Tears of Glass

by Sora Killua

As any young boxer his age, Naruto has plenty of spunk but little money to speak of, and because of this he begs his best friend, Sakura, to find an apartment for him. He immediately regrets his decision, though, when he walks inside; not only was it dark and wretched, it had an angry ghost as well...!SasuNaru, a Naruto-Ghost fic! If it's your cup of tea, read and enjoy.

11. Chapter Eleven

Author's Notes:

Thank you a lot, everyone, for the support! I'm so sorry for the delay, but I think everyone had already gotten used to it lol, which is another thing I'm terribly sorry about. However, this chapter was fun to write and has the climax of the whole story in it, so I wish you'd love reading it, as well. Thank you my lovely Beta, Fyrshi, for your awesome work again, and I wish, you'd feel better by the next chapter~ Now, I leave you all to the story. Enjoy~

---

"So? What's wrong with him?"

"The doctor said that he's perfectly fine – actually, couldn't be better in terms of his physical health – but he's been getting these…" Sasuke waved his hands frantically as he searched for the right words to Naruto's current episodes, especially since he didn't wish to address them as 'panic attacks' like the doctor had so callously done just moments earlier. "These bouts of anxiousness, I suppose… and they don't seem to be stopping anytime soon."

Sakura sat down and looked at the closed bedroom door with a heavy sigh, before her attention flitted back to the raven when he served her a glass of strawberry juice he'd already prepared for her. He had heard from Naruto about how much the pink-haired designer adored the fruit, and his comment was confirmed when she smiled, thanked him with a nod and started drinking. However, the girl stopped swallowing when she curtly questioned the other male.

"Mind telling me when this all started?"

"Well, it started last Wednesday. After I stayed the night and we talked about everything that had happened when we were apart, he was perfectly alright, yet the next morning suddenly he'd said that he couldn't breathe and, before I knew it, he'd fainted. I took him to a hospital and, like I've just said, it seems that nothing's wrong. According to the doctor, he was as healthy as a damn horse."

"…So then what happened?"

"I don't really know, to be honest. There'd be a minute when he'd be laughing with me but the next minute would see him collapsing to the ground with some sort of fever. I have no idea what's wrong anymore and, to tell you the truth, I'm starting to freak out here."

"Okay then… how about the other aspects of his life, like his psychological health?"

"That's why I called you here for. I figured that, since you've known him for longer than I have, you could… I don't know, maybe figure out what's going on. Also, I'm pretty sure you'd know if this is related to his emotions rather than his physique, or something like that."

Sakura's eyes softened as she looked at the juice she was drinking, before she muttered softly in response. "Yeah, that's true… but even if I'm here, I highly doubt that I could do anything to help him. Naruto doesn't trust me anymore, you know, since he's under the belief that I've betrayed him."

"Sakura-chan," Sasuke sternly started, in an attempt to catch her attention. "Naruto would never lose his trust in you; sure, he may have implied that your betrayal had caused a great measure of disappointment in him but, truthfully speaking, he relies on his friends the most out of everything he has. No matter what happens, Naruto would never truly shut his friends out from his life!"

"…But I've hurt him."

At the look of uncertainty in her jade-colored eyes, Sasuke returned her gaze with his own pleading orbs. "Naruto needs you the most right now, Sakura-chan. I've tried everything I can to help him and have him reach out to me, but I'm not enough to heal him… for some unknown reason, I don't seem to be enough for him this time. He needs his friends… and he needs you the most."

"I can't… I can't face him after what I did to him. I've watched him when he was in pain and I didn't tell him about the only thing that would have saved him from his personal hell… I've betrayed him, pure and simple, and there's no way for me to ask or seek forgiveness for something like that. I've also had a hand in breaking him, Sasuke-kun, and I don't have the right to help him anymore…"

Sasuke stayed silent for a while, while he thought of the best means to deliver his thoughts to her, then finally countered with the only trump card that he knew could sway her indecisive nature. "Did you know that he forgave me? He forgave me for everything that I'd ever done to him and he's allowing me to be with him again. Have some confidence in him, Sakura-chan; he's long forgotten about what you've done to him. You know him the best, after all. Besides, do you really think Naruto is the kind of person who holds grudges against anyone, let alone one of his closest childhood friends?"

The pink-haired designer drew her lips into a thin line as tears threatened to roll down her eyes. She knew, better than anyone else, that Naruto was a good person and a kind-hearted individual who always strove to put his friends' best interests first, and that was why some of them, especially herself, had always tried to do the same for him. She'd done everything in her power to aid him since the first time she was introduced to the kindness in Naruto's heart, and the designer was sure that Naruto didn't hate her at all. If anything, he was simply unable to hate anyone; even though people used to bully him or snap nasty remarks his way at school, Naruto never found the heart to hate them.

However, though she knew that he would never hate or truly wish her to be out of his life, she was still beating herself up for injuring Naruto in the way that she had. With a shake of her head and a firm decision to expel the pathetic self she was showing to Sasuke-kun and return to her normal courageous self, Sakura bravely fixed a smile on her face and put the juice on the table, before she stood up and turned to the silent raven beside her.

"Thank you for the encouragement, Sasuke-kun. I know that I've done something bad to Naruto… but you're right, he's not a person who would ever hold a grudge against someone, so…" She took a deep breath and walked towards the blond's bedroom, then added as she exited the living room, "I think I'll try my luck with him."

Sasuke just directed a nod her way and prayed that she could do what he had failed to do earlier.

With trembling fingers, Sakura reached for the doorknob, and though she could feel the silent support the raven was sending her way, she still found it hard to gulp down the nervousness that turned the tips of her fingers icy cold. When she finally turned it and peeked into the room, her eyes swiftly scanned its interior for the form of her best friend and, when she saw him looking outside the window he was leaning on with a faraway look on his face, she entered and quietly closed the door behind her.

The rustling of her dress as she moved towards him pulled Naruto's attention away from the scenery he was beholding and, upon seeing the fidgeting female before him; his whole body completely turned her way.

"Sakura…"

The girl's jade orbs slowly looked up when he softly called out her name, and she raised a small hand to wave to him as she also timidly smiled in reply. "H-Hi…"

When he looked at his best friend and saw how tiny and hesitant she had become and how her lovely eyes were dulled from the guilt and self-loathing she was weighed down with, Naruto's own eyes grew tender and his face broke from its nonchalant mask into his usual charming smile.

"Hi, Sakura~"

Sakura felt her nerves break down and, without any warning whatsoever, she ran to the blond and encircled her arms around his neck, then drew him closer with all her might. "I'm so very sorry, Naruto! Please, forgive me! I'm so, so sorry for what I've done! I wanted to tell you everything the minute he called me, but I couldn't, because Sasuke-kun had entrusted me with something very important to him and I couldn't break that trust… please, you have to believe me, Naruto!"

The blond put his arms around her tiny back and returned the hug, while his hands silently glided down her back to placate or at least tone down her shivers a notch. It was only when her grip lessened a little and he was sure that some of her nervous tension was giving way to relaxation did he softly whisper his response to her:

"Don't worry about it, Sakura; after all, I was in the wrong too. I've known you for most of my life, and I'd know that you'd never do something like what you did without a good reason, so at that time, I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry to have snapped at you ─ really, I didn't mean to hurt you so much ─ but my mouth seemed to be unable to keep in all the awful things I didn't want to say and I have to blame my jumpy emotions for my mistake."

Sakura gave him a tight squeeze and retreated a bit so that she could look him in the eye, before she gave a soft smile in reply. "No, it wasn't your fault, and I completely understand, since you were probably just too shocked then… I get it all, so there's no reason for you to apologize, Naruto."

The blond boxer took the chance to release one of his hands and give a pat to her vibrant, pink locks, and earned himself a wide smile for his efforts. "So, we're good now?"

"Yeah, I guess…"

"Well, that's good, because I really missed you and I hated our silence for the past few weeks."

Sakura gave Naruto one last bear-hug before she let go completely. "I missed you too, Naruto! Gaara isn't a decent conversation partner, you know, and I really wanted my drinking buddy back!"

"Yeah… he totally sucks at communicating with others," The blond chuckled with a smile on his face, but it faded when he realized he didn't know where to start filling her in on his recent life. "So…"

"So?"

"So… umm… I made up with Sasuke recently."

"Yeah, I heard."

Naruto quirked a brow suspiciously when he saw the leer inching onto her lips. "He called you here, didn't he?"

"Yep~ He said that there was something wrong with you, and he wanted my help."

"Oh, that." The boxer frowned at how Sasuke had gone behind his back and sought help for him, and he folded his arms over his chest grumpily. "I told him not to worry about it. I am totally fine!"

"…Except that you're not."

"Yes, I am. The doctor said that there was nothing wrong with me."

"Physically."

As he rolled his eyes at the insistent designer, Naruto sat on his bed and tried to explain his point of view in a more reasonable way than by shouting his voice hoarse. "Don't you see it though, Sakura? My body's what really counts right now, and since my systems were functioning just fine when the hospital did every sort of test there was, there's nothing really wrong with me. I'm one hundred percent okay, so there's no need for him to go berserk with worry and call you for no particular reason."

"Naruto," Sakura began, as she moved from her awkward position in the middle of the room and sat next to him. "Look, it's not normal for you to pass out like that. Even if you're physically alright, there has to be something wrong with you right now, be it emotionally or psychologically, and I–"

"I'm emotionally and psychologically fine too, Sakura, since the only thing that was turning me into a messed-up nutcase was Sasuke's absence. Now he's back, everything's alright with me again. I'm alright, he's alright, and everything's just dandy, so why can't the two of you just accept that my life's fine right now!?"

"It's because you keep fainting all the damn time, baka!"

"You're the baka, and besides, it's not all the damn time!"

"Yes it is!"

"You don't even live here, so how would you know?"

"Sasuke-kun does, and he told me everything!"

Naruto huffed angrily, before he swiftly walked towards his bedroom door and yanked it open, only for him to scan the empty hall, sigh once more and return his head back into the room. As Naruto locked the door behind himself, Sakura simply raised a brow at the odd behavior he was exhibiting and waited until the boxer resumed his former position, and waited for him to start talking.

"Okay, here's the deal. See, for some odd reason… I only seem to faint around Sasuke."

Sakura blinked her beautiful jade orbs at him in obvious confusion. "…Um, excuse me?"

"…It's exactly as I've said, Sakura; I only seem to faint around him. I don't faint around anyone else but whenever Sasuke gets too close to me or we interact in any sort of casual conversation, my heart starts beating far too fast and my breath gets caught in my throat and before I know it, I've passed out on him."

"…"

"Hey, Sakura, were you even listening?"

"I heard you clearly. Just… just give me a minute to process it all, okay?"

Naruto nodded and waited patiently as she absorbed the information he had just provided, and he spent his time enjoying a little game with the soccer ball Sasuke had brought when he had amnesia and wished to try his hand at soccer. When she extended her pale hand towards him and grasped the ball from his hands, Naruto knew her deliberation was done. However, before he could open his mouth to speak again, his eyes were only fast enough to catch the wide smile she'd plastered onto her features when she turned to him and surprised him by nearly squeezing him to death.

"Oh Naruto~!" She merrily exclaimed, and alarmed the blond with her next words. "I never thought this day would ever come~!"

Before the pink-haired girl could proceed to dance happily inside his bedroom and drown him with her abounding joy, the blond caught her hand and steadied her in place for the time being. "Okay, Sakura… what the hell are you talking about?"

The young designer continued grinning at him like a contented Cheshire Cat, then chirped a reply that was as confusing as her initial statement. "You're becoming aware~"

"…Aware of what, exactly?"

Much to his annoyance, a fit of giggles followed his question, and Sakura merely winked at his oblivious irritation. "I'm not saying anything else, since you need to figure the rest out yourself, but here's a small hint for your thick skull, Naruto~ You're becoming conscious of something very important and very near to you, if I might say so myself."

"Sakura, could you stop talking in riddles and tell me what's wrong already?"

"Nope~ You made it this far without my help, so it's only right that you finish the race on your own. I'm just so happy that you've finally reached this stage that I let my emotions slip out, that's all~!"

"…What race are you talking about?"

"Oh, the race to love, happiness and pleasure, of course~"

As equal amounts of frustration and bafflement assaulted him, Naruto tried to hold them both at bay as he snapped out a reply. "What's all this talk about 'love' and 'racing' got to do with me fainting? Sakura, you're making no sense here."

"And no sense shall I make until you figure it all out~ Ooh, my baby has grown~ Mama's very happy for you, my boy~"

"Sakura…"

The pink-haired continued dancing and twirling with joy while she studiously ignored Naruto's low growl behind her, before she abruptly stopped as an idea formed inside her head. With a wicked grin appearing rather abruptly on her face, she turned to Naruto with eyes filled with shining stars and gleefully exclaimed.

"We have to throw a party!"

"What ungodly reason brought you to that comment!?" Unable to rein in his confusion anymore, Naruto cried out his response with a great deal of frustration.

"No one needs a reason to throw a party~ Honestly, Naruto, you make it sound like you don't know me at all!"

"Right now, I honestly don't."

Sakura rolled her eyes and smacked him on the head. "Baka, listen to me. Even if I told you the truth, you'll only reject it and continue to live in your misery, so you need to reach that conclusion yourself. Besides, Naruto, it's really an obvious answer. Just remove the barriers you've imposed on yourself and you'd be able to see it clearly~"

"What barriers? See what clearly!? "

"Oh my God! He still asks questions and refuses to see the truth, people!" She exasperatedly expressed her disbelief to the imaginary audience watching them and merely confused the blond further with her actions. "I'm not telling you anything, Naruto. I've already given you a hint, so now it's your turn to work that useless jock head of yours and figure it out! It's as clear as daylight, for goodness' sakes!"

She dramatically shook her head on her way to the door, and Naruto simply rolled his eyes at her and grunted to himself before he rudely snapped at her retreating back. "Just admit it, Sakura. You don't even know what's wrong with me and you're just saying this shit to make it sound like you do."

At the comment, Sakura turned her head and offered some cryptic words with a dazzling smile. "The tips of your fingers turn subzero degrees, your stomach drops to the floor and you even feel it filled with butterflies on some occasions. Your heart rate increases, you blush like there's no tomorrow and, though I've never heard of it before and it makes me a little irritated to think that you're responding like this to something so wonderful, you get a panic attack. Well, did I get it right?"

Disbelieving orbs faced her smug face as a small whisper escaped Naruto's unaware lips. "…To a tee."

"Good. Now, since you're all well, I suggest you go and take Sasuke-kun out for dinner. He's been worried about you for a very long time now, so believe me when I tell you that the dude needs a break."

Still frozen from the way she listed all the symptoms he'd been feeling, Naruto did the only thing that his body allowed him to do right now. He simply, and rather absentmindedly, nodded.

---

Naruto whistled at the male before him as his eyes roved over his handsome features; the black shirt Sasuke had on really did a wonderful job of highlighting his milky complexion, and the grey jeans accentuated his slim figure rather attractively. The boxer entered the room Sasuke was currently using as he stayed with him – since the raven had developed a silly idea that, if left alone, Naruto would wind up fainting like the last few times that had happened – before he leaned on the door and voiced a soft comment. "You look handsome tonight, my friend. You'll definitely turn some heads around when we go out soon."

"Will one of them be yours?"

The blond dismissed the flirtatious inflections in the other's words with a casual wave of his hand and grinned mischievously in reply. "And why would you want such a messy head like mine to turn?"

"Well, it's because I'd rather turn your messy one than any others."

"Well, well, Uchiha. You certainly flatter me with your words."

"I'm only stating my opinion."

Naruto kept his grin in place as he gesticulated for Sasuke to follow him out of the apartment. "Alright then, compliment accepted. Now, let's go already. I don't want the reservation I made to be cancelled because we were far too late, especially since I went to all that trouble to get it."

Sasuke nodded before closely following the boxer out, and in the meantime, he allowed his own eyes to drink in the outfit Naruto had on, and how it matched him perfectly. He wore a black pair of jeans and a causal navy-blue jacket with an orange undershirt, which had a red hand punching through it with 'BAM!' written noisily beneath it. It brought a smile to his face to see how the whole outfit screamed of Naruto's quirky nature and, in his eyes, it simply made Naruto all the more impeccable.

"So, yours or mine?"

"Excuse me?"

Naruto gestured towards the two cars before them as they entered the parking lot of his building, and Sasuke shrugged as he coolly answered him. "It doesn't matter, really; both are fine with me."

"Then, let's take mine~ It's been a while since I last drove with you, after all."

The raven nodded and hopped inside while Naruto started the engine and, before much time had passed, they were well on their way to their destination. As he allowed himself to get comfortable in his seat, Sasuke glanced at the blond as he whistled a foreign song chirpily, and a small smile crept onto his features at the sight. When Naruto finally noticed the other's eyes on him, he momentarily shifted his own to him and paused in his merry tune.

"What, Sasuke?"

"Nothing, it's just that… well, it's my first time seeing you enjoy yourself this much, that's all."

Naruto released a laugh at his candid reply and turned the car around to exit the highway. "Well, you haven't been around much to see my happy expression, babe. Besides, I love driving~!"

"Yeah… it shows."

"…So tell me, how's work?"

At the abrupt shift into a normal conversation subject, Sasuke ran a hand through his hair and gave a brief report of his activities. "It's fine, I suppose. Itachi is still walking me through some major projects, but aside from that, it's going well, and I'm learning a lot from him."

"You've got the basics down alright?"

"Yes, they're going perfectly. It's not all that hard, actually ─ it's all just a lot of faking, if you want my opinion ─, it's nothing I can't handle. How about you, though? You seem to be home a fair lot these days."

Naruto sighed as his lips unconsciously formed a cute pout. "Yeah, the boxing season's ended, and we only have minor games to play right now; they're nothing big, and if anything, they're just a way to pass the time and maintain our skills. Besides, Kakashi-sensei's flown to God knows where for a vacation and since he's not here, I can't really learn anything new… so..."

"Your days are basically free now."

"You could say that. I don't really like to stay still for a long time, though, so I'm thinking of joining a club that teaches amateurs and kids how to box and defend oneself. Hey, maybe I can even have some fun teaching others about boxing for once."

"Hmm…"

"What? You don't think I'd be a good teacher?" Naruto jokingly asked.

Sasuke shook his head and dismissed his current thoughts, before he sullenly verbalized his reply. "It's not that, since I think you'd be an awesome teacher, but, well… I was thinking that we can spend more time together, now that you've free time and all."

At that moment, Naruto felt his heart beating loudly deep inside his ribcage, which sent the vibrations throbbing far inside his head. As he forced himself to shake his blond locks to get some blood down to his other organs and to prevent himself from fainting – since the last thing either of them needed right now was for tomorrow's headlines to state his and Sasuke's name in relations to a dreadful car accident –, he grumpily moaned in response.

"…Sasuke, please don't say such things while I'm driving. I can't take it when you do."

Blinking in puzzlement, the raven tilted his head at the distressed boxer. "Can't take what?"

"You, when you blurt out embarrassing shit like that! Please, save it for your girlfriend."

Sasuke drew his lips into a thin line, before he softly growled. "Why do you always say that? The first time was that day on the roof… when I told you how I really felt about you… you just brushed me off and told me to get a girlfriend instead of believing my words, and you kept on doing that to me. Why are you always so bent on me having a girlfriend anyway?"

Naruto was taken aback by the hushed whisper and was at a loss of words. He'd actually said that sentence with the sole intent of stopping Sasuke from saying embarrassing things when he was driving, and he didn't really mean it or want the raven to actually develop the desire for a girlfriend right that second. Girlfriends were the last thing on his mind right now… especially when it came to ones for Sasuke.

At his last thought, the blond allowed a deep frown to make its way to his face, but before he could deal with his own problems, he had to clarify the situation until it was crystal clear to Sasuke. He began with a few words that told the raven of his intent ─ that he'd just said that as a casual thing, with no actual meaning to it ─ and he wished that he'd delivered that part well.

"Sasuke… look, I didn't really mean it like that. I told you, you getting a girlfriend isn't something I can control and besides, it's your decision to make. If you want one then you can get one, but if–"

"You still don't get it, Naruto. You still don't get me, do you?"

"Get what exactly? I do get you, Sasuke. I understand that you don't wish for a girlfriend right now but there'll be one day when you will, and then–"

"Forget it already. You either don't understand or you simply don't want to understand… but either way, it's fine with me. I've made my peace with this a long time ago and I'm willing to wait. In any case, are we anywhere close to reaching the restaurant yet?"

Naruto wanted to counter the first part of Sasuke's statement, but something deep inside of his mind told him that it was better to keep it for a later time. However, he was bitterly annoyed when he agreed to the change of subjects Sasuke had just suggested, and it was clear when he answered back.

"We've only got a few more blocks to go, so we're going to reach it pretty soon. It's a really good place, you know, and I used to go there when I was a student up to when I was with Hinata–"

The blond swiftly clamped his hands onto his mouth and slapped himself mentally for his massive slip-up. What the hell was wrong with him tonight!? He was just blabbering out one disaster after another without meaning to! Couldn't he find one decent topic to talk about that didn't have an ancient landmine sitting underneath it!?

"Hyuuga Hinata… she's your ex-girlfriend, right?"

Although his blue eyes widened for a bit, he soon returned them to their original size when he remembered that Sasuke now held all his memories together, which meant that the incident with Hinata in that restaurant was surely clear to him right now.

"Y-Yeah… wait, you know her?"

Sasuke answered as his sight flitted to settle outside the window. "Aside from the time I saw her with you when I was a ghost… yes, I do believe that I've met her on several other occasions. When I was a kid, I saw her at multiple balls and meetings, but she was always alone and sad. The future of her family was always on her tiny shoulders, so I can understand why she'd be excluded from the rest of the world. Nonetheless, she was a capable and lovely woman."

"Yes, she was."

"But," With his next words, Sasuke looked carefully at the reflection of the blond in the glass his eyes were facing. "It doesn't change the fact that she cheated on you."

Luckily for both of them, Naruto had to use the brakes to stop at a traffic light mere seconds before Sasuke had muttered his comment, or they would've gone crashing right into the car before them. The blond turned wide and horrified eyes at the calm male sitting beside him, before he breathlessly expressed his confusion.

"H-How…?"

"It wasn't rocket science to connect the dots and the broken pieces together. After all, the full picture was extremely obvious to me."

Due to the fact that he was forced to move his car when the light turned green, Naruto waited until he was able to park it so he could speak unrestrainedly, since he didn't trust himself to drive properly right now. However, his words seemed to choke up as soon as he was given the liberty to speak his mind, without worrying about endangering their lives.

"…Of course you'd be able to connect them. Being the smart individual you are… it only makes sense, after all… yeah…"

Sasuke turned to the still shocked blond and sternly voiced his opinion with blunt indifference. "If you're feeling something along the lines of 'shame, humiliation, and disgrace', then don't. You're with me now, and you're strong, capable and so damn bright that I consider you my light regardless. Hinata was an intelligent woman, but on the night she chose that man over you, she became rather stupid; however, I thank that foolishness of hers, for it was what delivered you to me. You should never feel ashamed because of the time you two spent together or because of her betrayal, since in my eyes, you only fell in love… and Naruto, there's no shame whatsoever in being in love."

Naruto couldn't raise his eyes to meet Sasuke's but, instead, he extended his right hand towards Sasuke's pale one and grasped it tightly in an attempt to convey to Sasuke just how much those words meant to him. It was like his heart had been waiting patiently for someone to tell him those words to be able to fully heal the scar left by Hinata and, as he took a deep breath, Naruto could feel the ice encasing his heart gradually starting to thaw.

They remained in that position for a while longer until, eventually, Naruto was able to raise his face and meet Sasuke with clear and softened eyes. He showed him a bright smile and followed it up with words that relayed all his gratitude and affection to the raven.

"Thank you, Sasuke."

Sasuke returned the smile in kind and nodded, while his hand continued to clasp Naruto's hand for a little longer, before he would eventually let it go for the other to resume his driving. "Anytime."

The continuation of the ride to the restaurant was spent in a comfortable silence. It wasn't the awkward one where each was nervous and fidgety, no it was a lukewarm silence that one would be afraid of disturbing with unnecessary words, a pleasant silence that promoted a relaxed state of mind. Sasuke still believed that Naruto needed some time to finally come to terms with 'the Hinata wound' inside his heart, so keeping the atmosphere quiet was the least he could do to accelerate that process. After all, they would have all the time in the world to chat at the restaurant later on.

---

They reached the restaurant in about half an hour's time, during which the silence continued to flow easily between them. It wasn't a fancy eatery, which confirmed Sasuke's previous assumptions back at the apartment – after all, classy restaurants generally didn't allow casual attire – and it helped send a soothing vibe to his excited mind. As they made their way further inside, Sasuke identified the reason behind its peaceful nature; the restaurant was a family-friendly one run by love and understanding, which explained why Naruto seemed to fit right into its surroundings. It also had an astonishing décor that combined both tradition and modern in an exceptionally unique manner, as fragments of old walls have been preserved and had been ingeniously blended in with the modern ornamentation. It did a good job in promoting both class and simplicity, while it still gave their customers a nice place to dine in.

As they proceeded past the reception, Naruto began to express his familiarity with the owner and every single employee of the restaurant as well, especially since people kept on greeting the boxer with smiles and hugs from the moment he walked in. In contrast to the boxer's rambunctious greetings, Sasuke just walked beside him and nodded to anyone who greeted him, though his reserved smile ended up melting the hearts of the young waitresses… as well as some waiters too.

"Come this way, Sasuke. I reserved us the best table here, and I can't wait for you to see it!"

Naruto excitedly shepherded his companion to their designated table and Sasuke found an amused smile forming on his lips at the delightful scenery around their table. The thin glass beside it barely separated a small pond with a fountain in its center, and the water feature had the Uchiha heir staring with admiration at it for a number of minutes. Inside the pristine water were multiple colored beams arranged inside marvelous crystals, which each shined at a particular time, while the fishes swam peacefully through their immaculate environment without a hint of agitation at the dancing illuminations or the slight alterations that occurred in the water temperature. The colors would shimmer down in an ever-shrinking round, which would then prompt the fountain placed in the midst of this perfect picture to begin spurting colored water into the air.

The whole scene appeared to be one out of a magazine, which captivated anyone who had time to admire the exquisite surroundings, and the table Naruto had picked was at the perfect location to admire all this. Sasuke had to give it to the blond for this superb place, and he couldn't have been happier with the arrangements if he'd tried.

"Beautiful."

"Isn't it?" Naruto swiftly seconded. "I wanted to bring you here ever since I got to know you better, but you were either a ghost, an amnesiac or somewhere else, so I'm really happy that you're here right now, and that you could dine with me."

Sasuke allowed another tiny smile to grace his features as he warmly replied. "Yeah, me too."

"Now, let's order already. This place makes the best ramen you will ever have, and you can take my word for it!"

With a chirpy tone, Naruto called to the waiter responsible for their table and, with an equally merry manner, the brunet waiter took the orders from one of the restaurant's most beloved customers. Sasuke sat on the side of their exchange and allowed his eyes to turn soft as he stared his full at Naruto… and, at that moment, a part of him wished for that moment to continue on forever.

---

Sasuke fondly looked on as Naruto hopped onto the blocks beside him and began walking, while they continued conversing after they'd exited the restaurant. True to the blond's words, the food was something else entirely. He'd never tasted something so warm and delicious in his life, and it reminded him briefly of the happy times he and his mother had when she'd struggle to master a new dish. With each bite, the carefully-constructed sensations filled his heart with content, and Sasuke had already marked the restaurant as one of his favorites in town before the first mouthful could even hope to slip down his throat.

"So… umm… what's your favorite color?"

"Black."

"Seriously? Your favorite color's black?" Naruto jumped to a different block and swayed a little, before he caught his balance easily and continued talking. "I thought it would be blue."

"Well, you're not that far off — I like them both, actually — but black is my favorite. Now it's your turn to answer a question. How do you take your coffee?"

"Sweet~ With cream~ You?"

"I take it black. Well then… what do you like to do in your free time?"

"Hmm… I play video games if I wasn't off practicing my boxing skills, I guess."

Sasuke couldn't help snickering aloud at the candid response. "You're just like a child, Naruto; an immature child stuck in a grown-up's body."

"Shut up! A lot of adults enjoy video games!" Naruto defended his hobby with a pout.

"Yeah, yeah… so, onto the next question –"

"No, it's my turn; you already got your question, remember?"

"Oh, yes, so I did. Well, what do you want to know?"

"A lot of stuff, really. After all, why should it be just one question?"

"We have the whole of the night ahead of us, so you can ask all of the questions you want and I will answer them as best as I can. Go on, Naruto; pick one already."

"Anything?"

Sasuke gave a small reassuring smile with a slight nod, and repeated the blond's incredulous back to him as a self-assured statement. "Anything."

"Then…" Naruto's eyes softened as he hopped down from the blocks and, with a few quiet steps, he made his way towards the handsome Uchiha, before he continued with a tone that was rather tender, so as not to disturb the stillness of the night. "It's not a question, but more a request, and it's fine if you don't want to do it. There's no pressure at all, okay?"

"Naruto… what is it?"

The soft yet firm tone made the blond stop his flustered behavior immediately and, instead, caused him to nod briefly to Sasuke in response. "If… if it's possible for you to, I want you to tell me about your mother… because, from the way you always spoke of her, I know that she was an amazing person, and I really would like to hear more about her… if you could tell me about her, that is."

Sasuke took Naruto's hand in his and led them to a nearby bench, then they sat down and he delicately answered the other's question. "It's fine with me, Naruto. I never meant for you to feel like talking about my mother was taboo or something you needed to be careful about. However, there really isn't that much that I can say about her, since mother was just a very simple person."

"Any knowledge is fine with me."

"Well then… for starters, I should say that she loved flowers. She adored them dearly, and even though she was horrible at taking care of them and she failed at any act of gardening whatsoever, she was always bent on bringing home new flowers and making them flourish somehow. Mother was a little clumsy and wasn't really good with any school work, so she couldn't really help me with my homework, but I think the only thing she ever really excelled at was her cooking. She was a wonderful cook, and when you ate something from her hands, it was like you tasted a piece of heaven, which was probably why she got a job as a chef's assistant. As a matter of fact, I actually learned most of my cooking skills from her."

Naruto grinned and chirped aloud. "Well then, I have to thank her for that, or else we'd be stuck eating takeout for the rest of our lives."

"You're right about that." The raven took a deep breath as he nodded at Naruto's response, before he continued reminiscing aloud. "Mother enjoyed chatting; she was a very cheerful and social person with an amazingly kind soul and a big heart. She was both good and honest, but her only fault was that she had rather terrible luck in her life…"

"…Sasuke, are you okay?"

Sasuke shook his head to dispel Naruto's worry and gave the other a smile to reassure him. "Don't worry, I'm fine… I was just thinking how nice it'd have been if her luck had been just a little bit better, that's all. On another note, though, you two would have liked each other, had you managed to meet her beforehand. Mother was always angry at the fact that I didn't have enough friends to bring home, and seeing me becoming friends… no, forging a bond greater than friendship with you, would have really made her happy."

Naruto couldn't hold his emotions in himself anymore and finally circled Sasuke in a bone-crushing hug. He didn't let go until Sasuke had breathlessly remarked upon the small fact that he wasn't able to breathe, but he continued to keep the goofy grin on his face as he let go of the raven.

"…I'm glad I met you, Naruto."

The boxer's cerulean orbs sparkled with delight as he directed a tender smile at Sasuke, while he brought their foreheads together and whispered a hushed reply. "Me too."

"I really want to kiss you right now… so, can I?"

At that moment, Naruto felt his heart fly up to his throat as a faint blush began spreading over his face and, since he had no obvious reason to refuse the other, he gave him a curt nod and closed his eyes in anticipation. Seconds later, he was rewarded for his patient when softness met his lips, and he opened his mouth to welcome Sasuke's tongue inside. The blond didn't know if it was because he had spent a while abstaining from any physical contact with the former ghost or because the rich Uchiha remembered his old techniques but, whatever the reason, he was flying gaily on cloud nine right now. His whole body trembled and his heartbeat became erratic as Sasuke tried not to deepen the kiss too much, but he was still able to maintain a decent level of close contact.

Naruto was turning into a pure mess from the simple kiss and, when Sasuke softly broke it, the boxer felt a sudden sense of loss wash over his whole being.

"We should get back, don't you think? It's getting quite late now…"

As he nodded with confusion at the weird demand his heart had issued when it told him to continue basking in the wonderful sensation that kiss had sparked, Naruto stood up and began to walk beside the raven, while he was still lost in his own little world.

They returned into the car and, after he'd been forced to awake to reality once more, the boxer started the engine with a tiny smile on his face. However, before he could put his foot on the gas, he blinked and directed his sparkling orbs at Sasuke, while a question floated to his lips as well. "So, where to now?"

"I thought we were going home… weren't we?"

"The night's still young, Sasuke! C'mon, pick a place you really want to go to right now, because tonight, I'm going to drive you anywhere you wish. Choose our next destination already, Sasuke~"

"So… I get you all to myself tonight?"

Naruto's heart flipped again and he struggled not to blush at the hidden meaning behind those words while his mouth formed a sloppy reply. "Y-Yeah, I guess…"

"Well then," The raven started, as a mischievous grin appeared on his face. "A love hotel would be the best place to go to right now."

At this, Naruto felt his breathing stop, and though he tried to compose a reply, his thunderous heartbeats prevented him from any meaningful thought. However, since he knew that he needed to at least stutter something out; he coughed a number of times to hide his roiling emotions and finally got the words past his mouth.

"W-W-What did you j-just say?"

"A love hotel, Naruto." Sasuke spelt it out slowly, with his fox-like smile still in place. "It's about time we get that thick skull of yours to admit that you love me back, after all."

Naruto blanched as his mind came to a complete stop. Either his ears were playing some hellish prank on him, or Sasuke was joking. When a few minutes had passed and he eventually decided to go with the latter explanation, the blond tried to confirm his suspicions aloud.

"Hey… if this's your idea of a joke, Sasuke, then I've got to say that it's one heck of a bad joke."

"Who do you think is joking around? I'm perfectly serious here, you know."

"Y-You're serious? You c-can't be serious about something like that!"

"Why, Naruto? I've been serious about this for a long time now, and besides, it's just you who doesn't want to acknowledge it. I've been saying it since the very beginning, with all my might and strength, and I continued to shout out my feelings to you, but you continued to avoid them or ridicule me, because you thought that I didn't know what I was talking about. Well, here's a newsflash for you, Uzumaki. You're the one who doesn't know what I'm feeling, and I'm tired of this little game we're playing. It's time for me to say this, because I can't hide it anymore, Naruto… I lo–"

All the color drained from Naruto's face and, before Sasuke could utter those dreadful words out loud and shatter both their worlds, he hurriedly shouted out. "STOP!"

Sasuke scowled deeply when Naruto slid outside of the car and ran back into the park, while leaving behind nothing but a trail of dust. He sighed and got out himself, before he went back to the driver's seat, pulled out the keys, locked the car, and started on the hellish search for his frightened kitty.

"… Well, so much for the romantic atmosphere."

---

"Naruto, come out already. Seriously, we're too old for this… or, at least, I'm too old for this."

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair as he finally settled on the last spot in this huge-ass park that he started to loath more with every passing minute and shouted for the blond to get out, while he coolly ignoring the strange looks he got from the people walking by. However, there was no answer to his calls and, feeling drained to the max, he sat down on a bench. Immediately, his thoughts began racing inside his mind, and the first one that popped up was his brain kicking him for the dumb act he'd done.

Did he really need to tell Naruto his feelings right then!?

He could have waited until they were in the confines of the apartment to spill it out, because Naruto would have no place to disappear to, but now… when they were out here, in the open, he could literally sink into a ditch and Sasuke would never be any wiser. The raven sighed again and walked to the vending machine to get himself something to soothe his parched throat with because, after all, screaming at the top of his lungs did nothing but expel precious water and oxygen from his trachea.

Initially, he hadn't meant to drop the bomb right when he did, but the way Naruto was acting had sent signals – which he now knew were mixed – to his brain, and they had told him to confess his love and have this whole thing over with. He knew of the reaction that the boxer would most likely have, since he'd probably deny the whole thing up front and rebuff him with excuses like how this would affect Sasuke's image, his future and his chances of having a normal family life, and the raven had already prepared an answer that would quash those claims. He knew that his life lay with Naruto, because without the blond, he couldn't lead a happy life, and even if he became a father and a husband, he doubted he'd be one that was able to give his love to anyone when the object of his affections was located far away from him.

Sasuke knew of all the means to counter Naruto's reasons, but the one thing he hadn't counted on was the blond's flight from him. After all, whoever ran away from a confession to begin with? No one that he knew of, that was for sure.

However, Naruto had done it once again. He'd shattered all the expectations laid before him and did something absolutely insane, and he could do nothing about it. Sasuke returned to the spot he had been searching a minute ago and patiently shouted the name of his beloved again. Yes, he'd learnt how to be very patient during his hellish years as a ghost and the months on the island, while he was away from Naruto, and endurance was the way he'd came up with to protect himself while he waited.

As it was, though, he was fighting hard to enforce his patience, and he couldn't help heaving a sigh as he flicked the soda he'd just drank to a side. This would have been a perfect night, and a perfect closure to all their wounds, had Naruto actually stayed beside him and not ran away… and yet it had been ruined. Sasuke shook his head from his depressing line of thoughts and continued calling out the blond's name, which resulted in another round of strange looks from the people around him.

He continued to act like the only person on the face of the Earth and ignored the odd glances, but he nearly faltered when a tiny idea floated to his brain. Why shouldn't he just leave the blond to cool off first and then discuss this whole issue tomorrow?

The idea was soon dismissed, since the raven knew that they'd never solve their little mouse and cat chase and would forever be hanging 'in between' friendship and love if he left things like this… and the prospect was something that he fearfully dreaded. He might as well get it over and done with, so if anything, he only needed to be a little more patient and, hopefully, everything would turn out fine.

Just before he'd completely lost hope in finding any trace of his blond in the park, Sasuke's phone began vibrating, as it signaled an incoming message. The minute his dark eyes alighted on the message and finished skimming the contents at a hurried pace, Sasuke felt a vein inside his forehead throb and, feeling pissed to the core of his cursed soul, he shoved his phone deep into his pocket and headed towards the abandoned car with a furious frown etched into his face.

"That's it, Naruto, I'm done playing nice! You're so going to regret doing this to me!"

---

"Are you sure about this?"

"After the stunt he pulled on me, this is the only way I can think of to make him accept everything and quit running from me all the damn time!"

"Sasuke, I understand that you're mad at him for ditching you to go home, but you do understand that he just needed time to comprehend what you said, right?"

"Comprehend what, exactly? I haven't uttered a single word to him! I didn't even confess shit! He didn't allow me and had already ran away before I could even blink! I kept searching and searching for his ass, for three goddamn hours, and then he has the gall to send a pathetic message to say that he went home in a cab and that I should simply do the same by myself! No, Neji, enough is enough! He needs to be taught a lesson!"

"But…" The long haired raven fought the urge to lean away from the other when fire began to seep out of Sasuke's extremely frightening eyes and continued. "Are you sure that this is the right way to teach him that lesson?"

"It's the only way, and I will do it, whether it is right or not."

"Why don't you think about it for the time being and sleep on it tonight? Maybe you'll find a better way by tomorrow, and we won't need to do this."

"No, I'm done thinking. I'm simply going to act from now on, because jealousy will always be the strongest weapon in all of people's actions."

"…Sasuke–"

"Neji," He interrupted his friend's comment mid-sentence and took a deep breath to calm himself, before he attempted to convey all the weight he was currently shouldering Neji's way and, with a heart-breaking tone, he explained his predicament. "I'm really tired, and I'm exhausted to my very core from chasing him all the time, only to have all my passes refused as well. Do you know how painful it is when the person you love denies your feelings? I get that he has commitment issues… I know him the best, because I've been looking at him… I've been watching every little detail about him… but… I just can't do it anymore. I want him to look my way, to look back and actually see me! I'm standing beside him, right here, next to him, but he keeps looking past me, as if I'm invisible… I can't take that anymore!"

"Sasuke, I get your feelings, I really do — after all, I had the same problem with Gaara — but this isn't the best way to handle this situation."

"Then tell me, what is the best way then? Waiting? I've waited long enough as it is! Should I continue to be by his side and hope that he'd see me one day? I did that and, hell, I'm still doing it, but it's not working! God knows I've disappeared for long enough to let him miss me somewhat, but nothing's ever worked… we're still stuck at where we started off and he keeps on refusing me!"

Neji sighed, confused as to how he should answer the other's plea and, from the corner of his eyes, he watched as Sasuke tried to calm down by drinking a glass of water and slumping back into his comfortable chair. With a bolstering tone, the Hyuuga male elaborated on an important point to try and dissuade the other raven from his course of action.

"Tell me something, Sasuke; what would happen if, instead of him realizing that he loved you back, he thinks that you've found the right woman for you and he leaves you to her instead? Wouldn't you regret it then? You're only using this method to hurt him like he hurt you before, right?"

Sasuke's eyes widened slightly as he avoided Neji's sharp gaze.

"…I'm not doing it to hurt him, you know. I simply want him to hurry up and realize things already."

"No, Sasuke, you'd hurt him by doing this. I can see your motivations quite clearly, so don't bother lying to me about it. You want him to taste a bit of the torture you've felt, don't you?" Neji held up his hand when Sasuke was about to argue, and finished off his comment. "I know it, because it was the same thing I did when I wanted Gaara to notice me before."

"…Did it work?"

Neji's eyes turned contemplative as he recalled the past incident. "Nope. If fact, it totally backfired on me and I had a stalker on my heels for my efforts, too. Gaara didn't care for me at all and I had gotten so pissed at him that I'd lost my cool in an uncool way and I threw a childish tantrum. However, when he saw me like that, his nasty mouth came to a halt and he was at loss of words to see a proud guy like me become just a child that was deprived of his favorite toy simply because he had chosen to ignore me. His confusion had sparked something in him and that spark was what had gotten him to stop ignoring me and look at me properly."

"…So it worked for you."

"To a degree, I would say that you're right in saying that. However, this is exactly why you shouldn't use this method on Naruto-kun."

Sasuke frowned at the vague words and requested a clarification from the other. "I'm not following what you're saying, Neji."

"Look, Gaara is a calm adult who analyses his situation before he strikes, so he was baffled when my situation arose, and that's why a spark was initiated in the first place. However, Naruto-kun is childish in his behavior and he'd most likely avoid you with all his might if you did the same thing, and if there was any spark of love in his heart, he'd force it down. The spark would disappear deep down into his heart so that he wouldn't disturb you… and that's bad enough with my mentioning the overwhelming guilt that you'd ignite inside his soul for him snatching you away from the normal life he thinks you should be leading. With all that being said… do you get why you can't use this on him now?"

Sasuke rested his face on his desk and sighed again as he finally realized the reasons why he couldn't bring a girl to Naruto and claim that she was his girlfriend. "Yeah, you're totally right… but what do I do now, since I can't do that?"

Before Neji could answer his despondent question, the door to the office resounded with a knock and, with an annoyed rub of his temple, Sasuke allowed whoever was on the other side to enter his office. He scrambled to his feet in a second when he saw his big brother's smiling face appear at the doorway, which was closely followed by his professional secretary, Akasuna Sasori.

"Neji-kun," Itachi coolly greeted the long-haired raven as soon as he'd set foot inside the room. "How have you been?"

"I'm well, though I've been sorely tested while I'm trying to knock some sense into your bother."

"Try not to knock too hard, though, since we've just retrieved him from the world of the dead."

"Don't worry about it; if my guess is right, he probably has a long way to go before he ends up there again."

"Good. Now, Sasuke," Reclining in the armchair presented to him like the king he was as he refused Sasuke's invitation to take his own seat in the grand office, Itachi nodded a greeting in his brother's direction before he ventured any further. "I trust that you've finished your business for the day."

"There's some paperwork that still remains, but it's nothing major."

"Wonderful. Sasori will be completing it for you, since you're flying with me to a conference this evening; after all, I need to introduce you to the world now."

"...Wait, we're going tonight?"

"Yes, we're going tonight."

Knowing that Itachi wouldn't have bothered coming all the way to his office to inform him of a meeting if it wasn't of vital importance, Sasuke knew there was nothing he could do to weasel his way out of it. After he'd nodded an affirmation to his brother, the handsome raven maintained his professional attire as he spoke with the utmost caution.

"I'll be there in half an hour. Thanks for telling me about it beforehand, then."

"Splendid~" Itachi merrily stood up and directed a look to the silent Hyuuga, who had kept his sharp eyes on the two for the duration of the exchange, then moved to go outside. "I trust that you're coming as well… right, Neji?"

The long-haired raven stood up to show his own respect, but nonetheless shook his head in a firm denial of the implied offer. "There's no need for me to go, since Hinata would be there. Besides, she's more suited than me for such a high class meeting."

Sasori wanted to drag his boss before the disdain he was sorely tempted to show at Neji's words formed on his tongue but, unfortunately for him, he was too late to carry out his plans, as the owner of the Uchiha Corps sarcastically announced his own disapproval on the matter.

"That child would have long been eaten up by the corporate world, had you not been there to hold her hands throughout the conducting of her business affairs."

"I assure you, Itachi, that Hinata has long since held no need for my guidance."

"If that's the case, the Hyuuga Corps is probably doomed."

Neji fixed his business smile onto his face as he addressed Itachi, while he hid the inner excitement the comment had ignited inside his soul. Yes, talking to his work-rival-slash-long-time-friend was, indeed, a guilty pleasure of his. "I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you."

"Hn." As he headed towards the outside with his trademark response, Itachi paused ever so fleetingly at the door before he disappeared from their company. " Sasori will come for you at 11:30, so be ready before then."

Even though his brother had his back towards him and he probably couldn't see what he was doing, Sasuke bowed his head with a slight nod. "Sure."

Neji observed the others as the door closed elegantly behind Sasori and commented after a minute's silence followed the situation. "What are you going to do now, Sasuke?"

"What am I going to do about what, exactly?"

"Na-Ru-To-Kun, obviously~"

At that exact moment, Sasuke slumped back on his chair and banged his head hard on his desk for yet another dreadful time, while he continued to murmur a curse to himself. "Shit, shit, shit!"

---

According to Neji, he should just 'suck it up and ignore his smoldering anger' for the one-week trip and, before he disappeared so abruptly – which was a prospect that was tempting him very much right now – he should go talk to Naruto and tell him that he was leaving. Apparently, there was nothing hard about that at all! Sasuke looked at his watch and noted the lack of time he had, so he poised his hand to knock… because, right about now, he should move his hand and knock…

So why the hell wasn't he knocking already?

As he gnawed his lower lip at his complete lack of courage, Sasuke took a deep breath to calm his nerves. He knew perfectly well why his hands refused to move… because, deep down, he didn't want to see that utter look of rejection, disbelief and denial again. He didn't want to be the one that Naruto viewed with such dark eyes, because he wanted to be loved back, not to cause his love to loath himself for forcing such a heavy burden onto Sasuke's shoulders.

The raven sighed and, with a deep breath, he finally moved his right hand so that he could knock softly on the door. When he realized, after five minutes of waiting, that his knock was far too faint to be heard, he switched to the doorbell, and was unable to comprehend how he'd forgotten the existence of the wonderful device in the first place. Two minutes later, soft steps drew closer to the door and his tongue knotted itself up when Naruto's voice came from the other side and shaped itself into an enquiry, since the peephole was blocked on his end.

Sasuke removed his hand from the peephole and allowed Naruto to see him when the boxer stated that he wasn't going to open the door until he knew who it was on the other side. Both sides of the door went deathly quiet after that, and Sasuke had to force himself to talk again to break the heavy tension clogging up the air on either side.

"Hi… um, look, Naruto, I know you don't want to see me right now, but since I promised not to disappear again without telling you, I came here to tell you that I'll be gone on a week-long business trip from tonight onwards. I have to go, since Itachi needs me there, so… I was thinking that you could take this week to think everything through while I'm gone."

There was no reply to his words and Sasuke sighed, before he wearily whispered a few more words.

"… I wasn't able to tell to you what I wanted to say back in the car, but I want to – no, I need to – tell it right. It's painful, Naruto. I'm suffocating from my feelings, and I'm in pure agony right now… I… to you… I… I can't live without you, Naruto… and I really, really love–"

The door hinges squeaked in muted protest as Naruto opened it softly and poked his head out from the newly-appeared gap. "We can't talk about this in our current position, so you'd better come in."

"Are you sure, Naruto?"

"No… but you probably won't shut up about it until I listen to you, so it's better if the neighbours don't get to hear everything before I hear it fully."

"…So you're allowing me to come inside just because you don't want anyone to hear… right?"

The disappointed tone didn't pass by the blond's ears without being detected and a vein inside his forehead popped dangerously in response. "Okay, Sasuke, do you want to get in or not?!"

After he'd sensed that his previous assumption was mistaken upon Naruto's rather affronted reaction, the rich Uchiha nodded and made his way inside the apartment. He had previously been living in it until about four days ago, before Naruto stated that he needed his space back and that Sasuke shouldn't come for a while, so it was decidedly awkward for him to step back into it again.

They walked to the living room and Naruto sat in his armchair, before he patiently waited for Sasuke to sit down on the sofa near him. "So… you're going on a trip soon, right?"

"Yes, I'll be gone tonight. I believe that Itachi wants to introduce me to other work associates."

"Aha… and you'll be gone for a week."

"…I'd be back sooner, though, if I had a choice."

"Don't worry about it, Sasuke. It's good that you told me before you left."

"We made a promise, after all."

Naruto's eyes turned towards the ground and he nodded faintly as he murmured a pensive response. "That we did."

It didn't take long for the silence to rule over after Naruto's short comment, but though Sasuke knew he only had a limited amount of time, he couldn't just blurt it all out when Naruto looked this… this… drained. He had bags under his eyes, his hair was disheveled, his attire was scruffy and his general condition simply seemed awful. However, Sasuke remembered something that he hated himself for forgetting when he recalled Naruto's sudden panic attacks… which neither still knew the enigmatic reason for their existence.

"Hey, so… how have you been?" Although he attempted to keep the worry and the guilt out of his tone, the forced smile that he got back indicated to him that he didn't pull it off all too well.

"So-so. You?"

"…Have you been fainting a lot?"

"I'm fine, really, so don't worry about me. In any case, what were you saying before?"

"Naruto, how many times have you fainted?" The blond attempted to evade the question with an averting of his eyes and was about to spurt out another lie when Sasuke went over to his side in a mere number of seconds. In no time at all, Naruto found his face being raised to meet the other's angry black orbs as the raven gravely added. "And don't even think about lying to me."

"…Four or three times, I guess. I lost count by the first day."

Sasuke exasperatedly covered his face with one hand as he tried to smother the anger he felt towards himself. How could he have forgotten about the boxer's condition!? He was so engrossed in his own emotional shit that he'd forgotten the most important thing to him. If Neji hadn't cajoled him into informing Naruto of his departure then his pride would've seen him on that plane without a word to the other in an effort to spite Naruto, and only God would know what would have become of his former roommate.

"Sasuke," The blond muttered, as he placed a comforting hand over Sasuke's trembling one. "I'm fine already. You should go before you're late for your trip."

"When was the last time you ate?"

"Sasuke…"

"When was it, Naruto?"

Even as he sighed at the raven's insistent questioning, Naruto truthfully answered the latest query. "I ate some biscuits yesterday morning, if you must know."

"Your stomach still can't keep anything down, can it?"

"No… it's not because of that, Sasuke. I just don't feel like eating these days, that's all."

"I'm going to make you something right now, and you're going to eat it."

"What about your trip, though?"

"I've still got an hour and a half left; in that time, I'll fix you up with a meal and get a person to stay beside you, or I swear I won't be leaving your side."

Naruto smiled and shook his head as he stood up, before he gave the worried raven a smile and encircled him in a warm embrace. "Thank you, Sasuke – really, I wouldn't know where I'd be without you, because you're my hero and my white knight in shining armor – but this is already enough. We can't keep going like this, you know. You have a life, and you need to return to it, your brother and your world… and you have to think of me as a mere checkpoint on your journey through life. You have to continue down your chosen path without the added burden of having to worry about me. I may be an idiot, but I've lived through more hardships than you can imagine, so it won't kill me to be left behind again. Now, get out of here and go to your job, and don't look back… okay?"

"I love you, Naruto."

A jolt went through Naruto at those words and, for a split second, he forgot how to breathe, his whole body froze and he thanked God that his burning face was hidden in the crook of Sasuke's neck, because that was the only way he could continue with what he was about to say… and rip his own heart out of his chest forever. The blond tightly squeezed the back he was holding and nodded jerkily in its perch as his lips tenderly formed an appropriate reply.

"I know, and… I love you too… which is why you can't be with me."

The enlightened joy that Sasuke felt from his confession disappeared shortly after his brain processed the ending to that sentence and, with a baffled tone, he tried to offer up a clear reason for the other's odd words. "I don't understand, Naruto… are you worrying about me? About leading a normal life?"

"…There's that too, but no, it's not that… Sasuke," The tender tone Naruto was using morphed into a sad one as he tried to convey his feelings across to the stricken Uchiha. "I'm just no good at relationships. I always hurt those whom I love because my love is a dreadful love that you don't need, Sasuke, and I'd kill myself before I hurt any part of you because of my selfish actions. There's a person out there who's more suited for you than me… I know it."

"Are you denying my feelings again?"

"No. I never intended on doing that… I just wanted to have some time to organize my thoughts before I thought of accepting your love, and I'm sorry if it came off as some sort of denial. Besides, I clearly recall that I never denied you anything ever since we were on the roof that night."

"Then… we feel the same way, don't we?"

"Yes, but we can't be together."

"Naruto… you–"

"Don't make any sense, I know, but–"

"I love you, Naruto. I love you, and I love you beyond reason!" Sasuke interrupted the vicious cycle Naruto was sure to spiral into and gently pushed the blond away from him so his eyes could be seen by Naruto's and, therefore, could see the complicated emotions running through the other. "All my life, I've never felt anything like this. I… I really don't think I could function like a normal human being without you. You've already become a part of me ─ an irreplaceable part, actually ─ and I might as well cease living if you plan on leaving me...!"

Naruto bit his lips and squeezed his eyes shut so hard that a headache exploded in his mind, while his pained heart throbbed in agony with every syllable Sasuke uttered to him. Unable to take the situation anymore, Naruto swiftly ran from the living room and bolted towards his bedroom, before he locked the door and slid to the ground with a frantic clutch of his chest. He was a coward. He was a pathetic human who was afraid to love and open his heart up again to someone who cared greatly for him. He hadn't anticipated the difficulty involved with telling Sasuke that they couldn't be together and the way that it would tear him apart as the seconds flowed by, and he hated himself for delivering the death sentence to both their hurting hearts.

But… but then… how could he love Sasuke the way he deserved when he himself was oblivious to the true meaning of love?

A soft knock came from the other side and jolted the blond from his dark thoughts.

"Naruto… I won't ask you to open up, but… please, please don't shoulder this burden by yourself… if anything, allow me to shoulder it too. You've always helped when I needed you, so let me be useful for you this time around. I hate it when I'm this near and you're only hurting by yourself..."

As he dug his nails into the carpet beneath him, Naruto's heart frantically reminded him of the fact that he needed to start opening his mouth and alleviate the sorrow in Sasuke's voice and, after he's spent awhile summoning up the remainder of his courage, he finally offered up a frail response. "…I don't want to hurt you, Sasuke… because you're probably the only true love in my life, and if I were to disappoint you in any way… I don't think I could ever live with that."

"Then listen to my words, Naruto; listen and hear what I'm saying with my heart. I love you, and I love you so damn much that you'll never be able to hurt me. I've already accepted everything you have and I'm okay with you because, like you once said, we're the perfect fit for each other when we're both broken and dysfunctional. So, Naruto… let's spend our life together and heal each other's wounds."

"You're not making any sense, you know. You should be with someone who's already fixed, so that you can balance them out."

"But you and I already balance out… don't you see it, Naruto?"

"…"

The silence stretched out between them again and, just when Sasuke was about to start panicking about whether his words were really reaching Naruto at all, the sound of the lock being unlocked permeated the silence and stopped him from finding another way to make the blond hear him out. When the door was fully opened, Sasuke felt a smile appear on his face when Naruto stood in the middle of the doorway with his hands nervously twisted in his lap and with his gaze flitting to any other place but his own.

"I…" The blond coughed to clear the hesitant tone from his voice and gulped down his anxiety before he tried to speak again. "I'm not experienced… in love, I mean. I'm sloppy in all this and my past girlfriends – or, well, the ones besides Hinata, that is – would always end up dumping me. They always said that I wasn't… what they'd expected… and they doubted my innate ability to love."

"Those girls were fools, Naruto. They gave up on you because they didn't know any better, but I'd never do some–"

"I know, I know. But just hear me out, 'kay?"

Sasuke nodded and gave the nervous blond one of the smiles the other claimed to love so much about him in the faint hope that the edginess would wither away. After all, he wanted Naruto to see that he didn't really care about his flaws and that he was prepared to go to hell and back for him.

"Say what you need to say; because I'll patiently hear everything you want to tell me."

As he sat on the chair beside his bed, Naruto started to talk once again. "They always dumped me and I was fine with it, really. I think that my inability to neither know nor experience love was the reason why Hinata had cheated on me as well, and why everyone else after her dumped me. I wasn't able to give people something I didn't have… and honestly speaking, I truly believe that I can't make you feel the way you want me to. There's going to be a day in the future when you'll become disappointed in me and you'd start thinking things like 'why the hell am I here?', 'what did I see in him?', 'can't I find a way out of this messed up, screwed-up life I'm leading with him?'… Sasuke, I don't… I don't know what I'd do then… if you ever reached that point in our life together…"

"Naru–"

"I'm scared of what I might do when you leave me… if you showered me with love and I got too attached to you, I might even reach the point of no return… and I'm frightened of turning into an embittered person, you know. Do you get me, Sasuke? I know that this love is the real deal… I can sense it in every cell in my body… but it's scaring me to death here!"

When he saw how true those words were and the impact that they had on his beloved, Sasuke's face immediately relaxed into an uncharacteristically happy expression. He let go of the self-control that he had been clinging to and traversed the short distance separating him from Naruto to embrace the other in a tight hug. He tried to hide the happiness that was practically gushing from every part of him, but the merry tone that was foreign to the both of them as he chirped completely shattered his resolve to keep himself stoic.

"Oh, Naruto! I don't think I'll ever be able to let go of my love for you. It's also my only true love and I'm sure that I'll never experience anything as deep as this in my life~!"

As he blinked at the joy that emanated from the raven smothering his head, Naruto moved a few inches away from Sasuke's chest so he could breathe and exclaimed in his sitting position. "I'm being serious here!"

"And so am I," Sasuke moved away so he could stare deep into the pure orbs he cherished so much, before he murmured his resolve towards the blond. "Firstly, Naruto, it's not a matter of 'when', it's more a matter of 'if', and even then, I have complaints about your wording. I will never ever, ever leave you! If there's someone who should be worried about someone leaving then it would be me, since you've always been talking about how much you wished for a girlfriend –"

"That was before I realized my feelings!"

The raven smiled and kneeled down to hold both Naruto's hands in his own. "Yes, you've finally caught up with your emotions, and I completely trust you to continue loving me until the end of your life, because all I need from you is to feel the same way for me too. You're the sun in my life, the light to my darkness… and you already know how pessimistic I can be… so you're the perfect person to make me see the good in life."

"Sasuke…"

"Do you get it now, Naruto? We're hopeless without each other, because we were made for each other."

They continued to look into each other's eyes as the smile on Sasuke's face grew with every passing second, which caused Naruto's face to heat up so that a lovely blush, which threatened to extend to his ears, formed on his tanned cheeks. Sasuke quickly stood up to wrench the blond to his feet with a little jerk and, still smiling at the relief he felt from ridding himself of such a huge burden, Sasuke pulled Naruto close and ran a hand through his golden locks. As he sensed softness derived from the lack of the gel which the blond always used to spike up his hair, it only served to send happy signals towards his brain, as it told him that Naruto was so bent on thinking their relationship through that he ignored his own person in the process.

When his fingers were softly grabbed by the other's tanned hands, Sasuke brought their foreheads together and gently tapped his own against Naruto's, before he felt his stomach flutter with the movement of the butterflies that seemed to reside in it. However, without any warning, a sudden peace descended onto them and gave both the lost souls an unspoken haven to share in their peace in the chaotic world they lived in. Finally, Naruto allowed his hidden emotions to be known and let his fearful heart relax, then he surrendered himself to the strong love that Sasuke showered onto his soul, and it was so very tender that it hurt to breathe.

"…I love you."

The words were whispered in a hushed and fragile tone that showed Sasuke how hard it was for the boxer to expose his soul like that, and it told him of the many trials and errors he'd went through to reach that realization of his love. It had been all his past anguish, pain and depression that had delivered the final push to his hesitant heart, which was afraid to give off any sense of love as not to be met with misfortune once more, into the right direction.

Sasuke answered by gently connecting his lips with Naruto's. He started off with a sensual touch of the lips, and initiated a kiss that would clearly carve its existence into Naruto's heart and show him how much he adored everything about him, and how he'd rather die again than leave his side or leave him alone for anytime more than a minute. Then, when he was sure that the blond was comfortable with the kiss, he brushed his tongue against the other's mouth to deepen his declaration of pure love. When Naruto responded and opened his mouth to permit the other's intrusion, he let Sasuke mark his insides and seal their unspoken promise of a lifetime.

As he circled his arms around Sasuke's neck, the blond slowly drew him closer and permitted the kiss to deepen even further. He felt his fingers tingle and delicately intertwined them with Sasuke's locks, and nearly melted into a puddle of happiness when Sasuke's tongue met his and a sweet dance took place between them. Finally, when the need for air arose, the pair parted to breathe, and Naruto found his face flushing at the light blush scattered across Sasuke's sharp features.

"I'm on top of the world right now, Naruto."

"Well, that would make the two of us, I guess."

Before Sasuke could say anything to respond to that, his ringtone rudely interrupted their romantic atmosphere, and the sweet nothings he was about to whisper into Naruto's ear had to wait for another opportune moment to arise again. The caller's ID told him all he needed to know and, with a rather tired sigh, he sent a message to the caller and informed him of his imminent arrival.

After he'd eased himself onto his bed and watched Sasuke ruffle his black locks while he tucked his cell back into his pocket, Naruto smiled a little sadly at the raven. "You need to go now, don't you?"

"Yeah, but–"

"You can't ditch this one — it was your words, after all, and not mine — remember?"

"I know, but still… I wish I didn't have to go. Will you be alright without me?"

Naruto leapt to his feet and rolled his eyes at the standing man. "Bakasuke, I've been taking care of myself long before you came into my life… and besides, all this," he pointed to his appearance deprecatingly, before he continued on, "is a result of me worrying too much and disregarding my life, but now that I'm fine, I'll go and take a shower and I'll be as good as new in no time at all. I feel lighter and my heart is at rest now, so don't worry about me. Just… come back soon, 'kay?"

"…I'm still not happy about my going, though."

"Well, neither am I, but…" As he shrugged his shoulders, the blond gently pushed Sasuke's back and guided him towards the door while he merrily chirped a few more words. "Just trust me and go~ I'll be right here, after all, and I'll be waiting for you when you get back~!"

After a frown had formed at the all-too-happy way in which he was being kicked out of the blond's apartment, Sasuke folded his arms and stood resolutely beside the front door in an attempt to delay his departure. "I'm beginning to think you don't want me here."

Naruto smacked the otherwise-intelligent raven on the head and flatly responded. "Yes, I don't, especially when you're going to be late for that meeting of yours if you stay any longer. Now, get that hot ass of yours moving and get out of my apartment."

"Our apartment, Dobe."

"My money, my apartment."

"My memories, my apartment."

The boxer suppressed the desire to roll his eyes at the childish petulance Sasuke was showing, which tended to come out whenever they were having a small argument, and sufficed with a smug question as his retort. "Well then, if it's our apartment, why are you living somewhere else?"

Sasuke's eyes widened slightly, before he solemnly asked. "Wait, so… you want me to move back in here, with you?"

"Well, you did say it was your apartment… though God knows that I've grown attached to it rather dearly as well. Why don't we just stay here, instead of finding another foreign place to move into? You have some lovely memories contained within these walls and it's also the place I first met you, too, so there's no place I'd love to live in more. Whaddaya say, Sasuke; want to live with me again?"

The Uchiha's black orbs softened instantly and, instead of words, Naruto was immediately given a tight hug that he was sure broke most of his ribs. However, the feelings that were being whispered into his soul were far more important that the pain spreading through his body at that moment.

"I'd love to, Naruto."

The blond patted the broad back in his arms and returned the hug with gusto. "Yosh! Well then, I'll expect you to come back here from your trip and safely return home to me."

The raven drew back and gave Naruto a small and tender peck on the cheeks. "You don't need to tell me that; after all, it's already imprinted into my soul."

As he grinned childishly in reply, Naruto amusedly countered. "Yeah, I forgot that your soul was always very attentive for a split second there~"

Before he swung the front door open, Sasuke turned slightly and gave the boxer another kiss in which a sweet "I love you" was whispered, and allowed a lingering smile to appear on his face as he ventured back into the world outside.

The blue-eyed boxer continued to watch the raven's retreating back with a silly beam vibrating from every part of his face and waved at the other, then whispered his reciprocating feelings to the disappearing Uchiha.

"Hurry back home, Sasuke…"

His parting words hovered in the air as he closed the door to his apartment, and he finally allowed his jelly-like legs to slump to the ground, while he tried to catch his breath in the bottomless love that he'd had the luck to stumble onto.

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We're done for today, people~ Thank you for reading this far! The next chapter would be the last and hopefully, I can get it out by the week after the next. Do review, please :D~ They make me happy and I'll update sooner that way~ Bye, bye~~