Okay, scratch the last A.N., I just wanted to get this one, actual chapter out before I worked on my other fan fictions. Wanted to give people something to read, I guess... Get some support for when I come back to it.
I hope you enjoy!

edit: did delete the original chapter. Updated it with something better/longer in my opinion. I'm more pleased with it now.


Hatake Kakashi was a weird, weird man. Sasuke spent the first few seconds wondering if a patient had escaped from their room and was hiding out here… Which he wouldn't mind, because he would prefer the company of this seemingly crazy man than another white coat. Kakashi was pale, like Sasuke was, thanks to having not seen the sun in what felt like forever. Both of his eyes were dark, though if he looked close enough, his left eye looked the slightest bit lighter, and what appeared to be a scar ran down from his eyelid down just a little bit below his water line. Maybe he was a serial killer… Not many doctors looked like he did, that was for damned sure. It was quiet short of papers being moved around and stacked up, the stressed looking doctor pushing everything to the side at a certain point, clearing a piece of desk in front of him as he finally turned to face Sasuke. "Sorry." Was that the third or fourth time he had apologized? He wasn't sure. The raven just shook his head, shrugged his shoulders, and leaned further back into the couch he was growing quite fond of.

"Why do I have a feeling you won't be saying much of anything?" Kakashi chuckled softly, his head pressed into the palm of his left hand, propping himself up on his elbow as he stared at his new patient. Sasuke's eyes locked with his, but only for a moment before he turned his head to the side and avoided further eye contact.
"Just because I have to come here every day, doesn't mean I have to say anything." Sasuke breathed, folding his arms over his chest.
"That's right, I suppose…" The doctor leaned back in his chair, which squeaked in response. "But the more you talk to me, the more possibility you have of getting out of this place." He wasn't dumb, everyone's goal in this place was to get out. Kakashi didn't always agree with the way the patients were treated, and he enjoyed his job, because he knew it helped people. He knew he could get people out of here. And from the way Sasuke looked? He really wanted to get out of here.
"That's a lie." Sasuke said, bringing Kakashi back to life with a blink of his mismatched eyes, staring confusedly at his new patient, who still refused to make eye contact with him.

Sasuke knew how this place worked. He came, and be made out to be a crazier person than he already was. And then he had to tell doctor after doctor why he did what he did to himself. Whether they believed him or not was up to them, but due to past experiences he knew they would think he was lying. They just listened to make it look like they cared, when it was written all over their faces they couldn't give a single fuck for him or his issues. The rules were that he had to be labeled fit for society before he could even consider stepping out of this place… and it was people like Kakashi who were keeping him in. Kakashi was the man who needed to slap that label on to his forehead an send him packing, but he knew he wouldn't. Every other doctor looked at him with judgmental eyes, silently snickering at his problems, muttering things about him being crazy beneath his breath. If it were up to any of them, he would be in here forever… And he was going to say that Kakashi was no different.
"How is it a lie?" Sasuke fought the urge to scoff and roll his eyes at the question, dropping his gaze to the floor, moving his feet over the red carpet. Soft. Warm.

"What happened to your left eye?" He ignored the doctors question, deciding his was better. The man before him chuckled softly, confusing Sasuke for a moment.
"That's not fair. You want me to talk about myself, but you won't talk to me about you?" Kakashi shook his head, looking the raven up and down before sighing, seeming to give in, "I got into a bar fight when I was younger, and I got my left eye scratched out." He said, "This one's glass- can't see a damned thing." A bar fight? Okay, this guy was no doctor. Sasuke rose his head and started looking around, then back to the door he came out of, half expecting a new doctor to come in shouting at the man sitting at his desk. That moment never came though.

"Question for a question," Kakashi decided, "How'd you get that scar on your chin?" He wasn't going to ask about his arms? About the bags beneath his eyes? About the obvious usage of drugs? … He was asking him about a tiny little scar that most people couldn't see that ran across the underside of his chin? Sasuke blinked and finally rose his head, confused eyes locking with curious ones. He could be an asshole and ignore the question again, but he decided a question for a question would work for him.

"My brother threw me into the corner of a table a couple of years ago. Cut my chin." He said, raising both his doctors eyebrows in response.
"Your broth-"
"Not your turn to ask questions." Sasuke glared, his onyx eyes locking back on with Kakashi's, who leaned back in his chair the slightest bit and nodded his head, waving for Sasuke to go on. The raven looked Kakashi over, "When can I go home?" It was a stupid question, he knew it, Kakashi probably knew it, everyone knew it… but he didn't want to be here. Well… He didn't want to be home either, he just wanted to go somewhere. Anywhere.
"You know the rules…" The man sighed, a small frown touching his lips, "You need to stay here for awhile, until it's clear you're f-""Fit to return to society." Sasuke finished for him in a breath, glaring angrily at the floor. God, if he had to hear those words one more god damned time he was going to scream. "So, the-"
"Not your turn to ask question." Kakashi interrupted with a smirk, making Sasuke grow tense and angry as he stared the white-haired man down. But, he nodded, held his tongue and lowered his gaze to the floor.

They went back and forth with rather stupid questions. He questioned Kakashi about his hair color and Sasuke was asked about his skin color. He asked Kakashi about why he was late, and Sasuke was asked about the birthmark on his left index finger. He was there for about an hour, passing questions like these back and forth, having no real serious conversation… Not that Sasuke minded, he actually preferred things this way, though he had a feeling it wouldn't last forever. Eventually things would take a serious turn, he knew. The scars on his arm, thickly bandaged, wouldn't be left alone for good, nor would the rest of his life he had never mentioned. His brother and father, the death of his mother… He knew if he wanted to get out of here, it was all something he would have to discuss at one point or another… But for now, he was content with things being like this.

And they were exactly like that for a complete week. Each day he went there, Kakashi would be late. Then they would start with the question game, which turned out to be a competition between the both of them as to who could ask the stupidest question about the other. It was the one thing Sasuke looked forward to during the day, regardless he would never admit it. It had become an escape from his room, from this world. That office that smelled strongly of sweets, with just enough light for him to bare, had become his paradise.

He awoke one morning to his daily routine, taken around the building to complete his usual tasks of eating his horrible breakfasts, showering, brushing his teeth, using the bathroom, so on and so forth. An hour after that was his usual time for visiting Kakashi, but things took a new turn today. While he waited in that bed, staring at the wall as he usually did, that knock blonde nurse he grew to hate had bounced her way inside, a smile he would love to just strip off and throw to the floor being flashed his way. He glared angrily at the woman, who's arms were folded over her chest, clinging to a clip-board. "There's a visitor for you today, Sasuke-kun~." She almost sang out, taking a step back and stepping aside from the door, gesturing he get up and follow. A visitor? Whether the woman seemed happy or not, that might not mean such a good thing for Sasuke… Slowly the raven picked himself up from his bed and got to his feet, his stomach in knots.

He would hate to think his daily sessions with Kakashi were being interrupted by a visit from his father, or worse, his brother. The woman walked by his side, talking about some nonsense he didn't really care to listen to. He blocked her out all the way to the lobby of the hospital, where most patients would meet with their guests. It was rather quiet and empty upon entering, a few tables and couches taken up by two or three people at most. Looking around, he didn't recognize his father or brother to be anywhere.
"Whe-…" One more look around and he saw his guest. His eyes narrowed at the male he was being guided towards, his head down in his arms, using the table as his pillow.
"I'll be right over there, Sasuke, okay?" The nurse separated herself from Sasuke's side, and the raven watched her leave, before he slowly brought himself down into his seat, knocking loudly on to the table. The boy stood right up, looking around, drool clinging to his cheek.

"W-what!" He shouted, before his light blue eyes found Sasuke's onyx ones.

Naruto sat himself down, rubbing the back of his hand over the corner of his mouth, cleaning his face as he dropped his gaze to the table. "Sorry…" The blonde breathed, clearing his throat. "I fell asleep." Thank you, Captain Obvious, Sasuke thought with a groan, leaning back in the uncomfortable chair he was seated in, his eyes narrowing. Naruto sat there in his black shirt, an orange swirl printed on the front and back, his face, tired-looking, was pierced with several bolts. Two in his left eyebrow, and two beneath his lower lip in the right corner. His light blue eyes snapped back up to meet Sasuke's, seeming apologetic for more than just having fallen asleep before meeting him. He knew why he looked like that, and Sasuke didn't care.
"Why are you here? Guilt?" Sasuke spat, the youth across from him flinching from the sound of voice, shrinking back like a scared child. Sasuke had always had the effect on him.
"N-no! I… I just wanted to see how you were doing…" The blonde breathed, rubbing at his nose awkwardly, his cheeks red with nervousness and embarrassment. "They wouldn't let me visit last week 'cause they said it was too soon… And when I tried today they said I just had to wait… so… Hn… Here I am!" Naruto chuckled softly, but Sasuke didn't seem anywhere near amused, his eyes seeming to grow darker. If looks could kill, Naruto would have died a million times by this point. "... I just... I just wanted to visit you."
"Because you're guilty." Sasuke said, blue eyes staring into black. Scratch that, he would have died a million and one times.
"I would be lying if I said I didn't feel guilty... but I know I did what was best, so I don't care if you hate me." Naruto breathed, turning his head to the side, pouting out his lower lip like the child he was. Sasuke just huffed, not seeming like much more of an adult. Naruto licked his dry lips and leaned back a bit, not comforted by the sudden silence between them at all. Sasuke hadn't ever been that much of a talker, Naruto knew that... but coming today he hoped it wouldn't be this awkward.
"You know I can't get out of here, right?" Sasuke finally spoke, shocking Naruto for a moment, "Unless my father gets me out which... won't happen..." Sasuke stared at Naruto, face unchanging. "They watch me shower... Which sucks. My room is empty of everything except for the most uncomfortable mattress ever. If... I even scratch at my shoulder, I'm suddenly under full-watch for the rest of the day, because they think I'm trying to scratch out my fucking arms..." Sasuke, regardless of the way he was speaking, had an all too calm look to him. It was enough to freak Naruto out, as he stared, listening with a look of guilt on his face.

"Sasuke..." Naruto breathed, lowering his gaze to the table, "I only thought you would go to the hospital... I didn't... I..." He huffed, "You were dying, I couldn't just let you stay there." Sasuke knew he was wrong for trying to guilt Naruto. The blonde had done nothing but tried to save his life! And he had done just that... But he couldn't help but hate the face before him, hate him for sending him here. "I never meant for you to come here, I thought you would maybe go to rehab for a bit, but..." Naruto bit his lower lip nervously, playing with the spider-bite piercings nervously, seeming at a loss for words. Naruto and him had been friends for a long time, he was a friend who transitioned with him over the years. From the beginning of middle school, past Sasuke's moment of dropping out, the guy had been around. Sasuke used to think that Naruto was the one who needed him all the time, he thought he was the type to keep Naruto out of trouble, and away from the dark side that ultimately Sasuke had ended up in... But most recently it ended up being the other way around. Not many people knew of the issues Sasuke suffered with at home... Even the death of his mother wasn't something he discussed with many, but Naruto had a face you couldn't help but look at and think: I feel like I can trust this guy. And he could. Naruto never once spoke about Sasuke's issues to anyone. For a long time, Naruto was his escape.
He eyed the blonde, suddenly feeling a pang of guilt for the look of hurt on his face. Naruto hadn't meant any wrong for what he did, he only wanted the best for his friend and highly doubted Naruto knew what would ultimately become of Sasuke. The raven rubbed at his eyes, tired and aching. He needed an Advil, but he knew that was out of the question. Even the smallest dosage of children's aspirin wasn't allowed in this place, unfortunately.

"I'm sorry..." Sasuke said, bringing Naruto's head up, his eyes filling with hope. "I'm just tired, and cranky... This place sucks and I just want to go..." Naruto pursed his lips, heartbroken by the sight of his friend who seemed to be hanging on his last strand of sanity. For a mental hospital you would think that wouldn't be the case, but perhaps this place was what wasn't healthy for the raven.
"Have they told you when you can go home?" Naruto questioned, lowering his head a bit to get a better look at Sasuke's face, which was hidden by his hands.
"They don't give you a date..." Sasuke groaned, "I mean, my dad could get me out any time he wanted, but you know him..." Sasuke dropped his hands from his face, sighing a bit. "I get daily sessions with his doctor, therapist guy I guess..." He shrugged his shoulders, looking around the near-empty room. "Apparently once that guy signs the papers saying I'm, like... I'unno, better, other people look it over and if they all agree I can get my ass out of here." Sasuke was staring at the table now, as Naruto thought over his words.
"Then you just gotta try..." Naruto breathed, "I know you hate talking to people about your shit and I don't blame you and I'm not saying you should go and spill your heart out... but you know they're looking for you to say something." Naruto reached across the table, nudging Sasuke's shoulder with his palm to get him to look at him. Onyx eyes looked into blue ones, Naruto immediately smiling. "Just give them the impression you care, and... bullshit it if you have to... You can't let your pride and stubbornness keep you here." It was one of the things he liked about Naruto, he didn't sugarcoat anything... Oh, Sasuke was a prideful asshole, he knew it. It was the reason he would be here longer than needed... Unless he took Naruto's advice, sucked it up and just... handled his business.

Sasuke nodded his head knowingly, "I know." He said, Naruto perking up at the words. He looked to the nurse who had guided Sasuke here, her eyes on him, seeming to almost look annoyed. The blonde huffed unhappily and looked back to his black-haired friend,
"I think your little watch-dog is getting annoyed I'm taking so long." Sasuke looked to the nurse, who rose her wrist and tapped at it with her free hand at him. He didn't understand the rush, but looking at her pissed him off.
"Eh, be nice. Remember what I told you. Freaking out at anywhere here isn't going to help you." Naruto stood up from his seat, dusting off the back of his dark gray jeans, as if the chair might have been infected with something... And Sasuke didn't blame him, being in this place made him feel disgusting too. Sasuke stood as well, nodding to Naruto, suddenly feeling the slightest bit unhappy now that he was leaving. He had gotten all his anger out and was now reminded how good of a friend the blonde was... It also reminded him how alone he was here.

He watched Naruto leave after they exchanged goodbyes, and not moments later there was a hand on his shoulder. He remembered what Naruto said, and freaking out was not an option- but being touched nearly made him twitch. He turned his head, expecting to see the nurse, being faced with his doctor instead, who looked down at him, being presented with a crescent eyed smile. "A friend of yours? I would have introduced myself, but I figured I should leave you alone." Kakashi looked over Sasuke's head to the nurse, who seemed unsure as to approach or not. He waved her off and the blonde disappeared without a word, leaving Sasuke to be guided towards a pair of double-doors by Kakashi himself. "Our session will be a little short today, but I have a feeling you'll like that." Kakashi breathed, his eyes on the path ahead of him, Sasuke having shrugged his hand off his shoulder long ago.
"Why is that?" The Uchiha asked, his gaze flickering up to the slightly taller man, then back to the ground. Remember what Naruto told you, Sasuke though. Be cooperative.

He had never been too uncooperative with Kakashi, but he never really talked to him much either. They asked stupid questions. Answered stupid questions. If Kakashi tried to get serious, Sasuke avoided it... He knew what was what would keep him in here longer. "Well... We haven't really been doing anything too... on topic through the last week." He knew it had to happen sooner or later, and what better a time then when Naruto just convinced him to do what he had to do?
"Hn..." Sasuke was the first to enter the office, before Kakashi followed him inside, shutting the door behind him. The habit of locking the door had come to a stop- apparently Kakashi trusted him not to run off, which he supposed he should take as a compliment. The raven wandered to the couch and plopped himself down, waiting for Kakashi to get himself settled at his desk, taking the usual two to three minutes to do so before they finally made the awkward transition into an actual conversation. Kakashi stared at him, seeming to search the raven's body, along with his own mind for a question.
"The first day you came in, you mentioned your brother pushing you into a table." Kakashi figured it might be a good topic to start with. "What's your relationship like with your brother?" Kakashi glanced down at his papers, then back up to Sasuke, "Itachi, right?"
Sasuke confirmed the name with a nod, leaning back a bit. He thought of Naruto, and then the day he could walk out through the front doors, leaving. "Ah... Brotherly, I guess." He shrugged his shoulders. Brothers fought, right? Perhaps not as violently as he and Itachi did, but it wasn't too far off for a good answer.
"So you're on good terms with him?"
"I guess. We're siblings..." Sasuke said, making Kakashi smirk.
"Do you like living with him?" Kakashi asked, leaning back a bit, his eyes on Sasuke, while Sasuke's eyes looked to the floor, sometimes to the wall, the ceiling, anywhere but Kakashi. It was how he knew Sasuke was lying.
"Yeah, I guess." Sasuke was at least answering the questions Kakashi asked, so he supposed he shouldn't complain. It was a step up from not saying anything or just completely changing the subject.
"What about your father?" Sasuke sighed and looked away, and Kakashi wondered if he was already growing sick of the more serious turn of questioning they had taken on. The raven leaned back into the couch, looking to the side of the room.
"They're both okay." He shrugged his shoulders, seeming not to care.
"Okay, clearly you don't like either of them." Kakashi laughed to himself, making Sasuke blink, confused, shocked, and seemingly offended when their eyes met. "Sasuke... You look everywhere but at me when you're trying to avoid a subject, or you're lying..." Kakashi was wearing a small grin, one that Sasuke found himself glaring at. "It doesn't matter though, let's change the subject to something different and pick that back up later..." Kakashi decided, not leaving much room for discussion or argument.

"That boy you met with earlier, who is he?" Kakashi tilted his head to the side, Sasuke raising his head, looking at Kakashi's desk, then his face.
"A friend... He's the one that got me in here." He sounded bitter, and he supposed he still was, regardless of having talked with Naruto about it either... He just couldn't help himself.
"You mad at him?" He would be lying if he said hew as completely okay with everything. He didn't think he was angry at Naruto, though... Just... Life. The world. Naruto only did what he could, and it ended him up here, he didn't know.
"No... Just..." Sasuke sighed, "Just a little pissed I'm here. Not at him. He's just the only one I can take it out on, I guess." That was a lie, he could take it out on the nurses, the doctors, his father, his brother... Hell, he was pretty sure if he was given a paper and pen, he could write a hundred names of people he could blame and hate, none of which would include Naruto... He supposed it was out of inconvenience that his mind seemed to automatically target Naruto as someone to currently blame, even if it wasn't right of him. Kakashi nodded his head, chewing on his lower lip for a couple of moments while he thought of a follow up question.
"What's his name?" This was a much better topic, he figured. Easier than his brother and father, whom he regretted being so quick to bring up.
"Naruto. Ah, Uzumaki Naruto." The name was all too familiar, and he felt weird even mentioning his name to someone like Kakashi. Usually when he spoke of his blonde friend, it was to get himout of trouble. There weren't many people that sat down with Sasuke and basically asked him why he was so fucked up... And regardless Kakashi was being evasive and he seemed like a nice guy and all that bullshit- it was exactly what he was doing. Sasuke was screwed in the head, and Kakashi's job was to figure out why, and what he could do, if anything, to fix it.

Sasuke doubted the man had a lazer he could just point at his head and zap him with and rid him of all his problems, but he wished there was. The Uchiha turned his head, worrying his bottom lip for a moment as Kakashi seemed to think of something to further up on. Naruto... Did he really want to talk about him? "You good friends?" Sasuke blinked at the question, shrugging his shoulders. It was weird talking about something so childish, but he supposed they were. Naruto was the only one who stuck around with him, after all.
"Yeah, I guess." He admitted.
"So he found you?" Kakashi went from subtly questioning him to spitting out the first thing that came to his mind, it seemed. The Uchiha turned his head and briefly stared the man down before nodding his head in response. "Mind if... I ask for a bit more detail?" Kakashi didn't want to ask things about his family, not quite yet... They had just started to take a more serious turn in their conversations, and he wanted to start with something small... Which wasn't easy without getting right into it. But he figured talking about his close friend might be a good start, and maybe it would bridge their way into a different topic for their next session, since their time together was dwindling.

Sasuke sucked in a deep breath, just reminding himself over and over that if he wanted to get out of here, talking to this man would be his ticket. Sasuke had never been a talker, to anyone really... So the fact he was in a mental hospital wasn't keeping him from speaking, he just didn't want to talk. But he knew what he had to do, "I don't really remember... Ah... It's probably in that folder somewhere, but I was really... really fucked up." He didn't care if the man thought little of him for cursing, he was in a screwed up situation, and he was angry, and if he had to talk? He was going to curse all the fuck he wanted.
"You used drugs." It wasn't a question, a fact. Sasuke nodded regardless.
"Coke, heroin..." He shrugged his shoulders, and waved it off like it was nothing before continuing on, "Ahm... I guess Naruto crawled in through my window or something, and found me there... I... really don't remember." He gave Kakashi a stumped expression, then dropped his gaze to his own feet.
"What about your father, and brother... They didn't see you?" Curiosity got the better of him with that question, but either way their time had run out. Sasuke's eyes were him, looking almost offended by the question, or perhaps just more confused as to how to make up a lie to answer him with. But both their gazes turned to the back of the room, as the door opened up and they were welcomed by the all too fake smile the blonde nurse presented both men with.
"Ah... It's time to bring Sasuke back to his room before lunch." She announced, Sasuke looking back to his doctor before he slowly got to his feet. He seemed a bit more eager this time around to get out of the room, and Kakashi figured it was because of his last question. The gray-haired psychiatrist smiled happily, however, and leaned back in his chair, flicking a wave to the nurse, and Sasuke who was rapidly approaching his escape.
"We'll start back up with that question next time." He wasn't going to let that slip so easily. He knew he had to take it slow, but at the same time, he had a feeling doing that would result in Sasuke staying longer than he needed to.

It was clear something was up with his parents, but many teenagers or young adults who ended up in this place suffered the same issues. Almost always, problems linked back to the childhood of said patient, and namely, sometimes anyways, their parents. It was sad, but true. He could only hope at this point, however, that he could perhaps get Sasuke out of here, and perhaps he would take the chance to escape to somewhere different. Get away from the source of his problems. It was the goal of his job, ultimately. To help those who needed it, even if they didn't want it.


Hope you enjoyed. I would love some helpful criticism to help make this story better. Suggestions for future chapters. So on and so forth. Hope you look forward to the next update!