Hey guys, here's the next instalment! And it's a longer one too! Unfortunately I go back to Uni in about 4 weeks or so, so I'll probably go back to posting one chapter a month in case I don't get a chance to write much. Also I've just realised I've been spelling Naruko's surname wrong this whole time, I've been adding an extra 'a' into it. I had though about going through and changing it but I'm just going to leave it how it is because I'm lazy ;p
Anywhoo's, on to the next chapter!
Chapter 21. Naru POV
Asuma didn't let me change my shifts but he did let me stick around and even played a game of chess with me while it was quiet. Of course I lost; I've never been good with strategy games. I did a lot of thinking while waiting for my shift to start and confided in Aya during her break; she's probably the only female I could consider as my friend. Not because I've got anything against the girls I know, I just fit in better with the guys. And I even realised that although I was angry Itachi never told me that he's gay, it didn't bother me that I knew now that there was no chance for us. And that maybe I don't love him like I used to anymore. And I think that upset me more...
"Go home, Naru. You look like you're about to collapse. I'll take over from here." I send Asuma a slight smile, mumbling a 'thanks', before grabbing my bag and leaving. I do feel quite tired, I haven't been sleeping properly because I've been worrying, and I haven't eaten anything yet today. Before my shift I even thought about Kiba's weird reaction when I joked about Itachi being gay. I sent him a text saying 'you knew', like I did with Deidara. I got a reply practically straight away, 'so he finally told you', but I never answered. He tried ringing me so I turned my phone off; I didn't feel like talking to him. Did everyone know except me?
It's 11pm, though I still don't feel like going back to Itachi's. I turn my phone back on to see a few messages and two voicemails. I check my texts first, looking at the oldest;
"Dad says he wnts 2 talk 2 u whn u get home. He'll be in his office. S." Hopefully that means Fugaku knows of some apartments. I really don't feel comfortable going back to my old place.
"I'm sorry about today, Kit. It won't happen again. Keep in touch, okay. I'll come to visit again soon. Let me know if you need anything. I'm always here for you, Gaara." I smile as I head into the 24/7 supermarket not far from Kyuubi, grabbing the cheapest sandwich I can find; plain chicken, though it looks like it's been there a while. I pay for it before sitting on the bench outside to eat it. I send Gaara a text saying I'm sorry and that I'm grateful for everything. Checking the next two, I see one each from both Itachi and Kiba asking me to ring them. I delete them both. The last one is also from Sasuke.
"Itachi sed u's got in another fight. Where r u? I no ur angry with him, I am 2. I only found out last week n not cuz it was his choice 2 tell me. He no's ur in love with him, he's prob known forever. So I cn imagine hw hard it musta been for him. I no he's ashamed and tht's probs part of the reason he cudn't tell u. So plz, for his sake, come home n talk to him Naru. He's going out of his mind thinking he's lost u forever."
I reread the text a few times before sighing; though I'm still upset I can't find it in my heart to be angry with him anymore. I'm supposed to be his best friend but I've been so selfish this whole time. I send him a quick reply; "Tell him I'm sorry. I'll be back soon." I get one back virtually straight away: "Tell him yourself." I throw the sandwich packaging away before setting off again, this time heading towards the Uchiha household. Repositioning my bag, I hold my phone up to my ear to listen to my voicemail, already knowing who they're probably from; the first one being Kiba.
"Naruko, man. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I wanted to, believe me. But Itachi had to be the one to tell you. I'm sorry about the way he did it; he told me what happened." Since when did those two get so friendly? "I know you're probably at work right now so call me back when you can, okay? And go talk to Itachi. I may not like him much, but you do so go sort it out with him, yeah?" I press the button to call him back but there's no answer, he's probably fallen asleep playing one of his games; he does that a lot. I leave a message saying I'm fine and that I'm on my way to see Itachi now. The next one is from Itachi and I can't help but feel bad for how I reacted earlier.
"Naru... I'm sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to tell you like that but that guy was really pissing me off. He made me so angry; I thought he was going to hurt you when he was shaking you. I just blurted it out without meaning to. I'm sorry I made you angry, though I know you have every right to be. I know I've not been a very good friend to you lately, and I'm sorry for that too. I don't deserve you, Naru. I wish I could love you the way you love me." A tear runs down my face, I'd not long ago said something similar to Gaara. "If it was my choice I would. Please come home..." I choke slightly at his voice, it sounds like he was trying not to cry and that hurt more than anything. Itachi's not one to cry, no matter what. I don't think I've ever seen him shed a tear; he's always been the strong one...
I don't bother ringing back as I walk up to his front door. I try the handle; it's unlocked so I walk in, taking my trainers and backpack off at the door. I pop my head round the doorway to the living area and see Fugaku drinking a brandy.
"Ah, there you are. I didn't think you'd be back tonight." I try to reply but he holds his hand up to stop me. "From what I gather you've had a fight with my son. So I won't keep you too long, you're here to make up, yes?" I just nod as he hands me some papers. "Here's a couple of apartments some of my acquaintances have currently up for rent. They're all decent enough, not too pricey either. I've written down their contact details; they said just to get in touch and they'll organise a viewing with you." I quickly flick through the papers before thanking him. "Now off you go, let this old man enjoy his drink. According to Mikoto, Itachi has been awful to deal with all afternoon. Though if he's in the wrong, don't let him off too easily." I thank him again before heading up the stairs. I can't help but smile as I hear Fugaku mumbling something about kids these days.
I stop outside Itachi room for a few moments to think about what I'm going to say, but nothing comes to mind. I sigh and send a quick glance towards Sasuke's room. It's quiet, but I can just hear some music coming from his room; though he should be in bed by now. Pulling up some virtually non-existent courage, I knock slightly on Itachi's door. I hear a quiet 'come in'. Going in, I close the door quietly behind me. He's sitting on the edge of his bed with his back to me. Walking over, I position myself behind him on the bed, legs wrapped round and crossed over his thighs. I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my cheek against his bare back.
"Naru..." I press myself harder against him and just enjoy how close we are. After a while he peels me off and repositions us so we're facing each other. He picks the apartment papers up from where I dropped them. "Is this why Father wanted to see you?"
"Yeah. I like the look of this one." I indicate to the one he's currently looking at.
"You know you're welcome to stay here as long as you want; there's no rush to find a new place. Mother loves having you here." I shake my head as he puts them on his bedside table.
"Nahh, I need to get back to normal. I'm gunna try view them this weekend if you wanna come with?" He gives me a slight smile, though it's pained and I know he's going to bring up what happened earlier soon.
"Sure. Naruko, about today..." I reach over and press my finger against his lips.
"Not now, okay?" He nods. "Let's just go to sleep. I'm tired."
"Okay. You do look a bit rough..." We stand up and he pulls the covers back before climbing in. I remove my jeans before turning off the light. Thankfully Itachi isn't like me, so I don't have to watch my step while making my way to his bed. I climb in beside him and he wraps his arms around me, pulling me close. I sling my left arm over him and slide one of my legs between his own, closing my eyes. I miss this feeling; I've always felt safe in his arms. "I love you, Naru." He presses his lips against my forehead briefly. I let the tears escape and he holds me tighter.
"Me too, 'tachi. Me too..."
"I can't believe you had all this money and never knew about it." I shovel corn flakes into my mouth as Itachi reads over the documents Mr Yamato gave me a few days ago; glasses perched on the end of his nose. Speaking of glasses, I need to go get my eyes checked; I'm finding it harder to see the board in lectures lately.
"Me neither. Think of all those times I could have paid my rent on time! The landlady was ready to throw me out after last time." I look up at him as I finish my bowl, knowing he's holding back from scolding me about that. We both have the day off and I don't need to be at the school until one.
"Have you rang any of Father's friends yet?" I get up to wash out my bowl. I'll hold my hands up; I'm a slob, but only in my own home. I think I've tidied up after myself while being here more than when I lived back home.
"Yup, rang them while you were in the shower. Got some meetings on Saturday and Sunday if you're free?" I skip back over, sitting opposite him again. I watch as he takes his glasses off before rubbing his eyes. All male Uchiha's have bad eyesight; Itachi generally wears red contacts, I know weird right?, but lately they've been irritating his eyes so he's gone back to his glasses. I've only seen Sasuke wear glasses a few times so I'm guessing he normally wears contacts.
"I'm sure I could fit you into my busy schedule." I grin at him while I look through the details of the different apartments. We had a good long chat this morning when we woke up. He confessed that he only realised he was gay just before we started Uni. He had a feeling that's probably why he had no interest in girls but only figured it out when he started hanging out with Dei a lot more. Apparently Dei had been having problems with his ex-boyfriend for a while and not long after they broke up Itachi confided in him and they ended up kissing. He said it was originally just an experiment to confirm whether or not he was gay but then he started wanting to be with Dei more and more and realised he liked him more than just a friend. They've only been going out a month at tops, he said he can't remember when what was going on between them became official, and that they're taking things slow seeing as Itachi's new to all this.
He also admitted he's a bit ashamed of it and he's frightened about what his dad will think. He told me he had brought it up with his dad once but he got dismissed. That was the first day I came back to the Uchiha house when I walked in on them having an argument. I felt a bit guilty about getting angry with him when he refused to tell me what the argument was about. His mother already knows; he talked about it with her after she overheard the incident with Kiba last week. He told me about Kiba going to their house in the middle of the night last week after one of our arguments and that's when Sasuke found out. I felt bad for him while we were talking about it earlier. His father is a lovely man but he's very set in his ways. I can't imagine how hard it must be. I told him I was in love with him, even though he already knew, but that lately I didn't think I loved him like I used to. I still love him, more than anything, but just maybe not in love like I'd thought. And that actually scares me slightly because I'm thinking of the other Uchiha and I really shouldn't be.
I also finally told him all about Gaara; that he picked me up one night when he saw me on the streets and took me under his wing. We knew each other briefly from school though we were from different crowds, but after he picked me up we became inseparable. He tried to get me off the drugs and alcohol but I couldn't stop. He was telling the truth to Itachi when he said he'd never taken drugs, though he did used to drink with me quite a lot. We would bunk off from school and go drinking the park, nobody ever seemed to care. I even told him a bit more about Orochimaru; I'd only mentioned him briefly to Itachi because I was ashamed of what I'd done in the past. And Orochimaru was a big part of my life at the time; he was not only my drug dealer but my pimp. Of course he found out about me sleeping with that guy to get my mother's fox back; so whenever I couldn't afford the drugs he's send me to his 'friends' so that I could get a hit. Not long after, I started dating Gaara and even though he knew I'd slept with people to get a fix he never knew how often and he didn't think I'd done it while I was with him. I became a good liar when I was a kid, though I'm sure he suspected it sometimes but he never called me up on it. We were both in a bad place at the time; sometimes it was just easier to forget than to bring it up.
Eventually I couldn't take it anymore. I started looking at college and Uni courses to get me out of there, which led me to Konoha. KU had the best course for the sports degree I wanted to do and that's how I ended up back here. I stopped drinking and taking drugs just before I left and broke up with Gaara. In one of the letters I'd gotten from Itachi he's given me his mobile number though I'd never contacted him. I think I was eighteen, or was it nineteen?, when I turned up in Konoha one day and phoned him using the nearest payphone. I was already going through withdrawals by the time we met up but Itachi kept me focused, I've never touched drugs since though I still drink occasionally. I enrolled in college to get what I needed for Uni, got a job at Kyuubi and the Old lady's restaurant and here I am now.
"Earth to Naruko." His hand waves in front of my face. "Where'd you go?"
"Sorry. I was just thinking." I grab a bottle of water out of the fridge. And I'm sure that Sasuke was lying to me the other night about seeing Lee on Saturday. I can't help but worry that he's doing something fishy, like drinking again. My hold on the bottle tightens; he better not be drinking again.
"Do you want a lift to the school?" I take a swig of my water. I check my watch before setting my bottle down.
"Sure. I'll just go get my stuff." I run upstairs to grab my bag before coming back down to retrieve my water bottle.
"Are you working tonight?" We head to the door and I quickly check my hair in the mirror in the hallway, brushing my fringe out the way.
"Nahh. I've got the night off 'cause I'm working all weekend. Was thinking of hitting the gym though; I feel like I've not been in forever. You want to come?" We climb into the car and Itachi speeds off.
"I'll pass." I snigger; Itachi hates working out with me. "Take Dogbreath with you. I'm sure he'll enjoy a bit of 'light' exercise."
"He'll probably be with Hinata." Hmm, everyone seems to be getting a partner except me...
"That his girlfriend?" I watch everything go by as we wiz past.
"Not yet. Though they'll probably make it official soon. He's really into her."
"Is that the Hyuga's cousin?"
"Yeah." We pull up outside the school as I yawn. I still feel tired even though I slept fine last night. Good work out tonight should make me feel better. Or maybe I'll just go for a run; I do have my sportswear in my bag.
"Do you want me to pick the rest of your stuff up from your old place?" I turn and give him a smile.
"Please. I've already rang the landlady and told her I won't be going back. I just can't..."
"No problem. I'll go get them now." We say goodbye and I head into the school. The only bad thing about my placement is that I'm not just doing phys. ed. I also help with the mandatory subjects and I hate them. Luckily it's not anything too bad, though sometimes I do have to supervise the kids if the teacher has to pop out for a bit. I head to the staff room and dump my stuff in my locker. I hear the bell go, indicating the end of the lunch break and head out into the corridors. I can already feel this is going to be a long afternoon.
I didn't have Sasuke in any of my classes today so I tried ringing him to see if he wanted to walk back with me but he never answered. Making my way out of the school, I catch his duck-butt hair in the distance and head after him. I'm about to shout out but notice he heads in the opposite direction to home. I know I probably shouldn't follow him but I do anyway, keeping my distance just in case he happens to look back. I even pull my cap out of my bag and put in on to help disguise myself. I follow him into town until we reach a little cafe and I wonder if he's maybe meeting a girl. I feel a slight twinge in my chest but ignore it. You're an adult Naru; remember he's just a kid. I watch through the window, feeling a bit like a detective, and see him go past the counter and into the back. Okay so maybe not meeting a girl here, but what's he doing? I enter the shop, again I know I shouldn't though I can't stop myself, and sit at the table in the corner. Picking up the menu, I position it so I'm hiding behind it but I can still see over it. I hear laughing come from the kitchen as a young man with orange hair comes over.
"Can I get you anything?" I give him a smile while keeping one eye on the door Sasuke went into.
"Just an orange juice please." He heads off as I put the menu down. I pull out the mathematics coursework of some of the year 11 students as well as the mark scheme. Ibiki also teaches maths, he seems to have too many jobs at that school, and asked me to help mark some of the work. He went through one of them with me earlier so that I know what I'm doing. He'll be checking them anyway once I'm finished but it'll still make it easier on him in the long run. I also grab a red pen and make a start on the first one, keeping my cap low and looking up every now and again. My juice appears not long after though I don't see Sasuke for ten minutes. After a while, a large group of girls come in, gossiping excitedly about the 'super hot' worker here, taking up half the room.
"Can I get you ladies any drinks?" I look up recognising that voice. Sasuke stands by the large group holding a pad and pen; he's even wearing black apron with 'Atasuki Cafe' written across the front with a name tag clipped to one of the apron's straps. The teenagers giggle and gush over him. I watch as he just smiles the whole way through before finally getting an order from them. I watch as he heads back into what I guess to be the kitchen and listen to the girls talk non-stop about the 'gorgeous' new worker. Sasuke and the man who served me come out not long after with the girls' drinks on a tray. I lower my gaze, focusing back on the work in front of me. I can't believe Sasuke's working here; no, what I can't believe is that he didn't tell me. I know it's not serious, but I would have thought he would tell me something like this; I thought we were friends...
An hour or so later, and many giggling girls later, the cafe is quiet again and I sneak a peek at Sasuke clearing tables with a young girl who I'm guessing also works here. I watch as they laugh and joke on, though I'm sure there's a bit of flirting going on there. My eyes drop to the next piece of coursework, having finished the first one a few minutes ago. I feel cheeks flush slightly and I don't know whether its embarrassment of seeing the teenagers flirt so openly or annoyance at the fact that it's Sasuke. I hear Sasuke say something about sitting down for five minutes while there's a lull and I get a shock when he sits down opposite me.
"That's my math coursework isn't it?" He places a fresh glass of juice in front of me, the other one long since been emptied. I sneak a glance up at him, expecting him to be angry but his face remains void of emotion. That usually means bad things are going to happen; I've learnt that from Itachi.
"Urmm, yeah it is..." We lock eyes for a few moments before I glance down again, automatically pulling my cap further down to hide my face even though he already knows it's me. As soon as I've let go he pulls it off my head dropping it onto his work. I look up again and there's a slight smile on his face though I don't know whether that's good or not.
"You followed me." That sounds more like a statement that a question...
"Will you believe me if I say 'no'?" His mouth twitches slightly and I have a felling he's holding back his laughter. I guess that means he's not as angry as I thought.
"No." We sit in silence for a bit.
"Hey Uchiha. Five minutes are up. Back to work, ya lazy sod."
"Yeah yeah, you ol' geezer." A red headed guy laughs before nipping back into the kitchen. He turns to look at me again. I squirm slightly in my seat. "I finish in forty-five minutes. If you stick round til then I'll walk home with you."
"Okay." He stands up and fixes my hair before heading back into the kitchen. I'm sure I hear the others ask if I'm his girlfriend. I put my cap back into my bag and start on Sasuke's work. I look up just as he exits the kitchen again and can't help but smile at the blush on his face.
I follow behind Sasuke as he leads the way home. It's only half six but I can't be bothered to go to the gym now; though I might still go out for a run. I managed to get about three bits of work marked, though near the end I gave up as I couldn't concentrate. Instead I watched Sasuke interacting with the customers and his co-workers. I try to keep up with him but his legs are longer than mine and I'm tired. Halfway home though he slows down a bit so I can walk beside him rather than lagging behind.
"So why did you follow me?" He looks down at me and I can't help but notice he's grown a bit taller. Might as well tell the truth...
"I was hoping I'd find out why you lied to me the other day." He looks back in front of him.
"So you noticed." I nod even though he probably didn't see. "But why follow me?"
"I was worried in case..." He looks at me and I immediately regret what I started to say.
"In case what?" Ahh shit.
"In case you were drinking again." He stops and stares at me. I stop a bit in front and turn back to face him.
"I told you I stopped. I thought you believed me." He glares at me so I send one straight back.
"I did. I mean I do. But what do you expect me to think when you lie to me? How do you expect me to trust that you've stopped if you lie straight to my face?" His gaze lowers to his feet.
"I didn't want you to know."
"Why?" He looks back up at me, his face hard again.
"Because I'm doing it for you, okay?" I give him a funny look, though my face softens. "I hate that you're putting me ahead of yourself. You're using your own money to pay for my re-sits even though you've got problems of your own. And it's worse now that you were burgled. You said all your savings had been taken. What was I supposed to do? Just sit back and let you ruin your education because you're too busy working so you can pay for my mistakes? I'm working just so that I can pay for them myself without Mother or Father finding out." I wrap my fingers around the arm closest to me.
"You don't have to do that Sasuke." He shakes me off.
"Yes, I do. I can't just let my brother's friend, who hardly even knows me, pay for the stupid things I've done. It's not fair." I frown at that. I may not have seen him in years but I thought we were becoming friends...
"You're right, it's not fair. But I chose to do this, Sasuke. Nobody's forcing me to do something I don't want to. And I don't want to just be your 'brother's friend'. I'm your friend too, kiddo." I shouldn't be saying these things. I shouldn't want to get closer to him. "I want to be someone you can rely on. You say I hardly know you, but I feel like I do. I want you to look up to me like you used to. I feel like I understand you Sasuke. And maybe I shouldn't, but I care about you. A lot. I want to help you. Plus, I paid for your re-sits yesterday."
"Eh, but how? All your money..." He looks at me confused and I can't help but find his expression cute.
"My parents left me a trust fund. I only found out about it when I turned twenty-one. So you don't need to work for me. I don't want you to repay me."
"But..." I start walking again and he follows behind.
"I can see how much you enjoyed working there." He catches up and looks down at me. "So I think you should work for yourself. Use the money on yourself, Sasuke." We reach his house and I nearly trip over the junk in the passageway. Sasuke bumps into me as I stop suddenly.
"What's all this crap?" Itachi pops his head round the corner.
"This is what we call 'Naruko's crap'." I pick up a medal I got back when I was in high school for winning something or other, I only used to attend phys. ed. and sports days.
"Huh. I didn't realise I had this much stuff."
"It's amazing what one girl can fit under her bed and in her cupboards, un." Dei appears next to Itachi and gives a slight wave.
"It's a talent." Mikoto also appears; nearly a full house.
"Oh, you two are finally back. Come have something to eat. Deidara made ramen for us so you can sort your stuff out later, Naru dear. Fugaku's working late at the office so he'll not be joining us." She drags me with her into the dining room. "Oh my, Naruko. Have you lost weight?" She lifts my shirt up and I blush as the three guys watch. I try to push her hands away but she shoves my own out of the way and undo's the belt on my jeans. She's never been one for subtleness.
"Mother, this isn't necessary..." She shh's Itachi and I have to grab my jeans before they fall down. It wouldn't have been so bad but I could only find a thong to wear this morning and I'd rather not show my bottom to the whole room.
"I thought they looked baggier than usual on you. Come on; let's get some food into before you turn into a skeleton." I let her drag me to my chair as I re-buckle my belt. I catch Sasuke giving me a disapproving look and I can guess he knows my weight loss is mostly due to not being able to afford to eat. Well hopefully from now on I don't have to worry about not affording food, at least until the trust fund runs out; but hopefully I've have a better income coming in by then.
Well there you go! Let me know what you think ^.^