Chapter Three: Being Alone

We are never alone. It's the truth there are people all around you every day, thousands and thousands of souls surrounding you. So then how can it feel as if we are alone, how can we feel this way even surrounded by others constantly?

Loneliness is not determined by the absence of company, it's by the value found in life by the people we interact with.

That is how it is easy forget what it means to be truly lonely.

Something warm nuzzled the side of my neck, I could feel softness wiping away at my chin, and heaviness in my body.

My eyes shot open.

Why does he always have to do the complete opposite of everyone else? Huh? "hn." I yawned trying to push him off of me. "Naruto, get your ass off me."

It occurred to me to shove him completely off the bed, but then I remembered that we were currently attached as annoying as it was. "I don't want a chocolate bunny…"drooled Naruto, hugging me tighter. Really? What the hell? I glared at the ceiling and managed to shift so that I could face the idiot.

"Hey dobe." I poked his face with my one free arm; light peeked in from the curtains across the room, making his tan glow and his hair burn with a fierce brightness blinding me momentarily.

I thought I already fixed the air conditioner.

I sighed, too tired to fling Naruto back a bit or punch him in the stomach. It was a little to convenient for Kakashi to handcuff us together like that? It was the start of a good thought process interrupted by the feeling of someone glaring at me.

"What are you doing in my house?" Said a drowsy Naruto, his eyes glaring at me with such intensity it was weird to think I could have almost called him cute earlier, now that thought alone makes me want to run to the bathroom and rinse out my mouth.

"This is my house idiot." I replied, motioning down at Naruto's body lying on top of mine. "And you are once again breaking on of my rules."

He shot up off me, almost pulling me down as he fell off the side of the bed on his end, dragging me across the bed and causing me to ram my head into my headboard.

No puns intended.

"OW!" I yelled, angrily smacking Naruto in whatever area I managed to hit. "Fuck!"

There was a huge pause before Naruto stubbornly muttered an apology, then of course he went on to ask the one question I was expecting. "Do you have any food?"

"Do you have a brain?" I replied rubbing my head, Naruto glared from the floor.

"I have a brain asshole!" I let out a sarcastic laugh, which momentarily stumped Naruto who probably didn't even know there was such a thing as a sarcastic laugh.

"Well then we have something in common, because much like your brain, while I do have a food supply I don't have very much of it." It took him a whole 3 minutes to understand what I meant by those words, when we were already in the kitchen and he sent me a belated glare.

I hate this.

I want out now. I want to change my clothes, take an unawkward shower, and not have awkward moments involving Naruto's dick every ten minutes or so.

Naruto stared at the ramen, bending slightly into the pantry while I stood at his side, "I don't feel like eating anymore."

"What?" I said, more annoyance carrying in my voice than I actually meant. Why do I always do that? Now that…that is annoying.

"I just don't." Naruto said, I looked as his face, it was tired and paler than usual, "Can I go lay down for a while?"

"What's going on with you?" It just sort of fell out of my mouth, I didn't even think about it. Naruto was starting to rub off on me just a little bit, because I could just not stop talking. "Lately you have a different look to you, everything has a hint of sadness, and you don't even bother with me anymore. It pisses me off!"

Naruto was silent for a moment, his blue eyes searching me once again, before he looked away and stared at the ground below. "Why do you care?"

Those words echoed in my head, twisting my stomach in a million directions and drying out my throat. Why did I care? It's not like we were anything like friends, slash that, are friends or anything like friends. But still all those times, throwing things at each other, yelling, and just causing overall chaos around us there was an energy I could feel from him that I enjoyed.

I resisted the urge to smack myself in the head, why the hell was I being so stupid lately? Is it all the heat in my house driving me nuts?

"Hn." I replied, "Never mind. Let's just try to get through this till Monday."

I was expecting an angry comment or a glare to melt my skull but instead I looked over to see a smirk on Naruto's face with his eyes wide and shinning, contrasting with his pale skin and the bags weighing down his eyes. "Maybe we don't have to wait till Monday."

If I did that sort of thing, I would have hugged him.

We stood outside the house of my Math teacher, Iruka with smirks on our faces. This was it; we were going to get out of this.

I should have known, this handcuff thing was only too convenient as a matter of fact I did know.

"Knock already Dobe." I commanded, Naruto's hand hovered over the door as he rebelled against me for a whole 5 seconds before tapping on the wood lightly. I thought for a second that it hadn't worked, that Iruka was out of the house, or that Naruto had gotten the address wrong but then the door swung open to a wary looking Iruka.

"What are you doing he Naruto? Is there a problem? Do you need help?" I noticed him eyeing me cautiously. That's it; I really am the devil aren't I?

"We do have a problem." Said Naruto holding up our attached arms and showing the handcuffs clearly, Iruka blushed a deep crimson color causing me and Naruto to exchange a look of wonder.

"WHERE DID YOU GET THOSE!" Panicked Iruka, pulling Naruto into his house causing me to be dragged behind hitting my head, once again, on the fucking entryway proving that today is not my day. While rubbing my throbbing head, I listened to Naruto fill in the details to a fuming Iruka.

"I'll get the keys." Iruka said, disappearing into a nearby room. I felt my right eyebrow raised and looked over at Naruto letting go of my head.

"Is there something I should know?" I asked eyeing Naruto thoughtfully.

"Iruka and Kakashi are dating." Naruto replied, now both of my eyebrows were raised. Who knew? Before I could make any further thoughts on the idea of two of my male teachers dating each other, Iruka walked out of the room, dragging Kakashi behind him.

"Give them the key's." Iruka commanded, crossing his arms at Kakashi who smiled up at him from the floor. Iruka glared, causing Kakashi's smile to deflate, he reached in his pocket and pulled out the pair of keys handing them up to Iruka.

"I couldn't help it Iruka." He whined, pleading with his boyfriend, "I read something similar in a Make Out Paradise book. It was genius I really had to try it out, and you wouldn't let me do anything else with the handcuffs other than..."

I was grateful Iruka silenced him with his hand, preventing Kakashi from explaining any further than he already had.

"Why us?" Naruto fumed, rubbing his wrist as Iruka unlocked us from the handcuffs that were used for god knows what, I noted for that one second Naruto sounded normal, "AND IN YOUR PERVY HANDCUFFS TO!"

Kakashi eyed us thoughtfully, but I noticed his eyes scanning me especially, did he know something I didn't? "Because, you both have things you need to realize about each other, I'm tired of dealing with the both of you constantly arguing, it's about time you resolved your petty fights and moved on."

I shook my head and scuffed, so many questions but all the answers are clouded, that's how it seems in my head lately, as if I'm lost.

How can you be lost in your own head?

Iruka saw us out the door, with Kakashi pleading in the background, "I'm sorry. Both of you feel free to come to me for help when you need it."

Then he shut the door, leaving me and Naruto standing on the steps awkwardly together, I was really tired of being eyed but Naruto was doing it anyway with a look that seemed mysterious. "Uhh…" Naruto shifted, showing on his outer surface what I felt in my inner self.

"Bye Dobe." I said turning to walk away, but something pulled at my sleeve.

Turning back around I noticed Naruto's expression was once again showing my feelings, surprise. "Uhh….I know that you don't like me, and I know that we fight all the time….but ….it wouldn't be bad to spend time together sometime. I always thought you were just an asshole, but maybe I…."

"Later Dobe." I cut him off, aware that I was countering everything he was saying to me as I walked away. But something in Naruto's tone, something in his words, made me shake with nervousness that I will never admit.

The walk to my apartment was long and tedious, boredom pounded around my skull reminding me of my non-existent life, and yes I'm admitting I don't have one, so do me a favor and don't repeat it to anyone else.

I sighed; climbing the stairs to my apartment and circling the keys round and round my middle finger before shoving it into the keyhole and turning. I opened the door and looked around, everything was dim, and the house was quiet. It was in that exact moment that I noticed something valuably important.

I have a thousand people around me every day; I have girls all over me, and an enemy to torment. But none of the valued me as a person did they? They valued me for who they thought I was or was supposed to be.

I am truly alone.