Glad you guys like this! I have completed the plot for the entire story, and hope to complete it in 15 chapters, so if all goes according to plan, there should be eight more chapters after this one! Let's see if this works!
Chapter 7: Escape The Fate
Previously, on Another Man's Treasure:
"You …should have left while... while you had the ...chance," Sasuke whispered harshly into Hinata's ear as he breathed in the scent of her warm skin and hair. Her breathing was as erratic as his was, and every time she inhaled, her chest brushed against his.
"Haa...haa... S...Sasuke? Wh-What...?" she gasped, blinking her large grey eyes up at him.
"You should have taken the out I'd given you," Sasuke rasped. "Because there is no way I am letting you escape me now. And that is a promise."
If Sasuke was a lesser man, he could easily have fooled himself into thinking that Hinata was in his house of her own accord. Easily. Of course, he never gave her any reason to hate being there... apart from her usual dislike of him anyway. He never touched her without fair warning, he was never rough, and he never did more than kiss her, even though he sure as hell wanted to.
He did, however, keep her from leaving. And he could tell that she could only take so much more of that. If the constant longing gazing of the outside was any indication. If the perpetual sighing was any indication. If the downward turn to her mouth was any indication. If the way she didn't speak to him unless he forced her to was any indication.
And Sasuke would have let her go. He would have allowed her to go home and pick up her things, her clothing her little trinkets and books... but he was scared.
Petrified.
Sasuke was absolutely terrified that if he let her go home, that if he gave her that small amount of freedom, she would wriggle and struggle until she broke free and left him alone again. Sasuke paused, kitchen knife suspended above the bacon he was cutting into small squares as he heard yet another of her sighs. She was sitting by the window, looking out at the road below, her smaller frame ensconced in one of his dark T-shirts. Sasuke rested the knife down, feeling shame spread across his insides.
It had been a week.
He'd held on to her for a week.
He dropped her to and picked her up from work, having no issues with her family, since it was pretty much decided that they were to wed soon. She was always reluctant, but she wasn't a rebel, so there was pretty much nothing she could do.
"Hinata..." he said softly. It took her a while to turn around, but when she did, Sasuke's heart squeezed as the blankness in the grey orbs.
"Yes?" The word was so soft he almost didn't hear it.
He felt like the monster he was.
"You can... you can go home to get your stuff... if you want." The words squeezed reluctantly out of his throat, and fear squeezed his heart in a vice grip. Sasuke watched the light begin to shine in her eyes with mixed feelings.
On one hand, it was really good to do something that made the light in her eyes shine again... But on the other hand, it made him feel even more alone because the reason her eyes were bright was because she was happy to be free of him for a time. Sasuke suddenly wished he had more to cut, chop, stab... mutilate. He wanted to vent. But he knew the feelings would stay no matter what he did.
That's what he got for taking what he wanted.
"R-Really?" she asked, half-rising from her perch on the couch. "When?" Sasuke clenched his teeth together before responding.
"After breakfast," he said shortly, beginning to slice the bacon with more gusto than was needed. There was a rush of indescribable feelings in his chest... bad feelings that wouldn't go away.
"O-Okay!" she said, sounding the brightest she'd sounded since...Since he'd known her. She never spoke to him using that tone, and now that she did... it was because she was getting away from him, if only for a time.
Was his company that bad?
Was he that loathsome a person?
Apparently he was.
Sasuke swallowed the niggling lump in his throat and tried to push his full attention to the breakfast... but his thoughts were filled with Hinata and why she didn't want to stay anywhere near him; why she, like everyone else, wanted to leave.
And like he did every night when he thought about who he was, why he did what he did, and how Hinata... how she reacted, one thing always stayed the same, confusing him more than anything.
She'd been the one to kiss him that night. He hadn't initiated it. She had. Just when he was on the brink of giving up and accepting the reality that he was made to be alone, that he was made to be discarded by everyone who knew him, that it was perhaps his fate that he spend his life in solitude, she'd kissed him.
And she'd made him hope.
And it was so hard to let that hope go. He wanted so very badly for his hope to... for...
Sasuke winced in pain as the knife sliced through his fingertip.
"Shit," he spat. Before he even knew it, his eyes flickered over to Hinata. Would she care? Would she do anything to feed the hope inside himself that she probably cared about him... even a little? Hinata looked up, saw him holding his finger, but didn't come over to him. Sasuke turned his back before she could see the raw pain coursing through him.
She didn't care.
He should have been used to this by now.
Sasuke clenched his jaw against the burn in his chest and stuck his finger under the kitchen faucet. He tended to his finger, hating himself for believing, for hoping that one little pity kiss meant anything in the grand scheme of things. And the pain was back in full force, clawing its way up his throat and jaw.
But Sasuke refused to let it out. He refused to let her know how much it pained him to feel alone.
The young Uchiha wrapped his finger with a band-aid, washed off the knife and cleared away the pieces of bacon that might have gotten some of his blood on them. He resumed cutting, training his eyes on the task and not giving in to the need to look at Hinata. To see if she was displaying any signs of being concerned about him.
He already knew she didn't. So it would do him no good to look and then be even more sure... because he didn't quite know what he would do with himself otherwise.
Sasuke put the bacon bits to fry, making sure he didn't look at Hinata even once while he did. Not that it made much of a difference, his refusal to look, because her image was implanted in his brain. Still, his heartbeats were slow and heavy, thudding painfully in his chest. Sasuke lifted one hand from the handle of the frying pan and clutched at his chest, trying to distract himself from his pain, his fingers pressing so hard that the crescent imprints of his nails were left in his skin.
Kami, this was excruciating.
If Sasuke thought the pain would fade by the time he ate, it didn't. Even clearing the dishes from the table with Hinata, the hurt was constant... unforgettable. He hadn't been able to look at her for the entire meal, keeping his gaze glued to his plate. He hadn't said anything to her. She hadn't said anything to him. It had been quiet, even more so because she finished eating long before he did.
It was obvious that she wanted to go. And Sasuke ate slower because he wanted her to stay.
"So... I'll drop you there now..." Sasuke said softly, hating how rapt her attention was now that...
"And you can drive back over when you have... enough for the week," Sasuke continued, cutting off his own thoughts. He refused to give in to the sigh that begged for release. Instead, he rinsed the dishes, brushed his teeth and pulled on a shirt before grabbing his keys.
Sasuke tried not to notice how Hinata almost... bounded to the car. He couldn't bring himself to look at her the entire way, knowing how increasingly happy she must be the closer she got to her house.
And the fear multiplied.
When Sasuke slowed near the gate to her house, his eyes slid over to her, and his breath caught in his throat because her hand was already on the handle of the door. She was so eager to get away. Sasuke snapped his gaze back to the road, taking a deep, quiet breath.
The door was open the moment he stopped the car, and Hinata quickly unclipped her seat belt and slid from the car.
"I'll be... waiting," Sasuke said before she was completely out. She looked back, gave him a small nod, and then shut the car door firmly. Sasuke watched, his hands trembling on the steering wheel as she ran up the drive, and disappeared inside the house when the large front door opened.
He swallowed before putting the car out of park and pulling away.
What if she didn't come back?
Hinata almost cried from happiness when she saw the inside of her room. She flung herself on her bed, drinking in the scent of her own house and the feel of her own bed. She'd missed her room like never before, and even though she had been away from home for longer than a week before, it had never been against her will.
And she had to leave again.
She couldn't help comparing her room to Sasuke's house. Her room was light purple, and had cheerful yellow ornaments inside it. It was girly, but she liked it that way, and it had a bathroom adjoining it. It was her own perfect space.
The thought occurred to her that she could stay. She could refuse to go back.
Before she could completely immerse herself in her room, there was a sharp rap on the door.
"Yes?" she called a little breathily. She was so happy to be here, she was willing to see anyone. She would just love any break from Sasuke's darkness. The door opened, and her father stepped into her room.
"You are home," Hiashi said, a slight note of disapproval in his tone.
"I... Y-Yes, father," Hinata stuttered. "I c-came home f-for some c-clothing." Hiashi leveled a flat grey gaze at her before nodding.
"Very well, then. Do not keep Uchiha waiting," he said, before leaving the room and shutting the door firmly behind him.
She couldn't stay here.
This time, Hinata let herself cry.
It had been five hours since he'd dropped her at her house, and Sasuke knew every single detail about his front door.
He'd been staring at it for hours.
She wasn't coming back, was she? The fear was beyond suffocating. It choked him. His hope taunted him; mocked him. Every time he heard a car, he found himself moving to look, only to be disappointed when it wasn't her. After the fifteenth car, he found himself just listening... listening and hoping. And his hope was still crushed every time the car passed his gate, the sound of its engine getting softer as it drove away.
After a while, he'd fallen asleep.
Which is why he almost fell off the sofa when someone knocked on the door. Sasuke's heart was in his throat when he got up. Did he dare hope that it was Hinata? Sasuke moved as slowly as he dared, and opened the door. His obsidian gaze met a light grey one.
She was back.
He let her in, turning his face slightly away so that she didn't see the expression on his face. He felt like he could hardly breathe. He had been expecting her to stay away - he realized that now. And now that she was back, he had no idea what to do with himself. He didn't know what to think. He didn't know if he should let himself hope.
He grabbed her hand as she passed, letting his fingers slide down the smooth skin so he could take her heavy bag for her. He lifted it from her hands, tuning and carrying it for her to the room he'd given her. She followed wordlessly behind him.
When the handle of the heavy bag left his fingers, Sasuke turned to face her. He took a step towards her, carefully watching to see her response to his approach. He took her chin in his hand and lifted it, dipping his head slowly to kiss her. His dark eyes darted over her face, watching for any sign that would tell him whether or not she was receptive or not. When she flinched and turned her face slightly away, Sasuke let his hand slide from her face. It dropped limply to his side before his fingers curled into a fist.
The disappointment was like a kick to his chest.
He stepped away slightly, his eyes taking in the... bitterness in her eyes when she raised her gaze to his.
"Welcome back," he found himself sneering before he stalked away from her and went for a drink. He paused outside the doorway when he heard her sigh. She didn't know he was still there, so she probably wasn't talking to him, but her words were still like daggers when Sasuke heard them.
"...Father made me..."
Two more weeks had passed that Hinata was with Sasuke. She was lying to Ino, acting as if everything was fine, because she didn't want her friend to get involved in this mess too. She didn't want Ino offering her remedies she would be too weak to act on. She still hadn't responded to Naruto.
The blonde had not ceased to message her, but she couldn't bring herself to respond. It would be like torture, seeing him, speaking to him when she knew that she couldn't have him. Sasuke and her father would see to that.
Hinata angrily flung her clothing into the bag. He'd been letting her out of his house every few days to come home and get more stuff, but even then he was like a prison warden, calling ahead 'so Hiashi would be expecting her'. The way Hinata saw it, it translated as 'so you can't escape me'.
She should never have kissed him.
Hinata groaned, tears stinging her eyes. She was so foolish. So, so foolish. He'd looked so wounded, confessing his solitude, that she'd just... acted on instinct. It was a good thing she hadn't let her instinct take her away again when he'd cut his hand two weeks before. She had felt his eyes on her, she knew he saw her looking at him, but then he'd turned sharply away from her and tended to his injury himself before her conscience could kick in and make her attend to him.
The sound of an old motor outside had Hinata's heart clenching in misery as the memory of Naruto and his battered pickup. The time she'd spent with him had just been the absolute best.
She missed him.
Hinata was in an all out bawl by then, her sobs so loud they drowned out the sound of voices downstairs. The thought that someone could hear her had Hinata resorting to burying her face in one of her pillows to muffle the sounds. It wasn't as if Sasuke was a horrible roommate. He cleaned up after himself, he cooked, he washed. She only had to take care of her things. But Sasuke's house was like a barren wasteland. And it was worse when he attempted to show some sort of affection and all Hinata could feel inside herself was bitterness.
She no longer gave into his attempts to kiss her, and refused to let him touch her if she could help it. She knew that he felt bad sometimes, but... but it was torture for her there. Every moment away from Naruto who she wanted to be with, and who she was certain wanted to be with her too, was torture. Sasuke had yanked her away from her love, and threatened it, so she didn't feel even one stab to her conscience that she refused to like him.
She couldn't make herself like him.
To be honest, the longer she stayed there, the more of Naruto's messages that she read and couldn't respond to, the more she despised Uchiha Sasuke.
Hinata wiped her eyes, missing Naruto so much she could hear his raspy voice calling her name in her head.
Sounded so real, too.
The voices outside her room had risen to an all out argument, and then there was a loud slam of a door, then silence.
Hinata gave a shaky sigh and reached for the blouse she'd been folding. She continued with her packing, her hands listless.
Hinata heard something at the window, the sound frightening her, especially when tanned fingers pushed it up and open. Before Hinata could even scream, Naruto was tumbling head first into her room.
"Long time no see... or hear," Naruto said after righting himself on Hinata's bedroom floor. She looked shocked to see him. "What," he chuckled. "They don't call me a knucklehead for nothing. You really thought I would give up just because you didn't respond to any of my messages?" the blonde continued, grinning at the dark haired woman before him.
He stood and walked over to the shell-shocked female, slapping large palms firmly to her small shoulders.
"Where have you been? Every time I come here, your sister or your dad says that you are 'out', and you always seem to actually be gone. So where have you been?" Naruto asked, his tone filled with concern as he looked down into her face. He watched her take in a shaky breath, before she was sobbing, and launching herself at him.
Naruto caught her easily as she flung her arms around him and sobbed into the crook of his neck. He wrapped his bulky arms around her, folding her into his expansive chest and letting her cry. His heart ached for her. What had she been through to make her body shake like this as she wailed? What had Sasuke done?
"Hey... don't do this to me, Hinata-chan," Naruto croaked, feeling his throat close up. Kami, he had missed this woman. He tightened his arms around her and buried his face into her neck, feeling hot tears sting his eyes.
"I... I m-missed you N-Naruto-k-kun!" she gasped against his skin.
"I missed you too," Naruto whispered back, pulling back his head so that he could crush his lips to hers.
Her response was immediate, and Naruto felt like he was in heaven. Her lips parted even before his did, and Naruto gave in easily to what she was asking of him. He'd dreamed of this moment, of seeing her again, and the actual thing made the dream pale in comparison. It made all his determination worth it.
Her mouth was hot and wet, and Naruto had to consciously pace himself so that their kiss would remain soft and gentle. It stayed that way, their tongues sliding sweetly against each other's, hands sliding up and down each other's backs, hot breath mingling and small moans filling their ears like music.
Then Naruto's feet were moving of their own accord, and he had her up against the door of her room in seconds. He bent slightly, lifting her up against him so he didn't have to crane his neck to reach her. Her legs wrapped around his hips, and their kiss broke when he hoisted her upwards and she gasped.
"N-Naruto-kun," she gasped, lips damp and face flaming. Naruto only grinned before crushing her lips with his.
This kiss was nothing near gentle.
Hinata had been so wrong.
She had to admit that now.
Naruto's kiss was just as eloquent as Sasuke's had been. He only had different emotions to express. When his tongue swept over hers to explore her mouth, Hinata was still unable to decipher exactly what was being conveyed. But whereas Sasuke's kiss had made her ache inside, Naruto's kiss made her feel like she could fly. It was like her body lost all its weight, like gravity had no effect on her, and the scent of the man before her filled her senses and made her cry.
With happiness.
Then she was kissing back just as ferociously as he was. Their moans were no longer soft; in fact, the sounds had begun to penetrate the haze in Hinata's head that she hadn't even realized was there.
Her heart was racing in her chest, but it was the type of racing that made her feel like she could do anything.
Too soon Naruto was pulling away, his heart racing just as fast as hers was, his skin just as hot as hers was, his breathing just as unsteady, his eyes just as dark, his fingers gripping her just as tightly as she was gripping him.
They were on the same page.
Naruto reluctantly let her down, her back sliding against the wood of the door.
"Now, you gonna tell me where you been?" Naruto rasped, blinking rapidly in an effort to clear his eyes and head. Hinata knew this because she was doing the same thing.
"I was... at Sasuke's house," she breathed, grey eyes locking onto bright cerulean. "I w-was coming over.. t-to see you b-but he s-saw me... and..."
"How long were you there?" Naruto asked, his blue eyes darkening. His broad shoulders stiffened, muscles rippling beneath his black T-shirt.
"About th-three w-weeks now," Hinata stuttered, unable to meet Naruto's eyes.
"You were coming to see me three weeks ago? You tried to... I knew it," Naruto said, eyes flicking up to the roof as he slammed his fist into an open palm. "Wait..." he said, eyes dropping back to hers. "Did you... you and Sasuke, uh..." he sputtered, face reddening.
"No!" Hinata exclaimed, hand reaching out so her fingers could curl over Naruto's brawny forearm. "No..." she repeated, more quietly. "We kissed... several times... but...I only want to... with... with you..." she managed, face heating up to epic proportions.
Naruto's face brightened, and he chuckled. Then his face fell.
"You kissed him... where does that leave us? I mean... I'd hate to have you kiss him.. more than... than you kiss me..." Naruto muttered under his breath, actively pouting. It was the cutest thing Hinata had ever seen... and it was kinda hot too!
She giggled.
"We... can... I can... make it up to you...?" she suggested, before her face fell. She had to go back to Sasuke's house soon.
"Hinata? What is it?" Naruto asked, large warm hands reaching forward to cup her face. It was surprising how gentle the large, calloused hand of a construction worker could be.
"I... h-have to go back there... He w-won't let me leave..." Hinata whimpered, unable to look at Naruto. When she did, his eyes were so dark they were almost black.
"He's keeping you there... against your will?" the blonde asked, light brows pulling together. The expression on his face could only be described as thunderous, and considering his sunny hair and sky-like eyes, it was an apt description.
"H-Hai... W-Well... my f-father makes me g-go back... Sasuke always... c-calls so that he kn-knows I'm h-here... and my f-father calls b-back when I l-leave..." Hinata whimpered, tears spilling from her eyes as she relayed the information to Naruto. He pulled her against his chest.
"You don't have anywhere to go, do you?" Naruto whispered, obviously trying as best he could to understand the situation. Hinata shook her head against his warm pectorals, unable to do so much as speak.
"Damn that selfish bastard," Naruto growled. "You can stay with me. No pressure or anything. You can just hide out at mine if you like... until you sort out what you wanna do... I mean... I wanna be with ya too, Hinata, but I'll take myself from the table if my interests put you under too much pressure... I mean..." he faltered, as if he really didn't want to say what he just said, and Hinata didn't mind that.
"I want you on the t-table..." she said in a tiny voice, both of them chuckling slightly at the innuendo. Naruto tenderly wiped the tears from Hinata's eyes, his coarse thumbs more soothing than anything else Hinata had ever felt.
"So what d'you say, Hinata? Want to give ol' Sasuke the slip and come with me?" Naruto asked softly, looking deeply into Hinata's eyes.
Woohoo! Thought this was gonna be shorter! Welcome back Naruto, ne, for all the NaruHina shippers. Whatever will happen NAOO? *teehee I already know, so I'm just teasing* Let the freakin' drama begin! And please do check out my other stuff if you haven't already. I suggest:
The Continency Plan
The Phone Call and Helpline
I Wish You Would Look at Me and
The Confession
For more SasuHina goodness!
Please, let the reviews come forth!
Unbetaed, because I have to attend to RL stuffs!
