Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, I know...
Warnings: Some sourness, but no lemons. MAJOR Gaara OOC (ohmygod, he speaks?). Best friend fluff. Neji angst (oh, yes. it's that time at last).
A/N: So after reading your reviews from the last chapter(s), I was kinda shocked to see just how many of my readers seem to have very little faith in me. Tsk Tsk. I've had this story mapped out-beginning to end-since I started it. And you will all be happy to know that we are getting down to brass tacks now. There will be this chapter, the next chapter, and an epilogue, and then we are done. It's all coming together now, and I honestly can't wait to see your reactions to this chapter. Oh, and just a little...uhm... shameless advertising, I guess would be the proper way to word it... you should all follow me on Twitter. I Tweet updates about my stories, along with other general nonsense. So if you have a Twitter, follow me! BabyMamaB_SGTC. Now that that's out of the way, HAPPY READING!
-OoOoOoO-
Okay, now this was just getting to be fucking ridiculous.
Two weeks ago-probably down to the very minute, he noticed as he looked at his watch-Naruto had been happily fucking Neji on the floor of the dojo, unable to think of anywhere else he'd rather be. Now, he was at the Uchiha estate for Sasuke's birthday party, watching Sasuke and Gaara from across the back yard angrily. Gaara had his arm around Sasuke's waist and they were chatting amiably with Itachi and Deidara. Deidara kept glancing over at Naruto, shooting him significant looks that seemed to say, "If you were smarter, this could be you with your arms around Sasuke." It only served to piss him off more.
Naruto took another swig of his beer-a German import courtesy of Itachi. Naruto had to admit, the asshole had great taste in beer. Sasuke looked over at him at that moment, and Naruto quickly averted his eyes, hoping like hell Sasuke hadn't seen him staring. He took another cigarette out of his pack (it seemed like the thousandth one today) and lit it hastily, trying to do anything he could to calm himself down. He took a long, deep drag and sighed. Then he felt hot breath on his ear, and he knew Sasuke had snuck up on him.
"So, dobe," he purred, "looks as though you've been reduced to stalking me at my own birthday party."
"I'm not stalking you," Naruto grumbled, turning around to come face to face with Sasuke.
"Uh huh," Sasuke nodded sarcastically.
Naruto narrowed his eyes at his best friend, and Sasuke's words from just a few short months ago came flooding back.
"It's you who doesn't know what he wants..."
He took another hit off his cigarette, intentionally blowing the smoke in Sasuke's face. Sasuke glared at him and plucked the cigarette out of his hand, tossing it in the soft grass and stamping it out.
"Smoking is bad for you," he said simply, before turning and walking away.
Naruto watched him leave, and realized he'd never been more confused about anything in his entire life. Two weeks ago, if someone had asked him what-or rather, who-he wanted, he wouldn't have hesitated in his answer: Neji. Now? He wasn't so sure of that anymore. He unlocked his phone and looked again at his wallpaper picture. The photograph he'd taken with Neji in the Mustang looked back at him, and he smiled a little at the memory. He flicked through the other pictures in his phone and came across his favorite picture he'd ever taken of Sasuke. It had been taken about this time last year, when both their families had dragged them on vacation to America. They had been sitting on a beach in California, and Sasuke seemed unbelievably at peace there. The picture in question was just a profile shot, with Sasuke's eyes closed, elbows resting on his knees, with a gentle ocean breeze playing with his hair. Naruto had found himself transfixed by the image. Sasuke had never looked so serene or relaxed in his life. Naruto had hurriedly snapped the picture, intent on immortalizing the moment. Only he and Sasuke even knew the picture existed.
Naruto stared at the picture for a long time, remembering how he'd felt that day, sitting on a private beach with Sasuke, with absolutely no cares in the world, and he suddenly wished he could have that feeling with Sasuke again. He really needed to talk to someone about this, and he knew just the person; the one person in the world he knew he could trust with anything. His life, his deepest, darkest secrets, his dilemma. She wasn't hard to find. Her loud laugh and flaming red hair gave her away immediately.
"Hey, Mom," he smiled, wrapping his arms around her waist and picking her up into a gigantic bear hug.
"Naruto, put Mommy down," she scolded, and Naruto did as he was told.
"Can I talk to you?" he asked. "In private?"
"Of course, sweetie," she replied, steering him to a deserted picnic table toward the rear of the back yard. "What is it?"
"Is it..." Naruto began, stumbling over his words a little. "Is it possible to be in love with two people at once?"
The sad smile on his mother's face said it all.
"Yes," she sighed at length. "I was wondering when you'd suck it up and come talk to me about this. I know what you're going through," Kushina assured him. "Your situation with Sasuke is not unlike my situation with Mikoto."
Okay, that was a new one.
"You're in love with Mikoto?" Naruto asked in quiet disbelief.
"Since high school," his mother confessed. "But right now, we should focus on the Naruto/Sasuke dilemma. I'll tell you about my relationship with Mikoto another time. Now, you and Sasuke have been in each other's lives since infancy. You even shared a crib at one point. A bond like that is extremely hard to come by. That bond could easily turn into a happy, fulfilling, lifelong relationship. My suggestion? Don't let that slip through your fingers just because a guy comes along with beautiful eyes and a tight ass."
"But Sasuke has Gaara," Naruto argued. "I mean, look at them!"
"I have," Kushina told him. "You obviously have not. Look at the way Sasuke carries himself around Gaara," she said, and they both looked. "See how uncomfortable he is when Gaara puts his arm around him?" Naruto did. "Sasuke has always had issues with people invading his personal space. But not when it comes to you. You're the only person in the world who can get right up in Sasuke's bubble without him looking like he wants to hit somebody. The boy won't even hug his own mother!"
Naruto suddenly remembered how Sasuke had literally thrown himself into Naruto's arms when he got back from his vacation.
"His relationship with Gaara is forced," Kushina continued. "Next time he's away from Gaara, do something to him that would make him push anyone else away. Invade his bubble a little and watch his reaction carefully. I can almost guarantee that he won't only not push you away, but he'll smile. You're one of the only people on the planet that can make Sasuke really smile."
"That's all well and good, Mom," Naruto said, "but how does that help me? Either Sasuke or Neji is going to get hurt in the end, and I don't want that."
Kushina shrugged.
"It can't be helped, chickpea," she said. "Look at it like this: the longer you keep up this charade with Neji, the more it's going to hurt him in the end. And as for Sasuke," she looked directly into her son's eyes, "haven't you already hurt him enough?"
Well, shit. Naruto hadn't thought about it like that before.
"But," Naruto protested quietly, looking down at the table, "I love Neji."
"Neji is a phase," Kushina said, waving her hand dismissively. "He was your first boyfriend after you and Fumioki broke up. He showed interest, and you latched on without a second thought. You missed the physical intimacy of being with someone, and Neji was willing to give that to you."
It took a minute for Naruto's brain to catch up with his mother's words.
"Wait. Are you saying Neji is a rebound?"
His mom smiled sweetly.
"It seems as though Sasuke's observational skills are rubbing off on you," she remarked. "Just think about it, sweetie," she concluded, then added, "With your head for once, instead of your heart."
Kushina got up and walked away, leaving Naruto to follow her advice and simply think about it. His mom always had a way of shedding light on certain subjects, so Naruto could look at things from a different angle. And that's what she had done today. He went back to watching Sasuke and Gaara interact. His mom had been right. It seemed forced... From both of them, actually. Gaara didn't seem comfortable playing the boyfriend role, and Sasuke seemed to almost cringe every time Gaara touched him for more than a second. How the hell did they have sex? Gaara smiled at Sasuke, and Sasuke forced a smile in return. Seriously, how had Naruto never seen this before? Soon after, Gaara walked away from Sasuke and into the house. Sasuke seemed to let out a relieved sigh. This was Naruto's chance to put his mother's theory to the test. He stood up from his picnic table and casually crossed the back yard, tossing his empty beer bottle into one of the many recycling bins. He approached Sasuke and threw his arm around his shoulders. Sasuke didn't seem to mind.
"'Sup, teme?" Naruto grinned, and looked at Sasuke, who smiled at him. Like, really smiled.
It would seem Kushina's theory was dead on.
"Nothing, dobe," he replied. "What do you want? I saw you and Kushina conspiring earlier."
"Not conspiring," Naruto corrected him. "It's called talking."
"Then why were you two watching me like a hawk?" Sasuke wanted to know.
"Oh, nothing important," Naruto lied. "Just... making observations."
"What kinds of observations?" Sasuke asked, narrowing his eyes.
"I'll tell you later," Naruto promised. "But only if you open my gift first. It's the one in the big orange gift bag."
"No, really?" Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I never would have guessed. Fine. I'll open yours first. Are you satisfied, dobe?"
"Mostly," Naruto shrugged. "Just one more thing."
He pulled Sasuke into a tight hug, but Sasuke didn't pull back as he'd expected. Instead, he wrapped his arms around Naruto and embraced him right back.
-OoOoOoO-
This party was fucking torture, Sasuke decided. He only had room for one hyperactive blond in his life, and it was not Deidara. He had absolutely no idea what his brother saw in that moron, but for some reason, he was being forced to put up with him for the duration of the party. Sasuke kept glaring at Itachi, who just chuckled knowingly; it was infuriating.
But that wasn't the worst part. Oh, no. Gaara would not stop fucking touching him. Sasuke had thought he'd made it perfectly clear that there were to be no public displays of affection at his family's estate. But Gaara continued to hold his hand, or slip his arm around his waist, or something equally as bad. He had dared to casually grope Sasuke's butt one time, but his Uchiha death glare had put a stop to that real fast.
To put it simply, Sasuke could not fucking wait to be back in his apartment, with Naruto, and the copy of Modern Warfare 3 he may or may not have found the receipt for while doing Naruto's laundry. Sasuke was just wondering why such a simple gift was in such a massive bag. He'd find out soon enough, he figured, because it was almost time for him to open gifts.
Sure enough, his mother approached him shortly after Gaara got back from the bathroom, and ushered him to the table in the middle of the back yard, where all his gifts were stacked. Sasuke sat at the table and waited while everyone else gathered around. Naruto and Gaara had front row seats, and they exchanged a weird look before turning their attention back to Sasuke.
Sasuke reached across the table and grabbed up the orange gift bag that Naruto had specified. He looked at Naruto, who was grinning from ear to ear. He took out the blue tissue paper and peered inside the bag. The first two things Sasuke pulled from the bag were-to put it mildly-surprising: a watch he'd had his eye on for some time now, and a hard-bound copy of his favorite author's newest release.
"How did you know I wanted this stuff, dobe?"
Naruto shrugged.
"They were on your Amazon Wish List," he responded.
"You hacked in to my Amazon account?"
"It's not that hard when you use the same password for everything," Naruto quipped. "The other two things are for both of us."
Sasuke reached into the gift bag and pulled out-as expected-a copy of Modern Warfare 3 and-not as expected- a bottle of Jack Daniel's. Sasuke held up the bottle of whiskey and raised a single eyebrow at Naruto, who only shrugged again.
"I love how this bottle is considerably smaller than the last one," Sasuke observed aloud.
"Well," Naruto said, trying to stifle his laughter, "after the effects the big bottle had on your stomach and inhibitions, I figured the smaller bottle was safer."
Sasuke allowed himself to let out a bark of laughter. Then something occurred to him: Was Naruto planning a repeat of the last time they split a bottle of whiskey? Doubtful. Sasuke had, after all, seen the picture Naruto had posted to Facebook while he and Neji were on vacation, and Sasuke didn't have to be a rocket scientist to know the picture had been taken right after sex. It probably hadn't helped that Sasuke had spent hours examining the photo, trying to find something-anything-that would suggest they weren't a blissfully happy couple. Needless to say, he didn't find anything. It seemed Sasuke would forever be stuck in the best friend zone.
The rest of Sasuke's gifts were insignificant. In truth, the only one he had actually cared about was Naruto's. Okay, so he kinda cared about Gaara's gift, too, and was pleased to find another game for his Xbox 360, and an iTunes gift card. Fuck. Yes. Everyone who knew Sauske knew he was an iTunes junkie. He had a 32 GB iPod that was already almost full of music, and now he had an excuse to put even more music on it without spending any of his own money. He had to admit, Gaara did good.
After gifts, Sasuke was forced to sit through cake. Despite the fact that everyone in his family knew he hated cake, they still insisted on buying one. Every year. His mother had put 24 candles on the cake-Stupid fucking tradition, Sasuke thought bitterly-and Sasuke was expected to make a wish and blow all the candles out at once. His mother-despite the fact that she put the correct amount of candles on the cake-seemed to think Sasuke was still a child who enjoyed these ridiculous traditions. He wanted to keep her happy, though, and forced a smile as she and Naruto lit all the candles.
In keeping with tradition, Naruto took his place at Sasuke's left side. He watched Sasuke expectantly while he closed his eyes and made his wish, in spite of himself. I wish Naruto would leave Neji and be with me instead. It was a selfish wish, he knew, but it was his birthday, after all. What better day to be selfish? He looked over at Naruto and nodded.
"One," Naruto counted off, "two... three!"
They both took a deep breath and blew out the candles together, just like every birthday before that. For a moment, Sasuke felt like a kid again, blowing out the candles on his birthday cake with his best friend. For a moment, it felt like nothing was different between him and Naruto. They were both right where they belonged: together.
Sasuke felt himself starting to get a little bit emotional as he watched the fire on the tips of the candles die. He reached for Naruto under the table and took his hand in his own, lacing their fingers together. Naruto looked at him, wide-eyed, and Sasuke smiled just enough for only him to see (he did see Kushina raise her eyebrows at him out of the corner of his eye, but chose to ignore it). Naruto smiled back at him, and Sasuke felt the overwhelming urge to kiss him. Maybe, if Gaara hadn't been there, he would have done it. Perhaps next year.
Itachi cut everyone a piece of cake, and passed them out one by one.
"Should I even give you your piece of cake, otouto, or should I give it directly to Naruto?" Itachi asked.
"We like to do the trade-off ourselves, asshole," Naruto snapped.
Sasuke almost laughed when Itachi glared at Naruto, and Naruto-completely unaffected by the Uchiha death glare-simply gave Itachi the finger.
When Sasuke and Naruto had both received their pieces of cake, Sasuke scooped his piece up with his fork and plopped it on top of Naruto's piece. Naruto, in turn, plucked the strawberries off both pieces and put them on Sasuke's plate. They both smiled at the familiarity of their actions, and started eating.
The strawberries were huge this year, and wonderfully juicy.
"So what did you wish for, teme?" Naruto asked behind a mouthful of cake.
"That a certain dobe would learn how to stop talking with his mouth full," Sasuke replied quickly. "It didn't come true."
"That's not what you wished for," Naruto said dismissively. "Tell the truth."
"I'll bet I can guess," Itachi cut in, smirking at his younger brother.
"New topic of conversation, please," Sasuke deadpanned.
"So what's it like being CEO?" Naruto asked, seemingly glad to change the subject that was of his own making.
"It sucks," Sasuke answered honestly. "I hate having to deal with people, and it seems like my work is never done. I'm always exhausted when I get home, and all I ever think about is work. So, yeah, it fucking sucks."
Sasuke didn't like how quiet Gaara was being all of a sudden. Well, sure, he was always quiet, but right now he was being completely silent. He'd done just fine carrying on a conversation with Itachi and Deidara earlier. What changed? Then it hit him. Naruto. Come to think of it, Gaara had always been completely silent around Naruto. Why? Did he sense the tension? Of course he did. Everyone seemed to. Sasuke glanced over at Gaara, who was completely lost in thought. He seemed to snap out of it right away. He looked back at Sasuke and smiled.
Sasuke knew a forced smile when he saw one, and that was a forced smile.
Sasuke sighed and got up, deciding to use the bathroom and get them the hell out of there. He obviously needed to get Naruto and Gaara away from each other before something happened. He didn't want a situation like the one between himself and Neji to arise. Sasuke hurried in the bathroom and walked back out to the yard. He heard the shouting before he saw exactly what was going on.
"You don't consider Sasuke's feelings at all!" Gaara accused. "He's obviously hopelessly in love with you, and you're off galavanting with some pretty-boy whore! It's like you couldn't give two shits less about your supposed best friend! And then you come here and put on some act like nothing's changed between you two? Get a fucking clue, Uzumaki! Some people would be grateful if he felt the same way about them that he does about you. Like me, for example. You need to grow the fuck up, stop toying with Sasuke's emotions, decide once and for all what it is you actually want, and thank your lucky fucking stars that a guy as great as Sasuke has his heart completely set on you. Because you sure as hell don't deserve him."
Well, damn. Sasuke couldn't have said it better himself, honestly.
Naruto, for once, was speechless. Gaara's rant seemed to really hit home for him. He looked up at Sasuke from where he was standing, then looked back at the ground, ashamed.
Gaara stormed past Sasuke, livid, muttering something about waiting in the car, and Sasuke was left to clean up the mess. He pinched the bridge of his nose, sighed, and walked over to Naruto, who looked up at him with tears in his eyes.
"He didn't have to say it like that," Sasuke said, kind of apologizing.
"No," Naruto sniffled. "He was right. I'm really sorry, Sasuke. Can we talk seriously when you get home?"
"Of course, dobe," Sasuke said, caressing his cheek.
"I'll take your gifts back to the apartment," Naruto told him. "Just get your hotheaded boyfriend home."
And with that, Sasuke left.
It was now official. Sasuke's 24th birthday was a complete disaster.
The ride back to Gaara's was uncomfortably silent. Sasuke kept looking over at Gaara nervously, waiting for him to snap again. He was clearly still fuming, and Sasuke was trying his hardest not to exceed the speed limit too much in his haste to get the redhead home.
After what seemed like an eternity, Sasuke pulled in to Gaara's driveway. Before Sauske could speak, Gaara did.
"Sasuke, we need to talk."
-OoOoOoO-
After unloading his car of gifts, Naruto had some time alone at the apartment to think about what Gaara had said to him. He said that Naruto didn't consider Sasuke's feelings. He supposed it might be true. Looking back on the past few months, Naruto did have to admit he'd been a little selfish. He wanted to have his cake and eat it too (he'd never fully understood that expression; what good is cake if you can't eat it?). It was time now for Naruto to decide once and for all who he'd rather be with. Gaara's display at the party, along with Naruto's conversation with his mom, had really put things in perspective, and it was so obvious now, staring Naruto in the face. As much as he wanted to believe he was in love with Neji, he knew his feelings for him paled in comparison to his feelings for Sasuke. And his mother had been right. He had already hurt Sasuke enough. If his relationship with Neji continued for very much longer, he was likely to lose Sasuke forever. That was not an option.
It was time, Naruto decided, to bite the bullet and break Neji's heart.
Just as Naruto went to push send and call Neji, the front door burst open and Sasuke stormed inside, slamming the door roughly behind him. Naruto could feel the fury rolling off of him in waves. Neji could wait. Naruto obviously had more pressing matters to deal with.
"Sasuke...?" Naruto began hesitantly. "What happened?"
"He fucking dumped me!" Sasuke shouted, throwing his hands up in the air. "The bastard does what he did at the party and then dumps me! On my fucking birthday! What the actual fuck? Oh, and you'll love this: he had a deal with Neji regarding this whole situation."
Now it was Naruto's turn to be pissed.
"He what?" he shrieked. "What kind of deal?"
"Apparently," Sasuke fumed, pacing back and forth in the living room, "this has kinda been Neji's plan from the very beginning. He approached Gaara a while back and practically begged him to hold on to me for as long as possible, because when Gaara and I broke up, he was going to leave you."
"Excuse me?" Naruto was furious.
"Oh, and that's not all," Sasuke chuckled darkly.
"There's more?" Naruto asked incredulously.
"I'll say. Remember how I told you that Gaara wanted to bottom and I didn't want to do it?" Naruto nodded. "Well, evidently, Neji promised Gaara that after all was said and done, he'd let Gaara bottom. Your boyfriend's a whore."
Naruto could only gape at him.
He felt a wide range of emotions at that point: shock, disbelief, anger, hurt, but most of all, betrayal. If that really was the case, and Neji had made that deal with Gaara, what was the point of their relationship in the first place? Had their relationship ever meant anything to Neji? Naruto didn't know at this point.
This new revelation only solidified the fact that it was over between them. At least when Naruto had been unfaithful, he'd had a guilty conscience. Neji, on the other hand, had to be completely unbothered by this whole thing. He had acted completely normal. And to think Naruto had trusted him!
"Naruto..." Sasuke said quietly, snapping Naruto out of his thoughts. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, sure," Naruto said, completely unconvinced by his own statement. "It's just... really surprising, is all. But that's irrelevant right now. I wanted to talk to you, remember?"
"Of course," Sasuke said, his eyes softening slightly. "So talk."
He sat down on the couch beside Naruto while Naruto collected his thoughts. He reached across the coffee table to the orange gift bag and reached inside, pulling out the bottle of whiskey and unscrewing the cap. Naruto watched as Sasuke put the bottle to his lips and drank deeply.
"Guess I shoulda gotten the big bottle after all, huh?" Naruto asked as Sasuke passed him the bottle in question.
Sasuke smirked at him.
"No, this one's fine," he said. "You were right about the smaller bottle being safer. Now what did you want to talk about?"
"Well, to be honest, Gaara dumping you kinda ruined my plans," Naruto admitted.
"Oh?" Sasuke asked. "And what was your plan?"
"I was going to tell you that I've made my decision," Naruto said, then looked at Sasuke. "You."
Sasuke clearly didn't know whether to smile or be condescending.
"Did you make this decision before or after Gaara's rant?"
"Mostly before," Naruto said. "When I talked to my mom today, she said a lot of things that made me second-guess the past few months."
"What did she say?" Sasuke wanted to know.
"Well," Naruto began, "she said a lot. She said your relationship with Gaara was forced. She, uhm, said that I've already hurt you enough-sorry about that, by the way. I know I've been a bit of a dick. And," Naruto sighed, "she may have implied that Neji was a rebound."
"You needed the implication to figure that out?" Sasuke snorted.
"Don't be condescending, teme," Naruto scolded.
"I'm surprised you even know what that word means, dobe," Sasuke chuckled, taking another drink from their bottle and passing it once again to Naruto. "But, yes, your mom was right. My relationship with Gaara was completely forced. I won't say there weren't feelings there, because honestly, there were. Even when I was with him, though, all I could ever think about was you. And you have hurt me quite enough-I forgive you, but only because you seem to have finally come to your senses. As for Neji being a rebound, I can't believe you didn't see it!"
"Well," Naruto said defensively, "I was under the impression rebound relationships usually happened immediately after one relationship ended-hence the term 'rebound.' I just assumed I'd been single for long enough. Even you said it was time for me to move on."
Naruto took a drink and looked over at Sasuke, who was just... staring at him.
"What exactly are you looking at, Sasuke?" he asked.
"My new boyfriend," Sasuke smirked in return.
"Not so fast," Naruto warned him. "Let me break up with Neji before you start labeling us. Oh, my God!" Naruto exclaimed, suddenly remembering something his mom had said. "Did you know my mom has been in love with your mom since high school?"
Sasuke rolled his eyes and snatched the bottle back.
"You really are a dobe."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Naruto asked, getting up from the couch and putting their new copy of Modern Warfare 3 in their Xbox.
"I've known that for years," Sasuke explained. "And it's hardly one-sided. They were lovers all through high school. When my grandparents found out about it, they set up an arranged marriage; which is how my parents met. Kushina was heartbroken. My parents got married about a week after my mother graduated high school. A year later, Itachi was born. Your mother and mine remained best friends, despite everything. It must have been so hard for them," he said quietly, taking another long drink, "being so in love and not being allowed to be together. Could you imagine?"
Sasuke was wearing an unreadable look, but Naruto knew what he was thinking. He handed Sasuke his wireless controller and crouched down between his legs, cupping his face in his hands.
"That won't happen to us, Sasuke," Naruto said quietly, sapphire eyes meeting deep onyx. "After I give Neji a piece of my mind tomorrow, we'll finally have each other. Forever."
"I know," Sasuke replied, bringing his hand up to Naruto's. "Now grab the headsets and let's kick some ass!"
Naruto grinned and stood, retrieving their headsets from behind the television and taking his place on the couch beside Sasuke.
Two hours later, Naruto and Sasuke had finished off the bottle of Jack Daniel's. They were pleasantly drunk, screaming obscenities into their headsets at the other players online. Naruto was getting pretty pissed, actually. He kept getting killed. No matter what weapon he used, he couldn't seem to get into the groove of the game. Sasuke was holding his own pretty well, however. Sasuke chuckled, then Naruto watched his player fall to the ground, dead. Again. The screen signalled the end of the round, and Sasuke jumped up from the couch in victory.
"Fuck yes!" he shouted. "Game-winning kill!" He turned to Naruto. "You suck! Suck my dick, dobe! I fucking win!"
Sasuke always got like this when he beat Naruto at video games, which didn't happen all that often. They were extremely competitive, and this rare loss really pissed Naruto off. He dropped his controller on the couch and tore his headset off. He jumped up from his seat and came face to face with Sasuke, fully intending to punch him in the face like he normally would in this situation. Instead, something else came over him. He ripped Sasuke's headset off his head and pushed him back down on the couch. He jumped on top of Sasuke and smashed their lips together, putting all his rage into that one kiss. Kissing Sasuke, Naruto noticed, was far superior to kissing Neji. Kissing Sasuke was a fight, a competition to see who could best the other, to see who could exert dominance over whom. Their tongues clashed together in a heated dance, and Naruto vaguely noticed Sasuke tugging at his tee-shirt. Naruto allowed the shirt to be removed, and moved his kisses to Sasuke's neck. Just then, Naruto's phone started ringing. Naruto growled low in his throat and decided to ignore the phone. Whoever was calling would just have to wait. This was much more important than some stupid phone call.
Sasuke didn't seem to agree. He leaned forward as far as Naruto would allow him and picked the phone up from the coffee table. Naruto couldn't be bothered. He kept kissing and sucking Sasuke's neck, determined to leave marks on his pale skin. Sasuke chuckled as he answered Naruto's phone.
"Naruto's busy," he said matter-of-factly, rolling his hips against Naruto and making Naruto moan quietly, though whoever was on the found had probably heard him. "You can call him tomorrow, Neji." Naruto found that he didn't care. "Because I'm going to be keeping him busy for the rest of the night."
Sasuke hung up the phone before Neji had a chance to say anything.
"That felt fucking great," Sasuke said as he tossed the phone beside him on the couch and grabbed Naruto by the hair.
Naruto let Sasuke pry him away from his neck, and they resumed kissing. The game was completely forgotten in favor of kissing the night away instead. Suddenly, the phone came to life again.
"Oh, he is so fired," Sasuke muttered as he answered Naruto's phone for the second time that night. "What part of our last conversation did you not hear, Hyuuga? I said tomorrow! I'm hard as a rock here and I have a feeling I'm about to get my birthday present."
Naruto watched as Sasuke's expression went from enraged to shocked to mortified, and his face turned the brightest shade of red Naruto had ever seen.
"Oh, my God, Minato, I'm so sorry," he groaned, and Naruto plucked the phone out of Sasuke's hand.
"You pick the worst fucking times to call, Dad, you know that?" Naruto snapped.
"So I've gathered," Minato laughed. "If it's before midnight when you finish... giving Sasuke his birthday present, call me."
"Yeah," Naruto scoffed. "Don't wait up."
"Fine," Minato sighed. "Call me on your way to work tomorrow then. Oh, and son?"
"What, Dad?"
"Give it to him good."
And with that, the line went dead. Naruto shuddered in disgust. His dad really had no right talking like that. It was disturbing.
"What did he say?" Sasuke asked, his face still bright red.
"He said, 'Give it to him good.'" Naruto replied, turning his phone off-that should stop the interruptions-and putting it on the coffee table.
"Ew," Sasuke said simply, making a face.
"Right?" Naruto agreed. "Now where were we?"
"Kissing," Sasuke reminded him. "It was leading to more."
"That's right," Naruto grinned, leaning down to lock lips with Sasuke again.
Sasuke's tongue was downright magical. It dominated his own with ease, and Sasuke was obviously putting everything into the kiss; months of heartache and years of pent-up sexual aggression toward his best friend. It was driving Naruto insane, and he wanted so much more. They couldn't have sex tonight, though, as obvious as it was how badly they both wanted to. As much as he considered his relationship with Neji over, Naruto knew that Neji wasn't aware of that yet, and he couldn't, in good conscience, have sex with Sasuke while he still technically had a boyfriend.
So instead, he dropped to the floor btween Sasuke's legs and unbuttoned his pants. Sasuke gave him a look, and Naruto just smiled. He pulled Sasuke's jeans down and touched him for the first time, stroking him slowly and watching Sasuke watch him. He planted light kisses on Sasuke's erection, and Sasukle shivered.
"What are you doing?" he asked, and Naruto was pleased to hear Sasuke sounding a little breathless. "You hate giving head."
"Happy birthday, Sasuke."
Naruto took as much of Sasuke in his mouth as he could.
"Fuck," Sasuke swore tightly, arching his back off the couch.
And Naruto went to work, bobbing his head quickly and swirling his tongue around the head, moaning at the salty taste of Sasuke's pre-come. The weight of Sasuke on his tongue was incredible, and Sasuke was already making noises that rivaled Neji's. Everything about Sasuke was better. The noises, the way he gripped Naruto's hair, the way he was thrusting himself deeper into Naruto's mouth, all of it. Naruto suddenly loved giving head, and could see himself doing it all the time. He had always known Sasuke loved receiving blowjobs, and it only encouraged him more. He hollowed out his cheeks, sucking hard, earning him another loud moan from Sasuke.
"Naruto," Sasuke breathed, "look at me."
Naruto raised his eyes as much as he could without taking his mouth away from the delicious length, only to come face to face with Sasuke's phone. Sasuke snapped a picture, and Naruto rolled his eyes. He pulled Sasuke further down on the couch and took his pants the rest of the way off, spreading his legs lewdly apart. He pushed two fingers inside Sasuke, and Sasuke gasped something that sounded like "Oh, God" or "Yes" or a colorful combination of the two. Naruto easily found Sasuke's prostate, and after a few hard sucks, Sasuke was coming. It was amazing. Sasuke thrust his hips sharply as he climaxed, releasing into Naruto's throat and shouting his name at the top of his lungs.
Sasuke was panting heavily when Naruto finally detached himself from his spent cock, and his eyelids seemed to be getting heavy. He slowly opened his eyes and looked down at Naruto.
"That's all I'm getting tonight, isn't it?" Sasuke asked after a moment.
"Yup," Naruto answered, standing up and helping Sasuke to his feet. "We'd both better get to bed. I have a feeling tomorrow's going to be a long day."
"Hey, Naruto?" Sasuke asked quietly, and Naruto looked at him. "I know this may be asking too much, but... Will you sleep in my bed tonight?"
Naruto smiled.
"Yeah, okay. Just let me get my phone charger from my room."
After retrieving his phone and charger, Naruto walked into Sasuke's room. Sasuke was already nestled under the covers. Naruto closed the bedroom door behind him and stripped himself of his jeans. He climbed into bed beside Sasuke, pleased that Sasuke had chosed the right side of the bed, so Naruto could have the left, like he preferred. Sasuke scooted closer, tangling their legs together and burying his face into Naruto's chest. He lazily draped his arm over Naruto's hip and sighed, settling in for the night.
"I never pegged you for a cuddler," Naruto yawned.
"I'm not," Sasuke told him shortly. "I just want this moment etched in my memory in case you have a change of heart come morning."
Naruto took Sasuke's chin between his thumb and finger, forcing him to look Naruto in the eye.
"I'm sorry I've been so stubborn," Naruto said, gazing into Sasuke's eyes in the dark of the bedroom. "But nothing is going to change my mind this time. Especially not after what happened tonight. You were right. I usually hate giving head. But I absolutely loved giving you head. Sasuke, it's you that I want. You have a hickey just below your jaw that pretty much speaks for itself. No amount of make-up, or even one of your stuffy collared shirts is gonna cover that thing up. And quite frankly, I couldn't care less at this point if Neji sees it and knows who gave it to you. My relationship with him is over as far as I'm concerned, and there is absolutely nothing he could say that would change my mind. Not now. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to figure out what I wanted, but I know now. And I'm never letting you go, teme."
"That's good to hear, dobe," Sasuke said, planting an chaste kiss on Nnaruto's lips. "Good night."
"Good night, Sasuke."
-OoOoOoO-
Sasuke slept better than he had in months. Having Naruto's hard, warm body pressed up against his back while he slept was a wonderful feeling. So, when his alarm woke him the next morning, he groaned and reluctantly shifted away from Naruto to silence it. He heard Naruto make a noise of complaint and wrap his arm even more tightly around Sasuke's waist. Sasuke rolled to his back and stretched, his back arching off the bed as he yawned.
"You look like a cat when you do that," Naruto noted sleepily.
"Uh huh. Go get a shower, dobe. I'll make coffee."
"Fine," Naruto yawned, slowly rising out of bed.
Sasuke went about his morning ritual, and he briefly considered jumping Naruto in the shower for some breakfast booty, but decided against it. He knew Naruto wanted to make the break-up official before they could fuck each other senseless, and Sasuke was okay with that. He laughed out loud when he remembered what he'd said to Neji on the phone last night. He had a feeling he'd be dealing with a very pissed off Hyuuga when he got to work this morning, but he found he didn't care. Sasuke felt deliriously happy when he got what he wanted, and he definitely wanted this; Naruto was going to be his and only his, and he would finally be able to shove that fact right down Neji's throat.
He sighed happily and poured himself a cup of coffee. Naruto joined him not two minutes later, a towel wrapped loosely around his waist. Sasuke drank in the sight, marveling at the way Naruto's blond spikes were momentarily tamed, sticking to his face from the water.
"Better be careful, dobe," Sasuke warned him. "I may have to reconsider letting you do the official breaking up bit and make you fuck me right here on the kitchen counter."
"I may allow it," Naruto husked in return, using his nearly naked body to push Sasuke up against said counter.
"Really?" Sasuke asked, his heart suddenly racing.
Naruto seemed to consider it as he toyed with a lock of Sasuke's hair.
"Nah," he finally said, and Sasuke glared at him. "We don't have time. But I can give you a little taste."
And Naruto kissed him, making him weak in the knees like some blushing virgin. Just like last night, Sasuke didn't feel any of the hesitation he'd felt in any of their previous kisses. It really did seem like Naruto had finally made up his mind and was sure about it this time. Sasuke just hoped his world wouldn't come crashing down around him like it had so many times before. He couldn't handle it again. If Naruto changed his mind again, he decided, that would be the last straw. He would push Naruto out of his life forever. He deserved more than to just be somebody's back-up.
After the steamy make-out session left them both hard and needy, Sasuke decided to take his own shower and get ready for work. As he washed himself, he half wished Naruto would forget about the whole no-sex thing and just jump into the shower with him. It didn't happen, however, and he was forced instead to relieve himself. Sasuke couldn't help but think of Naruto as he came, imagining those bright blue eyes that had always been something of a weakness for him boring into Sasuke as Naruto filled him. He couldn't wait to feel that for real.
Sasuke dried and dressed quickly, examining the hickey Naruto had mentioned. He had been right; nothing was going to hide that monster of a love bite. Oh, well. It was just more evidence to throw in Neji's face.
Naruto and Sasuke left for work at the same time, sharing one last light kiss before getting in their respective cars, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
When he stepped off the elevator to see a certain Hyuuga standing at his office door with his hands on his hips, looking like he was ready to rip someone's head off, Sasuke felt his excitement mount. This was the moment he'd been waiting for. It was time to take Hyuuga Neji down a peg.
"I'm guessing you haven't talked to Naruto yet," he said calmly as he unlocked his office door. He made sure Neji got a good look at his hickey before ushering his infuriated employee into his office.
"That mark on your neck better not be from who I think it's from," Neji spat as he closed Sasuke's office door behind him.
Sasuke smirked.
"Well it's certainly not from Gaara. He dumped me," Sasuke sighed, feigning disappointment. "However, he had a fascinating story to tell me before he did the actual dumping. It concerned a certain... deal."
Sasuke watched in morbid amusement as that news sunk in, and Neji's eyes grew hilariously wide.
"Did you...?" Neji's voice trailed off.
"Tell Naruto?" Sasuke supplied. "Of course. He has a right to know what his boyfriend does behind his back. He was... grateful I told him, to say the least. In summation, Hyuuga," Sasuke smirked again, "you lose."
Neji clearly didn't know what to say. Sasuke could practically see the wheels turning in his head. Sasuke wondered if Neji would hit him, giving him an excuse to fire Neji on the spot. When Neji finally spoke again, he was seemingly calm, but Sasuke could tell he was inwardly fuming.
"Consider this my two weeks notice, Uchiha," he said quietly, looking at the floor.
"So be it," Sasuke sighed, not at all bothered. Neji would be easy to replace. "If that's all, Hyuuga, you're dismissed."
Neji turned on his heel and quickly strode out of Sasuke's office, brushing past Itachi as he walked out. Itachi watched him curiously, then quirked a brow at his brother.
"Was he crying, otouto?" he asked quietly as he shut the door behind him.
"I hope so," Sasuke said bitterly as he motioned for Itachi to take the seat across from him.
"Judging from that enormous hickey," Itachi smirked, "I'd have to say the rest of your night went swimmingly after you left the party."
"You have no idea," Sasuke commented, flipping through his phone, then turning it to Itachi.
His brother leaned forward to get a better look at the picture presented to him, then narrowed his eyes at Sasuke.
"Please tell me you did not just show me a picture of Naruto going down on you," he said, leaning back in the chair and crossing his arms over his chest. "And please tell me you didn't show that picture to Hyuuga."
"Damn," Sasuke muttered. "I should have."
"That would have just been cruel, Sasuke," Itachi said. "What happened yesterday?"
So Sasuke told him the story. Itachi listened silently, and if he'd been surprised, he didn't show it. When Sasuke finished, he watched Itachi intently. He seemed to be mulling it over.
"What I don't understand," Itachi said at last, "is why. I mean, if it was so obvious to Neji that he and Naruto weren't going to last, why try at all? Why stall the inevitable and set yourself up for more heartache in the end?"
Sasuke shrugged.
"But the reason I'm here," Itachi continued, "is because the real estate agent asked me to give you her number. She's really looking forward to talking to you. Have you decided what you're going to do?"
"I'm going to buy the house, of course," Sasuke said. "I have my blond now. And I want to get the hell out of that crummy apartment, and into a house for just myself and Naruto."
"Have you told him you've been looking?" Itachi asked.
"No," Sasuke answered. "I plan on surprising him tonight after I talk to the real estate agent and make the down payment."
As expected, Sasuke felt ridiculously happy. Everything was finally coming together. He had won.
-OoOoOoO-
Naruto didn't expect the phone call to come so soon. He had already decided he wouldn't answer the call when it came; this wasn't a conversation he wanted everyone in the shop hearing first hand. When he pushed the ignore button, Naruto saw everyone in the shop shoot him curious glances. He ignored them all.
Naruto's text tone went off not 30 seconds later. That, he decided, he could answer. He opened the text and scoffed.
You deserve an explanation.
Maybe so. But you don't deserve the opportunity to make excuses
No excuses. Just the truth. Let me take you to dinner tonight.
No. It's over, Neji. Nothing you can say will change that.
I know. But my side of the story needs to be heard.
Fine. Meet me at Hokage tonight. I'll make sure my dad leaves us alone. You know what time I clock out.
How can you be sure he'll leave us alone?
Naruto rolled his eyes. God, this was getting annoying.
Because he knows what you did.
Does everyone know?
Probably. These are two very close-knit families we're talking about. Word travels fast.
Anything else?
Naruto smirked. It might be a tad evil to bring it up, but...
Did you see the picture?
...There's a picture?
Well. Naruto hadn't seen that one coming. He'd had the distinct feeling that Sasuke had taken the picture for the sole purpose of tormenting Neji with it.
It seems Sasuke isn't as evil as I thought. You should be grateful. Goodbye Neji. I'll see you tonight.
When he put his phone down-finally-and looked up, Naruto noticed that everyone in the shop had stopped what they were doing and had taken to staring at him.
"What?" he snapped irritably.
"Trouble in paradise, un?" Deidara guessed.
"I don't want to talk about it," Naruto said simply. "Dei, I'm sure Itachi will tell you everything when he gets off work. And everyone else can eavesdrop for all I care. For one motherfucking day, I'd like to not talk about my love life."
"Wow. It must be really bad if you're not even willing to talk about it," Konan said. She was clearly concerned, and Naruto almost told everyone the entire story.
Then his text tone went off again. He was pissed for all of two seconds before he picked up his phone and saw Sasuke's name displayed on the screen. Naruto smiled a little to himself and opened the text.
Neji just barged into my office demanding to see the picture. Any thoughts?
Naruto rolled his eyes again and sighed. Neji just couldn't leave well enoughalone, could he?
If he wants to see the picture that goddamn bad, show it to him.
I should warn you, dobe, this picture does not leave anything to the imagination. It's very obvious what you're doing in this picture. Are you sure you want Neji to see that?
Send it to me.
Naruto waited while Sasuke sent him the picture. If it was too graphic, he'd ask Sasuke to not show it to Neji. He didn't want to hurt Neji too much. Although, at this point, maybe he deserved it. He was being completely ridiculous from the sound of it. Seriously. Sasuke had to be getting extremely annoyed. It was a damn miracle he hadn't fired Neji yet. The picture came through, and Naruto opened it. Damn. Sasuke was right. This picture literally left nothing to the imagination. The look in his own eyes was one he'd never seen before. There was something wild and primal in his eyes, and it was obvious that he was loving what he was doing. Perhaps Neji shouldn't see this picture.
Yeah, maybe you should just keep that between us.
Okay. Just a warning: Neji will probably demand to see it tonight when you guys go to dinner. See you afterward.
Yeah. You'd better be ready for me when I get home. I don't intend to wait any longer.
Understood. Can't wait.
The rest of the day passed without anymore distractions. Naruto called his dad to let him know that he and Neji would be at Hokage tonight, and that it was a break-up dinner. Minato promised to leave them to it, that he wouldn't disturb them, and Naruto was satisfied.
As expected, when Itachi showed up at Akatsuki, the first thing Deidara did was ask him about waht happened with Neji. He looked to Naruto for approval, and Naruto waved his hand at him, giving him permission to air his dirty laundry all over the shop. So Itachi told everyone, and Naruto just sat there and listened to his business be spread around like wildfire. Everyone in the shop kept looking at him, and they were all obviously concerned about him. Naruto ignored them. He didn't need their sympathy. He didn't really care anymore, honestly. Tonight, his fantasies would finally become reality. He would finally-finally-be able to fuck Sasuke's brains out.
Soon, it was time for the dreaded break-up date. Naruto drove to Hokage, and he saw his dad when he walked in. Minato nodded at him, and smiled just a little. Naruto smiled back, and Minato motioned to the table where Neji was sitting. There were two bottles of sake on the table. One was obviously empty, and the other was slowly being consumed. The glass on the table remained untouched, which told Naruto that Neji had been drinking the sake straight from the bottle.
This was going to be interesting.
Naruto approached the table slowly, half hoping Neji wouldn't spot him so he could just run the other direction. However, Neji did see him, and he quickly stood to greet him. When Naruto got to the table, Neji leaned in for a kiss, and Naruto turned his head just in time to avoid lip contact, so the kiss landed on his cheek.
"I guess I deserved that," Neji said quietly.
"You don't have the right to kiss me anymore," Naruto spat, narrowing his eyes at his now ex-boyfriend.
"I guess I don't..."
Naruto and Neji sat down at the table, and Neji picked the bottle of sake back up and chugged.
"Want some?" he asked, offering the bottle to Naruto.
"No."
"I already ordered for us," Neji informed him. "Ordered you ramen, of course."
"Thanks," Naruto said quickly. Now it was time to get down to business. "So tell me. Why?"
"I just..." Neji began. "I just wanted to have you for as long as possible. I knew that as soon as Sasuke was single, he would step his game up. And I would lose you, even if I didn't want to."
"Let me let you in on something, Neji," Naruto said, ready to make his admission. "While we were on vacation, if you would have asked me to completely forget about Sasuke, and be with you forever, I would have done it. And then I found out about this. You fucked up big, Neji. When?"
"Wait," Neji said. "Do you mean that? You really would have committed to me forever?"
"Yeah, Neji," Naruto confessed. "I loved you. I loved you so fucking much. Do you even realize how badly you hurt me? Now answer my goddamn question: when?"
"The day after whatever happened between you and Sasuke," Neji confessed, looking down at the table and chugging the sake again.
"I see," Naruto said.
Just then, the waiter brought their food, and for a while, they were silent. They ate in uncomfortable silence, and Neji kept glancing at Naruto, expecting... something. Probably something Naruto couldn't give him. Forgiveness. Understanding, maybe. Sympathy.
"I want to see the picture," Neji said at last.
"No, you don't," Naruto said in return.
"I really do," Neji pressed. "I at least want to know what it is."
So Naruto conceded. He opened the picture on his phone and turned it toward Neji, who leaned forward and looked at it for a long time. His face fell, and he leaned back.
"So it's really over..." he said quietly.
"Neji, it was over last night," Naruto said. "It was over when I found out what you did. You just didn't know about it yet. But you do now. What are you going to do now?"
"What do you mean?" Neji asked.
"I mean, what's next for Hyuuga Neji?" Naruto said.
"Well, after I leave here," Neji said carefully, "I'm going out to the bar and getting shit-wrecked. It seems like the only logical decision at this point. After that, I don't know."
"So you're not going to Gaara's?" Naruto snorted.
"No," Neji said, defeated. "I probably shouldn't go through with it."
"But you have to," Naruto stressed. "It was a deal. You can't go back on something like that."
"Fine. But just because you want me to."
"I don't want you to," Naruto corrected him. "But you should. Thanks for the ramen. I'm going home."
"To fuck Sasuke?" Neji asked bitterly.
"Yeah, actually," Naruto snapped, irritated. "Not that it's any of your business. Goodbye, Neji. Have a good life."
Naruto got up, threw his napkin on the table, and left. It was over. It was finally fucking over. Now, he could go home, and he would finally have his Sasuke. He would have Sasuke forever. Naruto felt a warm wave of relief wash over him as he got in his car. Part of Naruto felt bad for Neji, but most of him just wanted to get home. He pulled up in front of the apartment complex, and readied himself.
This was it.
He sighed happily, and got out of the car.
-OoOoOoO-
Neji wanted to fucking die.
Okay, so maybe that was a little over-dramatic. But he did want to forget. What he had told Naruto was true. He was going to the bar. Right now. He needed to get shitfaced, and just fucking forget about today. And the past three months, for that matter. The revelation that Naruto had been prepared to give Sasuke up for him really hurt. He had never expected that. He wished Naruto had told him.
But it was over now... It was fucking over.
Neji paid for his and Naruto's meal-the last meal they would ever have together-and got in the Mustang; the car that held so many memories. And Neji broke down. He finally let himself cry. This was the worst goddamn day of his life. He knew it would be, but he honestly hadn't expected it to hurt this fucking much.
Vodka. Or tequila. Or whiskey. He needed some kind of hard liquor. Now. It might actually make this easier... But he doubted it.
-OoOoOoO-
A/N: If there were any typos during the break-up scene, I'm really sorry. I've been drinking with my housemates... (frozen mixed drinks, beer, and lemonade vodka) (and seriously, it's okay for me to be drunk. i'm of age.) .
Katie's note: I apologize for missbip0lar's shitty typing. I got her drunk. And I appreciate all the great reviews to my bff. Her writing makes me squee. I love it just as much as you guys do! ^_^
A/N: Sorry, guys. That was my roomie and bff. She hijacked her compy for a hot sec to write to you. Okay, I'm gonna post my longest chapter EVER (23 motherfucking pages! WOOOHOOOOOOOO!)! Just so you know, the next chapter will begin with NaruSasu smut, like you've all been anxiously waiting for. I'll try my very best to get it out asap. I have already started writing it. Like I said up top, it's just chapter 8 and an epilogue after this. And then... we're done... You guys should really feed that review monster. He's getting hungry as fuck.