely chaotic and still be sex—obnoxious at the same time.

I hate his tanned skin and how it looks as if it shimmers in that damned sunlight. That stupid skin of his makes him look exotic even though he was born in the same damn state I was.

I hate how fucking short he is. Guys shouldn't be that fucking short. And he isn't like freakishly short, just a few inches shorter than most of the other guys. And I am taller than most too...

I hate that he is short enough to be the perfect height...for me to rest my chin or cheek against the top of his head if I wanted to. Not that I would everdo such a disgusting thing!

I hate that he's not all that muscular.

He has this body that is compact or something. Not small enough to be associated with a female's physique. He does have some tone to his muscles, but not enough to be astoundingly masculine. It makes me want to rip my hair out in frustration.

Because...because he's fucking small enough that I just know if I wanted to I could easily wrap my arms around him and tuck him against me perfectly.

Again, not that I would.

I hate his stupid blue eyes too.

His eyes alwaysshow exactly what he is feeling.

You know what, Naruto? Sometimes I just don't want to know what is going through your mind!

I always want to scream those words at him when he starts to look at me like that.

Because sometimes it just fucking hurts to see what he's thinking. It feels like he is screaming at me to notice the signs, and do something about it.

But I wont.

I will never do what he is asking me to do.

I hate the way he makes me feel.

I hate the way my stomach does this strange flip flop every time he is near. I feel like I should get nauseated every time, and then get annoyed when that drive to puke never comes.

I hate how my heart begins to pound rapidly in my chest along with the twists in my gut.

I hate that my head gets fuzzy when he turns to look at me, and my vision becomes hyper-sensitive for just his damned face.

I once went to the doctor, thinking I was dying or something. When I told the doctor exactly what was happening when these instances occurred, he would look at me strangely.

Like I was an idiot.

"Son...I think you know very well why you are having these sensations."

No, I don't know.

Actually, you know what?

I don't want to know.

I don't ever want to know.

20 years ago. Small Town in Southern Arkansas.

Sasuke: age 7, Naruto: age 6

Sasuke Uchiha had been alienated from the rest of the world at a very young age.

When he had started his first year at the small elementary school, he found that very few of his classmates would interact with him. And that few immediately stopped once they found out who he was.

The children would always give him a strange look or even have fear in their eyes when he tried to talk to him in the beginning. He hadn't understood why they acted that way.

Of course, being a small child he immediately turned to the one person he looked up to the most for advice—his older brother.

Itachi had always been a kind and loving older brother when the two of them were alone together. Sasuke had asked him countless questions about the older Uchiha's life in High School, as well as the different friends he had and the other people he met. Itachi was patient with him, answering every question and jokingly poke fun at him when Sasuke asked something silly.

The day Sasuke had asked him why his classmates where acting the way they did, Itachi's face had gone stony.

Sasuke didn't like his brother's face like that. Itachi only wore that expression when he was talking with their father.

Itachi's tone in his voice had matched the cold expression, "They react that way because their parents know you are an Uchiha, and as an Uchiha you are better than everyone."

Sasuke hadn't understood why when Itachi said that. The sentence sounded as if had been recited from his mouth several times before.

Sasuke inquired about his tone, but his brother didn't respond, only told him that he needed to study.

Sasuke had left his brother alone in his room shortly after, finding himself in his own room, staring down at a child's reading book with a frown on his small features.

He did not understand what his brother had meant about their family. Why were the Uchiha's better?

What did their name have anything to do with being above everyone?

Sasuke had been elated to have the isolation disappear a week after school started.

They had just seated themselves in their desks when the teacher, Mr. Umino, walked into the room. Sasuke immediately glanced down to the small boy that was holding one of the hands of their teacher, a half eaten cookie dangling from his mouth.

The boy's hair was a bright blond, almost white in color. This wasn't that big of a deal, since most of the other lighter hair children also had this color.*

But what really stood out to Sasuke from even across the room were the color of his eyes. They were the bluest blue he had ever seen in his life. It almost looked like they were glowing with their intensity.

When those eyes trained on him, Sasuke immediately looked down at his desk, unhappy that the other had caught him staring. He had just been shocked because he hadn't seen many new faces, especially since they lived in such a small town.

Sasuke had been so busy trying not to look at the new kid he didn't even hear Mr. Umino introduce him to the class. It wasn't until a small tan hand holding a soggy portion of a cookie appeared right below his face that he even knew the kid had moved.

Sasuke jerked his head up and pulled away from the hand, confused as to why the boy was shoving a half eaten cookie into his face.

The boy gave him a big smile, "Hi! I'm Naruto Uzumaki! You're really pale. Wanna piece of my cookie?"

The blond held up the hand closer to his face and gave another bright smile, momentarily shocking the Uchiha further.

Sasuke glanced around the classroom, noting all the obvious stares everyone was giving both him and the new boy—Naruto.

Sasuke made a 'eww'-like noise and pushed the hand away, "That's gross."

Naruto immediately glared at the other. "There aint nothing wrong with my cookie! Look I'll show you!"

With that, Naruto did just that.

By gripping Sasuke's chin with his free hand, pulling the unexpected jaw open, and shoving the moist baked good into his mouth.

After Sasuke's basic bodily functions forced him to swallow the treat, he then promptly gave Naruto a hard push into the neighboring desk. When Mr. Umino reached the two, Naruto had his mouth chomping onto Sasuke's arm, while the Uchiha was pinching his skin and pulling hair.

The two spent the next fifteen minutes in time out and had been inseparable ever since.

18 years ago

Sasuke: age 9, Naruto: age 8

When his parents decided to move away from their hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, Naruto had been hesitant about the big decision. He had been happy that his father got a promotion in his job, but the boy feared that he would have difficulty adapting to the new life in a small town.

But the second he walked into that classroom and saw the boy sitting in the back, he knew he would be okay.

The other was sitting by himself, his young face looking odd with the frown that shown on it. The small blond had been surprised when the other suddenly looked up to meet his gaze.

The other boy had the darkest eyes Naruto had ever seen.

As well as the loneliest.

The blond had decided then and there that he was going to be best friends with that lonely boy. He had already planned to be friends with every one of his classmates, but for some reason the boy with the black eyes seemed special in some way.

Naruto wasn't sure why he thought that was the case, and didn't really care either way.

He had been surprised when the pale boy didn't smile back at him and take the proffered cookie from his hand. He had been outright mad when the other said his gift was gross.

It hadn't been the best first meeting, but it had been a memorable one nonetheless.

For some reason the two boys bonded after they got out of time out. Sasuke had been hesitant to be around the loud blond, but Naruto didn't give him a chance to try to push him away again.

It had only taken the newcomer a few days to make Sasuke give in to the unavoidable friendship. Though Naruto never asked his friend, he still believed that Sasuke could sense it too—the feeling that this was going to be something special. Which was probably a big factor in the Uchiha giving into Naruto's camaraderie.

Because their town was such a small community, the two friends didn't have to worry about getting separated throughout the years. Each grade during their elementary school only consisted of one class of sixteen students.

The other classmates immediately flocked to the blonds outgoing and friendly personality, and eventually stopped actively avoiding Sasuke as well.

The Uchiha had been secretly relieved that he wasn't by himself anymore, and he knew that it was because of his new friend.

Sasuke's days were now a little bit brighter with Naruto in his life.

16 years ago

Sasuke: age 11, Naruto: age 10

Naruto had been complaining for the entire year about how Sasuke never invited him over to his family's house. The blond never understood why his friend avoided the subject of Sasuke's mother and father.

It hadn't been a big deal when they were younger, mainly because the two friends had been content spending time with each other at school.

Naruto knew that Sasuke liked spending time with him. It was obvious from how they did everything together. They ate lunch together, played during recess together, even sat next to each other during lessons. And when others wanted to play with them, they subconsciously made sure they were near each other at all times.

They also spent a fair amount of their time holding hands when they were playing in the playground. Sasuke had been very protective of his friend, gripping his hand to make sure he wouldn't lose him in the big play area.

This behavior stemmed from the one incident where Sasuke had left Naruto alone while he went to the bathroom. Naruto had been playing on the swing and somehow fell off, resulting in both his hands and knees getting scrapped.

Sasuke had walked outside to see Naruto holding back his tears, while Mr. Umino taped up the bloody wounds. Sasuke had panicked when he saw his best friend in such a state and had made a promise to Naruto that he would never leave him alone out here again.

The blond had an increasing sense of joy the longer he knew Sasuke, and as the two grew older, Naruto had wanted to spend more time with him. He had always talked about Sasuke to his parents, telling them everything he knew about the other boy. And when his parents asked if he wanted Sasuke to come over after school, Naruto had been overjoyed.

He had quickly told the brunette about it, and had been disappointed when Sasuke told him he had to ask his parents first.

Naruto had decided to wait with Sasuke after school for the Uchiha's brother to pick him up. His parents house was only a block away from their school, so Naruto didn't worry too much about walking home for the day. The blond had been hoping to at least meet the brother that Sasuke talked about so much.

When the nondescript black car pulled up to where they were sitting by the curb, Naruto immediately shot to his feet and walked to the car. He glanced at his friend, confused as to why Sasuke looked nervous, but didn't think much more about it.

He leaned down to peek inside the car after the driver rolled down the passenger window. The blond instantly noted the similarities in features between the older man and Sasuke: same black hair, same pale skin, same dark eyes. Naruto gave Itachi his usual big smile and introduced himself.

"Hi! I'm Naruto, Sasuke's friend. You're Itachi right? I heard so much about you!" The long haired brunette behind the wheel nodded his head slowly at the question before looking around Naruto to his brother.

Sasuke shook his head as his eyes pleaded with his brother.

While Sasuke had told Itachi about Naruto, he didn't describe his background or personality. He had known well that Naruto wasn't the most conventional friend and didn't want his family reacting badly to the blond being a part of his life.

Itachi knew exactly why Sasuke hadn't mentioned this piece of information about his friend, and decided to not bring up that fact to Naruto. He had every intention of speaking to Sasuke about it later on though.

"Yes, Naruto. So good to finally have a face to go with the description of the friend Sasuke has spoken so fondly of." Itachi's voice was pleasant enough, but Sasuke could hear the subtle caution in the tone.

Naruto, unaware of the change in Itachi's voice, responded, "Yeah, good to finally meet you too! Sasuke talks about you all the time." He leaned further into the car, "I was actually wondering if I could come with you so I can ask your parents if Sasuke could come over to my house today. My parents will be there to watch us and everything." He continued to smile, but Itachi could see the silent begging in Naruto's blue eyes.

Itachi stilled at the question, his intelligent mind whirring before quickly coming to a decision. He turned to Naruto, "You do not have to do that. I will tell our parents that he is at a friend's house. They will take my word for it."

Naruto made a 'whooping' noise inside the vehicle before pulling away and dancing in the parking lot. Itachi winced from the loud noise and stared at the young boy making a fool of himself in public. He turned his gaze to his little brother to find Sasuke looking at the crazy blond with a strangle twinkle in his young eyes.

A sense of foreboding blossomed in Itachi's chest as he stared at his brother. He did not like that glimmer in Sasuke's eyes, knowing very well exactly what the glimmer signified and not liking that it was in his brother's eyes at this early an age at all.

He turned to look at the ten year old jumping as high as he could into the air, a huge smile on his face as he stared back at Sasuke, cheering loudly and pumping his hands up and down.

His younger brother finally turned to look at Itachi in the car, leaning in and silently asking if it was really okay to go. Itachi nodded his head once before giving Sasuke a cautious stare, letting the younger brother know that this was going to be discussed later between the two of them.

Sasuke swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded back, pulling away from the car and waving Itachi off after he had indicated where the other lived. Once the car was out of the parking lot of their school, the two best friends walked towards Naruto's house.

Sasuke glanced over his shoulder while Naruto continued to yap about something. Black eyes scanning their surroundings as if expecting to see Itachi's car zoom towards him to pick him up. Or worse: his parents in their fancy private car.

13 years ago

Sasuke: 14, Naruto: 13

Sasuke's hands were soaking wet with perspiration, but he refused to wipe them on his pants in order to maintain his aura of calm.

Naruto had bugged him enough times to force his surrender in asking his parents about letting him come over to their house. Sasuke had told him that he would ask tonight to see if Naruto could stay the night this Friday.

The youngest Uchiha hadn't told his parents about Naruto until tonight, disappointed with himself that it had taken him this many years to tell them about his best friend. He had not been ashamed of Naruto in any way, except when it came to telling his parents.

Sasuke believed that Naruto is was kind and compassionate person—someone that would be there for him in any way. If Sasuke was in any situation that needed Naruto's help, he knew the blond would be there in a moment's notice.

Sasuke also knew that he would do the same when it came to his friend. Naruto was the closest person in Sasuke's life, closer than even his brother. Sasuke had thought that would never have been possible. But as he had grown older he started to take notice of how his brother looked at him with a barely masked worry. Itachi started to look at him like that right after he met Naruto.

It was because of those looks that he avoided his brother, not wanting to talk about his friendship with Naruto or the implications of what such a friendship would do to the Uchiha name.

Sasuke was proud to be an Uchiha. He had always been proud of such a relation. He just did not want to associate his family with his best friend.

But it appeared that his constant avoidance had finally come to an end. Which was why he was currently standing in front of the door to his father's study, the area in the entire Uchiha house that Fugaku Uchiha normally inhabited.

Sasuke stared at the dark wooden panel of the door, following the tiny grooves in the wood with his eyes. He turned his gaze to stare at the brass handle that opened the door, studying his contorted profile that reflected on the metal's surface. He had always been fearful of staring at doorknobs when he was a child. He always had a strange fear of seeing something come up behind him like he had accidentally seen in a horror movie playing on cable.

He shook his head from the memory, mentally cursing himself for procrastinating any further.

He took a deep breath and lifted his hand, quickly knocking before he lost his nerve again. His father's strict voice gave a austerely commanding "Enter," before the youngest son pushed open the door.

Fugaku glanced up from the paper he was holding to meet the hesitant eyes of his son.

His father turned his gaze back to the paper in his hand, "Something you need, Sasuke?"

The older man jotted something down on a notebook, paused, then looked back at the adolescent boy subconsciously shift from foot to foot and picking at his thumbnail.

"Don't fidget so much. That is not how I taught you to behave." His father's cold tone made Sasuke immediately drop his hands to his side.

Fugaku gave a small nod, "Good. Now what do you want, son? Speak up now, I am a busy man."

Sasuke cleared his throat before padding over towards his father's desk. "I have a question for you, father."

He looked at the rug on the tiled floor before he looked at his father again, realizing there had been too much silence. The older man raised an eyebrow but did not say anything.

Sasuke's hands began to sweat again but he refused to allow himself to be scolded twice for fidgeting. He spoke quietly, "I was wondering if I could have a friend stay over tomorrow night."

Silence met his question, and Sasuke couldn't stop from biting his bottom lip as his nerves spiked.

After a breath, Fugaku finally spoke, "A friend? I do not recall you talking about having such a close friend before."

Sasuke cleared his throat, "His name is Naruto. He is a classmate of mine and a good friend."

His father leaned back in his chair, "What is his last name?"

Sasuke winced at the question, knowing where his father was going with it.

"...Uzumaki."

Fugaku's eyes narrowed slightly, "Oh? I have not heard of such a name. What does his family do for a living?"

Sasuke subtly wiped his hands against his jeans before clearing his throat again, "His mother is a secretary at a law firm and his father...is a manager at the...paper mill."

Fugaku stilled, his dark eyes staring at his youngest son while Sasuke focused on not giving into his impulse of moving around nervously. He kept his face as blank as he could, knowing that his eye was twitching.

He was close to breaking under the scrutiny, his forehead growing increasingly damp with sweat as the resounding tick of the grandfather clock pulsed from its station in the corner of the room.

His father finally spoke, though his voice gave nothing away about what he was thinking.

"Come here, son."

Thankful that at least his voice didn't sound angry, Sasuke walked around the large oak desk and stood beside the seated man.

Fugaku leaned further forward and clapped a hand onto Sasuke's shoulder, not moving to give any comfort. His father stared at Sasuke's face, his own serious and blank.

"The Uchiha family is from old money. Do you know what the term, "old money" is, Sasuke?"

Sasuke nodded his head, "It means, sir...that our family is very wealthy and have been for a long time."

Fugaku nodded his head, removing his hand from Sasuke's shoulder but still leaning forward to speak to him. "And along with such wealth, the members of this family has a lot of influence in various financial endeavors.

"And many of these financial endeavors involve many family businesses that are here as well as all around the state of Arkansas. If it weren't for our input in these businesses, they would not be running anymore."

A strange twinkle flashed in his father's eyes before the man continued, "Which means that the people who own these businesses would be out of their livelihood."

Fugaku tilted his head so that he looked to be staring harshly at his son, "There are people out there that do not like the Uchiha family because we have so much power of their lives. But it is no fault of the family that these people do not have the intelligence to support their livelihood in the first place."

His father glanced at one of his many bookshelves before looking back at his son, "To be an Uchiha is a great honor. There are not a lot of individuals in this world who can boast of such a familial accomplishment."

His grip on Sasuke's shoulder returned, this time slightly painful as he stared at his son, "That being said, it is most important for every member of this family to give one hundred and fifty percent in everything they do. It is also important to never, under any circumstances, do anything that may tarnish the Uchiha name."

Fugaku pulled away after that, his face stern as he looked at his slightly trembling son. "Do you understand me, Sasuke?"

The boy quickly nodded his head, "Yes, father. I understand completely."

The man nodded in return, "So you know to always do what is expected of you?"

Sasuke nodded, "Yes father."

"This also means associating with certain...people. You should be very cautious of who you allow close to you."

Dread slammed into Sasuke's gut at his father's words. He gave a small nod before turning to leave, saddened that he now had to figure out how to tell Naruto that he couldn't stay tomorrow night.

Before he walked out the door his father's voice stopped him.

"Bring this...Naruto over tomorrow night. I would like to meet this close friend of yours. Six p.m. for dinner."

Sasuke turned, "Can he stay the night?"

Fugaku paused before picking up another sheet of paper and looking down at it.

"Perhaps."

Sasuke nodded quickly, knowing that was the best answer he was going to get. "Thank you, Father."

He pulled his father's door to a close and padded down the hallway and up the stairs to the third floor towards his room. He had to quickly call his friend and let him know the good news.

As well as give him a warning about his family.

He knew he was only going to get one shot at convincing his family that Naruto was as wonderful as Sasuke saw him to be.

TBC

*Most younger blond children have almost white hair which will either fall out when they are a baby and then grow back a darker color, or the color will darken...at least that's what I got from what little research I did on this subject. XD Let me know if I am wrong!

Wellll, that's it for now. I will be posting the next chapter semi soon...I hope. Again let me know if you see typos or grammatical errors and where they are!

Thanks for the read and I look forward to the reviews!

~Shini |D