Find A Way Chapter 4 -complete, a naruto fanfic

7/7 parts are now up and I hope that you'll enjoy them!

Now read!

Date: #1 (It's Friday -not the song!-)

Been in relationship: 2 weeks

Shortly after the bell rang, Naruto was gathering his things, taking his time while doing so. The teacher, Asuma-sensei, was cleaning the board smiling at how bright his normally troubled student was. He asked him a couple of days before on what was it that made him happy; he'd never seen his blue eyes so bright before, even with the young Uchiha. Naruto would just respond, "I'm not lonely anymore!" he'd smile before he'd blush when one of the upperclassmen would come to the classroom. Asuma, after cleaning the board, walked over to Naruto; "Have any questions today?"

Naruto looked up at his sensei -who recently quit smoking since his wife found out she was pregnant- and thought about what he learned in class. With a shake of his head he responded, "Nope, Asuma-sensei! I think I'm getting a hang of the work, I just have to watch out for the signs in the equations. That's all!"

Asuma nodded, smiling at Naruto; "Well, if that's all, I'll see you Monday -"

Knock knock

The two turned to the door; Naruto smiled and jumped up with his backpack swung onto his back, Asuma nodded at the elder boy -later finding out from Kiba that that was Itachi Uchiha, a.k.a. Naruto's new boyfriend- as he wrapped his arms around the smaller boy's waist. "Going somewhere?" Asuma asked innocently, but Itachi narrowed his eyes knowing that he was digging around for information to tell the other teachers.

"To the play, Kiba and Lee are starring in it!" Naruto jumped up and down, causing his brightly colored backpack to slide off and hit Itachi on the leg. "Oh, s-sorry, Ita!" Naruto quickly turned to Itachi who had a slightly pained look on his face as he rubbed the spot he was hit.

"Its ok, Naru," he straightened a bit, "we're just going to the play, nothing more." Naruto tilted his head at what Itachi said, confused, before looking at his sensei that seemed to understand.

"Alright," Asuma nodded, "I'll you back Monday," Asuma smiled at Naruto who returned it, before looking at Itachi, "you too, Itachi." Itachi nodded stiffly, understanding that he was to come when Naruto wasn't there, most likely about their relationship.

'Did Sasuke mess him up that bad?'

(basing it off when my school has plays, if I didn't go to those two plays in my whole life, I would be either winging it or skip this part completely...)

It was nearly four -with the show starting at four thirty- when Itachi was about to find Shikamaru and Shino, the two were sitting down inside the theater holding two extra seats next to them. Quickly placing both his and Naruto's bags on the extra seats, Itachi nodded before going to his little blond that was waiting in the endless line at the makeshift snack bar. "I found Shino and Shikamaru," Itachi whispered into Naruto's ear, causing him to jump since he didn't see his handsome boyfriend walk up next to him. Naruto rolled his head back -since Itachi was little over a head taller than he- and gave a little pout, "They wanted us to sit together, not my fault." Itachi smirked, he wrapped his arms around the thin waist and pulled Naruto closer to him as the line moved a bit, "That way the two loud mouths could find all of us," Itachi whispered into the blond locks, breathing in the warm scent of honey.

"This is both their first show," Naruto whispered, loving the feel of Itachi nuzzling his soft spikes, "I hope that they got over their stage fright," he sighed remembering that they couldn't say even a line to themselves in front of a mirror when he passed by.

"I'm sure that they'll do just fine," Itachi gave him a tight squeeze before loosening his grip slightly, "do you have enough or you want me to pay?" Itachi released Naruto and reached for his wallet when they moved closer, seeing the high price for just a little bag of chips. "Its just like going to the store!" he muttered.

Naruto took a big step when a group of people left the line after getting their snacks, turning around to see Itachi digging in his wallet for bills and grabbed him to catch up with him. "Its alright, Ita," Naruto smiled, "I'm the one who suggested we go here, so I'll pay."

"True," but Itachi pulled out a ten -wondering if he was going to have some change bigger than a one later- and put his wallet away, "but, its a date." Itachi watched Naruto's eyes shine at the word, "I'll pay, you just make the plans and I'll pay for it." he leaned down and kissed Naruto on the lips, hearing a few gasps from around them but ignored them before pulling away. Making sure that Naruto's face was covered with his hair, he didn't want anyone see Naruto's reaction to the kiss, he whispered, "Even if we weren't together, I would still come to watch the play with you." he gave a little smile causing Naruto's heart to give a painful squeeze.

When Naruto had his snacks -since the two had to combine the money they had together to pay it off- he followed Itachi who held his hand, and his share of snacks, to their seats. Biting his lower lip, he felt the heat that radiated up his hand, across his arm and spread throughout his body where Itachi held his hand. Even before, when they first met years ago, Naruto noticed a little spark that went through his hand when they shook hands; a spark that he never felt with Sasuke, his first friend and boyfriend. But, now that they were dating, Naruto smiled at the spark; understanding what it meant.

Their seats were in the front -since both Kiba and Lee wanted to be able to see his friends there for support- he was surprised to see that Shikamaru was awake and alert when they came down. "Nervous?" Itachi raised an eyebrow at the teen; he moved the bags that claimed the seats and sat Naruto between him and Shikamaru.

"Kiba," he muttered, his eyes focused on the stage at the slightest movement of the curtains, "he texted me." Naruto turned to him, opening his small bag of hot chips, and tilted his head as he ate one, "He's freaking out, saying that he doesn't remember any of his lines." Rubbing his face, "After we spent hours and hours," Naruto calmly ate his chips nodding, both Shino and Itachi smirking at Naruto's reaction, "rehearsing those damn lines!" Crumpling up the now empty bag he opened another bag, "...troublesome..." he whispered; his hand fell from his face showing that he was knocked out cold.

Naruto giggled at Shikamaru before sitting correctly in his seat, finishing off the second bag of chips; "I'm thirsty." he turned to Itachi who carried the drinks.

"Love birds..." Shino whispered at the two before turning the stage when the lights began to flash, warning that the play was to start in five minutes.

It had been an hour into the play, Shikamaru would wake up when he heard Kiba's voice -he was nervous for his young lover, so nervous that Naruto could hear him whispering Kiba's lines- before snoring when he got off stage. Shino was watching -quietly like normal- during the first part, leaning forward when Lee jumped out from behind the curtains and voiced his lines -Naruto could tell that Shino was proud of his very jumpy boyfriend. Naruto would whisper -now and then- his favorite lines -or the lines he remembered best- from the play; his head resting on Itachi's shoulder, sighing at how comfortable it was, with Itachi resting his head on his own. Itachi would nuzzle him throughout the first half of the play, asking for Naruto to pass the leftover drink to him.

Naruto's mind was completely on the play, when it wasn't was when he felt a cold hand slither its way onto his lap. Holding his breathe, Naruto waited for what the hand was seeking; he gasped loudly when the hand grasped his own. Moving to look at Itachi, his eyes questioning, Itachi simply pulled the hands that were clasped together and kissed the back of his. Naruto watched Itachi's eyes, searching, and found gentleness, warmth and love in them. Smiling at the warmth he found in both Itachi's dark eyes and the warmth spreading through him, he snuggled as close as he could to him with the unmoveable armrest between the two. Itachi released his hold on Naruto's hand and instead wrapped it around his waist, using his other hand to grasp Naruto's lonely hand. Throughout the play, they stayed like that, silently laughing at the hidden jokes in the lines, at Shikamaru's reaction when Kiba froze on stage and Shino's reaction when Lee tripped on the curtain and nearly fell off the stage.

Date #2 (Saturday)

Been together: 3 weeks

Getting dressed in his comfortable too big orange and black jacket, under it was a white shirt that had a smiling green frog in the center of it, with tight blue jeans that hugged his bottom. Finding his blue shoes, Naruto made sure that he had everything he needed. Turning off the lights around the house -but keeping the light of the kitchen on- he made sure that everything was spotless, he didn't want to trouble his grandparents. His grandparents being Tsunade and Jiraiya, two workaholics -but mainly drank when they could, or made time to drink- to make sure that he -their only grandson- was able to get whatever he needed or wanted in life. Walking around the house, making a check as he went down the list in his head, he skipped to the kitchen and wrote a note on a paper.

Dear drunkies! XD

I already made your lunch and should be back by dinner; the food is in the oven -so it can stay warm- and I left some juice out on the counter! I'll be with Ita at the movies and no we won't do anything drastic! Text me when you get home, I'll call back as soon as I can!

3 Naru~~~

Smiling at the note, he made sure that it was in plain sight incase they were indeed drunk; looking at the time he sighed before rushing out the door. Locking the door, he patted himself for his phone and the extra money -so he wouldn't have to depend on Itachi too much for the snacks- and found them in his back pockets. Turning around, just as Itachi pulled up, Naruto couldn't help but hang his head in shame. As he walked to the waiting car -feeling Itachi's hot eyes watching every move he made- he peeked at the houses that surrounded him. Feeling embarrassed when some house were on the verge of collapsing, people having most of their belongings outside the house rather than inside, seeing people looking so sad and angry at the world. 'Imagine what Sasuke would have said...or done...' a voice whispered to him, 'he would have left as soon as he pulled up to the house or bragged how horribly you live to everyone at school, he would have humiliated you no matter what...'

Opening the shiny, new -and expensive- car door he slid in without a word; Itachi could see how stiff he was, he knew that Naruto would take a bus to school or get dropped off -if one of his grandparents was off- so he was the first to physically come to his house. Not inside, but in front of his house; he couldn't say that it was a horrible place to live, not the best either, but he didn't want to judge. He just wanted Naruto to be happy and to open himself more to him, just him; "Is something wrong?" Itachi whispered as they pulled away, Naruto buckling his seatbelt.

"No," he whispered, his head down, his hair blocking his eyes.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of," Itachi whispered, noticing how Naruto looked away from him and took a peek out the window, only to wince and hide himself from it. "Gaara lives in a place like this," Naruto looked at him with shock in his eyes, "when we had to work on a project together with Neji, before they were a couple," he mused, "he would tell us about how his neighborhood was like, so when we got there it was a big surprise to see something else that you imagined. Gaara still lives there, till he and Neji find a place to live together for when the baby comes, but he holds his head up high." He turned to Naruto as he slowed the car down at the stop sign, "Don't be ashamed of where you live, I'm embarrassed that Sasuke is my younger brother, but I don't hold my head down in shame," Itachi's lips twitched, "I pick on him." His eyes showed humor in them, causing Naruto to giggle.

Sitting up, his back touching the back of the seat, Naruto gave his bright smile -to Itachi, it seemed to get brighter and brighter as the days pass. "You're right," Naruto sighed, "it's just that you're the first person who's seen my house..." Itachi blinked at Naruto's blush, "I either took the bus or had get picked up from somewhere else, I wasn't comfortable with people seeing where I live and then to hear about it at school." Tears gathered in the sky eyes, "I don't want people to look down at me even more!" he sniffed; closing his eyes at the coming sob, Naruto pulled up his knees and hugged them to his body. Sighing, Itachi reached over and hugged Naruto close to him with one arm, he looked at the road in front of them, checked both sides before turning down the street.

Itachi parked the car outside the movie theater, he turned to Naruto seeing that he had calmed down some since they left Naruto's house nearly an hour earlier. "Tails we watch the movie that I want to, heads we watch the movie you want to, deal?" Itachi stepped out of the car, watching as Naruto thought about the chances that he could win since he knows the movies that Itachi prefers over his own; before he could respond, Itachi was opening his door and kissed him on the cheek, kissing away the tear streaks. "Better hope that you win," he whispered against the flushed cheek, hearing Naruto's breath quicken, "there's this new horror movie that came out a couple of weeks ago that I've been craving to see." His blue eyes staring straight ahead, he could imagine Itachi smiling at that, if anyone best knew how Naruto reacted to scary movies, it was Itachi.

Looking away from Itachi, pouting as he did so, Naruto playfully grumbled. "Whatever," he smiled before looking Itachi's way from the corner of his eye; his heart quickened when he saw the smile on his blank face that came with a little chuckle that robbed Naruto of his breath.

"Deal," Itachi moved so that Naruto could step out of the car without hitting him, but not too far so that they didn't rub against one another. Holding his pale hand out for the tan hand, Itachi closed the door behind Naruto and leaded them to the theater -before turning briefly to lock the car.

Pouting while in line, Naruto looked anywhere but at Itachi, upset that he lost the coin toss and blamed it on the wind that made it go onto Itachi's side -tails. "Stupid," he mumbled once again under his breath, knowing that Itachi could hear him. He's given a chuckle as a response from the taller brunet, "What?" he playfully glared at the man, knowing that Itachi would either look away and mutter something as he glanced back at him or chuckle again. He, however after a couple of weeks, didn't expect a light kiss on the lips from him; still not used to the lightning that flashes through his body from the little kiss, he covers his mouth with his hands and looked down, blushing as he did so.

"Naru," Itachi whispered into his now redned ear, "what did you want?" his voice was deep and low, causing Naruto to shiver at the sound. Looking up he noticed that the clerk was a girl from their school, blushing, trying not to squeal like crazy and pass out at the same time. Whispering that he didn't want much -just nachos, large coke (claiming that he'll share), gummy bears, hot dog, large popcorn and a pretzel- Itachi nodded, thanking that he had a fifty in his wallet, ready for Naruto's stomach. Getting the snacks -having filled both their arms- Itachi and Naruto started looking for the theater for their -Itachi's really- movie. Finding that there was ten more minutes left of the movie before it was their turn, they sat outside on a bench. Placing their food to the side of the bench, Itachi had Naruto sitting on his lap as he munched on the hot dog.

"Do we really have to watch this?" Naruto asked when he finished his hot dog and started on the nachos.

Taking the chip in the smaller hand into his mouth and eating it smugly in front of a frowning blond, Itachi replied, "Yes," grabbing another chip with the cheese covering it, popping it into his mouth, "we'll go to the movie you want to see later, I promise." Itachi watched as Naruto a very cheesy chip, eyeing the cheese that dripped onto his lip down to his chin as he ate the chip, not noticing the mess on his face.

"What?" Naruto asked, looking into Itachi's eyes that had a tint of red in them, he -unconsciously- licked his lips getting most of the cheese that wasn't on his chin already.

"Cheese," Itachi husked; he leaned down and lapped away at the goo on the tan skin, making sure that the cheese was gone, he leaned away and gave Naruto a breath-taking kiss. He pulled away when he heard the doors to the theater squeak open, followed by people talking and laughing about what happened in the movie or to the people around them. Black eyes looked into the hazy blue eyes that were half closed, smirking at the hints of lust that lay in them; Itachi rubbed his nose against Naruto's, breathing in his honey scent, hearing his breath hitch at the small contact. "Ready?" Itachi was already standing up, gently placing Naruto onto his shaky feet, they never looked away from one another.

"Yes," Naruto breathed out, his eyes widening when Itachi moved closer to him.

Getting ready for another kiss -wanting more and more of them- he closed his eyes when Itachi was less than an inch away, his mouth partly open, he leaned his head back and waited patiently. "I'll give you another kiss after the movie," Itachi laughed; Naruto snapped open his eyes to see that Itachi was no longer next to him but a few feet from him, gathering the snacks, "Hurry, we should get the best seats in the house since no one is here!" Shoving the leftover snacks into his hand, Itachi grabbed Naruto's hand and pulled him along as they entered the theater.

It was only thirty minutes later that Naruto had finished the popcorn -claiming that Itachi ate more than his fair share, even though Itachi only had a handful- drained half the coke, "split" the pretzel, finished off the nachos -well, Itachi did, Naruto just pouted- and now was snuggled up to Itachi. Well, more like hiding behind Itachi...Itachi, however, was rather bored of the movie but being entertained with Naruto's reactions. At every scream that came from the screen, which had other people screaming, Naruto pressed himself closer to him, whimpering but still looking at the screen. Itachi moved the coke, that was sitting happily between the two, to his side before pulling up the armrest that was now keeping the two apart. Once it was lifted, Naruto nearly sat in his lap, covering his face where Itachi's neck and shoulder met. "I hate you," Naruto whispered yet again.

Itachi, sighing and rolling his eyes once again, whispered back, "You don't have to watch it." Naruto shook his head, lifting it up to glare at him before turning to the screen when the characters started talking. "We can leave if you want," Itachi sighed out of boredom, "it's not what I thought of it at all." he frowned at the scene when one of the girls was screaming at the sight of her friend getting cut, "Even the blood doesn't look real!" he hissed.

Naruto turned to him, glaring at him, "Shush! You wanted to watch it so, watch it!" Naruto turned back quickly so he wouldn't miss anything.

Hitting his head on the back of the seat, he looked at the people around them, shaking his head at their reactions to the really noticeable props and horrible actors. Looking at his watch, pulling it from Naruto's lap for a second, he noted that there was still two hours of this.

Date: #3 (Friday)

Dating: 4 weeks

"Please wait here while I get your waiter for you," the women showed them their seats before giving a kind smile as she left. It was time of the evening where the mood was changed by the lightening, candles being lit here and there along the walls and, just to make sure that there was enough lighting, the actually lights were dimmed for the corners that the candlelight couldn't reach. In one corner of the huge room sat a grand piano, which blue eyes widened at, that had a violin resting on top of it.

A male waiter -in his late teens- came with a silver bucket with wine in the middle of it, surrounded by cubed ice. "My name is John," he placed the bucket to the side of the flickering candle, "would you like some water with the wine?" He pulled out two menus from under his clothed arm. Naruto looked up to the suited Itachi -well, almost suited Itachi, he wasn't wearing a bow or tie- with a confused look in his blue eyes; Itachi smirked at him before whispering that water would be good. "Very well," the man pulled out a worn out notepad from his front pocket in his apron, "I'll be back in a few minutes with your orders." he nodded before leaving to the next table.

"What are you getting? I think I'll get pasta..." Itachi looked through the menu, glancing at all the evening foods, deciding which pasta to order.

"Umm," Itachi looked up to see a fidgeting Naruto, wearing a long white sleeved v-neck shirt with a black vest over it and dark colored jeans, "I don't...I don't understand, Ita," Naruto looked up, his eyes showing fear in them, "why are we here?" he whispered out.

Itachi chuckled at him, closing the menu and sliding it to the unoccupied side of the table, and reached over the table to gently grasp Naruto's slightly shaking hand in his own. "Its been one month," Itachi looked Naruto in the eye, "normally by this time, if the person that I'm with doesn't satisfy me by now, I would have broken up with them." Naruto looked down when Itachi said those words, his heart ripping into pieces, "But not with you," Itachi reached over with his free hand, a long and slim finger hooking under the tan chin, "you're worth my time, Naruto." Itachi smoothed his fingers over Naruto's marked cheek, "I want to spend time with you, I want to be with you, I want to see you smile again." Itachi smiled slightly at the blushing Naruto.

"Ita," Naruto leaned into the hand, tears gathering in his slightly darkened blue eyes.

"Here you go," John came back to their table with two tall glasses of sweating water; Naruto pulled back his hand and looked down at the dropped menu on the table, Itachi sighed and glared at the boy, "Ready to order?" he pulled out the notepad and pen, looked at Itachi -not noticing the glare.

Itachi sighed again before he straightened up and picked a random pasta from the menu, and handed the menu to the stupid boy. Naruto looked at the menu, biting his lip at the different choices, "He'll have the same thing I will," Itachi said, Naruto looked up at him, "with a side of-"

"Salad!" Naruto blurted out, Itachi and the waiter looked at him, "I want salad..." Naruto looked down, fidgeting with his sleeve.

"I can change it to were you can get salad while the pasta is being made, if you'd like?" he offered a small smile to Naruto, making the boy blush that was not missed by a slightly glaring Itachi -glaring at the man that was flirting with Naruto in front of him, not Naruto, he would never glare at him.

"T-that would be nice," Naruto smiled at the man, causing him to blush too; unknown to Naruto, he was giving the 'uke' face to someone other than Itachi, who gritted his teeth, trying not to kick the younger boy under the table.

"I think that's all." Itachi growled, catching Naruto's eye, he thrusted his menu into the man's face. The waiter was shocked when the menu suddenly -and nearly- hit his face, grabbing the menu he looked at the man it came from to see a warning glare, his black eyes now having a hint of red in them.

"R-r-right..." John quickly gathered Naruto's menu -trying not to touch him- and left quickly, trying not to trip or knock anyone over as he plowed his way to the kitchen.

Itachi watched with a smug look on his face, glad that the man got the hint and ran with his tail between his legs. "Itachi?" now black eyes turned to concerned blue eyes; on the table, Itachi noticed that Naruto had his small hand sliding over towards him, wanting to hold his hand. "Did I do something wrong?" he whispered; Itachi gripped the small delicate hand in his much larger one, feeling the smallest trembles that went through Naruto's arm.

Turning till Naruto's palm was facing up, Itachi leaned over and kiss his hand, "No," he whispered, turning that hand once more to face the table, his thumbs gently rubbing the wrist, "no, it wasn't you, Naru." His eyes never leaving Naruto's, "I just didn't like the kind of attention that he was giving you, since you don't have my mark on you anywhere...yet."

Blue eyes popped open, "You were jealous?" Naruto leaned over and whispered out of breath, "That can happen to you?" Itachi chuckled at Naruto's response, nodding at the questions, he waited for the other half of his sentence to sink into his mind. After a few minutes, Naruto still not believing that Itachi got jealous over the waiter -inside his mind he was jumping with joy while on the outside he was in shock.

Itachi sighed; with his free hand he reached into his inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a small soft leather box that was smaller than his hand and placed it on the table. Naruto -quickly coming back to earth when he saw the box- stared at it before looking up to Itachi, Itachi was giving him a small and shy smile before he slid the box across the table. "This is for you," Itachi whispered, slowly releasing the hand in his own, watching as Naruto stared at the box and carefully opened the box with a click as it opened all the way. "I promised myself and my mother that if I were to find the one," he took in a deep breath when Naruto covered his mouth with one hand, gasping, with tears gathering, "that I would give this person the Uchiha necklace." Teary blue eyes looked up at him, "As I told you earlier, I'm serious about us, Naruto," Itachi quietly stood up from the table and walked over the the quietly sobbing boy, "I want to be with you." Reaching into the box, pulling out the palm sized Uchiha symbol necklace, he turned it over -the back being pure silver that reflected Naruto's smiling sobbing face- and gently clipped it onto the slender neck.

Naruto reached up and touched the cold metal that started to warm up, feeling the heaviness on his chest, and looked up at Itachi. "Its beautiful," Naruto gasped, fighting the tears that still fell, "thank you." Itachi nodded, not moving from his spot, he leaned down and gently kissed Naruto on the lips feeling -not the sparks- but the heat and love from it.

"You're welcome," Itachi kissed away the tears before kissing the necklace then the plump red lips that were now part of the person that completed him.

By the time the Itachi had calmed Naruto down -demanding that Itachi sit next to him, but was refused- Naruto's salad had come -being taken to him by another waiter. Itachi watched as Naruto moaned happily with each bite that he took of the very bare salad. "Just lettuce and little bit of Italian dressing can go a long way!" Naruto muttered; Itachi chuckled at Naruto, quickly eating the salad as if its the last food he'll eat, as he grabbed his glass of wine and took a sip. Finishing the salad, with a happy yet sad sigh, Naruto cleaned off his mouth with a napkin -before he used his sleeve- and watched Itachi who watched him as he drained his wine. "What does that taste like?" Naruto pointed to the empty glass.

"Bitter," Itachi stated, putting the cup down and filled it with more wine, "you want to try?" Itachi held out the bottle, motioning to his unused glass that stood next to his half empty glass of water.

Nodding slowly, Naruto held his empty cup to the mouth of the bottle, watching as the wine slipped into the cup and gathered on the bottom. "Thank you," Naruto muttered, smelling the wine before taking a sip; his eyes popped open and he spit the wine back into the cup, his face showing disgust, he looked at Itachi, "How do you drink this?" he pushed the cup away from him, his head hurting from the taste that clashed with the salad he had just finished.

"Skill," Itachi smiled, taking a long sip, "skill, Naru, skill."

Naruto tilted his head, confused, "Skill?" Itachi nodded, "What does that have to do with the wine? Wait," Itachi raised an eyebrow, his cup on the table, "is it an Uchiha thing?"

Itachi pondered the question before coming to an answer, "Yes."

When the pasta came, Itachi was just watching Naruto trying to gather the noodles onto the fork so he can eat them. Covering his mouth, trying -fighting really- not to laugh too hard and loud when Naruto had next to none on his fork. "Naruto," Itachi coughed, "like this." Itachi gathered the pasta slowly for Naruto to watch; Naruto did the same thing only to get the same results, nothing. Sighing with a smile, Itachi got up and stood behind Naruto, his hands over the smaller one's and gathered the noodles. With the fork filled, Itachi led the hand to Naruto's mouth, feeding him, to taste the pasta for the first time.

You with sad eyes

Naruto turned around, now noticing that the piano and violin were being used, to see well aged man playing the piano and singing into the mic softly as the woman played the violin with her eyes closed, her body swaying gently to the music.

Don't be discouraged

Oh I realize

It's hard to take courage

In a world full of people

You can lose sight of it all

And the darkness, inside of you

Can make you feel so small

Wanting to listen to the song, Naruto quickly ate the pasta -not noticing that Itachi was smirking at him from his seat which he returned to- before he pushed the empty plate away from him and rested his head on the table, his eyes half closed as he listened to the music.

So don't be afraid to let them show

Your true colors

True colors are beautiful,

Like a rainbow

Itachi, taking his time with his food, smiled at Naruto's calm face as he listened to the song; happy that he was able to talk to the owner of the restaurant, asking if they could play this song while they were here. He'll most definitely give the owner a big bonus for the song; "Naruto," the blond turned to him, not lifting his head off the table, "I hope that you enjoyed tonight." He whispered, his pale hand gathering the small tan one, their hands lacing together. Leaning over the table -and his own half full/empty bowl of pasta- Itachi kissed Naruto on the cheek. Naruto, wanting more than that, lifted his head and kissed Itachi on the lips; for a moment, it was a small kiss that grew into something that neither Naruto nor Itachi could describe. As they pulled away from the kiss, their foreheads touching, their noses rubbing against one another, they stared into the other's eyes, unable to look away. Seeing the happiness in the other, the two refused to remove themselves away until the song ended, until they decided it was time to go home, until they kissed each other goodnight as Itachi dropped Naruto off at his home. It was then that, Itachi smiled when he walked home, still feeling the younger's lips on his own -ignoring that his younger brother was asleep on the couch with frown on his face.

Date: #4 (Saturday)

Dating: 1.5 months a.k.a. 6 weeks

Naruto was there for much needed rest, his nightmares getting worse, where Itachi snuggled up to him on the too small couch. When Naruto called Itachi in the middle of the night -explaining that his grandparents were at work till morning- that he was scared and didn't want to be alone. Itachi -being the awesome boyfriend that he was- rushed over to pick him up, telling him that he might as well stay the entire weekend. Naruto didn't argue with him, wanting to be with the one who made him feel safe just by being in the same room. When they made it back to Itachi's personal home, Itachi dragged him to bed and gave him his t-shirt -knowing how much Naruto loved wearing him clothes- to bed.

Now it was afternoon, they had moved from the bedroom to the living room; laying on his side, his chest to Naruto's back, his arm either under Naruto's head as a pillow or hugged Naruto around the waist. On occasion, Naruto would wake up suddenly -either crying or gasping for air- and he would turn to Itachi to comfort him, to soothe him back to sleep. The longer that Naruto had slept, the less times he woke from a nightmare; Itachi never left his side unless his body just couldn't last any longer.

On tv, Itachi listened to the current news while he kissed Naruto on the neck, kissing the fading hickie that marked him as his. He wasn't really paying any attention to anything else but to Naruto, sighing happily when he was kissed gently; so when he heard the front door shut that was followed by little thumps that came towards the living room. "Aniki?" Itachi buried his head into Naruto's shoulder, rubbing his forehead at the curve of the neck. "What're you doing?" Sasuke asked before walking around the couch and sat down on the loveseat next to the tv.

"He couldn't sleep..." Itachi sighed, knowing that he had to move away from Naruto, not wanting Sasuke to see him like that over his ex.

Sasuke looked at Naruto with worried eyes -eyes that Itachi hadn't seen in Sasuke's for years; "He's still having a hard time sleeping?" he whispered, perhaps mainly to himself; Sasuke looked at his brother, "I know that I have no right to butt in," Sasuke said as he got up and kneeled before Naruto, "you need to distract him." A pale hand touched the tan cheek, trying to give comfort to who he didn't have anymore, "Get him out of the house or something; Naruto loves going out, he can't really stand being inside for too long."

Itachi watched with close eyes, "I see," Itachi grabbed Sasuke's wrist, stopping him from rubbing the back of his hand against Naruto's tear stained cheek. "What do you need?" Sasuke didn't look at Itachi, he mentally kicked himself as he put up a neural face.

"Nothing, just bored." Sasuke shrugged, yanking his arm away and went to sit on the loveseat once more, his eyes on the tv.

"What about Sakura?" Itachi raised an eyebrow at Sasuke's reaction.

"What about her?" Sasuke pulled out his phone when he received a message, frowning before replying.

"You're not going to see her?" Itachi asked slowly.

"We had sex once, and I made sure that I was wearing protection," Sasuke said, knowing that Itachi would lecture him if he didn't, "and she's saying how she's carrying my kid." Sasuke sighed, putting the phone to his side, the screen up. "But, about Naruto-"

"Sasuke," black eyes looked at each other, "when you said that you had 'no right to butt in' I agree with that; don't butt in." Itachi crossed his arms, glaring at Sasuke with eyes that said 'He's mine not yours anymore, so drop it.'

"Sorry, Aniki," Sasuke whispered, "well, just take him out somewhere. Last time he went through a nightmare phase or something, I took him to the movies -I don't suggest it though!" Sasuke shook his head quickly, Itachi raised an eyebrow, "When I took him to the movies, I let him pick the movie and I was forced to watch Twilight!" Sasuke shivered, Itachi gave a sympathetic look his way, he already suffered through a girly movie due to Naruto.

"If not the movies, then where do you suggest?" Itachi whispered, the two turning to Naruto who rolled in his sleep, muttering about a "ramon god".

"I don't know," Sasuke's phone vibrated, he saw a call from Sakura, he clicked ignore. "Just take him somewhere," he stood up slowly, "I'm taking a nap." He walked down the hall a few feet from him, passing Itachi's room and stopped at the entrance to the guest room, the door giving a quiet shut when closed.

Sighing, Itachi turned back to Naruto, black eyes meeting blue eyes; "Was that Sasuke?" Naruto whispered, his voice showing a little fear and worry.

"Yes," Itachi said slowly, not liking Naruto's reaction to Sasuke, "he suggest that I take you somewhere other than the movies..."

Naruto gave a little laugh, "Did he?" he choked out, "Well," he breathed, trying to stop the giggles since Itachi was glaring at him, "why don't we go to the mall or something?" Naruto tilted his head, knowing that Itachi would smile at him, forgetting that his brother was there at the house.

"Whatever you want," Itachi breathed; he leaned down and gave a kiss to Naruto that deepened the longer they kissed. When Itachi pulled away from a panting Naruto, with drool coming down the side of his cheek and eyes half closed, they stared into each other's eyes. "Naruto," Itachi whispered, "I li-"

"Fuck you too!" Sasuke opened the door and threw his phone straight into the wall -falling into bits and pieces- before slamming the door shut. Naruto sat up -forcing Itachi to sit on the edge of the couch- and watched with sad eyes where Sasuke was. Itachi -his eyes on Naruto- sighed, knowing that Naruto still had feelings for the other younger Uchiha; thankfully, the feelings were no longer romantic...if they ever were.

(12 pm at mall)

Walking into the over crowded mall, with teens gathered in useless groups every few feet -expecting you to go around them- and the cries and laughter of children filled the area. Itachi -not wanting to lose sight of Naruto in the mall- wrapped his arm around Naruto's slim waist and held his hand; Naruto cuddled into Itachi's well muscled chest, leading the way to wherever his feet took him. Itachi had to lean down into his ear to speak, since it was too noisy around them to hear each and every word. "Are you still tired?" Itachi asked, his breath tickling Naruto's -apparently- sensitive ear.

Giving a little giggle, Naruto shook his head, "No," he turned to Itachi, giving him a smile that took his breath away. "I got more sleep with you then I do alone." Itachi blinked in shock before leaning down, turning Naruto to face him, and kissed him deeply. After a couple of seconds Itachi pulled away, his eyes opened to see a blushing and slightly panting Naruto with lips that were bright red and glistening. "Ita..." he whispered before breaking out into a shy smile with his blush getting darker.

"Sorry," Itachi husked, "you just looked too cute for you're own good." This resulted in a Naruto giggling, "Lunch?" Itachi nodded towards the booths, his eyes never leaving the bright blues.

"That would be lovely," Naruto whispered; grabbing Itachi's hand, Naruto pulled the taller and elder boy with him, laughing at Itachi's shocked face. "Let's see if they have ramen around here!" Naruto gave Itachi a blinding smile before pulling the poor boy with him -who didn't seem to mind.

Twenty minutes later, Naruto and Itachi sat down after ordering themselves a bowl of pasta, small salad for Naruto and a large cup of coke to share between themselves. Naruto pouted the entire time that he ate, muttering about the owner not making sure that there was a ramen shop inside the mall, which amused Itachi to no end. "Have you decided where you're going next year?" Naruto whispered, hoping that Itachi heard the question yet hoping that he didn't at the same time, as he ate his salad.

"Yes," Itachi answered, rolling the noodles onto his fork with his spoon, "I found two actually." Itachi took a bite of the pasta that he had gathered, his eyes on Naruto who sat across from him.

"Two?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, his heart aching at the thought of Itachi leaving him alone. "Where?"

"Well," Itachi placed the fork and spoon down, wiping his mouth with a napkin, "there's one in town, its rumored to be the Leaf Academy, and one a couple of states away, Akatsuki International," Itachi watched Naruto's reaction, noticing the slightest pause in the blond's movements. Pushing the rest of the pasta towards Naruto, "Both are fighting over me, its quite humorous if you ask me."

Naruto pushed the last of his salad to the side and pulled the pasta bowl towards himself, "What're they like?" Naruto asked with a mouthful of pasta with some pasta and sauce on his chin.

"Well," Itachi chuckled, rubbing off the extra food from the blond, "Leaf is mainly a medical school. Each of the dorms have strange names, each one represents the level you're at in school." Itachi sat back, a small smile appearing on his face, "Freshmen are called 'Lower Ninja', sophomores are called 'Middle Ninja', juniors are called 'Elite Ninja', and seniors are called 'Anbu Ninja'." Naruto stared at him, his lips twitching to laughing but he had to finish chewing what was in his mouth first. "There are even special names for those who do excellent or surpass the expectation that's asked. There's a 'Special Elite' for those who pass every one of their classes and are top five in each of the classes; 'Sage' for the professors and top five students, then there's the 'Kage' for the headmaster."

Naruto's eyes popped open, "Whoa..." he swallowed the last of the salad; picking up his salad bowl and dropping it into the empty pasta bowl.

"Now the Akatsuki," Itachi leaned forward, getting Naruto to move forward, "there are five different dorms there -not like at the Leaf- each one represents an element. Fire, Wind, Earth, Water and Lightning; the dorms are for any and every level -freshmen to senior. Once in the dorm, you're given a ring -which dorm you belong to that has the element in chinese writing and the element's color- then a cloak -standard uniform, you can wear whatever you want underneath as long as you wear the cloak- and then the band that you can wear however as long as you wear it -its also for which dorm you're stationed in." Itachi smiled. "Both of them I'm interested in but," Itachi looked Naruto in the eyes, "I want to stay close to home..."

Naruto blushed and turned away, "Well, there's still a few months to choose between them, right?" Naruto whispered.

Itachi nodded, "I'll go and throw this away and then we'll start looking around, 'kay?" Itachi grabbed the empty bowl, making sure that the plastic utensils were with him as he walked off. Naruto looked down at his hands -fidgeting with his shirt under the table; shaking his head, he got up, grabbing their full drink in both hands, and walked after Itachi.

Walking around the mall, hand in hand, Itachi and Naruto talked about school -which teachers they have or had, who they liked the best teacher, what and how to do something for a teacher. It was right around where the most popular shops that were gathered that the crowd became really thick; Itachi had to lead both him and Naruto around, since he was the tallest of the two, when Itachi had spotted a photo booth. Stopping in his tracks, Itachi thought of how he didn't have a picture of him and Naruto together; wanting to have at least one, Itachi turned behind him to see that Naruto was no longer there. Instead were girls with hearts in their eyes and hands clasped together as if praying that Itachi would date one of them instead.

Ignoring the girls -not really noticing them and not hearing their flirty voices over the noise of the mall- Itachi looked around not leaving his spot for his blond. When he couldn't find a hint, he walked along the stores that they passed by, peeking through the windows and asking the random people near the doors if they had spotted Naruto. After fifteen minutes of looking for Naruto in the large and crowded hall, Itachi headed back to the lunch room -thinking that Naruto was hungry again. Itachi had walked back and forth, up and down the hall and mall, looking for Naruto -spotting a ramen shop, but the missing blond wasn't in there; his anger getting the best of him, Itachi pulled out his phone, punching in Naruto's number. Just as he was about to press the button to call, Itachi spotted a smiling blond walking out of a store -one that he missed somehow- and was looking for Itachi.

Blue eyes lit up when they met dark eyes -not realizing that Itachi's eyes were starting to turn red- their owner pushed through the crowd, ignoring the whistles, and stood in front of a silently fuming Itachi. "Where were you?" Itachi asked in a cold voice, yanking Naruto's arm toward him. In Naruto's arms lay a brown paper bag that was unmarked from whatever store he came from. Naruto gasped at how Itachi grabbed him, his hand tightly wrapping around his thin arm. "Where were you?" Itachi hissed at Naruto.

Naruto blinked a couple of times, his eyes widening at the force Itachi was using on him, he could feel the tears coming so he tried to blink them away. Getting his breathing under control, Naruto stuttered as he answered Itachi, "T-to buy you som-something." Naruto looked away from Itachi, not wanting to cry when Itachi started to glare at him.

"Don't just leave my side, Naruto," Itachi squeezed his arm before releasing it, realizing that he was hurting his blond, "do you know how upset I was when I couldn't find you? Tell me when you want to go somewhere or to buy something; I was worried if someone took you or if you got lost." Itachi scolded the younger boy who started to fidget under his intense glare.

"I-I'm s-sorry." Naruto whispered before he started to sob, holding the bag tightly in his arms. "I just thought that you wanted these!" Naruto pushed the brown bag into Itachi's chest, knocking him back a step, Naruto looked up at him with sadness in his deep blue eyes.

"What?" Itachi carefully grabbed the bag and pulled Naruto to his chest, next to the bag, and held him there. Looking for a bench to sit on, Itachi pulled Naruto along with him; once the two sat down, ignoring the stares and whispering that was aimed at the tow, Itachi peeked into the bag before his eyes moved back to Naruto's shaking body. Setting the bag aside, Itachi pulled Naruto to face him and kissed away the tears before kissing him deeply on the lips. Itachi kept their lips together until he felt Naruto's body stop shaking with the crying, and felt small hands going around his neck and head, pulling the two even more closer -if that was even possible.

Itachi pulled away from the kiss, Naruto whimpered, but they kept their eyes on the other, both catching their breaths. "I know that you like sweets," Naruto whispered, "so when we passed by a sweets store, I wanted to get you some. I thought you heard me when I said that I was going to get buy something."

Itachi made a face of "oh", feeling horrible that he had gotten upset with Naruto over the silly matter. "Sorry," Itachi whispered back, kissing Naruto on the lips once more before turning to the bag. Opening it up, Itachi's eyes opened wide to find dango that filled the bottom of the bag in many bright colors. Just above the dango were individually wrapped omusubi, each one being unique due to the many different faces. Itachi looked up at blushing Naruto then back to the bag, he reached into the bag and pulled out one of three packages of dango. Setting it on his lap carefully, Itachi put the back on the floor -where it wouldn't be kicked or stepped on- and opened the package. Pulling out one of the six, he nommed on it -literally went "nom"- and sighed as he chewed it with care. Naruto watched with a growing smile on his face; Itachi offered some of his dango with Naruto, who took it slowly -having never tasted one before.

As the to slowly finished off the dango and rice balls -which Itachi gave them voices to make the blond laugh- Itachi looked around, trying to remember where he found the restaurant. "you found a ramen shop?!" Naruto gasped; quickly standing up, Itachi turned to him as Naruto's body started to shake. Naruto turned to him, his little hands fisting Itachi front shirt, Naruto got in his face with his eyes wide open, "Where?" Itachi gave a nervous chuckle before showing the jumping Naruto to the restaurant -tossing away the empty paper bag as they passed the trashcan.

"Hey, Ita," Naruto sighed happily as they walked out of the shop, his stomach full for ramen that had emptied Itachi's wallet.

"Hn?" Itachi nodded to him; wrapping his arm around the -somehow- slim waist and pulled him against his body, letting Naruto lean on him as he started to get sleepy.

"What were you looking at?" Itachi looked down to Naruto, "When you were looking for me, you were looking at something before and you seemed really excited about it. What was it?" Naruto yawned out, his little mouth showing his pink tongue that licked his lips before retreating back into the cave.

Itachi had to swallow the drool, "A-a ph-photo booth..." Naruto looked at him with worry before he noticed the blush -thinking that Itachi wanted a picture with him and not about what Itachi can make that mouth do.

"Where? I don't have a picture of the two of us! Sasuke never really liked taking pictures..." Naruto whispered at the end, his smiling disappearing as his blue eyes darkened at the memory.

"Towards the end of the hall," Itachi coughed, his mind clearing up when Naruto became sad, "we can take our picture before we leave." Itachi led them slowly down the less full hallway.

"Well, I guess we can go get our pictures now since I'm dead tired." Naruto tried to smile off his sadness; Itachi pulled them to a stop, cupped Naruto's face into his hands that engulfed his small baby-like face.

"Forget about that idiot, Naruto," Itachi looked into Naruto's hazy blue eyes. "You have me now, you have me," Itachi leaned down and kissed Naruto on lips. Blue eyes widened every second that Itachi's lips were laid against his own; after a full minute, Naruto laid his body to fit against Itachi's body, his arms slithering Itachi's neck and moaned into the kiss as it deeped. "Naruto," Itachi whispered as he pulled away and kissed him on the neck, his teeth gently scraping against the tan skin. "Naruto, I li-"

"Tag you're it!" screamed a little boy before running the couple; the small boy knocking Naruto out of his arms and onto the floor. The child looks at Naruto -who he lay on- and completely ignoring the standing brunet -who was in the same position; "Whoa! I'm sorry, mister!" the kid quickly got up and ran off back the way he came when he heard his name being called.

"..." Itachi twitched, breathing in deeply and exhaled, he crouched next to Naruto offering him a hand up. "Naruto," Itachi tried again, "I li-"

"Excuse me!" Itachi's eyebrow started to twitch, "Would you like to try our sample for this perfume?" smiled a girl that was in Itachi's face, having pushed Naruto out of her way.

"No, thank you," Itachi reached around her -ignoring the huff as she walked away to some other stranger- and grabbed Naruto, "Naruto, I li-" he tried again, his patience wearing thin.

"Now!" screamed a voice; moments later, people started dancing as music started blasting from an unknown area. Hundreds of people were dressed in the same clothes and started dancing in sync with each other in the middle of the mall.

"For heaven's sake!" Itachi threw his arms in the air, giving up; "Fuck this!" Itachi grabbed Naruto's hand and dragged him through the flashmob towards the photo booth. Pushing the boy in, Itachi pulled the curtains closed and kissed Naruto once more. This time, Naruto didn't respond like how he did last time, he seemed confused. Understanding this, Itachi pulled away from the kiss, looking for a dollar or two for the booth to get it started. Putting in the money, Itachi picked the frame; "I like you." Itachi said, his voice being stressed.

"What?" Naruto leaned close to Itachi, "What did you say?"

"I like you, Naruto Uzumaki." Itachi whispered to Naruto, looking in his eyes; "I like you, alot." Naruto pulled Itachi down for a kiss, Itachi -his hand being on the button to take a picture- removed his finger and wrapped his hands around the back of Naruto's neck -snap- and his thigh -snap. The two made out as pictures were being taken, when they pulled away Itachi kissed Naruto on the tip of his nose just as the last picture was taken -snap.

Date: #5 (Thursday)

Dating: 2 1/4 month or 9 weeks

The room was dimly lit, filled with soft music, with different sized candles that were huddled together in the center of the table where Naruto sat. Naruto, dressed in a button down shirt -too big for him since it was borrowed from Jiraiya- and pressed jeans -Tsunade ironing them before she left for work that morning. Naruto was panicking on the inside; last month had been their date to the mall and Itachi's strange...if you'd call it strange. Itachi was now holding his hand whenever he could; like when Itachi opened the door for him when he got out of the car -he's been doing that for awhile- he would grab Naruto's hand as they walked into the school. The school whispering things about them, mainly Naruto; rumors started to spread like wildfire, someone -most likely Sakura- stated that Naruto was just trying to get back at Sasuke by using Itachi against him. Everyone knew that Sasuke looked up to Itachi, but for Naruto to use Itachi like that? Kiba and Sai stood up for Naruto; everytime that it was whispered near Naruto, that person would get yelled at by Kiba and threatened by Sai -who would make the threat with a smile on his face as he cracked his knuckles, going into detail over everything he would do.

Since last month, Naruto has no idea what to do now. For the first time, last month, he kissed Itachi! Since then, Itachi's been teasing him, trying to get Naruto to kiss him again. 'No,' Naruto shook his head with a fire blazing in his eyes, 'I can do this!' Naruto nodded, 'And I need to stop hanging around Bushy-brows so much, too!' Naruto agreed with himself.

"What're you doing?" Itachi asked, snapping Naruto out of his trance.

"O-oh, n-nothing!" Naruto looked down, his hands in his lap, a wave of heat covering his face as a blush came up. "So," Naruto coughed, "what's for dinner?" Naruto peaked to look at Itachi small smile.

"Hungry are we?" Itachi raised an eyebrow.

"Ita!" Naruto whined, "I haven't eaten anything since lunch! I didn't even touch the ramen when I was at home! And Jiraiya ate one in front of me because I told him that I couldn't eat!" Naruto fell to the back of the chair, pouting like a small child, his stomach gurgling in agreement to the suffering that they went through.

Itachi chuckled at the look, walking forward and kissing Naruto on the lips, "Its almost done, just let it cool off first, ok?" Itachi whispered against the lips that parted. Naruto whined but nodded, he opened his mouth, wanting more of the kiss; Itachi complied. Itachi kneeled before Naruto and kissed him; Naruto wrapped his arms around Itachi's neck, his hands fisting the dark locks, wanting to pull out that string. Itachi pulled away, his eyes opening to see blue eyes with clear beads just under them; a string of saliva thinning between the two. "We have to save dessert for later, Naru." Itachi chuckled at Naruto deepening blush.

Getting up from the floor, Itachi went back to the kitchen to grab the dinner; making sure that the salad was ready, all it needed was the Italian dressing, and the glass was ready to be used, since he wanted some champagne but Naruto is still under age he bought Apple Cider. Pulling a good amount of the dressing into the salad, and grabbed two wine glasses, he made his way back to the dining room where Naruto sat with his eyes closed, his fingers moving gracefully as he listened to the flute in the background from the song. Quietly putting the dishes down, he retreated to the kitchen; pulling out a bowl and two forks, he scooped up and dumped a little hill of spaghetti into the bowl. Adding some cheese around the spaghetti, Itachi looked around the kitchen, making sure that he had everything -glaring at the cider when his hands were full- before coming back to get the cider -muttering that he should have bought the bucket so it could have been chilling at the table. After somehow placing the bowl down and then going back for the cider, Itachi sat down next to Naruto who was looking at the pasta as if it was the last ramen in the world. Itachi chuckled, reaching to Naruto's chair and pulled him closer -till they were at the shoulders- before nodding that he could dig in.

Naruto jumped at the chance to eat, his stomach gladly eating anything as long as it wasn't hungry anymore. With one bite of the pasta, Naruto moaned at how good it tasted, "Its good!" Naruto jumped in joy. Itachi smiled and digged in, hoping that his plan would work since he left the noodles long and they were sharing a plate. After some time of no results -other than Naruto moaning at every bite, which Itachi was starting to imagine Naruto moaning at something else- his next spoonful was connected to Naruto's spoon. Naruto looked at Itachi who smirked at him, leaning down to take the bite, hoping that Naruto would follow his lead. Naruto, biting his lip, took the spoonful into his mouth, chewing it slowly as he battled the oncoming blush. The string pulled them together, pulling Itachi and Naruto closer as they kept eating. Itachi never taking his eyes off Naruto; Naruto tried to look anywhere but in front of him.

Ding Dong

Itachi and Naruto blinked. Naruto gave Itachi a look, "Who is it?"

Itachi raised his eyebrow, "I'm sitting with you, I don't know who it is."

"Maybe you should get the door?" Naruto pouted.

"If I don't answer whoever it is will just go away," Itachi huffed, "let's finish this bite." Naruto gave Itachi an "Are you sure" look and Itachi nodded. Naruto sighed before resuming before the doorbell went off.

Itachi and Naruto were both leaning close to each other, their eyes never leaving the other; it was just a bite left before they connecter, just one bite when "Oh my god!" sounded through the suddenly brightened room.

Itachi and Naruto blinked, not knowing what was happening; Itachi kissing Naruto on the lips, biting off the last of the hanging pasta before turning to his parents. "Mother, is there something you need?" Itachi glared at his mother, upset that she ruined the perfect mood.

"Itachi," Mikoto placed a hand over her mouth, her other hand laying on her hip, "what are you doing in the dark with Naruto-Naruto?!"

Naruto looked down, his face completely red, "Evening, Mikoto-san," Naruto whispered, his hands going under the table and grasping Itachi's cool hand for comfort.

"What-" she looked between the two, "I thought..."

"What?" Itachi hissed, not liking that his parents are interfering with Itachi and Naruto's date or that his mother was making Naruto nervous. "Is something wrong? Am I unable to date Naruto?" Itachi tightened his grasp on Naruto shaking hands.

Fugaku came up from behind his wife, "Itachi," his elder son looked at him, "your mother wanted to take you out for some dinner but it seems that you're having dinner already." Itachi nodded, "We will join you two," Itachi's eyes opened wide, "I also want to know what is going on between you two." Dark eyes moved to Naruto before going back to Itachi.

Itachi sighed, standing up and blowing out the candles, "Very well then." Grabbing the bowl of pasta, Itachi went back to the kitchen and split the pasta for all four of them and came back two at a time filled and two glasses for them as well.

After a few minutes of forks scraping against the plates and asks for more cider, Mikoto spoke up; "So, Naruto," Naruto whipped his mouth with the napkin Itachi shoved into his hand before looking up, "why is it that you're with Itachi like this?" she tilted her head to the side.

Naruto had known that the question was of pure curiosity, but...didn't Sasuke tell them anything? "Ummm," Naruto glanced toward Itachi, seeing him nod, his cold, strong hand cradling his, "Itachi and I have been dating for little over two months." he kept his eyes on the table, wincing when silverware fell to the floor or fell from the plate to the table.

"Wha-" Mikoto gasped.

"Sasuke dumped Naruto around three months ago," Itachi said, "I had feeling for Naruto since Sasuke first brought him over as a friend. The way Sasuke treated him and acted around him," Itachi's free hand closed into a fist under the table, "is not how Naruto should be treated. I knew that their relationship wouldn't last very long -with Naruto trying to make Sasuke happy and Sasuke blowing him off- so I asked for Naruto to give me his heart and to trust me." Naruto felt his heart thumping harder and harder as Itachi kept talking, "I believe that Naruto is the one for me." Itachi whispered, his eyes looking straight into his father's eyes.

"Itachi," Fugaku rested his elbows on the table, his wife looking at him with worry, both Naruto and Itachi waited for what the man had to say. "Itachi, why is it that we hear this now?" Itachi blinked in surprise, "For weeks Sasuke had been going on and on about Naruto, him being happy and smiling like he did when we first met. Both of you have been dating for two months, correct?"

"Yes, father." Itachi nodded; Naruto tightened his grip on Itachi hand, fearing that they couldn't be together.

"You do understand that you'll have to leave little more than six months; how can you be sure that Naruto is the one for you if you have to leave? I will not tolerate you going to a Community College if you choose to stay here with Naruto." He briefly looked at Naruto, pitying him, "Nor can you take him with you to whatever college you go to; he still has two years left of high school when you leave. What will you do then?"

Itachi looked at Naruto, trying to figure out a plan that far ahead; "It..." Naruto spoke up, looking at Fugaku, "it is ok if Itachi and I are together then?"

"I might not look like it, but I want nothing but the best for my children, Naruto, even if it means giving them either-or choices. I will not take away whatever peace Itachi has gained with you at his side, but its both of your future that I'm looking at. What will you do?"

"Long distance or I can take online classes from here." Itachi stating, returning to his father's eyes.

"Long distance puts strain on the relationship, no matter how strong the bond is with you two, it will break..." Mikoto whispered, her eyes revealing the sadness within them. "I just wish that Sasuke had told us about the two you breaking up, I'd understand if Itachi promised to stay at your side, Naruto, but...Sasuke...I thought that he had found that light once more."

Naruto gave a small sad smile, "I don't even think that I was bright enough for him, Mikoto-san."

Date: #6 (Friday)

Dating: 2 1/4 or 9 weeks

Yesterday's date was ruined thanks to mother and father. Not only that, but now Naruto and I are questioning what to do when I graduate from school. If I could, I would stay here at home to be with Naruto; but father had made it sound like I had to have another anchor if I wish to stay. If Naruto wasn't an anchor for me, then what is?

"...even ok?" Naruto's voice broke me from my spell.

"I'm sorry, what?" I winced when I saw the sad look in the sea blue eyes, they've been so sad since yesterday. Neither of us had thought about me leaving, it never crossed our minds at the time.

"Tonight, since my grandparents won't be home for a couple of days, is it ok for you to come over at seven?" Naruto's beautiful angel face had a blush that made look so cute.

"Yes," I want to kiss that lip that he's chewing on, I wish I could kiss him -wait! Why is his face so close?

Naruto leaned over to my side of the car and gave me a peck on the lips; his blue eyes were half closed, his marked cheeks were bright pink, and I wanted to kiss him back. Sadly he moved away quickly after he kissed me, opening the car door and quickly muttered that I would have to be back by seven, slamming the door and ran to the house, his hand over his mouth. I stared after his slim body running into the house, I saw that he turned to look back once more -a smile on his face- before slowly closing the door. As I pulled away, I reached over and touched my lips, still feeling his on my own; I love it when he gives the kiss, the look on his face is different then when I kiss him. Its as if he's making sure that I'm real, that I'm by his side; I wonder what I should wear when I come over...

The two and a half hours that I was at home, I used to figure out what to wear, trying on every single combination of clothing that I had. I texted him and he just said whatever I want; that didn't help. I gave up and found a pair of jeans that I hardly wear and a red and black t-shirt in the end; pulling up and parking in the driveway, it hit me. I've never been in Naruto's house. I stared at house -since I was thirty minutes early- trying to figure out what it would look like inside. Where Naruto lives isn't the best place for him to live, but I makes someone grow strong one way or another, sadly that didn't work for Naruto. The houses were falling apart, furniture was outside because the houses are so small; children running in the streets, playing with patched up and broken toys. The adults sitting outside the house were either drinking or yelling at the kids when a car was passing by and they were in the street; this might not be the best place to live, but the way people live here is more lively than where I live. Where I live, there are no kids running in the streets, there are no parents watching their kids since they're busy with work, there are no kids having fun with one another.

I looked to the clock, sighing before I turned off the car and headed toward Naruto's house; making sure that I had everything that I needed, my phone and wallet -just incase- before knocking. I waited for a minute, spotting some movement from the window, when the door opened revealing a shy Naruto. "Hi," he whispered, "umm come in."

Itachi walked into the house, leaning down to kiss Naruto on the lips; when he looked up, he saw something on the tv that he had not seen in years, "Teen Titans?" Itachi raised an eyebrow and turned to Naruto as he closed the door.

Naruto nodded, walking passed him and sat on the covered sofa; "I like the show, its hard to find it now since they ended the series a while ago." Naruto patted the spot next to him, hoping that Itachi would sit next to him.

"I know, I used to watch it as well," Itachi said, Naruto looked at him in surprise, "but I haven't seen them on tv only on the internet when you look up their episodes." he explained.

"Oh," Naruto whispered, his eyes going back to the tv just as Beast Boy was controlled by Mad Mod's device. As Naruto was sucked into the show, yelling at the characters to "hurry up or he'll get away!" Itachi looked around the room. The living room was split by a long couch that didn't seem to fit right in the room, the one that they're sitting on was a loveseat in front of a tv that had a huge butt with it on top of the coffee table that had stacks of movies and a blueray dvd player in it. The room itself had many things in it, most of the decorations not matching with the calm tan color. Pictures of Naruto, at different stages of his life, with his family; of the six people in one picture, Itachi could point out three that he knew -Naruto being one of them. Naruto noticed Itachi looking past him, looking at the picture of him when his family was complete. "You know Jiraiya and Tsunade, right?"

Itachi blinked, "Yeah, I saw them with you when I came to pick you up one time."

"Yeah, they're my godparents," Naruto smiled, "they're stupid but they do whatever they can to make sure that I get the best of the world." Naruto smiled and giggled, a moment later his happy and sparkling blue eyes darkened. "The blond man and red haired women," Naruto whispered, his voice deepening with sadness, "were my parents."

Itachi looked at the picture, seeing the two smiling happily with Naruto taking both their hands in his, the smile on his face with his eyes closed. "May I ask what happened? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Naruto. I understand if you don't want to."

Naruto shook his head, grabbing the remote and putting the tv on mute, Naruto turned to Itachi, giving him his full attention. "My parents were killed when I was five, my elder brother -the red head with spiky hair- was thirteen; they always told us that the best thing to do in life is to protect others that are weaker than you. My brother, Kyuubi, didn't really listen to my parents and always fought with them; most of the times that they argued was over me, when Kyuubi would bully me when we were in the same room. I didn't see it as bullying, I saw it as Kyuubi trying to toughen me up by scaring me of everything." Naruto gave a small smile at the mention of Kyuubi, Itachi's hand tightened into a fist at the thought of someone else making Naruto smile like that.

"But, one day, when we were going to the store -all of us, my parents saw someone being held at gunpoint in the parking lot. My parents told Kyuubi to stay with me as they went to go and help out the lady. I didn't hear anything, I just remember crying and begging for them to come back, and the next thing I know," Naruto's voice started to thicken, fighting back the tears, "I hear shots and Kyuubi screaming but not letting me go, he held onto me so tight. The shooter saw us crying and screaming for our parents and ran, dropping the gun by their bodies." Naruto bowed his head, his body shaking as the sobs came out, the sobs that he held in for years. "Kyuubi and I were taken to the police station, Kyuubi never let my hand go, never let me leave his side or sight. When I would start to cry he told me to stop, that mommy and daddy wouldn't like to see me so sad." Itachi pulled Naruto into his arms, his hand rubbing his back as he rocked them back and forth on the couch, "I miss my mommy and daddy!" Naruto screamed into Itachi's -now- slightly wet shirt. His small hands gripping the cloth as tightly as he could, wanting to feel the safety that he hasn't really felt in years since his parents left him.

Itachi held Naruto close, letting him stain his shirt, rocking him back and forth; his hand cupping the back of his head and his back, holding him close. For several minutes, Itachi just held Naruto, not whispering a soothing word -knowing that it would never ease the pain in his heart, before the younger sniffed and pulled away. Wiping away the tears from his puffy blue eyes, he gave a small smile to Itachi, thanking him for holding him. "Hungry?" Itachi whispered when Naruto's stomach growled, causing the blond to blush like crazy and nod quickly. Smiling, Itachi cupped Naruto's face and kissed him gently on the lips before picking him off his lap. "I'll order something." Before Naruto could respond, Itachi had his phone out and pressed speed dial to his favorite restaurant.

It was near one in the morning, Naruto and Itachi are currently laying in Naruto's twin sized bed. After eating the takeout food, Naruto had suggested that the two play some games; at each game, Naruto knew each of the rules and tricks to get ahead of the Uchiha. When Itachi questioned how Naruto knew each of the games so well, Naruto simply said that when he was younger he used to play with his parents before they passed. "When Kyuubi and I moved in with Tsunade and Jiraiya, I would stay up waiting for them so we could play. They said that if they were to play, I had to know the rules; when I had them memorized, I realized that we would never play."

"Why?"

"Because they were taking extra hours at work so there would be enough money for Kyuubi and I for school or for food to keep in the house."

"Then, let's play every game you want to play."

It was hours later, with games stacked around them and snacks surrounding themselves when they realized how late it was. After cleaning up -mainly done by Itachi since Naruto started nodding off- that they ended up in Naruto's small room. Naruto had woken up enough to change into his pj's -a long t-shirt and soft shorts- before getting into bed with Itachi. Itachi, with his back against the wall, wrapped his arms around Naruto who had his back against his chest. It was tipping to two when they started to sleep after talking about whatever came to mind. It was two am when Naruto remembered his parents in a dream.

-Dream-

"What's love?" asked a little blond to his parents; his parents turned to their little one after whispering their love for one another.

"Love?" asked a taller blond, Minato, "Hmmm how would you put love, sweety?" Minato turned to his redhead wife, Kushina.

"Hmmm," placing a finger to her chin as she thought, Minato beckoned Naruto to come and sit on his lap, "someone who..." she smiled, "someone who makes you happy just by seeing them. Someone who makes you feel warm just by holding your hand or smiling at you," her eyes never leaving Minato's blue eyes, "someone who you can feel at ease around."

"Who loves you for you," Minato whispered to Naruto but his eyes on Kushina, "who will do anything for you...who will fight for you..."

-Reality-

Slowly blinking open his blue eyes, Naruto noticed that sometime when he was asleep, he turned to face Itachi. Hearing his clock playing a song from the radio:

Hold on, what's the rush, what's the rush we're not done are we

Cause I don't need to change this atmosphere we've made if

You can stay one more hour, can you stay one more hour