Gaara stared at the ceiling of his bedroom. Turning over, his eyes moved to the digital clock on his bedside table, the bold red letters imprinted 3:17a.m. into his brain.
Sighing, the redhead brought a fisted hand up to rid his eyes of the accumulating sleep that hid there.
Gaara had always had problems sleeping. And there was a very good reason for that. He was always plauged by hellish nightmares when he did manage to lose himself to the velvety soft touch of unconciousness. So, after a while, his body and his mind had learned to simply reject the two sided coin that was rest.
Sighing again, Gaara flipped the black material off of him before sliding out of bed. He was dressed in a simple pair of crimson boxers and and a white tee shirt as sleeping attire. Quietly, Gaara walked over to the shut door, opening it and taking a cautious glance towards Shukaku's room, which was located right across the hall. Thankfully, the door was closed, and light snores could be heard through the wood.
Gaara wasn't sure what would happen if Shukaku discovered him, and he didn't want to find out.
------.-----.------
Sakura brought a dreary hand up to flip the page of her book, before rising to her mouth in order to stifle a yawn.
The light on the bedside table was turned on, and her pillows were propped up so as to provide a comfortable reading enviroment.
The book in her hands was rather thick, it looked to be about five hundred pages, if not more. But Sakura didn't mind, she loved reading. She could spend an entire night snuggled up in her blankets with a good book, much like she was doing now.
Her blinds were open just enough for a shaft of moonlight to cast a long strip of light along her bedspread, reminding the young detective of just how late, or early, depending on how you looked at it, it really was.
Checking her silver ring, which was actually a tiny digital clock, she sighed before marking her place her book. The ring had been a gift from Naruto she had recieved after solving a huge case. Hinata had gotten the same thing, only hers was navy blue.
Smiling at the fond memory, and how Hinata had blushed such a lovely shade of red, Sakura placed her book onto the bedside table. Her hand reached for the light, and the was just about to flick it off, when something caught her eye.
Grabbing the two papers from beside her book, she held up the one that had been on the bottom.
It was the photo of Gaara Sabaku.
Her smile suddenly fell from her lips like a leaf from a tree during winter. Her eyes softened as she stared at the picture.
"You must be terrified. I wonder if, at this moment, he's doing something to you? If your shaking and trying to hold back tears. If you've lost hope of ever being found. If you've just decided to give in." Sakura whispered, tears swelling in her eyes.
------.-----.------
Naruto tossed in his bed, worry etched into his facial features.
He had been thinking about Sakura and Hinata's case.
Wait.
No, it was more than that.
Naruto suddenly felt sick with himself that he had simply referred to him as a case. He was so much more than that.
Gaara Sabaku.
The crimson haired teen that had been missing for longer than any other person in Konoha.
The teal eyed sixteen year old that had be taken six months ago.
The boy whose face haunted him.
Naruto thought back to the photo.
Those eyes. They held a huge amount of wisdom. The kind of wisdom that can only be gained from experience. The kind of experiences that people remebered until the day they ended up six feet under, the kind that could leave a grown man shaking for days. Those eyes told a story. One of fear and violence. They wove a tale that, at first glance, didn't seem like much, but once you looked long enough, you became captivated.
You became stuck in some strange world.
His world.
At first glance you didn't notice the ever present look of sadness that those orbs of aquamarine held.
At first glance you couldn't see the hint of pain that lingered.
At first glance you wouldn't be able to grasp that small twinkle of fear that they possesed.
But Naruto had.
------.-----.------
Hinata pulled the headphones off of her head and placed them on the bookshelf that stood beside her bed.
She often listened to music for an hour or two when she was in bed, it helped her go to sleep.
Grabbing the bottom of her pillow, she yanked it down and with her other hand she pulled the covers up more.
Yawning, she pulled her legs up more, so that she was in an almost feutal position.
As her body calmed, her mind recalled the days events.
Sakura and I still don't have any leads.
Hinata sighed.
If only we knew where it was Gaara went on sundays. That would most likely help.
Making a mental note to work on the case with Sakura the next day, she drifted off to dream land.
------.-----.------
Gaara held his breath.
He had heard something coming from Shukaku's room that wasn't snoring.
Straining his ears, Gaara's heart beat increased as barely audible footfalls registered in his brain.
Gaara pressed himseld even further into the wall that he stood agaist around the corner form Shukaku's room.
The door squeeked softly in protest as someone opened it.
A shaky hand reached up to grasp the material of his shirt that was over his heart.
Now that Shukaku was out of the room, the footsteps resounded off the walls, breaking the glass-like silence that the night held.
The only sounds Gaara heard were the light padding of feet on wood, and that of his heart trying to escape his ribcage.
Gaara wasn't even really sure why he was scared. It wasn't like if Shukaku found him he'd shoot him in the head or anything like that. His mind had simply told him to stay out of sight. It was almost instinct.
Gaara's eyes widened as he remembered after he had woken up the day Shukaku had kidnapped him.
Gaara's vision blurred slowly but surely back to normal. There, kneeling infront of him, was Shukaku.
Gaara glared, but soon regretted it as the moving of his facial muscles irritated his sore temple.
"Good, you're awake." Shukaku chuckled, pulling Gaara up from the ground.
"What's going on?" the young redhead asked, placing a delicate hand on his temple.
Shukaku chuckled again, "You're mine, Gaara. That's what's going on."
"Wait, what!?" the teen tried to pull his hand from his captor's grip, but it was in vain.
"You're mine now. My captive. My Love. My Gaara. Mine, mine, mine!" the man said, before placing a hand onto the back of Gaara's head and forcing his lips to meet his own.
Gaara's eyes widened in shock before what Shukaku was doing registered. Desperatly, he attempted to push the older off of him, but instead only caused Shukaku to snake him tounge out. He licked the redhead's lips, hoping to gain entrance.
Gaara made a high pitched noise before pushing on the older's arms harder.
Shukaku forced Gaara's lips open with his tounge, before darting into the now open mouth.
Gaara's eyes, if possible, got even wider.
Shukaku's tounge probed and nudged at the younger's, trying to coaxe him into playing.
After a moment, Shukaku removed his lips, cursing his lungs for needing air.
Gaara fell backwards onto his backside, where he crawled backwards, eyes still wide.
"Stay away from me!" Gaara shouted, his arms shaking.
Shukaku ignored the boy's shouts and simply picked him up. Gaara wasn't very heavy, so it was an easy task.
"You're going to stay here with me, Gaara. And you can't escape, so don't try," Shukaku carried Gaara up the stairs and down a hallway, before stopping infront of one of the doors, "This can be your room. Mine's right across the hall. But there's one very important thing I want you to remember."
"W-what's that?" Gaara asked, his voice shaking from holding back tears. He couldn't believe this was happening to him.
"You are to stay in your room during the night unless you have to use the washroom. Am I understood?" Shukaku stared into the seemingly endless depths of teal. Gaara simply nodded.
Shukaku nodded also, "Good."
Gaara's eyes widened in realization.
So lost in thought was the boy, that he didn't notice when a shadow fell across the oppostie wall.
Shukaku was getting close to his hiding spot.
Snapping back to reality, Gaara quietly dashed for the bathroom, that was two doors to his left.
Quietly, he shut the door and turned on the light.
The footsteps were getting closer.
Leave it to Shukaku to check on him while he was in the washroom.
Thinking quickly, Gaara pulling his boxers down and prayed that his bladder would catch his drift. He sighed in relief when it worked.
He heard the door open and turned his head slightly to see Shukaku standing in the doorway.
"Shukaku, I'm relieving myself, do you mind?"
Shukaku gave him a suspicious look before nodding and shutting the door.
Gaara sighed again.
That had been too close.
-----------------
Authoress's Note!
Alright, so shorter chapter than usual.
But i can explain!
This chapter was kind of meant to reveilve more of Gaara's past and what the others thought about him.
So, I apologise.
Anyways, I, sadly, am a review whore.
So please review!
-FullMoonAtMidnight.