kaesaku: Yes, it is me. I have continued. BEFORE YOU KILL ME, I hope you'd read this chappie first. So sorry for not updating in, like, 2 years...
REASONS FOR NOT UPDATING:
a. I got a job, which turned out to be toxic.
b. I got a boyfriend, which turned out to be short-lived.
c. I got pregnant by said boyfriend. Since we're already separated, I didn't think it was necessary for him to know. Plus, I'm not the type to impose him of the responsibility. After all, there's a reason why we're not together (and won't ever be). But then, someone mentioned that I should at least inform him. So I did. His reaction was, "I don't think that's mine." Again, I was reminded why we're not together. (and why am I telling this?)
d. I lazed around for 9 months of being pregnant and indulged myself in Bleach and Death Note yaoi fics.
e. I gave birth last October and became a breastfeeder.
f. I got addicted to jdoramas. (err, yeah.)
My kid's 6 months old now and I got someone to take care of her, so I guess I'm gonna have more time writing/updating fics (hopefully). Being a single mom is the most tiring yet fulfilling job anyone can ever have (no shit).
Warnings: yaoi, NaruSasu, un-beta-ed, info overload (?)
Standard disclaimers apply. I don't own Naruto, The Girl Next Door, Urbandub's First of Summer, and Goldfinger's rendition of More Than yesterday.
Chapter 2: First of Summer
"...drown me away 'cause tonight just feels right,
take me away with you tonight,
anywhere with you.."
-First of Summer, Urbandub
Uchiha Sasuke blinked rapidly as the image of his physics teacher bobbed hazily in front of him. He fought the urge to slam his head on the desk and drool happily ever after. Or at least for the next 50 minutes.
He stifled a yawn and turned to the window. Yep, the teacher was right. Physics was everywhere. In the movement of cars, of people...
GODDAMMIT! Of course not! he thought irately.
What were they thinking? Teaching stuff that wouldn't be useful in everyday living... Not all of them are going to be engineers or architects or pilots in the future. Sasuke rolled his eyes. It's not like a car crash can be prevented from knowing the formula of speed.
He watched the school bus as it rolled slowly on the school parking lot. Hearing all that talk about speed, velocity, and acceleration reminded Sasuke of vehicles. Vehicles reminded him of cars. Cars reminded him of a certain, evil, orange bug.
His eyes widened as the slow-moving bus revealed said car, which was parked conveniently in front of his classroom window.
The orange thing was glaring at him and its owner, that stupid idiot, was grinning as he waved his hands wildly at Sasuke.
The young Uchiha boy narrowed his eyes and shook his head. He hoped that the blonde idiot was able to understand that as body language for 'Stop that!'.
Unfortunately for him, it seemed like that wasn't the case. The blonde increased his ministrations and was even cupping his hands around his mouth. And Sasuke, the intelligent boy that he was, knew that the idiot resorted to yelling. Yelling was not good. Yelling at a school parking lot while children studied was definitely not good. Yelling equated to public disturbance. And he would be damned if he would be related to the one causing it.
He felt his panic rise. He thought of all the worst possible things the blonde was yelling, like "Uchiha Sasuke ran around town naked the other day!" or... Well, nothing could be worse than that.
Sasuke glanced at the teacher who was writing something at the blackboard, his back to the class. He glanced around the classroom. Everyone was busy writing notes or trying not to fall asleep. With one last look at the orange-ness outside, he swiped his books from his desk and stealthily walked out of class.
Uchiha Sasuke in panic mode never thought clearly.
- o -
"What're you doing here?" he hissed at the blonde.
The other boy grinned. "Why, I thought you would at least be happy I picked you up!"
"School doesn't end in 2 hours!"
"You want me to wait for 2 more hours?!"
"I never said you could pick me up!"
Uzumaki Naruto, the blonde idiot neighbor of his, had the gall to look offended. "If you didn't want me to pick you up, why'd you went out, huh?"
Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Because you were creating such a ruckus! I can even see it from my class!" Mumbling, he added, "God knows what obscenities you've been yelling..."
"Oi, I wasn't yelling any obscenities!" Naruto poted. "I just yelled, 'Uchiha Sasuke ran around town naked the other day!'"
Seeing the about-to-faint look sasuke gave him, he quickly said, "I was just joking!"
A hit on the blonde head was the reply.
"Ow..." Naruto rubbed his head.
"Hey, Sasuke..."
"What idiot?"
"Who's that?" He pointed behind Sasuke.
Sasuke turned and suddenly, he wished he was back in his classroom, studying intently (or pretending to study - he memorized the book), and not in the parking lot, talking with an abvious non-student. A loud, attention-grabbing non-student.
Sasuke ducked his head and moved to the passenger side of the car. "That's the Vice Principal, Mr. Orochimaru!"
Ha looked back at the man, Orochimaru, who was getting nearer.
"Unlock the door."
"But school doesn't end in 2 hours!"
"Naruto! Do it!" He almost screamed.
"Okay, okay..."
To Sasuke, it seemed like the blonde boy was taking his sweet time in unlocking the doors.
"Hurry!"
"Don't pressure me! I work slow under pressure!"
The footsteps were near. It was the longest minute in Sasuke's life. Finally, he heard the pop from the door. Salvation. He quickly opened the door and got in. He saw Naruto do the same. He ducked a little and covered his face with his left hand. He seemed to be doing that a lot whenever he was with the blonde.
"Excuse m-" He heard Orochimaru say.
"Sorry, sir! Wrong building!" He heard Naruto yell at the man before speeding off.
"You can stop hiding your face now," Naruto said after a few minutes. "We're out of school grounds already."
Sasuke straight then glared at the other boy. The other boy only grinned, unaffected by the murderous intent on those dark eyes.
"What the hell did you just do?!"
Naruto smiled, like he knew it was coming. "Saving our asses." He grinned again. "And you were the one who screamed, 'Unlock the doors!'"
Sasuke turned red at that particular information. He had his reasons for doing that. He just cut his classes. He's an honor student, dammit. Honor students do not impulsively get out of their classrooms and go joyriding with their stupid neighbors. Not that that was his intention in the first place. He was just going to talk to the moron, tell him to go away and stay away from his school. Anyone might've misunderstood it and thought that he was cutting classes. Including Orochimaru.
He shuddered as he remembered how they were almost caught. His parents would have had a field day when they found out. If they found out.
Which they won't, he thought with conviction.
Sasuke glared again at Naruto who was happily whistling to a song playing on the radio.
It was all the idiot's fault!
He opened his mouth to start the verbal abuse but the blonde beat him to it.
"Hey, I love this song!" Naruto happily exclaimed as he increased the volume of the car stereo.
"Oi-"
"D'you know this song, Sasuke?" the blonde asked, his blue eyes twinkling as the trumpets in the background signalled the start of the song.
"I-"
"Of course, who doesn't!" he laughed, answering his own question.
"Wait-"
Naruto faced him. "I don't remember what day it was..."
Singing. The idiot was singing.
"I didn't notice what time it was..." He grinned. "C'mon, Sasuke! Sing with me!"
"No, I-"
He looked at Sasuke seriously. "All I know is that I fell in love with you..."
Then the blue eyes were lost in view as Naruto did his 'happy smile', turning his eyes into inverted U's.
"And if all my dreams come true..."
"Watch the road! Watch the road, idiot!"
Naruto faced the road, still with his 'happy smile' face. "...I'll be spending time with youuu" He opened his eyes. "Sasuke, you're not singing!"
"I don't-"
"Every day's a new day in love with you..." The blonde started again. "With each day comes a new way of loving you..." Naruto smirked. "I won't stop until you sing, Sasuke!"
The raven-haired boy groaned.
"Every time I kiss your lips my mind starts to wander..."
Naruto turned towards the road again and scrunched his eyes. "And if all my dreams come true, I'll be spending time with youuu"
Blue eyes invaded Sasuke's vision again.
"Oh, I love you more today than yesterday..."
This is so not happening, Sasuke thought.
"...but not as much as tomorrow..."
"Sasuke, your turn!"
The mentioned boy made the mistake of staring at thos big, blue eyes. The same mistake he made when they were at the restaurant the other day. He felt like drowning and floating at the same time. And he knew that he wouldn't be able to say no, couldn't say no, as long as he's staring at those eyes.
Sasuke sighed in defeat. In the most monotonous voice he could muster, he continued the song, "I love you more today than yesterday..."
Naruto grinned widely, closing his eyes in the process, then joined Sasuke, "...but, darling, not as much as tomo-ho-rrooowww"
- o -
Sasuke walked towards his locker. He looked a bit surprised as he noticed both Lee and Chouji by his locker, looking like they were waiting for him. He didn't ask them, though, just proceeded in gathering the books from his locker.
Chouji was the first one to break the silence.
"Hey, Sasuke..."
"Hm?" he turned towards the other boy.
"We haven't seen you in Physics for the last three days.." Chouji looked a bit worried.
Sasuke turned to Lee who was nodding his head but has yet to say something.
"Should we be worried?"
The raven-haired boy closed his locker and leaned on it. His eyes darted from Chouji to Lee, two of his closest friends, no, only friends. He couldn't see any reason for them not to know.
"It's my stupid neighbor's fault," he shrugged nonchalantly. "He's too stupid to be left alone. Who knows what stupidity he would do if I'm not with him..."
Chouji and Lee looked at each other then grinned.
"I knew it!" Lee excalimed, pumping his fist in the air. "The springtime of youth has finally arrived for our Sasuke!"
Sasuke cringed.
"He has finally found someone worthy enough to spend his youthfulness with!"
"Lee, stop!"
Chouji laughed heartily and patted Sasuke on the back. "It's all good, then! Whoever this neighbor of yours is must be a genius!"
Sasuke gave him a questioning look. "Why?"
The bigger boy gave him a thoughtful smile. "Because in the course of our 12-year friendship, we've seen you the happiest in this past week..."
"Aa..." Sasuke leaned his head back on the locker and stared at nothing in particular. Amidst Lee's declarations of youthfulness and Chouji's laughter, he voiced out the thought that he was itching to ask.
"Is it-" he started but never got to finish as Chouji interrupted him.
"We're cool with it."
Balck eyes regarded Chouji. The once chubby, little boy who cried in kindergarten when a 6-year-old kid stole one of his potato chips. Sasuke beat up the bully and gave Chouji three packs of said chips so he would stop crying.
He turned his attention to the grinning Lee who was giving him two thumbs-up. The weird-looking boy who nobody wanted to pair up with in art class during 2nd grade. Sasuke partnered with him and announced to the class that he was the best partner anyone could get because everyone else was stupid.
Sasuke gave them both a sincere smile. The 'thank you' beneath it recognized, no need to be said out loud.
"You never have to hesitate on us, remember that!" Lee said as he hooked his arm on sasuke's neck.
Sasuke nodded.
"Okay!" Chouji announced. "Because of that, we need to celebrate!" he began opening a bag of chips, but Sasuke snatched it quickly.
"Oi, this is the third." He moved the chips away from Chouji's reach.
"Aww... Nooo!" the bigger boy moaned.
"Such youthfulness! It is indeed a time of celeb-"
"And no celebrating!" Sasuke yelled as he walked away from the locker.
"Noooo" both boys cried out.
- o -
Naruto laughed.
"You have cool friends," he said on his position at the foot of Sasuke's bed. He was sitting on the floor, his head on top of the bed.
"I know," Sasuke answered. He was sitting cross-legged on his bed, his back on the headboard, books and notebooks scattered in front of him. He scribbled something on the notebook he was holding.
"I bet they're funny, too," the voice on the opposite side chuckled. "It'd be great to meet them."
Sasuke stopped writing and looked at Naruto who was still on the floor, his face turned towards the ceiling.
"Do you have any close friends from your old town?" he inquired.
Naruto raised his head from the bed and turned to look at Sasuke, a wistful look on his eyes.
"Yeah, I do."
He got up from his position from the floor and flopped in front of the other boy, stomach first. He placed both his hands under his chin.
Sasuke closed the notebook on his hand and placed it on his right side. He raised his eyebrows at naruto, willing him to continue.
"I met them when I was 12."
The dark-haired boy frowned at the fact that the blonde met his close friends when he was already twelve. He didn't ask anything, though.
"They were both older than me by 4 years." The blonde rolled to his left, so he was now lying on his back. "When I first saw them, I thought they were the most beautiful girls I've ever seen."
Ah, so his friends were females, Sasuke thought.
"The two of them, they spoiled me to death," Naruto continued with a chuckle. "Never a day went by that I didn't feel like I was very much taken care of..."
"Were you involved with any of them?" Sasuke blurted and almost slapped his forehead for not being able to stop himself.
Naruto tilted his head upwards. "Nah, that'll be like incest or something. I'm not into that," he stucked his tongue out. "Plus, i don't wanna be involved with a heavy puncher or with a mind reader. Too creepy."
"I see."
The blonde rolled back to his previous position. He supported himself with his elbows, but he didn't raise his head to face the other boy. "It was people like them who made me realize that my life didn't suck that much," he said in a sombre tone.
Sasuke didn't understand, but he felt it. Felt the sadness, the pain that Naruto must've went thru.
He reached out his hand to lightly pet Naruto's hair as a form of reassurance, of comfort...
"I'm not disturbing anything, am I?"
Sasuke quickly pulled back his hand at the same time Naruto's head snapped up towards the direction of the voice.
Sasuke glared at the intruder leaning lazily on his door. He got up from his bed and marched towards the door.
"Get out of my room."
He heard Naruto straighten himself from the bed.
"But, you haven't introduced me to your friend yet," the third person drawled.
"Get. Out."
"I'm not leaving until you introduce me to your friend," he nodded towards Naruto who was now standing by the bed.
Sasuke's hands fisted and he exhaled sharply as he grudgingly obliged to the third person's request. He turned towards Naruto. "Naruto, this is Itachi. The thing that was born before me," he introduced, his voice full of venom. "Itachi, Naruto. Now, leave!"
But before he could shove his older brother out, the other man sidestepped him and was quick to find his place beside Naruto.
"Hello, Naruto," he offerred his hand.
"Hey, howr'ya?" Naruto gladly shook his hand. "Only someone stupid or blind wouldn't recognize you two as brothers," his pointed finger darting between the two Uchihas, "You two look so much alike!"
Apparently, that was the magic phrase that woken Sasuke from his stupor. He stomped towards the two and glared daggers at Itachi.
Itachi, immune to his younger brother's antics, ignored him and stared at Naruto. He tilted his head to the side, seeming to contemplate the familiarity in the boy. He couldn't quite put a finger to it, but that didn't stop him from commenting about it.
"You look familiar, Naruto..."
Naruto's eyes widened at that. He looked away from the older man, avoiding his gaze.
"R-really?"
The younger Uchiha was beyond pissed. Itachi had the audacity to barge into his room and order him to be introduced. Can't he see that he's making Naruto comfortable? he mentally seethed.
He grabbed Itachi's arm and dragged him to the door, away from Naruto's personal space.
"For the last time, stay out of my room!" he yelled before he slammed the door to his brother's face.
"Sorry about that," he said. "My brother's always been a weirdo. That's why I never bring friends over."
"Aa," Naruto replied as he scratched the back of his neck.
Sasuke didn't think much of what Itachi must've said or done to make Naruto nervous. Itachi didn't have to say a word and people cowered from him. He deeply empathized.
"You don't like your brother much, huh," Naruto stated rather obviously.
Sasuke snorted at the statement.
The blonde sat on the bed. "Tell me more about it?"
Sasuke looked at Naruto's smiling face. "Not here. He might use the information he hears as material against me in the future."
Naruto laughed at that. "Okay, then. Let's go out and grab something. Then, you can tell me everything!"
Sasuke didn't need to be told twice.
- o -
A lone, orange car was parked on the outskirts of Konoha. It was on top of a hill, overlooking the rest of the town. Once upon a time, Sasuke would have admitted that it was a special place. A place his family used to frequent for picnics back when he used to be a kid, when he used to look up to Itachi.
The place was nothing but a vacant, lifeless area now. Just like his brother.
"Itachi was the best son any parents could ever have," Sasuke mused as he and Naruto sat on the hood of the orange car. Naruto was digging into a pint of strawberries-and-cream flavored ice cream while Sasuke on a classic vanilla. Sasuke wanted to point out that they look like two gossiping, teeny-boppy, high school girls but with the sudden seriousness in Naruto's demeanor, he decided to keep quiet about it.
"He has the top grades, good in sports, an effective leader," he continued. "Did everything our parents asked him to. It was always 'Yes, Father' or 'Yes, Mother'. He wasn't the best, he's the perfect son all parents, at some point, wished for."
The raven-haired boy eyed his companion, still intently listening to him, a forgotten spoonful of ice cream in hand.
"Those types... They're the worst brother any younger sibling could ever have," he chuckled bitterly. "I was never good enough, smart enough... He was the standard my life was based on."
When Naruto didn't respond, he went on, "Itachi graduated high school with top honors. Got accepted at Konoha University as expected. It was our Father's proudest day." He stared at the sight below, the city lights twinkling like stars at a distance. "Why wouldn't he? His eldest son perfected the mapped-out life he planned."
Sasuke looked down to his ice cream pint, only to realize that it has been reduced to a melted state. He wrinkled his nose as he began to twirl the spoon inside the container.
"Halfway through college, Itachi had a car accident." Sasuke frowned as he recalled the incident. "An accident that involved drugs and alcohol. A parent's worst nightmare." He sighed. "The doctor said the alcohol content in his blood exceeded the limit. There were also traces of marijuana in his blood. Father didn't believe him."
Sasuke clearly remembered their Father's livid state when the doctor implied that the accident was Itachi's fault.
"And the highlight of that night? Finding out perfect Itachi wasn't coming to any of his classes for the past six months," he said, his voice clipped. "He ditched school for a whole term, spent his tuition fee and allowance to god-knows-what, he even joined a gang! Can you believe that?!"
The image of an unconscious Itachi lying on a hospital bed flashed to Sasuke's mind.
"Stupid Itachi," the ounger Uchiha said softly. "If that was his way of delaing with the pressure Father placed on him, then he's not worthy of being my older brother."
He turned to the blonde who just discarded his ice cream and replaced it with a can of beer. He was smiling.
"You don't hate your brother," he teased.
Sasuke's eyebrow twitched.
"Of course, I hate him! He didn't have to do that! He almost died! He...he..."
"See, you don't hate him," Naruto repeated.
Sasuke frowned and faced forward again. What Naruto said was the truth. He didn't hate Itachi. He will always be the brother he looked up to.
Nobody's perfect, he told himself that when he entered Itachi's hospital room that day two years ago. His older brother was no exception. He had a moment of weakness and the way out that he went for was not a wise decision.
No one really knew what Itachi wanted to do with his life. No one bothered to ask him...
But, he's alive and well at the present. Although Sasuke wasn't one to think of sentimental values and such, he was grateful for that particular fact.
Naruto was right. Sasuke didn't really hate his brother after all.
- o -
After another round of beer, both boys talked about almost everything under the sun.
Almost.
Sasuke blinked dazedly as the effects of the alcohol took its toll on his body. He wasn't going down with a fight, though. Not until Naruto told him something personal about himself.
"You haven't told me about your family yet..." he said in the best sober voice he could muster.
"I told you, there's nothing to tell," Naruto replied, his cheeks tinged red from the beer they've been consuming.
"Hmp."
Naruto rolled his eyes. "Really, Sasuke, there's nothing to tell... Seeing that I don't know who my real parents are, were, to begin with..." he trailed off.
"Oh." Sasuke groaned mentally. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"
The blonde boy waved him off. "It's alright. Not your fault." He continued, I was an orphan for as long as I can remember. I got adopted when I turned 8."
Blue eyes regarded Sasuke. "Now that you know the premise of my story, would you still like me to continue?"
The raven-haired boy merely nodded.
"The man who adopted me was the best father I could ever ask for. He was the nicest man I've ever met, probably because he's been teaching kindergarten for years... He's used to dealing with brats 24/7," the blonde chuckled.
"We weren't really well-off back then. A teacher's salary isn't enough to raise a growing boy, but we were happy..." The blonde looked down. "He died when I was 12."
Sasuke was at loss for words. He could only say what he thought was the most appropriate for the situation. "I'm-"
"Sorry?" the other boy finished for him. He shrugged. "Told'ya, it's not your fault. Besides, you were the one who insisted me to talk about my personal life. So don't go acting all depressed on me!" He grinned.
Sasuke thought Naruto's grin didn't quite reach his eyes, or maybe it was just the alcohol talking. After all, he did have quite a bit more than what he usually drank.
"They said it had something to do with the lungs... Probably got it from overworking and poor living conditions," the blonde shrugged again. "I wasn't listening closely enough about the details..."
"What-what happened to you after?" Sasuke asked.
Naruto smiled at him. "A family friend of his took me in." His smile didn't leave him as he turned his gaze back to the city view. "A big, loud, perverted, old man. The worst possible grandfather figure I could ever ask for," he laughed softly. "Not that I'm complaining. I love the old man."
"So, you lived with him then?"
"Yeah," the blonde nodded. "He said he'll give me food to eat and a place to live so long as I work for him."
Sasuke's eyebrows furrowed. That sounded a bit suspicious. "What kind of work?'
"Errand boy," Naruto answered. "I help clean his office, deliver stuff, make coffee... Nothing a 12-year-old couldn't handle," he explained.
"Aa," Sasuke replied. The raven-haired boy blinked slowly, the action taking a lot more effort than expected.
The other boy noticed it and snickered. "Oi, Sasuke. Would you still like me to continue?" He brought his tanned face closer to the pale one. "Or is my story boring you so much? You can't even open your eyes!"
Sasuke huffed. "I may not look like it, but I can still hear and understand you, idiot!"
Naruto laughed. "Alright then." He sighed and went on with the story. "When I turned 15, old man said he's gonna promote me. For a few weeks, I observed the job that I was gonna get. He said that's for me to know if I was ready for it."
"And?"
"Of course, I took it," the blonde said somewhat proudly. "You remember the two best friends that I mentioned earlier? That's where they work, too."
Sasuke nodded. "I remember. The girls."
"Yep, the girls," Naruto affirmed. "Unfortunately, one can't have too many friends in a workplace."
"What do you mean?"
"People started talking about me and the old man behind our backs," he answered. "Something about favoritism and not deserving the job..."
"And then what happened?"
Naruto shrugged nonchalantly. "Told the old man I'm gonna look for a different job. Don't want him to be talked about because of me..." The blonde rolled his eyes. "Of course, he said no. Said it doesn't matter. He might not look like it, but he's really a good man."
Sasuke nodded again and felt the world turn. He willed the dizziness away. "Seems like it," he managed to say.
Naruto grinned at him. "But being the stubborn kid that I am, I was able to convince him. I told him he doesn't have to worry 'bout me and that I'm gonna be able to get a job on my own." He blew blonde bangs away from his eyes. "I told him that once I'm able to get another job, I'll work hard and I'll pay him back for everything he has done for me."
"Let me guess, he declined," Sasuke said dryly.
"Whoa. You're good at this," Naruto exclaimed.
Sasuke only grunted in reply.
"Anyway, I was able to get myself a job, although the nold man didn't seem to happy about it..."
Sasuke leaned back on the car window. He noticed he was shoulder-to-shoulder with the other boy.
"Why is that?"
"The job that I got was similar to the one I had with him," the blonde explained. "He was hoping I'd stray away from that business..."
Sasuke frowned. He was a bit confused. What was wrong with his job anyway?
"Plus, I was working for his rival."
Sasuke hmm-ed, his mind trying to analyze what Naruto said. It was a little hard, especially since his mind was slowly turning into mush. And the fact that he was feeling Naruto's body heat didn't help at all.
Naruto, who seemed sober enough, much to Sasuke's dismay, continued on with his story.
"So, I worked with that other guy... Have to keep on convincing the old man that I was doing okay there." He took another swig from his beer. "It took awile before he could accept it, though."
The raven-haired boy's head slowly slid to his left and landed conveniently on Naruto's shoulder. The other boy didn't seem to mind.
"So, yeah. Worked with that guy for three years... Decided I had enough of it... Then, I quit." He exhaled slowly. "And here I am."
And then, something clicked on Sasuke's mind. The important thing that was hovering on the back of his alcohol-induced brain.
"Idiot, you didn't tell me what your job was..." he said trying to minimize the slur in his words.
But Sasuke was too sleepy, too dizzy, heck, he was even too content with the way his body was leaning toward Naruto, to care about the other boy's response. He barely heard the "Nothing important." reply of the boy beside him nor the mumbled "When I'm not much of a coward, maybe I will tell you.." that followed.
Whatever it was, he didn't bring himself to care. Because at that moment, sitting beside Naruto on the hood of an orange car parked on top of a hill overlooking Konoha was enough.
For now.
- tbc -
kaesaku: Sorry, if the writing's a bit off. I haven't written in a while. I also don't have a beta. Never had one. So if anyone's interested, message me. Thanks for reading!