Killing Loneliness
Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi-sensei and I took our seats. It was that time again – the summer festival. One was held every year, with thousands of people travelling to witness it. It alternated which village hosted it, too. This year it was the Village Hidden in the Sand's turn to host.
Events depended on the traditions of the host village, but there was no way to be sure what was being held. People strived to make the festival better every year so they took elements of other cultures. It was a great way to bring everyone together.
However there was one aspect that was included in the festival without a doubt, and that was the live music. This covered everything from pop to rock, vintage to modern.
"Hey! I've got a feeling this is going to be a good one this year! Heh, believe it!" Naruto said, grinning.
"Well… it is visually stunning," Sensei agreed, examining the stage.
"It's so pretty!" Sakura noted. "And it's such a great day!"
The sun was high in the cloudless sky and burned down on us all. A perfect day for the festival.
I looked down at the flyer I was holding. "Huh?"
"What is it, Sasuke?" Sakura wondered.
"Look here." I pointed to a list of some of the musicians playing.
"The Desert Rose," Naruto read aloud. "Could it be?"
"Sure is." We turned to see Temari looming over us. "Gaara's the representative this year."
Naruto began laughing. "And he has to sing?"
"You know as well as I do that it's totally random!" she snapped. "That's what he drew."
"I-I know," Naruto stammered, wiping tears from his eyes. "I just can't imagine Gaara singing!"
Temari walked away, pouting. "He's not half bad!"
Soon after that, the entertainment began. We weren't really paying attention – except for Naruto, who was dancing to every song like an idiot no matter what kind of song it was. We all just wanted to see Gaara.
"For the representative, he's not doing much," Kakashi-sensei speculated.
"Agreed," I nodded.
"Look! Look! There he is!" Sakura squealed, pointing at the stage.
"So it's finally his turn," Naruto muttered with a mischievous glint in his eye.
I looked forward towards the stage again. Sure enough, there was Gaara, lowering the microphone to his height.
"Welcome, everyone, to this year's summer festival, and also to the Village Hidden in the Sand. My name is Gaara, the Desert Rose, and I am this year's representative. You'll see me flitting around a lot later on. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have. But for now… on with the show!" Gaara shouted to the crowd, who erupted with a cheer.
The chords on the guitars played and the drums drummed a sad sort of beat.
"This is Killing Loneliness, made famous by H.I.M," Gaara said softly, before adding, "and killed by me."
I laughed, choking slightly on my drink. Trust Gaara.
"Hey!" Naruto chirped. "Temari was right! He isn't half bad!"
I turned my attention back to the stage, where the song had begun.
"Memories, sharp as daggers, pierce into the flesh of today," he sang. "The suicide of love took away all that matters and buried the remains in an unmarked grave in your heart."
I chuckled quietly to myself. The song seemed to suit Gaara greatly.
"With the venomous kiss you gave me, I'm killing loneliness. With the warmth of your arms you saved me. Oh I'm killing loneliness with you. We're killing loneliness that turned my heart into a tomb. I'm killing loneliness.
"Nailed to the cross, together, as solitude begs us to stay. When we disappear into the night forever, and denounce the power of death over our souls and secret words are sent to start a war."
Gaara began to sing the chorus again and I began to realise this song was sounding more and more like Gaara.
The instrumental was a dead giveaway. Gaara kept both hands gripped on the microphone but his eyes shot to the ground and his head hung low. He was acting very gloomy, and I doubted it was to add emphasis to the song.
He repeated the chorus one final time and left with a round of applause.
I furrowed my brow.
"What's wrong, Sasuke?" Sakura asked.
"Nothing," I mumbled. "Come on. Let's check everything out now Gaara's done."
We took part in a few prize-awarding games, like 'Pop the Balloon', where we had to pop as many balloons as we could with our shuriken in a set time limit. Naruto won a pink giant teddy bear for Sakura. We also grabbed some ramen.
Gaara was right. We saw him around a lot. He was still looking unhappy too, but apparently I was the only one who noticed it.
Soon the day grew late and the festival ended. It just seemed to fly by and I had to admit, I'd had a bundle of fun. But I couldn't stop thinking about Gaara.
Kakashi stretched out his arms. "Come on. We ought to get back to our room. I'm sure you're all exhausted."
While Kakashi was leading us back, I noticed Temari talking to some guy.
"What room did you say my brother had?" she asked.
"Four hundred and one," he replied, with an expression showing he'd told her that too many times.
That was when I made my decision.
"Sensei, I'm going to buy some souvenirs. You go on. I know my way back."
Kakashi nodded and dragged Naruto and Sakura on: Naruto was too tired to walk properly and Sakura wanted to come with me.
I waited until I knew they would be too far in front to know I'd entered the hotel too.
"Excuse me, could you point me to room four hundred and one please?" I asked the receptionist.
"Sure," she said, and gave me the directions.
I knocked on the door, praying he was in. I never thought he could be helping to pack away.
But nonetheless, the door was opened… to reveal a weeping Desert Rose.
"Oh… Uchiha?" he hiccupped.
"Gaara! You're crying!" I said, shocked.
He wiped his eyes dry. "Uh… yeah…"
He turned and walked back into his room. I closed the door behind me.
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, this and that… N-nothing, really… I'm just being silly…"
"There must be something," I whispered gently.
He shook his head and tried to smile, but he couldn't. He frowned again and sat at a table.
"Um… You were good at the festival. You sang well."
"Thanks," he muttered. "But… why did I have to choose that song..?" He buried his face in his arms and cried again.
I felt so uneasy. I didn't know what to do. I'd never really been very good at this sorta stuff. So I sat down next to him and put my hand on his shoulder. "Gaara, what's wrong?"
"My life's so shit!" he bawled.
"It can't be that bad."
"It is. You don't know how lonely I am."
"Then tell me…"
He rested his chin on his forearm now. "I wasn't going to this year's festival. I remember how I felt last year, seeing everyone with their friends, enjoying themselves. But then I was chosen as representative. And today… it seemed ten times worse…"
"It's alright, Gaara. Everything will be okay."
He lifted his head up and looked at me, his eyes full of hurt. "How do you know that? Everything won't be okay! People are too afraid to even come near me!"
I smiled and rest my hand on top of his. "I'm not afraid of you."
He sniffed and wiped his eyes. "You mean that?"
"Yup, sure do."
Gaara seemed unable to comprehend what I'd told him for a matter of minutes but then he did something which brought great relief to me: he smiled and meant it.
"See?" I said simply and Gaara nodded.
He stood and walked over to me. "Thank you," he whispered and wrapped his arms around me.
At first it took me by surprise but I embraced him in return. "You're very welcome."
Gaara pulled away, smiling. "Thank you," he repeated and kissed me, full of affection.
I didn't know why the hug had shocked me more than the kiss, but at that moment, I didn't care. I just wanted to stay with Gaara and ease his pain.
With the venomous kiss you gave me
I'm killing loneliness
With the warmth of your arms you saved me
Oh I'm killing loneliness with you
We're killing the loneliness that turned my heart into a tomb
I'm killing loneliness