Well, guys, sorry that this chapter is late, again. I think this is probably one of the most important chapters in the story, though (you'll see why), so hopefully that'll make up for its lateness. As usual, thanks to all of you for reading, and especially those who reviewed. Any praise or criticism is welcomed!

Now, on with the chapter!

13. Cheeks Flushed with the Night

Sasuke Uchiha stood alongside Naruto Uzumaki just outside the blond's apartment, feeling unusually anxious about his current situation. While Naruto appeared rather calm, fumbling with his keys that glinted in the afternoon sun, Sasuke found his hands were jittery, and a slight sweat was forming on his brow. It was such an unusual feeling for the Uchiha that this nervousness only grew with every passing second.

It was an understandable reaction, really. In the past, Sasuke had always been forced into contact with Naruto through unfortunate circumstances, but now he had sought out the blond's company on his own. He had acknowledged that he did not want Naruto entirely out of his life, but what exactly did that mean? Sasuke had made a similar decision with Shikamaru a few years before, but he couldn't remember ever feeling this apprehensive about it. In a way, he had resigned himself to that friendship, just like he had with Orochimaru and Kakashi. This new connection with Naruto, though, was something he was actively pursuing. He wanted it, and not even Sasuke could deny that this was significant.

"There it is!"

Sasuke snapped out of his thoughts and looked to the side to find Naruto holding a key triumphantly in the air. In a flash, the vulpine boy had the door unlocked, and together he and Sasuke entered the apartment, removing their shoes in the entryway.

"Wait here a minute, okay? I'll go grab your stuff before I forget," Naruto said, holding up a finger as he turned the corner.

"Yeah, sure," the Uchiha replied to no one in particular as he stepped onto the beige carpeting.

It was strange, but even though Sasuke had just been in the apartment the night before, he felt as if he was seeing it for the first time. Details that he had completely ignored now carried special significance, and as a result he wandered around as if in a trance, examining everything with unusual interest.

So this is Naruto's apartment… well, his and Kiba's, I guess. And that damn dog… I wonder whose movies these are? Pulp Fiction? Star Wars? That could be either of them. What do I even know about Naruto? Here, I'm supposed to know everything about him for this project, and I can't think of anything he likes other than ramen and the color orange…

"Sasuke? What's up?"

The Uchiha spun his head around to find Naruto standing in the hallway, tilting his head quizzically to the side. Looking down, Sasuke found that he was holding a handful of DVDs he'd taken off the shelf, which he hurriedly put back, a blush crossing his features.

"Oh, uh, sorry. It's nothing."

"Did you want to watch a movie or something? Oh, let's see… do you like Monty Python and the Holy Grail? How about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?" Naruto prodded, placing Sasuke's damp clothes and backpack in a pile by the couch.

"No, no… I was just trying to learn a bit about you… for our project, you know," Sasuke interrupted, scratching his head sheepishly.

Get a hold of yourself, Sasuke. This is nothing to get so worked up over. He's just a friend…

"Oh, why don't I give you the grand tour, then? I didn't get a chance to show you around yesterday," Naruto replied, grabbing onto the Uchiha's arm.

"Wait a second, maybe we should just sit down. I mean, you have to rest with those injuries..."

"I'm fine," Naruto said, rolling his eyes in an exaggerated manner. "I recover from this kind of stuff pretty quickly. Just look."

Naruto peeled off one of the bandages on his cheek at that moment to reveal a thin, white scar, the cut already healed. "So would you quit being such a worrywart and let me show you around?'

"I'm not worried," Sasuke said defensively. "I just don't want you to get hurt because of me, all right?"

"I'll be careful, now come on!"

With Naruto yanking on his wrist, Sasuke stumbled forward and was forced into the main living space, where the blond began to point excitedly at various objects.

"All right, let's see here. You've already seen most of our movies I guess. Kiba and I have pretty similar tastes, though I like comedies a bit more than the action movies. Those are probably my two favorite genres, though. Now, this," Naruto continued, pointing at Playstation 2 next to the television, "this is mine. Iruka bought me it for me freshman year. It doubles as our DVD player. Moving on…"

Again, Sasuke was quickly jerked down the hallway, struggling to keep up with the enthusiastic blond. Somehow, Sasuke could not believe that Naruto had been lying in a bloody heap on the pavement a few hours before.

He wasn't kidding about his recovery… and stamina, too. It's unreal…

At the end of the hallway, Naruto quickly turned to the right and swung open the door, leading Sasuke inside. There, they were greeted by Akamaru, who quickly pounced onto the blond's chest and began licking his face eagerly.

"Ah, there you are," Naruto said, grabbing the dog beneath its front legs. "Here, Sasuke. I know you and Akamaru here got off on the wrong foot last night, so I thought the two of you could make up."

Sasuke glared at the puppy for a moment, who growled in return. Seeing that this was getting nowhere fast, Naruto decided to intervene.

"Go on, Sasuke. Just pet him on the head once. He'll be your friend for life."

"So help me, if he bites my hand again…"

With that, the Uchiha gingerly inched his hand forward, his eyes fixed on Akamaru's bared teeth. Then, with his eyes closed, he gently patted the puppy on the head, bracing himself for retaliation. Instead, the growls ceased, and Sasuke felt only the wet, rubbery texture of the dog's tongue.

"See? I told you he'd like you," Naruto laughed as Akamaru continued to taste the raven-haired boy's hand.

"Stupid dog," Sasuke said, smiling in spite of himself. "Is he yours?"

"Kiba's actually. We keep him in here during the day," the blond said, indicating the room with a nod of his head. "We're technically not supposed to have pets, so we try to keep him quiet."

"So, I take it this is Kiba's room, then?"

"Oh, yeah. My room's across the hall. Here, I'll show you it next."

After setting Akamaru back on the floor, Naruto jerked Sasuke out of the room and burst into his own on the opposite side of the hall. There, the Uchiha quickly turned to his guide, feeling quite irritated by the physically demanding tour.

"Would you stop dragging me around like that?! I swear, it's like you're trying to rip my arm off…"

"Sorry about that," Naruto replied with a grin, "Now, like I was saying, this is my room. You probably got a pretty good look at it last night, but I want to show you around anyway."

Sasuke nodded, following behind the blond as they started walking about the room. Standing beside the unmade bed, they both came to a halt as Naruto began pointing out a few objects on the nightstand.

"This here's a picture of me and Iruka back home in Mizu," the teen began, holding up the photo for Sasuke to see. "It's from our first summer together. I was six, I think, and it was our first real trip together. Of course, Mizu's on the ocean, but it still felt like a big deal to me."

While Naruto spoke, Sasuke examined the photo closely, taking in all the details it had to offer. In the picture, a young, grinning blond sat perched upon the shoulders of a brunet, probably in his early twenties, with the sun shining on their faces. The man – Iruka, Sasuke presumed – had one arm extended to hold the camera, while the other was wrapped tightly around Naruto's leg.

They look so… happy. But six years old? That wasn't too long after Kyuubi… could he really have gotten over it that quickly?

"On the way back, I made Iruka stop at this little souvenir shop on the side of the road, where he bought me this little guy," Naruto continued, picking a little, stuffed fox from off his bed as Sasuke set the picture back down. "His name's Paul. I know, I'm probably a bit old to have a stuffed animal like this, but… well, he's special to me."

Paul? What a goofy name for a fox… then again, I guess he was only six. What would I have named him back then? Leonardo? Yoshi?

Sasuke took the fox into his hands, eyeing the little tufts of cotton sticking out from a tear in its side. Its white belly was discolored from dirt and other stains, and in general it appeared to be well loved. What Sasuke found particularly interesting, though, was the small medal wrapped around Paul's neck, which appeared shiny and new.

"Did this come with Paul, too?"

"Oh, that? I won that at Ichiraku last year during their annual ramen eating contest. No one else even stood a chance," Naruto said, pounding his chest with pride.

"Are you going to compete again this year?" Sasuke asked, flipping the medal over in his fingers.

"No, I'm retired. I have to give someone else a chance, right?"

Sasuke eyed the blond suspiciously, before setting Paul back down. "They made you retire, didn't they?"

"Yeah," Naruto replied with a sheepish grin. "I demoralized the previous chance, so they asked me not to compete again. They love me there, but they don't want me to intimidate the rest of their business."

"Figures," the Uchiha replied with a playful smirk. "So, why'd you give it to Paul, then?"

"Well, I was going to put it in Gama, but I ran out of room," the vulpine boy said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Gama?"

"Yeah, he's my lockbox," Naruto continued, reaching for a metal frog on his nightstand. After fiddling with the combination lock on its belly for a few moments, he pulled the top open, causing several odds and ends to come spilling out. "See? I keep all of my personal stuff in here."

"Looks like you dropped something," Sasuke chuckled, indicating some of the coins, pins, and scraps of paper that had fallen to the ground.

"Oh, geez. I guess I might've overfilled it a bit, huh?"

"Here, I'll help," the Uchiha said, noting Naruto's filled hands.

After picking up several knick-knacks and handing them to the blond, Sasuke stumbled upon one particular photograph that caught his eye. Examining it closely for a moment, he found that it was a wrinkled picture of a very young Naruto in the arms of a brunette, who was seated next to a grinning, golden-haired man.

"What's this?" Sasuke asked, handing the picture over to his host.

"Oh…" Naruto said quickly, sticking the picture back in Gama. "It's a picture of me and… my parents…"

Shit. You're such an idiot, Sasuke! Who'd you think they were?

"I'm sorry, I-I didn't realize," the Uchiha replied, turning his attention to the fluffy Paul on the bedspread.

"No, it's fine, really. It's just… I've never really shown that picture to anyone. I guess it's kinda personal…"

Sasuke couldn't think of anything to say, so instead he and the blond stood in silence for a few moments, each avoiding the other's gaze. Finally, with a quick clearing of his throat, the Uchiha decided to move on from this extreme awkwardness.

"So… should we get working on our project now?"

"Oh, sure," Naruto responded, his voice still sounding somewhat distant. "As long as you don't freak out again…"

For a second, Sasuke wasn't sure whether the teen was being sincere or not. When he saw Naruto's cheeky grin, though, his brief surge of panic subsided, and a subtle smile crossed his lips. "Yeah, sure thing. I'll even let you go first."

With that, the duo lay back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling as they formulated the perfect questions. Soon, the murmurings of the blond stopped, and he turned his head to the side to face the Uchiha, a look of satisfaction on his face.

"All right, I've got it: do you have something that reminds you of your parents? Like a certain picture or something?"

"Hmm," Sasuke began, placing a hand to his chin. "Well, we have plenty of photo albums at home, but I never really go through them. I suppose if I had to pick something, though, I'd say the sword they gave me for my tenth birthday."

"A sword? Really? That's awesome!" Naruto exclaimed, sitting up in excitement.

"Yeah, it was a family heirloom, they said," the Uchiha replied, his eyes fixed on the ceiling. "Really, I was surprised they didn't give it to Itachi, but I guess inheriting the family business was good enough for him."

"Well, whatever the reason, they decided to give it to you, right? I'd say that's something," the blond pondered as he lay back on the bed. "Your turn."

Okay, Sasuke, just try to avoid those touchy subjects…

"Oh, right… um, what's your favorite movie?"

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarves," Naruto replied immediately, catching his guest off guard. "My mom and I went to see it before… well, you know."

Crap… just calm down, Sasuke. Don't dwell on the subject and move on.

"I see. Your turn, then."

"All right… did you ever have a pet?"

"I had a goldfish once, when I was five. I called him Speedy, but really he was a sluggish little guy. I think I overfed him," Sasuke replied, relieved that Naruto was still in such good spirits. "Now, as for you… oh, what's your biggest fear?"

"Being alone, I'd say," the blond murmured after a moment. "I'm sure you can understand what it's like to lose everyone like that…"

It's all right, Sasuke. Just try changing subjects, and maybe he'll move on…

"Yeah, I know what you mean. So… you're up, I guess."

"Oh, right. Let's see here… do you have a favorite subject in school?"

"Not really," Sasuke mumbled, his face contorting with concentration. "I'm probably best at math, but that's just because of the family business and all that. So, for you, what's your earliest memory?"

Sasuke regretted asking the question the moment it left his mouth, and he mentally cursed his stupidity.

"Hmm… that would be the time I went to the park with my mom and dad," Naruto began, placing a finger on his lip in thought. "We didn't really get a chance to go out that often, since Dad – Kyuubi, I mean – was always gone. It was probably the last time we were really happy."

With a sigh, Sasuke turned his head towards Gama on the nightstand, his thoughts drifting back to that wrinkled photo that lay within. What were they like, Naruto's parents? They looked so normal then – what happened to them? As much as Sasuke wanted to avoid such personal questions, something inside of him needed to know the whole story. He was sure he'd regret asking later, but the Uchiha decided to follow his gut on this particular issue.

"Naruto… if you don't mind me asking… about you parents that is," Sasuke began, struggling to find just the right words. "What exactly happened that night?"

"You mean with Kyuubi right?" Naruto said, his voice completely devoid of emotion. His gaze remained fixed on the ceiling, almost as if he knew that this question had been coming ever since their conversation started.

"Yeah, I want to know your side of the story. I mean, I know what happened and everything, but what do you remember about it all?"

For a moment, the blond simply sat there, letting the question sink in. Finally, after sitting up and turning towards his guest, he began to speak, though his attention was fixed on the bedspread.

"Okay, I'll tell you, but I need to back up a bit, so you can get the full story – well, at least as much as I know. From what I've been able to tell – from newspapers and talking to people back in Mizu – my parents met when they were in high school. My mom, Kushina Uzumaki, was at the top of her class and had plans to go to the University of Suna. Kyuubi was in the same grade, but never really excelled in school. From what I've heard, the only class he ever got an 'A' in was shop class, and he had no dreams of higher education.

"I don't know how it happened exactly, but apparently Kyuubi got in a fight after school one day – I guess he had a short fuse – and got beaten up pretty bad. They left him bleeding in the middle of the parking lot, and that's where my Mom found him. She brought him to the nurse's office and stayed with him for an hour or so, just talking with him. They must've really hit it off, 'cause they started dating shortly after that."

"Naruto, if you don't want to tell me this…"

"It's fine Sasuke," the blond interrupted, shaking his head briefly before resuming his story. "So, it was probably a month or two after that when things took a sudden turn for them. My mom got pregnant with me, and was basically disowned by her family. She and Kyuubi married shortly afterward, and he dropped out of school to find a job to support his family. Mom had to give up on her dreams of going to college, and stayed at home in their little flat downtown. I was born a few months later, and the three of us scraped by in that cramped apartment for some time.

"I don't really remember much about life during those first few years, but I guess they were all right. We didn't have much – Kyuubi couldn't really get a great job without a high school diploma, but my mom couldn't leave me at home all alone, and we definitely couldn't afford childcare. So, she stayed with me and we played together, and we were always happy. Even Kyuubi came home with a smile on his face, seeing that his hard work was all worth it."

"What happened, then? What went wrong?" Sasuke asked tentatively, not wishing to push his host too far.

"It must've been shortly after that picture was taken that Kyuubi's attitude started to change. I was three at the time, and I guess after that many years of working his dead end job without seeing any improvement in his life, Kyuubi began to sink into depression. It was a gradual process, I'll admit – a few nights out of the month he'd show up late at night, red-eyed and tipsy, but it wasn't anything terrible. Then he'd be flat-out drunk, and he was a mean drunk. He'd argue with my mom, about money, about me – anything he could think of, just so he could take his frustration out on her.

"Then, one day, their fight got really bad. Kyuubi was threw a bottle against the wall at one point – I remember because I started crying – and then he backhanded my mom, knocking her to the ground. She was in tears by that point, but Kyuubi wasn't done. He gave her a quick kick to the side and then stormed out of the apartment. I cried myself to sleep that night, and I was afraid he would come back."

"Did he… come back, I mean?"

"Not that night," Naruto replied, his stolid expression wavering slightly. "He didn't show up again for a week, and when he did he pretended like nothing was wrong. He was drunk, as usual, but they didn't fight that time. My mom was afraid of him, now, but she couldn't really do anything about it. She needed Kyuubi's income so that we could survive, so she just played along, pretending to forget all about her beating. He started showing up less and less then –sometimes only once every couple of weeks – and when he did he had usually spent most of our money on booze. My mom and I were living on oatmeal three meals a day, and even then they were tiny servings. Looking back, I'm surprised we didn't starve to death.

"It was right around then that Kyuubi disappeared for a whole month. We dug into what little savings we had to eat and pay the rent, but I can remember my mom crying late at night, wondering what was going to happen to us. We weren't even sure if Kyuubi was alive – for all we knew he was rotting in a gutter somewhere. Then, one night… that night… he came home…"

"Naruto…"

"Let me finish, Sasuke," the blond said, his bottom lip quivering as his eyes became misty. "Yes, that was the night. As soon as I saw him walk in the door that night I knew something was wrong. He was smiling, that's what it was, but it wasn't like his old smile – no, it was far more sinister. He knew exactly what he was going to do when he came in that night.

"I guess my mom knew what he had planned, too, because she immediately picked me up and held me close, trying to protect me. From between her fingers, I could just make out Kyuubi as he approached, pulling out a knife from behind his back. My mom begged him not to do it – the top of my head was wet with her tears – but he just shook his head. She put me down then and told me to run away, but I was too afraid. I wet myself, watching as Kyuubi came down on her with that knife one, two, three times, each time spraying blood onto the floor. My mom didn't even scream, but just stared into Kyuubi's eyes with that look of betrayal."

Why doesn't he stop? There's no reason he should have to tell me all of this…

"Then he turned his attention to me, but I barely even noticed – my eyes were glued onto that shiny knife of his. He stooped down to my level, though, and put a hand on my shoulder, flashing me that horrible smile. 'Come, Naruto,' he said, before hoisting me over his shoulder like a bale of hay. We left that tiny apartment behind, and the whole way out I could only stare at my mom's still, bloody form on the ground.

"I'm sure you can piece together what happened next. Kyuubi dragged me to several different apartments across the city, stopping at each one to carve up another victim. He didn't care who it was he killed – women, children, anyone who got in his way – and I was forced to watch all the while. I try to block it all out, but sometimes I still hear their screams at night, begging for mercy.

"When they finally cornered Kyuubi at an apartment on the north-end of town, he grew desperate and held the knife to my throat, threatening to kill me if they didn't let him go. I still remember how warm that blade was from the blood of his victims, and I was certain that I was going to die just then. I wasn't really sure what it meant to die, but somehow I knew it was something to be afraid of. Before Kyuubi could deliver that lethal blow, though, a sniper from the roof across the street shot him in the forehead, killing him instantly. The knife fell from his hands, and he collapsed onto me, his blood flowing freely over me as the police barged in. I think I must've passed out after that, 'cause that's all I remember before I woke up in the police station."

By this point, Naruto had broken down completely, his nose running as the tears flowed down his cheeks. He tried to say something more, but his sobs were incontrollable, and it took everything he had just to breathe.

Sasuke could only stare at this miserable blond, trying to figure out just what he should do. It was all his fault that Naruto broke down like this, but what could he possibly say? 'I'm sorry?' What good would that do?

"Naruto… I had no idea…"

"It's not your fault," the blond sniffled, wiping his nose on his arm. "You wanted to know, that's all…"

"I'm so sorry… really, I am," Sasuke said, rising from the bed awkwardly. "Look, maybe I should leave…"

"No, wait!" Naruto exclaimed between sobs. "I… I don't want to be alone…"

Sasuke, you idiot! Of course he wouldn't want to be alone after reliving the most horrible experience of his life…

"Sure."

With that, Sasuke sat back down beside his host, allowing the blond to rest his head in his lap. There, curled up into a little ball, Naruto continued to cry for some time, while the Uchiha ran his hand through the golden locks soothingly. After an hour or so the sobs softened, and the teen's breathing steadied – he was asleep.

Sasuke admired the boy in his lap for a while – how long, he wasn't sure. At some point Kiba came back to the apartment, only to leave a while later, but Sasuke barely noticed this minor intrusion. Instead, he could only study the blond's face, gently brushing the subtle whisker-marks on his cheeks with his hand.

How can he be so strong, after such a traumatic experience? He saw how many people get killed right before his eyes – including both of his parents – and yet he always has that smile on his face. Is it all just an act? Is he just trying to cover up this suffering? No, that would take too much effort. Could it be that he's really found happiness after all that? Is it even possible to let go of the past after something like that? Or, maybe, it's not about letting go of the past, but growing from it? Either way, he's incredible.

At this point, Naruto stirred slightly his lips parting ever so slightly. "Sasuke…"

The Uchiha couldn't help but smile at this, brushing the boy's hair once more to calm him. Hair like sunshine, that's what he'd called it. Truly, he was a ray of sunshine in Sasuke's dreary existence, as much as he hated to admit it. He was so beautiful, but it was more than just his physical appearance. He also had that inner strength, and Sasuke was only just beginning to comprehend how truly profound it was.

Can I really be… in love with this guy?

Seeing the blond's lips still somewhat parted, his gentle breathing slipping through the gap, Sasuke decided there was only one way to find out. He was crazy to even think about it, but he was determined to see for himself if these feelings were real. Thus, his eyes closed, Sasuke lifted Naruto's head ever so slightly and carefully planted his lips upon the blond's.

It was brief, their kiss. He only lingered for a second, barely long enough for it to even count as a kiss at all, but it was all the Uchiha needed. After that fraction of a moment, he pulled back, only to find Naruto's open eyes staring back at him. They simply stared at each other for the longest minute of Sasuke's life, neither willing to acknowledge what had just happened.

"Sasuke? Did you just…"

"No!" the Uchiha exclaimed, backing hastily off the bed and tumbling to the floor. "Look, I'm sorry, I should get going…"

"Wait, Sasuke!" Naruto shouted, chasing his guest to the door. "Just tell me if… well, did we…?"

Sasuke sighed, realizing that he had no way out of this situation. "Yes… we did, okay? Now, will you let me go and die in peace?"

With that, Sasuke tried to break free of the blond's grasp, but was quickly jerked back by a visibly frustrated Naruto. "Would you just wait a second? Listen… before you go… could we, maybe… try it again?"

"What are you talk–"

Before Sasuke could finish his thought, his words were quickly cut off by Naruto's mouth as pressed himself into another kiss with the Uchiha. For a moment, Sasuke considered pushing the vulpine boy away, but this was merely a fleeting surge of resentment, and soon he returned the kiss with equal desire. It was awkward, certainly, with neither one knowing exactly what to do with their hands, or what the other wanted to do, but the feeling was present and, really, that was all that mattered. The kiss was over far sooner than either would've liked, but Sasuke figured this was for the best. They pulled out and stared at one another, both shocked by what they had just done.

"Umm… I really should be going now," Sasuke said, his cheeks burning red.

"Yeah, sure," Naruto replied, blushing equally profusely. "See you tomorrow, maybe?"

"Sure," the Uchiha said before stepping out of the room, running a hand through his hair in disbelief.

What have I gotten myself into?

---

Well, there you have it. The first kiss - what's going to happen now that their feelings for each other are known? You'll just have to wait and see! Until next time, and remember, review!