A/N: Okaaaay, on with the show! Thank you to my lovely beta chase3136, who is working hard in revising this baby of mine! Much love to her.

Also thank you to those who reviewed, you made me so happy! There's a bit of good stuff on this chapter, or so I think. I hope I was able to make it up to you guys!

Dear reader, please continue to give me your honest opinion – even if it's a bad opinion –, I can take it. It just feels so good to be given feedback.

Chapter Four: Heartbeat

Hinata was fond of her cousin. Even though when they were younger, he had resented her so much he almost ended up killing her, in the past few years, as Neji found out the truth about his clan and his father's death, they learned to respect each other and had been able to get along to the point where they had the need to be supportive and protective of the other.

Hinata would never forget how Neji encouraged her to confess her feelings to Naruto and how he was right beside her when she defied her father about dating him. She loved her clan and her family, but she knew the Hyuuga was one of the most ancient clans in Konoha, thus still living according to many old fashioned rules and traditions that neither her, nor Neji were supportive of. Remembering how hard she had had to struggle to prove that she was better than her little sister always brought an acidic feeling to the girl's stomach. Those had been painful, difficult times for her and she often wondered how Neji must have felt when he fought so hard to be the best, only to remain in the shadows because he did not belong to the main family.

But now she was stronger, more confident than she had ever been, and Neji had accepted his condition as a member of the branch family while trying to prove himself in his own way. He was the pride of the Hyuuga, even if not many inside the clan were allowed to express it openly. Hinata made a promise to herself that when she became the head of the main house she would make sure Neji held one of the highest positions she could give him.

Despite how unpredictable Neji's new relationship with Sasuke had been, she was filled with pride for him for making it public because it proved that her cousin finally understood that fate was mutable and that he could mold it as much as he liked. She was not brave enough to ask her strict cousin about it, but she was sure that if two people like them could find the heart to be together then it just had to mean it was meant to be. Hinata was actually very happy for them since she thought her Nii-san would never fall in love. Arranged marriages were common in the family, and few were those who had the guts to defy those laws.

Hiashi had not been happy about Hinata's relationship with Naruto. He did not like the Kyuubi vessel one bit and feared that his daughter's purity could be damaged by him. She had to be virgin when she married a good man of good breeding. What would happen if she got pregnant? However, placated by Neji's words and trusting Hinata's shyness to behave and know her place as a woman, he decided to indulge in her little fantasy of being together with her crush, believing that sooner or later she would come to her senses and leave him. That was the reason why he did not bother to even be in the same room as Naruto.

Neji's case was a little different. As soon as it came out from the mouths of dozens of ocular witnesses that two boys, a Hyuuga and an Uchiha were dating, the chaos settled. Some said it was unnatural and a shame to the village and their names; others found it oddly fascinating and found some kind of hope of what could become of such a powerful union. Some despised it. Some were intrigued. Some admired it. Some were too scared of both boys to even open their mouths. Whatever people thought or said about them, no one dared to treat them differently or ask them about it.

Hiashi was livid but Neji could not care less, daring for the first time to bring Sasuke along with him to the Compound so that the raven could spend the night in his house. The next morning, Neji's servants were gossiping with other servants while giggling that the two had been so loud no one was able to sleep. Hinata had feared her father's wrath, but then the most amazing thing happened when two middle aged female members of the clan decided to come out and tell everyone they were in love. Two teenage boys belonging to one of the most inferior houses also manifested their desire to be together.

Hiashi was speechless. The fact that at least five more couples in the village came out during the next few days only unfazed the head of the house even more, who was debating whether to punish his nephew and the members of his clan or just let it be and try to be a little benevolent of his people's happiness. As it was, he allowed Neji to do as he pleased but made sure to let him know how unpleased and disappointed he was, and how he hoped the Uchiha broke his heart so that the young Hyuuga could start thinking clearly about his future and his duties to the clan.

It was obvious to everyone that Sasuke did not like to spend his nights at the Hyuuga Compound. People tended to stare at him and talk behind his back, not to mention they avoided any kind of verbal or physical interaction with him. He greatly disliked having Neji's servants walking about the large mansion and made it clear that if he ever even saw a glimpse of his mother – who had moved to the main house when Neji turned eighteen – he would never set foot on those grounds again.

Hinata found it rather funny because her docile aunt wanted to meet the handsome Uchiha everyone was talking about, but dared not trespass her son's privacy unless he allowed it since he was an adult already, more than responsible for himself and for what he did with his life. She dared not speak a word about Neji being with another man, and no one knew her thoughts, not that anyone asked. Women in the family that were not meant to succeed as heirs of the main house, were expected to be obedient, good housewives and sometimes respectable Shinobi who were not allowed to go further than the level of Chuunin.

Neji's mother was a quiet woman and not a Shinobi. Instead, she worked almost as the patronage of all women who did not wish to become Shinobi, teaching them all they had to know to be true, respectable Hyuuga wives. She was highly cherished by everyone and Hinata liked her despite how seldom they spoke to each other. Actually, the Hyuuga heiress knew that not even Neji spoke to her that often, which apparently did not disturb him, or her.

Hinata was completely happy with her life as it was and everybody acknowledged that. She felt accomplished as a Ninja, as a future leader and as a woman, and was glad that Neji had found the same sort of completion she felt.

The young girl knew that there were things about her relationship with her blond boyfriend that could be better than they were, but she was confident that time would work in their favor and that, eventually, things would be so perfect, Naruto would fall in love with her and they would have the same vibrant chemistry that she saw and admired about Neji and Sasuke.

What she did not see was that the wrong things between her and Naruto that were so simple for her to solve, did not look half as simple in the blond boy's mind.

oOo

Naruto was in a terrible mood. No, terrible was such an insignificant word that it could not even describe how he was feeling at 23:00 hours of the night before he was supposed to leave for his mission with Neji.

As if that had not been reason enough to make him feel annoyed, his day had been a complete shit. The kids at school had invented this new game called "cooties" that consisted in rubbing themselves on their colleagues to spread the "disease". If the person with the "disease" rubbed themselves on another person, then they would be cured. This could all be immensely funny had his class not decided to play during lessons, and since some kids really hated the damn game, Naruto had to break up more than five fights in his classroom.

When he got out from work, hungry for a bowl of Ichiraku ramen, he found the small dine-in closed for personal matters. To make things worse, when he went to visit Hinata at the Hyuuga Compound, he just had to be greeted by one of the many Hyuuga that hated him and despised his relationship with their future leader. The middle aged man told him to leave in a very literal way, saying that "Hiashi-sama" was not pleased by the amount of time his direct family was spending outside the house, thus forbidding Hinata to go out at such a late hour. Naruto did not even get the chance to get a glimpse of the pretty young girl.

Fuming and muttering about how he just had to meet his future father in law – yes, because Hiashi had had no desire whatsoever to meet him – and tell him a couple of things, Naruto went home to rant to himself about how his life had become so depressing as of late.

Usually, when he had a bad day, the blond would walk to his best friend's house and invite himself to dinner. Sasuke would always call him all sorts of dirty names but would cook for him anyway and lend him something comfy to wear. They would talk – Naruto would do most of the talking and Sasuke would pretend he wasn't interested in the conversation –, fight over something trivial and pick at each other, or simply watch TV side by side on the raven's fluffy sofa. He had felt that his friend's house was almost like his second home and he missed it.

Remembering those days that seemed so distant did nothing to improve Naruto's mood.

Now it was late and he was lying on his back on his bed, too tired to do anything else, but too annoyed to sleep. Starring at the cracked ceiling above him, he scratched impatiently at his stomach underneath his orange t-shirt while thinking about a perfect lopsided smile that always seemed to be irresistibly mocking.

The sheets had been pushed to the foot of the bed so that he was completely uncovered since the night was a little hot.

The sun kissed boy huffed as he turned to his side and closed his eyes to try to sleep, shifting slightly to adjust his baby blue boxers.

Just as he was starting to feel a bit drowsy, a firm knock on the glass window beside his bed startled him, causing him to jump violently and sit up with his heart almost coming out of his throat as he sighted the person on the outside.

Sasuke…

The bastard had bothered to knock but was now sliding open the window and climbing to get inside without permission, settling one foot on the mattress for support.

"What the fuck, Sasuke?" Naruto complained loudly, as the raven swung his other leg inside the house. "Get your fucking shoes off my bed! Are you trying to pollute my house and bring me bad luck?* Geez, that's just…."

However, before he could say anything else, he was roughly pushed back into a laying position, now with added weight on top of him as Sasuke's hard, heavy body straddled his hips.

Blue eyes grew wide as they scanned his friend's moon bathed and elegant figure in the semi-darkness of the small apartment.

Sasuke was wearing a white plain t-shirt over a pair of worn out black shorts. His pale skin seemed to glow in the dim light coming from the outside; his dark eyes seemed to have acquired a surprising lighter shade since they looked faintly grey, or maybe it was just the blonde's imagination.

The raven had a triumphant lopsided smile across his lips, his white teeth shining perfectly.

Despite how casual and slightly disarranged the young man above him looked, all Naruto could think about in his shocked state was how warm that unexpected body was and how distractingly beautiful that neck curve was.

Neji would kill me if he knew I'm having these thoughts.

"If I had known that straddling you was an effective way to shut you up, I would've done it already." Sasuke mocked, earning a blush from the other, who thanked every God in the world that it was dark enough to disguise it.

"Shut up, asshole," Naruto replied harshly, promptly ignoring the unsteady rhythm of his heart. "What the fuck do you want, invading my privacy at this hour?"

"Condoms." came the easy reply, causing Naruto to blink several times in confusion.

"Come again?" He asked, in a choked whisper.

Sasuke's smile became even more mischievous as he leaned down, placing both his hands at the sides of the blonde's head, over his white pillow, making Naruto almost jump out of his skin at the uncomfortable proximity.

"Condoms," The raven repeated slowly, mouth inches away from Naruto's as if teasing him on purpose. "Every store is closed, so I figured you could have some."

Sasuke was barely touching him and yet he was everywhere. Naruto watched in awe as dark bluish bangs dangled above his whiskered face, the tips of it caressing his cheekbones softly. The scent of soap and shampoo surrounded him. Sasuke's t-shirt tickled the little bit of belly he was exposing. The way he was leaning over him almost caused their groins to touch. Why Naruto was so abnormally aware of all this was a complete mystery to him. It was scary, though.

"You should've asked Sakura-chan, she's the one who has access to those sorts of things." Naruto grumbled, forcing himself to turn his tone of embarrassment into one of annoyance, which he could do successfully since he was indeed annoyed at being forced to deal with some sort of playfully sick joke from Sasuke's part.

"Don't be moronic," Sasuke said naturally, breath ghosting over Naruto's lips. "I would never ask her for such a thing, I'm not that insensitive."

"Oh, but you'd be insensitive enough to ask me?" Naruto groaned; bits of old anger fueling inside him.

"I didn't know my sex life affected you that much." The Uchiha retorted as his smile disappeared. Dark eyes clashed with clear ones as those unresolved issues from days ago settled in to cause a tensed silence. Even though they had somehow settled an agreement, they still had not been alone or spoken to each other, not even after Sasuke's birthday.

Naruto bit his lip and Sasuke frowned at the lack of response.

What felt like hours later; Naruto was able to clear his throat.

"Can't you wait until tomorrow?" He asked, dryly.

"Would I go out on purpose if it could wait until tomorrow? Besides, you and Neji are leaving."

"I had no idea you were such a horny bitch." Naruto said, with spite. He hadn't meant for it to come out as harsh as it did, but what was done was done and there was no turning back now.

"Now you know," Sasuke replied firmly, his voice dropping several degrees as it became carefully cold. "If you had someone waiting in your bed you would be, too."

The younger one did not know why such words made his heart clench and his nerves boil so lively. The only thing he knew was that he disliked Sasuke's defiance and the way he was approaching the subject. He did not have to be so rude and arrogant about it.

Naruto propped himself up on his elbows, and since Sasuke refused to move or distance himself from him their chests were firmly pressed together, noses touching briefly.

For some reason, it felt dangerous and somewhat erotic. Naruto was aware that they had never been this close before except when they were fighting, but he also knew it was some kind of challenge. Sasuke was testing him. Sasuke could listen to the frantic beating of his unsure heart. Sasuke could definitely feel him swallowing hard, over and over again.

"You don't have any?" The raven pressed, insisting on keeping his voice neutral and superior despite how low it came out this time.

Again, Naruto swallowed and kept his steady, defiant gaze on the other even though it was hazy because of how close they were.

What the fuck is wrong with me? And after all the thinking I did to come to terms with this…

But I'm so pissed off at you, fucking prick!

Shove your fucking condoms up your fucking ass! No, shove them up your boyfriend's ass, which would be much better.

No, wait; you'd totally like that, wouldn't you?

How the fuck am I getting a hard on because of this?

Please, just fuck off…

You're messing with me…

"I don't want to give you any fucking condoms," Naruto spat; horrifying himself at how spiteful and resentful he sounded. "Just do it without them; it's not like either of you will get pregnant anyway."

It could be interpreted as sarcasm, a joke even. But Naruto never joked with such intensity in his words. This time, Sasuke did move away as if he had been slapped across the face, sitting on the younger's hips once more as his eyebrows rose up.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" He threw back, truly astonished.

He's mad…

I'm screwing up again.

Why?

Does he really like Neji that much?

Why is it so hard to just accept that he has someone? That he's alright?

Why?

I thought, for some reason…

"What did I ever do to you to be given such a cold shoulder about this?" Sasuke asked, demandingly. "Why is it that all of a sudden, me having someone is such a big deal in that thick head of yours?"

Why, indeed.

Is it because it's Neji? Neji; who is so much at your level.

"Just get off me." Naruto said, tiredly looking away. He wanted to shove him but feared his body might betray him if he touched him at that moment.

"No."

"I said, get off me!"

"Fine! Fucking idiot..."

The Uchiha dismounted him at once and got to his feet but did not intend to stand still, or even leave. Instead, he occupied himself with opening every drawer and every cabinet he could find in the small house, and rummage childishly and rudely through their contents as Naruto watched him from the bed with his chin almost falling to the floor.

"What the… Sasuke, what the hell do you think you're doing, touching my things?" He yelled, fury mixing with panic and a type of pain that was too gruesome to explain.

"Looking for what I came here to get," was the simple answer, filled with venom. "If you're being stubborn, I can handle things myself."

"I'm being stubborn?" Naruto gasped, bringing one hand to his head. Huffing loudly, he got up and promptly slammed shut every door and drawer Sasuke had left open, shutting as well the ones he was currently opening, one after the other. "Just go to Kakashi's or something! Are you listening to me? You have no right to come here and…"

"Would you shut up?" Sasuke bawled, glaring at Naruto like he had been the cause of every disaster in his life, which made the other shiver slightly but keep his head firm with pride and boldness. "Where the fuck are they? Or is your sex life so meaningless and boring you don't find the need to have any? What did you expect with such a prude like Hinata, huh? No wonder you're so fucking frustrated and can't leave me the fuck alone!"

At that precise moment, Naruto's mind cracked for several reasons. When he reacted, all he thought about was how much it was his time to simply need Sasuke to shut up and how much he wanted to make amends right now before it was too late – before they finally broke each other beyond repair.

So, Naruto did the only reasonable thing he could think about at the moment: he punched that pretty face hard, and felt no remorse whatsoever when Sasuke's head turned to the side with the force of the blow. He could barely register the murderous look in the Uchiha's eyes before he was punched back with full force, stumbling faintly with his hand over his jaw until his back hit the commode behind him.

The pain was abrupt; it was not just his jaw that hurt, but his whole face and his head too.

Sasuke was in front of him, panting and glaring at him with ferocious tenacity, his hands balled into fists. There was a large opened bruise on the corner of his mouth that was bleeding and quickly starting to redden.

Body shaking with wrath, the older one straightened with as much dignity as he could muster and ran a hand through his sleek hair, never breaking eye contact with Naruto, who could only inhale and exhale quickly as though he had just run the marathon.

"Sasuke…"

But Sasuke was already turning on his heels and heading to the door with steady steps, more than ready to leave without looking behind.

No…

Naruto barely had the time to consider what he would do next since Sasuke could be extremely fast and ruthless when he wanted to, meaning that the blond could not afford to let a single second slip by if he wanted to safeguard whatever was left of the bond they still shared. It was because of that bond that the slightest of things made them hurt so badly, and still, Naruto thought that he preferred to suffer for the rest of his life than to sever it.

He did not know what possessed him to walk over to Sasuke, wrap his arms around his waist strongly and bury his face in his nape.

The Uchiha went stiff in his arms, still breathing heavily. His heart was beating so hard Naruto could feel it rumble underneath his ribs.

"Don't go," Naruto whispered softly in such a low voice that the other shuddered. "Stay with me for a while. I'll give you all the condoms I have; you can keep the whole damn box if you want."

Sasuke sighed, moaning in frustration as he let his face fall to his right hand.

"This is not about fucking condoms, you idiot…" He replied, tiredly. "For the love of…let me go."

"No. Just…stay with me, okay?"

"I can't stay. He's waiting for me."

Naruto breathed in slowly to calm down the raging monster of jealousy within him and nuzzled Sasuke's back unconsciously with his nose. Amazingly, the unfamiliar contact was soothing. It was warm and felt welcoming.

I really thought I was okay with this already.

He did not want him to go, did not want him to leave his house like that. He would not screw things up again.

"Just a few more minutes," He begged, closing his fingers tightly around the brunet's t-shirt. "Hear me out. I want to make things right, so please…"

Sasuke sighed once more. He nodded and while Naruto did not see it, he felt it, reason why he allowed his arms to lose their grip on him completely as he took a small step back.

Sasuke turned to him, face as blank as a plain sheet of paper, that thin trail of dark blood still marking the side of his mouth, down to the side of his chin. It was beautiful and sadistically distracting.

They were still too close for comfort; chests rubbing as once more their noses almost touched, but neither did anything to move away. Only then did the blond one realize that he was finally of the same height as Sasuke.

Naruto swallowed hard as he stared at the other male. There was something inside him that felt hollow now that he was no longer directly holding that body.

The blond boy felt his heartbeat increase in speed. He had so many things he wanted to say, so much he wanted to express, so much he needed Sasuke to understand, but his thoughts were tainted, suddenly confused and he forgot all about what he had wanted to proclaim for so many days.

Of all the things he wanted to say, he felt only half of them were true. We wanted to tell Sasuke how lonely he was, how much he wanted to just hang out with him like they used to, how envious he felt at Neji for taking up all of his time, how jealous he felt that he was apparently having hot, passionate sex with someone.

Naruto knew sex, the sweet kind of sex where he had to be gentle and considerate, but he knew nothing about mind blowing passion, nothing of desire, and nothing about the intense need one feels for another. Naruto wanted to experience it, needed to see what it was like but it felt so distant it hurt, like he would never have the chance to know of such a feeling.

He also wanted to tell Sasuke that he was glad neither of them were no longer alone, that they both finally had someone they could relate to, someone who gave them what they needed; that he was happy for him and would give his full support no matter what because now was the time for growing up and for them to follow their own paths and find out exactly what they wanted…

He never wanted them to be mad at each other again.

The problem was; he would be lying for the most part of his imagined conversation.

And despite all these things, there was only one thing Naruto really wanted to say.

Don't leave me behind. I thought we were each other's home.

His mind was an empty void. His voice seemed stuck in his throat. All he could do was look into Sasuke's eyes to try to understand the new found expression in them. Did Sasuke seem… lost? Confused? Troubled?

His heart is beating so fast…or is it mine?

"I don't understand," Sasuke said in a whisper, breath ghosting over Naruto's lips gently and frowning ever so slightly. "That look on your face is…unknown to me."

"Bastard, can you even see my face properly?" Naruto muttered back, trying to somehow make a joke despite knowing Sasuke would not fall for it.

"Tsk, idiot. I don't even know why you're this close to me."

Sasuke's voice was now as weak as Naruto's throat was constricted. It was weird – the blond knew he should take a step back, talk as he had planned, grant them both some decent enough personal space and yet, he did not want it and his muscles did not seem willing to do it either; probably teased by Sasuke's defiance in also remaining in the same damn place.

"That's too bad, 'cause I don't know either." was all Naruto could muster.

Then, unpredictably, his body took complete control of him and acted on his own, and as blue eyes shut, he was leaning forward irrationally as he stuck out his tongue and tentatively licked the thread of blood on Sasuke's smooth skin, starting at the side of his jaw and lightly following the short path upwards until the tip was making soft soothing movements in the corner of the raven's mouth, making sure he cleaned every single trace of the red substance. It tasted metallic and sweet at the same time.

Just like when Naruto hugged him, Sasuke went rigid at the action, shivering briefly before becoming completely still and holding his breath.

Naruto knew what he was doing, knew he somehow really wanted to do it right now, but did not know why, or what led him to do it. He had already stepped on a landmine since Sasuke was probably too shocked to react, so he could only hope that he could take some sort of advantage of it while his friend was too distracted to release his fury.

One shaky, sweaty hand moved up to rest on the curve of Sasuke's neck while the other closed around a slender wrist as if to prevent it from flying without warning. As fingers gently stroked the soft exposed skin, Sasuke released the air he had been holding in his lungs and resumed breathing, but this time, it came out completely ragged as if the contact made him feel trapped.

On the other hand – while fearing the outcome – Naruto felt ecstatic from the unfamiliar feeling of actually doing something he was not sure about. He was under rating safe territory and the feeling was exhilarating, like standing on the edge of a cliff during a wild storm. It was all too new, too exciting.

There he was, with Sasuke's heartbeat thumping violently against his with the evidence of how alive and aware he was. There was only Sasuke's amazingly tempting skin, Sasuke's all too familiar scent that seemed delicious for the first time, and Sasuke's blood inside him, his taste still lingering in his mouth.

Sasuke; who was not his, but someone else's.

Naruto moaned as the painful and uninvited thought crossed his mind.

What the fuck am I doing?

But just as the whiskered boy was preparing to move his face away and break the spell he got himself into, mellow lips brushed flippantly over his and prevented him from doing so and turning his whole world upside down in a matter of milliseconds.

Sasuke's mouth was kissing him, moving in the slowest of ways, lightly and carefully, almost as if the Uchiha was feeling shy. It was so innocent it hurt, and yet, it made Naruto's knees turn to jelly and his head spin at the speed of light, at the same time that many things he had never experienced started happening. He felt dizzy, his body felt like it had caught fire and his stomach was turning around in a way that almost made him sick, but in a good way, if that was possible.

When Sasuke closed his free fingers around golden locks of nape hair and ran a sneaky, expert tongue sensuously along his lower lip to make him react, Naruto did just that as his lower parts became painfully hard.

No way…There's just no way…

Sasuke is kissing me...

Throwing all caution to the wind, the Uzumaki relaxed as much as he could and eagerly opened his mouth to let Sasuke's curious tongue inside before moving it against Sasuke's, clumsily at first as sloppy sounds and gasps surrounded the both of them. The kiss changed quickly from experimental to an urgent need to taste and feel as much as possible as soon as the younger one found a pace that matched Sasuke's. Their tongues clashed in slippery swirls and the raven moaned indecorously.

Naruto thought that he would have come in his pants easily had they been touching each other. He had never felt so aroused and so quickly in all of his life, and it was amazing. His whole body, his whole skin, his heart, his soul, everything was begging for more.

Sasuke was one hell of a kisser. He was one hell of everything at that point and Naruto wanted him like he had never wanted anyone or anything in his life. It was intense and powerful, scary, and so completely wrong because there was Neji and Hinata…

But that kiss was nothing like the two accidental kisses** they had shared when they were younger and nothing like anything he had ever tried with his timid girlfriend.

It was like being home and feeling alive and wanting the world and knowing you could get it. It was so simple, yet so breathtaking it seemed like the most beautifully absurd dream.

It was like finally feeling complete.

Naruto did not know if Sasuke felt the same vibrant energy he was feeling, but knew that he was definitely enjoying it since his erection was so obviously pressed against his, in that intoxicating way that neither seemed brave enough to test. Luckily – or unfortunately – they were both sane enough not to do anything impulsive that would make them regret that moment for the rest of their lives. Had Naruto been out of his mind like he wished he was, he would have probably shoved his hands inside Sasuke's t-shirt, pressed him against the nearest surface and hump him until they were both screaming out their orgasms. As it was, he just kept his body as still as he could and kept kissing, tonguing his best friend's warm, heavenly mouth until one of them got tired of it. It was one of the best things he had ever felt.

I guess this is it then…that thing they call "desire". And I have it in me for you, you complete son of a…

"Shit…" Just like he had initiated the kiss, it was the Uchiha who broke it, gasping for air and trembling slightly. He let his hand fall from Naruto's hair to his shoulder heavily. "I thought we were going to talk…not this."

With his lips still parted, blond lashes shot up and blue eyes met Sasuke's flushed, unfocused face that made him look like he was much younger and more naïve than he was.

"I…You started it." Naruto mumbled, still too moved by all the things he just felt to provide a dignified remark, his own hand sliding from that gorgeous curve to curl around Sasuke's t-shirt over his chest.

If there had been tension before they kissed, it was nothing compared to the tension at the moment. The two young men were still too close to each other and still refusing to move away despite the new found feelings hanging between them. Everything was too fresh and they both felt confused about what had just happened.

"You licked me," Sasuke retorted, as if he still could not believe it entirely. "You licked me, Naruto."

"Licking you did not mean I intended to kiss you." Naruto said, blushing violently and swallowing hard. He had had the urge to do it and he would have probably done it if Sasuke had not taken the first step, but it was not like he was going to tell him that.

"Yet, you were touching me," Sasuke pointed out, frowning and nodding disbelievingly. "I don't…This is…We're both committed."

"I know…, it was wrong of me and I'm sorry, I…"

"Wrong?" Sasuke replied, laughing weakly. "Is this why you've been such a prick about this whole Neji issue?"

"What?" Naruto asked, for the first time moving away only enough to be able to look fully into Sasuke's now dead serious face.

"Are you jealous?" The question was straightforward and it struck Naruto like a running elephant. Not like he hadn't known he had been jealous before, but because he understood that Sasuke was thinking about a completely different thing.

"Me; jealous? I don't…"

"Yes, jealous of Neji for taking up most of my time, jealous because we're actually making it work unlike you and Hinata," The raven haired said harshly. "And jealous because he has many parts of me you never had. I don't even know why I indulge your shit…"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Sasuke, I never…"

"No, you completely took me for granted and you're only doing this because you feel threatened," Sasuke cut, abruptly pushing the blond away from him with a resentful grimace, making Naruto stare at him wide eyed. The magic and the fantasy all faded as the remnants of what had been a wonderful thing turned to cold stones. "Suddenly you find out you want me because now I'm letting someone else in! Isn't that just fucking perfect?"

"What the fuck are you babbling about, you were the one who kissed me!" Naruto yelled horrified at how quickly such positive intensity turned into an absurd fight.

"I was testing you, moron," Sasuke snapped, rooting Naruto to the spot. "You think I didn't notice the way you've been looking at me lately? You never looked at me like that but all of a sudden I'm pretty interesting right?"

Naruto's jaw dropped and he felt his entire body freeze.

An act? Why? They had made up at the restaurant, hadn't they? Sasuke kissed him of his own accord and he was enjoying it, no one could fake a freaking hard-on! He was lying, he had to be. Sasuke would not do such a bastardly thing…would he?

Now that Naruto remembered, he had been acting all flirty ever since he got there…

In the depths of Naruto's heart, where fear and hesitancy had been now lived a raging anger.

"Fuck you." He snapped back venomously. "It just suits you to sink so low to prove a point. And you're right, I was jealous, but you know what? It's gone now, thanks for being such an asshole, it really helped me out. Now get the fuck out of my fucking house!"

And Sasuke did not need to be told twice since he was as angry as Naruto. Forming a seal with both his hands, he turned his hateful, upset eyes to meet Naruto's and vanished in a puff of smoke.

That night the whiskered Jounin tossed and turned in his bed, praying to all gods he knew and to those he did not know for sleep to come and get him, which proved to be useless since his mind was too active with memories of sinful lips that he still felt vividly over his and words that hit his heart like daggers.

Testing or no testing, Sasuke had enjoyed the damn kiss! No one could kiss another person like that unless they weren't giving it their all, right?

Right?

Naruto never thought he could have such strong feelings towards Sasuke, nor that Sasuke could cause such a great impact on his body. It had been amazing in a sort of intimidating, but thrilling way, like adrenaline.

Not that it mattered, they were still fighting and Sasuke still had a boyfriend and Naruto still had Hinata. They couldn't just start something out of thin air just because they kissed once like that.

Great, now I have a crush on that son of a…fuck!

He had wanted to make amends but ended up screwing up again. Still, Sasuke was definitely at fault this time as well! But Naruto was willing to make things right when he got back from his mission with Neji because…well, he had been an equal prick from the very beginning.

Speaking of Neji, I hope Sasuke doesn't tell him about this or it's going to be hell!

How the fuck did I manage to make things even worse?

And he didn't even take those damn condoms.

It was terrible that, in spite of how bad things were, the boy was still terribly aroused by what had happened between him and his best friend.

Whining in absolute defeat, he covered himself with his bed sheets and absently found himself staring at his old ceiling again while his right hand traveled automatically to the inside of his boxers. He tried to think about Hinata. Hinata's big, soft breasts, her lovely curves and her lovely skin but he failed even at that as his thoughts just kept traveling down the wrong road.

It's not wrong thinking about him while doing this is it? It's not like it's cheating compared to what I just did…

I'm so fucked up…

Sasuke…

Only when he felt remotely satiated after releasing some of the huge amounts of testosterone from his body did Naruto realize that maybe, just maybe, Sasuke had gone to his house to make up properly but ended up being caught in a web of deceit and mutual internal conflicts.

oOo

Neji did not oppose to being bottom. Actually, he and Sasuke were both pretty versatile and almost always were sensible enough to know when to abdicate their natural positions as tops to make the other happy. Usually, it happened smoothly because most of the times they were both horny enough to just go with what was more practical, depending on the place, the position or how much in a hurry they were. Sometimes, they bottomed just out of sheer impatience because one of them was in no mood to fight for dominance. Sometimes, they sent physical signals to each other indicating what they wanted or needed. On the rare occasions when things did not go as one of them wanted…let's just say it became rather ugly.

However, when Sasuke got home after taking more than an hour to return – and without those damn condoms – he was surprised by the ferociousness with which the Uchiha pinned him to the bed before kissing him with such force it was intoxicating.

Neji understood immediately that it was one of those days that Sasuke needed to top since he seemed almost to the point of exploding from sheer frustration. The young Uchiha was angry; everything about him was off, starting from the impatient, careless way he touched him, moving along to the fact that he did not care about wearing protection despite how many times he ruined the mood insisting they had to be safe, finishing in the rude way he was currently making love. It was not like Sasuke was a meticulous person during sex, quite the contrary; he was able to loosen up more than the Hyuuga, but the way he was vigorously and desperately clinging to him ruthlessly, as he thrust into him was beyond sloppy and beyond his usual self. Neji was used to doing it roughly like that once in a while, but Sasuke had not even bothered with using lube.

As Sasuke came silently and rather abruptly inside him, shivering in a gruesome way as his expression contorted in revulsion, Neji wondered about what could have happened out there to upset his boyfriend so much.

Just to please him, the pale eyed man let the shorter one try his best to make him come as well but his heart was clearly not in it.

"I'm not feeling well; I'm sorry if I was rough, it won't happen again." was Sasuke's heartfelt apology before kissing Neji in an unusual tender fashion and falling immediately asleep over his naked chest.

The older prodigy lay in Sasuke's low bed, stroking the flossy spikes of his hair as he thought about how he knew who the only person in the whole world was that could turn the stoic Uchiha into such a wreck. Now, he just had to find out why.

The beautiful man was currently his closest person and he would not let anyone hurt what he was slowly learning to hold dear. He would protect Sasuke no matter what and make sure that he never had any reasons to feel such rage again, even if it meant having a little heart to heart banter with a certain blue eyed Ninja.

Naruto may have changed the way Neji saw his life, he may even have been the cause for his change of heart about people and the world itself, but he would be damned if the brat ever got the chance to interfere with the way his current life was going.

Even if he owed a lot to Naruto, he would never allow him to damage what he was trying so hard to fix and claim as his.

oOo

The moment Naruto arrived at the huge gates that held the entrance of the prosperous village of Konoha, he had a bad feeling. First, he thought it was just his brain malfunctioning from lack of sleep and probably from jerking off too many times the previous night. However, as soon as he saw Hyuuga Neji's tall, imposing figure approaching him, he instantly felt so sick he almost threw up the small amount of food he had shoved down his throat that morning.

It was not as if Neji looked mad or threatening, but he was Neji, Sasuke's boyfriend, and the most powerful member of his prestigious clan – that alone was more than enough for any wise man to know when to take a step back. Naruto never really feared him or ever cared about his fucking name or whatever – after all, he did kick his ass in a fight – but now, he was pretty much nervous. If the Hyuuga knew he and Sasuke had kissed, he would be pretty much dead.

"Good morning, Naruto." Neji greeted in his monotone voice.

"Hi, Neji!" Naruto greeted back, loudly and forcibly cheerfully, making a salute gesture. "You look like you're in a good mood! Ready to go?"

"I was born ready," Neji replied promptly, his eyes scanning Naruto from head to toe like he was x-raying him but not giving any indication that he was about to do any of those gentle fists that hurt like hell. "Have you checked us out of the village yet?"

"Yep, all set!" The blond exclaimed, relieved.

"You look like shit; you should drop that cheerful act already, it's annoying."

Naruto felt a muscle in his cheek twitch but did not stop smiling in spite of how de-motivating Neji's cool glare was.

"I'm always cheerful no matter what, unlike some moody people I know," He retorted, giving Neji the finger now that he knew he was not going to be painfully killed by his colleague. "Besides, I am excited! We're meeting two Kages and escorting them! And can you believe it that the Kazekage requested for my personal escort? How cool is that?"

"Yeah, so cool, now can we please get going?"

"Yosh!"

"You're more annoying than Lee and that's saying a lot."

"Shove it, Neji."

Side by side, the two got out of the village and immersed themselves in the thickness of the forest, ready for a mission that neither knew was about to bring some unexpected surprises home.

A/N2nd:

*The Japanese do not wear shoes in the house and generally leave them in them at the Genkan, at the entrance to leave all the worries and problems outside. It's tradition, almost like a superstition, but also to avoid all sorts of dirt – spiritual and from the street/outside world.

**For those of you who do not follow the anime, there was this little filler episode where Naruto and Sasuke accidentally kiss again. Pretty funny, actually, go check it out.