AURORA
(N.) Dawn.
"Would you consider me?"
Shock is like a bucket of cold water, making you unable to react because the ice seeps into your bones. You feel the burning cold on your skin, but your throat is too tight and refuses to utter a single sound, let alone breathe until your body attempts to recover.
"What..." The blonde man looked up to Neji, trying to find visual proof that he heard Neji correct, surely the soft chatter around them had warped what he had heard. By the intensity of Neji's face, his assumption was proven wrong.
"What do you mean by that?" Naruto question to understand the deeper meaning of Neji's unusual request.
"Forgive me, I suppose I was a bit forward." Neji sat upright, the voices of others began to drain out when opal eyes met soft blue "I was hoping, that if you could view me in a romantic perspective." Anxiously, Neji pinched and pulled his trousers by the side, awaiting for an answer, reluctant to withdraw.
Taking Naruto's silence as confusion, he continued "I know that we've only just met after so long, but I need to ask." Neji shifted his weight to the other foot, his heart threatened to rip out of his chest with its pounding.
"But it'd be a lie to say these feelings are new. I've been fond of you for quite some time, back in high school." His fingers trailed up found themselves fiddling with the edge of his shirt.
"By the time I was able to muster my course, it was too late when you and Sakura began dating, I regretted for not telling you for fear of being rejected, which is why I'm telling you now." The pale violet eyes darted to scan Naruto's face, searching for any emotions that could tip him off of Naruto's thoughts, it wasn't difficult, Naruto was never good at hiding his feelings, it was his nature to wear his emotions out like a book.
"Why didn't you say anything before?" Naruto was baffled at the new information, while it explained many odd reactions Neji had given him, he didn't understand why Neji held on to romantic feelings instead of letting go, Naruto would have never believed that he was worth such strong emotions and dedication; while it was certainly flattering, it worried him.
Neji glanced to the side, confliction clouded the clear sapphire eyes, they needed to go to outside to talk about this sort of thing.
"Naruto." Neji stopped a moment to take a calming breath, logic was beginning to take control of his brain once again, but not enough to lose the rare burst of impulsiveness.
"We need to talk about this outside..." Neji insisted, the look in the pale lilac eyes were begging Naruto to oblige and follow the pale eyed man out the bar. Understanding the look Neji sent, Naruto obliged with appreciated compliance, sending a coy smile.
Both gentlemen stood up, paid their bill before heading out the exit, past the group of smokers which Neji attempted to hold his breath to avoid the heavy smoke puffs that were blown in their direction, he hated the smell of tobacco with a passion. It was practically powdered cancer.
Eventually they reached the back of the building, a small alley between the bar and a drugstore. What surprised Naruto was the lack of stench and unethical liquids, the bar must clean the area of body liquids on a daily basis for it to smell mildly of mint. At least area wasn't a problem for their upcoming discussion.
Naruto leaned to the side of the brick wall, cocking a leg under his other leg, his arms crossed impatiently, his blue eyes were uncertain, so he left it for Neji to start the conversation.
Under normal circumstances, a criminal would try to mug them, but one, they were in a higher class are so cameras were on 24/7 with a handful of bodyguards, and in addition, Naruto was clearly able bodied with the outline of muscle on his trained body.
That is to say, Neji wasn't useless, he was trained from a young age of martial arts, a tradition in his family. Nothing was going to attack them tonight.
Neji gave a fleeting look to Naruto before the blonde dropped his hands to the side, his head and eyes gesturing for Neji to explain himself.
"It wasn't because I was afraid you'd hate me." Already Neji felt his shoulders feel lighter, taking this as a rush of courage he bravely continued despite the risks, whatever the risks were anyway; this was better than regretting never knowing of he had a chance or not. The pain would be worth it.
"Breaking through that fear was so hard, growing up believing that an attrition to the same gender was a crime made me afraid of taking a step to tell you. The thought of being ostracized from my family clouded my mind." Neji had to tear away from the intense blue eyes that choked his resolve. His hand gripped his shirt with tightly winded fingers, he should have felt proud to have admitted his thoughts, but instead he felt heart wrenching shame course through his chest like the bleeding earth.
"You thought, I'd change my way of looking at you?" Naruto asked in exasperated disbelief, his confusion began to die down as enlightenment rose; this certainly explained why Neji often looked at Naruto with longing when they had been younger.
Neji slowly nodded, still refusing to look at Naruto from the uncertainty of things, it was reassuring the Naruto wouldn't hate him now, but he was still afraid of meeting cold, dismissive eyes.
"You always wore your heart on your sleeve, being so open and accepting to others. It would have been cruel of me to tell you of my feelings when I heard you started dating Sakura."
Naruto had a strong expression, almost hard, but despite the hard lines on his face, the blue eyes burned with something empathetic and sad.
"Never." Naruto's voice bordered from a whisper and sigh.
"You were my friend, how could you believe that your struggle would be a burden to me? Even if you thought it was for the best, it wouldn't have been best for you."
With silence, Neji was denying himself of Naruto's words. How typical of him to deny any sort of excuse. Without a word, Naruto understood Neji was thinking he wasn't worth that much as a person.
"No matter what goal it is, it's not stupid or fruitless. Believing in yourself is the most important thing, so don't ever tell yourself otherwise, I could never hate you for being honest with me."
Naruto was never the best with words but he was always upfront and blunt about his feelings and thoughts, more often than not, his words tended to surprise and cut through people, it must have been his sincere nature that made it impossible to resist his kindness.
Neji felt happiness surge inside his chest settle as something warm and kindling in his heart. "Thank you." He choked out, his throat seemed to have dried. Despite the tightening throat, all of the pain had gone and left, the fear faded away as if it was an illusion. A trick of the eye.
Maybe it was all in his head. But what was for certain, Neji had indeed confessed his feelings, and an answer was required, even Naruto knew that much.
Taking a breath of humid air, Naruto calmed the sinking feeling in his chest to properly reply.
"As for your confession…" Large hands fiddled with one another with a tentative nature.
Naruto smiled lovingly and clutched Neji close to him. Neji's eyes widened at the sudden intimacy, it gave Neji some hope, but the regretful stare in his friend's eyes told otherwise.
The body heat molded together, the rough, gentle fingers pressing Neji close, and the voice that carried a nurturing tone reassured Neji. This was going to be a rejection, Neji knew, but he wasn't upset or angry. Sadness prodded his weary heart, but relief was a fresh burst of water in his dry heart. There was nothing he had to hide now, he could move on.
"I care about you a lot Neji,"
The flaxen haired boy felt Neji clutch Naruto closer. Neji nodded in understanding, letting Naruto finish so that things would end on a satisfied note.
Naruto whispered into Neji's ear in a gentle voice.
"But I can't return your feelings, I'm sorry."
"I love you." Neji announced in a breathy, low sigh. Just one last time.
"I know..."
Sasuke stared at the entries of many eager artists. They all held a unique, intense feeling with their work, there was skill. Each were different but they all held the same empty undertone. The colours were beautifully arranged, but that's what they were. Just colours, there wasn't any life in them, just empty feelings; this tainted their art, the obsession with money destroyed them and their gift for art was a drowned in greed.
Naruto was different. Naruto painted without limit without a care of money; that was evident in his artwork.
In the vast city of smoke, money, and people, money became an obsession for everyone, it spread like a disease, purging every one of the correct morals, but it seemed that Naruto was immune to the immoral obsessions in society.
Naruto's paintings were often intense with emotion. Some tragically dark, some bittersweet but still beautiful, though each held a darker theme, not a single painting felt empty.
When someone looked at Naruto's art, they feel the emotions emanating from it, forcing the observers to empathize.
I guess Naruto really is our best shot to winning this Sasuke admitted to himself. Lazily he dropped his pen and found himself pinching between his eyes to get rid of the throbbing in the center of his brain, his stress was taking a toll on him.
Sitting back, his chair rolling back from the shift in weight.
Giving 5 minutes of silence, his headache settled and he sat up to stretch his arms, tightening his muscles and releasing the aches in each tendon from sitting for too long, the mild fever was still lingering a bit after catching it.
Sasuke had been working since ten in the morning, he must have worked for a long time to feel this tired, his eyes darted to the left wall, the ticking clock showed with pride it was quarter after eight.
Whatever his pea brain could think of, I better call check up on the moron Sasuke thought with the days that have passed without much contact. Shikamaru organized the professionals from their company to help Naruto refine his idea so they'd stand a better chance of passing through the first cut off contest.
His hand hovered right above his cell phone, maybe it wasn't a good time to call Naruto. The blonde might be busy. Then again, he didn't care what the airhead was doing. Not really.
When he thought about it, Naruto had been someone he had a close bond with. They argued and fought from the beginning, which made their friendship that much stronger. Originally he wanted to cut off close relationships and lock all emotions when he was adopted. He managed to lock away the memory of who Naruto was and what he meant to him.
By forgetting his face, his voice, his personality, and his kindness; simply erasing the memory, Sasuke was able live as a compassionless business man. The fact that people tried to use him when he was at the top hardened this characteristic. He was the man that could take Itachi down by using whatever was necessary, hurting people wouldn't slow him down because he had become immune to such things.
Sasuke thought back to his past actions. If actions spoke for a person, Sasuke was a cold hearted person who had done many heartless things; it was clear Sasuke was a terrible person, and deserved some punishment in the future, but that didn't matter, as long as he succeeded in finding his brother Itachi.
Yes, after Itachi received his retribution, he wouldn't care if the world threw him in the pits of hell. He'd burn in contentment.
But the fact that Naruto appeared again in his life, the locks on his hardened heart rusted away and the icy layer began to melt. Sasuke knew Naruto was his weakness, his impulse to kiss the loud mouth was proof.
Naruto was a problem in his life, an annoying weed.
A dandelion.
A symbol of persistent hope, happiness and faith.
Naruto remembered Sasuke.
There was without a single doubt, Naruto would pursue Sasuke to show his emotions he had so carefully locked away.
Ever since they were kids, Naruto was the only person that could drive Sasuke out if control. The cool, refined boy would turn into a rude, passive aggressive adolescent when it came to the wild blonde.
Not only was the blonde passionate, he was wild, headstrong, and reckless too; but the one thing Sasuke could never forget about Naruto was his unwavering compassion and warmth.
The scene of Naruto building a grave for a dead fox kit was the most endearing and haunting memory of the bright flamboyant boy. It was disturbing to see the dull blue in his eyes, to see every sense of cheer gone. As much as Sasuke hated to admit, Naruto being his usual rambunctious self was better than a quiet one. Loud was just a huge part of him.
Sasuke recalled the time when he caught a fever when he was still summer, before the winter tragedy occurred. The orphanage had its own medicine but it was terrible quality and overdue.
Sasuke tried to sleeping off his fever because the medicine was ineffective, then one day, in the middle of the night, Naruto threw pebbles at his window like in the movies, only it was wasn't romantic at all considering Sasuke had a black eye from the stones.
Thankfully the pebbles were smoothened by constant running water from the river. Naruto eventually realized the window was open and climbed up the roof after brutally battering his face with stones. Sasuke made a mental note to return the bruises to Naruto the next day, which he never actually did.
Sasuke chuckled quietly to himself, out of everyone he knew from the orphanage, his soft spot was reserved for Naruto.
Naruto invaded Sasuke's room to drop a plastic bag with medicine he bought at the pharmacy, falling into the room by tripping over the window.
"Hey, Sassy Su! I hope you feel like shit since I went through the trouble to get you some medicine that works." The little blonde boy said to his friend before brushing off the mud on his cheek. By the dripping bottom half, he must have travelled across the river for a shortcut to the drugstore.
"I even asked if they had something get icicles out of a person's ass, but they said they didn't have anything for it." The blond added, muttering to himself, thinking the raven didn't hear him when really, Sasuke chose to ignore him.
"The old man there owns a little mini-pharmacy place and he gave me the medicine half off! The ramen ain't bad either!" Naruto chuckled, his petulant nature taking over. Eventually after a brooding half hour of Naruto chatting away and insulting Sasuke, Naruto began to head to the window to leave, Sasuke felt his heart sink. He wanted to speak, but his voice was too hoarse and dry to utter a sound, his throat was a desert; he didn't want to be alone, he just wanted to say something.
Naruto turned, seemingly to have sensed Sasuke's unspoken distress.
"Dickface, you better be better by tomorrow or else I'll personally kick your ass off the roof. It's no fun without someone to argue with." Naruto's bright smile softened to almost looking dejected, but his eyes looked at Sasuke gratefully.
"You're my best friend after all."
A soft chuckle escaped his mouth.
The medicine Naruto had gotten him was actually diarrhea medication. How Naruto was able to mix up cold medicine with medication he would never know. Naruto simply shrugged his shoulders and said that Sasuke acted like an asshole and it would have done him good to get it treated.
Only the biggest knucklehead could be capable of such thinking.
"The biggest idiotic blonde on the planet..." Sasuke smiled to himself, catching himself daydreaming when he should have been working, he had a phone call to make and he'd been busy procrastinating, how irresponsible of him.
"Who's the idiotic blonde?" A familiar, low growl inquired.
Immediately Sasuke knew it was the gregarious blonde he'd been daydreaming of. However, that didn't mean he expected to see Naruto, nor could his heart pounding against his ribs.
As expected there was a grin plastered on to the blonde's face when Sasuke turned to him.
"Well if you put your brain to use for once, you'd be able to figure who I was talking about, of course be aware of the risk of short circuiting your dead brain when doing so." Sasuke jested arrogantly, amused at the blooming red on the tanned skin from wither anger or embarrassment, most likely both.
"Shut up, you're the one who is brain dead, you couldn't even remember me when we met at the cafe." Naruto retorted hotly, teeth gritted.
"Says the one who tripped over his own feet and spilled coffee over me in public." Sasuke smirked, tilting his head up to observe Naruto struggle over a witty comeback.
The blonde silently sulked as it was evident Sasuke had won this round.
"Cat got your tongue?" Sasuke teased.
Naruto stuck his tongue out.
How mature.
"What are you, five? How typical for you to settle on to such childish behavior."
"Well too bad for you but I'm not dead last all the time asshole. I'm pretty popular and cool." Naruto bragged, slightly miffed at Sasuke's arrogance, and his desire to rile him up was quite strong.
"With your friends?"
"Well I don't mean to brag, but I've been in some solid relationships before too."
It shouldn't have bothered him, but the twitch in his chest rubbed Sasuke the wrong way.
"And I expect you're currently in one as of the moment?"
"Nope. Recently mine ended." Naruto calmly replied before flashing a cheeky smile. "Why? You curious or something?"
"Not really. I just find it hard to believe you were capable of such things."
The smile of Naruto's dropped to a mild frown, sending waves of sinking guilt in the pit of Sasuke's stomach.
"You're one to talk, you're not exactly in one either." Naruto bitingly pointed out, finding Sasuke's words more insulting than hurtful.
Realizing that he'd sound colder than he had meant to, he reached for Naruto's arm to grab his attention to allow him to explain himself. If there were any misunderstandings in the situation it would no doubt provide difficult obstacles in the future, and Sasuke would rather work with a compliant Naruto in contrast to an angry one, it would be horribly tiresome to please an irrational person such as Naruto when it came to tempers.
"It's fine." Naruto assured with hushed tones with unexpected forgiveness, any traces of malice were gone. For a moment, Sasuke wondered if the man standing before him was the same rough boy he knew from childhood. Where there was once intense defiance and chaos, a soft blue lived in peace with the fire.
Thinking on it with more logic, it made sense to see the wildness less angry now. Naruto had grown up without him, time had changed Naruto as it has changed everyone. There wasn't a doubt that Naruto must have found new company to call friends, made memories without him there.
This shouldn't have been a surprise, but it was with struggle that Sasuke had to accept that Naruto had other important people he cared about.
"You didn't mean it, you were just being passive aggressive like usual, same old same old huh? The reason I came around today is cause I heard you were still sick, so I dropped some medicine by your table." His thumb gestured behind him of the plastic bag filled with medicine on the spare table. Glancing from the table to Naruto, Sasuke couldn't help but feel irritated by the familiar scene play before him, he was aware Naruto must have been thinking about the same past.
"I can take care of myself." The prideful man told with a cold stare with the assumption that he couldn't care for himself. With a click of a tongue, Naruto couldn't disagree. "Of course. But I can still worry about you and your oh so charming personality." The blonde warmly replied with a toothy grin.
Finding his walls crumble at the sincerity of Naruto's words, Sasuke refrained from saying another word in case he'd find himself lowering his guard without knowing.
With a sudden pat on the back, Naruto was passing by Sasuke, waving goodbye. This should have left him feeling relieved he could be left alone again, but a question spilled out after having being locked for years. "Did you mean it?" Images of winter began flooding in, the desperation and fear of watching Naruto fade into snow left a tight sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Naruto's last words were repeating as a mantra.
"It made me happy that we were rivals."
The bitter cold blew through Sasuke like a virus when the once vibrant eyes closed. The golden lashes were lazed with frost, like death had kissed each last to leave a shivering imprint.
The casual steps stopped, and Naruto turned with a confused expression "You being charming? Pft, no, ever heard of sarcasm?"
"I meant the last time we spoke before I left, do you even remember what you said?"
Naruto remained silent in contemplation before his tense shoulders went slack and he nodded, keeping his voice calm and monotone which was strange to hear Naruto wear such a lacking voice "Yes for the first, which applies to the second question. Why bring it up now?"
That was a good question, Sasuke didn't understand why he remembered that particular scene at that specific moment, in fact he had avoided all childhood thoughts until Naruto came back with heavy sprouts of melancholic nostalgia.
"You said you were glad we were rivals, that being my equal was something important to you."
Nodding without hesitation, Naruto recalled those words. Under the cloudy sky with burning winds and needled water, his only comfort as he was dying was that he meant something to someone. "Yeah, I remember, you still are, even if you've changed." Honest eyes locked on to Sasuke's, something similar to empathy poured through the blue orbs, his body was facing Sasuke.
It could have been recognized as sadness, but there was something inviting with such complicated eyes. There was no limit in courage and faith, like how a child is ignorant to limitations set by society, but they were an aged blue as well; polished with time and experience, allowing something beautiful to be born from hardship.
Simultaneously Sasuke felt bitterness bloom inside him out of jealousy. The man before him was just like Sasuke, yet so different. Naruto had chosen to forgive and forget the past mistreatment, while Sasuke was stained and consumed by a past he couldn't bear to turn his back on, a pearl that was filthy and tainted.
Sasuke could only stare with soft disagreement "Those are some very naïve words Uzumaki, you'd be much better off moving on once we're done with the contests, for both of our futures."
As much as the idea that someone had never forgotten him made Sasuke's resolve waver, it was unacceptable to believe in such a blatant lie. Many people passing through his life promised similar things, to never leave the company, to serve their time in helping his plan, and one of the favorite clichés, save him from the darkness of his desperate need for revenge.
He wasn't suffering in darkness, that'd be shameful to do so, he accepted it and wanted it to manifest because it was an opportunity to gain more power over the world. It was by his own choice that his obsession grew with a hunger for power.
Growing up, Sasuke understood that in the material world and in people, money ruled over them. Despite being human too, Sasuke was no ordinary human.
People start off their lives with a passion, only to have them burn away and leave them hollow and weak against shameful desires, but Sasuke had lost so much as a child, that he could not simply forget the hot burning fire that consumed the pieces of his family and the life he knew. Power ran the world without fail, and power was what Sasuke would achieve. Once he reached the limit, he'd find Itachi, and use everything to send him to hell, even if it left Sasuke empty and broken.
"What right do you have to say that?" Naruto questioned him "You're treating it like everything is all over before anything began."
"It's called being realistic. That sort of mindset will be your downfall. Being naïve will only make the betrayal worse when it happens, its better off if you reformed your values." Said Sasuke, looking down on Naruto's blindness. If it was anyone else, Sasuke wouldn't have warned them of how dangerous it was to be so gullible since he didn't owe anyone anything. Naruto was a different case entirely, and the sight of a broken Naruto was disturbing to imagine, and would have been preferable to avoid, even if that meant change.
With silence, Naruto would have shook his head in disagreement, instead, he spoke with his eyes that Sasuke was wrong with his angled face and tightened jaw until he crossed his arms.
"Perhaps I'm naïve, it's not the first time someone said that, but I'd rather keep that trait if it meant I'd lose a part of myself."
Amused, Sasuke swept any lingering cynicism away, allowing his irritation fade away. He just had one last question to ask before letting this go "What's the reason you want to stay by me?"
"You're the first person to accept, my first friend, and even my first kiss. Naturally I can't just say goodbye to someone I grew up. By believing things are over before trying, I'd never get anywhere." Naruto replied without hesitation, though his voice was mildly tense. "You were―are, my best friend since we were kids, and I knew you were miserable, but I didn't do anything about it back then. I pretty much abandoned you when I found a home, but I couldn't forget, not ever."
Soon, the atmosphere felt much more settled and calm. Taking Sasuke's questions a good sign, Naruto found his abrasiveness pressing down on his curiosity.
"Do you want me stay?" He didn't mean for his uncertainty to take over, but after Naruto returned the favor he'd been holding to, the thought of leaving Sasuke's life once again was rather frightening. Having already found Sasuke, winning the art competition wasn't his priority anymore now that it was unnecessary. Asking out loud the question, it made Naruto much more aware of the sinking loneliness if Sasuke disliked Naruto's company.
"If you're asking such a question now, clearly I've failed to be clear. For the moment, yes."
"And then what?"
Taking a tight breath, Sasuke couldn't meet Naruto's eyes in fear that he'd lose his grip on himself. "You may choose to stay with Uchiha corporation, or leave for something else," eventually he couldn't resist the intense blue gaze "Of course, you signed contract that you'd work for my company, so do feel obligated to stay if you want to keep a steady income." He smirked before he dismissed himself from the room, Naruto following with quiet pondering and breaking down of Sasuke's reply.
When they reached the end of the hall in front of the elevator doors, Naruto finally spoke with bafflement "Wait, so you want me to stay?"
At the edge of rolling his eyes, Sasuke nodded, heart beginning to tighten by the sudden embrace of warm arms. It was too sudden and shocking at first, no one really hugged Sasuke like this for years.
While Sasuke was certainly no virgin when it came to sexual endeavors, he was never the type to feel any affection with the people he used in bed, he was still foreign to love.
Being famous in the business world, many people have, and still try to seduce his heart to call it theirs, however, Sasuke never wavered against the bribes, the threats, and blackmail.
More than one have threatened to kill themselves, Sasuke gave a blind eye to them, for he knew despite their claims, they didn't love him at all.
He didn't care about them. It wasn't because he was heartless, the people that went as far to use their own life to force their love proves how filthy and twisted they were to go so far to manipulate others to get what they want; it reminded Sasuke too much of himself. To be fair, the ones who said they'd kill themselves, never followed up to their promises when Sasuke turned his back on them, which only further proved his belief.
In his line of work, no one was really 'innocent' if they were successful. To be at the top, using dirty tactics was the only way to survive in the real world, which was why every person he'd met, was a greedy soul that left a bitter taste in his mouth, leaving him drained and emptier than before.
Compared to the sexual acts he's done with strangers, this hug was something new, and seemed more intimate than something common as sex. It was so gentle yet firm, delicate in the moment but balanced and safe to Sasuke.
Naruto's golden aura and body heat was welcoming and it was too soon when he withdrew and the heat faded from Sasuke. His smile failed to be modest despite the attempts to hold it back, Naruto simply couldn't hold back the happiness that Sasuke wanted him to stay. Rubbing his neck in embarrassment, Naruto took a quick step back while avoiding eye contact "Sorry, you probably dislike close contact, sometimes I act impulsively when I'm happy."
Still stiff and tingly from the embrace, Sasuke nodded again, wordless because he was still lost on what to reply that would have been acceptable.
Although Sasuke charmed many upon meeting strangers, he wasn't a social person as he lacked any sort of outgoing characteristics. In a simple view, he was a man that was desired by a range of people, but he wasn't anyone's friend or lover; he was an object of desire, which trained Sasuke to instinctively push people away with his cruel betraying words.
But right now, he understood that cutting Naruto off now would have been a wise choice for his goals; Sasuke knew Naruto was an obstacle right now, but he couldn't bring himself to push him away, his body refused to move with the intention of anything unkind when it came to Naruto, someone who'd always approach him with good intentions.
Without much to say, both left the office to leave the building, Sasuke mindful to grab the plastic bag filled with cold medicine.
Quietly, both stood comfortably beside each other. The tiny room had no music as they waited for the elevator to descend to the first flour, leaving both feeling uncertain about their current position. Quietly, Sasuke glanced at Naruto's hand beside his, it was quite fascinating to compare their skin shades. Naruto was a warm sun kissed cinnamon that looked welcoming with his loosely curved finger despite the broad bone structure.
Shaking away any lingering thoughts of Naruto's hand and presence, Sasuke focused on his schedule for tomorrow. A call was to be made and discuss cheaper shipping services at 10 am, by 10:30 am, he needed to work on his speech to introduce his company to gain supporters from other big shot companies until 1 pm, then he needed to call the—
All thoughts and planning ceased when strong fingers carefully grasped his cold hand, holding with uncertainty. Tentatively, Sasuke turned to Naruto with confusion. The only answer Naruto offered was his body language. Lips were nervously thinned, eyes fanned to avoid confrontation, and a faint trace of pink was visible on the tips of his ears.
With a soft swallow of air, the cold feeling in Sasuke's chest had left after years of getting used to, allowing Naruto's warm heart to comfort his. Sasuke curled his fingers around the hesitant fingers and squeezed, before he knew it, he was falling into something unknown and he was terrified.
"I love you."