x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Chapter 14

We're In This Moment Now

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Naruto ran faster than he could remember running. The heat was scorching hot and he was sweating and gasping for air but he ignored it all, could barely even feel it. All he could feel was the pounding of his heart, whether it was from exertion or excitement he wasn't too sure; it was probably a combination of both. He could feel the wild whip of his hair in his face; could taste the salty and sweaty strands in his mouth.

His feet finally stuttered to a stop as he reached his destination.

He looked around desperately, searching for a hint of red amongst the crowd of people. He finally spotted a tall figure sloped onto a light post and Naruto let out a relieved breath. He was scared that maybe he had missed him; worried that it might've been his last chance.

Gaara almost didn't notice him as he approached, he looked distracted. Most people wouldn't have noticed it but Naruto considered himself well versed in decoding the miniscule expressions on Gaara's face. His jaw was clenched and his lips were set into a hard line and his gaze was distant. As soon as Naruto got closer, Gaara finally straightened up in recognition.

Naruto smiled at him shyly, knowing that his face was probably red from the heat and the running.

"Naruto…" The redhead stepped closer, his hand reaching up to stroke a hot cheek. "Don't run, it is too hot, you're all sweaty now. We should go look for somewhere with more shade." The redhead turned away and started to walk off in search of somewhere cooler.

Naruto bit his lip and his face heated up even more, his eyes were starting to water. He really didn't know why he continued acting like a pathetic idiot but he really couldn't help it. This was the first time he had seen Gaara by himself, with no other distractions around.

"Naruto?" Gaara stopped, twisting around to look at him curiously.

Naruto jumped before Gaara could fully turn around and wrapped his arms around his waist instead.

"Ice cream…" He sniffed.

"Okay." He could almost feel Gaara's amusement and Naruto bit down on his lip harder to stop himself from giggling.

Giggling was not manly whatsoever and he refused to let Gaara see that. He tightened his hold around Gaara, pressing his front against his back. He could feel the strength of Gaara this way, could feel the muscled body underneath the long sleeved shirt. He stood on his toes and rested his forehead against the hard planes of his shoulder blades. He breathed in deeply and turned his head to listen to steady thump of Gaara's heartbeat.

This was familiarity, the only familiarity he had left from his past. Gaara was a known factor, a trusted friend; loyal and strong and honest. Having him here in front of him was not something he had imagined and he found the thought almost funny. He had spent so much time throwing the blame onto himself, replaying past memories that were better left forgotten and not once had he stopped to consider what meeting with Gaara again would be like. Not once had he considered what he would say or what he would do.

He squeezed Gaara's waist. "You've gotten skinnier."

"No, I haven't." Gaara's hands covered his. "Naruto, I can't walk like this."

Naruto snorted and loosened his hold on Gaara.

"Gaara, I'm sorry…the phone you gave me, I lost it." There was no use telling Gaara about what happened with Sasuke, the outcome would not be so pretty. He still felt like he wanted to cry but he had been through such emotional days lately that he was slightly surprised that he hadn't curled up in fetal position and given up already.

Naruto felt Gaara tense in his arms and Naruto finally released him as the redhead's hands reached to cup his cheeks. "Smile, Naruto. If you smile, then I can smile."

Naruto blinked rapidly, trying to prevent tears from falling and his lips twitched into a small smile. He shouldn't have been surprised that Gaara was still the same person he knew before and Naruto was relieved to find that he was. People tended to change and the definition of time always varied. He had known people who could change within a day, had known people whose personalities were fickle and weak.

But ever since he had met Gaara, he had always been a constant. There was always that reassurance that Gaara would never change, would never leave him behind. He and Gaara had been so close before, Naruto had never been able to trust someone who wasn't Kyuubi. Naruto knew that Gaara and him didn't have much in common and thus had no real reason to get along. But Gaara had always cared for him, he never understood why, but he wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth, especially when it came in such an understanding package.

Then, Gaara was taken away and he feared that he would never find someone like Gaara. Of course Sasuke came along later on, but Naruto had never considered him a replacement. Sasuke and Gaara were two different people and he cared for them in different ways.

Gaara had always been his comfort; his rock. When nobody could stand him, Gaara looked after him without expecting anything back. He wasn't the most expressive person in the world but his actions did all the talking for him. He didn't even mind Naruto's constant talking; actually bothered listening and replying with such a serious and concentrated look on his face. Naruto's love for Gaara was soft, calm, and adoring – just like the love that Naruto had for Kyuubi.

Sasuke, on the other hand, was a completely different matter. In such a short period of time, Sasuke had managed to worm his way into Naruto's reluctant heart. He was a rude asshole who had no filter and who always did things his way without any worry to the consequences. He was pushy and possessive and persistent. Yet, he was also sweet at times; although he often used harsh words to mask his concern. He was a prickly bastard and Naruto could see why the brunet didn't make friends easily. Naruto still wasn't sure about his romantic feelings toward Sasuke but he could at least admit that Sasuke made him feel warm and fluttery.

He hadn't felt like that about anyone in what seemed like a long time. Not that he'd ever admit it to anyone, much less Sasuke because he was such a bastard.

Naruto looked up at Gaara and felt guilty that he was currently caught up with his feelings about Sasuke while Gaara was right in front of him. He could sort out his thoughts later on in the privacy of Sai's home but with Gaara here, his attention should've been solely on him instead.

Blue eyes looked back silently into green ones and Naruto smiled wide as he threw his arms around Gaara's neck.

There had always been things that he had wanted to say to Gaara. Things that he hadn't had the chance to say back when he could. He had many questions, so many inquiries about what had gone wrong and what had happened.

But looking at Gaara's face, he could honestly say that he couldn't think of anything else to say. He had forgotten anything that he had wanted to say.

"I missed you."

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Naruto turned underneath the spray of Gaara's shower, running soap over his body, making sure to wash off any trace of sweat and dirt. He sighed in relief, enjoying the cold water against his heated skin and reached out to grab Gaara's shampoo. He sniffed it cautiously and shrugged as he lathered a decent amount into his blond locks.

He hadn't been thinking about taking a shower but Gaara had insisted on going to his apartment so he could cool off. Naruto had quickly agreed because he was actually really curious about where Gaara lived. It had been a long time and the last time he had been in Gaara's apartment, it was back when they were living together.

His new apartment actually looked similar to their old apartment and Naruto found himself being hit by deja-vu. Perhaps Gaara felt comfort in familiarity too?

Naruto stood in the shower quietly, lost in the sound of the water hitting the tile of the shower. He shook himself out of his thoughts and opened the curtain to reach for a towel but was disgruntled when he couldn't find one. All he could see was the long white dress shirt that Gaara had left for him on the counter of the sink. He didn't want to drip water all over Gaara's floor but he really didn't know what else he could do.

"Um…Gaara? Do you have a towel I can use? I'm kind of dripping all over the place here." Naruto grabbed the white shirt and looked at it incredulously. He lifted it up but couldn't find anything else to go with it. How was he supposed to walk out in only this?

"Also, I think you forgot to give me more clothes. Plus, even this isn't in my size, it's too big!"

Naruto walked out of the bathroom, holding the shirt against his crotch. It was the only cover that he had and Naruto blushed in embarrassment as he heard the soft footsteps of Gaara approaching. He looked up at Gaara and fidgeted under his intense stare. He waited for a few minutes but Gaara seemed to have forgotten that he was there going by his unfocused look.

"Gaara?"

The redhead seemed to snap out of his trace and lifted up a towel that he had been carrying. Until now, Naruto hadn't noticed it and he huffed at himself in annoyance. He reached in to take it but was taken aback by Gaara running the towel over his wet hair. His eye twitched as the rubbing against his hair turned harsher.

"No! I'll do it myself instead, you're hurting me." Naruto pouted and took the towel from Gaara. He felt the shirt that he was holding fall to the ground and Naruto flushed but refused to acknowledge his embarrassment. He had stood naked in Gaara's presence before anyway, it wasn't anything new; Gaara was probably already used to it. Naruto ran the towel over the rest of his body quickly nonetheless, no use prolonging it.

"Anyway, you should go take a shower now." He peeked underneath his lashes at Gaara when he didn't reply. "What are you waiting for?" Blond brows furrowed in confusion. Gaara was acting really strangely and he was starting to wonder whether there was anything wrong. Gaara didn't react to his question at all and was still staring at him.

It was actually starting to make him uncomfortable and he became even more so when Gaara leaned in closer. He crowded him against the wall and his hand moved up to cup Naruto's cheek. Gaara had always been rather affectionate with him but there were always instances where he wasn't sure what Gaara was thinking about and where the touches became a bit more than slightly…affectionate.

This was one of them.

He almost flinched when Gaara moved again but was surprised when Gaara quickly wrapped him into the forgotten white shirt that had been on the ground. Green eyes avoided his questioning gaze as long fingers buttoned up the shirt. Gaara then turned around and headed towards the bathroom.

"I'll be quick." He disappeared into the room and Naruto took in a relieved breath. He hadn't noticed that he had been holding in his breath.

Awkward moments like these weren't uncommon at all with Gaara but this one had been rather…strange. He didn't know why but this had felt different. The look in Gaara's eyes had been hungry and desperate. It had almost reminded him of Sasuke.

Thinking of Sasuke made him fidget again. He felt almost guilty standing in Gaara's apartment and he had no idea why he felt like he was betraying him. He thought back to Sasuke's accusations about Gaara and he shook his head.

Gaara did not feel like that towards him and Naruto definitely did not feel like that towards him. Sasuke was wrong.

He had to be.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

A/N: What's this? An actual update a week later? Wow, I must be doing something right. Chapter is short but perhaps that's the only way I can maintain a regular schedule. This chapter, as always, was not looked over by a beta (I'm also now finally looking for one, if anyone is interested!) so all mistakes are my own, let me know if there are any I need to fix.

Thank you to all those who favorited, followed, and commented!