Author's Note: This is a short chapter. It's just a little bit of fluff but I didn't want to throw it in with the last chapter and I definitely couldn't wedge it into the next one, so here it is. I hope you all enjoy it and please review. Thanks.
Sandstorms and Falling Leaves
Chapter 28: Healing and Hope
Tsunade had insisted Gaara stay at the hospital overnight just to be safe; since she did have a slight concussion from the explosions. The redhead had acquiesced quietly though Naruto could see in her eyes that she would have much rather gone home. He offered to stay with her but she turned him down with a small smile; reasoning that he'd not slept in his own bed in much too long. The blonde had reluctantly gone home well after dark, only to find himself tossing and turning restlessly; the bed seeming strangely empty and cold, and his mind beset by fears of how much worse the events of the day could have gone.
After a few hours, the jinchuriki had given up and headed for the hospital to check on Gaara; hoping that seeing her alive and relatively well with his own eyes would give him enough peace of mind for sleep to come. Arriving at her room, he'd been only slightly surprised to find the window standing open and the bed vacant, the blanket missing.
Knowing Gaara as well as he did, it only took a few moments for him to reach the roof and, sure enough, there she was; sitting against the low wall around the edge of the flat roof. Her dark rimmed eyes watching the moon thoughtfully. The pilfered blanket was drawn tightly around her shoulders to keep out the night's chill.
Naruto grinned as he walked over and dropped down beside the redhead with a small yawn, just close enough for their shoulders to brush against each other. "The old lady is gonna have fit when she finds out you got out of bed." He pointed out evenly.
"Tsunade-san said I wasn't to leave the hospital until tomorrow." The redhead responded, mischief lurking in her moonlit eyes despite her serene tone. "This is still technically part of the hospital."
Naruto chuckled in good humor. "Heh, that's a good one. I can't wait to hear you try that on Tsunade-baachan."
The pair lapsed into comfortable silence for several minutes, before Naruto felt the need to break it. "So...you okay?" He asked lamely, not really talking about the minor injuries the young woman had sustained that day.
Gaara seemed to understand despite his lack of eloquence. "I am...getting there." She said slowly.
Naruto nodded. "That's good. So, uh...how were things while I was gone?"
Gaara smirked. "Interesting." She shrugged slightly, ignoring the way the motion caused a twinge of pain in her ribs. "I learned to sleep alone." She added, just a hint of uncertainty in her voice.
The blonde blinked at that. "That's...that's great." He said, forcing a smile even as his voice was far from enthusiastic. "So...uh...I guess you don't need me anymore then..." He tried to laugh, but it sounded hollow even to his own ears so he quickly cut it off.
"Baka." The redhead mumbled, letting her head fall back against the cold stonework behind her and closing her eyes as a blush stained her pale cheeks. "I still need you."
Naruto's eyes lit up at the softly spoken admission and a warm feeling of relief flooded through him.
"You just don't have to share your bed anymore." The redhead explained, hiding every trace of regret with a carefully flat voice.
Naruto frowned. "Oh..." He scratched the back of his head and was glad the darkness would hide the crimson he could feel blooming on his cheeks as he spoke up hesitantly. "Well...what if...what if I...um...want to?" He managed the question after only a small amount of fumbling for words.
Aqua colored eyes snapped open, the moonlight washing them silver as they unerringly found his nervous gaze. "Why?" The question seemed to force its way out against the redhead's better judgment.
Naruto shrugged but smiled nervously. "Because...because I don't want to be away from you unless I have to be..." He reminded himself that he couldn't ask her to marry him yet. He hadn't gotten her brother's permission and he wasn't going to risk defying another Suna tradition; since he knew their sleeping arrangements had already put him on thin ice with the man who held the key to his future happiness with Gaara. "And because I don't sleep well anymore unless you're there." He admitted truthfully. He hadn't really slept soundly the whole time he'd been away.
The redhead seemed a bit stunned by his soft words and she took a few moments to process them in silence. Naruto held his breath until the petite young woman shifted slightly beside him. A moment later one side of the blanket fell over his shoulders and the blonde pulled the warm fabric around himself, shifting closer to Gaara in order to ensure they'd both be covered.
He wasn't expecting the ex-jinchuriki to crawl into his lap, but he found himself automatically shifting his knees apart to accommodate her slender figure in the space between them. Gaara settled in front of him in the space he had created, with her legs half curled up to keep her bare feet under the blanket. She leaned comfortably back against his chest as he wrapped the blanket around them both and looped his arms lightly around her waist.
"I'm here now." She said, when they were finally settled.
Naruto grinned into her hair, ignoring the relieved tears that pricked his eyes. "Stay." He managed to whisper, his mind shouting at him for how close he had come to losing her all over again.
"Always."
The pair was asleep in under a minute.
To Be Continued...
Author's Note: Wow. That was so sweet it almost made my teeth hurt. lol. I hope it wasn't too much. Please review and let me know what you think.
