I wuv you all.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this fanfiction, nor any of the mangas or travel-guide names. I do own a rainbow pack of sharpies that need attending to, though..
Sasuke turned, glancing over at Gaara for a split second. The said boy avoided eye contact as best he could... Which probably looked very pathetic. He was standing there, tensed up behind the counter, a blush creeping along his cheeks, his bright eyes glued to the counter in front of him. Don't look.. Don't look... But, despite his attempt at self-control, his eyes flickered upwards and met with dark ones. Shit.
Sasuke was now walking over, his hands in his pockets. He was still in his work uniform.. His beloved work uniform, the one Gaara saw each and every day, rain or shine. The one that made such an amazing being seem so.. Normal... And yet, so fascinating at the very same time. His eyes had flickered back down to the counter in front of him, and Sasuke stood in front of him with a raised eyebrow, hands still tucked casually- so, so casually- into his pockets.
"Hey." Sasuke said.
Gaara looked up quickly, blinking tightly. "C-can I help you?" He felt more and more heat rise up to his cheeks, not letting down on his embarrassment.
Sasuke didn't move, but watched Gaara carefully, then looked around the store blandly. "Tell me where the café is."
Gaara opened his eyes, staring down at the cash register below him, and raising one shaky hand, pointing to the left. "T-that way.." He said, his voice barely a whisper.
Sasuke seemed oblivious to the fact that Gaara was.. Well, practically hyperventilating. Either that, or he was ignoring it to make the kid feel normal. "Thanks." He said boredly, walking to the direction Gaara had pointed. And then, he had disappeared behind the rows and rows of books, off to another thing, another event.
Gaara continued standing there, shaking slightly. He flopped down on the stool under him, his heart hammering in his rib cage like a trapped bird. What was WRONG with him? He couldn't even stand near Sasuke without having half an asthma attack... And he didn't even have asthma. He dared to look up, to look for the one he loved, to see where the mysterious boy had gone off to. But he couldn't catch even just one more glimpse at the one he watched, for he had disappeared else wear.
"HEY! Snap out of it, I don't have all day.." A voice rang through the stifling air, and Gaara snapped his head forward, noticing a small, growing line of costumers forming in front of him. Back to work..
"S-sorry." He said quietly, taking the magazines from the slightly-annoying blonde haired kid and scanning them, then swiping the customer's credit card through the reader. "Sorry."
And that's how it went for the first part of his shift. It seemed as though he was in a dream-land, and he worked without thinking, moving in an almost-robotic fashion to complete the everyday tasks. And he remained self-conscious.. He hadn't seen Sasuke leave, so it felt as though the one he loved was peering out at him from behind every bookcase, watching him stutter and shake and be his own clumsy self.
"Gaara-kun." Gaara looked up. There had not been a customer for a while now, and his boss, Kakashi, was standing in front of him, twirling his long fingers through the keys he kept around his neck.
"Oh, y-yes Kakashi-san?" Gaara asked, standing up and avoiding eye-contact with the manager. He glanced over to the left, making sure his crush wasn't watching him.
"...You seem distracted, Gaara-kun, something wrong?" Kakashi was now peering over to the left as well, an eyebrow raised. He ran a hand through his silver hair, not seeing anything of distress.
Gaara quickly shook his head. "No, Kakashi-san.. You needed me..?"
Kakashi, still seeming slightly suspicious, shrugged. "I need you to stock some of the shelves... Traveling section and Graphic novels, the boxes are in the backroom, they are labeled.. Think you can do that? Hinata-chan will take over your shift at the register."
Travel. Graphic novels. Travel... Graphic novels... Those two sections were right next to the café...
Kakashi blinked. "Gaara-kuuun... Quit drifting off, you have work to do." He, of course, was used to this dazed behavior from Gaara, and quickly shrugged it off, walking away to tend to something else.
To tell you the truth, Gaara was completely terrified. Of what? Well.. Coming face to face with Sasuke... He usually embarrassed himself. And he'd rather not repeat the event, especially not.. Well, hmm.. THREE TIMES in 4 hours? That HAD to be a record, honestly.. But he wouldn't let it interfere with his work. Mind drifted off to thoughts of the crammed apartment he went home to each night.. No, he wasn't going to let the fear of his lover get to him. Packing up his bag, he walked out the side entrance to the registers, taking the long way to the back of the store and opening the door to the back room.
Instantly, a draft hit him- All of the windows were open, and some of the furniture had been moved... Probably the doing of Kakashi-san, who did odd things like this at random. He set his bag down by the door, picking up the boxes of books; which were labeled, just like his quirky manager had said they would be. He pushed the door open, exiting the room.
Now for The walk. What is The walk, you ask? Well, Gaara had just created that in his mind- It was a walk to the Travel section, and it felt as though he were heading towards death row. Each step he took was careful and precise, and he tried to make sure he didn't trip and make a fool out of himself as he seemed to do so often in front of the one he loved. The one he loved... He did so love Sasuke, he was sure, but how was it that when he was near him, he felt a chill of fear run down his spine? It was more fear that he would embarrass himself, but still, it was there..
Before he knew it, he was standing in the Travel section. He could see Hinata from here, sitting, as she always did after his shift, behind the register in the front. How he wished he were there, sitting in her place.
Gaara opened the box in front of him, pulling out a book. 'An Inside Look On Maui'. He slid the three or so copies of the book into place under best sellers. Then, he pulled out another one, eyes drifting over to the café, then turning quickly back, not seeing enough to determine if he should really be so self-conscious at this moment. 'The Hillsides of Europe'. Gaara put the books into the correct places, eyes once again moving to the café. He dropped the book he was holding- 'HOT Travel Guide to Vegas!' and stared over at a table in the far corner of the café. Sitting there, staring over at him with a VERY slight smirk on the edges of his mouth, sat Uchiha Sasuke.
Gaara looked back down quickly, shakily pulling out another book from the box and reading the title mechanically. 'Nude Beaches 101'. What the—? He blushed furiously. Sasuke was staring at him and now it probably seemed like he was looking for a place to strip off and go sun-tanning. Hastily, he stuffed the book onto the shelf. The box was now empty. He stood up with it, looking back over at Sasuke. He was still being watched. But Sasuke noticed him staring back and gave a nod in his general direction.
Gaara had to check behind himself before turning and waving, very slightly, back at the Uchiha boy. Sasuke smirked again, and, quickly, Gaara turned away, facing the Graphic Novel section. He had just actually WAVED at Sasuke! After all the days of watching his crush, he had been recognized, noticed, acknowledged. His heart hammered in his chest. Today.. Oh, today, he decided, was a very great day.
He knelt down next to the bookshelf, now opening another box, not so scared anymore. But he still felt the sensation that someone was watching him... Was he really that interesting, though? Was he really one to be stared at as though an animal locked in a zoo? And yet, that was so very hypocritical of him...
He pulled a book from the box, fumbling with it clumsily before reading the title across the top cover. 'Fake'. He slipped the book in at the end of the series, reaching for another out of the box, attempting to look slightly cool if he could manage it. 'Death Note.' Gaara tried to keep his mind off of the dark staring eyes that were boring holes into the back of his head, and attempted to think about the books he was putting on the shelves. It didn't work out very well, however, and he accidently put a few in the wrong spots, such as putting 'Chrono Crusade' in the middle of the 'InuYasha' series, and then, somehow, accidently mistaking 'D' for 'G' and putting 'D.N.Angel' next to 'Genshiken'.
Ahh, who was he kidding? He was completely and utterly distracted, and all because one person, one person in this whole world was watching him. How could something so small throw him off so greatly? Hurriedly, he picked up the empty boxes and turned to leave.
Just as he was turning though, he bumped into someone. Stepping backwards, he bowed quickly, shutting his eyes. "Sorry, sorry." He looked up, eyes widening.
You guessed it- Standing there, looking as calm as ever, was Sasuke. "It's alright. Oh, hey, it's you. Thanks for helping me earlier."
Gaara could do nothing but nod, biting his lip slightly and staring down at the ground. Sasuke didn't move just yet, but when Gaara made no sign that he was going to try and continue the conversation or anything, he turned to leave, waving over his shoulder. "See ya around." And then, the jingle of the store bell sounded, and Sasuke was gone, leaving Gaara in a state of shock.
There, chapter 2 is done. I promise the next chapter will be longer, more action packed, and.. yeah. It will be BETTER, okay? Until next time, guys. -Disappears-