I'm so sorry! I'm a day late! For some reason, I got writer's block during this chapter. I knew what I was going to write but… Well, you know what I'm talking about. Anyway, I fought through it and finished this. Please forgive the state of this chapter.
Just saying the shock I was in before is nothing compared to now. 105 reviews… *blink*blink* Is this real life? The pretty much best people in the world who made this possible (yes, in real life) are KeitorinNara, grayember13, littlefoxx567, charleejane, XxXLexxibabeXxX, gothpandaotaku, LovegoodH, Ninja Trio's Best, ehjahyred, OwlNightLover, Akirakun17, AwsomestPersonAlive, technoninjalover, Sabrininha-chan, morrastar, wolfeclipse25, Apollymi28, mushmushmush, Sarunaru N Ichihitsu, LurvirsLuvvie, Hollymist, & Miss Light Bright. You guys are incredibly super awesome. Anyone telling you otherwise is a jerk and a liar.
Loved all the hate mail towards Sakura. I think I've been influenced by it because Naruto is much meaner to her in conversation than I had originally planned. I can't see anyone really minding though. :)
(Naruto POV) – in bedroom, late at night
Naruto didn't really want to admit it to himself, but it had felt good to fight those guys. It was nice to let off some steam, and with every thought of Sakura and what she said, every punch felt better. His body had relaxed, and he had felt himself let loose. Had set his cares aside and became free. And those feelings scared the hell out of him.
It had been a long time since fighting felt this good. He must have been madder than he had thought. He let a breath slowly and remembered the fight. The punches and kicks connecting with flesh. The sounds of their shouts and grunts of pain. Naruto shivered. The worst of it was his wild almost joyful feeling in beating them down. It had been a good thing to beat them until they were unconscious. Until they needed to be rushed to a hospital. Naruto wrapped his arms around himself as if he were trying to hold a part of himself down. A past down.
"No," he whispered to himself, "You can not become that again. Please don't become that." His fingernails dug into his arms, and slowly he could feel his blood and body calm down.
He closed his eyes, grasping as if he had run too fast. I need to think of something else. Something that will distract me.
Date…
Probably the second to last thing he wanted to turn over in his head right then. He cursed himself over and over again, but once thought of, it loomed over his head menacingly.
"Ugh!" He exclaimed to himself, "I don't want to have to think about this. It's the bitch's fault I'm going nuts now. Why should I even have to deal with her?" He rolled over, burying his face into the pillow. "I don't know what a normal date is like. I don't want to have to set one up…" Then he remembered Sasuke sleeping here with him just the night before, and Naruto deeply inhaled the scent in the pillow. "I don't want Sasuke to go…" he mumbled.
He thought back over what Sakura had said, ignoring the insults. She thinks I like Sasuke. It looks like I do.
Naruto had no experience in dating at all. He had ever really liked anyone before either. Sure, there might have been looks at pretty girls but never a deep emotional attachment. He slowed his thoughts and decided to go about it logically. What did he think liking someone was like, regardless of gender? He stared blankly at his ceiling, mind at a standstill.
He sat up and slammed his forehead into his hand in frustration. "Damn it!" He was wandering lost in a territory he had never even thought about. Still angry at his swirling thoughts, he decided to get a glass of water and only think about the damn date. Push through this one thing at a time.
While he was gulping his second glass, a magazine on the kitchen table caught his eye. It was one of the teen girl ones that was ridiculously pink and flowery. He had seen them around the house before and assumed it belonged to one of the older girls, like Hinata who had just turned fourteen, or something. But he never really looked at it, and looking at the captions, he read 'How to tell if you like a guy and if he likes you back'. He stared at it a second longer.
"I'm not actually going to look at this, am I?" and he flipped to the page the article was on.
Another explosion of pink flowers on the page almost made Naruto close the magazine, but the horrible blue letters of 'How to Know if You Have a Crush on a Guy' stopped him.
1. 'Do you blush or get nervous around him?' – "Yes, but I embarrass easily."
2. 'Does your heart skip a beat when you touch?' – "Yes…but that doesn't necessarily mean anything."
3. 'Are you thinking about him throughout the day? Do you talk about him with your friends?' – Naruto thought of the time he told Ayame about Sasuke and the all times he talked about him with Kiba-kun and the other guys. "Humph."
4. 'Do you try to get information about him? Directly or indirectly?' – They both did that all the time. Wasn't that the purpose of their question deal? To get more information on each aka get to know each other better.
5. 'Do you get angry when you see him with other girls?' – "But everyone thinks Sakura is annoying when she's with him."
6. 'Do you act differently with him than with other guys?' – He thought of everything he had done with Sasuke since he had meet him. Definitely different, but he hadn't really had any friends until this year. Compared to Kiba-kun though… Definitely different.
7. 'Do you look for him when you enter a room?' – He sat in front of Sasuke. Of course he looks to that side of the room when he comes into the classroom.
8. 'Do you find yourselves wanting to do things for him? Wanting to get his attention?' – He didn't ever try to get Sasuke attention, but as for the first question… He had wanted to cook for him, to make him a lunch. To thank him.
9. 'Do you look forward to seeing him? Do you want to spend more time with him?' – Well, he did want Sasuke to hang out at lunch, but that was with everyone too.
10. 'Do you want to hug or kiss him? Want him to hug or kiss you?' – No response.
Naruto looked at the words in obnoxious hot pink. 'If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you probably like him! And if you answered yes to all, then it's a definite yes!'
He put the magazine down leaving it on the same page. What was he thinking? This was for young teen girls, and here he was, a guy, looking at it to see if he liked another guy. Things would be different for him. Plus, with all the life-saving Sasuke had been doing for Naruto, things were bound to be altered.
Before he could help himself, he turned the page to 'How to Tell if a Guy Likes You' inwardly cursing his curiosity.
1. 'What does his body language tell you? Does he lean towards you? Put an arm around your waist?'- …Sasuke was always catching him so an arm around the waist was accepted.
2. 'Notice his eye contact. Have you ever caught him staring at you?' – First and second day of school Naruto remembered Sasuke's stare weigh on his back. But he was the strange new kid.
3. 'Does he ever seem nervous or sweaty around you and say things that don't make sense?' – Naruto would pay to see Sasuke in a state like that. So nervous he can barely talk. The guy is too damn confident for his own good.
4. 'Watch his actions around other girls. Does he treat you differently?' – "Hell, if I know." Sakura wasn't the best example of how Sasuke acts around girls. Plus, wouldn't it be his actions around other guys. This doesn't really apply.
5. 'Does he show interest in the things you like and do?' – Question deal. Of course, he needs to show interest. Naruto would beat him up if he didn't.
6. 'Do his friends give you any signs? Do they tease him when you're around? Nudge him? Gesture to you?' – Shikamaru-kun was only helping Sasuke keep secrets from him. Naruto felt a small wave of dislike towards the guy. It didn't make sense, but it bothered him to see Shikamaru-kun able to make Sasuke show different emotions. Like he was taking some right or privilege away from Naruto.
7. 'Does he tease you?' – His favorite pastime.
8. ' Is he playful around you? Does he ever punch you lightly in the arm for fun?' – The punches are never very light, and he punches back anyway. "Speaking of which, I need to get back at him for the tickle attack," he mused aloud.
9. 'Does he compliment you? Say sweet things like you're beautiful, cute, adorable?" – He did call Naruto adorable once, but 'idiot' seems the favored word when Sasuke is describing him.
10. 'Does he ever follow you in a sneaky way? Like sitting near you in a restaurant and then acts surprised when he sees you?' – Follow? He thought of the time Sasuke supposedly watched him in the park, but he didn't technically follow him there.
'The more 'yes' the better chance he likes you! Use your woman's intuition!' Naruto snorted at the last comment. "Well, that isn't happening." He stared at the 'likes' before closing the magazine, feeling the weight on his shoulders start pushing down at full force. Reality set back in. No one would love a messed up guy like me.
…
Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and yawned as he walked the last stretch to school. He hadn't slept well. The bed was somehow uncomfortable now like something was poking into him wherever he moved. Nightmares had been lurking on the edge of his dreams, and he had woken up abruptly more than once, his body drenched with sweat. The very last thing he wanted to see was Sakura-san tapping her foot and waiting by his locker, but there she was.
"The bell's about to ring. Do you know how long I've been standing here?" she said as soon as he was in earshot.
He felt annoyance and something close to hate well up inside him. "No one asked you to wait by my locker." He pulled out his school shoes, slipped them on, and shoved his old sneakers in their place. "What do you want?"
"The date! When and where? I hope you didn't choose somewhere weird. Did you ask him?"
"Stop screeching in my ear." Naruto put a hand over his ear nearest to her. "I didn't ask him yet. I haven't had the fucking time so get off my back."
She backed up looking a little surprised and scared of him, and Naruto was pleased to see it. But she wasn't backing down. "Wow, someone's pissed off today. I'm surprised you feel comfortable using that tone and language with me, but that doesn't mean I can't use it back. So tell me where the hell you've planned my date or I'll tell everyone what I learned yesterday."
"I never said I liked him," Naruto growled. He slammed his locker shut and trudged towards the classroom at a fast pace. "You'll have your precious date at the amusement park. Saturday, two o'clock."
She strolled along side him easily, and he hated her and his short legs. "Ugh. Amusement park? Could you have picked anywhere less romantic? And at two? I wanted to bring him lunch."
He felt a black part of him rise up, and he beat it back down. He wanted to punch when she mentioned bringing a lunch. His hand twitched. The fight yesterday was making his hands trigger-happy. "I could care less that you're unhappy with what I thought up. You wanted me to come up with something that was realistic for me to want to go to. I thought where I wanted to go, and I picked a time that fits my schedule not yours. You told me to so you should damn well deal with it."
"You're prissy today." She sighed. "Whatever, I'll work with it. You just have to ask Uchiha-kun now. And tell him to meet you inside the park."
"Why the hell does it matter?"
"Because it does." And they walked into the classroom.
Naruto had never been so happy to see his desk on the opposite side of the room from Sakura-san. Another minute with her and he might really have punched her no matter how much he tried to calm himself. He looked at little further down the row to see Sasuke smirk and wave at him.
His heart clenched. All the rage left his body. He felt the same jittering and warmth as last night, but there was a sadness too. He was feeling hot and cold at the same time, and he wanted to cry. He waved back with a weak smile. He couldn't talk to him yet. Something would break if he did.
(Sasuke POV) – in classroom before school, 7:54
Naruto was late. He wondered if he was hurt at all from the fight the night before. He had looked fine but…
Sasuke looked back at the clock. 6 minutes until the bell rings. He usually was an early riser, right? "Damn it," he muttered quietly.
"We'll get you Fox-boy. We're coming after everything you love."
Naruto slammed his fist into the man's cheek, and even Sasuke had to wince at the sound of the head cracking on the cement.
"There's no fucking way I'll ever let you hurt someone I love again." Naruto's back was shaking. His body was vibrating. But his voice was sad, dark, and so mad it set a chill down Sasuke's neck. He crouched down closer to the three men, and Sasuke had to strain his ears to hear what he was saying. "If you touch anyone, I-will-destroy-you. You understand me. I don't care if I go to jail or hell this time. I will do everything in my power to crush you… to kill you."
The threat was real. Every fiber in Naruto's voice said he meant it, but it didn't feel like him at all. This was not the smiling, bubbling blond whose laugh shot warmth through his veins. There was no light around him as he stood up again. He was draped in shadows, and he stepped over the men calmly as if he were walking on dirt.
Sasuke rubbed his forehead. Naruto seemed physically fine, but there was something seriously wrong with him. That rage, that sadness, it was unnatural. The sad eyes Sasuke had seen screamed for help or salvation. His rage consumed him. He needed someone to listen to him, to care for him, but he had locked himself down tight.
People loved him. That was true. There were plenty of people willing to support him, who were trying to support him, but Naruto didn't let himself relax in that support. He had locked up his secrets not even letting people near enough to touch the bolt.
But Sasuke had touched the bolt. He remembered when he hugged Naruto, surprising him. He had done more than touch. He had rattled it enough to make something crack.
He slammed his hands down on his desk, making everyone in the room jump. What the hell Naruto? What the hell?
He hadn't slept well last night, driving himself crazy thinking about Naruto. Thousands of questions pulsed in his brain, he wanted to tie Naruto up and force him to explain himself. He wanted to push him down and torture him until he begged to explain himself.
Despite what he wanted to do, he knew that trying to force answers out of Naruto would only backfire badly. That's why he didn't go after him. He knew seeing this scene was something Naruto would not forgive him for. He had to have patience and wait for Naruto to slowly expose himself to Sasuke. And he hated it. Patience had never been a great trait of his, and with his curiosity for the blond it just made everything worse.
He looked back towards the clock. 7:58. Four minutes had passed. He looked back towards the door, and Naruto came in. He had a perfectly pissed expression on his face, but it did not seem close to how he was the night before. Sakura-san came in next as the reason for his anger. That girl could drive anyone up a wall.
Naruto looked towards his desk, and his face relaxed a little. He was like Naruto again.
Sasuke smirked and waved at him, feeling amused and relieved that Naruto was there and looking more like his usual self. But he stopped when he saw Sasuke, expressions changing to quickly on his face for Sasuke to read. He smiled weakly and moved slowly to his seat before collapsing into it. That was it. No greeting. No bright smile. No sparkling blue eyes. This was not Naruto.
…
At first, Sasuke thought that Naruto was avoiding him because he had somehow found out that Sasuke saw him in the alley that night, but he soon realized that couldn't be it. After all he wasn't completely avoiding Sasuke. He couldn't. Naruto was still sitting in front of him. They still ate lunch together, but that was it.
He leaves Ramen Ichiraku before he gets there. He comes late in the morning so that they have no time to talk. He runs away every break. During lunch, Naruto would laugh and talk with him, but it seems weak and he always finds his way around every topic he wants to avoid. Their question deal had completely stopped, and even when he called the orphanage for Naruto, he was busy or was in the shower or was at work when Sasuke knew he wasn't.
After he figured Naruto couldn't possibly have seen him, Sasuke thought he maybe just needed some time to think things over himself. This thought didn't last long either only because he was getting annoyed and impatient. By Friday, he decided to corner Naruto no matter what his reaction might be. He got tired of trying to chase him down after school so this time he would grab Naruto's arm the moment the final bell rang and drag him out of there.
Getting ready to shot his arm grab Naruto, he was surprised when Naruto turned to him first thing. He looked at Sasuke's outstretched hand. "Huh?"
Sasuke pulled his hand back but refused to show embarrassment. "Nothing."
He looked down and then straight into Sasuke's eyes. The electric blue eyes shocked him. It felt like a much longer than a couple days since he had looked Naruto directly in the eyes. "Sasuke, we need to talk."
About time. "About what?" He wanted to appear relaxed and nonchalant, but he unconsciously leaned forward instead.
Naruto looked back down and Sasuke instantly missed the blue. "I've kinda been avoiding you. Sorry."
"Kinda? If that was kinda, then I never want to find out what you're like when you're really avoiding me."
Naruto chuckled, but Sasuke could tell that his heart wasn't in it. "I guess I was…"
"Naruto." He waited until their eyes met. "Why are you avoiding me?"
His eyes shifted, and he didn't seem like he was aware that he was scouting away from Sasuke.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes, clearly annoyed and frustrated. He just wanted to take the blond by both hands and pull him into his chest to dispel whatever was making him uncomfortable around Sasuke.
"Yeah, well, umm…" He cleared his throat and steeled his gaze. "I was wondering if you wanted to go the amusement park on Saturday."
Sasuke was taken back. Where did this come from? It somehow didn't seem right. "With you?"
The gaze dropped again, and Naruto laughed nervously. "Yeah, who else? Anyway, I was thinking we could meet inside the amusement park at two."
Who the hell put him up to this? Everything he was saying sounded false. "Doesn't your job start at four? That doesn't leave you with much time to play around. Besides, I don't like amusement parks. Too many loud people with no respect for others' ears."
"Oh, well I've never been so I didn't know it would be a bad place to hang out." Naruto laughed weakly, and Sasuke gave in.
"It's ok. I'll go. My track meet has been canceled, and it would be worth it to see your face the first time you ride a roller coaster."
He couldn't even fake a laugh. He just tried to curve his mouth in a smile, failing miserably. "See you then, I guess." Naruto got up to leave, but he didn't turn quick enough to hide his painful expression from Sasuke. He was about to cry.
Now, let's find out which bastard or bitch messed with Naruto.
…
It was 1:57 pm, Saturday afternoon, and he waited just inside the park, sitting on a bench under the trees. Part of him was still hoping that Naruto was coming though he knew he wasn't. It had been obvious that Naruto hadn't even wanted to ask him, but since he asked with that kind of expression, it was impossible for him say know. There was a small part of him that wondered who roped Naruto to do that, but Sasuke mostly just wanted the blond beside him, leaning against each other, bodies close. He closed his eyes and sighed.
"Uuuchihaa-kuunnn!"
Sasuke froze. His eyelids twitched, but he didn't open them. Oh god no. Surely Naruto is sane enough to not agree and response to any of her plans or threats. He can not leave me alone with her.
"Uuchiha-kuunnn!"
Her voice was louder. Nearer. Oh god, please let this be a dream. Please.
"Uchiha-kun! What are you doing? Are you sleeping?"
Sasuke opened his eyes, and there she was in front of him. Brown hair in braids, face covered in make-up. If he didn't know her or Naruto, then he would think she was good looking and wouldn't mind being seen in public with her. But she looked pale now in comparison to the bright blond he knew. She didn't have his sparkle or bounce, and seeing her here just made him want Naruto more. "Where's Naruto?"
"He not coming."
He was exactly surprised that she was telling the truth assuming that she would say something like he was busy and couldn't make it. "Why?"
"He was being nice. He knew I umm… like you," she said quietly blushing. It didn't get anywhere near as irresistible when Naruto did. "He set this date up for me. He said he thinks we would look good together."
That was a stab into his chest. He didn't except Naruto to think that especially because of how he acts around the blond. It should be obvious that he wouldn't kiss anyone on the forehead. That he wouldn't sleep next to just anyone. True, Naruto did seem slow to romance and flirting, but he had kissed him back. Sasuke sighed and was about to close his eyes again when Sakura-san grabbed his hand and dragged him up and away. The moment she stopped in front of a ride, and he wrenched his hand out of her grasp.
"Uchiha-kun, let's ride this one." She pointed up to it. It was one of the biggest roller coasters in the park with loops and steep hills.
He looked up towards it and smiled thinking of how much Naruto would scream if he went on this ride.
"You're smiling! You want to go to this ride! Let's go." She took his arm to drag him with this time.
"No-" He stopped in mid-sentence when something caught his eye. Someone was wearing a bright orange cap and hiding behind what looked to be a trashcan. Naruto would have to be the worst detective in history. He may have been trying to hide his bright hair color, but the only thing he did was attach more attention to it. The bright neon orange was enough to draw eyes, but once the eyes were on him, everyone could see the sapphire blue eyes and sunshine yellow hair. How he was acting might have attracted the most attention though. Besides hiding behind the trashcan, there was a line of people behind him wanting to throw their trash away but having no idea what to do with the strange blond.
Sasuke felt his face split into a grin as one old lady began yelling at him for blocking the way. This was going to be more fun than he thought.
…
It was actually lucky that Sakura-san was so focused on his face because she didn't see the very obvious Naruto following them around. It was actually sort of nice. Sakura-san would talk endlessly, and he could easily ignore her and watch the blond instead. Seeing his nods and small smiles, she would keep talking and not notice he wasn't paying attention to her at all.
Naruto hadn't been lying about having never gone to an amusement park. It was written all over his face, and he stared in amazement and wonder at magicians doing cheap tricks.
As Sasuke's smile grew wider, it seemed like Sakura-san was getting more confident. She spoke louder, laughing more often, and used lots of hand gestures.
It was when she started to talk about school or something when Naruto walked straight into a light post. He had been watching a man pull colored handkerchiefs from his mouth, his eyes as wide as a child's when they see a double scoop ice cream cone being handed to them. He had been walking forward with that ice cream look, his eyes glued to the scene, and walked straight into the metal pole. Sasuke could hear the smack when his forehead hit it from where he was standing about twenty feet away.
Not able to help himself, he burst out laughing. The look on Naruto's face had been priceless. It was then that Sakura-san finally realized that her talk and jokes were not what Sasuke found so amusing. She looked and found Naruto, eyes narrowed, all hint of a smile gone.
She tightened her hands in fists and spoke through her teeth. "That bastard! How dare he follow us? This is our date. He only knows how to get in the way. Ugh! He is so irritating and stupid!" She started to walk in Naruto's direction, but Sasuke stopped by holding her arm in a deathlike grip.
He had snapped. He dragged her behind a park restaurant and pushed her against the brick wall. Slamming his fist on the bricks by her face, he got close. "How dare you talk about Naruto like that!"
(Naruto POV) – at amusement park, 2:30-ish, maybe later
Amusement parks were fascinating, but he wished with every fiber of being that he hadn't come to spy on Sasuke and Sakura-san. The rumored 'expressionless' Sasuke was smiling the whole time. He smiled, nodded, and chuckled lightly. And everything he did was adding another needle to stab into Naruto's heart.
They spun on roller coasters, played in the side stands, had snacks, and Sakura-san was dragging him anywhere with a hand in his or an arm around his arm. It hurt to watch them. It hurt to see them smile together. His heart was throbbing and beating painfully as he watched Sakura whisper something in Sasuke's ear. This perhaps was the purest and most painful form of torture he had ever experienced.
To distract himself from the stabbing, he watched the shows the workers put on at various spots around the park. It was enchanting to watch, but the joy of it left whenever he looked back over to them. They looked like a couple in love, and it was killing him. He looked over in time to see Sakura-san grab his hand to pull him somewhere else, and he felt the tears well at the edge of his eyes. Why did I even come? What was I hoping for?
He watched Sasuke's hair move in the wind as he got pulled along. It looked like it had tints of purple in it when sunlight hit it. He suddenly wanted to run his hand through that hair. He wanted to be the one holding Sasuke's hand and dragging him everywhere. He wanted to lean towards Sasuke on tiptoe and whisper things into his ear. He wanted Sasuke to smile and laugh with him. He wanted to be Sasuke's focus and attention. Why was Sakura-san able to do that but not him? Why couldn't he be beside Sasuke? What was so different about male and female? Why did it matter? And why did he have to be so scared to confess anything? Why was he scared of being accused of liking a guy? What it did matter what others thought? But it did. It mattered. He was always scared of what other people thought of him.
There were amazed exclamations and cheers, and he looked over to see a man pull different colored handkerchiefs from his mouth. Naruto beheld him in awe for a moment (How did they do things like that?) when he suddenly walked smack into a light post.
Rubbing his forehead, he heard Sasuke laugh clear and loud. It was one of his rare, beautiful laughs. He only laughed like this if he truly couldn't help it. It was these laughs that Naruto always tried to get out of him.
A tear fell from his eye and landed on the back on his hand. He could feel the cracks getting bigger. He was going to break.
"Young'n?" He looked up to see the old woman who had yelled at him in front of the trashcans. "Are you alright?" Her face was warm, kind, and worried now. It was an expression that he couldn't look at.
He wiped his cheek with the back of the same hand. "I'm fine. Don't worry."
She nodded, clearly still worried, but Naruto ran away before she could say anything else. Sasuke and Sakura-san had disappeared, but he didn't care anymore. He didn't want to be here. He found out that Sasuke likes her back. He didn't need to stay here any longer.
He must have turned wrong somewhere because he suddenly looking down the back of a building at Sasuke holding Sakura-san against the wall, his mouth close to hers.
His heart stopped, and he stumbled away trying to figure out why he couldn't breathe. His breath came out in chokes, and it wasn't until he felt the hot liquid running down his cheeks that he realized he was sobbing hysterically. He couldn't stop. No matter how many times he wiped his cheeks, more tears came pouring down. It hurt. His heart was being torn from his chest. He liked Sasuke. He was a guy, and Sasuke was guy. And he loved him.
(Sasuke POV) – in amusement park, 3:11 pm
He left Sakura-san behind the building crying, and he didn't give a damn. He hated her for somehow forcing Naruto to do this. He hated her for what she said about the blond. He had wanted to tear her apart for what she had said about him.
Leaving her there, he didn't want anything else to do with her. He was going to find Naruto, have him explain however Sakura-san got him into this, have Naruto let him beat Sakura-san up for him, and then they were going to get out of there. But walking out to where he had last seen Naruto, he was nowhere to be found. Only his neon orange cap was lying on the ground near the pole.
Sasuke looked everywhere, wondering how he could miss him. He searched until he concluded that Naruto had left. It was just after five so he knew Naruto would be at Ramen Ichiraku.
Coming up to the restaurant, he knocked on the back as he had been doing the last couple of days trying to find a Naruto who was avoiding him. Ayame and Teuchi had started to recognize Sasuke and invite him in for tea or iced water if it was a peculiarly hot night. They didn't understand what was going on between the two of them and why Naruto was always trying to escape him, but at least, they understood that Sasuke cared about Naruto. So they accepted him and treated him kindly.
Therefore when Ayame opened the back door, he was completely unprepared for her attitude. The moment she saw him her eyes narrowed and her cheeks flushed in anger.
"I have no idea what you did, but I could care less. Never come near Naruto again. You are no longer welcome here." She was shutting the door before Sasuke grabbed it.
"What are you talking about? Why can't I come near Naruto? What's happened?"
Her face was stony. "Figure it out yourself dumbass. In the meantime, I will never let a person who put Naruto in that state in here." She pulled his fingers off the door and slammed it shut.
What was going on? He wondered around until closing time to find that they had closed early. What state was Naruto in?
…
All the calls on Sunday Sasuke made to Naruto were hopeless. No one was answering the phone, and when someone did, Naruto was always busy. No clarification on what. He was just busy.
Monday, Sasuke was going to corner him.
(Naruto POV) – Monday, at school, beginning of first period.
The only happiness he found walking into the classroom Monday morning was that Sakura-san had called in sick and wouldn't be coming. Other than that it was stressful, and his body was tight with tension.
He couldn't face Sasuke, but he could feel his annoyance radiating off him. Sasuke had been trying to talk to him since Saturday. Calling his house almost every half hour. He probably wanted to know why he was turned away from Ramen Ichiraku, what had been wrong with Naruto. But Naruto just couldn't talk to him yet. He was afraid he would burst in tears again or say something that he would regret later.
He was successfully in running away from Sasuke at breaks, and during lunch, he took refuge in the bathroom. Then he purposely came in late so that Sasuke couldn't talk to him. All of that had been going well until after school.
Naruto just barely escaped Sasuke as he could feel him reaching a hand out to grab him, but he got away and walking down the street breathing out his body's tension.
Someone grabbed his hand from behind, and Naruto's first reaction was to hit him, but Sasuke stopped the blow. He almost stopped breathing, Sasuke's eyes were so intense.
"What the hell happened Naruto? I'm sick of you running away from me. What happened Saturday?" His tone was icy and pissed off, and Naruto knew he had long since pushed him too far.
Still he had trouble answering. "Nothing." He tried to pull his hand out of Sasuke's, but he only griped it harder, refusing to let Naruto slip away.
"I know you followed me and Sakura-san."
Naruto's head snapped by up, and his eyes widened. "How?"
"I saw you. You're the worst I've ever seen at following people. So Naruto," he leaned in closer and Naruto's heart beat wildly. "Why were you following us? What happened? And why are you avoiding me?"
Naruto didn't answer, and Sasuke's tone rose.
"Naruto, tell me why you're avoiding me! I have a right to know!"
Naruto remained silent, he could feel the tears coming.
Sasuke grabbed his chin and pulled his face upwards, closer to his. His eyes were the deep, dark black, and Naruto was being sucked into them. "Naruto. Please tell-"
And then he did something he never thought he would ever do. Naruto went on tip-toe and kissed Sasuke full on the lips. It was his first kiss. It was warm, and Sasuke's lips against his felt so good. But it was too short, as he suddenly realized what he was doing.
He dropped down from tip-toe ending the kiss, his face probably redder than a tomato. Naruto looked up at Sasuke's shocked expression and said, his voice wavering from his tears, "I'm sorry, b-but I like you, Sasuke." Then he turned and ran from him at top speed. What have I done?
First full on mouth kiss!
You may cook, fry, chop, or do whatever you like to me since this chapter was late, but I'm hoping you'll forgive me and have enjoyed the long chapter instead. :) Possibly?
Anywho, thanks to my beautiful editor, Xan, for helping me out of my little slump and being an amazing friend! And for editing too of course! Any still existing mistakes are completely my fault.
E/N: A-MA-ZING! I love this chapter! *fangirl squeal!