Haunted

By: Junsui Kegasu

A/N: See, what'd I tell you? Left over inspiration.

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto…sadly…

Kankurou's heart was racing. It had been a tremendous feat to get Gaara out of the house without Neji waking up. He had established (unfortunately, very easily, since Gaara's ribs could be counted through his chest without much effort) that he only had two broken ribs, but it made him hurt to move.

Every time Kankurou had tried to lift him into his arms, he let out a cry of anguish that made Kankurou's heart wrench and at the same time, worry that Neji would wake up. He had scribbled a note to the Hyuuga, telling him that he was taking him to Shikamaru and if something like this happened again, he would tell the police.

Something told him that Neji wouldn't be too happy with this.

He didn't care right now, though, with Gaara reclined as far back as possible in the passenger seat. Thankfully, the thing was broken, so it went back to the point where Gaara could lay almost completely flat on his back. His breathing was coming in short gasps, as if it hurt him to breathe.

That revelation made Kankurou nervous. They were at a red light, which liked to take forever, especially when most people needed it not to, and Temari and Shikamaru were at the other end of town from Neji's apartment.

Finally, the light turned green, and he put on a burst of speed, forgetting about the rough pavement. Because he was going faster than he probably should have, the car jerked around a lot when he hit it. The road needed to be redone badly.

Gaara whimpered in pain when he was jolted, his eyes clenched shut. Kankurou gritted his teeth and sped off, taking more caution over the rougher roads.

It took a good ten more minutes to get to Temari and Shikamaru's house, but to Kankurou, each red light felt like hours. Each stop sign was wasting time that needed to be spent on Gaara. Each pedestrian crossing was a bitch that didn't give a shit about Gaara and could care less if he died.

But, finally, they made it to where they needed to be. Kankurou hurriedly undid his seatbelt and jumped out of the driver's side, sprinting around the old car to wrench open Gaara's door.

He gently reached over the boy and undid his seatbelt, untangling him from it. Gaara had passed out when they had gone over construction, the road so rocky that it had made him scream out in pain once before slumping, unconscious.

Well, now he didn't have to worry about the redhead being in pain when he picked him up. He scooped the small frame into his arms and, stopping for just a second to cradle him fondly, walked to the door, and balanced Gaara with his knee and his hand while he opened it.

He asked the person at the receptionist desk to page Temari and Shikamaru's room number, saying that there was a family emergency.

"Sir, do you want to call the ambulance?" she asked coolly, done with the paging.

"NO! No, I just need to see them!" Kankurou told her. Gaara let out a tiny whimper of what could either be pain or a nightmare, and taking that as a hint, he hurried over to the elevator.

He pushed the button and the elevator opened, thankfully empty. Shoving his way inside, but being careful not to hurt Gaara further, he jabbed the floor he needed harshly, as if it'd make him move any faster.

It seemed like an eternity for the elevator to rise, but when it finally stopped, he darted through the doors and down the hall.

Temari was waiting outside, chewing on her nails. When she saw him, she ran over, tears shining in her eyes and her nails reduced to stubs.

"Oh, Kankurou! Is he okay?" she asked, trying not to be loud, but unable to help herself.

"Well, he has two broken ribs…and quite a few bruises…but that's it," he told her. Now that he thought about it, and was in the company he needed to be in, he had overreacted. Gaara would be okay. Of course he would be okay.

"Well, Shikamaru can look at him…he never minds," she added, seeing the look on Kankurou's face. "Come in, come in!" she gestured to the door, opening it and ushering him inside.

Shikamaru was seated on the sofa, sterilized gloves already on.

"I figured 'family emergency' meant something like this," he told him. "I thought it was best to be prepared before you got up here. What's wrong?"

"Well, he has two broken ribs, and a lot of bruises…but you only need to look at the ribs," he informed Shikamaru, feeling very tired all of a sudden. He went forward, laying the unconscious redhead on the couch, then yawned widely, rubbing his eyes. Temari cast him a sympathetic look.

"You probably haven't slept in a long while…" she guessed, which was partiallytrue. "You can go ahead and lay on the bed. Gaara will be fine." He didn't seem to have much choice in the matter, since Temari was guiding him by his elbow to the bedroom. He cast one more look over his shoulder at Shikamaru and Gaara, surprised when he saw those pretty greens open. He gave Gaara a reassuring smile, although it didn't look like he was very aware.

As soon as he reached the bed, he collapsed onto it. He heard Temari chuckle and start to undo his shoes and pull off his jacket, which had been loosely hanging from his elbows by the time he had gotten Gaara up to the apartment. He mumbled a thank you before slipping off to sleep instantly.

When Kankurou woke up, sunlight was flooding the room. He blinked away the brightness and rolled over onto his back, rubbing his eyes sleepily. It took him a moment to realize he wasn't on his lumpy mattress covered single bed, but on a comfortable double.

'Wait…that means I'm not home…' his sleep-muddled mind told him a minute later.

As if a dam had been broken, memories from earlier that morning flooded into Kankurou's mind and he sat up straight, gasping.

"Gaara!" he cried, untangling himself from the blankets and stumbling out of the room. He stopped short at the living room. Temari and Shikamaru were curled up, looking like they had fallen asleep snuggling, on the loveseat. It didn't look too comfortable, but Kankurou decided that he wouldn't wake them.

Gaara was on the other couch, a blanket pulled up to his chin and tucked all around him. By the way his chest was rising and falling, no longer in shallow little bursts as it had earlier, Kankurou guessed that Shikamaru did his 'magic'.

Still, even though the younger man could breathe easier now, he wasn't going back to Neji. Not until his ribs were one-hundred-percent mended, and even then, Kankurou knew he'd be reluctant to let him go.

Silently, he crept over to sit near the couch, watching Gaara sleep. As usual, his features were absolutely relaxed, his eyeliner smudged and faded in some places, revealing that he got probably even less sleep than Kankurou did.

It was absolutely adorable.

He reached over to delicately brush a bang out of Gaara's closed eyes, smiling fondly when it just fell back into place. Gaara just radiated a natural cuteness. It should've been a crime.

Kankurou found that now that they had gone as far as to kiss, he didn't care that his mind was supplying him with fond remarks over the redhead. That was good, because there sure seemed to be a lot of them running through his thoughts lately.

Still smiling, he bent over and placed a gentle kiss on Gaara's forehead, grinning when he turned his head and mumbled something that sounded very much like "No, Mom, ten more minutes…."

Kankurou fell back, leaning against the coffee table, sighing gently. Chances were, considering Gaara's sleep pattern was so random, that Temari, at least, would wake up before he did, probably telling them to have breakfast before they set off back to his apartment.

He took a glance at the clock on the VCR. It was nearly 10:30 in the morning. He was pretty lucky that he wasn't on duty. Ibiki probably would've killed him, revived him, asked what the fuck he'd been doing, and then killed him again when his answer wasn't legitimate.

For a while, he just leaned against the sturdy coffee table, watching Gaara sleep peacefully, undisturbed by nightmares or pain. After fifteen minutes, however, the redhead started to wake up, shifting just slightly in his sleep. Kankurou got the feeling that he couldn't roll onto his side because of his ribs.

Slowly, green orbs opened, glazed over sleepily. He smiled at the sight of Kankurou, who smiled back and cupped his cheek gently with one hand.

"Hey…how're you feeling?" he asked in a whisper.

"I'm…I think I'm okay…" Gaara whispered back, his brow suddenly furrowing. "Hey…where are we?" he asked, looking around.

Gaara had never been to Temari and Shikamaru's apartment.

"We're with Temari and Shikamaru," he told him. "Neji broke your ribs."

Gaara winced slightly. "Oh…yeah…I remember that part…" he mumbled, tearing his gaze away from Kankurou's.

"Hey…don't worry about it," Kankurou told him, leaning in closer. "I told him that if it happens again, I'm telling the police."

Gaara's eyes widened. Before he could freak out, Kankurou added, "There isn't anything he can do to you if the police come to get him, or he'll get a longer sentence. You're safe," he assured the redhead, leaning in so their faces were hardly four inches from each other.

"If I didn't think you were somewhat safe," he continued in a murmur, "I would've called the police when the first bruises started to appear," he told him, closing the gap between them and kissing Gaara gently.

It was a simple kiss, and he pulled away without deepening it much. They sat in silence for a while, before Gaara bit his lip. Kankurou knew enough of the boy's body language to figure out that that meant something was up.

"What's wrong?" he asked, dreading the answer.

"I…I…Kankurou…I'm just…just confused…" Gaara said, his brow furrowed in thought. "I love Neji…but…but I'm having feelings for you too…" he told him. "Crazy, I know…" he added at the look on his friend's face.

Kankurou bit his lip. He had anticipated it, but he wasn't sure what to say to it.

"I'm just so confused…" Gaara repeated, his gaze on the carpet, where his finger was drawing little patterns.

Kankurou couldn't take it; he exploded.

"He doesn't deserve you, Gaara!" he told him, clenching a fist. "Contrary to what you think, you didn't do anything worth being hurt for!" Before he could stop himself, everything was spilling out. "I hate how he treats you! He asked me for permission to date you, you know, back when he was modest, and he knew me as your older brother figure, so I told him yes, and look where it's gone? Gaara…I'm sorry, if anything, this is all my fault!"

He was amazed that his sister, who had always been a light sleeper, hadn't woken up.

Gaara's eyes filled with tears, but he didn't let a single drop spill from his glittering jades. "K-kankurou…it's…it's not your fault!" he told him. "It's mine, I'm not good enough! I-I'm always breaking thi-things and b-being clumsy-"

"It's in your nature!" Kankurou protested. "Neji should accept you for who you are!"

"I broke the stove!" Gaara continued. "A-and I'm always so ungrateful for what he does…he cooks sometimes…and he does some of the cleaning. Kankurou, you wouldn't understand it! I'm sorry! I still love him, but I love you too!"

He burst into hysterical sobbing. Kankurou reached forward to comfort him, and behind him, he could hear Temari stirring. He bit his lip. That wasn't exactly good right now.

"Shh…Gaara…I love you too…I'm sorry, I made you upset…" he whispered.

Gaara sniffled against him. "W-why is this so co-complicated…?" he asked, moving a little so he was closer.

"Otouto?" came Temari's sleepy voice from across the room. Kankurou was almost grateful; it saved him from answering an extremely difficult question. Gaara was good at proposing them.

"Yeah?" he answered back.

"Is Gaara okay?" she seemed more awake now, and a rustling of clothing against leather told Kankurou that she had sat up.

"Yeah, he's fine," he assured her, stroking Gaara's brilliantly colored hair. "He just had…somewhat of a breakdown."

"Oh, alright. I'm gonna make you guys breakfast, okay?" she asked, getting up from the couch. When she moved, Shikamaru fell, since she had been supporting him.

"Nnnn! No…'Mari-chaaaaan…" he mumbled, but if he was awake, he quickly fell back to sleep."

Temari rolled her eyes and made her way into the kitchen. A moment later, they could hear the clinking of dishes as she prepared whatever they were to eat.

Kankurou smiled down at the redhead cuddled against his chest. "All better?" he asked him, tenderly brushing his bangs away, again. They both smiled when the bangs merely fell back.

"I love you…" Kankurou told him, stroking the smaller man's tear-streaked cheek.

"I…I love you too…" Gaara murmured, his eyes becoming half-lidded.

Contrary to all prior thoughts, Kankurou thought the redhead was damn sexy like that.

He bent down and kissed the redhead again, playing his tongue on Gaara's lips. When he started sucking on the smaller man's lower lip, Gaara moaned and parted his lips for entry.

He tasted better than the world's best-made dessert. Kankurou just wanted more; he was so damn delicious. But, finally, they had to depart for air, Gaara panting, his face flushed nearly the color of his hair and his lips swollen gently.

Kankurou grinned and ran the pad of his thumb over the younger man's lips. The moment was perfect.

"So…we're gonna do this?" Gaara asked him, green eyes questioning.

"Yeah…I guess so," Kankurou told him, his hand wandering down to scratch under his chin. To appease him, Gaara gave him a lopsided grin and tilted his head to give Kankurou more space, purring softly.

"And it's gonna be okay," the older man told him, chuckling gently at Gaara's antics.

Hesitantly, Gaara nodded, agreeing. "I love you…" he said. "I think I've always loved you…maybe more than Neji…"

Kankurou felt something swell inside his chest. He wasn't sure if it was pride, but he couldn't help but think, 'Ha. Take that, Neji!' He reached down and embraced the redhead again, but jumped when he heard a cough from the doorway.

"Well, you two are an item now?" came Temari's voice, teasing.

Kankurou felt his face flush, and Gaara's was challenging his hair. "T-temari!" he exclaimed, glaring. "What are you doing here?"

"It's my apartment, otouto-chan," she said, using the fond nickname for him. "And, I was wondering how many eggs each of you'd like. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone who could be dangerous. If anything, I think this is the best thing that's happened in your sex life so far, Gaara, and the only thing in yours, Kanky!"

"TEMARI!"

Breakfast was a very interesting ordeal. It turned out that Temari had seen everything from their kiss and beyond, which annoyed Kankurou to no end. She spent the entire meal asking embarrassing questions and Shikamaru, who was still half awake at the table, didn't get a thing of it.

She ushered them out the door, Kankurou supporting Gaara, who could move, but not very efficiently, waving them off with a large grin on her face.

"That girl!" Kankurou exclaimed loudly, scooping Gaara into his arms and jogging down the hall. Gaara giggled quietly in his arms. "I th-think it's kinda funny…"

"You think so?" Kankurou asked the small figure in his arms, smiling.

Gaara nodded vigorously. Kankurou had reached the elevator and let Gaara push all the buttons. They went down, both feeling much more at ease than the last time they had made that trip and walked past the same receptionist from before.

Kankurou couldn't help but snigger at the look on the face of the lady, who had last seen Gaara unconscious and in pain. She seemed bewildered at the fact he was smiling.

They had reached the car. Kankurou put Gaara in the seat, which was still reclined, as Shikamaru had said that he shouldn't sit completely upright for a while. He went over to the driver's side and got in, starting the car. A song neither of them recognized was playing on the radio, but he and Gaara both caught a lyric:

"…And now that I'm not just a dreamer…"

Kyah! I don't own the song I used to lyric to right there, it's actually from F-ZERO I found out, and it's part of Captain Falcon's theme. I heard it before I knew that…I think it's a good song for Kanky and Gaara! Shu thought it first, too.