An:: It's such a dramatic change when I write my stories in 7.5 font and go to size nine. It makes me feel like I've accomplished a lot ;)

OOO

Broken Chapter 3 : Sweet Sixteen

I woke up to Rat Lady screaming in my face. She had been so nice to me at first, but that was only because I was dealing with the beginning pains of my parents' deaths. Everyone told me I'd get better, but I only got worse.

It seemed to bother Rat Lady that I never fully healed from the fire. For me, it was what I wanted. It bothered her that I would only speak when spoken to first, and that I spent my time sitting on the window seal like I had that first night in the orphanage. Everyone expected me to recover, but instead I spent my time building barriers around myself so I wouldn't recover.

Rat Lady, I soon learned, hated me. She would constantly give me tasks that involved other kids around me. At first, everyone crowded around the 'new boy', but after many glares coming from my side, most people soon backed off. Rat Lady seemed to hate me because I wasn't afraid of her, nor did I get upset at her angry words. This bugged her, she was used to power.

But Rat Lady was exactly the type of person I needed. Someone who would hate me, not love me. She was perfect; it seemed masochistic that I would do stupid things to receive punishments from her. Anything that would make it seem like no one liked me, that no one cared, those small things made me feel happy even if I made no move to show it.

Still, I cherished the day that I would finally leave the orphanage, looking forward to it every second of my life.

That day finally came eight years later. The mental wall around me was strong enough to repel even Rat Lady. No one smiled at me anymore, no one ever tried to talk to me as my replies were usually two to three syllables. No one cared about me, and I cared about no one.

I first saw my new guardian in Rat Lady's open house. The second he looked into my eyes I could feel pain. He knew what I'd gone through, and I knew he'd gone through something similar. He had a mask over his nose and mouth, and a bandana over his left eye. It was like he was hiding himself from the world, like me.

He seemed perfect.

"Are you sure you want Sasuke?" Rat Lady warned, sending a glare in my direction. The man nodded, his silver hair flopping into his covered face. He brushed his hair away

"I'd be glad to take him off your full hands," the man spoke. Rat Lady looked relieved, but at the same time, it looked as if she felt the need to warn him about me.

"Sir, I know how much you might like the boy now, but he never talks," Rat Lady tried to explain. The man just held up one hand, not wanting to hear more. "He doesn't do anything, for that matter," she exclaimed.

"That won't change my mind," the man said. He spoke calmly, without much expression. I don't know how, but after all those years of closing my self off to people, I seemed to be opening myself up to him, just the slightest bit. I wanted to know more about him, why he seemed so much like me.

Rat Lady gave the man a warning look as if to say 'you'll regret it'. "He doesn't like anyone, how can you be so sure he'll be happy?" Rat Lady asked, "It won't make you happy to have an unhappy child,"

The word child ripped at my heart. Would that mean he was to be my parent, the one thing I didn't want in my life. The one thing that would bring back the memories of my parents, that would bring back the nightmares.

I crossed my arms and glared at the man; suddenly, I didn't care whether he suffered the same past, I couldn't open up to anyone, I would not love.

The car ride to his house was uneventful. Little was said, and I was glad for it. He wasn't a man of many words, and neither was I. The less talking, the less we'd pretend to get along. And the less likely I'd be shipped back to the orphanage to suffer from Rat Lady's punishments.

I looked him up and down, "father," I sighed, not calling him father, I never would. I wouldn't return to my past. The word felt like venom in my mouth. It was thing I'd said in six years where someone hadn't asked me a question first.

The man looked at me, "My name is Kakashi, you don't need to call me your father if you don't want to." He said, his voice broken slightly. "I know I could never be a father to you," somehow, the thought that he knew my past, that he knew how I felt fell into my mind. I nodded.

"My name is Sasuke," I said, my voice was dry and bland. I never talked with any expression, nor did I ever display my feelings. If Rat Lady made me feel like shit, I wouldn't cry about it, not in front of anyone else, anyway.

"I know," Kakashi said, shaking his head. He didn't look at me, but he kept his eyes on the road at all times. I couldn't see his expression, like he was hiding just as much as I was. "I know what it's like to loose someone you love," Kakashi said quietly. My head snapped in his direction.

"Your uncle, he died before you were born," Kakashi began, "Was my best friend." I stared at him. My uncle, I'd heard of him before, but rarely was he talked about. He died when my father was two, they were twelve years apart. I never knew the whole story, and completely forgot about him now.

It didn't matter how they all died, my whole family but Itachi and I were gone now.

"He died saving me," Kakashi said, for the first time since I met him, he spoke with expression. I guessed this was a pretty big thing for him "He pushed me aside, and the car hit him instead," Kakashi shook his head.

"You must feel guilty over the death of your best friend, then," I said. Kakashi laughed,

"Yes," he sighed, "But I got you to say more than four syllables at once," he laughed, I caught myself before I smiled. It wouldn't have been a real smile anyway.

The emotionless mask was back on my face when we reached his house minutes later. It wasn't large, but I didn't expect it to be. We weren't in the Uchiha District, I didn't expect the houses to be fancy.

Even though all the Uchihas but Itachi and I were gone, the district where our family once lived was still named after us, to honor the great, noble family that once lived there.

Kakashi killed the engine of the car and turned to me, "welcome home," he said. I think he smiled, but I couldn't tell through his mask. He walked around the car and opened the passenger door, holding it open for me.

I didn't expect kindness like this, and it ripped a hole through my heart. I didn't deserve this. I pushed the emotion out of my head, and got out of the car. I nodded as I made eye contact with Kakashi's one eye. He nodded in return, seemingly surprised at the gesture. It was some kind of friendship, I guessed.

"Here's your room," Kakashi said, extending his hand towards the plain room in front of us. I blinked, slowly taking a step towards the white bed. Everything was white, except for the black computer on a desk in the corner of the room. "I hope you like it,"

I nodded and sat down on the bed. It was better than sleeping with little kids always asking you to read them bedtime stories. I looked into Kakashi's face, or what little of his face I could see.

"Well," he said, I was sure from the tone of his voice, that he was smiling, "Do you like it?" I couldn't think of what to say, years had gone by without me expressing any emotion towards anyone, and I couldn't quit now. I wasn't even sure if I remembered how to be sincere and thank Kakashi for what he was doing for me. To be honest, I didn't know if I actually appreciated it.

I nodded, it was better than talking, or saying something stupid so that Kakashi would look at me weirdly and walk away. At least I was showing some kind of thanks without getting over emotional about it.

I wandered around the room, everything was white and bland. It was perfect for me, I guessed. Nothing showed that I would be interested in anything, and I really didn't like anything. It was perfect in every sense of the word. I watched Kakashi turn and leave, quietly shutting the door behind him. I looked down at my feet, no one had ever been this kind to me since my parents were alive.

I shook it off. Uchihas were not weak, so why should I be?

I laid back on the bed. It was soft and comforting to my back, the complete opposite of the hard beds of the orphanage. I sighed and looked up at the ceiling. It was white like the rest of the room, a white fan hanging from the center of the ceiling for when it got too hot in Konoha. I closed my eyes, letting my mind wander.

"Sasuke," I heard Kakashi's voice echo though my ears. I checked the clock, 5:00. I guessed it would be time for dinner. I opened the door to my new room and walked down the stairs. I had left my shoes in my room, but the carpet felt good against my socked feet. I walked into the kitchen, Kakashi was talking with another man, his dark brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail.

"So, Kakashi, this is the boy?" the man asked, turning towards me with friendly eyes. I looked away from him, not daring to make eye contact. "The Uchiha?" he added, my head snapped up. How did everyone seem to know who I was?

"Yes," Kakashi said, he gave the man a thumbs up, then turned to me. "Sasuke, this is Iruka, he's our neighbor." I nodded towards the man, Iruka. Kakashi turned back to Iruka, "Where's Naruto?" he asked.

"He's at soccer practice," Iruka sighed, "I told him once he got home to come on over," the man checked his watch, "He should be coming soon,"

And as if Iruka said the magic words, there was a knock at the door, and I was sent to open it. A tall blonde boy stood in the doorway wearing his soccer uniform and flip flops, and holding a pair of socks and cleats in his hands. He gave me a strange look and walked past me, He dumped his sports bag on the ground in the hallway, leaving his disgusting-smelling cleats and socks on top of his bag.

"Hey, Iruka," he smiled, a genuine smile on his face. A smile that I could never manage to copy or ever muster, not even from the bottom of the black abyss that some people would call a heart.

"Who's he?" the blonde boy asked, pointing at me and not trying to cover up his rude gesture. I glared at him, it wasn't common courtesy to point at someone.

"Sasuke Uchiha," Kakashi answered promptly, giving Naruto a warning look, "His parents are dead and now he's living with me," I nodded, hoping I looked somewhat thankful for Kakashi saving my ass.

Naruto shrugged and sat down in a seat at the round table. I noticed Kakashi had lived alone until now, so it made me wonder why his table was large enough to fit five people. I sat down across the table from the Naruto, and listened idly to Kakashi and Iruka's conversation.

"You look like you have a stick up your ass, Uchiha," Naruto hissed across the table. I glared back at him, he was being a pain in the ass, and like everyone else, I was sure I wouldn't like him either. Naruto smirked and shrugged. "What, can't I speak my mind?" he asked, teasing me in a baby voice. No, I was wrong, I wouldn't not like him…I would hate him.

I thought of growling at him, possibly to say something rude in return. But I stayed emotionless, keeping the hatred towards this boy to myself. I turned away and tuned out of the world, humming in my head to keep the noises from the kitchen out of my mind.

Naruto's eyes were focused on me, and I could feel his gaze, looking me over. Dinner was slow, Naruto munched with his mouth open, letting everyone see the food in his mouth.

The dinner was great, it really was. It was the most decent meal I'd eaten in many years. But the conversation bored me. I got up, nodding my thanks to Kakashi and exiting the room. It was impolite, sure, but I was never one to be nice to someone. After eight years of blocking my emotions from other people, I wasn't even sure I could be nice to anyone.

Damn Itachi to hell…

That night, the nightmares returned. I twisted in my sleep, fearing that after everything that Kakashi did for me today, Itachi would burn this house down too, or kill Kakashi mercilessly while I was away at school. It almost scared me to think I had to go back, to leave the safety of my home and dare the days of high school and the obvious emotions of everyone around me.

Emotions, out of everything to be afraid of, besides Itachi, showing anything more than the emotionless mask I would wear, truly frightened me. The fact that someone would know how I was feeling, to try and comfort me, to get to close. To think that I would have friends, people who would be put in danger when Itachi came back to look for me. I couldn't deal with it. What if I put another person in danger, what if someone else was killed because of me. After suffering through the deaths of my parents, I wasn't sure how far I could go with someone else, when there was a murderer after me who could kill someone with a couple of punches to the gut.

The fire came back to my mind, visions of Itachi killing Kakashi played back again and again in my mind, until I woke up to the shaking of my bed. I looked around, could Itachi have already come? Shivers were sent down my spine as I looked out the window. Everything was calm, serine, and perfect. My arms unconsciously wrapped around my body, holding me together so I wouldn't explode. I reached one arm out to turn on the light, and I realized that my body was the source of the shaking.

I got out of bed and put on my sweatshirt. It was warm and soft, and I felt somewhat secure wearing it. I walked back to my bed, holding onto anything that was sturdy enough to keep me from falling to the ground with every step I took. My body refused to stop shivering, and It wasn't from the cold, but from the possibility of Itachi coming back to finish me off once and for all.

I closed my eyes and got into bed. I buried my head into my pillow and took a few deep breaths. It happened before, but not nearly as bad as now. Whenever I thought about Itachi, my body seemed to go crazy, but never before had I needed to protect someone like Kakashi, so never before had the shivering gone to it's maximum as it was now. The one thing I refused to do; however, was let my emotions get to me, I blocked them all off, keeping everything away from me.

Just forcing myself to sleep was torture. The shivering wouldn't stop, and I couldn't control it. I walked to the bathroom, wobbling every so often, and keeping one hand firmly pressed to the wall at all times. I could feel the pearls of sweat drop down the back of my neck, and down my shirt. I could feel the goose bumps on my arms and legs.

I reached the bathroom, and guiltily looked through the cabinet, I could easily take an overdose of aspirin, or possibly sleeping pills, I'd done it before, and it seemed painless. It wasn't hard to find something that would easily knock me out. Everyone had some kind of aspirin or pain killers in their bathrooms.

I took two pills, swallowing them with a cup of water, and shakily walked back to my room. It was the first time in three years that I had taken pills to help myself get to sleep. After I had been busted in Rat Lady's supply of pain killers for her arthritis when I was thirteen, and she had punished me in evil ways, I had stayed clear of her quarters of the orphanage.

Tonight, though, Kakashi would never notice.

I had read the label of the bottle, making sure that they were adult pills and one was enough to kill all of the pain. Two should be the magic number, and if it didn't work, I didn't think Kakashi would miss a third.

I felt almost guilty 'breaking and entering' like this. They weren't my pills to take, yet surely Kakashi would never notice. I wobbled back to my room, almost at once feeling my eyes get droopy. I smiled briefly, and curled up in my bed, letting the pills take me into a calm, dreamless sleep.

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An:: Well, that last part was unexpected. I never thought I'd have Sasuke do that… yet it seemed perfect for him to do…