Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any of its associated characters!
Summary: COMPLETE (new chapter up everyday - total of 35 chapters!). Sasuke's a writer whose been writing the same words for years. He's tired, he's annoyed, and his money situation is...pretty messed up, even by student standards. Enter Naruto. Modern AU (College/University), Sasunaru/Narusasu. Posted for Sasuke's birthday!
A/N: You guys are the best. Yesterday was half a step away from being a total nightmare - but you've all been so nice and supportive! It made my day way better. Thank you so, so much. I really love hearing what you think!
Enter Naruto
Chapter 4: New Boy
They had just crossed the street back to campus when Naruto spoke up again—that asshole! He had—
"You distracted me!" He rounded on Sasuke.
"Did I?" Sasuke didn't seem concerned.
"Yeah! We were talking about—hotels, right? The…"
"Uchiha ones?"
"Yeah."
Sasuke let out a puff of air. "What's my name, idiot?"
"Teme." Naruto gave him his most charming grin.
"Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke gave him a look. Naruto blinked.
"Well—yeah, but..." his mouth made a small 'o', "wait, actually?"
"Yes. So you can see how a family that built a business from the ground up wouldn't be thrilled that their son had no interest in it."
"You don't have any…?"
"What—siblings? I do. Itachi is five years older than me."
"Then—!"
"I know. Believe me, I know." He gave Naruto a serious look, and then turned away. "I try to understand it, but I don't. Not really. We just…have different priorities. We always have."
Naruto stared at him—Sasuke didn't meet his eye.
"How long's it been? Since you talked to them last?"
Sasuke sighed. "It was two years this September."
Years.
"…Shit."
Sasuke shrugged. Naruto—for one mad moment—violently fought back the urge to do something stupid—like hug him—or grab his hand—or—
"Where are we going, anyways?" Sasuke didn't meet his eye—he looked obviously uncomfortable.
Naruto looked around, exhaling. "Wherever you want. We're—uh, almost at campus. Wanna walk around it?"
"Alright."
It was getting colder, now, and the sun was starting to lower itself for the night—although it wasn't quite setting yet. Their walk had been largely in silence since Sasuke had last spoken.
"I'm adopted," Naruto said finally.
"What?" Sasuke jerked out of his own thoughts.
"I know, I know." He laughed. "Big shocker from the guy with two male parents."
"You don't have to tell me because you feel like you have to," Sasuke interrupted, eyes narrowed, "just because I told you about my family."
Naruto stared at him for a moment, before his face widened into a small smile.
"You're such an ass." Naruto shook his head. "I'm telling you because I want to."
"…Oh." Sasuke's chest grew just a little bit tighter.
Naruto looked back at the ground, still smiling.
"They got me when I was twelve, so I was really behind on my education 'n stuff. I didn't really see the point in it, so I did really bad in school and…basically hated the place. Iruka did some volunteering or something with the foster system I was in—that's how we met. He said he used to be just like me—always in trouble for doing shit I wasn't supposed to." Naruto laughed. "I grew out of it—kinda. But—anyways, I wanted…I wanted to tell you 'cause I get it—obviously not exactly, but I know what it's like—"
"To be alone," Sasuke finished quietly, staring down at the ground. He could feel the moment Naruto's eyes turned back to him.
"Yeah."
After that, they continued walking only to the sound of the rustling leaves.
"Your house is around here, right?"
Naruto's voice made Sasuke jump; lost in his own thoughts, he hadn't been paying attention to their surroundings.
"Yeah," he said. He hadn't even realized they had been headed that way, but Naruto must have. "…Are you walking me home?"
"That was the plan." Naruto smiled. "It's getting late. You didn't notice?"
Sasuke looked around, only now realizing the sky was no longer only blue, but tinted with the soft pastels that signaled the sun was setting.
Naruto laughed at his lack of response.
"Come on—which way do I go? I've only been to that board game café twice."
"Keep going straight."
"Thanks for distracting me for a bit," Naruto said as they reached Sasuke's apartment, "and for helping me with my essays. I really appreciate it."
Sasuke shrugged and went around the back of the building, leaving Naruto to follow.
"Can I come inside?" Naruto peered around his shoulder, bouncing on the balls of his feet as if hit with a sudden burst of excitement—he shoved his hands into his pockets and grinned up at Sasuke—
Sasuke looked away.
"Sure."
It wasn't much to look at, really. You entered through the same room that was Sasuke's bedroom and kitchen—although there was a small partition in front of the entrance which had come with the place. There was a separate room for the bathroom, but that was it. Sasuke thought his toilet might still be broken from yesterday—the chain attaching the handle to the tank had snapped. He had tried to fix it, but…
Naruto moved around the place, and Sasuke shuffled in place, feeling self-conscious.
"Your place," he said after a moment, "is so much cleaner than mine! Oh man, I am so sorry."
He cracked himself up, and Sasuke felt his discomfort fall from his grasp.
"I'm such a mess. I'll clean it up for the next time you come over, I promise."
"I'll believe it when I see it."
"Yeah, yeah." He waved a hand, moving closer to Sasuke's desk. "How's the writing going?"
Naruto glanced back at him and Sasuke felt a jolt of panic—he strode quickly to his laptop, which may or may not have had a very detailed description of a blonde man with eyes like the sky, and rested his hand on top of it.
"Fine," he said, standing in between his desk and Naruto. Naruto eyed him for a moment, and then retracted his posture from where he had begun to reach for the laptop.
"Oh," he said, taking a step back, "is it weird having someone you know read your stuff?"
"What?"
"Well—'cause if you're uncomfortable with it, I'm sure Kakashi would understand. You could talk to him about it."
"I…already have," Sasuke answered quietly.
Something flashed across Naruto's face so quickly, Sasuke thought he might have imagined it. It was replaced with a bright grin in no time at all.
"Always one step ahead of me, eh?" Naruto laughed, making his way back to the entrance. "Anyways, I gotta get back to studying. I'll see you soon, 'kay? Thanks again!"
And with that, he was gone, and Sasuke couldn't quite shake the feeling that he had said something wrong.
He texted Naruto good luck on Friday when he woke. He wasn't sure what time the exam was, but he eventually gave up on checking his phone when noon rolled around and he still hadn't received a reply.
He sighed.
Naruto hadn't spoken to him since the day they had walked together. He knew, rationally, that Naruto was busy. He knew he wasn't intentionally ignoring him—of course he knew that. Naruto had to put his phone away when he had to focus—he had said so himself—and yet—
The flicker of that something he had seen in Naruto's face flashed in his mind—accompanied by a pang of guilt that was growing more familiar by the second. But what had he been supposed to say? He couldn't have told Naruto that he—about the way Sasuke's writing had become littered with mentions of him because, somehow, the words just flowed from his fingers when they were describing Naruto—about how it felt so easy to write about him—so natural to think about him—and he definitely couldn't tell him about how going without his presence (only for a few days) had felt as if something had gone missing—
He shook his head, alarmed at his own thoughts. This was insane. He barely knew Naruto. It had barely been two weeks—but then, Naruto barely knew him too, and yet he still seemed to understand Sasuke on a level that…
He let out a harsh, frustrated breath, shoving his face further into the book. He needed to analyze this by Monday, and he wasn't even done reading it yet. At the very least, it would distract him from—
His phone went off.
'Thanks Sasuke! Party tonight, my place?'
Sasuke stared at the screen.
In any other world, Sasuke's answer would have been an automatic, unyielding 'no'. Sasuke had never liked parties and he never would like parties—they were crowded, and loud, and even if there was someone whose company you genuinely enjoyed there, why on earth would you choose to spend it where you could barely talk to them?
If you felt it was your only option, that's why.
'Sure.'
The house was going to explode any minute now. That was the only explanation Sasuke could come up with for the horrible booming noise coming from within—not to mention the way it was so filled with people that they were starting to spill out onto the front lawn—
Sasuke wondered if he would even be able to find Naruto in this mess. He didn't really care to try.
'I'm here.'
It took Naruto maybe two minutes to come bursting out of the front door.
"Teme!" he hollered, obviously not sober. "Did I say it right—teme?"
He gave Sasuke a dazzling grin.
"You did, usuratonkachi," Sasuke answered, much more quietly. He let the blonde come to him.
"You should come inside!"
"Really?" Sasuke eyed the house. "I think there are enough people in there already."
Naruto squinted back at the house, and then giggled.
"Yeah, you probably don't like crowds, do you?" He gave Sasuke a sloppy grin. Sasuke didn't answer, preferring to give the blonde a solid once-over. Naruto seemed distracted enough, and he was looking—well…like someone else had dressed him. He was in dark jeans, a loose-fitted shirt, and what seemed to be a black leather jacket. It was a muted, darker look that had Sasuke's chest feeling...uncomfortable.
Sasuke was either not as subtle as he thought he was, or Naruto wasn't as drunk as he looked, because Naruto gave him a sheepish grin as their eyes met.
"Ino made me wear this," he explained, rubbing the back of his neck. "Have you met Ino?"
"I don't think so." Was that the girl with the pink hair?
"You haven't?!" Naruto looked appalled. "You have to! C'mere." He grabbed ahold of Sasuke's wrist and pulled him towards the party. Sasuke didn't want to get any closer to that crowd, but he didn't want to pull away from Naruto, either—
Sasuke's moment of hesitation was exactly the opening Naruto needed to yank him into the house, leaving Sasuke no choice but to huddle closer to him as he broke the crowd for the two of them.
"Ino!" Naruto called, looking around. "Hey—have you seen, oh! Wait! Sakura!"
Oh—that was the girl with the pink hair.
"You remember Sasuke?"
Sasuke distinctly saw her eyes pause on the hand Naruto still had gripped on Sasuke's wrist.
"Yes, yes I do." She smiled as Naruto immediately dropped Sasuke's arm. "Nice to see you again, Sasuke."
He wondered, as he gave her a silent nod, if she knew he had overheard her at the café. There certainly seemed to be some knowledge Sasuke wasn't privy to in that smile—in Naruto's flushed cheeks—
"We were looking for Ino," Naruto explained, running the hand that had held Sasuke's wrist through his hair.
"Ah," Sakura winked at Sasuke, "one of the many admirers of Naruto's outfit, are you? I think she's in the kitchen."
One of the many admirers?
"Thanks Sakura! Hey—Ino!" Naruto disappeared into the crowd, and Sasuke felt a flash of panic in the brief moment he couldn't see the blonde—if Naruto left him alone in this chaos, he swore—
"Sas—Sasuke!" Naruto pulled him forward once he spotted him. "This is Ino. I've known her since high school, too."
Sasuke took that to mean he had known the pink-haired—ah, Sakura?—since then, as well.
"Nice to meet you," he said quietly. Ino's eyes raked up and down him appreciatively.
"You too," she answered.
Sasuke made no move to hide his scowl.
"Sasuke thinks my clothes are weird." Naruto grinned.
"I—" Sasuke began.
Ino laughed. "Then they fit you perfectly."
"Hey!"
"Oh, do you know where Shika ran off to? I've been looking for him for ages."
"Uh, I think he's still up in my room." Naruto stuck his hands in his pockets, his elbow briefly brushing Sasuke's. "A couple people went up there 'cause it's quieter."
"A couple people?" Ino gave him a look.
"Like, four, and I don't think Lee likes Shikamaru that way." Naruto waggled his eyebrows and Ino laughed.
"So where are you from?" She looked over at Sasuke, as if attempting to draw him into the conversation. "How'd you meet Naruto?"
"We met at the café," Sasuke answered.
"Yeah," Naruto grinned, giving Sasuke a playful nudge, "I annoyed the shit outta him for half an hour and he hasn't been able to get rid of me since."
Naruto threw him a teasing smile, and Sasuke immediately felt that warm, amused feeling bubble up in him again—distantly, he registered Ino's laugh—
"Welcome to the fold," she told Sasuke seriously. "We've all been trying to get out for years."
"Oi!"
"Hey, Naruto!" Sakura called from the doorway, and the blonde went over to talk to her. Sasuke went to follow, but—
"Did you bring anything to drink, new boy?" Ino brought his attention back to her.
"No," he answered honestly. He hadn't intended on staying that long. He glanced over at Naruto, just as the blonde's eyes turned to his—
Sasuke turned away, cheeks burning.
"Alrighty." Ino smiled. "You feeling anything in particular? Sweet? Savoury?"
"I don't like sweets." Don't look at Naruto—don't look at Naruto—
"Hm. What are your thoughts on tomato juice?"
"It's not bad."
"A caesar it is."
Moments later, Sasuke was feeling pleasantly warm—whether it be due to the drink in his hand or the arm Naruto had around his shoulder, Sasuke couldn't say.
"Is everyone upstairs?" Sakura asked. "I feel like I haven't seen any of our crowd in ages."
"Let's check." Naruto grinned and grabbed his drink.
The answer was, as it turned out, undoubtedly yes. Much to the chagrin of those who had come up to Naruto's room in search of peace and quiet, the room was booming with yells and cheers—apparently, they had broken out some sort of video game collection.
All at once, the room seemed to notice Naruto's arrival. Sasuke flinched back as the crowd swarmed towards them, but Naruto's arm rested casually on his shoulder and he couldn't quite convince himself it was worth it to move away—
"Hey guys!" Naruto laughed, meeting them with ease—enthusiasm—whatever personality trait that Sasuke had never managed to develop—
"You know Sasuke, right?" Naruto asked, as if they should—and Sasuke's heart gave a small tumble as some of them nodded, when Sasuke had never seen them in his life—
"Yeah, 'course!" the brunette man—the one who had answered the door, the only one Sasuke recognized—said. "You any good at games, Sasuke?"
He gestured back at the couch behind them—
Sasuke shrugged. "I've never played."
Naruto's eyes bulged. "Anything?!"
Sasuke shook his head.
"Dude," the brunette breathed, a look of horror on his face, "go sit on the couch."
Sasuke didn't get a chance to protest before he was pushed onto the couch, a controller plopped in his hands. Naruto passed off the chance to play in favour of sitting on the armrest beside Sasuke, leaning over him and instructing him on the basic rules.
"You wanna hold it like—no, like this, so you can put your trigger finger like that. Yeah," he grinned, "so that button is your 'go' button—it usually means 'yes', or 'I accept' and stuff, but it's also like your main attack, and…"
It took Sasuke five games to learn the controls. Another three, and he started feeling fairly comfortable with them. One more, and—
"Holy shit, Sasuke!"
"…What just happened…?"
"He kicked your ass, Kiba!" Naruto laughed. Sasuke couldn't fight the smirk on his face.
"He got lucky," Kiba protested. "Rematch!"
Kiba set up the next match without waiting for Sasuke's response, which was fine with him. He was getting the hang of this.
"Want another drink?" Naruto leaned in so close that Sasuke could feel his breath on his ear—Sasuke stifled the shudder even as his eyes fluttered closed—
"S-sure."
He wasn't sure he could have said no to Naruto if he had all the strength in the world.
A few drinks and a few games later, Naruto finally decided he wanted to face off against Sasuke himself.
"One-on-one though." He eyed Sasuke, and then looked back at Kiba. "That okay with you?"
"Yeah," Kiba said with a laugh, "I think my pride is bruised enough as it is. I'm gonna go find Hinata."
A faint shout of "use a condom!" followed him as he left, and Naruto snorted into his drink. Sasuke raised his eyebrows.
"Hinata's his girlfriend," Naruto explained. Sasuke had figured about as much.
"Ah."
"Sooo..." Naruto flipped between settings, flicking things on and off. He confirmed his selections and then gave Sasuke a playful, superior look.
"Bring it on, teme."
"Usuratonkachi."
And they were off.
Naruto was good. Really good. He had years of experience on Sasuke.
But he was also very predictable.
After a few quick wins, he could tell Naruto was starting to struggle—about an hour in, it became clear that they were evenly matched.
"You sure you've never played?" Naruto eyed him doubtfully.
Sasuke smirked. "You sure you're as good as you think you are?"
"You cocky fuck!" Naruto punched his shoulder, laughing. "Let's take a break. D'you need anything? Drink? Water? Food?"
"Water would be great," Sasuke said honestly. He wasn't feeling bad, but he had a very strong feeling he might stumble as soon as he stood—
"I can get it, though," he offered.
"Wanna come with?" Naruto had stood and stretched just enough so Sasuke could see his midriff peeking out from under his shirt. His…very toned midriff…oh...
"Sure."
It was a good thing Sasuke was normally a quiet person, because it was taking nearly all of his effort to maintain a façade of sobriety. He found himself stumbling over thin air, swaying to music he didn't like, and spending far too long eyeing whatever skin Naruto's clothes chose to expose at that moment—
Naruto, on the other hand, only seemed to become a more exaggerated version of himself when drunk. He was loud, funny and excited—he met everyone with enthusiasm and they met him with the same. Even though Naruto assured him the majority of the party had been invited by Kiba, who was part of some fraternity or another, it seemed like they all knew Naruto—or they acted like they did.
Maybe that was just the effect he had on everyone.
The thought seemed to sober him up—at the very least, it stifled that warmth that had been humming through him since the moment he got here—and he quickly pulled Naruto aside.
"I should head home."
Naruto stared at him with wide eyes. "Already?!"
Sasuke raised his eyebrows. "It's nearly four in the morning."
"Oh," Naruto checked his cellphone, "shit, you're right. Fuck—you're not driving, are you?"
"I'm not an idiot. I walked."
"The whole way?" Naruto glanced behind him for a moment, before he turned back to Sasuke, biting his lip. "Let me walk you home."
"I'm not that drunk."
"I know, I know," Naruto scratched the back of his neck, "but you walked all the way here on your own. And I could use the fresh air anyways!"
Naruto peeked up at him—cheeks flushed and eyes bright—and just like that, the warmth was back.
Sasuke sighed. "Come on, usuratonkachi."
Naruto's only answer was a brilliant smile.
A/N: A fun one today! I don't know why writing Ino is such a blast. I can never resist sticking her in scenes!
I'm so excited to get things moving. Lots of fun stuff coming up in the next few chapters! And explanations - and characters! Aaaaaaaaa :)
See you tomorrow,
- Kinomi
