Disclaimer: Still K. Masashi's...
"Sir? Excuse me, sir?"
Naruto jolted awake from an uneasy sleep, blinking tired blue eyes up at the woman leaning over him. For a second, he was confused, and wondering where he was, and then the events of earlier that day sank in and he cleared his throat, shifting into a sitting position on the bed-like seat.
"We'll be landing shortly. I'm going to have to ask you to please move your seat back into its upright position."
"Yeah, of course." Naruto cleared his throat again, rubbing at one eye and turning in his seat to find the button that would bring it back to its usual sitting position.
He'd flown Business class before, but not as often as he was sure Itachi, Sasuke and Kiba did. His dad liked to keep him grounded, and acted like they weren't as well off as they were. Nowhere near as rich as the Uchihas or Inuzukas, but it wasn't like they couldn't afford Business Class every now and then. Minato just chose for them not to fly it.
Naruto had to admit, he was glad he was in it this time around, because with how chaotic his mind was, there was no way he would've gotten even a wink of sleep if he'd been in economy.
Getting his seatbelt fastened, he sat back in his seat and lifted the shade to look out the window. It was pitch black outside, and a glance at the time on television screen that showed their progress informed him—in French, since this was Air Canada, so they had to say everything in both languages—that it was just before three in the morning. It was still the twenty-third right now in Canada, because of the time difference between the two countries. That meant he had the whole day to try and convince Sasuke to come back. His return flight wasn't until one in the morning on the twenty-fourth, which would put them back in England around two in the morning on the twenty-fifth. That was cutting it close, his parents wouldn't be happy.
Still, he'd be home for Christmas—provided Sasuke listened and didn't just slam the door in his face.
The blond pulled out the sheet of paper with all the phone numbers and addresses on it that Itachi had given him before leaving. He also still had the other's credit card, and was assured he could use it for anything he needed so long as it got Sasuke back.
Naruto took a deep breath, and then just waited for the plane to land, which it did around a half hour later, taxying for a while on the runway before stopping at the gate. He was one of the first people off, and once he got through customs, he exited the airport right away, since all he had with him was his backpack.
Hailing a cab, he gave the address to Sasuke's university and then stared out the window the whole time. He didn't have any cash, so when they arrived, he just paid with his own credit card—he wasn't going to make Itachi pay for everything, he'd done enough.
Getting out of the car, he exhaled slowly, the cold air seeping through his jacket and chilling him to the bone. He started walking in a random direction, if only to warm himself up, and looked down at the piece of paper Itachi had given him, his boots crunching loudly on the ground.
Finding a campus map, he stood in front of it for close to ten minutes before determining which direction he needed to go, and finally finding the apartments on campus, walking up to the front entrance and surveying all the names. He found Sasuke's, took a deep breath, and hit it.
He knew the other wouldn't even let him up, but what other choice did he have?
Waiting a few seconds, he hit it again, figuring Sasuke was probably sleeping since it was nearing four in the morning, now. But still no answer.
The door beside him opened and he jumped, startled, and saw a guard eying him suspiciously. He was probably hired for the holidays to make sure no one's apartment got broken into while no one was home.
"Can I help you?"
"Hi, yeah, um..." Naruto motioned the intercom. "I was just—I'm here visiting a friend, he must not hear the buzzer. Would you mind letting me in?"
"Sorry, kid." Naruto's eyebrow twitched at the word 'kid' but he said nothing. "I'm not allowed to let unauthorized people into the building."
"Could you maybe go and get him, then? His name is Sasuke Uchiha."
"Uchiha? The rich kid who came stomping in here last night?"
It made sense that Sasuke hadn't been back for too long, his flight had only been a few hours before Naruto's own.
"He's not in. He left about an hour ago."
"Do you know where?"
"No idea. Didn't say. Looked real mad, though."
"He always looks like that," Naruto reassured the guard, though he was mostly trying to reassure himself.
Nodding a thanks, he turned and looked out at the vast expanse of white before him. He didn't know where else to go, or what else to do, now. Biting his bottom lip, he sighed, raked a hand through his hair, and went to sit on the curb. His ass was numb within two minutes, but he didn't know what else to do. He'd just wait, see if Sasuke came back. If he didn't within the hour, Naruto would go find a hotel and then try and come back in the morning to force Sasuke to let him in.
Blowing into his hands, and wishing he'd remembered to bring his gloves, he rubbed them together, looking up and down the deserted street for any signs of life. After about twenty-five minutes, Naruto was almost ready to call it quits and leave for the night, but he could see someone walking back in his direction. Frowning, he stood, and squinted to try and catch a better look of the guy.
It was obviously a guy, and when he passed under one of the street lights down the street, Naruto saw he had black hair. He was sure tons of guys with black hair could be walking around at four in the morning, but Sasuke was jetlagged, and Naruto was willing to bet it was him.
Jogging down the street, backpack slung over his shoulder, he saw the figure stop abruptly when he was only a few feet away, and knew it was Sasuke. Only the Uchiha would have stopped upon seeing him there.
Naruto slowed and came to a stop two feet away from him, shoving his cold hands in his pockets and offering a half smile.
"What are you doing here?" Sasuke's voice was so hard, it reminded Naruto of that first day he'd met the other. When the Uchiha hadn't thought he was worth his time. It kind of hurt to be back at that level of unimportance.
"As corny as this is going to sound, I guess—I came for you." Naruto shrugged.
"Why?" Sasuke spat.
The blond winced, but tried to hide it quickly. "Because everything that happened was a misunderstanding."
"I don't have time for this," the Uchiha shot back. "I'm cold, and it's late." He started to walk around Naruto, but the blond moved to block his path. The raven's eyes narrowed. "Move."
"Just let me explain wha—"
"No!" Sasuke shouted. "I don't care what you have to say! You've lied to me from the beginning, and I'm done playing your stupid games!"
"What games?" Naruto demanded, continuing to move into Sasuke's way when the other tried to pass him. "Just stop and listen for a second!"
"Get out of my way!"
"Sasuk—"
"Move!"
"No!" Naruto shouted back.
All he needed was five minutes. Just five fucking minutes for the jackass to listen to him! Was that too much to fucking ask? Apparently, because he wasn't having it. He tried to sidestep Naruto again, and the blond moved into his path. Again.
And next thing he knew, he had a fist flying at his face. It connected with the shiner still very present around his eye and he cried out, reaching up to cover the wound, and gritting his teeth when Sasuke stalked by. He shifted on his feet, grabbing the back of the other's jacket, and yanked him back.
The Uchiha rounded on him, and a fist flew at his face again, but Naruto caught this one and bent Sasuke's arm at a weird angle. Too bad he'd forgotten the other's comment about knowing karate though, to be fair, that had been what felt like a long time ago.
Next thing he knew, he got a knee to the gut, an elbow to the face, and then a kick to the chest. He flew onto his back, coughing and rolling onto his side, spitting blood from between his lips and groaning. Sasuke was rubbing at his wrist, glaring down at him before turning to walk away again.
Gritting his teeth, Naruto forced himself back to his feet, his lungs screaming in agony, but he ignored them. Stumbling once, he picked up speed and then tackled Sasuke from behind, wrestling him to the ground and then rolling him onto his back.
He opened his mouth to try and say something, but immediately saw stars when Sasuke headbutted him, and then shoved him off roughly. The Uchiha stood, and then started kicking him in the stomach, Naruto curling in on himself to avoid getting injured further.
"Stop fucking following me!" Sasuke's kicks were punctuated by each word, the raven breathing hard and stopping, then turning to walk away again.
Naruto knew he couldn't get up again. He could barely force himself onto his knees, one hand clutching at his stomach and the other digging into the snow, blood dripping off his chin and onto the white powder, staining it red.
He hadn't really wanted to pull this card. He'd wanted to say it later, when it seemed more appropriate, but he was out of options. Sasuke had obviously not been trying hard when they'd been fucking around, because contrary to what the guy looked like, he'd just kicked Naruto's ass. Though to be fair, Naruto had been trying not to hurt him. Sasuke seemed intent on making him bleed.
Still, he had no other choice, so spitting blood from his mouth again, he looked up at the other's retreating back, grit his teeth, and opened his mouth.
"I love you!"
Sasuke froze in his steps, turning slowly to regard Naruto before rage overtook his features and he stormed back towards him, pointing an angry finger at him. "What did you say?" His voice was low, and dangerous, and promised a beating into unconsciousness, but Naruto didn't take it back. "What did you just fucking say to me? You're not allowed to fucking say those words to me! I'm not gonna stand here and let you lie to me like that!" Sasuke shouted, bending slightly to scream at him.
Naruto could see, from this close up, that Sasuke's cheeks were flushed. Whether from the cold, or anger—or both—he didn't know, but the guy had come back, so he had to get his speech out.
He had to make him fucking listen.
"I'm not lying!" He grunted out, groaning and struggling to his feet. He stood in front of the other, one hand still on his stomach and using the back of the other to wipe the blood from his lips. The Uchiha just glared at him. "Sasuke, I love you," he repeated. "I don't understand how this all happened so fast, but I fucking love you. Please, just let me explain." He reached out with his free hand to touch the other's face, but Sasuke took a step back, almost tripping over himself to get away. Naruto let his hand hang awkwardly in the air for a second before letting it drop. "Just give me a second to help you understand what you saw."
"I don't want to understand!" Sasuke snapped back. "I just want to put this all behind me, and pretend I never met you."
"Sasuke..."
"Go home, Naruto," the raven interrupted. He snorted, shaking his head. "Your boyfriend is waiting for you."
He turned on his heel and Naruto lunged forward, grabbing his arm and yanking him back around. Sasuke let him, but then pulled his arm free, eyebrows down in an angry frown.
"Will you just listen?" Naruto shouted, getting angry the other wasn't even giving him a fucking chance. "He's not my boyfriend! Fuck, this is all so fucked up!" He tugged at his hair angrily, breathing hard, then turned back to Sasuke. "He is not my boyfriend!"
"How can I know?" Sasuke demanded, forcing Naruto to snap his mouth shut so he wouldn't start yelling profanities at the Uchiha for interrupting. "How can I trust that anything you ever said to me was real?" Sasuke thrust one hand angrily in the air, his breath coming faster with each passing second. Naruto could tell he was about to lose it, and he would probably end up getting punched again. "All this time, all we've been through, while for all I know you've been fucking that dumbass brunet in the back of his fancy car!"
Naruto almost choked on his own saliva, and forced back a laugh that threatened to burst forth. "Okay, were this not such a serious situation, I would be laughing over the fact that you have Kiba, me and sex all in the same sentence as if that were even possible."
"You're gonna tell me you've never fucked him?" The Uchiha crossed his arms, scoffing incredulously. Naruto could tell he wouldn't have been mad about that, if not for the fact that he thought Naruto had been doing it while they were supposed to be together. He supposed he could understand that.
"Yeah, I am," he answered to the other's question. "Because the day that happens, grab a parka 'cause when we reach hell, it'll be a ski resort."
Sasuke's frown turned into one of confusion for half a second, and Naruto took his chance, and started to blab out the explanation, hoping that the Uchiha would actually listen to him.
"His name is Kiba Inuzuka," he said, seeing Sasuke's eyes widen slightly, "and he's my best friend. I've known him since I was a kid. My dad is the vice-president for the Inuzuka corporation and... I guess I thought that if you knew all that, you wouldn't want to hang out with me anymore." He shrugged, lifting his hands in the air slightly and then sighing. He turned his back on Sasuke rubbing at his face briefly before looking at him once more. "I was keeping you a secret from Kiba, and Kiba a secret from you because I thought that if I told you guys about the other, you would both make me choose, and I didn't want that. I thought that if I made sure you knew me well enough before telling you, that you would be okay with it, that you wouldn't immediately think I was, I don't know, a spy or something, I guess. So, I just—avoided talking about it, thinking it would be better."
Sasuke's eyebrows twitched angrily and he turned his head to the side, arms still crossed, but at least he looked like he was calming down a little bit. Naruto felt like he wouldn't get punched again.
"Doesn't explain what I saw."
"You're right." Naruto rubbed his face again. "Okay, Kiba's—Kiba is a homophobe, pure and simple. I swear on my mother's life that Kiba is as homophobic as they come. We went out clubbing that one night, the time you caught me and my dad tried to help out, you were right. Him and I went clubbing, and he hates going to straight bars with me because all the girls hit on me and he gets bored. So we went to a gay bar, but guys kept hitting on him and buying him drinks and he was getting uncomfortable. We have this thing where usually, if we go out together, he'll get drunk enough that I can kiss him just once during the night and people will figure he's taken and back off, so that's what we were doing." Naruto scoffed and shook his head, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Some—tourist, I don't know. Some guy was taking a picture of his boyfriend, but he were in the background of it and—Kiba's my friend. I take care of him, and I didn't want anyone to see what ended up getting published. I guess my reaction told the guys something was up with Kiba or myself, and after a while they figured out he was the Inuzuka heir and then..." Naruto shrugged again. "Kiba's good about staying out of the papers. I've noticed that you are, too, so you must understand what something like this could do to his mother. I was just—trying to help."
Sasuke nodded slowly. He still looked pretty pissed off, but at least he'd listened. And it looked like he believed him. Which was good, considering he was actually telling him the truth, now.
"Why didn't you just tell me about Kiba? About how he was your friend, and nothing more? Why did you lie?"
"I was scared!" Naruto blurted out in a voice that he realized seemed like the answer should have been obvious. "His mom and your dad have this huge rivalry going on. Do you honestly think I was going to introduce the two of you to each other going, 'Hey Inuzuka, this is my boyfriend, Sasuke. Uchiha, this is my best friend since diapers, Kiba' or something? Both of you would've killed me, and then each other."
"We're not our parents, you know." Sasuke said dryly. "Why would I hate him just because his mom and my dad had company shit going down?"
"I don't know, but that's how my brain took it. I panicked. I didn't want to lose either of you. I was selfish."
"Yeah, you were." Sasuke sighed, shaking his head and turning to look to the side, avoiding looking at Naruto. The blond pressed his lips together and chanced taking a few steps forward. He could tell Sasuke was tense when he stopped right in front of him, but he didn't move away.
Reaching out, the blond ran his fingers along the other's cheek, then pressed his forehead to Sasuke's temple.
"I'm sorry I upset you."
That earned his hand being smacked away and Sasuke taking a step back.
"Why are you treating me like a girl?" he demanded angrily.
His defences rising, Naruto threw both hands in the air. "Because you're acting like one!"
"No, this is me royally pissed off at you for lying!" Sasuke snapped, pointing his finger angrily at Naruto. "If you'd just told the truth from the start, none of this would've happened!"
"You left the fucking country!" Naruto yelled. "That's pretty girly!"
"It was either that, or kick the shit out of you!" the Uchiha retorted. "Which I guess I got to do both, considering your current appearance!"
"I just didn't want to lose you, you fucking asshole! I was going to tell you today, but then you fucking ran off like a woman scorned without even bothering to ask me about what you'd seen!"
"Because you didn't deserve that chance after all your fucking lying!" Sasuke shouted, getting right into Naruto's face.
The blond opened his mouth to shout back when someone else screaming froze the words in his lungs.
"Oh my God, will you both shut up! It's four in the fucking morning! Go fuck each other and let the rest of us fucking sleep!"
A window slammed down loudly, and both of them turned to look up at the room the man had been screaming from. Naruto cleared his throat awkwardly, not having really taken into consideration that other people might be present. He could feel a flush creeping up the back of his neck, and saw that Sasuke had one, too.
They both stood in silence for a few seconds, clearing their throats and avoiding eye contact until Naruto finally spoke again.
"I can't take back what I did. All I can say is I'm sorry I upset you. I'm sorry I upset Kiba. I'm sorry any of this happened, and if I could go back and change it, I would, but I can't. Just—please just give me a get out of jail free card just this once." He tried for his most pathetic looking expression, seeing Sasuke's eyes soften ever so slightly, even though his expression remained hard. "Please."
Sasuke looked away from him, letting out a loud sigh. Raking a hand through his hair, he turned on his heel and stalked back towards his apartment.
"You're sleeping on the fucking couch, Uzumaki."
Naruto pumped one fist in the air behind the Uchiha, then grabbed up his fallen bag and rushed after him back towards the apartment.
First thing he was going to do was take a shower. He couldn't feel his ass.
Something clattering loudly in the kitchen woke Naruto from his slumber with a loud snort bordering on a snore. He opened his eyes, rubbing at them furiously, and looked around, his brain taking its time reminding him of where he was.
He caught sight of Sasuke in the kitchen, the raven visible over the small counter that divided the kitchen from the living room, and yawned widely. Rubbing the back of his head, he threw the covers off himself and stood up off the couch, wincing and stretching his back muscles out.
"I was hoping that would wake you up, you've been sleeping forever."
"I had a long... however long it was since you left." Naruto rubbed the back of his head, shuffling forward and taking a seat at one of the spots at the counter. "How'd you sleep?"
"Fine, I guess. I kept waking up thinking you were sneaking into bed with me, and I was getting ready to castrate you." Sasuke turned to half-smirk at him and Naruto smiled a little.
"I know when to obey, contrary to popular belief. If I'm gonna get another chance from you, the least I can do is earn it."
"Fucking right," the raven grumbled, the toaster popping loudly behind him. Sasuke pulled two pieces of toast out of it and put them on a plate, turning to Naruto. "Hungry?"
"Starving."
The Uchiha put the plate down in front of Naruto, then pulled three types of jam out of the fridge, handing the blond a knife. Thanking him, Naruto inspected the jams, then grabbed the grape one, opened it, and spread it onto his toast while Sasuke popped two more into the toaster.
"Are you still mad?" Naruto inquired, taking a bite of his toast. Sasuke turned to give him a look, and he smiled, looking down at his plate. "Yeah, I figured as much."
"You could've just told me instead of lying," Sasuke said again, for what felt like the millionth time.
"I know. I know that now. I guess I honestly just didn't think you and Kiba would be so... cool with it."
"Is he?" Sasuke asked, Naruto cocking a confused eyebrow. "Cool with it."
"He says he is." Naruto shrugged. "He's more scared of how his mother will react, but I can't blame him. But he says he doesn't care so I believe him." He glanced up at Sasuke briefly. "And you?"
"Like I said last night," Sasuke turned back to the toaster when his toast was done, "we're not our parents. As long as you and him never ask me about anything my dad's doing, I really don't care who you are and who your parents are."
"Hm, guess dad was right."
"What?" Sasuke moved forward to grab the raspberry jam off the counter, spreading it over his toast.
"My dad told me I should be honest with you both. That you would understand, and wouldn't react as badly as I thought you would."
"Your dad is smart. And almost seems to know us better than you do." Sasuke took a bite of his toast and Naruto chuckled.
"I guess, yeah. I'm sorry."
Sasuke just shrugged, turning back to the fridge, toast in one hand and jar of jam in the other. He opened the fridge and put the jam away before reaching for another one off the counter. When they were all back in their respective places, Sasuke leaned forward on the counter across from Naruto and the two of them ate in silence.
"So, are you coming back?" Naruto asked when both their plates were empty.
"Coming back?"
"To England. For Christmas." He pressed his lips together when it looked like Sasuke was about to say no. "Please come back. Your brother booked us tickets back for tonight at one or two or something. He told me if you weren't on the plane, I shouldn't bother being on it, either." He lowered his voice near the end of the sentence, since it seemed like he was being mostly selfish about it, but he wasn't. Sure, he wanted to get back on time for his parents, but he really wanted Sasuke to finish his vacation down there with him.
"I don't know." The raven turned to look anywhere but at him.
"Come on, please? Even if you won't do it for me, do it for your mum? She was crying all morning over you leaving."
Sasuke's head snapped back to look at him, his mouth opening slightly before shutting. "How do you know that?"
"Itachi told me." The blond shrugged.
"Itachi talks too much." Sasuke snorted.
Naruto laughed. "Actually—not really." He shook his head. "Mm."
Sasuke laughed, as well, apparently finding Naruto's response appropriate. "No, I guess not."
The next hour or so was conducted in silence, Sasuke cleaning up their breakfast, and Naruto moving around the apartment to fold a few of his things up and to get the blanket back in Sasuke's closet where it had been pulled from. He was still hoping the other would see reason, and at least agree to go home, considering they both had parents waiting for them. It wasn't fair to punish them because of their own misunderstanding.
He didn't bring it up again, though, deciding to just let Sasuke think it over and decide on his own. He just let the day progress how it would, with the Uchiha mostly ignoring him, and the two of them watching television for most of it. They stopped for lunch, which they went to the campus McDonald to have, and then returned to watch more television, Naruto being sure to keep at least one body's worth of space between himself and Sasuke.
Admittedly, when it was dinner time, he was getting a little nervous. They went out again, this time to Tim Hortons because Sasuke wanted chili—it was weird, Naruto never pegged him as a chili-type. The blond just got himself a coffee and a sandwich, then took a seat across from the Uchiha, biting into his food.
"All right."
Naruto frowned, chewing slowly, and then swallowed. "All right?"
"All right, I'll come back."
The blond tried to suppress his grin, but he didn't think he'd succeeded if the annoyed look on the other's face was any indication.
"I'm not doing it for you, I'm doing it for my parents," he snapped.
"I don't care who it's for, I'm just happy you're coming back." He kicked Sasuke lightly in the shin under the table, and smiled again, taking another bite of his sandwich.
"Hn." The Uchiha himself continued eating his chili.
They sat in silence some more, to the point where Naruto felt he was going deaf from how little they were both speaking. He knew he'd fucked up, but he'd explained everything, and a part of him had hoped Sasuke would just forgive and forget, but he knew he was going to have to work for it. He just also knew he had limited time to do so, considering they would be in England for only a few more days before coming back for school.
He didn't like his odds.
"What can I do?" he asked in a low voice, putting his sandwich down and pressing his lips together, looking down at his plate. "I don't... I want things to be okay again." He looked up, Sasuke watching him but not saying a word. "Just tell me what to do. I'm willing to do anything to make this all go away."
"It's never going to go away, Naruto," Sasuke said with a snort. "But, to prove to you I'm actually a guy..."
The blond let out a shout mostly out of shock when the Uchiha's fist came flying at him, but the other only punched him in the arm, and smirked.
"Oh. Oh, I get it." Naruto laughed nervously, rubbing at his arm. "Right. Um... Thanks."
"You're still sleeping on the couch," Sasuke warned him. "Even if we're not going to be sleeping for long. We better make sure we know when our flight leaves, because missing it could mean death for both of us."
"Amen." Naruto grinned and kicked Sasuke lightly in the shin again. The raven just snorted and kicked him back.
Well, it wasn't much, but it was something.