Nervous would be an understatement for how Naruto was feeling. His stomach was in knots and was twisting as if he was suffering from sea sickness. It had been years since he had been to a restaurant of such calibre, not by choice though. Between his shifts at the hospital and socialising with his friends; who like more family orientated places like barbeque establishments, he didn't have much time to enjoy the finer things. Sure he had the money but he always felt like he was squandering it by splashing out on a meal over thirty dollars. Naruto stopped infront of the concierge, hoping he was dressed up enough to gain entry. He had scrounged through his closet and had managed to find black dress slacks and a button up shirt shoved in the back of it; sadly no coat jacket. The judgemental man looked over him, dissatisfaction clearly evident but he still acknowledged him.
"Name?" his tone was sharp, causing Naruto to wince. It was a nice change though, the last time he had been here was with his family and the old concierge stumbled over his words in fear. The man looked past him and gave a small smile to whoever was behind him.
"He's with me" the man looked between the two men, curiosity flickering in his eyes and eventually nodded. Gaara stood beside Naruto and the blonde gave him a weak smile. Under different circumstances Naruto probably would have enjoyed dinning here as a treat but as it was it was to discuss their patient. "Don't look so Nervous Uzumaki, the people here can smell fear"
"Very funny Sabaku, it's just been awhile since I've been here" Naruto shuddered under Gaara's curious gaze as he felt he was being inspected under a microscope. Did this man ever get out of work mode? Theyreached there table and Gaara pulled out a seat for Naruto which he nodded in thanks towards the paler man. "By the way Naruto will be fine, I'm not one for formalities"
"Alright Naruto…" he began to fidget with the hem of his shirt, an unsettling feeling as if he was being watched coming over him. "Wine?"
"Uh, yeah…sure" he wasn't much of a wine drinker but he doubted they had anything of his taste here. "So Gaara, what do you think of Konoha?"
"It's alright, nothing special but I'm here to work not sight see" Naruto nodded, it was going to be hard to have a conversation with the closed off surgeon. "So tell me about Konohamaru" Naruto blew out a sign of relief, happy they were getting straight to the point. He didn't think he could sit through a whole meal of awkward silence.
"Konohamaru is thirteen, an orphan as his parent's died when he was a toddler. Hiruzen Sarutobi took him in and raised him until a few months ago when he passed away" Gaara waved off the waiter who quickly poured them their drinks and lifted the red liquid to his lips.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi? The previous head of the hospital?" Naruto nodded, happy the man had done his research.
"The one and only. Since then Konohamaru has been living with his Uncle Asuma and his partner Kurenai." Naruto browsed the menu, his eye's shifting to the dark liquid in his glass. He was thirsty but he had never been one for red wine and was afraid if he took a sip he would cringe his face and insult Gaara. "He was diagnosed a few weeks after Jiji's passing and we have been trying many treatment's to shrink the tumour so it's possible to operate but so far there has been no results and Sakura won't touch it"
"So you came to me?" Naruto nodded. Gaara sat back in his chair, his eyes looking up at the room as he contemplated the information. "So we have a thirteen year old boy with a history of family tragedy, one being few months ago…what is his mental state like?"
"So far he seems in good spirits, he's always been a pretty resilient kid" Naruto had a sinking feeling in his stomach, scared that his new hope would pull out.
"Before I proceed I would like to change his treatment a bit" Gaara looked so calm, as if he had gathered all the tiny bits of information and pieced together a bigger picture Naruto couldn't see. "It is true, before I operate the tumour needs to be shrunk and if he's as resilient as you say then he will have no problem with increasing the dose of chemotherapy…another thing I need done is a complete psychological assessment"
"He won't agree to that…" Naruto had tried many time's to get the boy he considered a brother to talk to someone but the boy would insist he was fine.
"I will not do the surgery without it. I'm a firm believer that a person's mental state affects the procedure and recovery time. I want him to have a full understanding of how we are to proceed and what the surgery entitles" Gaara waved over a waiter and placed his order, looking to Naruto who bit his lip. He hadn't even considered what to get yet. "Just get him what I'm having"
"Hey!" one thing Naruto was picky about was his food.
"Don't worry Naruto, I ordered a simple steak meal" Gaara smiled at him, a real smile and Naruto found himself smiling back, the attraction he felt towards the man in his office niggling at him again. "There is a 50/50 chance of living or dying Naruto and he needs to be aware of this to make the choice he believes is right. We can either stop the chemo and let him have a few months at most being a normal kid or we can operate…those are his only choices"
"I understand…" Naruto was so use to being hopeful that he never really thought about the possibility of Konohamaru dying. It was like a cold slap to the face.
"That's where you come in, I need you to make sure he understands this. He will be discussing it in his assessment but as you know him you will be able to grasp the full extent of what he's acknowledged" Naruto wondered if Gaara was always this cold and calculating. So far apart from the brief smile they shared he seemed very clinical, almost as if he was unable to switch off. Naruto also had trouble shifting from work mode to personal as he often stayed at the hospital between shifts and was barely home due to being on call most of the time but he made sure he still remained fun.
"All right, if that what gives him the best chance then I'll do everything I can to make sure he understands"
….
Gaara found himself observing his soon to be co-worker intently. He watched as his blonde, still scruffy hair fell into his blue eye's that seemed to entrap him when he looked into him. He wondered if the man knew how attractive he was or if he was completely oblivious to his appeal. Gaara also found that the man's concern for his young patient tugged at his heart in a way that had never been done before. It was if the man's own caring had reached out and taken a hold of him, making him want to step up and do everything possible to ensure his survival. It had been a long time since anyone had provoked some kind of emotional attachment in him and he was quick to grasp at it. If Gaara was honest with himself he had become increasingly lonely and it was if a hole had been expanding in his chest causing him to seek out someone who could fill it with some sort emotion…maybe even love him. Gaara shook his head, he had only just met the man and it would be stupid to start thinking of such a trivial thing as love.
"So Naruto, tell me about yourself" Naruto gave him a surprised look but it was soon replaced with a bright smile and Gaara swore he could practically feel warmth radiating off it.
"There's not a lot to tell to be honest. I spend most of my time at the hospital working and even when I get time off I usually find a bed to crash in for the night in the staffing area. People say I'm a workaholic but I can't help it, I love what I do" Gaara cocked his head to the side. They seemed to be completely different yet exactly the same. Naruto was bright, bubbly and loud; his personality and positivity infectious and Gaara was quiet, clinical and broody. Yet they both loved their work, barley stepping outside to interact with the world.
"What about your family? Don't they want to spend time with you?" He watched as the boy paled, looking around franticly as if he was afraid someone would overhear them.
"What about you Gaara, what do you do in your spare time?" it annoyed him that Naruto dodged his question but he decided not to press the matter. He planned on spending a lot of time getting to know Naruto so he could ask again later.
"Pretty much the same as you, eventually I want to be head surgeon so I don't have time to fall behind with my work" Gaara smiled when Naruto's warm laughed rang out. It was the first time he had heard it and he decided he wanted to hear it more often.
"Good luck with that. Although granny Tsunade is due to retire soon you'll have to pull the scalpel out her hands before she did willingly" Gaara's eyes darkened at that. He had a set plan and he hated to think that it could be postponed "Don't worry though, even though she loves surgery she loves her sake and gambling more"
"She doesn't sound very fit to lead the surgical team…" Naruto waved his hand in a dismissing manor.
"Oh don't worry, Shizune keeps her in line. Although I don't think she'll be very happy when she finds out she's next in line to be head of the hospital. Kakashi's running it at the moment but he's only a fill in" Once again Gaara found himself smiling back, amazed at how carefree the man was infront of him. He had meet many people in children oncology and they had all acted as if they had their hearts broken but this man in front of him was like an unbreakable force, Gaara admired him.
…
Naruto had tried to focus on eating his dinner, he had to admit Gaara was right picking for him, the steak was delicious. But he found himself distracted. The first problem was Gaara, he was surprised how easy it was to talk to what he thought was a cold man but instead he was witty and charming and they had been throwing banter back and forth at each other for a while. The second was that he still felt as if he was being watched and it was unnerving him. He blushed as he felt Gaara intense sea foam eyes on him again. The more he talked with Gaara the more attracted he felt towards him. It was if the man had his own gravitational pull and Naruto was finding it hard not to focus on the man's lips. It had been awhile since he had been with anyone, the last person being Kiba. The relationship had been fun but after a while the strain of Naruto's work load put too much pressure on the short relationship, causing the vet to break up with him. Naruto didn't mind, he understood that Kiba was a person who needed more attention then what he could give him and they parted ways; remaining as friends. Gaara's eyes shifted to something behind him and Naruto frowned at feeling someone suddenly close to him.
"Dobe, on a date are we?" the sound of Sasuke Uchiha's voice grated against his brain and he automatically clenched his fists. Naruto wouldn't say he hated the raven haired man but he did hold a lot of dislike towards him that steamed deep down in childhood rivalry. It had been years since he had last seen the youngest of the Uchiha clan and Naruto had hoped he would never have to see him again.
"We're discussing a patient, would you mind bothering someone else?" he refused to turn to face him. He knew he would have his usual smug smirk on his face.
"Stop playing doctor dobe, we all know you we're too stupid to become one that's why you're a nurse" Naruto tried to even out his breath. The laughter of his father still rang in his head every now and then when he had announced he was leaving the family to pursue nursing and his father telling him that if he did to never bother coming back. Naruto had left that second, never looking back.
"Excuse me but Naruto here and I are having a confidential conversation about a patient. If you would could you please return to your own table so we may continue our discussion in peace" Naruto lifted his head up in shock. His blue eyes wide and staring at Gaara as if he had just grown six heads. No one outside of the mafia clans stood up to a member, not if they wanted to end up in a dumpster somewhere.
"Sasuke, enough. Leave Namikaze alone" he flinched at his old last name. When Naruto had left he had changed his name over to his mother's maiden name, not wanting his ties to the Namikaze clan to bar him from opportunities.
"You always ruin my fun Itachi" the younger Uchiha grumbled, his eyes still focused on Naruto, anger flicking in them. An older looking version of Sasuke stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Naruto, it's good to see you again, I do hope you're doing well" Naruto finally turned around to acknowledge Itachi. They had always got along well, the older man always stepping in to break up Naruto's and Sasuke's fights.
"You to Itachi" the man nodded and tightened his grip on Sasuke's shoulder. Naruto watched as his rival was dragged back to his own table and he let out his breath again.
"Do you want to tell me what that was about?" Gaara's voice was stern, almost disapproving and Naruto flinched at its coldness.
"Not particularly, just an old rival from middle school, nothing major" he felt his heart drop with every word. He had finally met someone that could have been worth his time and now his chances were ruined. Everyone knew who the Namikaze and Uchiha clans were, it was impossible not to. They practically ran the city and had there hand's in every government sector there was.
"As long as it doesn't affect your work…" Naruto felt a similar tension as before build between them. Gaara still seemed interested in him and Naruto felt his stomach flutter.
"It won't, I promise!" he was a bit too enthusiastic and he saw Gaara smile warmly at him again. Naruto decided he liked seeing the red haired Adonis smile and he would make sure he would see it time and time again.
"I'll get the check, are you ready to go?" Naruto nodded, standing up and pulling out his wallet "I'll pay for it, don't worry"
"But…" he blushed as Gaara winked at him. Naruto began to wonder what was going on in his co-workers head.
"Consider this our first date" his jaw dropped at the sentence. Sure they had a great time but could he consider it a date? The man hadn't even said anything about it being that way inclined!
"D-date?" Gaara took a step forward and picked up Naruto's hand, placing a light kiss on it that made the skin tingle.
"One of many" Naruto watched the man's retreating back, still stunned at the revelation. Of course he had been thinking that there was a possibility of dating the man but he had never expected it so soon. There was a lot more to Gaara Sabaku then met the eye and Naruto decided that he wanted to learn more.
