Disclaimer:: ;-; If I owned them, they'd all probably be dead because of NEGLECT by now.

AN:: OH EM EFF GEE! I totally suck. I'm sorry about the whole month hiatus on this fic. Not on purpose. Uhm…Marry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Kwanza…whatever it is you celebrate(d). HAPPY NEW YEAR TOO!

Sidenote:: MY BIRTHDAY IS ON MONDAY (January 10) Hehe.

Okay.

MUCH thanks to Erzengel—because of you I was able to stay up an hour past the time I should have been to bed and finish this chapter. I owe you. A hell of a lot.

Anyway, shutting up. Enjoy the chapter. ::flees::

---------------------------------------------

Chapter 8

Had he been a poet, his mind would have instantaneously composed sonnets and ballads proclaiming his undying affection for a man he barely knew. Had he been a craftsman, a tradesman, a wizard, a genius, he would have made, bought, summoned, invented something to convey the feelings he had. But he was nothing so flamboyant. He was himself--clumsy, awkward, unsure what the feeling which coursed through his veins, heightened his senses actually was.

Oh, but he knew! He knew with every fiber of his being, like a mother knows her own child out of thousands, that inexplicable bond. He knew. And that frightened him more than not knowing.

They barely knew each other, something that should have been his first clue, his second, or maybe his final indicator that something was happening to him. But he refused to acknowledge. Neglect--or maybe bullheadedness--had become the connector, the solder between both strangers. Neglect had saved them and would bind them. Yet he did not know his own craving to ignore the truth would solidify that "something" between the pair.

His face was flushed, his ears felt as though they had been set on fire. Like a sentient guard standing watch over them, immobile and omnipotent, time hung suspended. Hours, days, months, years could have passed as he locked his gaze with the raven-haired man. Surprise reigned triumphant on that pale face, but he knew he bore a similar expression.

Words failed him, flunking and abandoning him, and so he just stood. And stared. And waited, waiting for something to happen, anything. The world to explode, a crack in the floor to appear and swallow him into its earthen jaws, an air raid to rain down barrages of missiles. He waited for the end of all things. Anything to save him.

He wet his lips with a roving tongue, swallowing thickly, wanting him to say something, anything, just as long as it would bring an end to the silence. That overbearing calm, that zealous prophet of stillness clenching his throat and lungs. Something niggled in the back of his skull, telling him he was making things much worse than they truly were. That same, rational segment of his brain screamed that he needed to take a deep breath and put things in perspective. So this stranger, this man he barely knew wouldn't live with him. And? Why did he feel as though his heart would burst if Sasuke said no? Why did everything seem so fixated, so focused on this one centripetal moment, like the center of a whirlpool? He didn't know why...but...it did.

Ookami yawned loudly, sounding like a mock-lion as he stretched, back arching upwards. Naruto's eyes moved from the Uchiha's to his dog, peering at the beast, thankful for some respite, some break in the impromptu staring contest. Words lanced through his ears, playing against his ear drums. He interpreted the timbre of the man's voice before even comprehending the words. It didn't really matter, though. They weren't the ones he wanted to hear.

"Can I think about it for a moment?" Sasuke's hands were folded in his lap, raven gaze fixed upon them. Naruto peered at him intently for a moment before nodding, smiling cheerfully.

"Of course. I had to make a phone call, anyway." Keeping the crestfallen depression from his voice, he turned on his heels, clucking to the wolf-dog. Ookami trotted away from Sasuke's side, following behind his master as they left the other human behind with whatever thoughts he had.

His feet padded softly on the floor, muffled by thick grey woolen socks, the warmth from the coarse material creating a barrier of heat between his flesh and the wooden panels lining the ground in his hallway. His cornflower blue eyes drifted lazily along the paper covered walls mottled with framed portraits and paintings, scanning each of them. His alert and attentive eyes memorized them, studied them, as though for the first time, once more feeling a burst of appreciation for his uncle's artistic taste.

He had never known his uncle, but being the childless man's only nephew, he had been the obvious inheritor of the cabin. Sometimes he felt as though he could sense his uncle in the walls, watching over and protecting him. It was why he believed he was safe here, believed he could rest here, as though this was his sanctuary from the rest of the world. As long as he was within its oaken structure, basked before a crackling fire or trudging around in the banks of snow just behind the threshold, he could be happy. Only in his reclusiveness he found true companionship with the peaceful solitude.

Soon he stood before a telephone, the ebony colored plastic decoratively placed in the center of doilies, atop a mahogany stand. Sighing momentarily, as though gathering strength before slaying a dragon, before traversing a desert, before scaling a mountain, he hefted the receiver to his mouth, fingers dexterously clacking numbers in the turn-style dial on the antique piece of equipment.

Wetting his lips with a sandpaper tongue, he closed his eyes, bracing himself.

"Hello?" the light voice murmured from the other end of the line. Glancing at his hand, he grinned faintly. She always was awake early. Even on a Saturday. "This is Haruno Sakura. May I ask who's calling?"

"Sakura, why are you being so formal with me?" he smirked, voice lilting slightly with his good humor. Gods, how good it felt to hear the voice of someone he knew from home…He refused to accept the fact that every part of his body reminded him that he was more than "good" when he listened to Sasuke.

"Dr. Uzumaki!" she cried happily, glee evident in her voice even though they were separated by thousands of miles, connected by metal, rubber, and plastic. Eyelids slid shut, and he simply listened to her, imaging she stood before him, right in front of him, arms around his neck, hugging him and pulling him closer. "I'm so glad to hear from you! I was really worried about you. When will you be back?"

He knew it was unrequited, but he couldn't help love Sakura. "I'll be back in a week. I just wanted to make sure everything was alright back at the clinic." Nurse, Secretary, and the one in charge of holding down the fort while he was up at the cabin, Naruto couldn't help but be amazed at her strength. Having known her for almost all their lives, he had been there during her transformation from tittering, overbearing and obnoxious teen to mature, responsible woman. And somehow his childhood crush on his friend had become adult love on his employee. "And please—Call me Naruto. Just because I'm in charge of your paycheck doesn't mean you have to pretend you respect me," he teased gently.

"Alright, alright," Sakura laughed quietly, voice sultry and smooth, like rich chocolate, despite the early hours. "Naruto, you sound much happier since you left. How is Ookami?"

"He's doing fine, thanks for asking. Hungry as always." He idly reached down and scratched the dog's ears, the beast moaning quietly before plopping down at his feet, seated on his haunches, scooting closer to Naruto's hand. Grin spreading from ear to ear, he opened his eyes, looking to the wolf-dog, sunlight streaming through a nearby window causing his fur to gleam in shimmers and ripples of silver and gold, jeweler's dream. "The clinic doing alright without me?"

Though he was the only doctor, she was a licensed nurse, and capable of managing things in his absence. He could almost imagine her nodding and cocking her head in that familiar way. "Yes, everything is FINE. You can stop worrying. Hinata has been over recently though, wondering when you'll be back. I think she likes you," the woman teased.

"She probably just wants to make sure her health is still stable," he sighed sadly, wishing he could be of more help to the woman. "Neji has been taking her, I assume. For a cousin, he's behaving like a protective brother." He laughed, feeling his momentary guilt dissipating like parting clouds. "Maybe he always accompanies her because he's afraid I'll steal her away." The both laughed together, simultaneously picturing Neji defending his younger cousin.

"I miss you," she said, voice cheerful, warm, dripping with amusement and friendly contentment. Friendly. Pertaining to friends. Friends…

"You too, Sakura. I have to get going now." He couldn't decide whether it was because he suddenly felt so low or because he wanted to know if Sasuke would decline his invitation. Neither were options he particularly fancied. "Take care of yourself."

"Oh, wait!" Sakura cried impatiently, insistently, like a child who was ready to share their secret. "Mrs. Nara is having a baby soon! She and the father dropped by earlier today because she'd been throwing up early in the morning. I knew right away she was pregnant. She's glowing, Naruto. Can't wait for you to see her." She sighed, almost wistfully. "I'll let you go…But just think! She's going to have a new visitor in nine months!"

Naruto blushed awkwardly, deciding now would be a good time to tell her about…Sasuke…even if the Uchiha would not return. He inhaled deeply, gathering himself together. "I might—we might—have a new visitor in a week."

"Wh—what?" she asked, trying to maintain her composure, voice wavering slightly as she failed. "What are you talking about?"

"I…err…found someone in the woods," Naruto said, wondering absently why he felt as though he was confessing to some affair, some scandalous interaction between him and Sasuke. "And he's coming home to live with me."

----------------------------------------------------

It's funny…I usually dislike Sakura…but I actually LIKE her in this. Oh well…don't tell anyone. Thanks for reading. Sorry if Naruto sounded over-confident about Sasuke going with him…but come on. It's a Narusasu or SasuNaru fic…(I still can't decide)…if Sasuke was left behind, what would happen to the fic? Tell me what pairing you think it should be, if you care…::hops off::