He blanks out as Sasuke carefully sets him down to sit on the steps.

"Didn't mean to startle you," the former missing-nin says, picking up the cans to deposit back into the tote, and hangs Naruto's bag on his shoulder across his chest, the groceries on the other shoulder to free his remaining arm to stabilize Naruto on the steep steps. "C'mon, let's get you in and make sure you didn't twist your foot,"

Naruto, breath still caught in his lungs, nods absently. "Okay,"

Sasuke gathers the groceries and his omega, and escorts Naruto up the remaining flight of stairs, and into the apartment. The studio apartment is barer than Sasuke remembers, cleaner too, than the previous apartment Naruto had before. He removes his shoes by the door, lowers Naruto on the bed, then carries the groceries to the table in the kitchen.

"Does anything hurt?" he asks as he comes back to Naruto on the bed then starts removing Naruto's shoes to press on his ankles.

The omega stares and stares. "You're here, right?" says Naruto, feeling the overwhelming sense of dread conquer his entire being. "You're here? And I didn't hit my head on the stairs? I'm not hallucinating? Or, or," his hands cradle the heaviness of his belly. He lowers his head and a pitiful sob is ripped from him, hoping that the gentle but also firm mass of his middle is proof enough of the child's safety. "I didn't hurt our baby, right?"

"Naruto," Sasuke kneels in front of him. "Look at me," he thumbs at the tears that won't stop falling.

"Please let it be real," Naruto cries, "Because…because I swore to let you go, Sasuke. I can't… I can't keep doing this…"

"I'm here. And I'm real," Sasuke takes Naruto's shaking hand and presses his cheek into it. "And I promise to stay,"

"I can't keep dreaming of you, then wake up and you're not there,"

"I will be here when you wake up. I promise,"

The omega gasps. "Is this a genjutsu?" Naruto reaches for the concealed kunai in his shirt and tries to stab his thigh. "I have to wake up!"

"No, Naruto!" Sasuke easily grabs Naruto's wrist, twisting it only hard enough for the other to let the weapon go. "You're not in a dream, or in a genjustu. I'm here. And I will be here, every day, right beside you for the rest of our life,"

The kunai drops to the floor with a metallic clang, and Naruto throws himself onto Sasuke. "Please be real," he sobs, like a plea and prayer.

"I'm real," the alpha wraps his arm around his mate. "I promise I'm real,"

Naruto ends up crying himself to sleep.

When he wakes up, the sleeping area is dim, but the kitchen is lit and it's still dark out.

"What a horrible dream," he says to himself staring up at the ceiling. He's exhausted and he doesn't know why. His eyes sting, feel puffy and heavy. He must have cried in his sleep.

He reaches for his belly. There is a comfort in its heaviness.

But then hears ruckus in the closet turned small pantry in the kitchen and he sits up in alarm, grabbing the baseball bat by the door, which he'd bought the day Tsunade blocked his chakra, to use to defend himself in addition to all the kunai and shuriken concealed in the apartment.

"Who's there?" he demands, raising the bat.

The fear creeping up his spine and choking him by the neck makes the child in him toss, turn, and kick.

The closet door creaks, and a dark-haired man steps out.

Shock makes Naruto lower the bat for bit, but then anger rises and the bat is at the ready once more. "Who are you?" it hurts how much the child is moving. It hurts even more that someone has assumed the form of his alpha to hurt him.

No scent. There's a patch of scent blockers on his neck. And he can't feel him. He can't feel chakra, can't tell if he has Sasuke's chakra; can't use his strength, so if whoever this is, can succeed in killing him.

What if Sasuke comes back and he's dead? What happens if Sasuke finds out he died pregnant with his child? What happens when Sasuke finds out that he might have had a normal future taken away from him? Would Sasuke mourn?

Because while Sasuke isn't dead, Naruto mourns the father he may never be for their baby. Naruto mourns himself as an abandoned omega. Naruto mourns for the day that their child will ask, did their papa not love them enough to stay?

"Naruto, it's me,"

For a moment, Naruto wants to believe it. There's a desperation in this Sasuke's face. "Prove it,"

Without missing a beat, the Sasuke answers, "The only person who's made me laugh or cry is you," he looks at Naruto the way he looked at him that night they spent together that resulted in the child nestled in Naruto's womb. "And you told me, half a year ago when we met, that I'll always have you to come home to,"

Naruto drops the bat and throws himself at Sasuke again. Just like in his dream. "Teme!"

"Usurantonkachi," it's said with fondness now, unlike the derision it used to have. Sasuke buries his nose in Naruto's hair. "Tadaima," it's the first time he's said that in a long time.

The omega sobs into Sasuke's neck. "Okaeri, Sasuke," he's always wanted to say that.