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Chapter 10: That You Are Here

The end line of this chapter is from 'Empress of the World' by Sara Ryan, which I highly reccomend. But don't own.

Disclaimer: Disclaim this! Bwahahahahahahahaa! …that was lame.

Thursday - Period Seven

"Alright class! Sit down and shut up!"

The yell echoed through the gym, as every student dropped to the ground, mouths shut. Except for Naruto, of course, who continued babbling to Sakura for a while, until a basketball was rammed into the back of his head. Looking behind him, he found himself under the intense glare of Mitarashi Anko.

"Do you have something of dire importance to say, Naruto?"

The blonde-haired boy waited a few seconds, then gave her a large grin. "No Ma'am!"

"Good. Next time you get laps. Now, as I was saying…" the dark-haired woman bounced the ball a few times, while walking beack and forth in front of the group. Gaara personally thought she should've been a drill sergeant, but knew much better than to say so in her presence. Gym class was always something he dreaded. He wasn't great at sports, like Neji and Sasuke were, but he wasn't terrible either. Sports just didn't really interest him.

"Today we are starting our basketball unit. Is everyone excited?"

She was met with a chorus of murmured affirmatives and a snicker.

"I said, are you excited!"

"Yes Ma'am!"

"That's what I wanna hear!" she caught the ball as it bounced back up, and held it out in front of her. "Now, who can tell me about what is in my hands?"

There was a pause, as the students tried to figure out if this was a trick question. Finally, Kiba raised his hand, and with Anko's nod, yelled out, "It's orange!"

"Excellent. What else? Come on, it's not that hard!"

Naruto decided that if Kiba could say something stupid and not get punished, he should be able to as well. He waved his hand frantically. "And it's round!"

"Correct!"

Over the next few minutes there was a series of statements, such as 'It has bumpy thingies on it!', 'It bounces!', and 'It's a basketball!', until Anko felt her students had had enough fun and abruptly stopped it.

"So you all know what a basketball is …" she smirked, "Therefore you don't need to look at it anymore! Everyone, go get a ball! Five laps, people, let's hustle! Keep your head up!"

A while later, Gaara near-collapsed on the floor, having finally finished his laps. Still dribbling was a group of girls, giggling, along with Shikamaru and Chouji, who simply didn't want to move any faster than they had to. Anko waited, spinning the ball on her index finger, as the majority of the student's caught their breath.

"Breathe in your nose, then out your mouth."

Gaara looked over to Neji, who didn't seem to be tired at all.

"It actually helps you recover a lot faster." the long-haired boy told him, rolling a ball on the floor with his fingertips.

"You're fast," Gaara mumbled, and Neji looked a little irked.

"I used to be…"

Before Gaara could inquire further, Anko began again.

"Before I actually start teaching you guys, I want to see how well you play. So today, we're doing one on one matches. First off… " her eyes scanned the crowd of eager (and not so eager) faces with a sadistic glint.

"How about… Uzumaki Naruto-"

"Yes!"

"And…" Anko licked her lips as her eyes fell over one boy in particuliar. The tension between him and the blonde was intense.

"Uchiha Sasuke!"

Sasuke got to his feet calmly, as the rest of the class moved off to the benches, watching intently as Anko brought the two to centre.

"First basket wins," she announced, bringing her whistle to her mouth. "Play nice, boys."

The ball dropped, and the battle began. Naruto was able to take control of it first, and Sasuke moved back, a nearly electric glint in his eyes. The blonde dribbled a bit, not moving very far, as if waiting for Sasuke to wait a move. But both knew that wasn't his style at all, and sure enough, Naruto burst forwards, sprinting down the right side of the gym and towards the net. But where he was fast, Sasuke was always faster. The black-eyed boy was chasing alongside him effortlessly, still not going much on the offensive.

"What's wrong, Sasuke?" Naruto growled quietly as he tried to pass his opponent, but to no avail. "Why aren't you trying?"

Sasuke said nothing though, eyes flickering over Naruto. They were as different as night and day, sun and moon. Locked in a battle that could not quite be won, for as light diminishes shadow, darkness chases away the rays of the sun.

Naruto jumped to the side, taking a shot. But Sasuke knocked the ball away, taking possession of it immediately. Before Naruto could fully react, Sasuke streaked around him, making his way to the other side of the net. Naruto refused to give up the chase, tension so thick there was silence on the sidelines. Even the members Sasuke's personal cheerleading squad were watching intently the struggle.

"He's going to lose," Gaara heard Neji whisper to him, and he raised an eyebrow in inquisition.

"Naruto's angry," the white-eyed boy explained, "There's no way he can win like this."

Gaara's gaze fell back on the match, watching as Naruto tried to get the ball from Sasuke, but his movements only grew more wild and uncontroled. As Sasuke raised his arms to shoot, the blonde lunged. Sasuke dodged, but just barely, and the ball headed towards the net. Naruto looked up quickly, smirking as the ball hit the backboard and bounced back towards them.

"Ha!" he exclaimed, "You mis-"

He stopped as he saw Sasuke catch the rebound, and toss the ball effortlessly into the net. A three pointer.

Silence filled the gymnasium as Naruto gaped and Sasuke landed like a cat. The ball hit the ground, and bounced off to the side, and then cheering filled the air.

"Whoot! Go Sasuke-kun!" came Sakura's yell, followed by Ino's "I knew you could do it!"

"Not as much as I did!"

"Shut up Sakura! How could anyone with a forehead that large ever know anything about Sasuke-kun!"

"At least I'm not a pig!"

"Alright, girls, settle down." Anko shook her head, jogging over to relcaim the ball. "Good job guys."

Any joy on Naruto's face disapeared as he discovered Sasuke standing over him, arm outstretched to offer his hand to him. The blonde stared in disgust, but Sasuke stayed emotionless.

"Is my hand not good enough for you?"

A sharp smack hushed everyone, as Naruto hit Sasuke's hand out of the way. He then pulled himself to his feet and stomped passed Sasuke, making sure their shoulders crashed against eachother. The black-haired boy stared after him a while, before making his way to the bench farthest away from the one Naruto had chosen. His cheerleaders flocked around him, but he stared forwards, ignoring them until Anko forced them to take their seats once more, calling two more students up. But no one was quite focused.

Sasuke continued gazing at the wall, resting his chin on his clasped hands, elbows resting on his knees. Naruto refused to break eye contact with the floor.

It seemed if either dared to move their eyes from the target, they would end up looking at eachother.

Gaara found it fascinating, though he tried to mask it, glancing secretly back and forth from boy to boy. And Neji, in turn, found Gaara's interest in it intrigueing.

"Gaara! Lee!" Anko waved the two boys over, "You're next!"

Next victims, Neji couldn't help but think, giving Gaara a small push forwards. "Good luck. Lee usually fakes to the right."

Gaara glanced back to thank Neji, but at that moment, the entire gym was plunged into darkness. For a few moments there was utter chaos, girls shrieking and crashing into eachother, before people's eyes began to adjust.

"Everyone, stop!" Anko's disembodied voice came, "Don't move, don't talk!"

"Can we breathe?" came another's voice and there was nervous laughter, that quickly died. The only sound was the precipitation against the roof, loud and eerie cacophony. Gaara took an unsure step in Neji's direction, trying to peer through the veil of black.

"Must be hail," Anko mused, "Crappy wather we keep getting. 'Kay, everyone find your way to a wall, and follow it to the main door, where I am! Please put one hand out in front of you, and uh, avoid groping if at all possible!"

More nervous laughter.

Gaara reached a hand out towards where Neji had been, vaguely able to see the white-eyed boy.

"You there?" he asked, and felt Neji's hand meet his.

"Yeah, right here."

Gaara walked forwards until he found Neji and the cool surface of the wall, and their hands disconnected. There was an instant in which Gaara could hear Neji's breathing, vividly and near. But quickly he turned and began following everyone else, just footsteps in the dark.

It turned out that the rain had frozen on the power lines and tree branches, and the power was temporarily out. Fortunately, the students were told it would be back on in time for the dance the next night, and everyone's moods were uplifted. Well, just about everyone.

o

Candles flickered, vague warmth in the dampness that had settled in the house. When Gaara had gotten home, he discovered their house had no power either. Kankurou glared at the TV set a while before retreating to their room, while Temari decided to make some phone calls in hers. Mariko was taking a nap, which left Gaara on his own. Only blue light had filtered through the windows, so he dug out some candles from the china cabinet and lit them, very careful not to drop the matches once they were lit. He did that once, and his father had gotten angry. Gaara winced at the memory.

There were four assorted candles, one sitting on the table across the room to shed some light into the hallway, while he had the other three on the coffee table near to him. He watched as his breath reached out to the flame, bending, growing and dancing. When his held his hand over it, he could feel the warmth. Sometimes he waited until it felt like his skin was melting off the muscle and bone beneath to take it away. One of the candles gave off a faint scent, but he couldn't place it, smoke twisting and curling, disappearing should he try and touch it.

"They're lovely."

He turned around to find Mariko in the doorway, a bit drowsy still from sleep. She sat down on the couch next to him, giving a bleak smile.

"I heard the power was off at your school."

He nodded, and she opened her greyish eyes a little more, watching the flames.

"I don't mind you lighting candles. Just don't burn yourself."

Again he nodded, pursing his lips before he spoke, fingers digging into the soft paisley material of the couch. "Um…"

She glanced over at him, kindly smiling, though her hair was rather messed and her robe wrinkled from sleep. "Yes?"

"There's… a Hallowe'en dance tommorow night. Could I go?"

Ingoring the fact that Gaara didn't usually say more than that in an entire week, besides 'yes' and 'no's, Mariko picked her book off the coffee table. "Sure. It's good that you're getting out."

Gaara let out his breath and stood, bowing his head slightly in thanks. He took one candle, holding it carefully in his hands, as he made his way to his bedroom. Through the wall, he could hear Temari's muffled giggles, though they seemed half-hearted.

As he opened his door, he found himself staring at Kankurou who stood there with an evil grin on his face.

"What's this I hear about a dance, pipsqueak?"

Gaara glared, walking past him. He set the candle down on the windowsil, hearing Kankurou sit down on his bed, his smile now not as evil as before, but still marginally so.

"Well?" Kankurou raised an eyebrow, and Gaara looked away.

"Yeah."

"Did a girl ask you?"

"Not… really."

"Come on, Gaara, it's not that hard a question." Kankurou began cracking his knuckles, much to Gaara's annoyment. "But trust me, kiddo, girls are nothing but trouble. Always wanting you to do stuff for them, never satisfied. It's really not worth it. Get a girlfriend when your older, or whatever, at this age it'll just screw you up more than you… Well, a lot. Kay?"

Gaara crossed his arms, watching raindrops race down the windowpane. "I don't like girls."

"Yeah, sure you don't," Kankurou muttered, "Least you have friends now, though. Like that freaky looking guy."

Gaara's face lightened a little at the mention. Friends. People who liked you. No one had ever liked him before. He was 'weird', and anyone who had ever shown any interest in him whatsoever just wanted something. Even his father hated him. So he started thinking, maybe hat was the way it worked. He was hated. End of story.

Yet it was starting to change, and rapidly so. He and Neji had started sitting with Naruto's group, and he'd even managed conversation, weird as it often was. They didn't hate him, like everyone else did, and it caused a strange warmth to blossom in his chest, something he had never felt before. Especially around Neji. And he was really starting to like it.

Once, a few summers ago, Temari had come home from camp with a large smile on her face, and decided to show him and Kankurou the 'Trust Fall'. As far as Gaara understood, you stand with your arms crossed and eyes closed, and fall back so someone can catch you. Gaara thought it was silly; what if the person decided to let you fall? Temari had said that's where the trust came in. You trust your partner to catch you. Gaara was always afraid he would fall, and never once tried.

If he were to fall, would Neji catch him?

And if Neji were to fall…

"So, is your friend going to the dance too?" Kankurou asked, but Gaara never got a chance to respond, as in that instant the door flew open and Temari flew across the room, glomping him.

"Aww! A dance! That's soo cute!" she exclaimed, as he tried to pull away from her embrace.

"Hey! Do you mind?" Kankurou yelled, "We were kinda having a brotherly moment here!"

Temari paused and gave him an apologetic smile before returning to gushing over her youngest brother, who was slowly backing away, much to Kankurou's amusement.

Outside the window, the rain continued to fall, the droplets glistening in the light of the candle, it's warmth both comforting and frightening.

o

There was a clanging as the ball hit the metal hoop, bouncing away. The boy scrambled after it, cursing loudly to himself. He wiped a bit of mud from his cheek, but it did no good, as his hands, along with the rest of him, were covered in tiny splatters of dirt, streaked from the rain pounding down upon him. Thunder rumbled around him, but he took no notice, furiously trying to make the basket.

Everyone had left quickly after school, teachers and students alike. So no one had been there for the last half hour while he desperately tried to prove something to himself, trying again and again to win against himself. The hail had turned into a cold rain, which might've been worse. His fingers were near-frozen, and the ground was wet and slippery, but he just pushed himself harder, harder. His straw-coloured hair was plastered to his face, and he pushed it out of his eyes, blinking away the tears.

He tossed the ball again, though he lost traction as he landed, coming down hard on his side. He made no sound, hauling himself to the feet while the sky continued to cry for him.

"Dammit…" he muttered, looking around with hazy vision. He stopped as a figure entered the frame, picking up the ball, while staring at him.

"What the Hell do you want, Sasuke?" Naruto yelled, perhaps a little louder than he meant to. Sasuke watched him, equally as soaked. As soon as the blonde was stable again, Sasuke tossed him the ball. Naruto snarled, turning his face away as Sasuke walked forwards. Neither spoke, still trying to adjust to the fact that there was no one else around.

"You're going to get sick, idiot." Sasuke muttered to him, and Naruto curled his hands into fists, blue eyes alight.

"It's none of your business!"

"Why are you still out here?" Sasuke demanded, a little more forcefully than before.

The blonde gritted his teeth, on the verge ofattacking. "Why are you?"

"You're going to get sick," Sasuke said again, placing a hand on Naruto's shoulder. The shorter boy flinched, taking one step back.

"You won't give me a straight answer," Naruto protested, his lungs begginning to burn a little less when he breathed. Sasuke's fingers were just as cold against the soaked material of his jacket, almost shaking, trembling. They stood there a few moments, glaring at eachother, trying desperately not to give in.

Naruto drew in breath sharply as he felt Sasuke's fingers travel up his neck, sheer coldness against his cheek. Sasuke was close, so close, and Naruto could see specks of kohl beneath his bottom lashes, the rest smudged from the rainwater dripping down his face. Coal black eyes, speckled with shards of red stared at him, asking questions not meant to be said outloud. The basketball fell to the ground, rolling away quietly as the distance between them began to close.

"Wh-what are you doing?" Naruto asked softly, so quiet it was barely a whisper, nearly drowning by the rain, relentlessly drumming down on them.

"Something you might not want me to do," was Sasuke's only response, as he gave a weak smile, and the distance between their lips ceased to exist for a few moments. He wasn't at all surprised when he felt Naruto kiss him back, warm breath passing close over skin. After a few seconds they pulled away, breathless and captivated. Both were locked in vision of eachother, unable to draw away. Words were hard to form, but eventually they came.

"You really should go home and dry off," the taller boy mumbled, slowly removing his hand from Naruto's cheek.

The blonde smirked. "Since when did rain ever kill anyone?"

"Pft. Idiot."

But we all know that words don't always work…

End Chapter 10