You all must know by now that all my holiday installments are one day late. –blush-

Mush warning.

B e M i n e

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It was when Naruto Uzumaki aimed the second candy heart at the back of Sasuke's head when he realized he loved the raven's voice.

"Are you throwing shit at me for a reason, Dobe?"

"No," Naruto answered evenly, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary to chuck sweets at unsuspecting classmates. Which it wasn't, really. Not for Naruto. "No particular reason."

But the blonde was no good at lying, and Sasuke Uchiha scrutinized him from his seat in the first row of Iruka's classroom, easily seeing right through him.

"Well, now that you have my undivided attention, you may as well use it to your advantage before Iruka-sensei returns with our tests," he pointed out stoically.

Quickly jumping from his chair and bounding down to Sasuke's level, Naruto planted a plaint kiss upon his friend's pallid lips before he even thought twice about what he was doing. They were alone; the rest of the students had been dismissed fifteen minutes ago, and their teacher had departed to retrieve the work the two had stayed behind to complete.

To Naruto's astonishment, Sasuke did not brush him off like he usually did when they were in public. When he pulled away, Sasuke raised a dark brow. "Was that all?" He inquired.

That damn, mocking voice that Naruto was head over heels for.

"Do you have any idea what day it is today?" The blonde asked sweetly instead. He leaned in and touched his nose to his friend's and smiled brightly.

"I can ask Iruka to get the calendar out when he gets back, if you like…?"

"Today is Valentines Day!" Naruto exploded, as if Sasuke had never said anything.

The raven shifted so that he could reach over and secure one of the tiny pink candy hearts that had been thrown at his person so that he could examine it more closely. "So that's the reason for the sweets?"

Naruto nodded. "I wanted to get into the spirit of the holiday, you know?"

Sasuke toyed with his hair idly as he locked gazes with cerulean eyes. "What's left to do?"

"I need a Valentine."

"Job description?"

"Oh, come on!" Exclaimed Naruto, throwing his hands up. "You must know. It's when two people like each other –"

"Yeah," Sasuke interjected. "I've heard."

"So that means you'll be my Valentine?" He asked excitedly, and Sasuke wondered just how he got that conclusion from their prior conversation.

"No hand holding," The Uchiha compromised.

"I swear," Naruto agreed, and pivoted on his heel so that he could return to his desk.

Would the Language of Love be just as confusing and fragmented as the discussion they had just had? Naruto mused as Iruka-sensei entered and handed him a test. Whatever it was, he was confident that he and Sasuke could manage it with a little practice.