The Moments Between Us

Summary: A collection of one-shot/drabble moments shared between Natsume Hyūga and Ruka Nogi as strangers, enemies, best friends, and lovers. Based on a list of 100 personal challenge prompts on LJ.

Rating: K – M (but will be mostly classified as T)

Disclaimer: see first chapter~

Memory 4 –All You Need to Understand

Pairing(s): Natsume x Ruka; broken!Mikan x Natsume

Warning(s): Attempted rape

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Words weren't needed for the two of them to understand each other.

Based on: Prompt 018 –Black

There has only been two times where Ruka has seen Natsume's fire colored eyes turn into the color of ashes.

One of them was when Ruka himself was kidnapped.

How had they gotten onto the academy grounds? He didn't know. He just woke up one night to find himself bound and in chains. The kidnappings have never been bad enough to actually cause him some sort of harm, but this time the kidnappers were serious about their job. Ruka didn't know what he had done to cause them to attack him like that, but soon enough, a bullet was lodged in his shoulder and a whip was marking its trail on his back.

They had laughed as he had cried, biting his lip until it bled red to match his newly scarred back, but they didn't stop with that. That night, they had tried to rape him; but as the men were forcing his legs open, Natsume had burst into the room with fire blazing on his hands and his eyes glazed crimson.

His beautiful eyes had looked at Ruka that night, but Ruka refused to acknowledge it. They had gone far enough to force him to cum, and even if they did not fully break him he still felt dirty, like a whore. With his tears and his ripped clothes, the blood that marred the pale skin and the cum that mixed in; Ruka knew that he looked disgusting. He had closed his eyes when Natsume took him into his arms, closed his eyes and cried as he clung onto his best friend with all of his might. Ruka would understand if Natsume never wanted to see him ever again, but that night he needed the raven and the raven was there, warm arms never letting him go.

Through the three weeks that Ruka stayed in his hospital room, his dreams were filled with blood, fire, and eyes that were as black as the night sky. He didn't say anything to Natsume who was always there now, they both spent the time in the hospital together in silence. Ruka's other friends would visit of course, all worried until he put on his best smile to comfort them and tell them that he was alright. He laughed and forced himself to be happy, but later on, when everybody left, he would take Natsume's hand in his own and clutch it tightly as he cried into the white sheets. Then Natsume, with his eyes back to a somber crimson, would climb next to him and wrap his arms around his weak body. Not a word was said between them for those three weeks, but words weren't needed for the raven haired boy to understand.

The second time Ruka would see Natsume's eyes turn black would happen a year later.

They were in their last year but Ruka was still drowning every day in his nightmares. By now, the blonde had refrained from touching anyone. He all but flinched when Imai tried to grab his shoulders in order for him to pay attention, but when Mikan tried to hug him he all but pushed her away to collapse on the ground with tears in his eyes. No one understood why he was acting like this, and some even took offense to it. No one understood… except for Natsume.

He was there now, every day practically 24/7. After Ruka was released it only took him a couple of minutes to run out into the hallway, collapsing into Natsume's awaiting arms as he sobbed into the other boy's chest. Natsume didn't say anything—he didn't need to, he had seen what they were trying to do to the blonde after all. Ever since then, Natsume had ditched everyone and anyone for Ruka. During the day, he would carefully watch over him and during the night, he would be there by his side when Ruka was ready to sleep, climbing in and silently wrapping his arms around the blond in a gesture of safety.

Natsume suffered because of his actions though. Because he spent all his time with Ruka, his relationship with Mikan ended up falling apart with the strain. Ruka didn't know of course, he didn't know that Natsume had broken up with her until Mikan came up one day and slapped him with tears in her eyes. "It's all your fault!" she had screamed at him.

He was on the ground staring up at her until Natsume came in, angrily shoving her away and shielding Ruka's slighter body with his own. Hotaru looked at them with sad eyes, but Ruka still didn't understand until Natsume had sat him down and told him that he had broken up with Mikan.

"I-it's all my fau—"

"No it isn't!"

"Oh Natsume!" Ruka had sobbed, shaking his head, "you loved her!"

At this, the raven had stared at him before intertwining their hands together, pulling Ruka until he was in the circle of Natsume's arms. "I did love Mikan," Natsume had whispered softly, "but I love you more."

Ruka had tried to pull away at that moment, but Natsume refused to let him go and that's where he saw it. The crimson eyes that he had loved so much had darkened into the color of dying embers that sat upon black coals. It wasn't filled with anger, but something else that made Ruka's breath catch in his throat when Natsume moved closer, lips brushing softly like feathers before they molded themselves to Ruka's own in a searing, possessive kiss.

"I love you…" Natsume whispered into his lips when they pulled away panting, foreheads pressed close together. Natsume's warm hands were like fire, rough fingertips set upon Ruka's soft skin as the boy pulled him close for another kiss. Ruka moaned softly and blushed as a soft chuckle reverberated through his body. A lick on his lips and they parted to let Natsume's tongue in, the hot, wet muscle devouring as it clashed with Ruka's own weaker tongue in a battle that had an inevitable end from the beginning.

"I love you so much…" the raven whispered once more as they pulled apart to catch their fleeting breaths. And Ruka, looking into those soft, lust-filled blackened crimson eyes, couldn't stop his heart from skipping a beat in his ribcage. The blonde said nothing, but when he lifted his hands to shyly frame Natsume's handsome face, and as he leaned in to press his own kiss to Natsume's lips, words weren't needed for a reply.

I think I love you too…

A/N: I'm sorry for not updating last week :D I went on vacation with the family hehe. I hope this makes up for it though!

Thank you for reviewing!