Disclaimer: Neither Naruto nor Sasuke nor fluff belongs to me.
In this chapter: SasuNaru. Fluff. 'Nuff said.
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For Ever
Naruto stared out at the ocean, the wind whipping his hair back and forth and stealing under his dark blue turtleneck, much more subdued than the bright orange he usually wore. The blonde put his hands into the pockets of his jeans, cursing the fact that he forgot to bring gloves. It was cold.
He heard someone's footsteps crunch across the gravel and sand that made up the craggy beach and turned, smiling as his eyes alighted on a certain dark-eyed Uchiha. His mouth was smiling, yes, but there was still an anxiety lurking within his eyes. "So you came, teme." His voice was overly cheerful, much too loud for the atmosphere.
Sasuke did not miss a thing imprinted on his blonde's features. "Don't be afraid, dobe. I'm not angry. Only…only a little disappointed. And of course I came, this-" with a sweeping arm, Sasuke indicated their surroundings, "-is our special place."
"Yes," Naruto agreed, easily soothed by Sasuke's assurances. The Uchiha would never lie to him, unless it was for his own good. "And today is a special day." The blonde reached for the other's hand, still staring out at the stormy ocean. Their fingers connected and entwined. "I still can't believe you're mine." Wistfulness and disbelief tinged his voice, and his "childish accent", as Sasuke called it, had completely died out. Contrary to other people's opinions, Naruto wasn't entirely immature all the time. As if anyone Uchiha Sasuke chose as a friend and as a lover could be a total moron. Sasuke just wasn't that sort of person.
"It's our first anniversary, dobe, and I'm still here." Sasuke's arm pulled Naruto to his side, the other arm hugging him close. "And I do not plan to go away for a long long time. In fact, I plan on staying with you for ever." Naruto did not protest to his plans, and the two of them stayed like that for a long time, the crashing of the waves on the beach a dull roar in their ears.
By the time Sasuke moved again, his fingers were chilled and numb, and he rubbed his hands briskly together, trying to find some warmth. When Naruto noticed his actions, the blonde wrapped his own, warm, hands around his lover's long pale fingers, fingers that were capable of both the softest of touches on a piano key and the brutal force needed to bruise someone with only a handshake. Naruto loved those fingers. Naruto then leaned up and kissed Sasuke gently, tangling his hands in dark locks. Naruto loved those lips, so soft and yielding, and Naruto loved that hair, thick and lustrous but never like a girl's. Never a girl's, because feminine was something Sasuke never could be.
They broke the kiss slowly, and Sasuke murmured, "Will you marry me?"
Naruto looked up, mouth open in surprise. Marriage…it just had never figured in his thoughts. "What did…just what did you SAY, teme?"
The insult had just slipped out like a habit, but Naruto clapped his hands over his mouth, wondering just how stupid he must've been to insult someone who had just proposed marriage to him!
And Sasuke had meant it too. Naruto could see the pink dotting the Uchiha's pale skin, and tried to make up for his misstep. "I…I mean, Sasuke, I heard what you said and it just took me by surprise, that's all…" Naruto trailed off uncertainly, wondering what to say. "We've been dating for a year, and I know that, but we're only 23, Sasuke. We just got out of college and into the real world, and…are we really ready for something as big as marriage? I mean, what if we regret it? Divorce…divorce is painful."
"Naruto." Sasuke whispered softly. "Look at me. I know what I'm doing. I wouldn't be asking you if I didn't believe we were both ready. And Naruto, I won't regret it, trust me. I love you, and even though sometimes love isn't enough, well, we started out by arguing, didn't we? We'll get through it. Just…give this a chance, won't you?"
Naruto swallowed thickly, knowing this was his turn to speak. "Yes." he choked out, laying his head on Sasuke's shoulder and…were those tears coming to his eyes? "Yes. I'll give this a chance. Yes, I'll marry you. I love you, Sasuke…this shouldn't be so hard, should it?"
Sasuke pulled back a few inches, frowning when he saw the tears leaking out of Naruto's eyes. "Naruto? Are you crying? Because I don't want to pressure you into something you don't want…"
"Who's the baka now?" Naruto joked while punching Sasuke on the arm. "These are tears of JOY, Uchiha Sasuke, and you better remember this moment, because I'm never gonna cry like this for you ever again, bastard." Naruto sniffled, hiccupped, and launched back into full-out sobs again, trying to wipe away his happy tears. They were just coming too fast.
Sasuke smiled, and said affectionately, "Dobe. You're giving out enough emotion for the both of us, you know."
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, I know. But you're smiling too!"
"Sasuke tried to stifle the obvious grin on his features. "Am not."
"Am too!" Naruto had recovered from his crying now, and was sporting a great big smile, glad to know that he was ENGAGED (he thrilled at the word) to his love. "I bet you're just ecstatic that I accepted."
"Am not." Sasuke calmly insisted, though it was obviously untrue. "And I knew you were going to accept, dobe. I wouldn't have take 'no' for an answer." As he waited for a return outburst from Naruto, the vivacious blonde did something unexpected.
He grinned, saying, "Ok."
"Ok?" Sasuke echoed in disbelief. "Are you giving up, dobe?"
Naruto seemed to ponder on this before answering, "Yes. I won't tell anyone about your very uncharacteristic emotional breakthroughs today," now he paused for dramatic effect. "but only if you get me a nice ring."
"A ring?" Sasuke questioned, though he already knew what Naruto was referring to.
"Yeah. A nice lil' engagement ring to show EVERYBODY that I'm taken. In fact, I'd rather you get yourself a nice lil' ring, to show all your fangirls that YOU'RE taken, by me." Naruto grinned, eyes bright blue with happiness. "After all, that's the purpose of this engagement, right? To show that we belong together?"
"Hmph." Sasuke grunted, though equally happy. "Took you long enough to figure that out, dobe."
.:Marriage is a promise to stay:.
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Next Chapter: Sasuke and Naruto's announcement of their relationship and their wedding! If I go along with this format I need to tell it in Neji/Gaara's point of view, but if you want I can do a separate story focused on their wedding in their own points of view. What do you think I should do?