For A Cup Of Caramella

The lights of their apartment was dim, but especially lit on the balcony. With the warmth of the night, it was no wonder that his brother was still awake and enjoying the light breeze. He liked nights like these.

He also liked to stay awake until his little brother came home. In the end, he was his responsibility. And the task of being a big brother was given to him by his mother. Which meant he had to fulfil it, because he would never dare to disappoint her. She just deserved that.

And he just as loved his brother with all his heart, which meant he enjoyed his task.

Sasuke opened the apartment door. He strolled through the village after bringing Sakura home. He needed to clear his mind, after all.

The barista took his shoes and jacket off. After announcing that he was home, he went to his room to change into comfortable clothes and made his way to his brother, who was sitting in their balcony, swaying on their Hollywood swing.

"Nii-san?"

Chapter 10

"The Night after their Date"

"Nii-san?"

"Sasuke."

Itachi´s voice was as smooth and thick and golden as honey. If Sasuke´s voice was cutting through things, Itachi´s was melting through them. It was the way his baritone let out a deep and clear sound, not as grumbling as Sasuke´s. It promised warmth, sympathy and patience. He was a welcoming human being, and Sasuke just needed someone like that.

The younger Uchiha sat down next to his brother while his mouth let out a deep sigh.

"Rough day?", Itachi asked. The brothers swayed in sync on the swing.

"Not rough. More exhausting."

There was no eye contact shared while they talked. Being already connected through blood as brothers, they didn´t need a further connection to understand each other.

"You don´t seem physically exhausted."

"Don´t come to me with your psychology crap."

Itachi chuckled lightly. "Something definitely wracked your brain mentally."

The barista rolled his eyes.

"I know that you´re studying psychology, stop referring everything to it."

"We´re made and controlled by our mentality, Sasuke. You can´t deny that. You´re too smart for that."

"I´m street smart, not school smart like you."

They bathed in a comfortable silence until Itachi closed his eyes and continued speaking.

"How was the date?"

There was no answer.

Itachi talked again. "I thought so."

Sasuke hesitated a little. What happened today was too much to sum up quickly. "It´s … hard to explain."

"Then take your time. You´re not working tomorrow, are you?" As the older brother that he was, Itachi needed to make sure his brother rested well. Itachi always thought that his brother worked too much anyways.

"In the afternoon."

"Ah. Then we have time. Think it through, then talk to me about it."

This was one of the things Sasuke was very grateful for of Itachi. He was the most patient man Sasuke knew, and the most understanding. If not for Itachi, the young barista would´ve never achieved anything in his life. Itachi was the pillar he leaned on to.

"I didn´t mean for you to think until dawn you know."

Sasuke gasped a little scandalized, then gave his brother the stink eye. "Well, if you don´t intend to listen to me, I can always-"

Itachi chuckled deeply. "You haven´t changed a bit, otouto." Sasuke blinked, dumbfounded. "You´ve always been a hothead and too resentful for your own good."

Sasuke averted his eyes to the front, ignoring what his brother just said. He hated it when Itachi stated that he always knew what was on his brother´s mind.

Itachi let a little silence settle in, to let Sasuke cool down a little.

"So … the date?"

Sasuke sighed. "It was … alright. Just like any other date. Just … alright. If not for …"

"… Yes?"

"If not for … the overall atmosphere, the thoughts, the …" The feels.

Itachi nodded. "I suspected this would happen, sooner or later that is."

The younger Uchiha turned his head to look at his brother questioningly.

"You´re overwhelmed with all the real feelings you seem to feel for that woman. Sakura, was it?"

"What do you mean by ´real´?" Sasuke didn´t need to answer the question, because Itachi already knew of course. The reason might or might not have been that Sasuke didn´t want to really elaborate on that topic.

"I dare say you´ve never thought of anything more than little flings with all the girls you´ve ever dated, to satisfy your hormonal urges at that time-"

"Hey, watch out what you´re saying!", Sasuke hissed.

"-because you clearly didn´t have anything else to do when you were younger, like going to school properly-"

"Itach-"

"-or other things. What I mean is there were never feels involved in any of your past relationships. Or deep connections. You were searching for someone to fill that lonely gap in your heart, but in the wrong ways a teenager is seduced to do."

Sasuke didn´t answer to that. He knew his brother was right, but he wouldn´t give him the reassuring satisfaction of being the all-knowing-older brother. Sasuke was too proud for that.

"You might as well don´t quite sense the difference now, since you haven´t had the chance to get too involved with Sakura, but your feelings will grow, Sasuke."

"What´s got into you today? And how do you want to know that? You´re not me."

Itachi grinned now, from ear to ear. "Foolish little brother. I know you. I´m your older brother. Besides, this is the first time you step up to my feet to get advice out of me in the matter of women."

A gasp. "I didn´t do that."

"You´re just too proud to accept it."

"As if."

Silence filled the balcony. The brothers continued swaying on the swing, enjoying each other´s company. More Sasuke, really. Most of his life, there was always this person missing who he could go to anytime if he needed to get the burdens in his heart out.

Still, it was very hard to get this burden out.

Sasuke leaned onto his knees with his arms, deep in concentration.

The swaying stopped.

"I…", Sasuke started. "I really don´t know what to do."

Itachi nodded, but he didn´t say anything. It was only a matter of time for Sasuke to open up to him.

"It´s … It´s so easy to just spend time with her. I tried to hold myself back in the beginning, but … I just couldn´t. It´s like when she´s around I just lose myself to her. It´s because she makes me feel … comfortable around her." Sasuke´s eyebrows knitted together. "She always had that atmosphere around her, from day one. Where she goes she like… She makes people smile and feel welcomed and …"

And loved.

"She just has this lightness around her. I really don´t know, nii-san."

At this point, Sasuke held his head in his hands, his back bent. Itachi reached forward and patted his shoulder.

"Things will get clear, don´t worry. You remember when I refused to step to the next level with Izumi?"

Sasuke sat up again, and nodded.

"But it´s not the same. I told you what she thinks about civilians." Sasuke´s hands balled into fists. "She probably thinks I´m just a weak excuse of a man."

"Don´t build up complexes around you.", the older Uchiha chided his brother. "You can offer her more than you think. Just like I offer Izumi things, even within my condition."

Sasuke lightly flinched at this. He attempted to mumble an apology, but was cut off immediately by Itachi.

"Stop apologizing. Those times are over, and I´m still alive and can visit the toilet on my own. Also, it didn´t happen on purpose, so there´s no need for me either to accept your apologies."

Sasuke sighed. "Hn."

"So", Itachi went on. "You say the big deal between you two is the fact that she´s a ninja and you´re a civilian? So what? Izumi lives on the other end of Konoha and we´re still together."

Sasuke shook his head. "She only thinks of me as a good friend. There´s nothing else. And a civilian friend, at that."

"Sasuke-"

"No, I´m not finished. Let me elaborate."

There was a shut of a mouth, and Itachi laid back and prepared for what was to come.

Sasuke popped his left leg up. The swaying started again.

"Our lives are different to such an extend that our definition of lives are completely different. Like, she never was on a fair her whole life. Can you imagine that?"

Itachi thought about it, then shook his head.

"I understand. And you never have gone on a mission."

"Exactly. I don´t mean that we don´t go along. It´s the total opposite. It´s so easy to talk to her … It´s just that our lives … that we don´t fit together."

Itachi´s eyebrows knitted together, but he remained silent.

"It doesn´t matter how close I am to her, I can´t reach her."

Silence.

"Why?"

"Because … because with her, I don´t know what the future will bring. How she´ll react to me … How I will affect her future …"

Itachi nodded, slowly. "You´re afraid to interfere in her life."

Sasuke stared into the distance. "Her dream is to become Hokage one day. She needs someone who can support her on that. Someone who is worth for the future Hokage. An elite ninja, the strongest ninja of the Leaf, someone like that."

He looked down on his hands.

"Not a former street smart bad boy like me … Not a simple barista like me …"

"That´s a very genuine thought of you. She must mean a lot to you, then. And don´t think so low of yourself. You´re a very caring person, deep down. Just listen to yourself worrying about your influence on her life."

Sasuke sighed.

"But", Itachi went on.

The younger Uchiha blinked when his brother made a long pause at that. Sasuke turned around to look at him, his curiosity rising.

"What if it´s the opposite way?"

The barista knitted his eyebrows together. "What do you mean?"

"I mean", Itachi started. "What if she is the one who wants to take a step further one day?"

Sasuke startled at that. He never thought of this possibility before.

"What if she wants to start a relationship?"

"That´s ridiculous. Sakura would never do that, she said so-"

"But what if? What will you do then?"

When there was no answer, but only a dark male looking into the distance with an uncertain, but hopeful expression on his face, Itachi stood up. He ruffled Sasuke´s hair before going inside.

"Think about it. This life is full of surprises. Especially love."

Love.

" … Just listen to yourself. It´s like you talk about politics or a business treatment. There is something you miss out. The most important thing."

"Which is?"

Sakura looked back at him, smiling honestly.

"Love."

Sasuke didn´t answer to that, giving Sakura space to elaborate.

"I think if someone really loves somebody, he or she wouldn´t mind the bad behaviour or quirks of their partner."

"That´s not how real life works."

"You can´t understand because you are a man."

Sasuke snorted. "So, you say if there is someone you love, you will endure every bad thing he does?"

Sakura didn´t need to think about that. "Of course."

"Even if he hurts you?"

"You don´t understand, dummy." Sakura turned around a little, to face Sasuke better. "It´s not about what I get back in return. It´s about what I already feel for the person." Sakura rested her arm on the back of the bench. "If someone really loves somebody, the person would do everything to get their love onto the right track. They would endure so long as it takes for their partner to love them back. … "

His brotherly duty was done, and now it was Sasuke´s task to decide what to understand of this conversation.

"Here´s the report."

Documents and pictures in dark envelops and files were thrown on a just as dark office desk. There were more of them as well, all of them gathered together for the same purpose.

The owner of the desk who sat by it on his chair spoke up to the man who brought him the files.

"How is the general situation?"

"The times of visit increase, even until late at night. So are the conversation and the meetings. Today, they spend almost ten hours together. I assume they were on a date."

The man by the desk threw the picture he just held in his hands on his desk with the right force to make the picture slam on it. He exasperatedly stood up and let walked around his desk to his worker.

"You", he said, almost poking the man in front of him with his forefinger. "Will keep an eye on her. More intensely. I want to know every step she takes, every person she meets and every action she does. Especially when she is around that man. Tell the informants to gather all information they have on him. All information. Every little detail. From child- to adulthood, understand?"

With that, the worker nodded and exited the room. The boss grunted out loud and sighed through his nose. He turned around and looked at his desk. At the items on it.

The man stepped further towards his desk. He picked one item up. It was a picture.

It was a picture of a pink haired woman and a dark haired man. The man held her chin up with his fingers, both of them looking deeply into the other´s eyes. The woman held a soft candy in her hands, and there was a fair-like background around them.

The man crushed the picture in his hand.

Whoever you are, you are not going to win her over.

Fin.

So I have to say, the length of each chapter will change now and then. Depends on the topic and on the things I write. Honestly, I could´ve put this chap at the end of the other one, but it is an important one that changes everything, so yeah you see the turning point.

Also: For the ones who will possibly attack me because Sasuke was kind of a player in this fic, yeah, he was because he wasn´t quite right in the mind and didn´t have any ambitions like becoming a strong ninja. And most important, heh, after he got to know Sakura, he stopped with his business with girls.

What do you think of the brotherly relationship between Sasuke and Itachi? Did I portray it well?

Thanks for alllllllllll the reviewers and favs and follows again!^^

Beat.