Sorry it took so long, disclaimers, shonen-ai, yadda yadda yadda enjoy!

"Once upon a time, there was happiness." Neji looked at the computer screen in disgust. He was working on one of the essays he had missed during his long absence. The Hyuuga sighed, deleted the sentence, and leaned back in his chair. The topic was…ridiculous. That's what you get for taking academic English, he scolded himself. "Talk about a challenge in your life that you have had to overcome." He had thought about…his parents. But no. What would people say?

Fleetingly, Gaara's face floated through his mind. Neji smiled quietly and started writing.

"Once, there was love."

After a couple hours of work, the Hyuuga was almost finished so he decided to take a break and go out for a walk. However, his face was still slightly distorted from his "procedure," so Neji decided to go in disguise. Putting on a pair of large, dark shades (Hanabi had left them in his room) and a purple beanie over his long locks, he was slightly amused at his reflection. "I could pass for a girl," he chuckled to himself as he slid his hands delicately into his back jean pockets and made a pose for the mirror. It was still a little chilly out, so Neji grabbed a fitted, black sweater and pulled it gingerly over his head before leaving, careful to avoid his uncle, who wouldn't be happy about him leaving school work undone.

Almost by accident, Neji ended up by Temari's Place and decided to step inside for a look around. His muscles tensed slightly when he realized the only two people in the store were Gaara (at the register) and Sasuke, leaning casually over the counter. Luckily, it seemed the two were too distracted by their own heated discussion to hear the bell ring over the door, so the Hyuuga hid inconspicuously behind a clothing rack to eavesdrop.

Gaara stared intensely at the Uchiha when he had come to visit the redhead at work. He was forever worried about what would happen when people found out about their relationship, not for his own sake, but for Sasuke's. Gaara wanted Sasuke to be happy, to be accepted. And it seemed that the Uchiha had his own doubts about coming out, but they never really talked about the issue. It was almost taboo, but it was a secret that was becoming almost too heavy for either of them to bear, especially since they each had to do it alone.

It was making the redhead sick inside. Why couldn't people just accept love for love? Granted, Gaara didn't know how people would react, but he was too scared to find out, to risk rejection. Temari and Itachi seemed comfortable with it, but that was only in teasing. How would they really feel? And all of their friends…I mean there were just so many uncertainties eating away at Gaara's conscience, and he suspected Sasuke felt the same way.

How much longer could they last like this?

"When…when are we going to tell people about us?" he'd asked the Uchiha meekly before looking away. Sasuke frowned a little before reaching his hand over to cup the redhead's chin gently.

"Whenever you're ready. We can tell people now if you want." Gaara looked at him sadly.

"No…I…don't." The redhead looked down at the counter, not able to meet Sasuke's curious eyes.

"That's okay." He pulled his hand away from Gaara to play absentmindedly with key chains in the display case. Someone came up to buy some wax, which broke the awkward silence that had settled between them. After the customer left, Sasuke looked back up at the redhead. "Why don't you want to?" he asked, in what he hoped was a supportive voice. Gaara didn't answer right away, and when he did, he still avoided the Uchiha's piercing gaze.

"I don't want you…to get hurt." Sasuke was slightly alarmed at Gaara's insecurity.

"I'm…not going to." The redhead looked up angry.

"Yes, yes you will!" he whispered harshly, only containing his voice because he'd noticed a woman hanging around the bathing suit rack nearby. Sasuke's face was concerned, which only made Gaara angrier. "Every time we go out, people make fun of us, even threaten us sometimes." The Uchiha listened quietly. "And you're always looking to fight them. I mean, what happens when we actually come out together?!"

Sasuke looked down awkwardly at the floor. "Gaara, I don't care what people think about us. I want to be with you," he added quickly, grabbing one of the redhead's clenched fists. Gaara pulled away.

"Then why do you always act angry when people ask?" the redhead hissed. Sasuke looked at him, surprised.

"Gaara, this is all new to me," he said slowly. "I mean, you didn't seem ready to come out, and now it's obvious that you aren't. I just…I was trying to act like a guy, who was being accused of…" he couldn't finish the sentence. Gaara looked at the Uchiha with eyes brimming with tears.

"I can't…" he started, but his voice cracked. "I can't do this anymore." Sasuke looked startled.

"What?!" Gaara didn't answer. "Look, we can…we can tell people. I promise, I won't fight anyone. I won't get hurt, Gaara!" His pleas were met only with silence. "Please," he begged as he bent his head down at the redhead's hands. "I…need you."

"No." Gaara's suddenly steady voice made Sasuke jump. "You need someone who you can actually be with. Someone who the rest of the world will accept." The Uchiha sobs vibrated through the counter, and Gaara struggled to stay calm. All he wanted to do was hug Sasuke, tell him everything would be okay. But he couldn't. This was for his own good.

Sasuke would realize that one day. He let the Uchiha cry for a few more minutes, but when he realized the woman was staring at them, Gaara leaned down and whispered soothingly, "Maybe you should go." This only made Sasuke cry harder, and it echoed through the store even after he'd left, reminding Gaara of what he had done.

"It was for his own good," Gaara thought he reassured himself inside his head, but he realized it was actually the woman, standing in front of the counter with a pair of men's swimming trunks in her hands. A small yelp escaped his mouth when he recognized the long hair and arrogant smirk of Hyuuga Neji.

"Ne…Neji?" he asked hesitantly before bursting out in uncharacteristic laughter. He was still a little hysterical after breaking up with Sasuke. Neji was taken aback by this sudden outbreak of amusement from what should have been a heartbroken boy. Maybe there was hope for him yet. "I…thought…you were…a girl," Gaara let out as he gasped desperately for air.

"Yes, well, I'm not," the Hyuuga said a little stiffly before allowing himself to smile. "Listen…I…know this is probably a rough time for you, but after your shift, do you maybe want to sleep over my house?" Gaara stopped laughing abruptly and gave him a suspicious glare. "Strictly platonically, of course," Neji added hastily. "I know I've…acted inappropriately in the past, and I want to make it up to you." The redhead gave a small nod, still shocked by the amiable nature of the once hostile Hyuuga. "Good, I'll come pick you up in a couple hours, I've got to go finish up some makeup work."

Without another word, he left quickly out the front door. Gaara picked up the trunks and put them back on the rack. He then walked over to the door and leaned his warm head onto the cool glass, watching curiously as Neji hiked towards the Hyuuga mansion. The redhead was curious about the Hyuuga's intentions, but regardless, he could really use a friend right now.

Gaara wiped a single tear off of his cheek and then went back to stand behind the counter, waiting patiently for his shift to be over as his mind drifted to things that he now knew he would never have again.

-sniff- It's...so sad! Gah! I hate myself for doing this. It had to be done, though. I would say...I am almost done. Three, maybe four more chapters. Squeee! I'm sad by I'm excited all the same. It was kind of short, but it was dense. A lot happened. You know the deal. It took a while to update because...I'm lazy. But I really wanna finish before I graduate, so not much longer. There's only so much I can procrastinate with less than three months to go! Oh em gee!!!