Disclaimer: Please refer to the other chapters.
Warning: This will be for all the upcoming chapters. YAOI ALERT. Not too graphic right now, but maybe in the later chapters….depends.
Author's Note: So sorry for the long wait. Life has just been so hectic right now so I haven't had the chance to continue until now.
Thank you all for being so patient with me. This chapter hasn't been edited, so please excuse all the mistakes. Hopefully in the next few days, I can make all the corrections. I was in a rush to submit it after I finished it. :D!
Chapter Three: The Confrontation
As Naruto turned to look at Sasuke after Sai had left, he noticed the narrowed eyes and scowl on the handsome face of the Uchiha. Naruto smiled sheepishly and rubbed one of his hands behind his head in an embarrassed manner.
"Well, I-…"
"Who was that?" Sasuke's voice said interrupting what Naruto was about to say.
"Err…that was Sai. He's the model I'm going to work with during the photo shoot." Naruto said his eyes adverting from Sasuke's intense stare.
"What relationship do you have with this Sai?" The raven haired heir continued to press on the matter.
"With Sai..?" Naruto paused trying to wrack through his head for a good excuse. But honestly speaking, how would he get out of this mess? Sasuke obviously saw the kiss.
"He's a… close friend." The blonde finished off lamely not even believing himself.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed further, but backed down much to Naruto's relief.
"I see…" Though he let the matter go, Sasuke was still quite angry at the scene that he had witnessed moments ago.
"Ermm…so what is it that you had to speak to me about..?" Naruto asked hoping to change the subject.
Sasuke turned to Naruto with a scowl knowing what he was trying to do.
Naruto watched as Sasuke looked hesitant to answer his question. He really didn't know why he came back.
"My mother wants you to come for dinner tomorrow. She heard about your return from Sakura and wants to welcome you back." The raven haired Uchiha said not really pleased with the idea of having Naruto over his house.
"Miko-san?" Naruto said with a smile lighting up his face.
Ah yes, Uchiha Mikoto was a woman that Naruto knew well. During his years of being best friends with Sasuke, the Uchiha house was like a second home to Naruto. Mikoto, or 'Oba-chan' to Naruto, welcomed the hyperactive blonde into her home with open arms. She loved Naruto's bright personality compared to her two anti-social boys that never said a word.
The blonde thought of the woman that was like a mother to him and nodded enthusiastically at the invitation to the Uchiha home. He even missed the sarcastic Itachi and strict looking Uchiha Fugaku.
"Sure, I'd love to go. I miss oba-chan and her delicious cooking." The blonde said still with a smile on his face.
Sasuke looked reluctant to accept his answer, but it was he, after all, who was the one to ask.
In the end, the Uchiha ended up nodding while folding his arms over his chest in a brooding manner. Though it was relieving that Naruto hadn't responded to his invitation in an awkward manner, he still didn't like the fact that the blonde would once more be going to his house.
"Was that all, Sasuke? I really need to finish unpacking before night falls." Naruto said looking out his window happy that the sun was still out. If he was to unpack by himself, he needed to make sure that he had plenty of time to do it.
"Yeah…" Sasuke said his dark eyes falling on the blonde who was still looking out the window.
The raven haired Uchiha seemed to hesitate on his next words.
"Do you…need any…help?" Sasuke frowned at how hard it was him just to ask such a simple question to the blonde.
The blonde, for a moment, looked very surprised at the sudden suggestion of help. He would have never of imagined that the Uchiha would offer his help after everything that just happened.
"Well, I don't want to inconvenience you." Naruto said looking slightly unsure of how to respond to Sasuke.
"In that case, never mind." Sasuke said angrily. There he was offering his assistance which was something that he shouldn't have done in the first place and now look at what happens.
The Uchiha turns around still angry and heads for the door cursing to himself for even thinking about helping that stupid blonde fool.
"Wait! Wait, Sasuke!" Naruto called out realizing that he had offended the Uchiha. He really hadn't meant to. It was just that he felt that the Uchiha would feel awkward being with him after what he found out.
Upon hearing Naruto's call, Sasuke hesitated in his steps before coming to a full stop at the door.
Though he didn't say anything, Naruto knew that the raven haired Uchiha was giving him permission to speak.
"I didn't mean to offend you. I would greatly appreciate your help." The blonde was somewhat embarrassed to admit that he really did need assistance.
"Hn. You should have just said that in the beginning, dobe. And where did you learn those big words? Don't hurt yourself." As always Sasuke always had something mean to say to the blonde.
Naruto just smiled in return. He knew that Sasuke was just getting over his embarrassment by throwing some harmless insults that he really didn't mean.
"Well, despite popular belief, I'm not as dumb as people think." Naruto stuck out his tongue at the Uchiha before turning with a small chuckle.
"Yosh! If you are going to help me, Ice Princess, I'd love it if we would start sometime before night fall."
What the blonde didn't notice was the small barely visible smile that appeared on the Uchiha's handsome face.
Though the prideful raven haired man would rather cut off his own arm than admit it, he really did miss Naruto terribly. Ever since the bright bundle of energy had left, he had always felt like there was something missing in his life. And for the first time in a long while, Sasuke felt a sense of peace now that Naruto had returned.
Several hours later, both Naruto and Sasuke finally took a rest after finishing unpacking all of the blonde's belongings.
Though Naruto didn't really have much stuff to begin with, it was much more tedious than they had fist thought it to be. Naruto seriously wondered how he would have been able to do it without Sasuke.
"Hey bastard…" Naruto said as he turned over to where the Uchiha was laying.
"Hn?" Came the tired grunt as a reply.
"Thanks for helping me. I really appreciate me. If you weren't here, I wonder how I would have been able to finish." Naruto gave a small smile to Sasuke who just covered his eyes with his arm.
"Well, someone had to help you. Who knows what would have happened to you if you had done this yourself." Sasuke just received a quiet laugh from the blonde in return.
"Yeah, I guess you are right." Naruto said as he stared up into the ceiling of his apartment.
"Hey, what time should I be ready by for tomorrow? I'm excited. My mouth is watering at the thought of Miko-san's great cooking…" Naruto imagined all the deliciously cooked dishes that Sasuke's mother always cooked for them.
"Probably around five. I'll come and pick you up so don't worry about a ride." Sasuke's position still didn't change as he muttered this seemingly falling asleep.
"Sounds good." The blonde responded feeling a bit tired himself.
Well, it wouldn't hurt to take a little nap. I'm sure that I will wake up in a couple of hours. Naruto thought to himself as he closed his eyes.
And so the two boys fell asleep after their long day of unpacking. It wasn't until several hours later that Naruto found himself waking up. His blue eyes peered out the window and he noticed that it was already dark.
Momentarily forgetting that Sasuke was still there, Naruto stood up to stretch his cramped muscles. He was sleeping in a rather uncomfortable position. That would explain what happened next.
Naruto's legs simply gave out and he found himself falling forward face first. As if in slow motion, blue eyes widened as they fell on the still sleeping figure of the Uchiha. Naruto knew there was no way to avoid what was about to happen next and so he just braced himself for the impact.
The still sleeping Uchiha could not expect what was bound to happen next. One moment he was in a blissful moment of sleep and the next he was pushed onto the ground by a heavy albeit soft weight.
His dark eyes opened only see nothing but a gold color. Sasuke also realized that he was having trouble breathing. Whatever was on him was cutting off his air supply. Still under a sleep spell, the Uchiha heir did not even realize where he was. It was only when whatever had fallen on him let out a small groan did Sasuke fully wake up. However, Sasuke found himself unable to move. Apparently Naruto had fallen on him in such a way that would prevent Sasuke from moving an inch.
All the while this was going through the Uchiha's head; Naruto was trying to get himself to think straightly after the impact of the fall. Though Sasuke's body broke his fall, he had to position himself some how so that he would not cause so much damage to Sasuke. Regardless of what others thought, Naruto was still a man and thus quite heavy.
"Naru…to…I…can't…breathe!" Sasuke gasped underneath the blonde breaking his thoughts to himself.
"Ohmygod!" Naruto said in a hurry while practically leaping off of Sasuke.
"I'm sorry!!" The blonde then sprouted out in a string of apologies with his face bright red.
If Naruto was more honest with himself, he would admit that he enjoyed the feeling of being on top of Sasuke. It just felt so right. It was like they were meant to be so intimately close like that. Of course, from Sasuke's point of view, he felt the same. However, he would rather have one of his fingers chopped off than let the thought cross his mind twice.
"It's fine…" The Uchiha finally said with a small blush dusting his cheeks.
Sasuke then realized that the room that he was in was no longer bright from the sun's rays but dark and only lighted by the moonlight. He had no idea that he had fallen asleep for that long. The Uchiha was sure that he was going to just rest his eyes not fall asleep for several hours.
"It's nighttime already." Sasuke said this more as a statement rather than a question.
"Yeah, I guess so…" Naruto said sheepishly rubbing the back of his head with one of his arms.
This almost made Sasuke want to smile. It was such a Naruto gesture. However, he refrained from doing so and stood up.
"Well, I should get going since it's so late." Sasuke said while holding back a wince. It seemed that he had slept in a very uncomfortable position.
"Ah, okay then." Naruto said with a tiny smile on his handsome face.
"Thank-…" The blonde was suddenly interrupted by a shrill ringing that was coming from his phone on the table near by.
"Ahh, excuse me real quick." He hurriedly grabbed the phone wanting to get rid of whoever had interrupted his time with Sasuke.
"Hello?" Naruto spoke into the hand phone with a tight voice.
"Nice to talk to you too, my love." Sai's voice rang from the speaker of the cell.
"Sai? What do you want?" Naruto said not noticing the way Sasuke had stiffened when he heard the name.
"What? Am I not allowed to call you? I just wanted to see how you are doing. Do you need me to go over there and lend you a hand…?" Sai stated suggestively and Naruto turned red.
"No…I don't need you to come over. I'm fine." Naruto peered at Sasuke and panicked when he saw the Uchiha scowling more than usual.
"Look, I will call you later. Bye!" And with that, Naruto shut his phone close and threw it on the couch.
"Err, sorry about that. I didn't know he was going to call so late." Naruto said while looking at the floor with a small blush of embarrassment.
"…hn." Was all that he got from the now seemingly angry Uchiha.
At his response, Naruto sighed. 'Great now he's back to being mad at me. Thanks Sai…' The blonde thought while looking away from the raven haired Uchiha in front of him.
"Do you want to have some tea before you leave?" Naruto said finally trying to break the silence that left him very uncomfortable.
Sasuke looked hesitant still peeved at the call from this Sai person. In the end, he refused saying it was late and that he needed to get up early in the morning.
Naruto looked a little disappointed at his answer, but quickly let it go and walked Sasuke to the door.
"Thanks for helping me. I really couldn't have finished without your help." Naruto said with a small smile on his handsome face.
Sasuke had the impulse to smile back but he caught himself and stopped the smile from blooming on his face. It was odd, but Sasuke could feel his barrier that he had put up over five years just break down when he was with the blonde. He was supposed to have changed. However, he could feel himself weakening around Naruto. No matter how long it had been, he was still unable to keep his guard up with him.
"You're welcome." Sasuke said the side of his lips twitching upwards.
"Be sure that you are ready for tomorrow. I won't accept lateness." Sasuke gave a small harmless glare towards the photographer who gave a small chuckle in return.
"Yeah, I'll be sure to be ready. Tell Miko-san that I am looking forward to her delicious cooking." Naruto said opening the door for Sasuke.
The raven haired Uchiha walked out nodding.
"Sure thing. Night." Naruto smiled and bid Sasuke a good night as well before closing the door.
Sasuke sighed as soon as he was far enough from Naruto's apartment door. When he had found out that Naruto was returning, he had prepared himself to be cold to the blonde. After all, the photographer had left without saying a word to him. They were supposed to be best friends but Sasuke was the only one who was left in the dark. He found out that after Naruto had left, he was the only one who the blonde didn't keep in touch with. Everyone else talked about Naruto while he was left in the dark.
The Uchiha had prepared himself when he found out Naruto was to return. He was going to be cold and cruel to the blonde and make him feel as hurt and betrayed as he had felt. But he found that he couldn't be as cold to the blonde as he had hoped he could. Naruto was the only one that he could let his guard down with. He realized that even though five years had passed, he was still as weak against Naruto as before.
Sasuke wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. A flash of a dark haired slender male model suddenly popped into his head.
And then there was the issue with that model. He didn't know why, but for some reason, the image of the two kissing sent his mind into a fit of anger. He didn't know why but this unknown emotion boiled up whenever he thought about those two being intimate with one another. It was something that he never expected to feel.
Deciding that it was pointless to further pursue the topic, Sasuke got in his car and went home.
The next day around midday, Naruto could be seen scurrying around his apartment trying to get ready for his trip to the Uchiha mansion. He was terribly nervous and wanted to look presentable to the people he had not seen in a long time.
Though it was kind of odd, Naruto felt as if the Uchiha family was like a second family to him. Back then, he was always as Sasuke's house. There was never a day when Naruto was at his own apartment. During that time he spent there, he was able to bond with all three members of the Uchiha family.
Mikoto was a sweet woman who easily accepted Naruto. She always gave him a bright smile and welcomed him with open arms. She would always say that she wished that Naruto was part of the family. He even got through to Itachi and Fugaku who usually seem very unapproachable. Itachi would always bring Naruto pastries whenever the blonde would visit the Uchiha mansion. Fugaku, on the other hand, would always take interest in Naruto's paintings and even prompted him to do a portrait of him.
Naruto smiled at the memory. He always loved visiting the Uchiha home. But sometimes it made him sad. He would sometimes think if he still had his family if that's how it would feel like.
Shaking his head, Naruto finished putting on his worn sneakers and headed out the door. He knew that by the time he got down there, Sasuke would be in his car waiting for him.
As the blonde took the last couple of steps from his apartment, he was able to spot Sasuke's sleek black car. It was funny how the dark vehicle seemed out of place in his parking lot full of colorful cars.
Naruto smiled as he reached the car waiting for the Uchiha to open the door for him. Once inside, the blonde greeted his once best friend. Sasuke gave him a typical 'hn' response which he was used to so Naruto paid no mind.
Suddenly, Naruto felt a vibration from his jean pocket. Wondering who would call him at this time, the blonde answered the phone not even looking at the screen.
"Naru-chan, my love, let's go have lunch together." The silky voice of the dark haired model came from the receiver.
"…I can't. I've already made plans." Naruto said in a harsh whisper trying his hardest not to catch the Uchiha's attention.
Unfortunately for Naruto, the moment the cell phone had rung Sasuke was already keenly aware of the call. The Uchiha seemed to tense as he heard Naruto's distressed voice.
"Plans? With who? It better not be that ice princess I saw yesterday." Sai's voice seemed to be whiny but Naruto also could tell he was slightly angry.
"So what if it is? I don't recall having to ask you for permission." Naruto bit back offended that Sai thought he could order him around.
"I won't allow it! You know it's hopeless Naru-chan. He doesn't and won't understand your feelings. I hope you realize that soon and come back to me." The model said his voice almost sad.
At Sai's words, Naruto's eyes widened. Up until this point, the blonde had refused to delve into the matter of his feelings for Sasuke. He knew that it would be hard to stay around the Uchiha. His feelings were part of the reason why he felt the need to leave in the first place.
Sasuke immediately noticed the change in his former best friend. First he could sense that the photographer had gotten mad at the person on the other line who he suspected to be that flamboyant looking model from yesterday. Now the blonde looked rather conflicted with himself. Sasuke wondered what the other person had said to Naruto to get such a reaction from him.
"I know…Just let me be for now. Bye!" Naruto shut his phone after turning it on silent. Now that his mood was ruined, he didn't want to get anymore calls no matter how important they were.
"Who was that just now? Is everything okay?" Sasuke asked before he could stop himself.
Naruto seemed to be startled by the question because he looked at the raven haired Uchiha with wide eyes.
"Um…it was just Sai. He wanted to ask me something." Naruto carefully worded his answer so as to prevent Sasuke from getting too curious.
The dark eyes just peered at the blonde suspiciously as if asking 'are you sure that's all?' Like they always had, Naruto squirmed underneath Sasuke's penetrating gaze. His light blue eyes averted to anywhere else but the two dark orbs.
"He wanted to have lunch with me, but I told him I already have plans." Naruto finally blurted out unable to stay calm and quiet with those Uchiha eyes peering at him.
Sasuke had to inwardly smirk. It always worked on the idiot. He was never one to stay quiet when he looked at him in that way. This technique was something that he nicknamed Sharingan.
"Oh, I see. If you want, you can-..."
"No!" Naruto quickly intercepted.
Realizing that he spoke rather loudly, Naruto blushed and looked down at his lap.
"I mean, no, that's fine. I want to see Miko-san and everyone else." The blonde said wondering why he was being so weird in the presence of the Uchiha. It was much different than what he was used to.
"I haven't seen them in such a long time. And it would be rude of me to decline their invitation." The blonde clarified with a sheepish smile.
"Very well. If that is what you want." The Uchiha said pleased that Naruto chose his family instead of that clingy model.
After the 'call incident' as Naruto begrudgingly named it, the rest of the ride was comfortably silent. It seemed that Sasuke wasn't in a bad mood anymore so the blonde felt that he could relax.
Soon enough, Sasuke pulled up to a large looking house that bordered on looking like a mansion. This was just one part of the Uchiha estate. Naruto stared up to what was called the main house. A small smile tugged at his lips. It was exactly the way that he had left it. The grand structure that Naruto saw in front of him stood three stories high and had more than fifty rooms. Yes, this was exactly the same as he had left it all those years ago.
As soon as the two males had walked into the house, Naruto was hit with the feeling of a warm atmosphere. It was something that he only felt when he visited the Uchiha mansion.
Upon hearing the door, the lovely Mikoto practically glided into the room to meet her son and his guest.
"Naru-chan!!" The older woman squealed and grabbed the blonde into a hug.
"Oh, I missed you so much! All those years and not a word from my Naru-chan." Mikoto said as her eyes became glassy with unshed tears.
"I missed you to, oba-chan." Naruto said as he warmly hugged the woman back missing the warmth that he had been missing all those years that he had been away.
Sasuke could do nothing but watch this little reunion between his mother and his once best friend. Though there was still a lot to be discussed, Sasuke could say that he definitely missed having the blonde idiot back at his house. Ever since he left, his house had seemed to be less bright than it had been when Naruto was there.
Uchiha Itachi, hearing all the commotion, decided to grave everyone with his presence. He came down the stares in his usual elegant manner with his tied hair following him.
"So chibi-chan is here I see." His deep baritone brought everyone's attention to him as he reached the bottom floor.
"Nii-san." Naruto said out of pure habit.
The blonde, before leaving, had treated everyone of Sasuke's family as if they were his own. Surprisingly enough, every member of the Uchiha family accepted this and had no problems with letting the blonde bundle of joy into the family. At first, of course, they were a little hesitant to let anyone outside of the family become close, but over time, they all came to like Naruto.
"Chibi-chan, it has been a while." Itachi reached the shorter male and patted his head in an awkward manner that was oddly suitable for the raven haired Uchiha.
Naruto just smiled at Itachi who did nothing but nod back. The older Uchiha brother was never one for affection or being touchy feely with anyone. It was a surprise when Itachi had let Naruto call him 'nii-san'. Even Mikoto, who knew her son far better than anyone else, was quite shocked when the anti-social Uchiha accepted Naruto into their home. Even though he would deny it to his grave, the older Uchiha was actually quite fond of the blonde. He brought much amusement to Itachi's usually boring life. It had been quite dull without the loud, noisy Naruto that would always fill the house with some sort of racket.
"Let's go pay a visit to Fugaku. I'm sure that he would love to see Naruto. Ever since I told him that you would be coming over for dinner, he's been looking a little excited." Mikoto said brightly while leading Naruto to the library where the head of the Uchiha family would no doubt be.
Sasuke gave a roll of his eyes. His father excited? Yeah right. Only the day when pigs fly would be the day that he would see his father being excited. Uchiha Fugaku was known for his stern and strict manner. He usually showed no emotion on his face except when he was angry.
Soon enough, the three reached the library. A handsome older man who looked no older than forty-five, but was surely in his fifties, was sitting at a desk in the back of the large library. All four walls of the room were occupied by shelves packed with books. There was only one large window that was currently providing all of the light in the room.
"Dear, look who is here to join us for dinner, Naru-chan!" Mikoto announced happily to her husband who looked up from his work with his dark steely grey eyes landing on the blonde who looked a bit nervous meeting the head Uchiha after all this time.
"Uchiha-san. It's nice to see you again. Thank you for having me for dinner." Naruto bowed politely to the older man.
"Naruto. You know you can call me what you used to call me. There is no need to be formal with me." Sasuke's father said in a deep masculine voice that held much power to it.
"Yes, oji-sama." Naruto looked rather shy and hesitant to say it after not using it for a long time.
"So how was your trip? Do you have somewhere to stay? If not, you know you are always welcome here." Fugaku got up from his chair and made it over to where the blonde was standing.
"Ah…it was fine. I was able to rent out an apartment where my old place was. There's no need to worry, and thank you for your offer." Naruto gave a smile to the older Uchiha.
"Very well…" The dark haired man looked rather hesitant to say was he was about to say next so he just cleared his throat and went for it.
"Okaeri nasai, Naruto." These words surprised the other occupants of the room. They looked at the stern man with wide eyes.
"Yes, that's right! Welcome home, Naruto. It's so good to have you back." Mikoto and Fugaku lead the stunned blonde out the door to head for the dining room.
Sasuke stayed behind a little bit longer lost in his thoughts. If he were more honest with himself, he was glad that Naruto was back and that everyone had welcomed him back with open arms in the way that they did.
But it was because of the way he felt betrayed that he just couldn't completely accept Naruto back into his life. Even though his mind was telling him that he shouldn't be getting close to Naruto again after everything had happened between them, he knew that his heart was definitely opening up to the blonde once again.
Sasuke turned to look at Naruto chatting happily with his parents, and he could help but let a little smile grace his handsome face.
"Welcome home, dobe." And this time when he said it, Sasuke really meant it.
Author's Drabble Time:
Well, that's it for now. Yes, I know it's been a long time for me, but I did try. I haven't had any ideas for the longest time, but finally I was able to get something out. Hehe.
Japanese Terms (Although, I don't like to use them, sometimes they are just necessary..):
-san: You can use this in place of Mr., Mrs., Ms., etc.
-chan: An affectionate or endearing suffix attatched to names.
chibi-chan: Hmm, this one can be translated into 'little one'. Basically, Itachi is making fun of Naruto because he is short. :D
oji-sama: Means uncle. But because it has -sama at the end, it's a more respectful way to say it.
nii-san: Older brother.
oba-chan: A more affectionate way of saying aunt.
okaeri nasai: Translates to "welcome home" or "welcome back".