"Sasuke?" Naruto's eye pierce threw Sasuke's, looking for answers to what he had just said.
Because Naruto is my home…
The confession is still fresh in his ears. It was pure, even for someone like Sasuke. It made Naruto feel...safe. He felt seen. Felt loved.
"Sasuke?" Naruto's eyes blur with tears. He wipes them, waiting for an answer but it never comes. Sasuke had closed his eyes, his breath heavy.
"Sasuke!" Naruto tries to shake the Raven haired man awake. He needed answers, but Sasuke was dead asleep. "Damn it!" He whispers to himself, frustrated that Sasuke had chosen this time of all times to rest, though Naruto knew better than to blame Sasuke. It was just the medicine taking its toll.
Naruto couldn't stop his racing heart as he watched Sasuke sleep soundly, envious that he looked so peaceful and unbothered. Sighing deeply, Naruto slouched back. He was tired. Very tired, but there was still some hours left that he needed to watch Sasuke. Not like he could sleep right now anyways. What the Ochiah had told him washed over him like an icy river. Or an icy waterfall...His fingers reach up to brush against his own lips as he thinks of that.
'Did he actually kiss me?'
The thought of Sasuke's lips touching his made Naruto's stomach feel odd. Not in disgust but something different, something good. Sakura would say it's butterfly's and Jiraiya's books would say it's in attraction but Naruto didn't know what to believe. They have been together for so long. They're best friends and of course he loves Sasuke.
But in what way...
Love was something Naruto felt he knew nothing about. He felt this overwhelming protectiveness when it came to certain people in his life. Perhaps that could be love, but there was something different when he thought about Sasuke. It wasn't like how he felt for Sakura, Kakashi sensei, Gaara, or even Sai. Sure he loved his friends, but with Sasuke, there was this undeniable feeling that he just wanted to be around the man even if they bicker. And there was more now that he thinks about it.
The urge to touch him. To trace and learn every inch of the man. Thoughts he knew were not pure. Naruto was aware that he thought of Sasuke as more than a friend. His mind was swarming, thinking everything through. Naruto looked over at Sasuke. His blanket was slightly pulled down, so Naruto corrects it remembering Mistresses words.
A blush peppers the blondes cheeks at the thought of using his body heat to help Sasuke.
Naruto looks over the Ravens' features. He looks at his eyes, the deep Onyx underneath his closed lids, so dark like the night sky and Naruto knew how much emotion and life those black eyes could hold.
Sasuke's skin is blemishless. Naruto had always wanted to know just how smooth Sasuke's skin truly was. How it would feel if he dragged his fingers along the Ravens cheeks. His urge was stronger then he thought it was as he slowly leaned in towards Sasuke. His hand outstretched and let the tips of his fingers graze Sasuke's flushed cheeks. Sasuke stirs a bit and he jumps back when Sasuke groans slightly at the contact. Naruto was afraid he woke the Raven up.
'Control yourself, Naruto! He's not in his right mind! Sasuke wouldn't love an idiot like you!' Naruto thinks, pounding his palm against his forehead.
Naruto spends the next hour belittling himself for the feelings he has for Sasuke. How many times he wanted to just kiss those lips when the raven was being particularly rude that day. The thought made Naruto smile slightly at the thought of silencing his attitude with kisses.
'Sasuke would probably blush from both irritation and embarrassment.' Naruto thinks
'He probably would stutter out his words and give that adorable grumpy face' Naruto chuckles, then stops when the regret of thinking this way consumes him.
Naruto lays his head in his hands. 'Dammit stop thinking about kissing your best friend!' He was frustrated, tired, and confused. 'WHY! Damn it. Damn It! DAMN IT!'
Amidst the internal screaming, Sasuke pushes his blankets off of himself with a groan causing Naruto to jump back in surprise.
"Sasuke, what the hell?"
"Too hot…" Sasuke whines.
"Sasuke, you have to stay covered up." Naruto mutters, pulling the blanket up over the ravens shoulders.
"Says who?" Sasuke's words were slurred and he pushed the blankets off again. Naruto sighs, rolling his eyes at how childish Sasuke was behaving.
"The doctor, now please, Sasuke-"
"She's not a doctor. She's a creep and I don't listen to creeps."
Naruto sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, "I know your feelings about her but she knows best." He grabs the blanket once again.
"Naruto please.." Sasuke holds onto Naruto's arm. He tries to avoid eye contact with Sasuke who was using the cutest puppy dog eyes the raven could muster.
"Dammit, Bastard, you need to be covered!" Naruto mutters, feeling himself start to cave even though he knows it's in Sasuke's best interest to be covered up.
"You look tired." Sasuke says, quiet as a mouse from underneath his blanket. Naruto looks up in shock. "You've got bags under your eyes." Sasuke reaches out and runs his thumb under Naruto's eye.
"I have to keep an eye on you so sleeping is not much of an option." Naruto grabs Sasuke's wrist pulling the raven's hand away from his cheeks.
"You're warm, Naruto." Sasuke coyly states.
"So I've heard." He says, placing Sasuke's hand down and grabbing the blanket again.
"What's wrong, foxy boy? Soooo sad!" Sasuke says with a dramatic pout.
"Sasuke, stop distracting me!"
"I'm not distracting you're the distracting one." He pokes Naruto and gives a cocky smirk.
"Sasuke, stop flirting with me." Naruto snapped. He probably shouldn't have said that, but he was just frustrated with how Sasuke was being. He quickly throws the blanket over Sasuke's head.
Sasuke gasps dramatically, pulling the blanket down slightly. "I-I wasn't flirting.." he mutters his whole face turning bright red.
"Sorry, Sasuke. It was a joke." Naruto states, rubbing his temples. His over thinking gives him a huge headache. "Didn't mean to take it out on you. I'm just tired."
Sasuke lifts the blanket on the left side, patting the mattress, "Naruto, come sleep."
Naruto looks at him and scoffs. "Sasuke, just slept ok? I've got 5 more hours till you are cleared." His nerves make him more exhausted. The morning sun now peaking through the curtains wasn't helping.
Sasuke sighs, covering up and pulling the covers to his nose. "Naruto.."
"Hmm?" Naruto's fingers still messaging his temples
"Can you hold my hand again.." the words were childish. And Sasuke knew that but he still thought he would ask. He pulls his hand out from underneath the blankets. Naruto looked up in shock.
"How'd you.." his words caught in his throat. Sasuke knew that Naruto was holding his hands.
"I was awake. For a while longer than I let on. Your hand was warm. I didn't want it to stop." Sasuke states. His fingers playing with the sheets on the bed.
"Sasuke I don't.."
"Please. My hand is cold." Naruto caves instantly. Hastily lacing their hands together.
The raven starts to inspect Naruto's hand.
"No scars." His long fingers trace the knuckles. Following every line with his finger tips.
"Kurama heals me pretty fast so scars just don't really happen."
"Your hands are perfect." Sasuke mutters. Glancing up at Naruto. "Just like you.." his words were quite like a secret not meant to be spoken.
Naruto's face starts to heat up. He pulls his hand away, earning a disappointed whine.
"Let's keep our hands to ourselves for now ok."
"Naruto…" the word was laced with sadness, a tone Naruto wasn't used to from his best friend. He looks into Sasuke's onyx eyes. His eyes start to water and he desperately blinks away tears "Do you hate me.."
Naruto's eyes widened. "What! Why would you think something like that?" Naruto yells, causing Sasuke to jump.
"The other night on our way here, during my watch. You were having a nightmare." Sasuke curled into himself. His eyes are still sad. "You said my name.."
"Sasuke.." Naruto can feel the sadness dripping from the Ravens' words. His fingers lift Sasuke's chin making sure the Raven can see his eyes. He remembered that dream.
It was about a mission. They were fighting and Naruto wasn't strong enough. They captured Sasuke, dragging him away down a deep hole. Naruto tried to run, but his feet wouldn't move. Hands grabbed onto sasuke, tearing him right before his eyes until there was no more.
Most of his nightmares were like that. Always about Sasuke and how he can't protect him. But they were always dreams in the end.
"Yes, my nightmares involve you," Naruto says, "Because the thought of losing you again...is terrifying to me." Naruto avoids eye contact with Sasuke. He knows that looking at him right now will make him tear up, and that's the last thing he needs him to see. Sasuke bites his lip, trying to hold back tears of his own.
"You're not afraid of me?" Sasuke cracks. It was such a little squeak that Naruto chuckled.
"No, Sasuke. I could never be afraid of you. I just don't want to lose you."
Sasuke settles down again and a content smile graces his features. Naruto thinks that maybe he'll go back to sleep. Suddenly a huge shutter wrecks through Sasuke's body, shaking the bed as it moves him violently.
"Are you ok?" Worry takes over Naruto's features. 'Is Sasuke having another seizure'
"Cold.." he mutters. Another shiver passes through him.
Naruto sighs in relief. He was glad it was just him being cold so he reaches for the covers to get him warm, but Sasuke is completely covered.
"N-naruto, I'm c-cold.." he's shivering so much his teeth start to chatter and Naruto starts searching the room for extra blankets.
He presses his palm against Sasuke's forehead. The Raven leans into the touch and sighs.
Naruto winces at how hot Sasuke's forehead was.
'He's burning up! How can he possibly be so cold?'
"N-naruto.. you're w-warm.." Sasuke reaches a shivering hand up towards the warmth he seeks from the blonds hand on his forehead. Naruto goes to pull his hand away causing the raven to follow the warmth.
'Sasuke seems so desperate to be warm. I don't know what to do! Unless…' Naruto remembers what Mistress had mentioned to him. About using his body.
"Sasuke. I.. I'm going to suggest something." A blush flushes the blondes faces once again. "I run warmer according to the doctor." He gulps, fumbling with what to say next.
"You are really warm..." Sasuke mutters into the covers, shivering violently. He attempts to curl further into himself, bundling up in his own body to find some heat in himself.
"If I get into the bed. I might be able to warm you up." His words spill out quickly.
"N-naruto I'm s-s-so cold.." It seemed like Sasuke didn't even hear what Naruto was saying. He couldn't stop shaking and Naruto couldn't take it anymore.
'Fuck it!'
Naruto quickly makes his way over to the other side of the bed. Lifting the blankets he slides into the bed awkwardly. Naruto pulls the covers up to his chin and looks up at the ceiling.
Sasuke is still violently shivering, causing Naruto to swallow any guilt he has. He turns to his side and grabs Sasuke, who is curled into a ball, and pulls the raven into his embrace. His taut and shaking back presses against Naruto's abdomen. He can feel Sasuke starting to relax a bit just from the contact. The feeling made Naruto's skin burn at the forbidden touch.
'I'm going to burn a hole through the sheets if I can't keep my shit together.!Calm down, Naruto! It's just Sasuke. You're best friend, Sasuke…'
A sigh or relief escapes Sasuke's lips and Naruto tries to calm his nerves. Although his body has relaxed a little, the shivering hasn't quite stopped yet. Still craving Naruto's intense body heat, Sasuke mindlessly turns his body to face Naruto.
Naruto freezes. Sasuke settles into the new found embrace as if nothing was a miss. As if they had done this before a hundred times. He tucks his nose into the point where Naruto's clavicle dips. His nose was cold causing Naruto to jump at the touch. At the same time, Sasuke's hand slips into and up Naruto's shirt, his calloused hand gliding up the blonde's torso. His movements were slow and Naruto found it was hard to breathe with the Ravens soft touches. It felt as if Sasuke was tracing the indents of where his muscles were, but Naruto was too shocked to actually look.
Naruto tries to hide gasps and jitters going through his body as fingers lightly glide across his chest, light breaths roll down his neck. Sasuke's hand settles right at Naruto's heart and his other hand is tucked in between the two. Naruto tries to calm his nerves. He drapes an arm around Sasuke's back, trying to find some reason as to why this felt so natural. He had never done this before, but his body knew what to do and where to go. He rests his chin on Sasuke's head as Naruto releases a breath he forgot he was holding.
"Thank you I feel much better." Sasuke mutters. His lips brush against Naruto's chest. The blonde tries to keep his cool but can't help but enjoy the closeness. He tilts his head slightly and presses his face into Sasuke's hair, breathing in his scent. Naruto noticed now that Sasuke was close just how much his hair smelt of lavender. He also noticed how their legs tangled together like a chaotic but perfect puzzle.
'When did that happen…'
It was odd, this feeling. Not so much the feeling of Sasuke wrapped in his arms, but there was something deeper. A feeling he had longed for since he was a child. He knew they were a week away from the village but Naruto truly felt like he was finally home.
Naruto drags his fingers up Sasuke's bare spine and laces them through his raven hair. This gesture, although Naruto's reasoning was to get Sasuke to sleep, was mostly to cure his curiosity as to how smooth the pitch black hair truly was. Sasuke lightly gasps at the new found comfort and snuggles deeper into Naruto's chest. Naruto lightly drags his nails up Sasuke's scalp and gently tugs on the strands, combing through them softly. Naruto keeps up the movement. The content sighs and other soft noises let Naruto know that Sasuke enjoys his hair being played with.
'Just like a cat.' Naruto smiles.
After about 10 minutes of Naruto playing with Sasuke's hair, the raven's breathing started to even out and Naruto could tell he had fallen into a deep sleep. A smile graces Naruto's lips once again and he moves his head slightly, this time to lay a light kiss onto the top of the Ravens head. Then he buries his nose into Sasuke's hair. The lavender scent made Naruto remember just how tired he was. Being in the soft bed, snuggled up, Naruto can feel his eyes betray him as they close.
'I can close my eyes just for a few seconds.' Naruto thinks as his eyes start to droop. 'I know there is still some time left to watch you, but it'll only be a few seconds...I...promise…'
But that promise was broken immediately as his eyes shut. With even breaths and not a care in the world, soon both men were sound asleep in each other's embrace.