Author's Notes:

Thanks a lot for reading, reviewing, following and favoring the story. *Sends air kisses*, a big thanks to my lovely beta, SimplyCliché, and I leave you to enjoy~

Sakura placed her chin on the end of her mop and allowed her features to relax into a smile. With her jade eyes, she followed the new addition to their team, Sabaku Gaara, as he bustled around the kitchen. When Naruto had sprung the new worker on them, she'd had her doubts; upon learning that he was recommended by Hyuuga Neji, said doubts had turned into a determined refusal. She'd been firm against allowing him to work, reminding Naruto of the eventful disasters the patisserie had brought on their cozy restaurant time and time before. However, regardless of her objections, Naruto had permitted the redhead to remain. At the very least, he had honored her concerns by making the male a trainee capable of being fired at the smallest mistake.

Her vision turned to the gleaming windows, moving to the chairs and tables that had been aliened seamlessly and finally, alighting on the silverwares shinning with excellence. She was glad that Naruto hadn't listened to her demurrals that day. Gaara had turned out to be the perfect worker. Sakura wasn't even exaggerating. The guy would arrive before the agreed time and start his tasks. Even though he was huge, his fingers were delicate; he had a knack for precision very few could rival.

Sakura observed the redhead as he folded the napkins in a swan fashion and continued on to his next mission. It reminded her of another good quality the redhead had: his photographic memory. She had demonstrated the swan style only once since his hiring, and yet the redhead's amazing memory was able to reconstruct it before her eyes. The pink haired beauty had always thought 'photographic memory' to be a myth that existed in novels and detective stories. Sabaku Gaara, however, had proven her wrong.

Sakura looked at the area she was supposed to mop with a sigh. She had yet to finish a single meter, whereas Gaara had finished his assigned area and proceeded to the bathrooms. At this rate, her own job would be stolen by the perfect criminal.

"Forehead, why are you gawking at the new kid? He's younger than you, you know." A long-haired blond blocked Sakura's vision and continued with a mocking tone. "Or are your eyes picking up on kids' radar these days~?"

Sakura felt a vein throb at the loathed nickname and sent a glare to her forever archenemy. "I.N.O! Shut your damn mouth, you ugly cow!"

"Look who's talking, haven't you seen your shiny forehead in the mirror, hah, Forehead?"

"That's it! You're dead!"

As the pink-haired waitress discarded her cleaning duties to silence her guffaws with the mop she was supposed to use for floors, Ino burst into a fit of laughter. 'But then again, Ino's mouth was far dirtier than the floor could ever aspire to be', was Sakura's thought as she chased the blonde throughout the restaurant.

Upon hearing the crazy laughter and the senseless death threats from the front hall, Naruto left his office and emerged with a frown on his face. Looking at his staff, he groaned out a question: "What's going on here?"

Sakura pouted at her friend's authoritative tone and pointed to her elementary school companion. "It's all Ino's fault!"

"Why do you two need to always behave like oil and water?"

"Because Forehead here wants a fight," Ino replied with a smirk.

"Hag, shut it!"

Naruto released a sigh. "Alright, listen up, I don't care if you want to strangle each other to death, but do it on your own time. In here, I'd be happy if you acted like total strangers."

Ino flipped her golden locks at him and moved away, swinging her perfect figure. "You don't need to tell me; I was minding my business before she stepped in."

The vein inside Sakura's forehead was about to burst but her pride didn't allow her to be railed on any further. Not giving Ino the satisfaction of knowing that her words had hit their mark, she 'hmphed' and went back to work. Naruto was grateful that they both respected him enough to stop quarreling and actually focus on getting some work done; if only all his employee were like the new hire.

His cerulean orbs checked the clock; it read 8:30 PM. There was still a long time for lunch to come, which meant a long time until he would get to see Sasuke. Since that night, when the businessman had demanded his phone number with such force, Naruto hadn't heard from him. It'd been close to three days. He could have called to check on him, but the chef was still reeling in embarrassment. He hated how he was acting like a schoolgirl in love, but he was still too awkward to ignore the lingering flustered state of his being. Besides, Sasuke would most probably be cooped up with work somewhere.

So there was no need to worry over three missed days.

Naruto cheered himself up with those words and an anticipation for lunch time. Sasuke would most definitely be at the restaurant. He'd missed his mid-day meal for three days, but there was no way he'd miss it again. As he returned back to his office to continue balancing the books, the blond prayed that time would move quicker than usual.

The sunglasses covering his eyes did nothing to blind the sparkles before his vision. Uzumaki Naruto gulped down the sudden nervousness that crept into his insides and checked his cell again. The address on the plate beside the fancy traditional styled mansion matched the one in his cell. However, he didn't understand what Sasuke was doing inside. Nonetheless, there was only one way to find out. Looking at the food he was carrying, Naruto summed up his courage and pressed the bell.

He could stand there and think all he wanted, but unless he took action, the questions he wanted answered would never be. Three seconds later, through the intercom, came a voice that was very familiar to his ears.

"Naruto? Is that you?"

The blond blinked at the odd tone, he didn't know if the other could see him or not, so he voiced his answer. "Yes… i-it's me."

"Wait… I'll open the door."

Not a minute later, the big wooden door creaked open. The chef had expected Sasuke's form to greet him, but an old man wearing a Yukata met his sight. Naruto blinked and was about to ask for Sasuke's whereabouts when the man bowed for him to enter the estate. Thinking that it would be faster and more efficient to see for himself, he awkwardly bowed back and stepped inside. The place was as vast as it looked from the outside and quiet beautiful, as well.

For a good look, the blond took off his sunglasses and allowed his eyes to wander. The house appeared just like the ones shown on his old TV set: a mansion of a famous person or the traditional documentary estates that some Japanese icons used to live in. Getting further inside, his eyes were enchanted with the huge garden they were walking through. Beautiful trees with different shades and degrees of adornment showed before his sight. Naruto had never been more curious about Sasuke's background as he was that instant.

Just who was Uchiha Sasuke?

From the look of it, he was a rich young master, but so many questions came after that one sentence. Why would a rich businessman come to such a remote restaurant as his, let alone demand that he couldn't stomach anyone's cooking beside his own? If Sasuke was really that rich, he could get people far better than him as his chefs – he probably grew up eating nothing but fancy stuff… maybe the whole setup was a mockery the male was playing on him, and the grand finale where he'd expose his plan to Naruto was upon him.

The chef shook his head and removed the influence of Sakura from his brain. Sasuke wasn't like that. There should be an explanation to all this. Clutching the food he'd prepared tightly, he allowed the old man to guide him further inside. Naruto walked so much his feet started complaining and, just when he was about to ask where he was being led to, the man stopped before two sets of sliding doors.

"This is the young master's room; he's been expecting you."

Naruto gulped past the unexpected fork in his throat and thanked the retreating male. Before he entered the room, he knocked three times. What answered him were sets of coughs and sneezes. Frowning, he slid the door with a loud comment that he was coming inside. He was met with a congested, dark room that had nothing but the bare essentials. His vision suffered in the dimness of the space and he was unable to make the shapes out properly. As a result, he took to searching for a light switch. Luckily, there was one next to his shoulder. Pressing it allowed light to flood the room, and he was able to get a good look at the space for the first time since his arrival. There was a queen sized bed on the far left side of the room, and black hair stuck out from beneath its heavy sets of blankets.

The chef put the food on the glassy table on his right and walked towards the bed. There was no motion coming from Sasuke and gracefully, he sat down next to the mountain of blankets.

"I was wondering what had happened to you these past days… so you were sick."

Slowly, the covers were removed and a set of blood-shut eyes faced him. Naruto gave a gentle smile to the disheveled sick Sasuke and couldn't stop himself from extending a hand and trying to fix all the hair that had strayed from its rightful position. Sasuke offered a tired smile of his own and spoke, voice already changed with the cold.

"I'm glad you're here."

"Well, after reading your message I had to." Naruto fetched his cell and rolled his eyes at the 'ASAP! GET HERE!' message with the address put under it. "Next time, please call or send a less alarming message."

"...Sorry, but I haven't eaten for three days and I'm very hungry."

As if on cue, Naruto brought over the soup he'd prepared and placed it on the nightstand. He helped Sasuke into a sitting position, before he fixed the soup in his hands. "Be my guest. I went with a simple chicken soup this time. Had I known you were sick, I'd have made something more nutritious."

The raven shook his head and started eating. If anyone saw the way he was gulping the soup down, they'd think that he was actually enjoying the meal. However, watching Sasuke eat, the chef asked something that puzzled him.

"Sasuke, why haven't you been eating? Of course you don't taste food, but you were sick and you had to eat to regain your health. So why not?"

"I couldn't," The Uchiha explained, taking a second to answer. "I wanted to eat, but my stomach would reject anything I put in it. I was fed through an IV for a while, but like I thought, your food is the only thing that I don't hate."

Naruto's heart thumped with those words and a grin spread across his face. "Well thank you very much then, my food is glad you're not throwing it up."

"Hn."

Until Sasuke was able to finish the whole meal, Naruto stayed silent and simply observed. Today, he wasn't expecting a review from the sick raven haired male. Even if Sasuke was able to distinguish the flavors, with the cold running amok on his senses, they won't be trusted all that well. Taking the soup away once it was finished, Naruto asked with all causality.

"So, you're a rich young master?"

Hazy eyes looked at him as the businessman laid back on his bed, before nodding, which proved to be a bad idea as his head started buzzing with the headache and the congestion. Seeing as how the other was too tired to talk or acknowledge his existence, the chef packed everything he had and planned on making his exit. Right now, he could shower Sasuke with all the questions that needed answers, but the raven haired male was in no position to open his eyes, let alone think and formulate words. The best thing for Naruto to do was leave. A shuffle from the exhausted man had him focus his attention and Naruto decided to ask instead of leaving without a word.

"Do you need me to leave?"

"…Hmm… no. Stay here."

Well, he was given an answer, but even if he stayed, there was nothing for him to do. His brain knew that he should decline and leave, that he should allow Sasuke time to sleep and maintain his health. However, his body was already putting down the objects in hand and making himself comfortable on Sasuke's bed. Really… how silly… he knew better.

"Alright."

Naruto's eyes widened when a pale hand came to hold his, followed by a nasal voice saying.

"Thank you for coming, the meal was nice."

His cheeks colored slightly and the chef nodded. He gave the hand a small squeeze of his own, before beaming. "You're welcome, it's my job."

Sasuke seemed to drift off after that, probably due to the medications pumped into him and Naruto just sat there. Feet on the bed, he allowed their linked hands to join for a little bit more before letting go. To him, there was nothing wrong with taking the little bits of pleasures coming his way, for no one knew when the next time would present itself.

Sasuke removed the stray locks away from his face and tried to sit upright. His head felt dizzy, but his stomach was killing him. Not being able to withstand it anymore, he hurried to the bathroom and threw up the insides of his pit in three seconds. He washed up after and felt a sense of relief come over him. Throwing up was doing him a world of good, even if it was a disgusting action. A part of him felt bad about puking up Naruto's food, but due to the fever and the cold, it was very hard to keep anything in anyhow.

Returning to his bed, he just noticed the blond chef spread on it and sleeping soundly. Tip-toeing so as not to wake Naruto up, Sasuke sat crunched on the ground and looked at him.

Why did he send that text asking Naruto to come? Why did he want Naruto to know more about him? The energetic chef was like a strong wind that blew past his icy world. All his life, he had done what he was supposed to do. He lived his life like he should, did what was expected of him and never went out of his way to get something that he didn't need. Yes, his life was about 'need', not 'want'. He needed his job, he needed his house and he needed food. He lived for the basics. He'd never seen anything wrong with that. However, seeing Naruto's way of life led to a feeling he had never expected to experience: jealousy.

The blond loved cooking, loved his humble apartment and loved food. He didn't do his job because he needs to, but because he wanted to. Naruto seemed to be living while he, Sasuke, was simply functioning.

Maybe that was the reason he wanted to get closer to him, the reason he wanted to see what it felt like, to be that dedicated, that blissful and happy. To work your hardest on something that you love… At this point, he doubted there was anything that made him feel like that – like cooking made Naruto feel – but maybe enjoying food was a step in the right direction. Maybe with Naruto's aid, the day when he'd be able to eat and compliment the deliciousness of the meal would come… maybe.

A sneeze had him search for his tissues. Blowing his nose, the raven haired male noticed a pair of azure, shining orbs looking at him. He was a bit startled but fortunately for him, his poker face showed nothing. Naruto sat up and rubbed his eyes, the fleeting thought of how similar to a small fox or a cat the chef looked came to Sasuke's head. He allowed the adjective 'cute' to link with the blond and spoke.

"Hi."

"Hi," Naruto mimicked, stifling a yawn. "What time is it?"

Sasuke looked at the clock on the wall and answered. "Eleven thirty at night."

Upon hearing the time, Naruto exclaimed with startled eyes. "Oh God! I slept for straight eight hours!"

As the blond banged his head on the mattress – showing Sasuke how missing eight hours was a big deal to him –, Sasuke reasoned with a smile. "It's not that bad… did you have work?"

"No…" Stopping his fit to answer back, Naruto groaned. "But I missed the last train now. How am I supposed to return home?"

"You can just stay over."

Tempting as it was, the blond cheerfully rejected. "I can't. I have to get up real early tomorrow. It's my turn to open the restaurant, you see."

"Isn't there anyone who can open it for you?"

"It's not a problem of someone else doing it – it's my turn. We all have turns for whom opens up the restaurant like I'd told you, Sakura opened it today, so I have to do it tomorrow, get it?"

Sasuke shifted in his position, choosing to rely on his buttocks more in sitting comfortably. "How about I drive you then?"

"You're sick." The chef countered easily. "Any minute you can find you should invest in getting better."

"Then my chauffer will drive you." When a look of uncertainty showed on Naruto's face, Sasuke added quickly. "He'll drop you away from the restaurant and your apartment if you dislike people seeing you –"

"That's not what I –"

"Naruto, you realize that I'm practically begging you to stay the night, right?"

The affirmative tone mixed with those hazy black orbs, and the way the silky locks were falling over Sasuke's eyes made Naruto's heart skip a beat. He didn't want to stay over because he promised himself lesser time with Sasuke, lesser time so he could get these feelings in line and remember what he was and what was appropriate. He needed to detach himself before he woke up and found himself too addicted to having Sasuke with him… which was what scared him the most lately.

But… Sasuke was begging him. How could he refuse such a charming request? The blond made up his mind, going with the silly notion that a simple night wouldn't affect their current status at all. His insides laughed at his hypocrisy and, ignoring their snickers, Naruto voiced a riposte.

"…I don't think it's a good idea, but I'll stay over, we can't refuse a begging Sasuke, now can we?"

Sasuke released a nod to answer his beam. "No, you cannot."

"Well then, let me wash up to get this fatigue out of my body, I feel like I'm one hundred!"

The raven haired male pointed to the bathroom to their left and Naruto made his way there. Once inside, his eyes widened at the fancy luxury, but in less than a second, he got used to it. This whole place looked like it was brought out of a magazine, so by now nothing he saw – no matter how expensive or attractive – was going to startle him. This was how rich folks lived, in heaven on Earth.

Quickly, he took off his outfit, sprayed himself with soup and washed thoroughly. He didn't take much time in an effort to prevent his mind from wandering to places it shouldn't. Naruto finished in less than fifteen minutes and, when the notion of what he was going to wear hit him, he found a bath robe placed neatly behind the curtains – yes, the bathroom had curtains. The chef put it on and, after drying his locks, came out of the fancy bathroom feeling refreshed to the bone.

He found Sasuke already sobered up fully with a coffee in hand. The handsome male gestured for Naruto to come and sit next to him on the bed. The blond felt a bit uncomfortable, since he was still naked under the robe, but obliged nonetheless.

"How was the bath?" Sasuke asked when Naruto had finally sat down.

"Good… but you do realize I'm naked right now."

Not being one to like discomfort, Naruto had decided to talk and voice his current ordeal. Sasuke rolled his eyes at his chef and pointed to a wall that had been turned into a huge closet.

"I'd have prepared it for you, but I'm too tired to move. So you go and pick whatever you feel like wearing."

Not a second after that comment, Naruto was beside the closet, ruffling through the rows of pajamas to find something suitable for him to wear. Sadly, everything seemed to go from black to navy blue and dark green. All the shades were gloomy and bleak, nothing lively or flattering. Sighing at the poor color choices he was provided with, Naruto picked something blue and pulled it out. He took a pair of washed boxers with it and closed the closet behind him. Walking to a corner of the room where Sasuke's eyes wouldn't see him, the shy blond changed quickly.

He came to Sasuke's viewfinder and threw himself onto the bed. The businessman had already finished his coffee and crawled his way to Naruto's side.

"I'm glad you're enjoying this."

"Well, the clothes are comfortable and since I've taken a bath now, I feel more relaxed, but there's a problem now." His eyebrows frowned.

"What?"

Sasuke gazed at him with greyish black orbs, sending tingles of electricity all over the blond's body. Right now, Sasuke was looming over him; it felt like everything was standing still. However, Naruto couldn't read his expression. It gave way to no emotion whatsoever. The blond didn't even know how he was reflected in those eyes he loved so much, or how Sasuke thought of him. But he knew his emotions were getting stronger, if the thumping in his chest was anything to go by.

The minute he started feeling emotions of like towards the raven haired male, he'd felt his perception to Sasuke's gestures and signs alter. A simple smile would mean more than normal, a touch to his hand would make him believe Sasuke felt something back. Maybe he was simply glorifying a nonexistent emotion to make himself feel better, or Sasuke was truly leading him on, but nonetheless, the way Sasuke was looking at him made his hopes high.

Regardless of what was true or not, in that moment, his head was forced to take a break as his heart ruled his body. Moving his lips, he whispered a soft reply.

"…I don't feel sleepy anymore."

A devilish smile appeared on Sasuke's face after that and a glint on his eyes. "Well then, I guess it won't hurt to practice a little exercise."

Naruto didn't know what took over him but the next thing he knew, he was cupping Sasuke's cheek and kissing his tender lips softly. It started as a simple peck, then slowly escalated to something more. A hot dance inside Sasuke mouth had started. At first, Naruto thought the raven haired male didn't welcome the unexpected intrusion; however, when pale hands took his locks in their grip, he continued his call of intimacy.

Naruto could sense how hard it was for Sasuke to kiss back due to his cold, but losing himself with the unexpected opportunity, he didn't care if he got sick over this.

Sasuke smiled at the hungry beast attacking him as Naruto's kisses started becoming more on the passionate side, and pulled on his hair. A moan escaped Naruto's lips at the sudden pain, but the handsome male paid it no attention and continued pulling at the soft, golden locks. As if to portray his dismay, Naruto moved from ravishing Sasuke's tongue to nipping on his lips. The pressure on them caused the businessman to let his grip loosen on Naruto's hair as he enjoyed the rush of pleasure.

His nose was clogged and he was sure they were ignoring the fact that he was sick greatly. His excitement was controlling his senses and no amount of bacteria would be able to hold him now. Sasuke's pale hand went down to cup Naruto's manhood. A yelp left Naruto's mouth as he backed up, startled by the sudden touch. Sasuke smirked at him and allowed stray locks to decorate his face in a sexy manner, before he opened his mouth and seductively urged.

"Come."

Pink lips turned red as Naruto bit them to try and suppress his desire. But Sasuke's pose did nothing to ease that, worse actually; his dick was painfully standing erect and disobeying his control. When long, pale fingers went from calling him to come forth and dug under his blue pants, the chef threw his last control out the window and jumped on the black eyed male.

It didn't take a minute before he was vigorously rubbing his dick on Sasuke's fingers inside. The businessman had to hold Naruto down not to rub them limp. The blond was forced to take a deep breath then relax onto the bed. At this point, as the attractive Sasuke was pulling their clothes off properly, Naruto was lost in dizziness of enchantment. Never did he think he would be able to look, let alone touch, Sasuke like this. His head was still trying to wrap on this little development. What was the other thinking inviting him further like this? What was he planning on doing? And what should he do about it all?

More questions like those were circling his head, and Sasuke's actions did nothing to justify them. It was as if the black haired male was giving him special treatment but at the same time not. The chef didn't know why it didn't set well with him, but as Sasuke's member came into view, a lid was put firmly on that line of thinking and his instinct took over.

Naruto gulped as his nervousness finally descended on him. He extended his tan hand to take hold of Sasuke's semi-erect penis. He had no idea what to do. It was his first time coming in physical contact with another man's manhood. So far, even his dreams didn't go there. Hence he had no data on what he should be performing. However, Sasuke was a man himself, so what made him feel good should also employ on Sasuke… right?

Going with that notion, the chef began with a tender movement. Sasuke didn't seem to be all that against his technique so Naruto took a little bit of faith in himself. Shifting to a more rhythmic motion, the blond brought his lips close to Sasuke's and kissed him senseless. The businessman wasn't about to be defeated and with his pale hand, he made a grip towards Naruto's urethra. A jolt of unexpected sensation went through Naruto's spine and he swore he saw stars dancing before his sight.

A chuckle left Sasuke's mouth and a blush inflamed on Naruto's face. He knew he was being teased, but how could he fabricate his reactions!? He was only human.

Trying to stop that evil smirk, Naruto picked up speed on his technique, taking a minute to appreciate the way pre-cum was glazing Sasuke's slightly dark penis. It felt so slick and long. With every thrust, Sasuke's hips would follow. How many women were satisfied with that hard dick? Naruto wondered silently, but stopped as he knew if he continued down that road, he would probably lose his erection. The pale male seemed to know his way around a woman, judging by the way he was treating Naruto's moves as games and nothing more – something that frustrated the chef a bit.

Not long after, Sasuke forced him to lay on his back as he straddled his hips and sat seductively between his legs. He took Naruto's hand and linked it with his own as he worked a rhythm with both their cocks. Moving up and down, up and down, up and down. Sasuke pushed his hair backwards and came down on Naruto's body. He started nipping and biting around one dark nipple, releasing series of moans from the other's lips.

They had to take a little pause as Sasuke's runny nose had to be wiped with a tissue. Though the view could have made Naruto lose his hard cock, he still thought his crush was handsome.

Sasuke's voice wasn't alien to the room, since with every rub between their joint members, his moans of ecstasy will ring melodic bells inside Naruto's ears. Black hair tickled Naruto's neck and, just when he was about to force his teeth on that pale nape tempting him and tell Sasuke to move faster, the raven haired man squeezed hard on Naruto's urethra and his dick throbbed.

A second later, he came all over their stomachs. Sasuke's smirk didn't last a minute after because while continuing to pump his hand up and down the long, Naruto pressed hard on his balls shaft, forcing Sasuke to follow in his stead and robbing him of the chance to gloat. The businessman spurt all over Naruto and the sheets, dirtying them both. Naruto had to close his eyes not to get a shot in them, when he felt Sasuke go limb on top of him, he opened them and had to force his blush to die down.

The heat radiating from the body above him made him feel just how much alive he truly was. Sasuke's naked form smeared in cum was one thing, but that heavenly satisfied expression made him wish they'd continue onto round two. So before his expectations took him anywhere strange, he got up and only whispered a small sentence, after which he fled away from the view of the male he'd just tasted.

"I'll go wash up now."

It was morning, and Naruto wanted to leave the minute he woke up; however, opening his eyes to find a butler smiling politely at his naked body had him cover up in a split second, and try to stifle his embarrassment. What happened after seemed like a blur, he was still in a grey area about where he stood with Sasuke and really wanted to clear everything up – however, the butler and the group of maids, raiding behind him, forbade his mind to think of anything as they attacked him head on.

The next thing he knew, he was sitting on a chair, in a garden, being served hot tea while his soul slowly left his body. Yes… he was forced into a bath, a new set of clothes and, to his dismay, a new hairdo that screamed diligence.

Once their job of serving and attending to Naruto has been done, the butler and the maids accompanying him left the blond with a respectful bow. Being too dazed, Naruto didn't even notice when they were out of his visual field. Not a minute later however, a polished Sasuke was walking to sit on the opposite side of the round, shiny table. He was functioning as if he wasn't on the brink of death the night before.

Having his soul finally return from oblivion to his humbled body, Naruto directed fierce eyes to the sole perpetrator of his agony. "You!"

Sasuke picked up a vanilla cupcake and merely blinked with innocence. "Me?"

"You ordered them to do that!" The chef hit his hands on the table in an attempt to show how dissatisfied he was with the treatment.

"What you call 'that', people pay money to get."

"No one would pay to get themselves violated!"

Munching on the cupcake and trying not to show distaste when it hit his buds, Sasuke concentrated on a retort to the angry blond.

"Well, they do. I ordered them to make you clean and presentable and that they did, so what's the problem? You should be thanking me instead of howling like a wolf so early in the morning."

Naruto's eyes smoked at the cool manner he was spoken to. It felt like the other truly thought there was nothing wrong with a bunch of people giving him a bath like he was five. "Do you think I'm paralyzed or something? I can take care of my own self."

"…No one said you couldn't, it's just that –" The raven haired male was about to say something, then shifted his opinion and came right out to say it, because if he kept beating around the bush, the idiot before him would only get further away from catching up with his real intentions. "Look, truth is, I did it to save time. Precisely, your time."

Blinking at the unexpected response, Naruto mimicked. "What do you mean my time?"

The businessman took a sip from the English tea he was having, cringing when the aroma filled his insides. "You surely haven't forgotten our little exercise last night, and I do recall you saying clearly how you need to be home opening the restaurant early today, so I believed that you – being the idiot you are – would spend a lot of time wondering about what we did and why it had happened and a single bath will stretch on to three or four hours. So I ordered my staff to get it all done so you'd be able to get to your restaurant on time."

Naruto's face was caught in a sea of red flames. He had no idea what expression he should be showing – irritation for being thought of as an idiot who'd think too much upon things, embarrassment that Sasuke mentioned their activity last night so nonchalantly during breakfast, or happiness that the object of his affections thought of him so dearly that he paid attention to something as fleeting as his functionality. Naruto was bashful to his own feelings, but the other male was waiting for him to show a reaction, so he forcibly decided upon one.

Looking away from those piercing black orbs, the chef mumbled audibly: "…T-Thank you."

A smile stretched on Sasuke's features and he gave back a response. "You're welcome."

Thinking it's best to shift to another topic and forget this whole situation, Naruto asked. "So, how's your cold now?"

Seeing as how Naruto was trying a new topic, Sasuke went with the flow. "It's gotten better. I think I'm almost cured."

The cook countered, frowning at the words. "That's good, but still be careful, you were really smashed yesterday."

"…Don't worry about it, I don't catch colds easily." Sasuke was about to say something about their late night sexual activity, but chose to brush aside the other male's warning.

A smirk came to show on Naruto's face. "Yeah, idiots don't catch colds."

"Takes one to know one, baka."

"Jerk."

Sasuke retorted childishly: "Dobe."

"Teme!"

A smile showed on the businessman's features at this and Naruto felt himself relax with it. Showering themselves with insults seemed just right for them. Finally, they settled with a comfortable silence and Naruto allowed it to remain. Right now, all he wanted to do was concentrate on the elegant breakfast they had been served. In front of him lay three dishes: black pudding, baked beans, and fried bread. Alongside the tea and the cupcakes, that is. He wondered about the presence of the cupcakes, but when he took a look at Sasuke and saw that his interest lay mainly upon the small treats, he knew why the chef in this estate chose to put them in his menu.

He remembered Sasuke saying how much he disliked sweets, but the way he was eating them like there was no tomorrow made him believe that maybe, just maybe, cupcakes were okay.

Naruto said his grace and started eating. The food was fantastic! It was on a scale he hadn't yet reached. The person who made those dishes was truly of high caliper. In the midst of savoring every bite, a feeling of sadness came over him. The chef who made the food had put his all into it, probably doing it for the sake of having Sasuke praise it or at least show a little enjoyment while dining… however Sasuke…

He looked up with that thought of his and his eyes widened. Maybe it was due to his constant nagging for Sasuke to appreciate the chefs' efforts or the businessman's own consideration for his staff, but regardless of the reason, Sasuke was doing his best not to show any sort of dissatisfaction on his face. Witnessing that sent shivers down Naruto's spine and he made a little promise to himself, to never give up until a day would come in which Sasuke's problem was solved.

After they finished eating, Sasuke took Naruto to another building in which numerous cars were parked. He picked one and signaled Naruto to come in the passenger seat. Buckling up, the blond had to ask.

"Umm… Sasuke, do you own all those cars?"

Indifferently, while pulling back to get out of the garage, Sasuke answered. "Yes, why?"

"…I knew it."

"Do you want one?" The raven haired male asked in all truthfulness. "I have a lot to spare."

"No, thank you." Naruto raised his hands objection. "If I got a car from you, somehow it feels like our relationship would change, so let's stay away from that."

Finally, they were drawing away from the estate as whole and the blond released a sigh he didn't know he was holding. The magnificent gate that he'd come walking through was left in the rearview mirror alongside the wall of fence bordering the estate. Naruto looked on with an eye of fondness and acceptance. Indeed, his life was nothing more than a simple, dim box compared to the extravagancy that made Sasuke's norm. However, the chef appreciated it even more.

"What type of relationship do we have?"

That question had Naruto's heart thump so hard it probably hit the windshield. Blinking at the sudden and out of the blue question, he resorted to attack strategy A: throwing the ball to the other's court. "What type of relationship do you think we have?"

"…"

When Sasuke kept silent, Naruto started to panic from the inside and tried to ease everything with a causal reply. "I… I think we are somewhat of friends, don't you?"

Now Sasuke's interest was piqued and he commented. "If we're friends, does that mean if anything were to happen to me, you'd come rushing to help?"

It didn't even take Naruto a second to answer that. "Yes, of course. No matter the time or the place, if you need me I'll be there – that's what friends do."

"Then let's say this: your restaurant caught on fire, your staff needed your help to get out, at the same time, I called you in a dire situation asking your help, who would you choose to help first?" Sasuke presented him with a hypothetical situation to test that answer of his.

The chef's face twisted in distress. He'd actually run to help his staff first and ensure their safety before he could run off to help Sasuke. Even though his heart at that moment would most probably tell him he should be helping Sasuke; still, Naruto knew he couldn't do it. Sasuke mattered greatly to him, but his staff, his restaurant – they were important, not just to him, but to a lot of people as well. Losing them would hurt a great number of hearts; he couldn't do that… even if his own was the price.

"I… Sasuke…" Naruto's voice trembled; the answer to him was very hard that even getting it out felt like betrayal to his heart. "I… just can't…"

Sasuke's eyes widened when he saw the genuine look of pain appear on the other's face. In fact, he'd asked the question as a joke, knowing perfectly well that Naruto would choose his staff and his restaurant. The blond loved them too much to throw them away for him, after all. He was nothing short of a customer that Naruto disagreed on his policy regarding food. He didn't think the chef thought of him so highly that he'd be tormented as to which path to take if push came to shove. So to see how much Naruto treasured him… a sweet smile came to his lips. Sasuke got off the highway and parked on the side of the road.

Before Naruto could hope to question the reason they were parked, Sasuke had unbuckled his safety belt and two pale hands came to grab Naruto's head. They drew him in for a clash between soft lips. Azure eyes widened at the unexpected kiss, but soon relaxed with the familiar proximity. It didn't last long and to the chef, it had finished before it'd even started. Nonetheless, he had enjoyed every millisecond of it.

"Thank you, Naruto."

With that Sasuke re-buckled his seatbelt and off they went.

"You know, just because I pretend not to see doesn't mean I don't."

Naruto blinked at his waitress's words and he placed the dishes before her sight. "What do you mean, Sakura-chan?"

"You and him, what happened between you?"

He knew where she was going and a huge sigh escaped his lips. "To tell you the truth, I don't even know myself. We're friends but we are not, we're lovers but we are not. I don't even know what we are."

"Have you talked to him about this, Naruto? About your conflicting feelings, I mean." Sakura questioned, already taking a bite from the chicken croquette Naruto had made.

"I have not. I mean, it's really hard to come right out and blurt 'I like you!'; I don't even know if he views me that way or not." He scowled at his own words. "Sure we did some sexual stuff and we kissed, but that doesn't mean anything… in this era, you can find a lot of people having causal affairs without holding anything to heart."

Jade eyes widened in surprise at his words and Sakura's mouth gaped open. "You… you kissed!"

Judging from her reaction, the blond recalled that he hadn't informed her of that as of yet. He tried to calm the situation and put his hands up as a barrier. "Calm down, Sakura-chan, we did… sorry for not telling you, I totally thought I did. But it didn't mean anything… well, to him it didn't. So it's not like it's a big deal."

Sakura relaxed back onto her seat and scoffed. "I'll forgive you this time; because I know you're an airhead, but you have to tell me about these things from now onwards. Besides, what type of sexual stuff did you do? Did you have sex?"

Naruto munched the croquette in his hand and shook his head, cheeks coloring a slight red. "No, we only hand-jobbed together. Nothing big like sex."

A sigh of relief left her mouth. "I'm glad. If you two had had sex and he felt nothing, then I'd have told you to give up on him. But if you're still just feeling each other up then, it's okay. However, you need to come clean about all this with him, confess and whatever happens, happens. It's just a 'like' anyway; you're still not in too deep."

A sad smile graced his face and he questioned: "I'm not so sure about that anymore, Sakura. I thought I just like him, but now I like him even more… I think continuing down this road, I'll fall for him… no, I might have already started falling."

She used her hands to cover her eyes as she shook her head. "Oh God, Naruto, if you're falling for this guy… I really do not want to see that happen. You still don't know him all that well, and you're unfamiliar with anything that he's about, so falling –"

"I know all that, but I can't stop my heart. No one can, Sakura. So –"

She interrupted him just like he'd interrupted her former sentence. "So you should stay away before you're in deeper."

"…I can't promise that, but I'll try."

Sakura knew he was lying to stop her from speaking further and she respected that desire of his. Actually, if she wanted to be a good friend, she should just give her support to him like always. This time, however, she just didn't feel like this would end without Naruto hurting in some way or another. Sasuke was the perfect picture and that was what made her so uneasy. It felt like any minute he'd explode and kill Naruto. Her instincts were warning her that he was one to fawn over but never get close to. And here was her best friend, doing the exact opposite and there was nothing she could do to stop him. Silently, the pink-haired beauty prayed that nothing bad would come to harm Naruto.

When Sakura was about to open her mouth and tell Naruto about the new project she was assigned to at school, there was a knock at the front door. Excusing himself from her company, Naruto walked to see who was visiting. When a husky voice reached her drums alongside Naruto's happy tone, she sighed. Three seconds later, a hottie was standing in front of her.

Smiling cheerfully like she did in the restaurant, Sakura greeted. "Hello, Uchiha Sasuke-san, how are you doing?"

The raven haired male sat down and greeted back. "Hello to you too, I'm well. How about you?"

"Leaving." After saying that word, she picked herself up and headed to the door. Not a second later, Naruto was on her heels.

"Sakura-chan, where are you going?"

She looked at the handsome black eyed male and back at him and smirked. "I wouldn't want to be the third wheel here."

Naruto rolled his eyes and clarified. "Just so you'd know, he came here to eat, nothing more. There's no need for you to go out like this. Not to mention it's rude for you to leave the second he comes in. It makes it appear like you don't like him."

Nonchalantly, she affirmed. "Well I don't."

"I know," he hushed back a response, "but still it's rude. Just sit down and finish your croquette at least. Besides, I've finally made time to bake your salted caramel brownies. I made them just the way you like them!"

"With extra caramel and salt?"

He grinned. "With extra caramel and salt."

With the speed of lightening, Sakura was sitting beside Sasuke like a good girl with stars and hearts dancing in her vision. Her cute side was already out before she could stifle it back in. Haruno Sakura had an unnatural love for brownies, especially caramel salted ones. If there was anything Naruto wanted her to do, he'd always bribe with the delicacy. Sakura would turn into an obeisant puppy the minute he mentioned it.

Chuckling at how endearing she was, Naruto went into the kitchen to bring out the brownies, just in time to come find Sakura's plate of croquette finished to a T. He put the brownies in front of her and continued laughing when she chomped happily on them. Honestly, Sakura was just so adorable at times that he found himself staring.

A cough to his right pulled Naruto's attention away from the pink haired beauty and he was met with smirking eyes. Sasuke commented. "Should I leave?"

Rolling his eyes at his two friends' similar line of thoughts, the chef responded. "No, you shouldn't. I'll bring your dish in a minute so stay put."

Naruto disappeared into the kitchen and two minutes later, he came out with his hands behind his back.

"The other day, it seemed like you really like cupcakes, and since I still had leftovers from doing Sakura's brownies, I made you…" He made some drum sounds, then presented the treat. "A devil's food cupcake~"

Having finished his explanation, the blond offered three cutely made chocolate cupcakes. Two red horns were coming out of them as a simple decoration. Sakura had to momentarily stop gulping down the brownies to admire Naruto's art work. The blond was never a good baker, but when he put his mind to perfect a treat, he didn't disappoint. This was one of those rare occasions where Naruto's hidden talent would make an entrance. Sakura reached out to try one of them, but a tan hand gently slapped hers away.

"No, Sakura, these are Sasuke's. You already have your brownies. Remember, too much sugar is never good for the body." He scolded gently.

The pink-haired beauty pouted but kept her distance. Naruto's words were right, if she ate any more sweets, her diet would suffer greatly. Crying in her own dark corner, she munched on her caramel salted brownies.

Watching the display from a far and seeing as how the chef and his best friend were done with their little play, Sasuke reached out a hand and took a bite from the cupcake. Foreign to how it looked, the chocolate mixture wasn't that dominant. It wasn't that sugary either. In fact, it was light and felt like a little puff of air upon his tongue. Sasuke felt the always present ability to puke descend on his stomach, but he refused to allow it to surface. Maintaining a poker face so as not to hurt the feelings of the chef for the thousandth time, Sasuke nodded his affirmation.

"It's good."

Naruto allowed a sigh to leave his lips and gave the businessman a smile. "You don't need to lie, Sasuke. I appreciate your feelings, but saying it's good when it's not won't help us move a single step forward."

The raven haired male shook his head, disputing Naruto's words. "No, I'm not lying. It's better than the previous ones. I still got the feeling of wanting to throw up, but this time it took a while for it to come. This means that we're improving. A day might come when I can eat everything with genuine taste."

"Hopefully, we'll reach that day before I die." Naruto provided a pessimistic snicker.

Sasuke raised two thumps-up and cheered. "I'm counting on you."

The chef sighed as he relaxed back on the cushions. His two friends continued eating their sweets in silence until Sakura's phone rang and she had to excuse herself from their company, this time with a legitimate reason that she couldn't get rid of. Naruto permitted her to leave with a promise that she'd drop by the next day for dinner.

He got back to the room and found Sasuke already putting his jacket on. With blinking eyes, he questioned: "Don't tell me you also have an appointment you need to catch, too?"

"As a matter of fact, yes, I do. It'd started for half an hour now, to tell you the truth, I shouldn't have come here in the first place, but…"

"But?"

Sasuke approached Naruto and staring him straight in the eyes, he blurted out: "I wanted to recharge."

A playful smile came to sit on Naruto's lips as he cooed, "recharge? Should I take that as a compliment to my cooking?"

"Rather a compliment to your company." Sasuke refuted swiftly.

A slight blush showed on the blond's face, but he was soon to counter with a smirk. "My, oh my, Uchiha-sama, are you trying to butter me up?"

"Believe me, if I was, you'd know."

With those words as his parting speech, Sasuke put on his monks and exited the chef's rundown apartment. Naruto simply rolled his eyes at the Uchiha's words as he set to clean up after him.

Naruto took a deep breath before he set foot inside the café and made himself comfortable on one of the seats closest to the exit. A girl dressed in a maid outfit, with cat ears coming out of her head, bowed cutely at him, her curly locks swaying with every movement she was told to perform. The maid offered Naruto a menu and chirpily asked him to call on her when he was ready to order. The blond sighed inwardly at the overly appealing café, before he gazed down at the menu.

Big, colorful letters with multiple cat-symbols were meowing up at him. He quickly picked a smoothie with a cheesecake and placed the menu down. Normally, he wouldn't come all the way here to meet with Neji, but since the patisserie insisted that he came over, Naruto decided that it was better to meet and get everything over with. The fear that the Hyuuga was about to involve him in something dangerous was ringing at the back of his head, but Naruto decided that he'd refuse anything from now onward… he just needed his resolve to not weaken.

A few minutes after the maid-cat-girl had taken his request, Naruto was presented with the delights. As always, the taste was marvelous and for a second, he forgot he was on Earth. Finishing the delicacies quickly, Naruto waited patiently for his companion to arrive. It wasn't until good fifteen minutes had passed that Hyuuga Neji presented himself in front of the chef.

"Punctuality. You're losing it." Naruto flatly commented.

A warm smile appeared on the other male's face as he provided his excuse. "Sorry, Naruto-kun, but I was really swamped. The help I had ordered to arrive today was delayed; so I had to work extra to make amends. Nonetheless, it won't happen again."

"Doesn't matter. So? Why am I here?"

"That… are you sure you want me to dive right into it?"

The blond nodded. "I left my staff to handle breakfast on their own, that's why it would be better to get this over with quickly. As much as I trust them, I'd rather be there if any emergency would cook up."

Neji's smile stretched and he reached a hand to touch Naruto's hair. "You know, Naruto-kun, I always respected you. No matter what you never run away from your responsibilities."

The blond didn't even grace the hand on his hair a glance and simply ignored it. "Yes, and neither do you."

"True, but this isn't what I meant." The patisserie took a deep breath and elaborated. "Being with you was different from being around my family or those who I'd call friends. You're pure and hardworking. You refuse to allow anyone to give stuff to you and would strive to make it on your own. I really admired you back in school."

"A past tense? You don't admire me now?"

"No, I still do." Neji took his hand away and smiled. "No matter how hard the road, you never gave up or ran away. That's why I considered you a worthy opponent and, to some extent, an idol."

Blue orbs widened with every word that came out of the other male's lips. As long as he could remember, Neji was the idol. He did everything perfectly, everyone looked up to him and, in the sense of working hard, Neji was doing that from day one. He couldn't understand why someone of his caliber would tell him that he admired him. But since the raven haired male seemed to still have things to say, Naruto kept his mouth shut.

"I don't know if you know this, but I come from a wealthy family. I was raised with a golden spoon in my mouth. I attained everything I could aspire to have, yet I was empty. Baking was the only thing that made me whole, and meeting you had made my life impeccable. Naruto-kun, every time I asked you for something, you did it. Sure you complained, but at the end you were there to help me. Today, I didn't ask you here for a favor. Today I wanted to tell you about my feelings. I'm truly glad to have a friend like you, Naruto-kun."

When it was apparent that the other male was done saying his piece, Naruto provided a blinding beam and conveyed his own emotions.

"Thank you, Neji… Actually, I'm the one who's lucky to have you as a friend. You were the only person I had in culinary school who understood what I was dealing with most of the time. Though not always going straight, you helped me when I needed it. I don't know if I could have made it this far without your help, so thank you for being a part of my life, Neji."

They finished their talk with that and Neji allowed a sigh to escape his lips. He didn't actually plan on telling Naruto all those things, but somehow, it felt right, now that he had. The chef was probably the closest and the only real friend he had. Amongst the wolves he was dealing with, Naruto was the only sheep that liked the real him. He was a friend that he should hold on to until his day of doom came along.

"Now that we're done with the girly stuff, there's something I need to warn you about."

The chef rolled his eyes but kept on tight ears. "Warn me about what?"

"You remember that day, when I came to your apartment?"

"Yeah? What about it?"

"See, at that time I was too preoccupied with Gaara's problem to think straight, but when I got home I remembered, the guy I saw with you… he's indeed Uchiha Sasuke of Uchiha corps."

When Sasuke's name came up within the conversation, Naruto's face turned to a frown. "Why are you so sure about Sasuke?"

"You're on first name basis now?" The beautiful lilac eyed male smirked.

"Never mind where I'm with him," Naruto countered. "How do you know that?"

"Well, I didn't meet him from the underworld so you can relax. I met him when I was a kid; he was one of the heirs to the Uchiha fortune. He and his brother, Itachi."

"Ooh."

"But never mind all that, you should keep your distance from him," Neji insisted with a straight face.

Folding his hands, the chef puffed out his cheeks. "Why does everyone keep on telling me that? Sasuke is a good person who is intelligent, charming – and I happen to have a great time with him."

"Yeah, no one said anything about his charming personality, but you need to know something. That dude, his parents alongside his big brother, they all died in a car accident when he was eight. Apparently he was the only survivor, everyone else died."

Naruto's whole body shook with that news. Since he knew Sasuke, Sakura had told him many times to question the male about his intimate information, but it always felt like Sasuke was keeping him away. Even when the pink haired girl had brought him info on Sasuke, he refused to listen. Now, being told all this, it all fell into place. Why Sasuke didn't like going home, why he sometimes stared at nothing whenever Naruto talked about his old man, and why he never told Naruto anything personal about him. Every sort of action now made sense, at least in some ways.

The businessman had no family to speak of. All those who he'd loved perished in a single day. How hard must that topic be for him to speak about? How hard was it for him to live his life surrounded by people pitying him or subjecting him to the torture of that accident?

The blond felt his eyes well up with hidden tears. He didn't want to cry and show his sorrow, it didn't feel right. Sasuke wasn't the one sharing this important information with him, crying behind his back like this, feeling sorry for him like this, it wasn't right. He wouldn't want it for himself. When his own father and last forte in life had died, people kept on treating him like broken glass, and he hated every minute of it. So right now, he shouldn't do it to his friend… he shouldn't be feeling sorrow for the brave soul that was Sasuke.

Uchiha Sasuke was an intelligent, strong and lovely person. The months they'd spent together had shown him the true strength behind that poker face. For the love of him, Naruto refused to shed a single tear and tarnish that strength with pity.

Wiping his eyes before his tears got a chance to fall down, Naruto directed a strong gaze to his friend.

"I appreciate you telling me all this and I know you're saying it because you're concerned about me, but please don't. If Sasuke doesn't tell me about this himself, I don't want to know."

Naruto stood up and, before Neji could muster a reply, he was out of the maid café. The long haired male just looked at the space his friend was sitting in a few seconds ago and put rubbed his temples, before muttering.

"I didn't get to the part of the warning yet, Naruto…"

Thanks for reading, waiting for your reviews~