A/n: Howdy.
Disclaimer: Own nothing except the plot, what little there is, and the actions of the characters therein. And the typos. I own the typos. Please ignore them.
"It's okay, baby. Just remember that I love you."
"Mommy? Mommy, what's happening?" The child blinked as thick, red liquid dripped from his mother's beautiful face and onto to his. He licked his lips: blood. His mother was bleeding. "Mommy, why are you bleeding? Did you fall down and hurt yourself?"
Bright red hair, matted with blood, drifted across his face. "I'm so sorry, baby. I'm sorry, Naruto." She saw the red droplets that were sliding down her child's face, and her hand flew to her mouth.
"Mommy?" He felt his bed shudder as the wall behind it shook; something slammed into the house from the outside. His eyes went wide as his father stumbled into the room, holding a hand to his side.
"Kushina!" he yelled. "Get Naruto out of here!"
"Minato," the woman whimpered, her eyes filling with tears. "My blood...he…"
The tall, blond-haired man snatched the young boy out of bed, and hugged him fiercely. "I'm so sorry, my son. This is all my fault. Be a good boy, okay? Here," he said, grabbing a stuffed frog and pressing it into Naruto's little hands. "Take Gamabunta; he'll look after you. Kushina! Open the window! He's gonna have to jump." He turned back to his son. "Son, listen to me. Your mom and I… we love you, so very much. But you have to go. Go to Mr. Sarutobi's house."
"Daddy! Mommy!" Naruto screamed as Minato dangled him out of the window over the shrubbery below. "Don't let me go! DADDY! MOMMY!"
"MOMMY!" Naruto thrashed in bed, his limbs flailing in terror. He fist connected with something solid. A grunt of pain teased his ears. His screams were muffled by a familiar weight and scent.
Sasuke. Sasuke was holding him, rocking him, humming a song in his ear. Naruto slowly opened his eyes, panting. He was adult. He was fine. He was fine.
His shook when he spoke. "Sa-Sauke?"
"I'm here. I have you. I am not going to let go." He spoke slowly, soothingly, as to not alarm his lover any further. He waited, patiently, for the spell of the night to break, angry again at what his boyfriend had suffered in life.
Naruto shivered, his sweat-covered skin rapidly cooling in the chilly room. "Talk to me," he demanded.
"Hn. What about?"
"Anything. The party. Neji and Lee looked good together, right? Maybe they can make it, this time."
"Hn. The Hyuuga has some soul-searching to do, but if he's truly honest with himself, it should work."
As they talked, the sun rose majestically above Konoha, shining its rays on friend and foe alike. All across the city, people were awakening, eager to begin the day. Some took a less than thrilled view of the dawn, choosing to burrow under quilts and pillows, hoping to be lulled into sleep once again. A few were not waking up, having not been to sleep in the first place, and were using the time to make plans and curse rivals.
And then, there was Neji Hyuuga, who woke up alone in a bed he should not have been in, and panicked.
He touched the pillow and sheets next to him; they were cold. If Lee had slept at his side, he was long gone. "Lee?" Neji called softly as he sat up. He raked a hand through his unbound hair, rubbed his bare chest, relaxed slightly upon noticing that he wore pants, and flung the covers away from his legs. He slipped bare feet onto the carpet and pushed himself away from the bed, intent on looking for his… He paused, one foot off of the floor. What was Lee to him now? "Friend" didn't seem to encompass everything, yet "lover" and "boyfriend" were much too intimate for the farce they were living. Yet, after the intimacy they'd shared the night before, were they truly still faking it?
"Lee?" Neji called again, spurred into action by the silence and his confusion. He made his way through the chilly apartment, checking every room. Lee was not there. Thinking, Neji checked the shoes lined up at the front door; Lee's green running were missing. "He must have gone running," Neji mused to himself. "And after I said I'd go with him." Sighing, spun on his heel. There was a toothbrush with his name on it, and he planned to use it.
Moments later, freshened up and properly dressed, Neji unplugged his phone from the charger on the kitchen counter and poked at the screen. He had no messages, no missed calls, nothing. Not even so much as an email. With a frown, he logged into a few apps, checking to make sure he still had service. He wouldn't put it past his uncle to pull several strings and revoke even the simplest of comforts, no matter if the bill was in Neji's name. If it had been paid for with Hyuuga finances, Hiyashi reasoned, then it belonged to only those who rightfully and proudly carried the Hyuuga name. With a grimace, Neji remembered his strong, proud words to his family patriarch. Maybe Lee was right, and he should apologize?
"I'm going to regret this, aren't I?" Satisfied that his cell service had not, indeed, been disconnected, he called the only person he could think of at the moment.
"This better be good, Hyuuga," Sasuke's annoyed voice floated over the line.
"Technically, I'm not a Hyuuga anymore."
"Technically, I don't give damn. What do you want?"
Neji listened as Naruto reprimanded Sasuke for being rude to their friend, then said, "When I woke up, Lee wasn't here."
"He runs in the morning," came the quick reply.
"I know, but…" He sighed. "I think I may have made a mistake last night."
"What did you do, Neji?"
"I woke up in his bed," he mumbled. Cutting off the sharp rebuke he knew was coming, he rushed in with, "But it's not what you think!"
"If you hurt him, Neji, I swear-" Naruto's voice came blasting through the line.
Neji winced at the volume. "I didn't! I don't think I did, in any case. There was some-"
"Spare me the details," Sasuke sputtered, having regained control of the phone. "Are you sure he didn't leave a note? Maybe he expected to be back before you woke up."
Pale eyes roamed the obvious places: the counter tops, the refrigerator, the middle of the table; he spotted nothing, and said as much.
"Be patient. He'll come back when he's hungry; Naruto always does," Sasuke said with a dry chuckle.
"I heard that, you bastard!"
"I see," Neji said. He really did see; back in high school, Naruto was likely to follow anyone home if they offered him ramen. He'd nearly gotten into some serious scrapes by doing so. He listened to the good-natured squabbling of his loverbird friends as he backtracked through his current residence, eyes peeled for anything that may have been a message or some sort of clue to Lee's whereabouts so early in the morning. He finally found it in the bedroom. The small, green square sticky note had slipped underneath the pillow. "Ah," he breathed.
"Did you find anything?"
"Yes. It seems that our athletic friend has, indeed, gone for a run, and was 'loathe to disturb' my 'youthful' sleep," Neji read, his brow wrinkling. "That guy…"
"Well, there you go. Mystery solved. Can I go back to my life now, Neji, or do you need me to tell you how to tie your shoes, as well?" Sasuke yawned over the phone, which led to a fresh burst of chatter from Naruto.
"I am grateful for your assistance," Neji said with a smirk.
"Hn," was the only warning before Neji was listening to the bloop bloop that signaled an end to the call. He started to crumble the note, then changed his mind. Instead of discarding it, he smiled softly at the garish paper, smoothed it out, and looked around for his wallet, deciding that it would make a nice keepsake. Humming as he completed his task, he turned back to the kitchen, intent on making breakfast for his… Neji frowned again. He was really going to have to think of something to call the other man.
He searched the refrigerator and cupboards for ingredients, coming up with instant curry in six different flavors, white rice, a loaf of bread, peanut butter, honey, eight kinds of tea, three tins of smoked fish, and some freezer dust.
"Well, someone has been neglecting his shopping," he murmured, trying in vain to concoct a suitable meal. When drumming his fingertips along the stove and shuffling boxes did not produce more options, he sighed and got to work, pouring rice in the cooker and reading the instructions on the back of the curry box. He sneezed violently at the whiff of red pepper he got when he poked a fork the plastic cover on the bowl of sauce and vegetables for ventilation. Depositing the container in the microwave, he set it to 4 minutes as instructed. Almost immediately, his eyes began to water at the strong, spicy smell. By the time the timer dinged, announcing piping hot extra spicy curry, Neji's tears were flowing freely and embarrassingly as he gagged and gasped for air.
Which, of course, is how Lee found him.
The male whirled into the kitchen like a green tornado, alarmed by the sound of Neji's weeping. He descended upon the long-haired man and cradled him in his arms.
"Neji! Do not weep, my manly male companion, for there is no obstacle we cannot overcome with our passionate friendshi- Is that curry?"
Neji choked out, "I made breakfast for you."
"Curry!" Lee sang out. "The beautiful elixir of youth and spirit! Tell me, my good man, how ever did you know that this is my favorite dish?" He inhaled deeply. "Feel the burning flavor with your soul!"
Neji sniffed and immediately regretted it. "My eyes! It's burning my eyes!"
Lee tsked in disappointment. "Neji, my friend, you must overcome this fear of spice. It is not healthy." Releasing the other male, Lee flipped the switch on the ventilation fan, then hurriedly tore a paper towel from the roll on the counter. He wet one corner, then folded it up into a square, and pressed it against Neji's face, cleaning his eyes and nose. A grin teased the corners of his mouth. "This seems familiar."
"It does," Neji agreed with another sniff. "Lee," he said, covering the other man's hand with his own, "about last night-"
"Say no more, my...my…" Lee frowned. His hand slipped away from Neji's face and hung limp at his side.
"See?" Neji smiled into Lee's face. "I had that problem, too. We're so much more than friends, but our...relationship...isn't…"
Both men sighed, and looked away from each other. Neji nibbled his lower lip while Lee fidgeted. Recovering first, Neji offered Lee an out. "So, shower, while I plate this for you? Don't take too long, or it'll get cold. I'll make some tea for you, too."
"Neji."
But Neji shook his head. "It can wait, at least until after you eat."
"What about you? What food will you partake of?"
"I'll just make some...toast. Now go shower!" he said, shooing the sweaty runner out of the kitchen. He pushed Lee in the back, shoving him toward the hallway, allowing his hand to linger on the other male's strong, muscular back.
"I shall return as soon as I am able! If I am late, I will eat every bit of curry and rice with a single toothpick!" he shouted as he disappeared down the hall.
Neji smirked. "What am I going to do with you?" He busied himself in the kitchen once more, frowning only once, swearing he'd heard a strange noise. Had he super hearing, he would have clearly heard the scream from a certain strawberry blond female who had finally awoken and had a clear view of who shared her bed...