I'm so sorry, you guys. These past few weeks have been crazy for me. I had midterms, and then I just did not have internet access for a week while I was on break. I do have a chapter for you now, but I'm sorry to say that it is short. Mostly, this chapter is meant to set up the next major plot point - hopefully it'll give you something to look forward to. In any case, I want to thank you all for your patience and for reading/reviewing. Now, without further ado, on with the chapter!

33. He Loves Me Again

Gaara Subakuno sat in his bland, white bed at the Konoha Hospital, staring blankly at the wall as doctors and nurses passed outside. He had spent all of the previous day talking with police officers and lawyers about what had happened with his father, retelling the story close to a dozen times. With every time the redhead told the tale, he thought for sure it would be easier than the last. It wasn't. Just thinking about what happened that night brought forth all kinds of unsettling images – the bloodlust in his father's eyes, the blood streaming down his face after Gaara had kicked him, and, most frightening of all, Lee. It was painful for Gaara to even think about the horror he had seen in the mop-topped teen's face during the fight, not to mention how he looked once Gaara had delivered the mortal blow to Mr. Subakuno.

He sees now… he knows what I mean when I say I'm a monster. I'll probably never see him again…

It was a depressing thought, but Gaara had managed to accept it. This was his punishment for what he did – it was his penance to spend the rest of his life alone. For that, he was grateful to Naruto. The blond had kept him from ending his suffering prematurely – now he could live his life and endure his punishment.

Because of that, Gaara had spent all of that Sunday morning simply staring at the wall, cut off from the rest of the world. The television in his room was off, the curtains in his room were shut, and the door was open only a crack. The redhead didn't even notice the nurse when she poked her head into the room, or when she announced that he had a visitor. It was as if he was completely dead on the inside.

Then the door opened. Gaara didn't shift his attention, but when he heard his visitor cough, his eyes went wide. Turning towards the doorway, he found a familiar teen with big, round eyes dressed entirely in green staring awkwardly down at the floor.

"Lee?"

"H-hey, Gaara," the teen replied, scratching the back of his head while keeping the other hand behind his back. "I-I heard they admitted you here, so…"

"Yeah – they want to keep me here to monitor me for a few weeks. After what happened Friday, you know…"

"Right, that makes sense," Lee said sheepishly. "I'm… sorry about what happened, by the way."

"It wasn't your fault," Gaara replied quickly, hoping to end the discussion at that.

"If I hadn't been there, then…"

"It wouldn't have made any difference. What happened between me and my dad had been coming for a long time. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"But I at least could have helped! I could have called the police, I could have helped restrain him… instead I just sat there cowering," Lee responded in self-disgust. "I was just so scared, Gaara… I didn't know what to do…"

It was only then that Gaara realized that Lee was fighting back tears, as a single drop rolled down his cheek. This wasn't just an empty apology, a run-of-the-mill sign of sympathy. Lee actually felt guilty for what had happened – that he could have somehow prevented this entire tragedy. He felt a deep pang of sadness as he slid over on the bed.

"Have a seat, Lee."

Biting his lip, the mop-topped teen nodded and tentatively sat down beside the redhead. He avoided eye contact, however, instead choosing to stare at the object he had been hiding behind his back – a worn, stuffed bear.

"Is that yours?" Gaara asked, avoiding the issue at hand, if only for a moment.

"I was trying to think of a gift to bring you. It always made me feel better when I was down," Lee replied with a weak smile. He placed the bear in Gaara's lap. "I hope it helps you – at least a little bit."

Gaara studied the bear briefly, running his hand over its matted fur and poking at the button that had replaced one of its eyes. He chuckled. "I used to have a bear like this, you know. Back when I was a kid. Temari always said it was a gift from my mom. I suppose that was just a lie, though…"

"What makes you say that?"

"You heard what my dad said in there – my mom never even wanted me. She hated me, just like he did. Just like Temari and Kankuro did…"

Lee's eyes became suddenly fierce with anger. "That's not true! You saw how Temari and Kankuro showed up at the bridge like that. They were worried about you! The same goes for Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Kiba – everyone was out there trying to save you."

"Then where were you?" the redhead snapped. There was a moment of silence before he looked away, feeling immediately guilty. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean that…"

Visibly crushed, Lee swallowed heavily before responding. "No… it's all right. I let you down, I know. That's why I almost didn't come here today. I… I didn't think I was worthy. I was just so scared, Gaara… after what happened between you and your dad, I didn't know what you'd do…"

"What? Did you think I'd go on a rampage or something?"

"No, no, no! Nothing like that!" Lee replied hastily, only to be cut off moments later by Gaara's sustained monotone.

"Because you would've been right. That's what I was doing up on that bridge – I was going back and forth. I could either kill myself and put an end to the monster inside of me, or just let it take over. Everyone I cared about… I was going to take them down with me – that's what I thought, at least. I couldn't decide, though. I just didn't want anyone to suffer because of me anymore… it just hurt too much."

Leaning over, Lee gently wiped a tear from the corner of Gaara's eye and placed a hand on his shoulder. "That just shows you're not a monster. You have a conscience, Gaara. You're not a killer."

Gaara was silent for a moment as he stared down at the bear in his hands. "Do you really think she loved me, Lee?"

"Let me ask you this: you hated your father, right?"

The redhead nodded.

"But you loved him, too?"

Another nod.

"So if you can still love a man who tried to kill you, who never once showed that he cared for you, how can you possibly question the love of the woman who brought you into this world?" Lee asked, staring directly into Gaara's bewildered eyes. "Even if your mom didn't mean to get pregnant, even if she was afraid for her own life, she's your mother, Gaara. She loved you – and I'm sure that, somewhere inside, so did your father."

Tears now flowing freely, Gaara collapsed into his boyfriend's arms, crying openly into Lee's green shirt. "Why did he do it, Lee? Why couldn't he just be happy for me? For us?"

Gently running his fingers through Gaara's hair, Lee whispered consolingly, "I don't know, I don't know… no one knows except him. Whatever his reasons, though, what happened isn't your fault. Even if we could've done something differently, it's in the past. What's done is done. We just have to move on and enjoy what we have, okay?"

Gaara sniffled. "Like what? What's left? My parents are dead because of me…"

"You still have Temari and Kankuro, right? And don't forget about your friends. And… me," Lee responded with a hopeful tone.

The redhead glanced up in surprise. "You mean… you're not afraid of me?"

"I've always been afraid of you," Lee chuckled. "I saw what you did to Naruto when you fought that one day. That doesn't mean I don't love you."

Did he just say…?

"Love?"

Lee blushed. "Well… yeah. I don't know how else to explain it, really. That's why I couldn't go with them to the bridge the other day – I was afraid I'd lose you. I didn't want to see that happen… you mean too much to me."

"Lee… just stop talking," Gaara interrupted abruptly, placing a finger to the other teen's lips. Moments later, the redhead removed his hand and replaced it with his lips, meeting Lee's in a short, sweet kiss. After backing out, he wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and smiled. "Thank you, Lee. I… I needed that."

"Then… does that mean?" Lee asked, scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"Yes – I love you, too."

xxxxx

"I want to have sex."

Naruto couldn't believe the words had just left his mouth. It had certainly been something weighing on the teen's mind for a while, but he had never expected to simply blurt it out like that. He had even considered saying something about it when he and Sasuke went to Lake Konoha, but the opportunity never presented itself. Instead, he had waited until he was sitting on the couch in the Uchiha mansion, playing a round of Halo with his beloved Uchiha. Apparently, nothing screamed 'sex' more than killing aliens with dual Needlers.

Clearly, Sasuke hadn't expected this outburst either, his character promptly dying as his jaw dropped open. "W-what was that?"

Hesitating, Naruto decided it was best to stick to his story. If he tried to say something completely different, it would only bring problems later on. "I said I want to have sex."

"That's what I thought," the Uchiha said, setting down his controller. "Where did this come from all of a sudden? I thought you'd want to lay low for a while after the tongue lashing you got from your dad yesterday."

"Oh that? That was nothing – honestly, I was expecting much worse. You should have heard him the time I ran away from home. He can be scary when he's angry…" the blond responded with a shudder. "The truth is, I've been thinking about it for a while. I mean, we've been together for, what, a month now? We've done other things, right? Like when we fooled around in the shower, or the other day at Lake Konoha…"

"You're lucky we got our clothes back, by the way. I would've been pissed if I had to get a new wallet."

"It worked out!" Naruto protested before getting back on track. "Anyway, my point is, it seems like the next step is to go all the way, you know?"

"You're sure about this?" Sasuke asked after a moment, much to Naruto's surprise.

He's actually considering this! Maybe this won't be the train wreck I thought it would be…

"Well… yeah. It's what boyfriends do, right? You date for a while, and then you have sex."

"I suppose."

Naruto was beginning to cringe slightly. Their conversation had gone from being a bit awkward to almost painful. Clearly, Naruto hadn't thought this through, since his reasoning for wanting to have sex boiled down to 'everyone's doing it.' It was weak, shallow, and childish. Despite this, though, Sasuke was putting a great deal of thought into the subject. It was a bit confusing to Naruto, who had assumed the Uchiha would simply ignore the proposition entirely. When the raven-haired teen finally did speak, it only surprised Naruto all the more.

"How about Friday – October 10th, right?" the Uchiha asked, glancing up at the blond. He then hurriedly added, "That'll give us time to prepare. Don't want to just rush into this or anything…"

October 10th? What a weird thing to say…

"So… we're planning this? I thought it was supposed to be something more… spontaneous?" Naruto said skeptically.

Sasuke was quick to counter this challenge. "Well, do you know what the hell you're doing? Do you know what we'll need? How to… well, do it?"

"What? O-of course I do! It's not like I'm…"

"A virgin?" the Uchiha interrupted with a raised eyebrow. He sighed before continuing. "Well, even if you are a manwhore, I'm not… if you catch my drift."

"Then… this will be…?"

"My first time, yes," Sasuke admitted with a blush.

"Umm… confession," Naruto said with an awkward grin. "I'm not exactly experienced myself."

The Uchiha chuckled. "I figured as much. Still, I have to wonder why you thought you'd have to lie to me about something like that. It's nothing to be ashamed of. We've just been waiting for each other, right?"

Naruto's eyes brightened. "Exactly! It's fate – at least that's what that Neji kid would say."

"He may be on to something there," Sasuke responded as he picked up his controller once more. "Now, as I recall, I was about to cut you in half with a laser sword."

"Not if I get you first!"

With that, the boyfriends resumed their game, though neither one played nearly as well as before. Both were now distracted by the thought of what waited for them on Friday, their minds filled with anxiety, excitement, and a touch of uncertainty. Little did they know that what was in store for them would have far greater consequences than either of them could imagine.

Well, there you have it. We got some nice Gaara/Lee warm, fuzzy goodness, and we have a glimpse at what Sasuke may be planning for Naruto's birthday. But, now that we've seen how Gaara's taking the loss of his father, what about Temari and Kankuro's reaction? How are they holding up, and how does this all affect Shikamaru's relationship with Temari? And what about Sakura? She still has Sasuke wrapped around her finger - how will this affect the Uchiha's plans with Naruto? Find out next time in For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him.