Hey guys! Thanks so much for your patience! This chapter has been a long time coming so I hope I don't disappoint you! It's going to be a short one, so fair warning on that.

Xxx Disclaimer: Naruto doesn't belong to me, but to Masashi Kishimoto xxX

Christmas day came and went by in a festive blur. Almost everyone had a happy and cheerful time with their families. Almost everyone.

When the day came for Hinata's birthday celebrations, despite getting a variation of invites - whether through text, call, in person, email, you name it and Naruto and his crew did it - Gaara decided to hold himself up in his room during that time. He just wasn't in the mood to pretend to be happy, let alone friendly.

What was there to smile about anyway? The one thing he wanted for Christmas he didn't get, not like he expected to anyway. It was impossible to get what he wanted for Christmas unless it was by a miracle. And miracles don't happen for him - not by a long shot. He's been cursed since the day he was unfortunately born and everyone around him suffered for it.

Turning over in his spot on his bed, Gaara glances at his bedside clock. 7:21 pm. Everyone should still be at her apartment that chose to go. He ponders for a second if Sasori ended up going, seeing as he received the same bombardment of invites as himself. But as quickly as the thought crossed his mind, he forced it back down into the depths from which it came.

What does it matter if that bastard decided to go? It's not his problem if he went to her place alone. He can deal with the awkward feeling of being around her family and friends by himself. They weren't friends as far as he knew. They were just acquaintances. Just like he was with her. So why should he go and play nice with her family if he doesn't even know a single thing about her but her first and last name? He shouldn't and that's partially why he isn't going. Nor is he going to the after party.

It's bad enough that the celebration at her house was apparently supposed to be packed enough as it was, but then they were going to continue by going to one of Konoha's most popular nightclub? Yeah fucking right. He already didn't like people enough as it is so why would he submit himself to that kind of ungodly torture?

A deep groan bellows from his chest as he turns over again and tugs down the sleeve of his shirt. He examines his latest work and hisses at the sight. It's beautifully morbid and horrific, but somehow brings him a sense of melancholic comfort. Comfort in knowing that he can still feel physical pain. Mostly he feels unease at the grotesque sight. He shouldn't feel the need to do this to himself. But he does. He does and it still doesn't make anything better. He's still angry. Still bitter. Still sad. Still alone. She's still not here…

She's still not here.

All of a sudden, a couple of knocks are heard on his bedroom door, making him jump and scramble to hastily cover his arm and turn to face away from his door. No sooner does he turn his door opens and his brother slinks his way into his room. He hears the door shut quietly and his brother sigh as he leans against his door frame. He doesn't turn to face him when silence passes between them for what seems like eons. It's when his brother sighs for a second time that words are finally spoken.

"Hey, don't you have a party to go to or something?" His brother asks, but it comes off more like a statement.

Gaara doesn't respond, making his brother breath again. "You should probably go. It would do you some good to get out of the house, ya know. Get away from here, even if for just a few hours at most."

"I get out plenty." The redhead finally replies, earning him a faint chuckle.

"Going to work doesn't count, Gaara. I'm talking about doing something fun. It's a party, right? There will be drinking, dancing, girls, and all that jazz if that invitation is anything to go by." Kankuro tries his best to entice his younger brother with things that normal men like to hear. But then he has to remind himself that his brother isn't normal. Normal things didn't interest him, especially not now.

Sure Gaara has indulged himself a fair share of times with women and all that jazz, but he doesn't go out of his way to do that. If he happens to be in the mood and a female comes up to him with the intention of getting in his pants, then they caught him on a good day. If he's not in the mood, then tough shit for her.

"I don't dance." Gaara's monotone voice breaks through his train of thought and once again, he finds his brother unintentionally funny.

"You're telling me." Kankuro jokes. His lips upturn when he notices Gaara shift in his bed, almost like he was insulted.

With one last huff of laughter falling from his mouth, Kankuro's mood turns serious once more as he walks over to his brother's bed, noting how he flinches and curls into himself when he sits on the edge. He resists the urge to reach out to him and comfort him as an older brother should. He knows Gaara would not like if he did though. Instead, he balls his fist in his lap and runs his free hand through his untamed brown mane.

"Look Gaara. I'm going to go to Sari's house for the night and I don't want you to be here by yourself. I see you have actual plans for tonight and I want you to go." He reaches in his pocket and pulls out the paper invite he left on the counter. "I know there's going to be an after party at Sannin's and I want… no, I need you to go tonight. Just go to get your mind off of things. It's obvious people want you there, including the birthday girl."

Kankuro feels the bed minutely shake with how bad his brother flinched at the mention of the birthday girl. A sly grin dances onto his face as a thought pops into his head.

He looks down at the card and reads the name on it. "Hinata Hyūga right? It's her party today. Hey, isn't she that girl that you and nutsack helped out weeks ago? And she's invited you to her party?"

Gaara remains silent, but the subtle moves he's making hint Kankuro into what he's feeling. His smirk grows wider. "Maybe she has a little thing for you if she wants you to go so bad, ya know." For a second, his little brother's body freezes up and becomes stiff and he has to hold back a snort. "Is she a cutie? I bet she must be cute. After all, she has a pretty cute name. And she's turning twenty so she's around your age too. Do you know if she has a boyfriend? Because if not, I think she may be trying to send some sort of signal-"

Suddenly the invite is snatched from his hands and Kankuro turns to find Gaara laying back down with the paper tucked under his arm. The brunette raises a brow at his behavior but nods to himself in understanding when Gaara replies.

"She has a boyfriend." Is all he says before pausing. "...And she's not interested."

"How can you say that for sure? Just because she has a boyfriend doesn't mean she isn't interested." Kankuro knows from experience how relationships work. It may be a stretch and a half, but that's how his last girlfriend dumped him. She ended up falling for some other guy and didn't want to hurt his feelings by sneaking around. Who's to say this Hinata chick wouldn't do the same for his brother?

A pregnant pause befalls the brothers when the redhead doesn't respond after that. Both are too lost in thought to say anything further for a few minutes. It's only when Kankuro moves to stand that Gaara speaks once more.

"How do you expect me to go out and have fun when she's not here? When she's gone? How?"

"Because it's what she would want." Gaara's seafoam eyes widen before shutting tightly, feeling the truth in his words. "She wouldn't want you to sit here and mope like this. She'd want you to go enjoy life until she gets back."

"How can you say that for sure?" Using his own words against him nearly pushes his unshed tears from his eyes.

How can he say that for sure? How does he know that's what she would want? How?

"Because we're here. We're in Konoha and not in Suna. We're here because of her and what she wanted for you. She wanted you to have the best life that you could possibly have. I know for a fact that moping around isn't the best for you, nor what she envisioned."

Kankuro can feel his brother shaking and he takes that as his cue to leave. He makes his way to the door, but halts for a minute. He wipes the tears from his eyes as he opens the door. Before he leaves, he addresses his brother one last time.

"I'm heading out in a few minutes. Just please do me this one favor and try to have a good time? Please?"

Gaara hears his bedroom door shut and listens closer as Kankuro's footsteps echo down the hall. It's when they're far enough away that the dam burst within him and he cries. He cries hard but silent as he chokes on his sobs. He hates crying. It makes him feel weak. Like he isn't strong enough like he pretends to be. Like his whole tough guy persona is just an act hiding a fragile weak man.

Weak like father always said.

When his tears become dry and his choking becomes nothing but dry heaves, Gaara turns to look at the time. 8:34 pm. Only about an hour and some change passed, yet it felt like forever. How long did he blubber like a bitch for? How long was his chat with Kankuro? How long ago did Kankuro leave?

Gaara wipes the liquid from his face and feels something move beneath his arms. Mildly surprised, he pulls out the invitation from under his arm and stares blankly at it. It was a pretty little pastel card with flowers and intricate lines around the edges. It was a card that was so much like her it seemed.

Come Celebrate With Me Dec. 27!

I'm turning 20!

Please join me, Hinata Hyūga, for my 20th birthday.

We are hosting a family and friend's gathering at my home at Sarutobi Apartments.

Floor 25 - Room 25-1 - 4:00 pm

We are also hosting an afterparty for friends at Sannin's Nightclub with a reserved section.

The afterparty starts at 8:00 pm.

I hope you can make it!

RSVP xxx-xxx-xxxx

Gaara risks another peek at the time. 8:45 pm. He exhales deeply, closing his reddened eyes as a bitter smile forms on his face. It's what she would want, eh?

Sasori looks at the time on the clock hanging on his wall. His expression is bored and devoid of any and all emotion. His hazel orbs are lifeless and glossy like a porcelain doll.

8:46 pm.

Turning away from the clock, he brings his attention back to his latest project. He eyes it blankly as he takes a drag of his blunt. A deep, hefty drag. He pulls out his phone from his pocket and goes into his contacts. He scrolls through the names lazily as he takes another hit. When he lands on a specific name, he pauses momentarily.

He looks from his screen to his project once more, cocking his head to the side. He walks a bit closer to it, leaning down to get a closer look. He fixes the fabric hanging loosely off its shoulder, ignore the slight movement it made. Instead, he bends down further and stares at its face. He looks over the details as he pushes down the dial button. He brings the phone to his ear and stands, walking back while keeping his eyes trained on his project.

After a couple of rings, someone finally picks up and a soft cheerful voice is heard on the other end. He takes another puff as the other person asks him questions and sounds a lot more energetic than usual.

"Yeah, sorry I'm late. I got caught up with something. I just wanted to let you know I wasn't bailing out on you. I'll meet you at Sannin's in a few, alright? Happy Birthday, Hinata."

Just as he was about to hang up, he hears her voice call for him again. He puts his phone back up to his ear, not expecting her next question.

"Gaara? No. Haven't seen him all day…. Not to be a downer, but if he hasn't shown up yet with no call or text, I'm afraid he won't show up at all…. Yeah, Gaara's an asshole like that…. I'll let him know if I catch him…. Alright, see you in a bit."

As Sasori hangs up the phone, he puts the blunt in his mouth as he goes into his text messages and scrolls to a certain name. He takes a few puffs as he writes away before hitting send and putting his phone back in his pocket. He then reaches in his back pocket and pulls out a tiny bag with a couple of pills in it. The redhead walks over to his side table and places his blunt inside the ashtray. With his hands and lips free, he peels open the bag and pops one of the small circular pills in his mouth. Before swallowing, he takes the flask from his side table and takes a swig of it, downing the pill as well.

Sasori grimaces at the strong taste, putting everything back in their spots. As he picks up his smoke again, he feels his phone vibrate in his pocket and looks at the reply he received.

"Understood."

The redhead replaces his phone in his pocket as he looks back at his project, getting himself prepared to leave. He grabs his jacket from a chair and his wallet as well. He also swipes his charger from behind the table, his eyes becoming heavy. After he grabs his flask, he makes his way towards the door, pausing before he leaves. He shivers as he feels the effects of everything start to blossom.

"Time to go play nice." He mutters to himself as he shuts the door behind him, turning to lock it before grabbing his keys and leaving his home.

As he hops in his car he spares a glance at the time to see how late he was.

9:07 pm.

Not too late. How wasted could he get before he reaches the club? It was time to find out.

Hey so I know this is a short chapter, but I want to save the party for the next one since that should fill a full chapter on its own. Don't worry, I'm already working on that chapter since I have an idea of where I want it to lead. Hopefully, it won't take me as long to post as usual. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. I hope it gave you a bit more insight into Gaara and maybe Sasori. Tbh I didn't like how Sasori's part was coming out compared to Gaara's but I had an idea and this is the shit my brain spued out.

Anyway, please review, follow, and/or fave. Responses really keep me going and I love to know what you guys that are still reading think. Thank you so much! Have a great day/night!