Running Free
rated M
Author Miz Mizery
all right, I'm sorry guys. It took a while to get this out becuase I just had no inspiration and I was so busy with work and family and friends and relationship stuff... well, you catch my drift. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, it is greatly appreciated. And with no further ado, I give you chapter three of Running Free. Enjoi!
Chapter 3-
The red, orange, and purple strobe lights of Daiquiri bathed the black satin-walled interior in soft hues, opposite of the effect achieved. The acre-wide dance floor was crowded to capacity and more were still filtering in through the four glass doors that broke the bar from the club. The steady beat of heavy bass rippled through the floor, and the dancing crowd writhed and moved almost as one, seeming to be an alive, boneless creature of massive and grotesque proportions.
Naruto Uzumaki was one of the components of this animalistic thing. Four hands held him as he danced, barely noticing the man who pressed himself into Naruto's back provocatively, and only paying any attention to the young-looking girl who had her arms around his neck. The other pair of these hands, belonging to the young male behind the blond-haired man whom Naruto did not know the name of, held his hips tightly in a possessive grip. Naruto knew neither of them, and in his drunken state, did not care that either of them were getting closer, almost unclothing him in they're dance.
The blond moved fluidly to the music, feeling the very soul of him come to the surface with the techno beat. The threesome caught much attention, but not because of the being of the dance, but because of the Naruto himself at the center of it all. He was a great dancer, one of the best at Daiquiri. When he had first begun working here, he had been inquired on a job as a dancer, but he had shot them down. The money would have been too much for him. He wouldn't have wanted to leave, which he was in a few weeks. This job was only temporary. He wasn't looking for anything stable. He had all the stability he so desired, which was not much.
A couple of feet away, a fight broke out. Suddenly struck with interest, Naruto pulled away from his companions, curiosity overwhelming his alcohol buzz. The man behind him growled low in his throat, unheard by anyone, at the sudden leaving of the blond, and followed him, also curious of the cause of this fight that was taking up most of the dance floor by now.
Pushing past several dancing couples, Naruto stumbled upon the scene; two men battling it out over God knew what. The blond scowled, looking around for the girl that was probably the source of the mayhem, but saw no plausible candidates. He felt someone's hand brush his shoulder and brushed it off, irritated by the fact that he was aware of everything around him.
The sudden awareness that had set in had caused Naruto to check over the two men at the center of the quarrel again, and his scowl darkened further. Stepping between the two would have been a much trickier task if not for the blonde's stunning appearance that had left both men gaping. Simply annoyed now, Naruto grabbed one of the men's collars and brought him face-to-face with the commanding blond man. A soft smirk crossed his face when the cowardly man looked terrified.
"Pathetic," Naruto muttered, before shoving the man away into the crowd with a strength that defied his appearance. Turning back to the other, he grabbed him by his lapels and dragged him through the crowd to the double-doors where it was much quieter.
"Aren't you even going to thank me for saving your skinny ass," Naruto said, his blue eyes flashing dark with annoyance. The man smiled wickedly, peering up into the blonde's face with an openness that was uncommon with drug-dealers.
"Thanks, man," the man said, smoothing his red hair over his forehead. His fingertips lingered on the tattoo on his temple before they continued down to his pocket of his black sports coat. "I owe you one." His tone was so belittling, causing Naruto to bristle and grind out his next words through gritted teeth.
"Of course you do. Follow me."
Naruto spun on his heel, heading towards the front desk where one could rent one of the many lavish rooms Daiquiri housed for a considerable sum. It was no wonder the bar was such a hotspot; instead of getting wasted and hooking up with someone at home, one could simply rent a room for a few hours, and one's wife would never know of such antics. And Naruto being an employee helped considerably. He flashed a grin at the young woman working there and laid a credit card on the cherry-wood top of the desk.
"An hour, please, ma'am," he said smoothly, making sure to let his eyes dim slightly in a way that got him everything that he wanted. She blushed and nodded, avoiding eye contact with the young blond and instead looking over his companion, who glared at the girl. He attempted a smile like Naruto had; the girl coward slightly and handed the blond his credit card back, along with a small silver key on a plastic key ring that had Daiquiri's symbol on it.
They walked in silence to the room, standing at opposite corners in the elevator that brought them to their floor. Naruto studied himself in the vaguely glowing golden wall of the elevator to the left and slightly higher of his dealers face.
Daiquiri was known for its amount of money it brought in. It was also known for how well it treated its guests. The room that Naruto had rented was slightly bigger than his own bedroom, occupied by a large bed against the far wall, sheets the color of blood, the frame black as pitch, a matching set of nightstands on either side of the former, and small sitting area, defined by a lowering of the level of the flooring, two sitting chairs, and a small coffee table, decorated with various foods. This is where Naruto went after flipping on the light switch.
"So what brings the infamous Gaara here?" Naruto questioned, sitting in one of the chairs and quirking an eyebrow in question.
The red-haired man took the only other seat opposite Naruto and laughed stiffly, the action unnatural for the emotionless man. "Why, Naruto, would I be here for any other reason other than for you?"
"How sweet of you. What do you have?" It wasn't a question but a statement. Gaara smirked.
"What do you think?"
"Let's see then."
On his words, Gaara pulled a plastic baggie out of an inner pocket of his sports coat. Naruto's eyes lit up, his fingers twitching slightly on his knees.
"Where'd you get it?" he asked, leaning forward and taking the baggie from Gaara. The red-haired man frowned.
'What does it matter? Look, you got the cash for that or am I going to have to start a tab for you again?"
"Calm down, dude," Naruto said, opening the baggie and rubbing his index finger in the soft white powder inside. " I have the cash. I just don't have it right now."
"The last time you said that I waited for a month for the money you promised you would have in a week."
"I didn't see you for a month!" Naruto protested, tucking the closed baggie into his waistband after licking the powder off of his fingers. "And I don't get paid until next week. It's not like I can just transfer a couple grand worth of money to some strange person who doesn't have a plausible job."
Gaara grimaced and stood in a moment. "I do too have a plausible job."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Naruto said, rolling his eyes. "A plausible, good-paying job."
Gaara growled low in his throat, clenching his fists. Naruto pulled the baggie out again, busying himself with the lines he had created on the crowded table. His nose stung slightly before the high set in, and he leaned back in his chair, his head lolling back with a self-satisfied look on his strong features.
"Look, I didn't mean it that way," he said, his tongue feeling thick in his mouth. "What I meant is that I can't just send a dealer a ton of money. Especially if they don't know that you're a dealer. I'm just looking out for you, my dog, my buddy, my man…"
"Your dealer?" Gaara asked, raising a thin, nearly invisible eyebrow.
"That too."
The two men stood a while after, having done several lines each and drank a bottle of scotch, and clasped hands in friendship, pulling into each other in a tight embrace.
"Don't get caught," Naruto warned, mumbling into the man's jacket.
"Same advice to you," Gaara returned, smiling stiffly, as was the usual.
The house was quiet, hidden in shadow and mystery, just how Sasuke liked. It was odd, however, for his mansion to be so dead at seven o'clock in the morning, on a Friday, nonetheless. It was not odd for his older brother to be sleeping, but even so, despite how annoying Itachi had become, Sasuke wished for even that presence in the stillness.
The raven-haired man dropped his keys in a small glass container on the marble countertop in the kitchen, his routine that had not been broken over the last two years. His boots' heels clicked on the linoleum flooring as he made his way the refrigerator, the suction pop of the door swallowed up in the shadows.
He downed his bottle of beer in a matter of minutes, the long ride home leaving him tired and dry. He kicked off his boots and padded softly into the foyer. It was where the grand staircase was, and he ran up it, taking two steps at a time and panting softly at the top of it, two floors up. His room was in the Eastern wing of the house on the third floor. Itachi's was in the Northern, several rooms away from the younger of the two's.
Sasuke's cell phone vibrated again as he entered his room. It was Itachi, of course. The raven answered on the second circuit of vibrations.
"Yes?" Sasuke asked, allowing only a slight tone of irritation creep into his normally monotone voice.
"Where have you been, otouto?"
The raven bristled slightly, yelling into the receiver, "I'm Twenty-four freakin' years old, Itachi! Stop calling me that!"
"You are my younger brother," came the smooth, calm reply. "I shall call you what you are.."
"Whatever. What do you want?"
"Where have you been?"
Sasuke smirked. "With my girlfriend. What, do you want all the hot, sweaty details too?"
The lie worked, as usual. Itachi never would suspect. He was too busy with himself as it was. It was still annoying, having to lie all of the time. It wasn't like Sasuke really had to lie, either. It wasn't a rule that Kakashi had established when he began working for Sharingon inc., but it had been Sasuke's own rule that he had created for his own protection. What would people say if they found out that the leader of Uchiha Industries was an assassin? His business would flounder; the way that he had been living for the past eight years would vanish. It wasn't as if his parents could simply support him and his brother for the rest of their lives. They weren't rich; they could barely support themselves as it was. Sasuke made monthly checks out to them so they could simply live. He was not only working for himself, but for his entire family.
Naruto woke in his bed the next morning not knowing how he had gotten there. Neji was beside him though, so he figured that he had eventually come to Daiquiri to find the blond man. He certainly had not driven himself home.
He couldn't even sit up, his hangover was that bad. He simply groaned and rolled over, burying his face into Neji's pale, smooth chest and savoring the scent of his skin.
"You're finally awake," the man stated quietly, his eyelids flickering open to reveal the pale violet eyes that Naruto fell in love with first.
"How long have I been out?" the blond grumbled, feeling Neji shudder when his hot breath met skin.
"Well, it's two in the afternoon. I found you at four last night. Had to practically pry you off of that girl…"
"Oh," Naruto paused, letting Neji's words sink in. "I'm sorry."
"It's all right." The man kissed Naruto's forehead gently, the blond strands of his hair tickling Neji's nose.
"I love you," the blond said quietly, kissing Neji on the mouth, before nuzzling back into the crook of his shoulder.
A/N
So this is how the chapters will be going. Naruto will have another main pov, then two for Sasuke, so on. I didn't really like this chapter because I wrote it in a matter of hours, and it was rushed, but I do like the length. The last two were too short, so I hope this works better for all of you who like long chapters. I know i do.
Anyways, reviews are not only welcome but encouraged. Any review. Any criticism is good criticism.
peace.makelovenotwar.spreadtheword.
