Neji slowly strolled home, he was in no hurry to get anywhere. He didn't know how to feel after his encounter with Sasuke, but he left feeling grateful he still had his best friend. He couldn't help but wonder if things would still remain the same between them, he was doubtful. So many emotions were stirred up inside him it made him sick, so to help counter the pain he took another two pills, mumbling to himself that he'd eat something when he got back. He took another deep breath and stared up at the night sky, it was a beautiful night. He wiped his eyes, satisfied they were dry and returned home.

When he arrived he noticed the silhouette of someone laying on his bed. 'Gaara must have let himself in' he thought and strutted over to his bed.

"I see someone couldn't wait till I got back." He cooed as he crawled on and felt two strong arms embrace him.

"I just couldn't help myself, I hope you don't mind?" came Gaara's voice as he held the hyuuga closer and went to kiss down his neck but paused.

"Why do you smell of the Uchiha?"

Neji smiled, he actually had a response that wasn't going to upset someone. He reached over and tangled his fingers into the sand nin's fiery red hair and nuzzled his nose.

"We talked. That's all." He purred into the others cheek before kissing one. "Sasuke…is my friend…" Neji hesitated a moment before continuing. "and that's all we ever will be."

The red head gazed up at Neji wide-eyed.

"You did that for me?" he sounded shocked and pleased as Neji nodded.

The shorter boy practically leaped on the hyuuga, flinging his arms around him and pushing his mouth over the others in a passionate kiss. His suspicions and concerns about the other boy stealing Neji away soon faded. Neji moaned and fell back onto the cushions allowing the red head to ravish him, then froze when he felt the other boy lap at his neck. Neji lightly pushed away and sat up before speaking.

"Gaara, I visited Shikamaru's house today…"

The sand nin paled, he instantly knew where this conversation was headed and he knew Neji was smart enough to figure everything out.

"…How is he?" the red head asked, trying not to sound as if he already knew.

"He had the same bite mark on him as I do…the one you gave me."

Oh yeah, Neji knew, 'shit shit shit it's too soon, will he freak out?' Gaara swallowed and decided he'd have to tell Neji he was a monster.

"I can explain!" he blurted out quickly earning a strange worried stare from Neji.

"So it was you who attacked Shikamaru…Why? Why did you do it?"

The sand nin looked away, "I was…no, Shukaku was hungry."

"Who's Shukaku?" The hyuuga grew more and more confused and scrambled to his feet.

"Please Neji, let me explain. Shukaku is a demon, he lives within me."

The taller nin was now staring in disbelief at the other.

"So it was Shukaku who almost killed Shikamaru?" he questioned nervously.

"Yes…no…almost?"

Gaara froze, he left Shikamaru for dead that boy should have bleed to death. There's no way he could still be alive.

"Yes almost. I got there just in time today and took him to the hospital. He lost a lot of blood."

Neji's hand shifted to his neck protectively and looked nervous. The sand nin sighed, this was not going well at all. Not only did he lose trust in the boy he loved, but he left Shikamaru alive. That boy should have bleed to death long ago.

'Unless…' came a voice deep within him, 'that boy put up quite a fight, he cut you up a few good times.'

'So? I healed fast enough didn't I?'

Gaara reached up to cover the glowing tattoo, he didn't need to freak Neji out more while he communicated with the beast within him.

'Fool, you were careless. You were thinking about Neji and now we have a problem. You better find that Nara boy and finish him off now while he's still in recovery.' Gaara nodded to himself and looked at Neji who began to speak.

"Are you a vampire?" he whispered quietly and hugged a pillow close to him. Gaara grimaced; he didn't like being labelled like that, especially since he wasn't just a normal vampire, although the hyuuga wasn't far off.

"No, but I do need blood. Well not me, but Shukaku does which I guess means I do but that's not the point. Neji I didn't want to tell you yet, I knew it would scare you."

He reached over and held Neji's hand tightly with a pleading look for acceptance or understanding and continued.

"I might as well come clean about everything while I'm at it. Shukaku and I are one in a sense, and we both share the same soulmate." He stared at Neji who didn't seem to clue in. A few moments passed. The hyuuga slowly pointed to himself in surprise

"Me?"

Gaara smiled at his cuteness and scooted closer. "Yes-"

"But how do you know?"

The red head smirked. "Trust me, there's a special bond that Shukaku and I can sense, you will be able to as well, shortly enough."

He swallowed and waited for Neji's reaction. The taller nin took a moment to take everything in before responding.

"Ok, let me get this straight. You have a demon in you, which needs blood and I am your soulmate, because you can sense it?"

Gaara nodded and Neji removed the pills from his pocket and mumbled something about hallucinations.

The red head sighed, "It's true Neji, you'll understand after I turn you. You'll understand what lo-"

"Whoa whoa whoa, turn me?"

Neji looked freaked out of his mind, which was a really scary look for someone with no pupils. The red head wrapped his arms around Neji and held him,

"Please understand Neji, please." He whispered near tears of losing the one he knew he was meant to be with. "Please…" he murmured into the hyuuga's shirt.

Neji didn't know what to do, the boy needed comfort and he truly cared for the red head but all this was so hard to swallow. Then the dark haired nin smiled, Gaara couldn't help but remind the hyuuga of the way Sasuke had held onto him earlier that night. The taller boy suddenly cupped Gaara's chin and lightly kissed his forehead.

"I can't say I understand Gaara, but maybe I will someday." He smiled softly and felt the sand nin breath a sigh of relief into his chest. 'I love a vampire' he couldn't help but think as he looked down at the boy in his arms 'and couldn't be happier' he mentally added. The sand nin in his arms relaxed. 'You'll understand Neji…after you become like me.'

Gaara's eyes widened a few minutes after being held by Neji and quickly scrambled to his feet.

"Shikamaru! We have to find him!" he shouted.

The hyuuga glanced up, surprised that his new boyfriend wasn't his usual calm creepy self.

"Gaara, it's late. He's in the hospital. We can check up on him tomorrow." The other responded then yawned.

"No, we have to find him now. It could be too late by tomorrow."

There was concern and force behind his voice causing the leaf nin to stand unintentionally and begin getting ready.

"Why?"

"Because he'll be hungry as hell by now." Gaara froze, Neji was the one that found him, he caught the Hyuuga's scent, which means that's who's blood he wants.

"Neji, you stay here. I'll go to the hospital an-"

"No, how do I know you won't try to kill him again? Shikamaru is my friend and I can't let you do that to him…again."

Neji shook his head, thinking Gaara attacked the nara boy because he was hungry, jealousy wasn't even considered in his mind. He felt a hand push him back down.

"No, you stay here. Just trust me okay? He might come after you."

The hyuuga tilted his head, "But I saved him, why wou-"

"It's my mistake, he may be turned. I just don't want to risk losing you." He last words came out as a plea and Neji couldn't help but agree to it.

"Fine."

He sat back down on his bed and folded his arms mentally trying to find a verbal loophole so he could sneak out. Gaara kissed him quickly while strapping his gourd around himself, which Neji found incredible sexy for some reason, and walked out.

Gaara had been gone a good hour before worry set in. He knew the sand nin was fully capable of defending himself, so why was he so worried? He paced around nervously for a few minutes and contemplated taking some pills but ultimately decided against it, he didn't want to become depended on those things, it was bad enough he had them. It wasn't long until the stress had gotten to the hyuuga and he grabbed his coat.

'I'll head to the hospital, check if Shikamaru is there, then get back here before Gaara even notices I'm gone'

He concluded and closed the door to his house, already in a slow jog towards the hospital.

The nin arrived at the hospital in no time, he was barely in there a few minutes when he saw Dr. Reese walk out of a room and down the hall. The hyuuga took off after him and cut him off before he rounded the corner.

"Dr. Reese! Do you have a minute? I need to talk to you."

The blonde man gazed down and clicked his pen closed. "Neji? I was just wondering about you."

"I need to see Shika-what about me?" Neji paused mid-sentence and began another.

"Our patient Shikamaru left, no wait he didn't leave, he escaped." The doctor folded his arms and stared down at Neji, who stared back wide-eyed.

"Escaped?" the nin questioned again "How?"

"The window was smashed open early this evening. A friend of yours dropped by a few minutes ago but left quickly when he found out the news of our patient."

Neji swallowed, Gaara was gone already? He'd have to beat him back to his house before the red head could know he left.

"Thanks Dr. Reese, I have to go!"

He took off before the older man could respond, but heard the doctor yell at him about taking things easy and not to run in the halls but the hyuuga was out of the hospital before anyone else could shout at him for running.

His was halfway back to the estate when he cut through some bushes, and crashed into someone on the other side. Neji's fall was cushioned by the other nin who hit the ground with a loud thud and cursed loudly at him.

"Shit, dammit kid, watch where you're going?"

Kankuro glared up and saw the other nin sprawled over him, which quickly changed his expression to surprise.

"You're not supposed to be out here."

The hyuuga shook the dizziness out of his head and reached for the hand the other boy offered him.

"I'm trying to get back home, wait how do you know I wasn't supposed to leave my house?"

Kankuro brushed himself off and spoke quietly "Because Gaara came home and told us about your friend Shikamaru-"

The puppet master froze, was he supposed to tell Neji? Afterall he didn't exactly plan on running into him when he was supposed to be somewhere else. The white-eyed boy must have sensed it and put two and two together because he nodded when the sand nin mentioned his friend's name, so he continued.

"Anyway, Gaara told us you were home and that Shikamaru was a threat to the village."

"Threat to the village, how?"

Neji immediately became concerned, what were these sand nins going to do to his friend? The other nin sighed when he saw the hyuuga's worried expression, he knew Neji wasn't going to like this.

"Your friend isn't human any longer, and we can't have our little secret get out now can we?"

"Oh my God…you're going to kill him aren't you?" Neji stated in complete disbelief as he spoke to the other boy before adding, "I won't let you."

Kankuro cursed under his breathe, normally he would shut Neji up with his fist, but Neji was Gaara's as the puppet master understood things, and if Neji wasn't going to be happy, Gaara would make Kankuro very unhappy. So he decided to try the tactful approach and get Shikamaru off the streets, then deal with the newly turned nin.

"Ok, look, how about we catch him first, then deal with him in a way we all can be happy with?"

The older nin spoke in a hopeful tone, but didn't believe much of it. Before Neji could question him he continued

"And you better get back before Gaara finds you."

The hyuuga gasped upon being reminded of his current problem and took off again, shoving the other boy out of the way, causing him to fall flat on his ass.

Neji ran across other peoples lawns to cut down his time, normally the hyuuga wouldn't dare to be so disrespectful but he had to get back before the sand nin. He even went as far as pushing past someone walking on the streets to get back in time, not bothering to turn and see if the person was alright like he normally would.

Neji burst through his door and closed it quickly behind him.

"And where were you?"

The taller nin froze like a deer caught in the headlights when he saw the outline of Gaara perched on his bed. The hyuuga looked down, no sense lying now.

"I went to check up on Shikamaru, I got worried when you didn't come back."

It wasn't really a lie, he knew Gaara could take care of himself, but he didn't have to know he was worried about Shikamaru. The red head sighed and walked over to the dark haired nin,

"Will you stay put now?"

"Only if you don't hurt Shikamaru."

The sand nin frowned, so Neji knew about Shikamaru now? Handling the Nara boy would be a lot more difficult then, but he'd figure something out for Neji's sake.

"Fine. But only if you promise to stay in."

The red head folded his arms, slightly angry that the hyuuga disobeyed him in the first place. The taller boy nodded and ran a finger through his hair, he was tired, sick and worried about his friend, he just wanted to get a nice long shower and forget everything. He felt a hand pat his cheek and gazed down into the sand nins emerald eyes, who leaned up for a soft kiss before leaving. Neji smiled, feeling reassured about Shikamaru's safety, he knew Gaara wouldn't lie to him about it. He paused before heading towards the shower and locked his door, no sense in being careless, afterall that was Shikamaru's mistake.

Kowaikage- Hi guys, thanks for the reviews. I hope you like this chappy too. I'm gonna try and update more since there's not too much left to the fic now. Yay! I'm almost done!

Kokuryuuha018- You were Neji? Hahaha that's awesome! I was Gaara! And I was travelling with a two friends, one dressed as Temari and one as Ebisu. I was actually searching for someone dressed as Neji so I could get a pic with them…Mmmm Neji and Gaara…/Drools/ Man, I need to get this yaoi fixation under control…wait, no I don't. Heehee /Skips off/

Assassin- Hahaha! Yes, you're absolutely right! Shikamaru SHOULD have been dead, but this chapter sorta explains why he didn't die. Thank you so much for pointing that out though, I was wondering if anyone would notice that before I posted the next chapter, and you did! Yay/hands you a cookie for being extra-observant/

Blackat- That is pretty far away, you could prolly find an anime convention closer but I'm a newb when it comes to conventions so I really don't know. Haha, I noticed the UKE in Sasuke too…heehee.