Blue eyes crashed into pale green ones when the blond awakened. Yawning, he rolled out of bed and muttered, "Mornin', Gaara."

"Mornin'," Gaara responded quietly. He moved out of the way to allow Naruto to plant his feet firmly on the floor. Crossing the small room, he reached the door first. Opening it, he slipped out of the blond's bedroom without a word or even a backward glance.

Naruto yawned again, and lurched toward the bathroom to complete his morning routine, wondering when he had gotten so comfortable with waking up to Gaara's unsmiling face.

The first morning Naruto opened his eyes and saw Gaara leaning over him, he screamed and fell out of the bed.

"GAARA!" he yelped. "What are you doing in my room?"

Gaara shrugged. "Your snores intrigued me," the red haired man answered calmly. Naruto only groaned in response.

By the third morning, Naruto managed to stifle his alarm and stay seated on his bed. By the fifth morning, Naruto had come to expect – look forward to, really – seeing Gaara's face first thing in the morning. It was comforting, somehow, though the blond would never admit it.

He brushed his teeth slowly and mechanically, with his face scrunched up in deep concentration. Could he possibly be falling in love with Gaara?

"Of course not!" Naruto sputtered, spitting foamy toothpaste all over the sink and mirror. "He's a guy, a guy!" he shouted at himself. A guy, he thought, with smooth skin, beautiful green eyes, excellent abs and a pretty, perky-

Naruto slapped himself.


Gaara stared curiously at Naruto, who was inhaling his second cup ramen of the morning. "How can you eat that so early in the morning?" he asked his roommate while eying his own meager breakfast of dry toast.

"Because," the blond explained between slurps, "ramen is ramen!"

"That.. makes no sense," Gaara said, confounded.

"Well, anyhow," Naruto said, "today is payday. Whoo! And Iruka said we don't have to do anything until later this evening. Did you wanna do something? Go somewhere? Buy something?"

"I.. hadn't thought about it," Gaara answered truthfully. He looked down at his toast again, and decided against eating. The medicine he was taking to stay awake was killing his appetite. He poked a slice and wondered again if he was doing the right thing by staying with the blond.

"How come you're not eating?" Naruto's voice broke into Gaara's thoughts.

"What?" He jerked his head up and stared, open-mouthed, at Naruto.

"Your breakfast," Naruto pointed with his chopsticks. "You're not eating."

"I'm not.. very hungry.. this morning," Gaara said slowly.

Naruto frowned. "If you say so." He stood and collected his trash. "Well, if you're ready, let's go get paid!" He bounced into the kitchen, leaving Gaara sitting cross-legged on the floor, listlessly poking holes in his bread. With exaggerated slowness, the green eyed male got to his feet, and lifted his plate from the floor. He swayed slightly, and his vision blurred.

Shit, Gaara thought. I'm going to have to sleep soon. I'm beginning to lose control again.

You're a monster, his father's voice reminded him.

"Shut up," he muttered.

"Well, I'm sorry if I'm talking too much," Naruto huffed. "I'm just happy about getting paid."

Gaara twitched, having not heard his room mate walk up next to him. His grip slipped, and the plate he was holding fell to the floor and shattered into 3 pieces.

"Ah, geez, Gaara! Be careful! I paid a whole dollar for that plate."

Naruto dropped to his knees and begin to pick up the pieces of plate and bread. Gaara shook his head and dropped to a crouch next to the blond. "My apologies, Naruto. I will replace your plate with my pay. Let me clean this mess, as well."

"I've got it. And don't worry about the plate. It was only a dollar," Naruto flashed a bright grin at Gaara, and the red head felt his face grow warm.

"Naruto," he whispered.

"Hm?" Caught off guard by the serious expression on the other man's face, Naruto frowned. "I said, don't worry about the pla-" His protest was cut short by the forceful kiss Gaara planted on his lips. Before he could react, Gaara had pulled away, picked up half of the trashed plate and food, and walked swiftly into the kitchen to dispose of them.

"The hell?" Naruto wondered out loud. He quickly collected his share of the mess and wandered unsteadily into the small kitchen area to confront Gaara.

"What was that about?" he demanded.

The red haired man stood with his back to Naruto. Curling his hands into fists, he forced himself to say, "That was a thank you. For taking me in. But," he hesitated and then rushed on, "I don't think I can stay here anymore. With you."

"What? Why?" Naruto unceremoniously dumped everything in his hands into the trash bin and reached for Gaara's shoulder.

The red head was trembling.

Shocked, Naruto could only ask, "What's wrong with you?"

"I.. I can't explain it to you."

"But aren't we friends?" Naruto hated the pleading tone that crept into his speech, but there was nothing he could do about it. He felt a lump forming in his throat as he demanded an answer. "What'd I do?"

"It's not you, Naruto. Please believe that. I am grateful for the shelter and the kindness that you have shown me, but I must-"

"Shut up," Naruto growled.

Stunned, Gaara turned to face the blond. "Naruto-"

"I said, SHUT UP!" Naruto growled. He took another step toward his room mate, lifted his arms, and enveloped the the man in a fierce hug.