When he'd come down from the high of a very quick and very intense orgasm, Sasuke sorted himself out - cleaning up the mess with some tissues, getting his pants in order, and taking a moment to get his breathing under control. So much for all of his determination to no longer react to his feelings for Naruto. Then again, it's not as if anyone else needed to know what he fantasized about in private. Why did Naruto have to be such a touchy-feely person anyway?
He sat up on the edge of the bed. As he was sitting there, he heard a low buzzing noise coming from somewhere and realized Naruto had left his phone on the desk. Sasuke stood up and went over, figuring if someone important was calling, he'd let Naruto know. Seeing that it was his dad, he picked up the phone and put it in his back pocket with the intention of bringing it to him.
Before he went in search of Naruto and Itachi, he walked into the bathroom to wash his hands and splash some water on his face. His cheeks were a little flushed, and his hair was a bit disheveled. He tried to fix it as he checked himself out in the mirror. With his bare feet padding against the floorboards in the hallway, he wandered past the living room (no one was there) and headed for Itachi's bedroom. The door was partially open, and just as he was about to go inside, he heard the following conversation take place:
"Stay still," said Itachi.
"Ow, that hurt!" cried Naruto.
"Well, it wouldn't hurt if you'd just stay still."
"But it's really stuck in there. I can feel it! You're poking me!"
"I'm not poking you," grunted Itachi. "Be good and stop squirming. It's almost over."
Sasuke, who had his hand on the door, quickly pushed it open and saw Itachi and Naruto standing near the bed. His brother had a hold of Naruto's face and was looking at him intently. It looked as though they were about to kiss.
"What... the hell are you two doing?" Sasuke asked.
"Oh, it's you, Sasuke," said Itachi. "Ah, here it is. How does that feel?" He let his hands fall away from the blond's cheeks.
"Much better," said Naruto as he rubbed one of his eyes. "I dunno how the hell that got in there. It really hurt." He turned around and smiled at Sasuke. "I had somethin' in my eye, and your brother helped get it out."
"Is that so?" Sasuke asked, taking a few steps closer to the bed. He raised an eyebrow at Itachi.
"Naruto told me you sent him away for a while," said his brother. "You look a little more relaxed."
"Yeah." Naruto came over to him and stuck his face really close to Sasuke's. "You look like you have a bit of color to your cheeks, though. Do you have a fever?" He pressed the back of his hand to Sasuke's forehead, but he swatted it away.
"I'm fine," he mumbled. "I just needed a little room to breathe."
"But you had that whole hour while I was at lunch," replied Naruto.
"My brother likes his space. I wouldn't take it too personally. Besides, I was happy to be able to spend time with you." Itachi took a seat at his desk. "We had a nice talk, didn't we?"
Naruto nodded and smiled. He went and sat on the edge of the bed. "Yep. Itachi was tellin' me about college. I can't wait to go. Sounds awesome. I'm excited to get to live on my own."
"Speaking of," said Sasuke as he pulled out Naruto's phone. "Your phone rang. I think it was your dad."
"Oh." Naruto scratched the back of his head. "I'll call him later."
Sasuke had to drop it into his lap. "Why don't you call him now? You didn't call him last night, did you?"
"He knows where I am," Naruto grumbled. "I dunno why he keeps callin'."
"Naruto." He gave the boy's forehead a flick.
"Ow!" Naruto covered the spot with his hand. "What the hell was that for?"
"If you call him, I'll do something nice for you."
"Like what?"
"I don't know. Your choice."
Naruto hummed suspiciously at him.
"I have an idea," said Itachi. "If you call your dad, perhaps you can ask Sasuke to play something for you. You know, my brother is a very talented musician."
"Shit, that's right!" Naruto's eyes went incredibly wide. "Yeah, will you? Maybe you could teach me how to play somethin' on the guitar?"
"I think it'll take more than one night to be able to teach you how to play something."
"Still. I'd really like to see you play. I'll go call him back." Naruto, phone in hand, left the room in a hurry to call his dad.
Sasuke stared at his brother; Itachi stared back, but he was smirking.
"Fifteen to twenty minutes, huh?" Itachi asked.
"Shut up," replied Sasuke.
"It's no wonder. I was a little surprised when I walked into your room and found you in his arms. I believe he was only in a towel, too, am I correct?"
Sasuke brushed his fingertips across the top of the comforter. "It wasn't like that. How was lunch? Did Naruto behave himself?"
"He was more subdued than usual, but he was very polite. He and mother did most of the talking."
Sasuke nodded. "I didn't see them around. Did they go somewhere? Are they outside?"
"Father wanted to make sure you had some cold medicine and a few sports drinks in case you really were coming down with something."
He took that in quietly, but he could feel his brother's eyes on him.
"What do you think you're going to do?" Itachi asked.
"About what?" He collapsed on the bed, lying across the middle of it.
"Naruto. Did you have a talk with him?"
"We talked," replied Sasuke, shutting his eyes. "We're on the same page. Mostly."
"I'm not sure I know what that means."
"You know, not everything about my personal life is your business."
"It's my business when I walk into your room and see you like that," Itachi said in a low voice.
"I'm fine." Sasuke frowned. "I can take care of myself."
"It certainly didn't look like it. It seemed like the only thing holding you up was Naruto. He cares about you. Even I can see that."
"Naruto cares about everyone. He wants to save everyone. It doesn't mean I'm anything special to him, and as far as I can tell, he's still straight. Not to mention I have no interest in dating another boy. It would be too much trouble. For all of us." He opened his eyes when he felt the mattress dip. Itachi sat down next to him and heaved a sigh.
"Sasuke, I don't want you to have any regrets. I have no intention of letting you go through what I did with father. That was my path. Yours can be something completely different."
"Why?" He asked, raising his voice. "Why do you have to sacrifice everything, and I don't?"
"Because." Itachi smiled down at him. "You're my little brother whom I love. You wouldn't understand what if feels like for me to watch you suffer and struggle so much."
"I'm not suffering," he grumbled. "I'm fine. I can handle it."
"You're young. There are things you don't understand yet."
"I wish you'd stop looking down on me all the time."
"You're such a brat," said Itachi. "Maybe I should tell Naruto what you really got up to during your alone time."
"You wouldn't dare." He glared. "You like Naruto, I can tell. You wouldn't want to make him uncomfortable."
Itachi chuckled. "I suppose you're right. There is something very interesting about Naruto. I wonder what my friends will think of him. You know, Deidara is coming. Maybe we should warn your friend what he can be like?"
"You didn't!" Sasuke sat up. "Who else did you invite?"
"The usual." Itachi shrugged.
"Great. Now I'll have to keep an eye out so that no one tries to molest him."
"I'm sure you would've kept an eye on him no matter what," remarked Itachi. "Your feelings are, if you're not already aware of this, very obvious, Sasuke."
Sasuke covered his eyes with his left hand. "I'm trying."
"You're trying to what?"
"I'm trying to get over it. I just... need a little time."
"For whose sake are you doing that? Yours? Naruto's? Father's?"
"Everyone's," he mumbled. "It's just a stupid infatuation. It would've helped if Naruto had just..."
"If Naruto had just...?" Itachi lay back on the bed, beside him so that their arms touched.
Sasuke glanced at him. "He should've just said he was disgusted with me or rejected me, or... anything. Not... what he did say, which for some stupid reason, gave me the smallest bit of hope... but, it's impossible. I don't want to disappoint anyone, and Naruto likes girls."
"He likes you," said Itachi. "That punk took a swat at me when I tried to check on your arm, which, how is that, by the way?"
"It's fine," he said, and then he chuckled. "That was pretty amusing."
"What was amusing?" Naruto pushed the door open. "I wanna know. I like funny stories."
"It's an inside joke," Sasuke told him hastily. "What did your dad have to say?"
Naruto shrugged and glanced somewhere else. "Nothin' important."
"You're a terrible liar."
"Shut up!" Naruto glared at him. "I wasn't lyin'!"
"Now he's getting defensive," said Itachi.
"You guys suck." Naruto crossed his arms and pouted. He took a couple of steps toward them. "How come you're both layin' there? I wanna lay there, too. I feel left out."
"There's no room for you," Sasuke told him, smirking. "This is for Uchiha only."
"Hmph. What's so great about bein' an Uchiha?" Naruto kicked lightly at Sasuke's shin.
"You don't think we're special?" Itachi asked the younger boy. "I'm hurt, Naruto."
"It's not like that!" Naruto flailed his arms. "It's just... I don't wanna feel like a third wheel."
"Should I scoot over?" Itachi asked. "What do you think, Sasuke?"
"I think you spoil him."
"Don't you want to reward him for doing as he was told?"
"True!" Naruto exclaimed. "I called my dad because you told me to."
"I thought you wanted me to teach you something on the guitar," Sasuke replied.
"Oh, just shove over already!" Naruto pushed his way in between them and lay on his back. He gave a great sigh as he snuggled into the small space. "Mm, this is nice. Makes me wish I had siblings."
"Siblings fight sometimes," said Itachi.
"I wouldn't mind. Sasuke and I fight a lot, but for the most part we get along. I think that's okay. And fightin' with him can be fun sometimes."
"Is that so?" Itachi asked, smiling at the blond. "What do you and Sasuke fight about?"
Naruto hummed. "All kinds of stuff. Let's see, the first time we fought was 'cause I told him he was too cynical and sarcastic. And then there was the time in the locker room when he said some pretty shitty things, but then he - " He abruptly stopped speaking and his face turned bright red. "Er. Anyway."
"What's with that reaction?" Itachi asked. "Why are you blushing?"
"I'm not blushing!" Naruto covered his face. "It's just really warm in here. Yeah, that's it!"
Sasuke chuckled, but Naruto elbowed him in the side.
"Ow, idiot!" Sasuke elbowed him back, and then Naruto shoved him in the shoulder, so Sasuke shoved him, too.
"Boys," Itachi said. "Get a room if you're going to be doing that."
They ended up breaking apart.
"But Sasuke always kicks me out of the room," Naruto mumbled.
"I wonder why that is," Itachi commented lightly.
"Because he's a jerk?"
"Tch." Sasuke turned to him. "You're such a moron."
"Well, it's not entirely a fair fight," said Itachi. "I'm sure you know that Sasuke's been training using martial arts since he was young. Maybe if you knew a few of those techniques, perhaps you could put him in his place more often."
"Did you take any lessons growin' up?" Naruto asked him.
"A few, I'd say," answered his brother.
Sasuke snorted. "He's being modest. He started even younger than me, and was way more advanced than I am now. In fact, he could match his own sensei in terms of ability. He could kick the crap out of both of us if he really wanted to."
"Really?!" Naruto sat up. "Will you show me somethin'?"
"I don't want to hurt you," said Itachi. "Plus, it's been a while. I'm sure Sasuke would make a much better teacher than me."
"But if you're better than him, then I wanna learn under you!"
"You shouldn't say that," said Itachi, "Or you'll make my brother jealous."
Again, Naruto blushed, so it was clear that he got the meaning of his brother's teasing. Sasuke didn't say anything. He wouldn't get too jealous. In fact, he also wanted to see his brother in action. It was the reason he'd gotten into martial arts in the first place. After seeing so many of his brother's matches, he wanted to be able to do that, too, but there was still such a huge gap in their abilities, no matter how hard he worked at it or trained.
"If you insist," said Itachi, and he stood up. "Stand up in front of me."
Obediently, Naruto got to his feet. Itachi put a hand on his shoulder and made sure there was about two feet's distance between them.
"Sasuke, you stand up, too. I want to make sure Naruto doesn't get hurt, so stand about a foot behind him."
Sasuke got up and did as he was told. He went to stand behind Naruto.
Itachi stood there a moment, and it appeared all he was doing was staring at Naruto. But, in an incredibly fast movement, suddenly Itachi gripped the back of Naruto's neck, and within less than a second, Naruto's knees gave out. Instinctively, Sasuke grabbed him in his arms before he could hit the floor. Even after Sasuke picked him up, Naruto couldn't immediately stand without his support.
"What the hell was that?" Naruto squawked. He was finally able to get to his feet, so Sasuke let go of him.
"I applied pressure to your carotid artery. Have you heard of a sleeper hold? It's a lot like that. If I applied pressure long enough, you would become disoriented and possibly even pass out. If I tried this on Sasuke, he would probably know how to counter it, wouldn't you?"
Sasuke nodded. "I could hit the pressure point in your elbow first so that you can't get a grip. If you actually had me in a hold, I could turn my head toward your elbow and alleviate some of the pressure on the artery."
"Should I show you another pressure point?" Itachi asked.
"Er," said Naruto. "Don't you wanna try it out on Sasuke?"
"I suppose I could. Sasuke, switch places with him. I don't think we'll need you Naruto, but take his spot just in case."
Sasuke smirked as he stood in front of his brother. "This brings back memories."
Itachi smirked, as well. "Doesn't it? Let's see how much you've learned since then."
"Hn. You're probably rusty - " He didn't even have time to finish before Itachi tried to strike a blow to his sternum with his left hand. Sasuke immediately countered by slapping at his wrist and misdirecting the blow, but he should've noticed that his brother didn't lead with his dominant hand. By the time he did, it was already too late, because Itachi grabbed a hold of his throat, right under his jaw, and pressed upward with his thumb and forefinger to cut off circulation.
It was surprising how quickly it worked, because he started to slip, but then he felt himself being caught from behind.
"Holy shit, you're like a fuckin' ninja!" He heard Naruto cry.
"Not exactly. It's a simple exercise. You can use minimum force on someone if you know about these points, and it makes it easy to disable an enemy without inflicting too much physical damage."
Sasuke stood up and frowned. "You're just showing off now."
"Don't be such a sore loser, Sasuke," said Naruto. "Your brother's fuckin' cool as hell."
"Yes, well why don't you marry him," he responded childishly.
"Maybe I will," said Naruto as he crossed his arms to his chest and scowled.
"As if you'd be my brother's type."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto asked. "I shoulda just dropped you on your ass right then. You were too busy bein' all cocky."
"Shut up," he said. "I could still take you."
"Oh yeah? Let's see you try then."
Itachi stepped between them, putting his hands on their foreheads to keep them separated. "As flattered as I am to have the two of you fighting over me, I assure you that I will not be marrying Naruto."
"Hey, what's wrong with me?" Naruto asked. "Why do you both act like no one would ever want to marry me? I'm not bad to look at, and I'm not a terrible person, and, and..."
"Shut up, Naruto," he said.
Itachi's eyebrow was raised. "I'm not sure what my brother's been telling you to make you feel so worthless, but if I was anywhere close to your age and interested in boys, I can tell you that I might consider it."
Naruto stopped being angry and began to grin goofily. "Really?"
Sasuke scowled. "Why do you look so happy about that?"
"Tch. You're just jealous," Naruto said, trying to take a swing at him, but Itachi was still keeping them apart.
"Why would I be jealous?" he asked. "I'd just hope my brother would have better taste than that. He could have anybody."
"Why you - " Naruto tried to go after him, so Sasuke reached out, too, except his brother grabbed them both by the wrists and swung them on the bed so hard that they bounced and practically landed on top of each other.
"Watching the two of you together is so ridiculous," said Itachi. "But now I see what you're dealing with, Sasuke, and I almost feel sorry for you. Although, not as sorry as I feel for Naruto. Now if you don't mind, I need 15 or 20 minutes to myself, but not for the same reasons as you, little brother. I'm going to take a shower. Don't forget that you promised Naruto you'd teach him something. You know Jirōbō will be coming, and so is Hidan. They'll probably want you to bring out your guitar."
"Really?" Sasuke asked, pleased by this information. "In that case, I might not even mind if Deidara comes with them."
"I'll be sure to tell Deidara you said that. Now if you two don't mind, take your little lovers' spat somewhere else."
Naruto started to sputter, but Sasuke climbed off of him and grabbed him by the wrist. "Come on then. Let's get this over with."
They walked past his brother and into the hallway. Upstairs is where the extra room was located, though they were using it partly as an office and partly as a place for Sasuke to store his keyboard and guitars. He also had some recording equipment up there, but he was really just starting with all of that stuff. After playing with some of the local bands and talking to other people, he became somewhat interested in music production and recording.
He dragged Naruto inside. There was a desk and a computer in the corner. He kept a lot of CDs on one of the shelves, usually sample mixes. He had a few originals, too, but only the accompaniment. He'd sung before when performing, but he didn't think he excelled at it, so he mostly just recorded the instrumental part. His song-writing wasn't particularly exceptional either, but it interested him to come up with verses, bridges, and choruses, and then weave all the lyrics together. It's not as if he ever would've showed anyone, and he had no intention of letting Naruto have a listen anyway.
There was a leather couch up against the side of the wall. He hoped Naruto would've taken a seat on it, but, instead, he went right to the keyboard and poked at the keys.
"This is so friggin' cool," Naruto exclaimed excitedly. He turned it on and pushed at some of the keys. Sasuke immediately turned it off again.
"You're going to break it, idiot," he said.
On the other wall, he had mounted his acoustic (Yamaha A3R) and electric (black and white Fender Telecaster) guitars. He was saving up to buy a bass, too, but the one he wanted would have to come from some store in L.A. He also really wanted a drum set, but it'd have to go in the basement, and he didn't really think his parents would appreciate the noise.
"Ah, this is the guitar that you were playin' in the picture!" Naruto pointed at the Telecaster. "Is it easier to learn the acoustic or the electric? Are they really all that different?"
"They're not that different," said Sasuke. "It depends on the person. I learned acoustic first. Most people do. The notes are the same, but the techniques for each are different. The strings on an acoustic are heavier, so once you get the handle on that, it's easy to transition to the electric. I finger pick on my acoustic, but I use a pick on my electric for the harder sounds, and it moves a lot faster, especially because I like to play punk and rock."
Naruto stared at him. "I..."
Sasuke raised a brow.
"I think I just fell a little bit in love with you," he finished.
Sasuke rolled his eyes and covered his face with a hand. "You're such a flake."
Naruto pushed his hand out of the way. "I am not a flake! I'm complimenting you!"
"You haven't even heard me play yet. Have a seat." He went to retrieve the acoustic before glancing back at the other boy as he moved to the sofa. "And don't touch anything."
Naruto put his hands up in the air. "I'm just sittin' here!"
Sasuke picked up the guitar and brought it over to the couch, slipping the strap over his shoulder. Strumming it a few times, he adjusted the tuning. Not that it had been all that long since he'd last played.
"Alright. I'll play through once so watch my fingers, and then I'll show you the fingering for the different chords and break it down into three parts, okay?"
"Okay," Naruto agreed eagerly. "I'll watch."
Sasuke took in a breath and began to play. Usually there would be a piano accompaniment, too. It was also very hard to play it without humming. Sometimes he watched his fingers, but he didn't need to or anything, it was just a habit. Sometimes he gazed ahead at nothing really, and other times, he'd glance at Naruto, who was nonstop smiling. He only looked up from Sasuke's fingers when Sasuke looked at him. It was funny. When he played, he always slipped into a whole other world. It was relaxing. It didn't bother him much to perform in front of other people either. As he finished, he gave a final strum at the end.
"What is that song?" Naruto asked. "I've never heard it."
"Ghost Towns is the name of it," he answered. "Now I'm going to show you how to play it. It's much easier if you break it up by parts. There's the verse, the bridge, and the chorus. The first verse has two chords, an E minor, and a C major." He demonstrated these for Naruto. "And here's the picking pattern." He repeated that for a while. "See how I just use two fingers? I pluck with my thumb downward on the E string, and then upward on the D string. And then after that, I strum downward with my fingernail on the second and third string." He played it. "And then I pluck the G string toward me."
"G-string?" Naruto asked, smirking at him. "Bet it's the first time you've done that, eh?"
"First and only," Sasuke murmured. "Jerk. Now pay attention."
"I bet guys can wear G-strings, too."
He did his best to ignore him. "Watch how I'm scraping it with my fingernail. It helps if you start off slow with the picking pattern and then go faster. You'll get used to it. The picking pattern stays the same throughout most of the song."
He repeated it for a while and then transitioned to the bridge. "The bridge has the same picking pattern as the verse, but I'm going to add chords. I go from the C, to three on the second string and two on the second string, and then A minor. And this is a G here, but that's sort of difficult to explain. But here's how it sounds. A minor. G. C. Walk up... and let go of the first string, and then we're at the chorus."
Sasuke played a little longer. "So we start with the E minor standard, and instead of the standard C, you hold it here and here so that you mute the fourth string with this finger. I'm muting the top string, too. Then the G, and I keep my pinky here so that it's sort of a D, but an F sharp at the bottom, and those are the chords, but together it's a bit of a slide."
"You realize I have no idea what you're talkin' about," Naruto said to him. "But this is still awesome as hell."
Sasuke smiled distractedly and played the chorus for him again, showing him where there was the first slide. "It starts with the picking pattern, the E minor, right? But the last pluck with my pointer finger is on the fifth string, then the third. Then I slide into the C." He stopped and looked at Naruto. "So, you go slow, and then slide. I go from the C," which he plucked, "and into the G." He moved his hand slow enough for Naruto to be able to follow it. "Open on the third, second on the fourth, third on the fifth. And I drop to the first on the fifth string. Then it goes back to the picking pattern."
"I don't think I could do this," said Naruto. "It looks way too complicated."
"Once you learn the chords, it's not so bad," said Sasuke. "With the parts, it's just verse, bridge, chorus, verse, bridge, chorus, and the chorus repeats twice at the end."
"Will you sing a little?" Naruto asked.
"You don't want to hear me sing," he replied as he started strumming from the verse.
"Pretty sure that I do. How about. If you sing just a line or two, I'll do somethin' nice for you?"
"Oh? What could you possibly give me that I might want?"
Naruto smirked. "I wonder."
"Hn. Yeah, right."
"Are you rejecting me already?" Naruto teased.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "One or two lines, that's it. I don't like to do what I'm not good at."
"I have a feelin' you have a great voice. You're so hard on yourself, Sasuke."
He shook his head and picked through the first verse, but sang on the bridge, his bare foot tapping on the floor.
"'Cause all my life is wrapped up in today. No past or future here. If I find my name's no good. I just fall out of line." And then the chorus. "But I miss you. There's no comin' home. There's no comin' home. With a name like mine. I still think of you. But everyone knows. Yeah, everyone knows. If you can, let it go."
He glanced at Naruto as he sang the second verse. "I've seen more places than I can name. And over time they all start to look the same. But it ain't the truth we chase. No, it's the promise of a better place."
Sasuke's voice was low and gruff, "But all this time, I've been chasin' down a lie. And I know it for what it is. But it beats the alternatives, so I'll take the lie."
He skipped most of the second chorus until, "I still dream of you, but everyone knows. Yeah, everyone knows. If you can, let it go."
Once the vocals were done, he played through to the finish. "Then you continue the picking pattern until the end, just dropping down as you change between the three chords." He stopped and lightly slapped the top of the guitar. "I'm sure that was very riveting for you. What's with that look?"
Naruto was biting his lip, and, with an odd sort of laugh, he glanced down at his lap and scratched the back of his head almost shyly. "I dunno what to say."
Sasuke was considerably amused by the idea of Naruto acting so coy around him. "I find that hard to believe."
"It's hard to imagine one person can be so talented, do y'know what I mean?" Naruto glanced up at him again.
Sasuke felt a bit embarrassed, though ultimately flattered. "It's not that big of a deal."
"So, what do you want?"
"Hm?" He slid the guitar strap off of his shoulder.
"For singin'. I said I'd give you somethin' nice."
"I don't know. Buy me lunch some time?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "That's all you want?"
He smirked. "Well, I would've asked for a handjob, but I know where you stand on that."
"Heh. I did get a bit turned on listenin' to you talk about A minor this and F flat, and sliding whatever. By the way," he said softly and sincerely to Sasuke, "I think you have a very good voice."
"I thought you said that men who only want me because I'm a musician aren't worthy?"
As calmly as he could while feeling slightly flustered by Naruto's praise, Sasuke got up to put the guitar back and stretched his arms out in front of him.
"Was that hard to do with your elbow?" Naruto asked, sounding concerned.
"It wasn't too bad. You did a good job of wrapping it."
After that, they exchanged a look he felt went on longer than necessary. Naruto appeared as though he had something on his mind, but he wasn't inclined to share.
"What's up?" he asked.
Naruto shook his head. He was leaning forward a bit, with his elbows on his knees, and when he tipped his head down, his bangs scattered across his forehead, partially covering his eyes. "I don't know exactly."
He smiled genuinely at him. "Did I impress you?"
Naruto started to bite his lip again. "Yeah."
"Well, if you're done gaping at me like a lovesick puppy," he joked, "Maybe we should go outside and put a pile of the firewood together for tonight."
"Has anyone ever told you...," Naruto tugged at the collar of his shirt and averted his gaze. "Er. Nevermind."
Sasuke approached him, sticking his hands in his pockets. "Has anyone ever told me what?"
"Nothin'."
Sasuke took another few steps closer until he was standing directly in front of him. He placed his hand on top of Naruto's head and ruffled his hair. "You want to do something nice for me? You can tell me what you were going to say."
"Sasuke," he whined at him. "It's embarrassing."
For some reason, Sasuke couldn't not grin at Naruto's whining. Usually it would've annoyed him, but this was... so adorable. Could he use cute to describe anything involving Naruto? Maybe not, but this was as close as it came. He did look embarrassed, and if Sasuke was a better person, he would've left it alone.
Instead, he crouched in front of Naruto in order to see his face.
"Naruto," he said softly and even put a hand on the boy's knee. "Are you going back on your word? I'm very disappointed."
Naruto scoffed, instantly raising his head. "I wouldn't do that, but you should ask for somethin' better! Like, I dunno! Um. I'm not really sure what I can offer you 'cause I can't tutor you in anything, and you can already do a bunch of stuff I can't, and... crap. Now I feel bad when I think about how much I suck compared to you."
Feeling guilty for taunting him, he dropped to his knees, between Naruto's legs, and settled his arms on the other boy's thighs for balance.
"What are you doin'?" Naruto asked.
"Begging?" He smirked.
"Yeah, right. Fine. I was just gonna say that," Naruto heaved a heavy, exaggerated sigh as if he mistakenly thought Sasuke might show mercy, "When you smile... like a few minutes ago..." He glanced away, "You... looked," he sighed one more time and mumbled the rest, "Kind of nice."
He couldn't help it. He started laughing at him.
"What? Don't... don't laugh at me, you bastard!" Naruto glared at him.
Sasuke was still laughing. He moved his arms from Naruto's legs and fell back on the rug. He lay there, wiping at his eyes because he'd started to cry from laughing so much.
Naruto got to his feet and stood over him. "You jackass! I take it back. Your smile is dumb and weird, and it freaks me out when you do it 'cause it happens so rarely!"
Placing his hands on his stomach, Sasuke looked up at him, head cocked to the side. "I knew my being gay would eventually rub off on you, but who would've guessed it would happen so soon?"
Naruto kicked at the inside of his ankle. "You suck."
"I'd be willing, yes."
"Don't give me that look," said Naruto.
"What look?" He asked innocently.
"That 'I'm gonna seduce you now' look."
"Me? You're the one going on about my smile."
Naruto huffed. "It's so hard to compliment you since you're always such an ass about it."
"Try it again. I'll do better this time." He held out his hand.
Naruto glanced at it suspiciously, but he did take hold of it, and as Sasuke pulled him, Naruto moved to kneel between his legs. Sasuke drew his own knees up so that they were on either side of him. Naruto used them for his armrests.
"Does this mean I'd be on top?" Naruto asked, the corner of his mouth quirking.
"Depends," he replied. "You could always ride me."
"Is that what you did?" Naruto's voice was low, and it almost looked like the blue in his eyes had turned darker, but it could've been the lack of adequate lighting.
"Is that what she did?"
"Hm." He pat Sasuke's knee. "I don't kiss and tell."
"Then neither do I."
Sasuke bit his lip as he gazed at the other boy. There was something almost seductive about Naruto when he had that intense, perceptive expression. It made him want more physical contact between them. He wiggled his left leg back and forth, meaning it to be playful but hoping Naruto's hand might slide down further, maybe more toward his thigh.
Instead, Naruto gripped it tighter so that he'd stop and pushed it up until it was pressed to the side of his leg again.
"What are you thinking?" He asked Sasuke. "Honestly."
"It's not easy to be honest with you," he replied.
"That's why I added the 'honestly' part, but what you just said there was honest, so I know you're capable of it."
"It doesn't ever seem to benefit me to be honest with you." He wiggled the other leg, and Naruto did the same, gripping it tight so that it stopped. He could feel the warmth and pressure of his fingers through the denim.
Naruto returned to resting his arms on Sasuke's knees. "You're still so evasive. I thought we'd really made progress earlier."
He smirked. "I wouldn't want you to think I'm easy. You might lose interest."
"I doubt it." Naruto said it so quickly it made Sasuke's heart skip a beat. Finally, his right hand slipped just a bit forward, inching down his leg. Naruto rubbed at the spot as if trying to get something off of it though there was nothing there. He scratched his fingernails across it; it seemed as though both of their attention was focused on Naruto's hand.
"Naruto," he whispered, knowing a little heat slipped into his tone.
"Hmm?"
"I thought we talked about you keeping your distance."
"I know. I thought about it. But I find it's... a bit difficult sometimes." With his eyes on Sasuke's, he shifted forward so that he was on his hands and knees, face in line with his stomach. "Your shirt's riding up." Naruto gave it a tug, knuckles dragging above the waistband of his jeans.
Sasuke reached for him and, gently, touched his cheek; Naruto moved into the gesture, turning his head so that his lips brushed against Sasuke's fingers. Then, he spared Sasuke a very knowing, provocative smirk.
"You suck," Sasuke said to him, his own eyelids becoming hooded.
"I bet you'd like that," Naruto replied.
"You have no idea." He sighed and closed his eyes, throwing an arm over them. Just looking at Naruto... he wanted so much. Wanted something to happen, and yet the anticipation, even if it never happened was burning him alive.
But, then he felt a hand slide under his shirt, equally as hot as it skimmed his lower stomach, jerking up his shirt as it went. He knew he let out a gasp. Another hand took hold of his hip while the other came to a stop mid-way up his stomach. It was when he felt hot breath ghost across his skin - just above his navel - that he uncovered his eyes and looked down to see nothing but blond hair. Because Naruto was, indeed, very cruel, he didn't stop there. He blew another puff of hot air against him, and it raised goosebumps all over his skin. Lowering his head, Naruto paused for a second or two before pressing his lips to Sasuke's stomach. Not a kiss, not even the pressure of a tongue - only the feel of his slightly chapped lips against him. Raising his head, Naruto brushed his nose along the dip of his belly-button and glanced up at him.
At the time, there had been a flash of humor in his eyes, but the instant he looked at Sasuke, it seemed to disappear, changing into something else entirely. Clearing his throat, Naruto tugged his shirt down for him and ran a hand over the front as if to smooth out any wrinkles. He searched Sasuke's face and looked as though he was trying to come up with the right words or an explanation. Sasuke didn't know any more than he did about what had just happened. He was still high on the feel of Naruto's fingers, his mouth, his hot breath on Sasuke's skin. He would've done absolutely anything at that point, anything Naruto would've wanted or asked for... he wondered if his eyes were conveying that, as well?
Naruto did seem to be caught between doing something more and pulling away.
When Sasuke spoke, it was with a very rough, wanting tone of voice. "Is this the part where I tell you to take responsibility?"
Naruto's laughter was equally hoarse. "I don't suppose you're wearing that chastity belt we talked about before?"
"If I ever was," he said, licking his lips, "I took it off during that 15 to 20 minutes I had to myself."
Naruto's eyes widened and his mouth formed a silent 'o'. He sat back on his knees, but one of his hands rested at the juncture where Sasuke's thigh met his hip. He probably wasn't even aware of it, but it was a very... distracting place to leave it.
"Seriously?" He asked, and when Sasuke nodded at him. "...Why?"
"I told you," he replied. "I'm attracted to you. You kept saying all the right things and snuggling up against me and... laying on top of me. What did you expect?"
Naruto's expression kept wavering in indecision. "So you said, but I didn't think you really meant it all that way. I just sort of thought you found me attractive-ish, not that you were so attracted to me that you got turned on..." He started to touch his lips with his index and middle finger. "You jerked off because of me?"
Sasuke stared at him. "Like I'm going to answer that out loud."
"Wait. Are you turned on now?"
"I probably won't be after another few minutes since you're acting like an idiot."
Naruto removed his hand as if on reflex. "Sorry. Should I say sorry? I'm not sure."
Sasuke almost laughed at him. "Maybe I should be the one saying thank you?"
Naruto gave him another one of those conflicted looks, but he remained quiet for a while, gaze somewhere around Sasuke's left front belt loop.
A few more minutes passed until he spoke again.
"If I ask... whether you thought about me," Naruto looked at him in earnest, "Would you tell me?"
"If I 'thought about you'?" Sasuke repeated. "Why does it matter?"
Naruto frowned and apparently forgetting himself, moved forward again so that he hovered over him on hands and knees. "It matters," he said. "Of course it matters. How can you ask that?"
"Because I don't see how it makes any difference. So what if I thought about you? You're still straight. I could lie to you if you don't want to hear it, if it will change things between us."
Naruto leaned down even closer to his face, scowling angrily. "I don't want you tolie to me. I'm not a little kid. You are honest when you're not always so afraid of the consequences."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "I'm not afraid."
"Aren't you? You're afraid I'll reject you. You won't be honest with your parents either."
"The fuck," Sasuke spat, trying to sit up but Naruto pressed the heel of his hand hard into the center of his chest.
"What?" said Naruto. "I thought we were bein' honest with each other."
"Get off of me, Naruto."
Naruto's eyes flicked back and forth across his face. "Why won't you just trust me?"
Sasuke glared. "I don't know how, okay? I don't know how to trust someone else. Even you."
"Okay." Naruto sat up and even got off of him. "If that's how you honestly feel, then there's nothin' I can say to convince you."
He left Sasuke lying on the rug, clearly disappointed with him as he walked out of the room and headed downstairs.
"Fuck," he said.
Who did Naruto think he was? He's the one that started doing all that stuff, and then he had the balls to be surprised that it was doing something to him? The hell? He couldn't decide if he should run after him and beat the shit out of him, or... what would have happened if he'd said yes to Naruto's question? If he'd told him the truth? Would it have changed Naruto's mind about being with him? Is that what he even wanted? He knew he wasn't opposed to something physical. Clearly.
Then he remembered what Naruto had said earlier about being afraid of something like that coming between their friendship. Were they friends? Sasuke thought so, though he wasn't likely to admit it. It was more than that, however. He wanted Naruto to stick around; he was more than attracted to him. But, he was afraid. If he was completely honest, yes, he was fucking terrified of pursuing anything more than that, but it was mostly because... what if Naruto could never feel that way about him?
Hadn't he just walked out on him because he'd realized what Sasuke had done? He hadn't looked disgusted, but...
No, that wasn't it. He wanted to pretend it was, but he knew that Naruto was disappointed in him because...
Well, that didn't matter anyway. He wasn't Naruto. It wasn't as easy for him to say how he felt and trust in people and rely on the truth or whatever stupid ideals that filled Naruto's empty skull.
He shouldn't expect that of him. He should accept Sasuke for who he is, including all of his faults and hang-ups!
This is how he'd survived for so long. These were his defenses. Why should Naruto be the exception? How could he demand it of him?
Sasuke covered his face with his hands.
What could he do? What did he even want?
When he'd had the idea of Naruto spending the weekend with him, it had unfolded so differently in his head, and now it had become something else altogether. It felt like there was no way of going back. Like, Naruto was this storm in his life demanding that he change, that he grow up, that he...should learn to... give up some of that control he struggled so much to keep hold of.
Fucking Naruto.
He should've been a dick to him on the first day. He should've continued trying to ignore him instead of getting more deeply involved. Now he was all confused about what to do and how he felt, and he was a person that never got confused. He'd always known where he was going, what path he was headed down, so who was Naruto to him that he'd let him be thrown off course?
Fuck that shit, he was Sasuke Uchiha, dammit. The hell he'd let some blond idiot get inside his head.
