Title: Kremlin Dusk

Author: sky75rk

Standard disclaimers apply.

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Sixth Channel: Will the Raven come to bother me?

"He followed me and went in my house,"

"What?" Neji's head whipped around and focused his white-eyes in front of the blonde boy who was hanging his head low. "Who?" he added, although he had an inkling that Naruto was talking about a certain student from the art department.

"Uchiha Sasuke," confirmed his suspicion.

Neji took a deep breath. "And?"

"And he invited himself in—no wait, Shizune-neechan invited him in. Of course, we played the perfect family," there was a hint of sarcasm in his voice. How could it be missed?

Though his family family could never be perfect, Naruto regarded everyone highly, respecting them and loving them as much as a real family could. But the feeling that only a real family could give will never be there—always would be amiss. "I can't believe that even the Old Hag would offer him to come back if he wanted,"

"Why?"

"Because he would,"

"How did you know that?"

"I just do,"

Long-haired Neji was aware of Uchiha Sasuke. He always had been, but he never realized that the raven-haired boy would actually follow through with it. He had seen his actions during the time of their rehearsals, and it unnerved him. His coal eyes held in them a strange glimmer that almost looked like desperate hope whenever he glanced at the blonde boy. The reason he never knew, but what Neji did know was that he wasn't going to give up.

"Maybe I should give you a ride back home more often," he suggested and he stopped when the blonde boy did.

"But you know I have work. How will you be able to give me a ride when I come back late? And I always come home late nowadays," his blue eyes wavered. It seems like he still didn't want to depend onto other people much.

"Then I'll wait for you until your shift ends," Neji answered simply, an air of finality in his voice.

Naruto didn't take the hint and still contradicted with the decision Neji made. "You can't always wait for me. You know that,"

How come it felt like there was another meaning behind those words?

"No. Stop being stubborn, you know that I'm not changing my mind,"

Naruto, by then, started walking to his class again. His aura exuded that he was pissed off, but Neji did not mind that. He continued walking with him until they reached their class.

"Are you angry?"

"No. Of course not,"

"I just want to protect you, you know,"

Blue eyes glanced warily at white ones. "Why?" they stood now inside an abandoned classroom. Neither of them noticed that everybody already left. It was probably because their teacher was always late and the students took that as an opportunity to follow the only rule they loved doing: to exit the class whenever the teacher doesn't come in under 20 minutes.

Neji took a step forward; his hand reached up and cupped the blonde's cheek tenderly. Naruto didn't move. "You're so dense, Naruto," he said softly, so low that the blonde had to strain his ears to hear. And he did.

"W-what are you talking about, Neji?" he was quavering under the intense gaze of the Hyuuga but his willful attitude forced him to stand his ground. "Stop joking with me,"

Neji took another step. His body very near to the blonde and it took a lot of will power not to just throw his rationality away. His hand still cupped the blonde's face and soon, the blonde was leaning into their warmth. "You're really dense, do you know that?" he repeated his last statement and closed the gap between them.

It was at that moment, that everything Naruto was worrying about suddenly were erased from his memories and all he can think and fell was the in front of him, making him feel wanted without any abandon, telling him how much he cared for him.

For once, the blonde knew the feeling of being an important part of someone's life. "What are we, Neji? I thought we were best friends," his head leaned against the expanse of the long-haired boy's chest, listening to his heartbeat. "Do I love you?" he whispered and the Hyuuga tightened his arms around him.

"I don't know if you love me or not, Naruto. It is your feeling after all. But I'll wait. I'll wait until you say you return my feelings," he was never that sentimental, and that made him feel weak. But it was okay—if only for the blonde boy near him.

"I—I don't want to take advantage of you in that way," the blonde replied, chuckling darkly. "I'm selfish, Neji. Until I've reached my decision, I'm keeping you. Because I'm like that and because… this is the first time that… someone felt for me this way," his eyes locked with the other. "Are you sure you still want to be with me? Even though you might not be my final choice? Are you willing to be that selfless? Are you willing to get hurt?"

Neji closed his eyes and savored the warmth that Naruto radiated. He did not like the way the blonde said that he might not be the final choice, but he was determined that he won't lose. Especially to an Uchiha. "Yes, yes, yes, yes and yes," he answered.

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"I'll come and pick you up later," Neji said and kissed Naruto on the cheek before going back into his car. He rolled his windows down as he went, his arm waving to the blonde boy who was watching him speed away.

"I never would've guessed that you two were together. In so many ways than one," another voice emerged and Naruto shuddered involuntarily. He knew that voice. He knew the owner of that voice.

"Uchiha," he started. "What are you doing here?"

The raven-haired boy answered, "I was just passing by and happened to see your little exchange with that boy," he tried quelling the fire of jealousy that waged war within him and in the end, the scorn in his voice became evident.

"What's it to you? You have something against gay people?" he asked and prepared himself for the mad raving of the people who were against homosexual relationships.

Sasuke's lips turned to a smirk. "Not at all. After all, that would be hypocrisy,"

"What do you mean hypocrisy?"

The Uchiha entered the store where Naruto worked part-time during Thursdays and Fridays and knew that the blonde followed. He stopped abruptly and Naruto bumped into him. He used that moment to turn around and lower his lips to the blonde's ear and whispered:

"It would be hypocrisy because… I'm gay as well,"

The shiver that started in his spine cannot be suppressed now, and the low, husky voice came and made his heart beat loudly against his ears. It was only a second of contact, but that second almost caused him to break down to his knees.

It was time to stay away from the raven haired boy, his mind told him, ordered him, even.

But he didn't want to.

And he didn't know why.

-Continued-

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