A knock on his door made him groan and turn around in his bed. He didn't know what time it was, but it felt like way too fucking early. He yawned, ignored the knock and decided to go back to sleep. Unfortunately, the person on the other side seemed determined to get him up and out of bed. Sasuke sighed and turned around to face the door when someone opened it, and was about to scold Itachi for waking him up when he saw his mother peeking inside. He tried to force a smile, but failed, and sat up while rubbing his eyes.
"Good morning sweetie. How are you feeling?"
She entered the room and looked at her son with sympathy. She knew that he had been out last night, and judging from the way he stumbled around while trying to make his way to the kitchen the night before, he probably had a hangover. She walked up to his bed and sat down at the end of it, smiling at the boy.
"I don't know yet."
He groaned again, not really sure if he even wanted to know how he felt like. His mother patted his shoulder before she stood up and walked towards the door, but turned around to face him before she disappeared down the stairs.
"We're having lunch in ten minutes, okay?"
Sasuke nodded his head and glanced towards the clock. 11:32 am. It sure felt like it was five in the morning, at the very least.
Sasuke stood up and made his way to his bathroom, took a quick shower and got dressed. He wasn't really looking forward to having lunch with his brother, who used to make fun of him being hung over, but it couldn't be helped. He was starving.
He walked up to his bed again and grabbed his phone. When he unlocked it, he found four new messages; one from Ino, and three from – Naruto.
He raised his eyebrow and opened the one from Ino first.
"Who is she? And don't get this wrong, I still think you're an asshole. I'm just curious."
Sasuke couldn't help but snicker as he closed her text. He would answer it eventually – when he had something clever to write without making himself seem like even more of a jerk. He opened his and Naruto's conversation.
"Hey, I'm curious! Did you fall asleep? Not that you'll answer 'yes' if you actually did, but…"
"You still haven't answered and it should be around 10:00 am over there. You alright?"
"Dude. Seriously. I've been checking my phone all day. Just send me a message to let me know you're okay. Okay? Okay."
Sasuke found it kind of cute that the blonde actually seemed worried about him not answering. He looked at the clock again. It should be 5:46 pm in Sweden, so he actually had been waiting all day for a reply. Sasuke felt flattered, somehow.
He scrolled upwards in their conversation, and suddenly felt sick to his stomach. He had to read the texts a few times to actually take in the words.
He remembered everything now; that idiot had proposed to his girlfriend. And she had said yes.
He didn't really care about that hangover anymore, he just felt like he just got punched in the guts by the Hulk. He tried to swallow the dry and stinging feeling he had in his throat.
"Sasuke! Are you coming?"
He heard his mother but couldn't answer her right away, since he had to physically get some air into his lungs before he could do anything at all. He shook his head.
"Yea, I'm… I'm coming, mom."
He took a deep, shaky breath and put his phone in his pocket. As he left his room and walked down the stairs, he had to put an arm around his stomach in a try to keep himself from throwing up. At least, that's what it felt like.
He sat down at the table and closed his eyes in a try to think straight. Why did he get so worked up about it? Yes, Naruto was being a complete idiot and they would probably never make it to the wedding, but was that really something to get this upset about? Hell, he actually felt physically ill.
Sasuke groaned silently. A few seconds later, his older brother entered the kitchen and went for the coffee pot.
Their father cleared his throat for some kind of announcement.
"So, we made some pretty big decisions at the meeting last week."
Sasuke nodded and hummed, already well aware about all that. Their father tried to get through to the older brother who, apparently, just woke up and wasn't really paying attention.
"We're teaming up with the Hyuga Corporation and we're extending our business to Europe."
Itachi just drank his coffee, not interested whatsoever.
"We'll be going to Sweden next week."
Sasuke could've sworn that the fist of the Hulk just twisted itself in his stomach. Why the heck did they have to go to Sweden? He opened his mouth in a try to protest, but got cut off.
"And you're coming. Both of you."
He looked at his mother, but she was obviously trying to avoid any eye contact. Sasuke knew that if she could, she would get him out of it, but in this case it seemed as if she already had gotten into that discussion with their father. Sasuke tried to think of something that could work as an excuse for not going, but before he knew it, his father had stood up and left the kitchen and disappeared into the office.
Sasuke had gone right back to his room after the lunch and was now wandering around with the phone in his hand, trying to think of something to answer both Naruto and Ino. When he started on a sentence for the seventh time, he got a message from an unknown number. He opened it.
"Hi Sasuke. Naruto's starting to freak me out a bit, he seems really worried. Without pushing you; could you answer his texts? Just to, you know, let him know you're alive. /Sakura Haruno"
At first, Sasuke felt a slight flip in his stomach by the fact that the blonde's girlfriend had texted him in a try to calm her boyfriend down. And then, he felt pissed that she had texted him. He didn't want to have anything to do with her!
He took a deep breath and calmed himself down. Okay, she's just trying to do the right thing, and she's not being rude. Just man up, for fuck's sake. Be nice.
"Hi. Yea, I'm on it. Sorry for worrying him."
He was about to open his and Naruto's conversation when he hesitated for a few seconds, and then wrote another message to Sakura.
"Congratulations to the engagement, by the way."
He grimaced as he sent it. He didn't want to congratulate them, not at all! He wanted to go there and tell them how stupid they were being, how they were ruining their lives.
He shook his head and opened a new text for Naruto.
"Hey. Sorry, I fell asleep yesterday and just woke up. What's up? Everything alright?"
He then decided to face Ino. But, what should he write? 'Sorry Ino but I'm gay'?
"There's no 'she'. It's kind of complicated. I'm sorry, Ino. You're a nice girl and I didn't mean to hurt you."
He sent it and sighed. How was he supposed to tell her that he liked guys? No one except for his family and the guys he used to date knew. And Naruto.
He had known since he was about twelve, when he asked himself why he never fell in love with any of the girls that were obsessing over him. He had thought that maybe it was because they were fangirling over him so much, but he had never even found a girl attractive. Not once. So, naturally, he turned to the internet, and after some research and a good talk with himself, he realized that he probably was gay. Indeed, he was. That summer, he met a boy when his family was away on a vacation, and he had never experienced his heart beating so fast or his mouth getting so dry just by seeing another person.
He got slung back to reality when his phone beeped.
"Phew, you scared me there! Yea, everything's alright here. Well, it is, now. You gotta warn me before you disappear like that, dude!"
Sasuke put a hand over his mouth and smiled a huge grin. It felt good to have worried Naruto. He knew that it was kind of sadistic to feel that way, but there wasn't anything he could do about it.
"Sorry, sorry. I'll make sure to warn you next time I fall asleep."
He snickered as he sent the message, and then got another text from Ino.
"What do you mean there's no she? You told me you have a girlfriend, right? Come to central park in an hour, we need to talk."
Sasuke silently cursed. He didn't feel like meeting up with her, and he really didn't feel like telling her that he doesn't like girls. It's not that he would be bothered it she didn't take it well, but he wasn't sure that he was ready to come out just yet. It probably would be a lot easier for him, in general, if everyone knew, but the fact that the great Fugaku Uchiha has a gay son? That might be a bit more difficult to handle.
He jumped when he received another text message from Naruto.
"Ha ha ha, very funny. It's good to know you're okay, though. Even if you're an ass."
Sasuke held back a laugh as he answered.
"It's part of my charm!"
He felt weirdly jumpy and… happy. He really enjoyed texting with this guy. He got interrupted by a call from Ino.
"Sasuke."
"Hey, I just wanted to make sure you got my text. Central park in an hour. You'll be there."
Sasuke sighed.
"I guess I don't really have a choice, huh?"
"Nope. Be there."
She hung up and left Sasuke groaning. Why, oh, why did all these things have to happen on the same day? First, he got to know – again – that the hot blonde and his girlfriend were getting married. Then, his father announced that they were going to Sweden in a week, and now he had to go and face Ino and tell her the truth about his sexual orientation. Oh, and he should probably tell Naruto that he could actually see him in person when they went there.
The phone beeped again.
"Yea, I guess it is part of your charm."
Sasuke felt his heart jump again. He couldn't help but try to read between the lines, and started writing a reply.
"Are you saying I'm pulling off some sort of charm?"
He sent it and could feel some strange butterflies in his stomach. He decided to ignore them and went for the closet to get dressed before meeting up with Ino. He grabbed a pair of black jeans and a blue-white checked shirt. He put them on and made his way to the bathroom, brushed his teeth and tried to do something about his messy hair. He did what he usually did; messed up the back of his hair even more and parted his bangs before spraying it with hairspray. Happy with the result, he went back to his room, sat down at the computer and checked his mail. Three mails from three different girls at school and one from Hinata. He opened the mail from the Hyuga.
"Hi, Sasuke! I guess you've heard about the trip to Sweden already. If you haven't, you probably should go and talk to your dad before reading this, haha.
Anyway, we'll be joining you, so I hope you'll be there as well. If you're not going, me and Neji will have to suffer those boring meetings and dinners without anyone sharing our joy for the whole thing.
I hope you're well and that you and your brother will get along on the way to the airport, where I and my cousin can save you. I'll see you there!
/Hinata"
Sasuke smiled and went to delete the other three messages. It was a relief that the kids of the Hyuga clan would join them. That way, he wouldn't have to suffer alone. He would answer Hinata's mail when he got the time, but for now, it was time to start walking towards central park and face Ino.
He closed his laptop and grabbed his wallet and his keys before he went downstairs. He told his mother where he was going, and she seemed pleased with the fact that he was meeting up with Ino. Sasuke didn't mention that he probably would have to tell her that he liked guys. He didn't have the heart to break her little bubble where there was still a chance that her son would find a girl to marry.
Sasuke went outside and sighed. Everyone seemed so obsessed with marriage these days. Why couldn't they just live and get married when they were sure that they could live a peaceful life and just enjoy the rest of their days together? Why rush? If they met the person they were sure that they would spend the rest of their lives with, why not just leave it like that?
He grabbed a cigarette and turned right at the corner of his building. The phone beeped again, and he grabbed it from his pocket.
"Sure, if I was a girl, I'd fallen for you!"
Sasuke felt like smiling like a dork and punching Naruto in the face at the same time. What the heck does that even mean? Despite his mixed feelings, he decided to keep up.
"If you were a girl, I wouldn't find you attractive, stupid."
He put away his phone and took a smoke of his cigarette. He kind of regretted wearing jeans; it was hot outside and he almost felt like going to buy a pair of shorts just for this little trip to central park. He resisted the urge, though, and before he knew it, he arrived at his destination. He was just about to pick up his phone and call Ino when he saw her ponytail bouncing as she came walking towards him. She looked serious, which made Sasuke swallow. He didn't look forward to this conversation. He threw the cigarette away.
"Hi, Sasuke."
"Hey."
They stood silent for a while, both practically staring at each other. Sasuke wasn't the one to look away in the first place, and Ino seemed determined to get something out of the raven.
"You wanna go for a walk?"
Sasuke nodded and started walking with Ino by his side. It was a relief, somehow, that she hadn't asked him to sit down somewhere or something like that. It felt a bit easier to have this conversation while walking.
"So."
He bit his cheeks. Here we go.
"What do you mean there's no she?"
Sasuke smirked and looked from the ground to the sky. It was blue and without a single cloud, the sun almost burning the city alive. He looked back to the ground again.
"I don't have a girlfriend."
Ino nodded.
"Okay. Are you guys taking a break?"
Sasuke shook his head.
"No."
She looked troubled, clearly trying to figure out what was going on.
"I've never had a girlfriend."
Ino looked at him and then blinked a couple of times. She had a hard time believing that the hottest guy in school never had had a relationship before, and just couldn't fit the pieces together.
"Okay. So… You're scared? Of being with a girl?"
Sasuke held back a laugh. He had to keep a straight face, or else, he would seem like a complete douche.
"No. No, I'm not scared."
Ino stopped, which made Sasuke turn and look at her. He pushed his hands down in the pockets of his jeans and just waited for the next question. She shook her head.
"I don't get it."
He smiled and looked at the ground again. He took a deep breath.
"Do you remember Kiba? The guy that transferred last year?"
Ino nodded. Sasuke took another deep breath. Here goes nothing.
He clenched his fists.
"I used to date that guy."
Sasuke slowly faced Ino again, and met a pair of huge, confused eyes. He couldn't help but smirk.
She tried to form some words on her lips, but didn't say anything for a few seconds.
"But- but that… You're…"
It finally seemed to dawn on her.
"Sasuke, you're gay?"
He shrugged and then nodded. There it was. It was out.
He patiently waited for her reaction.
She but the tip of her thumb in her mouth and bit on it, leaning all her weight on one of her legs. She nodded her head, taking in the fact that her crush didn't play for her team.
After a minute or so, she clapped her hands and actually made Sasuke jump.
"It all makes so much sense now!"
She threw her arms out and smiled at him, removing the uneasy feeling in his stomach.
"I get it now. Man, I get it!"
He shrugged again and let out a laugh. It actually felt great that she had taken it so well, that she hadn't been grossed out or anything like that. That probably was his biggest fear; that people would stop talking to him just because he preferred some hot male meat instead of girls.
She suddenly stopped and held both of her hands over her mouth.
"Oh, my god… Oh my god."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow and Ino covered her face in her palms before facing him again.
"I hit on you! Oh crap, I hit on you so hard, and I… the car…"
She made some kind of laughing noise mixed with a groan.
"I'm so, so sorry Sasuke! I had no idea! God, I'm so embarrassed."
Sasuke laughed whole heartedly and shook his head.
"It's alright, Ino. I'm sorry I blew you off like that, but… you know."
She nodded her head and dried a tear from the corner of her eye.
"I forgive you. You should have told me!"
He nodded. Yea, he probably should have told her earlier, and saved her all this cluelessness. If one looks like Ino and gets dumped like that, he was sure that anyone would have taken it pretty hard. As he had mentally mentioned that night; if he was straight, he would have found her pretty attractive.
They looked at each other and shared a smile before turning to walk back. Happy sighed loudly and put her hands behind her neck.
"I'm glad you told me, Sasuke. I can finally get my confidence back."
He smiled and took his hands out of his pockets to light another cigarette.
"You're actually the first one I'm telling outside of my family."
He then remembered Naruto, but since the blonde lived on the other side of the planet, he decided that it wouldn't matter.
"Really? You shouldn't be ashamed, it's who you are, you know?"
Sasuke nodded and took a smoke. They walked in silence for a while before Ino spoke up again.
"But… Kiba? Is he your type?"
Sasuke snickered and shrugged.
"I guess so."
Ino shook her head.
"I always thought you liked the serious kind. Kiba was so… goofy. And loud."
He nodded. It actually was kind of weird. He'd never looked at the goofy, loud ones and thought that he would fall for the silent, a bit more mystic type. He had been so, so wrong about that.
They reached the place where they had met up only thirty minutes earlier, said goodbye and went different ways to get back to their places. Sasuke grabbed his phone, hoping that he had gotten an answer from Naruto. He had indeed.
"You're saying you think I'm attractive?"
Sasuke bit his cheeks and tried to figure out what to write. He wanted to write that YES, Naruto was the most perfect human being on planet earth and he would do him any day, but realized that it might not be the best way to tell him. He sighed and wrote an answer.
"Yes, I'm saying I think you're attractive."
He was about to throw away his phone out of pure embarrassment, but stopped himself in the last second. He kept smoking his cigarette in a painful and long wait for the blonde's text. What if he got freaked out? God, why had he written that? His phone didn't have the chance to finish its beeping before Sasuke had opened their conversation.
"Cool! I just got complimented by a gay guy; I still got it!"
Sasuke didn't stop himself when he laughed out loud.