Riayu: No, my computer is not back. I've decided that, because my computer will be gone for an unknown amount of time, I might as well write KIT in my notebook and type it at the school computers. Everyone make sure to thank Sye216 for agreeing to post these for me. DO IT! Also, she'll be taking over A/Ns for a while.

Psy: Oh. Oh god.

Sye: That's right! From now on you have to do what I say! evil laughter

Sharin: Someone shoot me now and get it over with.

Sye: Honestly, as much as I'd love to, Riayu'd probably murder me for that.

Psy: Or give you a bunch of money as a reward.

Sye: Hmmm….

Sharin: Go on. Try it. I dare ya.

Sye: Don't tempt me with a good time.

Psy: As much as I'm enjoying watching you two threaten each other, I think we should actually get on with the story.

Sye: NOVEL IDEA! I'll get right on it.

Disclaimer: Riayu doesn't own Naruto, and Sye216 doesn't either. The series would be much more interesting if they did.

Sasuke was awakened in the middle of the night by a quiet ringing. He rolled onto his side, crawling up from the deep hole of sleep he had fallen into, creating the illusion that the ringing was getting louder. He sat up and got out of bed, walking into the kitchen to take the phone from its hook.

"Hello?" he asked, his voice husky with sleep.

"Oh! Sasuke! Hi, this is Sharin. I didn't expect you to answer the phone. Uh, I have Psy over here."

"Okay?" Sasuke rubbed his eyes then paused. "Doesn't she hate you?"

"Yeah… There was a mishap in Chemistry. She's, uh, in a lot of pain. She'll be over here for a while, until Monday, probably. You guys can come over and visit if you want.

"What happened?" he asked, staring absently at the microwave.

"I'd rather not say. If you come over I'm sure she'll explain."

"Okay, take good care of her. Night." He hung up the phone and looked at the microwave again. Why had she waited to call until three in the morning?

"What's wrong, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, walking cautiously from the shadows.

"Nothing," Sasuke said dismissively, slipping past Naruto and out of the kitchen.

"Who called?" Naruto asked, watching the away Sasuke's jaw tightened in frustration.

"Sharin. Psy's hurt and she's taking care of her." Naruto opened his mouth to ask what had happened, but the look that Sasuke gave him silenced him. "Good night, Naruto." He said icily.

Naruto stood there, watching as Sasuke disappeared into their bedroom. There was a distinct burning behind his eyes and a heavy weight in his stomach as he shuffled over to the couch in the living-room and curled up, pulling a blanket around his shoulder and knees as he wept quietly. He had been sitting there for only a few minutes when a familiar pair of arms wrapped around him.

"It'll be okay, Naruto," Gaara whispered, letting Naruto nestle his wet face in his night shirt. Naruto noted the slight scent he found there: warm and spicy, but not overwhelmingly so. Naruto found comfort in the scent as he curled against Gaara, allowing him to stroke his hair and murmur soft comforting words.

"Thank you Gaara," Naruto whispered after a few silent moments.

"No problem. I'm glad I could help," the small smile at the edge of Gaara's lips made Naruto's tear-streaked face lighten.

"Mind if I spend the night with you? I really don't think spending the night on the couch will be too comfortable." Gaara chuckled and nodded, standing up before pulling Naruto to his feet. Gaara ushered him into his room and slid into bed, making sure to leave plenty of room for the blonde.

Naruto was asleep within minutes, slowly but surely snuggling closer to Gaara, nestling innocently against him. Gaara stayed as still as a statue, staring down at the tuft of blonde below his chin. Almost without thinking, he began to stroke the silky blond nest. Naruto made a soft crooning sound in his sleep, snuggling ever closer. Gaara couldn't help thinking of the night that he had first borne the guilty feeling building in his stomach. Naruto had been going to the store, looking dejected because Sasuke was too busy being wrapped up in himself. So Gaara had run after the blonde to console him and keep him company. He hadn't meant to kiss Naruto, it had just happened. But now the urge was building again, this powerful need to press his lips against the silken pink pair that he could already taste.

"Naruto?" Gaara whispered, his voice hoarser with want. "Naruto, can you hear me?"

"Mm?" Naruto groaned, angling his head so that he could look at Gaara with bleary eyes.

"Naruto," Gaara swallowed his fear, staring into those beautiful eyes. "Can I kiss you?"

Naruto's eyes opened wide, his stomach gurgling with a nervous excitement. He licked his lips, then nodded a little. Gaara's lips smoothed over his in an instant, warm and eager. Their lips moved together until Gaara slid his tongue into Naruto's mouth. Naruto ran his tongue over Gaara's before pulling away, his breath coming in pants as tears rolled down his face, the guilt clear in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Naruto said, his voice strangled with a sob. "I'm so sorry," and Gaara knew the apology wasn't for him.

"Go to sleep, Naruto. It'll be better in the morning. I promise." Naruto fell asleep crying, and, when Naruto had finally quieted down, Gaara's eyes began to leak.

"I've never seen you this determined, Sasori," Gaara said, looking at his cousin across the table from him in the cafeteria. "You really want her that badly?"

"Yes," Sasori said, looking as indifferent as ever. "I just don't know what to do next. She doesn't seem like a flowers girl, or chocolates, or someone who could be serenaded."

"Good thing, you can't sing for you're life. That's always been Temari's field. Why do you want her so badly anyways?" Gaara asked, poking at the brown peas on his plate.

"There's something intriguing about a woman with no past."

"Would've thought the kid would bother you. That means she must have slept around before she lost her memory."

"She could have been raped; it seems to be a growing epidemic as of late. That could have even caused the loss of memory."

"You're the weirdest person I know." Gaara chuckled then sobered. "Apparently Psy is at Sharin's house. I guess she was hurt badly and Sharin found her. We were thinking of going over to visit and see how she's doing. Do you want to come with us?"

"Sure. I just need to come up with a way to win her over." Sasori sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Why don't you go down to the art studio and look at her work. Girls love compliments." Sasori nodded and threw out his garbage before jogging out of the cafeteria. Gaara shook his head, smiling as he looked around the cafeteria, looking for a source of entertainment. Sasuke and Tobi were studying, Suki was talking to a girl with weird eyes, and Itachi was nowhere to be seen. Gaara glanced at his watch then threw his trash away before jogging out of the cafeteria and down the walkway that led to the library. The air was colder than it had been, fall finally rolling onto campus as September began to fade away.

Naruto was inside the library, bent over a text book as he scribbled down numbers and letters, creating a strange sort of alphabet soup.

"Naruto? You having trouble?" Gaara asked, sitting down beside the blonde. Naruto looked up and smiled.

"Do you understand any of this?" He asked, budging the notebook over to Gaara.

"Yeah. Why? Don't you remember when Kaki taught it to us in high school?"

"Repressed memories," Naruto murmured, scratching his head as he took the notebook back and stared in confusion.

"There's a common variable that you can factor out," Gaara said, pointing at the page. Naruto smiled at him gratefully before turning back to the paper and scribbling through the steps.

"Thanks, Gaara," Naruto said, closing the book and notebook before shoving both into his bag.

"No problem. I'm always happy to help." Gaara's smile faltered when he saw the pain in the blonde's eyes. "C'mon, let's go take a walk." He stood up and held his hand out, helping Naruto up. The blonde smiled hesitantly, allowing Gaara to lead him outside and down a path that cut through the sakura trees, which slowly segued into a regular forest. Once in the shadows of the tall pines, poplars, maples, and oaks, Gaara turned and fastened his lips to Naruto's, tasting his honey-sweet lips and soft, supple tongue, and the strange bitterness of guilt that mixed between the two of them. There was no love in the kissing, in the caressing of cheeks and lips, it was all need. The way they crushed close together with their lips and arms and legs - which would often be mistaken for an attempt to make the love held within to something tangible - was really only an attempt to keep the other from falling apart.

Naruto wasn't sure were the sadness on Gaara's lips came from, or why he tasted of both their guilt when the redhead was doing nothing more than helping a friend release some of his frustration and need.

"Gaara!" the blonde gasped when they finally pulled away for breath. He was backed against the trunk of an old pine, the light coming in muffled so that it was hard to see who was there. "Gaara, we can't…" but the need was there, strengthened by the loneliness in his heart. He was hot all over, his pants uncomfortably tight where they had once been loose. But Gaara didn't heed his word as he kissed down the blonde's neck, his hand sliding over the bulging section of pants, ghosting over it in a way that made Naruto buck his hips with want.

"Gaara," Naruto half hissed and half moaned. "Gaara, stop…" but there was no conviction in his voice, this was what he wanted badly. Release. Before he could utter another word that he didn't mean, Naruto felt his pants slip away and a foreign heat engulfed him. He threw his head back as Gaara flicked his tongue over the sensitive skin, sliding his lips up on the hilt as he hummed, making Naruto stiffen further in his mouth.

"Ga-Gaara," Naruto whimpered in a final attempt to stop him before he dissolved into a soft moan. Gaara bobbed his head back and forth, moaning as well. He reached up with one hand and pressed the spot between the blonde's balls and anus, smiling in satisfaction when the blonde's hips bucked with pleasure. it was obvious how much Naruto had wanted it, longed for it for what he considered far too long, because the climax that came elicited a cream that he barely stifled by biting the palm of his hand. Gaara swallowed every drop, running his tongue up and down Naruto's member to collect anything that may have remained.

"Gaara," Naruto murmured, his eyes half-lidded and glazed with lust. "Gaara," there was a strange smile on his face, filled with mischief and longing that had nothing to do with love. Before Gaara could fully understand what the smile could possible mean, he was on his back and Naruto was on top of him, kissing his throat and collar bones.

"Naruto, don't," Gaara hissed, trying to push the blond away. "Stop it."

"You made me come, why shouldn't I return the favor? You're already hard," his tan hand slipped into Gaara's pants and squeezed the stiff flesh he found there. "You know you want it."

"No," Gaara could hardly squeeze the word out past the gasp he uttered. "You'll regret it later, when this all blows over. You'll regret this, I won't let you take that on your shoulders too." Naruto stared down at him, his eyes slowly widening in alarm as they filled with tears. He slid away from Gaara, pulling his pants up and zipping them as tears trailed down his cheeks.

"Thank you," Naruto whispered when Gaara sat beside him, wrapping him in a gentle hug, his own tears staining his eyes red.

"It was that Kimimaro guy from high school. The one that tried to kill Kaki," Psy's voice choked on her name. "He's the one who did this to me." She pointed to the bruises on her face from when he had knocked her out. "They're probably going to run a DNA test and try to mach it to him before he goes to court, as a sure way to win."

"How many times is this now?" Gaara asked. "Being raped, since you first met Kaki?"

"Uhh…three, if you count the past life she told me about. We never found out who did that, though."

"It's a miracle you haven't gotten pregnant yet," Sharin said, picking up Kuro and balancing him on her hip.

"Don't even joke about that," Psy said, her eyes hardening.

"We'd all die," Naruto said, putting on a mask of fear. "Waking up in the middle of the night because of the crying," He shuddered.

"What's 'pregnant' mean, mommy?" Kuro asked, staring up at his mother curiously.

"It's how babies are born. The baby grows in the mommy's stomach until it's big enough to come out." Kuro nodded and got a thoughtful look.

"Can I have a little sister?" Kuro asked, looking at her with shining eyes. Sharin smiled down at him, obviously trying to keep from laughing.

"Maybe one day, if I ever find a daddy for you," Sharin said, oblivious to the sudden somber atmosphere that was choking the air.

"When will you be back to school?" Itachi asked, looking down at Psy. She winced a little and glared up at him.

"What do you care?" she snapped, her face tightening in pain when she shifted.

"Natural human response to pain is sympathy and worry."

"Then you have no right to feel those things; you're a monster, nothing more, but plenty less."

"Please stop arguing," Sharin said, frowning at them as her eyes tightened a little around the corners. Sasori put a hand on her shoulder and she looked at him, trying to smile as her eyes lit with pain. Psy and Itachi were still snapping at each other, their voices slowly rising until they were shouting. Kuro slid from his mother's arms and ran from the room as the argument progressed.

"Shut up!" Sharin yelled, a vein pulsing in her temple. "You hate each other, we got it! You're giving me a headache!"

"I don't hate her, I just want her to stop blaming me fore Kaki's death," Itachi said, looking at her in surprise.

"I'm only blaming who I see fit to blame," Psy muttered.

"Stop it!" Sharin yelled, her face flushing. "She's dead, there's no point in blaming anyone. It won't bring her back. Did you ever think that maybe she would want you to forget about her and move on?"

"Why don't you shut up?" Psy snapped, turning her glare on Sharin. "You didn't know her! She wouldn't want us to forget her!"

"Well, I'm sure she wouldn't want you to hate each other just because she's gone. Are you stupid or something? If she could see you now how do you think she would feel? Seeing how much you hate him because she's gone, she'd probably kill herself over again, blaming herself for all of this strife." There was silence in the room, so long that it became awkward.

"Sorry about that," Sharin murmured after a few minutes, rubbing her temples. "What were you saying? I sort of zoned out." Everyone just stared at her. "What?" she asked, looking around. "Is there something on my face?"

Psy: Well, that…was an odd ending.

Sharin: Talk about awkward.

Sye: Don't look at me, I didn't write it.

Psy: Of course not. You're too lazy.

Sye: STFU. Anyway, remember to REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!! It's what Riayu would want you to do. sniffles

Sharin: You make it sound like she's dead or something.

Sye: Uhh… uhh…uhh… I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! I SWEAR!!

Psy: sedates Sye

Sharin: Right then. Guess I'll hand out the goodies. Starts passing out random candies to reviewers