Notes: I want to stop and take a moment to thank all of my readers. Your comments encourage me to continue writing, even though I have this much talent. -holds two fingers an inch apart- So, thank you. And keep enjoying them. :D
BAM! The door rattled on its hinges and Uzumaki Naruto winced, scowling at his black-haired companion.
"You know, dumbass, that was my door."
"Nh," Uchiha Sasuke dragged the blond inside and glanced about the small apartment, taking in the crampedwalls and slightly messy floorspace, then decided it would be best to unload his burden on the long couch in the small day room (if one could even call it that). Sasuke limped over to the beat-up-looking couch and failry plopped down on it, dragging Naruto's battered body with him. With twin grunts of exhausted pain, they let their heads fall back and concentrated on regulating their breathing.
"Did you have...to try to kill me...?" Naruto gulped, fumbling with the bulky zipper of his bright orange jacket and yanking it down to expose his sweat-drenched black undershirt.
"Shut up," Sasuke grunted, his breaths whistling slightly as he inhaled and exhaled deliberately, "it was just training."
"Training my ass," Naruto shot back, cracking one sky blue eye open to half-glare at his best friend. "Since when was a katon jitsu to my face allowed in a training session?"
"Since you decided to be too slow to avoid it," Sasuke continued to breathe.
"You bastard!"
"Dobe."
"Asshole!"
"Usuratonkachi."
"ARGH!" Naruto shot to his feet as he flung up his arms, shrugging off his jacket in agitation. He paced, turned to glare fully at Sasuke, paced some more, opened his mouth to make some sort of comment, and then shook his head and went down a short hall that led to his bathroom and his bedroom. "Im going to shower."
"Good. You stink," Sasuke called after him.
"Fucking asshole," he rolled his eyes and slammed the bathroom door closed.
Sasuke waited until he heard the lock and finally allowed himself to grin. He loved tourmenting Naruto: the blond's reactions were priceless. And, with a faint sense of amusement, he mentally pointed out that his friend never spazzed out half as much if someone else insulted him; he took it in stride, just like everything elsethatcame his way. Sasuke let his eyes open briefly to study the cracks in Naruto's cieling. Cracks from weapons, leaking water, and old age. A frown suddenly creased his calm brow--why did Naruto keep living in this dump? Surely he could move in with Iruka-sensei, maybe even Kakashi. Hell, he'd offer his own place if it meant Naruto wouldn't have to return to these depressing walls every night alone. Closing his eyes again, Sasuke snorted in distaste; Naruto would never move in with him--he hated the Uchiha fartoo much. For Sasuke however, he wished he could say the same. Maybe then, it wouldn't hurt sometimes...
Like now.
Sasuke pushed those thoughts aside and concentrated on Naruto's presence just down the hall. Actually, it was above him and around him, and without even realizing it, he had already let the other boy's house overtake him; Sasuke was overrun by the individual scents that painted the apartment and clung to his companion like a second skin: the tangy scent of his sweat from hard training, the freshness of clean clothes and skin, the airy smell of nature (he had some plants scattered around, all growing quite nicely), and the offbeat hint of ramen spices tying it all together into a smell that could only be described as Narutoish. Still musing on these things, Sasuke let himself smile again. It felt good to relax and think about different things for a change...
He yanked his towel off the rack and told himself to get another one for Sasuke as he wrapped it loosely about his waist. Naruto opened the bathroom door and called down the hall toward the living room.
"Yo, Uchiha! Shower!" There was no response, and normally enough, there never was one. But this silence seemed heavy and a bit odd. Naruto kept one hand on his towel and the other against the wall (although he suddenly wished he had a kunai or something to defend himself with, just in case). "Sasuke?" he peeked into the living room and saw his friend just as he had left him on the couch. "Huh," he let out a slightly relieved breath, "why didn't you answer, dumbass? Go take a shower--I'll get you a towel in a minute."
And still no response. Naruto opened his mouth to start yelling, but stopped when the pale boy shifted ever-so slightly and his head dropped over onto one shoulder. His eyes were closed and his expression, for once, was peaceful. Naruto blinked. And blinked again. Was Sasuke really...sleeping? Like, honest-to-god sleeping? Naruto had never seen it before; it was a miracle. Usually, Uchiha Sasuke slept with one eye open: stiff, a weapon in hand (orextremely close by), upright. But this Sasuke was far-gone in the sleep cycle, his eyes moving softly beneath the closed lids, his hands laying at his sides, palms up and open in a slightly pleading-like gesture, and his entire body from head to toe was totally relaxed. Naruto had to marvel at it: Uchiha Sasuke had fallen asleep on his couch. His couch, of all couches! I thought he hated me... Normally, one doesn't just fall asleep in their main rival's day room.
Naruto stepped closer, marveling at the way the last rays of sun colored his friend's profile amazingly as night overtook the small apartment. It was like he had purposely sat there to catch the golden hues of sunset on his closed (can you believe that?) eyelids and his untidy locks of raven black hair. Naruto realized he wasn't breathing. He convinced his lungs to inhale as he kept staring at this...this...beautiful thing in his living room, on his couch.
"Sasuke..."
The attack was sudden and really neither of them expected it (not even the attacker). Sasuke tackled Naruto and they rolled, the black-haired boy coming out on top of the tangle, a long kunai already out and angled dangerously to the blond's throat.
"Sasuke, it's me!" Naruto yelped, but he didn't need to. Sasuke realized what had happened the very instant they had landed in this position.
"You scared the shit out of me, dammit!" he twirled the kunai and tucked it smoothly back into the weapon pouch hanging from his belt.
"I scared the shit out of you?" the boy beneath him squeaked. "I thought you were asleep!"
"I was," came the grunted reply and then Sasuke realized something else almost as disarming: Naruto was pinned beneath him, wearing nothing but a towel. Against his wishes, his body began to heat up, and he felt the redness crawling up from the collar of his shirt. Slowly, realization was also dawning in the blue eyes beneath him, and with an abruptness that was noted by both, Sasuke sprang to his feet.
"You..." Naruto tried to compose himself as he stood up as well, clutching his towel very tightly. "If you were asleep, then how did I...?"
"It's not like you were trying to sneak up on me or anything," Sasuke avoided looking at him, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"But... I thought you never slept..."
"I'm not Gaara, you know."
"I meant," Naruto rolled his eyes, "like that. Total REM cycle sleep; you were out like a light."
Sasuke tried to come up with something other than the real reason, and finally (giving a glance at the orange towel and blushing harder) he just said it: "Because I was...comfortable."
Naruto was struck dumb. Sasuke, comfortable? Here? "You were...?"
"Look, forget it," Sasuke coughed and he turned on his heel for the door, keeping his head down. "I'll just go back to my place and shower there."
"No, wait!" Naruto gripped the other boy'swrist and they both froze, Sasuke tense, Naruto shocked. Finally: "It's...okay. I'm actually kind of happy you said that."
Not looking up, struggling with a million questions, Sasuke betrayed nothing in his voice: "You are?"
"Mm-hmm," Naruto let go of him and scratched at his blond head nervously. "I mean, you know, if you can't even relax around your best friend..." that thought trailed off, replaced with another one. "It's good...a good thing, forpeople like us to stick together. Usorphans," he shrugged, looking a little helpless as he chuckled at the situation."It's like coming home and finally having someone there waiting for you, you know?"
He knew.
Sasuke turned back around and lifted his eyes to his comrade's. Naruto's scarred cheeks were redand his eyes were soft.
"I can stay...for dinner too, if you want," he offered with a nervous clearing of his throat.Naruto broke out into a broad smile and took his friend's hand, guiding him back toward the bathroom.
"I'd like that. But not until after you shower; you stink."
Sasuke glared and Naruto laughed.