Day 2

You sat in your usual spot for a good morning write and nap. You were up much earlier then usual, not a good sign. You twiddled the pen in-between your fingers thinking of something else to write. The wind ruffled your hair. You didn't even bother setting it straight. You were in a trace, Unreachable and almost un-wake able. The pen flowed across the paper with no effort whatsoever on your part, you could barely even recognize what you were writing about. Someone crept up behind you, their head peeked over your shoulder, reading the first lines. Your arm veered of to the left causing a deep gash of gray to appear. You looked at your arm. You hadn't meant to do that.

"That's really good writing." Every muscle in your body tensed, like an animal being hunted. You looked over with a calm mask to the boy's head on you shoulder, Sasuke. "But a little morbid don't you think?" he leaned in closer and whispered in your ear. "It doesn't change the fact that it's beautiful." Your mind flashed a memory resurfaced. Without even thinking your arm shot back into Sasuke's chest forcing him away from you. The ground started shifting as you stood, the air was getting thinner and thinner, harder to breath. You were gasping for air. Your stomach was churning. You looked over terrified something was crawling under you skin, bugs. There were bugs crawling under your skin! Lights flashed, you closed your eyes, begging for it to stop. You can make it stop if you want to. You looked around, there was Sasuke on the ground watching you sway obviously thinking you were either insane or way too emotional, you know how. Pain shot through your arm forcing you to let go of the tree the only thing keeping you standing. You collapsed. This was an odd sensation, was had this a dream? You almost whished it was. Maybe it was simply a dream, nothing more. You couldn't feel anything anyway, it felt like you were apart from your body but still looking through the same eyes. Sasuke approached you slowly making sure you wouldn't beat him again, this was a bet he would most defiantly win, no matter what.

"Are you ok?" he felt your forehead. "You should go see a doctor you don't look too good." You cleared your throat

"I'm fine. I went last week, the Flu. I'm still on medicine." You looked at his eyes. You didn't like them pitch black, flowing into yours. You sat up, almost hitting him in the process.-ABORT ABORT- Only one thing was clear to you, it was time to go. "I'm sorry maybe I will go back, it was uh, great seeing you." You stood up, head held high, grabbed your notebook and scampered off. –What the hell was that? Since when does Sasuke wear his emotions on his sleeves? Since when does he ever act like that?- you rubbed your aching head. –Too much, just too much- you walked off hoping to go somewhere that was not here to clear your mind. You looked down from the rooftop of "Herbs & More". All the little people going somewhere or doing something, it was like each of them had something to do, a job, a purpose. You stared up at the clear blue sky, not a cloud in sight. You herd the door creek open and someone sat down next to you. It took you a second for you to recognize the person sitting next to you.

"Hey Shikamaru" he looked over at you with that same overused tired expression.

"Can I join you?"

"Please," there was a small silence. "So you uh, come here often?" –you come here often? YOU COME HERE OFTEN?! WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?- he looked over at you with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah, do you?"

"Indeed," you were so lucky it was Shikamaru. If it had been Naruto or Sasuke or Kiba or anyone else they would have found it so incredibly awkward they wouldn't have known what to do. Except for maybe Naruto, he probably would have made fun of you.

"Would you be here tonight at 8?" you looked over to him. Typical Shikamaru not even looking at you, you shook your head in disappointed disbelief.

"Only if you'll be here." You smiled and shivered. You looked around at the other people all walking along in shorts and t-shirts looking content. You shivered again. "Hey, Shikamaru, is it really cold right now?" he raised his eyebrows

"No it's actually pretty hot. You feeling ok?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." He looked over at you with a worried expression.

"You sure?" you shook your head, stood up, and walked away. You held on tight to the railing on the stairs, dizziness setting in. you roughly bumped into someone. They started to talk but you continued to walk, not seeing or noticing them. You touched your neck expecting to feel it there but it wasn't. You flew down the stairs mind racing. –I dropped it. I dropped. It's gone. Its gone forever I'm never going to find it again- negative thoughts whirled around in our mind. You searched everywhere you'd been in the last week, nothing. You sat on the bench in front of the pie shop you'd been in last night.

"Nyx." Anger shot through your veins.

"WHAT." You said with the implication that you would very much like to light whoever had disturbed you on fire and watch them burn.

"Bad time?" you calm down at the sight of him

"No, just not feeling too good. What'd you want?"

"Would a concert tomorrow make you feel better?" You smiled weakly.

"Yeah, I'd love that." Naruto smiled hugely. God he made you so happy you could cry. You sniffled.

"We've got company." Gaara was walking towards you, -emotionless as ever- you sighed. He motioned for you to hold out your hand. And into it he dropped a locket. You stared at it not ready to believe it was real. You caressed the blackened decrepit hideous little thing in your fingers. Word could not express your feelings at that moment, your thoughts stopped. He turned and began to walk away. You looked at Naruto hopelessly, your words had stopped coming out. He nodded and you shot after Gaara. You searched through crowds of people –if I was a mad killer with mixed up emotions were would I be?- you thought pictures flashed through your mind, all the places you'd ever been. It settled on one image. –Alone, I'd... be… alone- you felt the same feeling you'd felt before like something in your chest was pushing its way out. You walked over to the swing in front of the academy. And there he was, staring off into the distance. You bit your lip begging he wouldn't kill you. No… that wasn't how you felt, that wasn't what you thought. That was what you should be thinking, shouldn't you? That's how a sane person would feel right? You tapped him on the shoulder.

"Uh, Gaara?" he turned and looked you in the eye. They only met yours for a split second but yours immediately recognized them. He was just like him, exactly. He blinked and the soft loneliness disappeared they were now hard and cold, like chips of ice.

"Yes?" you shook your self out of your thoughts

" Uh…" –idiot, I am the world's biggest idiot. I didn't even think of anything to say- "did you open it?" you snapped. –What the hell? I meant to thank him.- it was like your body and mind were having a battle and the war ground was your common sense. His face showed that this was exactly what he expected, more abuse.

"No." he said coldly. As he stood from the swing it flew backwards and just at the angle you were standing at it hit you in the stomach, and knocked the wind out of you. He looked over at you. "Are you alright?" your face twitched into a smile. –He noticed- the truth was, it hadn't knocked the wind out of you. It hadn't even hit you, but something about him made you want to help him. Even thought it was pretty obvious he didn't want to be helped. You clutched the locket. Gaara held out his hand offering to help you up after falling to your knees. You took it.

"Thanks, and just forget you ever saw this, okay?" he looked puzzled but agreed. Then turned and walked away. "Hey!" you called to his turned back. "If you ever want to talk to someone or hang out, you know where I live!" he continued walking. You looked up at the sun you guessed it was around 7. There was no need to get ready to hang out with Shikamaru. It wasn't like he'd be doing anything special.

FF you smiled at him, he'd brought pillows and blanket. Shikamaru waved lazily a sharp pain shot through the back of your shoulder and up your neck. You suppressed it and sat down next to him.

"Fancy meeting you here." You ruffled his ponytail and lay down shoulder to shoulder. You looked up at all the cute little stars winking at you. You and Shikamaru talked vaguely. You were enjoying this mostly because it was Shikamaru and the fact that he has the romanticism of a rock, an ugly one at that.

"Yeah all the way up there you see it? It's kinda yellowish, that's Venus the goddess of love and beauty. You and her got a lot in common." You gave him a sideways look with raised eyebrows. He blushed and stuttered, "I mean your both goddesses, I mean your name Nyx. I guess your both rather beautiful too." –one stutter, one blush, one compliment and he's back to being Mr. Play-it-cool, fantastic.-

"You're not so bad yourself." You said with sarcasm and a dose of cold to go along. You shivered it was uncharacteristically cold. Shikamaru held you but you felt his reluctance. You mentally crossed him off on your list, if he was reluctant around you…your thoughts were cut off by you noticing someone on a roof a few houses away. You felt the familiar feeling of anger pulsing through you. This would be an excellent chance to test him. You pushed him off, hard.

"So what you think you can just say something sweet and I'm all yours? You think that's it? Hell no wonder your so useless." Something in the back of your mind felt almost bad for saying it, but that part was so unused you couldn't even hear it anymore. You thought you'd heard someone call it a conscience. He ignored you and went back to looking at the stars as thought you'd never been there at all. You walked over to him, kicked him in the face, then headed off to Gaara, sitting alone on a roof staring up at a single red tinted star. Your legs were shaking slightly from the fact that you'd barely eaten anything today. He looked at you the second your foot met the roof. You sat nervously, not next to him but closer then far.

"Why do you continue to show up?" he hadn't taken his eyes off of you. "Your terrified. I can feel your legs shaking." His eyes were somewhere between lonely and cold. You thought about his words. –That's a good question, he brings this chill down my spine and yet I insist on seeing him. Its- your thoughts were cut off. " Fear isn't a good thing." you thought about that. "Fear isn't a good thing." In all fairness that was true but… there was this feeling you had a dipping in your stomach. You loved it it kept things interesting. You looked at him. He was back to looking at the little red star. Ignoring his previous question…

"You see that little red star?" he nodded. "That's my brother, Kazuma… You have any stars?" he looked at you implying that this was ridiculous and pointless and stupid, in other words he turned on his coldness vibe. "Alright then, I guess I'll see you later." You stood. –He wants to be alone then let him be alone. Let him drown in an ocean of his own self-pity. May he'll just go and-

"That one," you stopped dead. Gaara making an effort it was a miracle. "It's my uncle, he died along time ago, killed on a mission."

"Which one?" he looked at you, then up at the sky. He pointed to the faintest star there.

"That one." You felt the happiness flowing out of you, for no reason. You walked slowly back over to him.

"What was he like?" he held his face in his hands and massaged it, like he didn't want to have to look at you.

"Can we not do this? He's dead. He's gone. He's not coming back so there's not point in talking about him." You smiled. You liked him. He was just like you.

"Deal. Could we just start over again? "

"Fine. Sabuko no Gaara at your service." (Yeah Gaara actually says that in the manga) your eyes widened. You remembered him now. You managed to hold a calm mask long enough to ask him one question.

"Sabuko? The fourth Kazekage?" he nodded and the memory of that day came rushing back. She'd started it in the first place you were out camping in the woods, not too long ago. She'd tried to steel your food and your locket, an extremely old valuable thing. You cast the only justu you could think of that early, a justu of your own creation, one so horrible you'd never dare cast it on anyone you cared anything for, but this girl had it coming. A justu that pulls out all your worst memories and forces you to re watch them. She was playing ball in the schoolyard and some idiot had kicked it over the wall. This little kid with red hair, you were all told to stay away from him. So when he retrieved the ball you all started running. Not wanted to get in trouble or get mixed up with that kid, the fourth Kazekage's second son. Just her luck he sent out his sand, not wanting to be alone anymore it wrapped around her ankle and started pulling her. She was scared not knowing what was going on. A man ran out in front of you severing the chain of sand. The memories continued. She even witnessed him kill his own uncle. "Are you alright?" you winced. –Make it stop.- and it did. You were back on the roof with Gaara legs shaking furiously.

"Yeah, Nyx Sashimi pleasure to meet you." you had to get away. You looked up at Kazuma. – Not fair, you get the easy way out, up there just looking down on us. I bet you wish you were down here, well you know what I'll switch with you any day. We never get what we want huh?- you were both back to being absorbed in thought.

"I'm going now." You both said at the same time. And without another word you set off to your apartment. Every time you blinked you saw them looming out of the dark, little tear stained eyes. You shook yourself out of it and lay down in your bed, ignoring the stabbing pain in your shoulder. You were getting sick of this. This horrid lonely feeling that your heart carried around. You were going to do something you'd change this.