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: It's a long one today!


Enter Naruto

Chapter 20: Again

The next day, Sasuke kissed Naruto goodbye with the promise of seeing him sometime during the holidays, and made his way back to his apartment.

He sighed.

A part of him wished Naruto had just invited him home with him—a part of him wished he had the confidence to just invite himself along, too. The breaks—where there were no projects or people to distract him—were always the worst part of being alone.

He flipped his phone over in his hands.

Of course, he wasn't really alone, now. He could talk to Naruto anytime he wanted, he knew…but the first half hour of him being gone was probably a bit much.

His phone buzzed.

'Do you want to come over for Christmas?'

He fought a smile. It was good to know he wasn't the only one being pathetic.

'Eve or day?'

'Both?'

He paused, frowning. He was supposed to have the 'family dinner' on Christmas Eve, but he would much rather spend that time with Naruto. He supposed Itachi could pick him up from Naruto's house…

'Sure.'


Naruto smiled at his phone, and settled back into working on Sasuke's gift.

In retrospect, he really hadn't needed to rush as much as he had—he had tons of time now that he was at home. Of course, he had completely forgotten that they would be spending any time apart…he ought to have just asked Sasuke to come with him today. He had chickened out when he had the chance last night...

Luckily, Iruka had given him the perfect excuse. Naruto hadn't even needed to bring it up—the moment they were home, Iruka had asked if Sasuke was joining them for Christmas. He hadn't told them everything about Sasuke's parents, but they knew that Sasuke was alone at his apartment for the holidays—and at most other times. And, well, Kakashi had known Sasuke even longer than Naruto had, and had been reading his writing all the while—so he was probably well aware.

Naruto grimaced. He felt pretty bad for just leaving him…

He shook his head. For fuck's sake, it was only a couple of days! Naruto really needed to stop being so…clingy.

He paused, a finger tracing down one of Sasuke's pages. He really ought to read the book before he finished the present, too…but it was probably better if Sasuke was around—in person—when Naruto read it. He could wait a couple days to be able to gush to Sasuke right away, surely…but it was right here and he was so curious


Sasuke heaved a sigh.

This…looked pretty okay. He wasn't sure if it would be up to Naruto's standards, and it seemed awfully small for the amount of work that had gone into it, but Sasuke had managed to put together a…makeshift terrarium. And a very orange one at that.

He hoped that meant Naruto would like it more.

He knew very little about plants as it was, in spite of all the research he had tried to do—and the number of times he had called Gaara (after getting his number from a very confused Ino, who had got it from Shikamaru, who had got it from Temari)—he hoped that it was not too obvious in Naruto's gift. It was certainly obvious around his apartment; the place had no business being so covered in soil for such a small pot. Not to mention his hands…

He grimaced.

Now it was time to clean, and then…

He sighed.

And then he was out of distractions. Naruto's present would be finished, and all that would be left would be his own thoughts. Likely about his family.

He still wasn't sure what he wanted to say to his mother. Through the years—especially recently—Sasuke's anger had...waned. It was still there, of course—but it was more of a dull, aching pain as opposed to the fresh wound it used to be. But he really wasn't sure how he would react to seeing them again. Especially his father—that was something he was definitely not ready for. If the dinner with his mother went well…maybe. Somewhere in the distant, distant future.

He nearly dropped the bag of soil he was holding when there was a loud knock on the door.

Itachi—it must be. Maybe he wanted to talk about the meeting before it actually happened…

He sighed, putting the bag down and rubbing his hands together to try to get them to be a bit less dirty as he wandered over to his back door.

He padded over to the door, opening it to reveal…

"Naruto?"

"Ah—hey."

The blonde smiled at him—that different smile that he'd been seeing so much of recently. Sasuke had to stop himself from kissing the blonde at the sight of it.

"What—did you forget something?"

"I—um," he shuffled, bouncing on the balls of his feet, "I finished reading your book."

Oh. Sasuke had honestly thought he'd read it already.

"Oh?"

"Ye—I—uh," he paused to swallow, "Sasuke—listen—don't—"

"You're stuttering, usuratonkachi," he interrupted. Seeing Naruto so nervous was making him nervous. Did he hate the book or something? Was it not good enough for Kakashi?

"Yeah," Naruto's eyes seemed to scan his, "um…"

Naruto took a step forwards and placed a hand over Sasuke's mouth. Sasuke resisted the urge to slap it away.

"I love you."

Sasuke froze.

"Don't say anything. I just—I really needed you to know. I couldn't wait any longer."

Naruto paused, eyes flickering back and forth between Sasuke's.

"Don't say anything, okay?" He said again.

Sasuke felt himself nod, and Naruto smiled—that smile. The smile that meant…

Naruto finally moved his hand from Sasuke's mouth, and, all at once, Sasuke came back to reality. He heard the blood rushing in his ears, felt his heart pumping (bursting) against his ribcage—felt every inch of his skin heat up like it was lit on fire, felt his eyes sting and his throat lock up because—because Naruto—

He pushed Naruto out onto the stairs, crashing their lips together until they both hit the railing. He poured everything he had into the kiss—his insecurities, his happiness, his desperate, desperate need to be close to Naruto—clutching and scratching at him, willing the tears to fall back, he felt so overwhelmed that he just needed to feel—

"Boys," a voice came from the parking lot, and Naruto pulled away to reveal Kakashi, casually leaning against a car, "I hate to interrupt, but dinner is almost ready. Will Sasuke be joining us?"

Naruto turned to him, eyes glowing with happiness.

"I—" he couldn't imagine being away from Naruto now, "yes. I'd love that."


The car ride was quiet, aside from the low music Kakashi had playing. Naruto didn't think he could focus on a conversation if he tried.

He squeezed Sasuke's hand—it made the Uchiha look up at him. He knew that he must look like an idiot—he'd been grinning nonstop since they had left the apartment, but he just couldn't help it. He was so happy.

It felt so good to have told Sasuke. He had no idea how he had managed to keep it in this whole time. He felt like he wanted to scream it out to the world—or just kiss Sasuke until he didn't have the breath to say anything at all.

Either or.

The car slowed to a stop, and Naruto suddenly realized they had gotten home. He didn't even remember pulling away from the apartment.

Kakashi patted the car.

"Don't be too long, boys."

And then he was gone.


The silence stretched on, and Sasuke felt himself start to panic. Naruto seemed content to just sit and smile at him, but Sasuke felt the overwhelming urge to say something—do something—but he had no idea what to—

"I love you," Naruto spoke first. Sasuke jumped.

"I just wanted to say it again," Naruto laughed, "sorry. It feels really good to finally say it, heh."

He scratched the back of his neck. Somehow, the action seemed to ease the lump in Sasuke's throat.

"How long have you…wanted to?"

"Uh," Naruto looked up at him, eyes brimming with life, "a while. These past few weeks, especially. I didn't know if it was too early. I'm sorry if it is."

"It's not," Sasuke responded immediately. The words were out of his mouth before he even thought of them.

Naruto smiled—this one was full of relief.

"Good."

There was another pause. Sasuke knew what he wanted to ask, this time—he just had to figure out how to phrase it right—

"How do you…know?"

Naruto's smile faltered a little, and he bit his lip. He didn't look unhappy, though—that was something.

"It's hard to explain," the blonde started, laughing a little nervously, "obviously. It's…not any one thing—it's everything—like together, y'know? It's," he glanced away from Sasuke, "the way I feel when I'm with you—and it's the way I feel when I'm not, too. And it goes further than just—feeling nervous around you and wanting to kiss you and always wanting to be around you and everything—'cause that's all true, but it's more than that, you know?" He leaned against the window, covering his smile with his hand. "'Cause you're—I love getting to know you. I love knowing more about you. It's…it's like every single time I learn something new I like you even more, and then I—I always think I've peaked, and then you do something and I'm like fuck, I like him even more now," Naruto laughed, and his hand moved to rub across his face. "And it's just…when I'm with you—ever since I've met you, I've been…better. Happier. More—just—content with the way things are. Like even when things aren't okay—I know that they are. Or that they will be. Like that night with the candle," he shook his head a little, "I told you then, you know. You didn't hear me—but I told you. I felt it—I really felt it, then."

He gave another laugh, running a hand through his hair as he finally looked back at Sasuke. His face looked awfully red.

"I dunno if that makes any sense."

It did.

"It does."

It came dangerously close to describing how Sasuke felt about Naruto.

He sucked in a breath. It was very likely that he did love Naruto—he wasn't sure, obviously, because he had no idea what he was doing, but—

"I," he started, swallowing, "I—ah—"

"You don't need to say it back," Naruto said, seeing right through him. "You don't. I really mean it—not until you're sure. I want you to be really sure. Okay?"

Sasuke let out the breath he hadn't known he was holding.

"…Okay."

Naruto smiled, his hand moving up to rest on the back of Sasuke's neck—he didn't pull, but Sasuke got the hint nonetheless—

"C'mon," Naruto said as they pulled apart, "let's go inside."


"A little help in the kitchen, Kakashi?" Iruka hugged Sasuke in greeting—the boy was awfully stiff—and then pulled his husband aside. He was looking smug, but, well, that wasn't all that unusual.

"What was that about?" He whispered. They had run out the door with no explanation, and Kakashi had been incredibly vague over the phone.

Kakashi gave him a smile, leaning back just enough to sneak a glance back through the doorway.

"Relationship stuff," he winked, "you know how it is."

Iruka swatted at his arm on his way by.

"Good or bad?"

"Oh, good. Very good, from the looks of things."

"Oh?"

"Mm. Our boy is growing up."

Iruka laughed.

"He's been growing up for quite some time, now."

Kakashi made a noise of agreement.

"So, what actually happened?" Iruka fiddled with the salad—it could really use something to give it more flavor…

"Naruto read Sasuke's manuscript."

"…Is it that good?" He scanned the fridge for something useful.

Kakashi scratched his chin.

"Well, I think so. It's…emotional."

There was a pause. Iruka glanced back, wondering if Sasuke would ever let him take a look—perhaps, if he was published…

"It's a very…genuine piece. Very raw, from the heart," Kakashi spoke quietly, thoughtfully, "but everything relates back to Naruto. It's as if he's the center of Sasuke's world."

No wonder he'd approved of Sasuke so quickly.

"It sounds like he's in love with him."

"Oh, he is. No question about it."

Iruka glanced back into the room.

"It's a little…soon, isn't it?"

"To love each other? It's been a few months." Kakashi wrapped an arm around his waist. "I knew I loved you after the first week."

Iruka snorted.

"You did not!" Kakashi was full of it, he knew, but that didn't stop his smile.

"I did," he insisted, "I knew."

He gave Kakashi a playful look—full of skepticism. His husband only smiled back.

"The kids'll be fine. I'm more worried about helping Naruto propose."

That broke a laugh out of Iruka, who had turned back to the stove.

"You'll be helping him?"

"It was part of the deal when he helped me."

"I can't imagine why he would want that." He threw Kakashi a teasing smile as he stirred the pot—it was pretty much done, he was just keeping it warm.

"You are so cruel to me." Kakashi grabbed Iruka's hand and licked the spoon he was holding, ignoring his protests.

"Mm, what is that? Mushroom something?"

"Mushroom something," he laughed, tossing the spoon in the sink, "exactly. Come on—everything's ready."

"Finally!"


"Will you be staying the night, Sasuke?"

Sasuke paused, mid-bite. He had no idea.

He glanced over at Naruto, who just looked at him expectantly. Well, that was no help.

"You're more than welcome to." Iruka smiled kindly, obviously understanding the uncertain silence for what it was.

"I'd like that," he responded politely. He always felt incredibly awkward in the face of Kakashi and Iruka's hospitality, but he couldn't leave Naruto so soon. Not tonight.

Sasuke swallowed.

"And you're coming for Christmas, right?"

"Ah, yes," he forced himself to speak up, "if you'll have me."

Iruka smiled, but Kakashi was the one to respond.

"Of course we'll have you," he gestured at Naruto with his fork, "this one would sulk for weeks if we didn't."

"Hey," Naruto protested, "I'm not that bad!"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, turning back to Sasuke.

"He is absolutely that bad."

"Oi—"

"When he was fifteen," Iruka leaned back in his chair, smiling at Sasuke, "he was absolutely dying to get this big neon sign—"

"I loved that thing!"

"Where would you have put it?" Kakashi laughed.

"I would have found space somewhere!"

Iruka turned back to Sasuke, chuckling. "He sulked for two weeks over that sign. It was this big ugly thing—"

"It was amazing and you know it!" Naruto interrupted, laughing. "It was in the shape of a frog with all of these swirls around it—"

"For hundreds of dollars, mind you," Kakashi made sure to point out.

"Okay—yeah, the price was kinda crazy but that sign was so cool!"

"Of course it was." Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"It was!" Naruto insisted, eyes darting to Sasuke. "…Okay, you might not've thought so, but—"

Sasuke snorted.

"And when he was…were you sixteen? Seventeen? When you tried to re-paint your room?"

"Ooh," Naruto smiled, resting his chin on his palm, "I think sixteen? I'm glad I never went through with that."

"We made him do his closet first," Iruka explained, "so that he would see the colour and decide if he really liked it or not. He re-did the paint seven times."

Naruto snickered.

"The house smelled terrible," Kakashi shook his head, "and the clothes were everywhere…"

"What colours did I start with? I only remember that I gave up and left it orange."

"You started with that orange," Iruka said, "but you decided it wasn't bright enough, so you bought this highlighter paint…I don't know what it was, but it was awful. It gave me a headache every time I looked at it, I swear."

Naruto laughed, legs kicking out under the table. Sasuke bit down on a laugh—it was exactly the type of idiot thing he could imagine Naruto pulling off—

"And then when that didn't work, you went the complete opposite way, and decided you were going to paint the whole thing black."

"Oh yeah! But I was going to—"

"Paint overtop with bright colours and things, I know. But you changed your mind halfway through."

"And it took about a thousand coats of paint to hide the black again," Kakashi added.

Naruto leaned back, still laughing a little.

"Now I just stick up a bunch of posters instead."

"It's what you should have done from the start," Kakashi laughed.

"Probably."

There was a pause.

"Oh! There's ice cream for dessert, if anyone wants it. We have sprinkles and chocolate chips—the works, really. Help yourself."

"Nice," Naruto was already halfway to the other room, "thanks dad!"

Iruka's expression lit up like the sun.

"Oh, I never get tired of that," he said quietly, flashing Sasuke a smile. "We'll leave you boys to it. Let us know what the plan is tomorrow, okay?"

"Ah—sure."


Ten minutes later, Naruto had fixed himself some sort of sugary mess and was huddling close to Sasuke on the couch.

"Why are you eating ice cream if you're cold?"

"Because it's good." Naruto rolled his eyes, as if that was obvious. "Are you sure you don't want any? You could have some of the banana…"

"I'm sure."

"You want a tomato with some sprinkles on it?" Naruto gave him a cheeky grin.

Sasuke snorted.

"If by sprinkles you mean salt, then sure."

"'Kay, one sec." Naruto put the bowl down and shuffled over to the kitchen.

"Oh," Naruto poked his head into the doorway, "I can make some tea if you want? Or coffee?"

"What kind of tea?"

"Uh," Naruto disappeared for a second, and then called out something incomprehensible. Sasuke didn't bother responding—he was already following him into the kitchen.

"Oh—hey," Naruto grinned back over his shoulder, "I think we only have like—the regular black kind."

"That works."

"Cool," Naruto paused, and then spun to face him, "and before I forget, you're not allowed in my room until I say so, okay?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"Your Christmas present is in there. It's all over the floor—I have to clean it up before you can go in. Okay?"

"Alright," Sasuke agreed, amused that his own gift for Naruto was in a similar state. Had they both attempted to make something for the other?

"You wanna pick a movie? We have tons."

"Sure."


Midway into the movie, Naruto was falling asleep. He was trying not to—he really was! But Sasuke was so warm and he was just so comfortable

"You have a habit of falling asleep during movies, don't you?"

"No," Naruto protested, "only when I watch them with you."

"I make you fall asleep?"

Naruto forced himself to roll over to face Sasuke.

"You're too comfy," he said sleepily.

"We can move to the bed, if you'd like." Sasuke voice was gentle.

Naruto grinned, and he wiggled his head on Sasuke's lap.

"The bed, hmm?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, smiling.

"Mm, no," Naruto sighed, forcing himself to sit up, "I'm just being lazy; I don't wanna clean up."

"I don't mind if it's not a surprise," Sasuke offered.

"Oh, no," Naruto shot him a sleepy glare, sitting up straighter, "you're not getting it out of me that easy. I'll be back."


"Can I come in yet?" Sasuke's voice filtered in through the door.

"Not yet—shh!" Naruto hissed, frantically looking for the box he was hiding everything in—where the fuck did he put—oh wait, he was holding it.

He grabbed the rest of the cloth, stuffing it into the box.

Okay—that was everything. Was that everything? That had to be everything.

He spun around the room, eyes darting around the floor for any hints of what the gift might be.

Nope, he was good.

He shoved the box deep in his closet, and then opened the door for Sasuke.

"Hey, sorr—"

Naruto didn't get a chance to finish his sentence before his lips were otherwise occupied. He barely managed to kick the door shut as Sasuke pushed him forwards—

As soon as Naruto's back hit the mattress, Sasuke was grabbing at his pants—shoving at Naruto's shirt—Naruto, with Sasuke's tongue in his mouth, was in absolutely no place to protest, despite the fact that he would really rather be dealing with Sasuke's clothes, instead—

They broke apart for a moment, just long enough to toss their clothes away. Naruto stared—his mind frozen in some sort of awe—this kind of frantic impatience wasn't something he'd seen in Sasuke yet—not to this extent, anyways—it was—

"You're smiling again." Sasuke crawled overtop of him, pressing their naked bodies together. Naruto felt a surge of lust flood through him—

"Yeah," he grinned up at Sasuke, "you're so impatient."

He lifted his hips to meet Sasuke in kind—but Sasuke smirked down at him and Naruto felt himself be trapped between desperately wanting to kiss him and absolutely not wanting to lose that view

"On the contrary," he leaned down until his voice was just beside Naruto's ear, sending shivers down his spine, "I've been very patient."

"Yeah?" It sounded like more of a sigh than a question—

"I've waited all day," Sasuke pressed his lips behind Naruto's ear, "for you."

Naruto sucked in a breath.

"Naruto…"

"Yeah?" Naruto could barely think straight—

"Tell me again."

Naruto dragged his consciousness up a few levels.

"Say it again," Sasuke whispered.

Naruto smiled.

"I love you."

A burst of sensation had Naruto seeing stars—Sasuke started to pump his cock, kissing and nipping at his neck—

"Again."

Naruto shuddered with pleasure—

"Ah—I—love you—"

One of Sasuke's hands moved up the bottom of his thigh.

"Again."

"I," Naruto gasped for breath, "love you—"

Naruto felt the cold flood him as Sasuke pulled away, but the heat in his eyes made up for it—

"Naruto," there was a question in his name, and Naruto realized that Sasuke's other hand—the one not on his cock—was directly below it, "can I…?"

Naruto smiled.

"Hang on," his voice came out as if wrapped in air, "it's better with lube—I think I—I might—" He kicked at his bedside drawer, leaning around Sasuke—Sasuke moved with him, but made no effort to move away—

There.

"Aw, hell yeah." He let out a breathy laugh, grabbing the bottle. "Let me check the expiry—it's, um, I'm pretty sure it's really old—"

He scanned the bottle for a date, frowning at it for a moment—

Sasuke pushed him down.

"Wh—"

"It expires next month." He could feel Sasuke's smirk, soft against his lips—Naruto felt himself shudder in anticipation—

"Yeah?" He breathed, one knee already lifting to make way for Sasuke's arm—the cap flipped open—

"Yeah."

It wasn't a new sensation—he feeling of a finger entering him, slick with lube (he had tried it himself, more than once after his disaster of a first time, and had always been left more than a little unsatisfied) but Sasuke's lips trailed kisses on his skin, his hand wrapped around his cock, and his body curved so perfectly against Naruto's—

"O-oh—"

This felt different. This felt intense—overwhelming—Naruto firmly reminded himself to breathe—breathe—as Sasuke pushed forwards—closer—as his breath trembled (with desire) over Naruto's lips—as he reached deeper, changing how he moved—as he explored, watching for each reaction Naruto would give—fuck, the way Sasuke was looking at him—

All at once, Naruto was nearly overwhelmed with the need to touch Sasuke, too—he gripped him with shaking fingers, but Sasuke caught his hand, letting go of Naruto's cock to press theirs together—Naruto's hand wrapped around them—

"God, Sasuke—!"

Sasuke twisted his finger, and all rational thought fled Naruto's mind.

"Sa—ah—there, right there, yeah—ah!"

Sasuke's finger moved again, as if he was testing Naruto—the smallest movement was enough to send sparks shooting through his body—this felt—ah, god, everything made so much sense now—fuck, this was so good

"Nngh," he gasped, "Sasuke, I'm gonna—I'm too loud—you have to—"

Sasuke kissed him, hard, and Naruto couldn't control himself anymore. He was so close the edge—he could feel so much—so much of Sasuke—

"Mmph—!" Naruto was infinitely grateful for Sasuke's kiss as he came—he had no doubt he would be screaming if nothing was stifling it. The pleasure pulsed through him with such intensity that he could do nothing but ride it out, lost to the world—

He only remembered his grip on Sasuke's cock when he felt it contract—Sasuke falling forward into him, lips still locked together. Sasuke moaned into his mouth, and Naruto gathered his thoughts just enough to move his hand in time with their bodies. The echoes of his orgasm still pulsed through him—he rocked in time with the pleasure, even as it started to slow—

Sasuke lips left his, and he collapsed forward.

"Wow," Naruto desperately tried to catch his breath, "okay. Yeah. That was..." That had been—well, everything made a lot more sense, now. Damn.

He felt Sasuke smile against his neck.

"Usuratonkachi," he heard Sasuke whisper—felt his breath against his skin...

"Teme," he managed to reply, in between breaths.

Sasuke breathed in, and then sat up, swaying a little. He smiled up at him—Sasuke's face seemed to look a little less tired.

"Say it again," he said.

Naruto beamed.

"I love you."


A/N: For everyone that was yelling at Naruto to just confess already - here you go :)

See you tomorrow,

- Kinomi