Desire's Darkness
Chapter 8 – Realization
Wake up... wake up... C'mon... it can't be that hard...
Actually, it is... it's extremely difficult...
But you need to wake up... something important is happening... you need to wake up...
How important could it be? What's more important than sleep?
Wake up!
Ok, ok, ok...
I take a breath and strain my ears for sound, forcing them to fight through the jumbled muffle that seems to be surrounding my whole body. Eventually, I can hear voices and hear their words. So I concentrate and focus as much as I can on those words. The feeling of needing to know what's going makes me listen quite intently despite how doped up I am.
"He's been asleep for weeks. He's 18 now. Naruto needs the proper care and to be looked after and you can't do that for him in your tiny apartment. He needs to come home with me!" an angry voice argues. It sounded deep, like the one I was listening to before... the one with the hands... those glorious, warm, hands...
"He despises you! Even after all you've put him through, you think he would want or like to wake up in your house? He would hurt himself all over again just trying to leave! He's coming home with me!"
"So you are willing to take responsibility for him, lose your job for spending so much time taking care of him? Willing to pay the medical bills for as long as he is unconscious and unable to make decisions? He would be better off with me, Sai-San... I can afford all of this and more...I am better suited."
"Why you arrogant FU-"
"Sai-San, please stop yelling. You know as well as I do that you can't take care of Naruto like I can."
"Yeah, you'll take care of him alright! Next thing I know, I'll never see him again because you'll turn him into your sex slave and doing your dirty deeds for the underworld, you dirty snake..."
"I can assure you that is not going to happen..."
I can hear the door open and another person walks in. Their footsteps are really loud...
"Have you two come to an agreement?" a different male asks. I assume it's a doctor.
"Sai, last chance... I can take care of Naruto easily with all the space and funds available at my disposal. You have a job and other things to worry about. You can't take care of Naruto; no matter how much you argue it... you know I'm the only one available to take him..." Well... I am convinced...
A sigh... "Yes... Naruto will hate me for agreeing with you but you're right... but the second anything fishy goes down or I hear a whisper of anything wrong and I'm taking him from you whether I'm able to or not!"
"Alright, we have a deal."
"So Uzumaki-San will be moved to your home then, Uchiha-San?"
"Yes. As soon as you are able to move him safely. I have plenty of space for him."
"Alright, transport will be arranged and we will notify you as soon as he wakes up and is deemed ready to go. Thank you for taking him, Uchiha-San. We have just been so busy with all the new admissions we just don't have the resources to take care of him here..."
"Oh no trouble at all. I understand. Just let me know when I can take him."
I hear the door again and footsteps fade down the hall. So...I'm leaving the hospital...
I can kind of comprehend that... but I still don't know who is who... Who is Sai-San? Who is Uchiha-San? The names just don't ring a bell right now... maybe too many drugs in my system? Maybe I am brain damaged? I don't know... Maybe... if I saw their faces?
I take a deep breath and force my eyes to open. It's still a struggle but not as much as it was the first time. The florescent lighting stings and I feel my eyes watering and burning. I wince and whimper but I still open them further. Again, I fight through the haze and fog clouding my vision. Its frustrating, having to fight to see all the time. The cloud is in my mind as well as my eyes. I feel like I'm swimming. It's the weirdest sensation... But finally I can kind of, somewhat, see. Its still foggy but I can see shapes and faces now.
I groan and roll my head to the side, exhausted. A man is sitting there. He is watching me intently with crimson eyes. He looks so familiar... So familiar it scares me. No, that's not right. He familiarity doesn't scare me. It's who he is that scares me... I don't quite remember why, but I'm scared of this man. I'm scared and tense and angry at him. Why? Couldn't tell you. But I am. However, I don't have the energy to show anything or do anything about it.
I look away and down at the man standing at the foot of my bed. He looks familiar too. I know him. I don't feel as scared of him. I don't feel scared at all actually. He looks like... uhm... nope, lost my train of thought. I look back at the man with the crimson eyes.
"Naruto? How are you feeling?" he asks, his deep voice sounding soft and velvety on my ears.
I lick my dry, cracked lips and open my mouth to speak and my voice croaks. I clear my throat rather painfully with a wince and try again, "I'm just peachy..." My voice is raspy and quiet. Ew... I sound like a skeleton and I can't imagine I look any better. How long have I been here for?
The man with crimson eyes smirks and hands me a cup of water with a straw. Water... the greatest nectar of the gods. After he helps he me sit up, I drink greedily. He has to fill the cup several times before I stop. I lay back and sigh, feeling way better. The drugs feel like they are wearing off and I can feel pain when I shift and move. So I look down and inventory myself for the first time.
My left leg is in a cast. My right arm and wrist is in a cast with both my hands bandaged to the extreme. I've got gauze and wrappings on my right leg. Noticing I'm wearing a hospital gown, I shift to take a peek underneath and see that my entire torso is encased with gauze and wrappings. Gods know how my face is looking.
I glance up at the 2 men, feeling very much confused. "What happened?"
The one at the foot of my bed glares at the other man before looking worriedly at me, "Naruto, you don't remember what happened at all? What's the last thing you remember?"
I pause and think for a moment, tilting my head to the side. Hmm... that's a good question. What was the last thing I remember? Let's see...School... I remember going to school... I had a good day for a change... I had been feeling pretty good. I remember my Dad murdering my... I remember the police station... staying with...hmm...who was I staying with?
Something about donuts... Oh! Sai! That's the man at the foot of my bed. I was staying with my Manager from Dunkin Donuts. School... running into Sasuke and then... that's all I got...
"School..." I croak. "I remember having a good day at school. I was listening to music going to Sai's house and... I ran into Sasuke... we argued I think..." my throat hurts and is dry again so I swallow desperately. The man with crimson eyes sadly hands me the cup of water again and I take a sip gratefully.
Sai moves to sit on the other side of me. "Naruto, Sasuke said you were trying to get away from him and you ran out into oncoming traffic... you got hit by a car..."
"That explains why I hurt like Hell," I muse to myself. I kind of remember that... What were we arguing about? What made me so mad that I ran into traffic? I try very hard to concentrate to remember...
Hmm... Something about his brother... Who's his brother? An older brother. Itchi? No. Some kind of bastard Uchiha I'm sure... WAIT! Uchiha?! I look over suddenly, realizing with shock who the man beside me is.
"You!" I yell. "You! I was mad cuz he traded me to you!" In my anger I try to sit up on my own and that turned out to be a huge mistake. I groan in pain and fall back onto the bed, sweating with the effort of dealing with it.
"Naruto! Hold still!" Sai pushes down on my chest as hard as he dared without hurting me more. But my eyes are only for Itachi.
"I remember now... You... you and your damn brother are the bane of my existance... whole reason why I am in the hospital!" I spit, shaking with fury. I turn my fury on Sai. "How long have I been here? What day is this?"
He flinches away from me, "It's been 3 weeks... It's October 29th..."
I pause, "I...I missed my birthday...?"
"Yeah... Sorry, Naruto."
I sigh and lose all my fight. I had been really looking forward to my 18th birthday.
"Listen though, the doctors are transporting you to another place. There's no room in the hospital at the moment and they are short staffed. Since you can breathe and wake up on your own now, they feel its safe for you to go as long as you're under constant supervision," Sai explains carefully.
Looking at him tiredly, I nod. "I heard..."
"So...you know you're going to stay with Uchiha, right?"
My anger flares but I'm getting so sleepy, so tired I can't really react. My eyes droop closed. "Yeah...I'll punch him later..."
...
I'm sorry for making you all wait! And I know this chapter is kinda short and it hasn't really gone anywhere... I promise it'll be more exciting as Naruto starts recovering!
Anyways, please read and review! I'd love to know what you guys think!
Love you all,
TLC
