A/N: And suddenly I'm back again. There is no rhyme or reason to this, but hopefully y'all will like what I've created. If not, I guess that's okay too. All I know is that these writings will be on the internet forever from now on. As always, I love hearing your feedback and look forward to the reviews. Let's see what's in store for my boys…

It was that kind of half-wakefulness that makes everything nice and cozy. He was warm and cozy, comfortable until he felt a dip in whatever he was laying on beside him. No, this isn't as comfy. He shifted into a more comfortable position. Much better. And then there was the most tender of scritches to his scalp. Mmmmm, he purred at the touch. He was so cozy and unawares of his surroundings that he barely noticed his own reactions. Nuzzling into the warmth, grateful for the wonderful scritches to continue.

And it was in this space, this comfortable land of half-dreaming, that Naruto felt a soft touch to his lips. He purred and slightly responded, gently pressing back into the lips that had so gently claimed his own. It wasn't until a soft sound, almost a sigh, slipped through that kiss that he started to gain his bearings. Not all at once, his eyes slowly blinked open to a blurry vision of shaggy brown hair. His thoughts drifted along with his vision, pondering how soft the locks were until his vision cleared. And he saw that it was Kiba that was kissing him.

His mind shut down in that instant. One minute, Kiba was everything in his vision and all he could think about. The next, he was across the couch holding his hands over his mouth as he looked, shocked and dumbfounded at Kiba who was still sitting in place. He gazed moved from Kiba's mouth, to his eyes, to his lap where Naruto had been napping, back to Kiba's eyes. Both boys just stared at each other a moment more, both confused as to what just happened. "Wh-wh-what j-just h—." Naruto's words were jumbled. His thoughts were scattered and he couldn't come up with a logical reason for what had just happened. It was then that Kiba found his voice.

"Naruto, I'm sorry. I didn't mean—" He was immediately cut off by the blond.

"Kiba you k-ki—" But he couldn't get the word out of his mouth.

"I know! I'm sorry. I don't know what happened." Kiba was floundering, searching for anything to make this okay again. He wasn't even sure why he kissed Naruto. It just sort of happened.

In the midst of Kiba's apologies, Naruto jumped up and made his way quickly to the door. "I-I need to go." He tugged at the door, pulling slightly too hard but he didn't even notice because of his panic. Everything in his mind whirling faster than he had any capacity to examine any individual thought.

"Wai—!" Kiba's door shut with a clack and he was alone.

Naruto was gone.

He took a moment to calm his breathing and just sat there. It was strange, his thoughts were both moving so quickly through his head while simultaneously his mind was blank. He couldn't think, not yet.

He sat there on his couch for a few more minutes, his head cradled in his hands. What had he done? Since when did he want to kiss Naruto? It wasn't like they were that close or anything. And he wasn't gay, or at least he didn't think he was. He thought back to the recent missions that he had with the guy. He smirked a little when he remembered Naruto falling asleep on him when they had to share a tent. There was no question that he enjoyed the blond's company. But what was it that drew him in so much?

Thoughts like those circled in his brain like water towards a drain. Once he looked up from his hands, he noticed how late it was. He sighed to himself. No need torturing myself all night. He got up and shuffled towards his bedroom, shedding articles of clothing until he arrived and slid under the fresh sheets, happy that he had changed them and gotten all of the chores done early. There was no way that he was in the mood to do anything with them right now. He sighed again. I may have just ruined the best friendship I ever could have had.

And with that thought, Kiba shut his eyes and willed himself to sleep.

Naruto's pulse was pounding in his veins as he shut Kiba's door and pressed his back against it. He covered his mouth with his hand and slumped, his eyes beginning to water as the beginning of a sob tried to work its way up through his throat before it was squashed by his hand. He took off, booking it towards his apartment. His pulse was beating in his veins. He could feel his heart banging against his chest. It felt like with each pounding beat it worked its way higher and higher, almost choking him.

It seemed like an eternity before he saw his door, the rundown area around him a complete blur as he collided with his door. He quickly unlocked it and lunged inside, barely having the forethought to lock it behind him.

There he sat in his entryway; the evening light streamed through a crack in his blinds being the only source of light. He stayed there in the relative dimness of his apartment and finally everything hit him all at once. He broke out in sobs as his body shook. He cried harder and harder, so much so that he found it hard to breath before passing out, sprawled on cool floor in front of his door.

It was some time in the middle of the night when Naruto opened his eyes, feeling the chill against his cheek as it rested against the floor. Groaning, he curled onto his haunches and slowly rose, stopping to sit for a minute, rubbing his eyes. He didn't think. He didn't want to.

Mustering up his motivation, he pushed himself to his feet. He kicked off his shoes as he padded to his room. He didn't even notice his appearance in the mirror as he passed it. And then his bed was in front of him. He collapsed on it, not bothering to remove his clothes or change into his PJs. He just lay there, pulling his blanket up over him.

In the dark, alone with his thoughts, he was forced to think about what brought him here. What happened? One minute, he was happy taking a nap at his friends, the next, he was woken up by his friend's lips on his. Subconsciously, he ran his fingertips along his lips, feeling and tracing the line where Kiba's had been. There was a small tingling down his spine as he did so. If he were truly honest with himself, in the most secluded part of his mind, he liked the feel of Kiba's lips on his own.

He shook his head at the thought. That can't be… can it? He frowned and covered his face with his hands. Did he… like Kiba? The thought had wedged itself in his mind, persistent to remain, even if it wasn't at the forefront of his thoughts. His cheeks heated as embarrassment washed over him.

He was pulled from his reverie when something occurred to him. Did that mean that Kiba liked him? He frowned and dropped his head to the pillow. Thinking on it more, he shook his head. No, that can't be true. He knew that Kiba liked to tease him and he knew that they were starting to become good friends, but there was no way that he really liked Naruto like that. He convinced himself that Kiba was just pulling a prank on him. He did like teasing Naruto after all.

He nodded to himself, coming to a conclusion that some deep part of him knew was baseless. But this explanation contented him enough that he could settle down and fall into a deep and dreamless sleep. If there was more to it than that, he'd have tomorrow to think about it. But that nagging thought stayed and tugged at the back of his subconscious.

Kiba was awake long before he showed signs of consciousness. He was flat on his back in his bed, his face turned towards the ceiling and yet, he never opened his eyes. He just lay there lost in thought. At first when he came awake, the first thing on his mind was Naruto. He smiled to himself until the events of last night came back to his memory and his good mood slid just as quickly from him. What… did I do last night? He rolled several thoughts through his brain over and over. But it became clear to him that just thinking it over wouldn't solve anything.

With a huff, he sat up and got out of bed. He padded to his bathroom and immediately slipped into the shower, not even waiting for the water to heat up. He stood in the spray with the torrents of water dripping down his hair. He fucked up. He fucked up bad. Shaking himself a little, he went through the droning activity of washing himself. As he washed his hair, he thought about the kiss. He had in fact kissed Naruto. There was no getting around that. But he kept thinking about the motivation behind it. Had there been a reason? His nails scratched at his scalp, half because he was scrubbing and shampooing his scalp, half because he was pondering his situation.

He thought about when the blond was asleep on his lap. Now that made him smile. It seemed to him that Naruto was at least comfortable enough around him to fall asleep next to him. Even practically on top of him in some occasions. He chuckled to himself. Perhaps that was why he found the blond so endearing. It was like he was a little pup from a litter that his mother had him take care of. Puppies did like to lay all over each other when they slept.

He gave a good rinse as he continued his thought process. The big question of the evening still remained. Do I regret it? He thought more about it, then shook his head. He didn't regret it. He brought his fingers to brush along his lips, where Naruto's had been. His friend's lips felt… well, he couldn't describe it. They were soft but they were firm. It was a gentle kiss but at the same time, he knew that he wouldn't forget the feel of it. He reddened at the thought. There was one thing that he needed to apologize to Naruto for though. He knew that it hadn't been planned or anything like that. But he shouldn't have kissed him while he was sleeping.

It was at that thought that a pang of disgust went through him. He felt icky just because he thought that the kiss would have been taking advantage of the blond in some way. Sure, he found himself thinking that Naruto was cute, but that didn't give him the right to kiss him. Shame spread over him as he started soaping up his wash cloth to continue his shower. If nothing else, I need to apologize for that.

Finishing his shower, feeling at least a little more refreshed than he had when the day ended, he got out to get dressed and start the day. His mom had asked [demanded] that he come and help with the dogs at the compound today. So, he would be occupied for the next while whether he wanted to be or not. He hadn't seen Akamaru since yesterday since he went to his family's compound after the mission to get checked out for any problems that could result from traveling so far. He grinned to himself. Akamaru hated the checkups, but he feared Tsume just about as much as Kiba, so he dutifully went as he knew he was supposed to.

The first thought that entered the blond's mind when the morning sun became too bright to ignore was how uncomfortable he was. Immediately followed by the realization that he had fallen asleep in his clothes. He groaned and wiggled out of his pants. There is nothing more uncomfortable than sleeping in pants. He huffed and tossed them to a pile in the corner. How had he gotten here?

Flashes from last night skipped through his brain and he froze. Kiba… had kissed him. He reddened at the memory. And even more than that, he had run away. The great Naruto Uzumaki who never ran from anything, got scared because his friend kissed him. He found himself again running his fingertips over his lips, thinking for what must have been the hundredth time about feeling someone else's mouth on his.

Shaking the thoughts away, he got up and started to get ready. Shower time. He thought through everything that he had to do today. Well, in all honesty, there wasn't anything that needed done. Granny Tsunade hadn't had many missions for him to do lately. A light pang of loneliness hit him, but he customarily brushed it off like he always did. Sure, he had friends now. But Sakura was usually busy and it's not like she and him got along too terribly well.

He hissed at the hot water burning his skin. He turned on the hot without mixing the cold to make it more bearable. But for some reason even after this realization, he didn't adjust the temperature. He just let it burn him while he bathed.

Stepping out of the shower, his skin was glowing from the heat. He felt… sanitized. Deciding it was in his best interest. He got dressed and headed out. He was going to see the Hokage and try to find a mission.

He took the main roads to the Hokage tower. He wasn't in the mood to sprint across the rooftops this morning. It took almost colliding with a random citizen that he never saw before to make him realized that he was distracted. He needed something to do and quickly. Turning down a side road, he only realized that if he looked up, he could see Kiba's apartment. Kiba…

He stopped and peered up at the apartment. There wasn't a light or anything to indicate that anyone was home. Why am I here? He just stood there like an idiot.

"…to."

"…ruto."

"Naruto!"

He was shaken out of his trance by someone calling his name. He looked around to see Ino slowing a jog to stop next to him. "Oh. Hey Ino." He couldn't muster his usual cheeriness though he tried to make a ghost of it appear with a weak smile. He hoped to whomever was listening that she didn't notice. Gods help him if Ino caught the scent of anything amiss. He tried to stifle his less than amicable mood with a yawn.

She smiled at him and tapped his shoulder. "What's up? You look kind of out of it. Not a morning person?" She took a moment to stretch. It appeared that he had caught her in a morning jog. He managed a noncommittal shrug.

"Not really. Going to get some training done?" he asked, gesturing to her clothing. He didn't particularly care where she was going, but he knew that the best way to keep her from getting suspicious would be to keep the topic concentrated on her.

She nodded and smiled. "Just a light run before my dad has me hone our family's skill. I swear he can be quite the slave-driver sometimes." She looked exasperated, but not in an ill meaning way.

"Yea I know what you mean. Pervy Sage always gives me the hardest training regiments too." He looked past her, wanting to get this conversation over and on his way.

She looked behind her, curious as to what Naruto was looking at. "What brings you out so early then?" She looked back at him, waiting for his reply.

He didn't really want to answer, but yawned to give him more time to respond. "I was heading to see Granny Tsunade. Wanted to see if she had any missions for me." He side stepped a bit. He really didn't want to linger outside of Kiba's apartment any longer than was necessary.

She nodded at that. "Be sure to let me know if she has anything. I really need to take some time to get away from my dad. I love him, but dang is he overbearing." Her light complaint made, she got back into rhythm and started off jogging in the direction that she was going in before.

"Yea… need to get away, myself," he mumbled to himself as he continued down the way. With any luck, he'd be able to get away and clear his head.

A/N: Hey there all you happy people. I thought I had lost all direction with this story. But for some reason a global pandemic and being quarantined makes for good motivation. As always, I encourage you to review and let me know what you think of the story thus far. I look forward to hearing from you guys and appreciate all the readers that enjoy my story. Ja ne~

-Akira-kun-