My Comfortember 2022 contribution for the prompt : Falling asleep on someone.
I'm sorry for the mistakes, English is not my native language. I hope you like it.
Disclaimer : Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
You Are Not Alone
Sakura stood in front of Naruto's door. She hesitated to knock. Ever since she hear of Jiraiya's death, she could not stop thinking about Naruto and how he felt. Shikamaru had told her that he had spoken to him, but she suspected that even if it eased his pain a little, it would not erase it. Jiraiya was more than his sensei. He had taken care of Naruto for the past few years. He was the only family he knew. If she was him, she would be devastated and she would not want to be alone.
Sakura took a deep breath and knocked on the door. Naruto did not answer, yet she knew he was there. She knocked again and put her hand on the door.
"Naruto," she called.
After a few seconds, she heard the lock click and the door opened. Her heart sank when she saw Naruto. He was smiling at her, like he always did when he saw her, but she knew it was a forced smile. His eyes were red and she could still see the traces of his tears on his cheeks.
"Sorry Sakura-chan. I didn't hear you."
He stepped aside to let her in. Sakura saw a photo of Naruto and Jiraiya on the table. In this photo, Naruto was a little younger, indicating that it must have been taken at the start of their travel.
"Is everything okay Sakura-chan ?"
Sakura smiled sadly. Even when he was at his worst, he still worried about others. But this time, it was up to her to be there for him.
"I heard of what happened. I came to see how you were doing."
"I..."
Naruto cleared his throat to try to hide his turmoil.
"Naruto."
He looked down at the floor. Sakura shyly approached him. It was the first time she had been in such a situation. Of course, she had already announced the death of a patient to her or his family, but even if it pained her, she had remained in her role as doctor. This time it was different. She had never consoled someone who had lost a loved one before and she was afraid to say or do something that would hurt him more.
"I still have a hard time realizing that I won't see him again. Even if I know he's dead, I feel like it's not real. I..."
He stopped talking and clenched his fists. Sakura did the first thing that crossed her mind. She approached him and hugged him. Naruto opened his eyes wide.
"Sakura-chan !"
"It's gonna be alright, Naruto. You're not alone."
Naruto wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. He buried his face in the crook of her neck. Sakura felt his tears wet her shoulder, but she did not care. The most important was that she was there for him. Naruto's tears redoubled and Sakura gently stroked his hair.
She did not know how long Naruto had been crying, nor how they had ended up lying in his bed. Naruto had finally fallen asleep, exhausted from crying. He was still hugging her with all his might. She could have easily let go of him, but she did not. She decided to stay with Naruto all night long, as long as he needed her.
The end