a/n: If there are readers out there who never watched The Oldboy by Park Chan-wook (2003) and plan to do so, then major spoiler warning! This story relies heavily on literature and movie references, and here, this movie helped me establish Sasuke's perspective against Itachi's.
Also, feel free to point out any plot/detail inconsistencies. I am still trying to keep the timeline as close to 2009-2010 as possible.
Lastly, I recently revisited Naruto, and I was surprised by how much Itachi talks. Like, half of the Itachi vs Sasuke fight is just talking about illusions. I got too inspired, resulting in longer dialogue than I had originally envisioned. I hope you don't find it too boring.
::
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"That is, the life you planned with your imagination always fails in reality."
- Eça de Queirós , "Os Maias"
::
When Sasuke arrived home the following day, he was greeted not by the comforting brightness of indoor light, but by the same greyness as the cloudy weather outside. He flicked the light switch, but there was no response from the fixtures above.
He walked to the entrance of the kitchen and found Kurenai desperately rummaging through the dead fridge and shoving the remnants of last week's groceries into thermal bags, as she battled against the forces of entropy and spoiled food.
"Another blackout?" Sasuke asked.
"Asuma forgot to pay the electricity bills," Kurenai replied, her tone loud enough to reach the ears of the absent offender in the living room.
"I thought you had taken care of it!" The living room retorted.
"Ugh, this is so unfair! Why did the power have to go out now? I was just about to beat Darth Vader!" Another voice from the living room said.
Sasuke glanced towards the living room and spotted Konohamaru fiddling with his unresponsive PlayStation controller, while Asuma seemed more preoccupied with disconnecting all the power cables.
No electricity and his bratty cousin was there. Home sweet home.
"Who needs electricity and games anyway?" Asuma's voice echoed from a corner in the living room he had disappeared into. "It's overrated. We can just pretend we're pioneers, forging a path through the wilderness of modern inconveniences!"
Sasuke rolled his eyes. That stupid hippie had been smoking something again.
"I spent a week trying to beat the Darth Vader!" Konahomaru whined.
Though this situation would normally be enough to irk him, Sasuke found himself surprisingly unfazed that day, as if nothing could spoil his good mood. He wasn't even feeling like complaining.
He turned his attention back to Kurenai, who was still busy salvaging food from the fridge.
"Is it going to be fixed?" he asked.
"We'll have to pay the late bills and the meter installation all at once, but hopefully, we'll be back in the light next week," Kurenai replied. She sounded tired, as she was clearly struggling to keep things together among the chaos in the house.
Sasuke couldn't suppress a twinge of sympathy for her. Even he got worn down quickly whenever Asuma and Konohamaru were in the same room.
"Sasuke, do you want to give some food to Naruto? Or Sakura? It would be a waste to let all this food spoil," she added, gesturing to the thermal bags filled with fridge food.
Sasuke surveyed the bags on the floor, two already filled up. "I'll ask them."
With a swift flick of his wrist, he summoned his phone and dialed Naruto's number.
"Yo, Sasuke! What's up?"
Naruto's voice burst through the phone line with the same exuberant energy that always seemed to accompany him, even on the most ordinary occasions. In the background, Sasuke could hear the cacophony of fragmented noise from screaming tourists, crying children, and Sakura's voice amidst the chaos.
"Where are you?" he asked.
"What? We're at Disneyland! Don't you remember? You said you didn't wanna come."
Oh, right. How could he forget? Sasuke had turned down the hardly tempting invitation to go all the way to Tokyo just to spend two days of his summer vacation at the overpriced consumerist paradise known as Disneyland with Naruto and the gang.
Lately, his thoughts had been so consumed by Itachi that he forgot to keep track of where his friends were.
"We're having a blast! Space Mountain is freaking awesome! We're about to go on it again! You sure you don't wanna join us?"
From the other end of the line, Sasuke faintly heard the voice of another girl who sounded like Ino, asking "is Sasuke coming?" with a hopeful tone.
"No, I'm fine. You guys have fun," he replied.
"Are you sure? Look if you come now we can still-"
"It's a six-hour ride by bike, Naruto. And honestly, I have other things going on," Sasuke interjected, cutting off Naruto's enthusiastic invitation before it could gain any more momentum. But almost immediately, he felt a little guilty for disappointing him again.
He couldn't shake the feeling that he had been letting his friends down far too often lately. He had declined so many invitations that he wondered when Naruto would eventually stop bothering to ask him altogether. And that was the last thing Sasuke wanted.
Despite his insistence on being left alone, deep down, he really enjoyed the feeling of having people who cared about him, even if he continually turned them away.
So, he decided to be nice and offer a token of reassurance: "I'll join you next time. You also wanted to go Universal Studios, right? Just let me know when," he added, letting a genuine smile crawl across his face.
At least Universal Studios was in Osaka, and therefore, less painful to his wallet.
He could almost hear an idea forming in the brain of his friend from the other side of the call. "We can go there for your birthday next week!"
Sasuke grimaced. No, that's not what he meant. "Let's just do it in August."
"You better make that a promise!"
"I promise."
And with that, he turned off the call.
He noticed Kurenai staring at him with a dumbfounded expression as if she had momentarily forgotten about her mission to rescue the food.
She had never witnessed her son being this nice and apologetic to his friend before. And he was genuinely smiling and looking so.. happy and peaceful like he was in a genuinely good mood. Which was super odd.
Did something happen?
"Sasuke… are you seeing someone?"
Her question hung in the air like a suspenseful plot twist, her instincts tingling with curiosity. She knew Sasuke long enough to know that something earth-shattering must have happened to put him in such a good mood.
Especially after he had to go through the whole trial ordeal, and the mental toll it took on him. Even Orochimaru's conviction didn't have this effect on him.
Something happened in the past couple of days that almost completely transformed him.
Sasuke's cheeks flushed red at the question, and he recoiled as if stung. "What, no!"
Konohamaru, who overhead the conversation from the living room, practically materialized in the kitchen doorway with the speed of a ninja on caffeine. "Sasuke has a new girlfriend?!" he exclaimed, his excitement bordering on melodrama.
"Sasuke has a new girlfriend?!" Asuma echoed, as if Konohamaru needed a chorus.
His embarrassment deepened, and he was sure his face looked like a ripe tomato now. He retorted sharply:
"I don't, and it's none of your business. I'm going to my room."
With that, he turned on his heel and fled, leaving behind a laughing Konohamaru, a bemused Kurenai, and a thoroughly entertained Asuma.
Asuma glanced at Kurenai with raised eyebrows and a grin on his face. "What do you think?" he asked.
Kurenai chuckled softly. At first, she couldn't quite put her finger on it, but after witnessing Sasuke's comical reaction to what should have been a simple and innocent question, she knew it.
Call it a mother's intuition, but she was now absolutely certain now.
"I think he is in love."
::
After shutting the door behind him with a loud thud, Sasuke sighed and let his body slump on the bed.
Great. Now those three were jumping to conclusions about his love life. He had almost forgotten that it was impossible to keep secrets from Kurenai; she had a sneaky knack for sniffing out of him whatever she wanted to know.
But was he really that obvious? He wasn't even sure himself what he was feeling. All he knew was that a strange sense mix of happiness and uncertainty that had overtaken him, was unlike anything he had felt before. Like there was this rush of emotions that made his heart race and his mind whirl with excitement every time he thought of Itachi, and yet, a part of him feared that he was letting himself fall too deeply into something that will leave him too vulnerable if it doesn't work out.
Wait, 'if it doesn't work out'? Were they even dating? He didn't know yet what to make of his and Itachi's relationship.
Was it possible that he was in… love?
No, he was overthinking. He just had great sex.
Great gay sex. Though at this point, he had already accepted the fact that he did greatly enjoy having sex with a man (or more specifically, he enjoyed having sex with Itachi; he wasn't sure about other men yet). He had settled on his sexual orientation being probably bisexual, and let's just leave it at that.
But. He just couldn't stop thinking about the past -how many hours?- he had spent with Itachi, and his heart still fluttered with the mere thought of him.
He took a moment to count how many hours they spent together. Let's see… he went to his apartment yesterday, around 10 or 11 am. After the arguing, they had sex. And they took a bath, and they had sex again. And then they slept. And then that annoying cousin of his woke them up in the afternoon. Sasuke went to the fridge to make something resembling lunch or dinner but was shocked to find that Itachi didn't have anything he could cook with, because Itachi didn't have time for groceries or cook for himself. Apparently, Itachi told him, he usually ate at the restaurants in his company, or the university cantina sometimes, or he just ordered delivery food. Which was a waste of money, in Sasuke's opinion.
So Itachi just ordered overpriced delivery sushi, and after that, they watched a short TV program about cars, because Sasuke took ownership of the remote. Then they attempted to watch an American movie dubbed by voice actors that sounded like they were plucked from a high-school drama club, with performances ranging from off-synced to downright surreal. They quickly lost interest in it, got horny on the sofa, and moved back to his bedroom to have sex again. They probably dozed off around 2 am and Itachi's alarm clock woke them up at 7 am because he had to go to work.
They parted ways, with the promise of seeing each other again. Sasuke hopped on his Yamaha bike and on the way back, he decided to take a detour to stop by BBD's house. But he wasn't there and the neighbor told him he was out of the country, so he came back to his house.
So, it was around… 21 hours he spent with Itachi, more or less.
And as he reminisced through the past 21 hours he had spent with Itachi, he felt his groin tingling and a half-erection forming inside his pants.
He groaned. He had just left Itachi's house that morning. Why was he still thinking about him and yearning for more?
He… wanted to see him again.
It's not like he had better things to do anyway.
His friends were all in Tokyo, and Tokyo was far. And expensive.
His house had no electricity, and Konohamaru was there. His laptop's battery was dead and he couldn't use it without a power cord. He could try to read a book under a candlelight, he supposed, but he wasn't feeling like doing it. The weather was too hot and humid and the air conditioner would remain out of commission for the ensuing torturous week until they got the power back on.
He… could call Itachi and ask him if he wanted some free food.
But Itachi didn't normally cook. Why would he want the food anyway? He probably didn't have time or interest to think about what to do with miso paste or frozen shrimps.
Aah.. He just wanted to talk to him again.
Was it too soon to call him back?
-Yes, it was too soon, you just saw him 2 hours ago, get a grip.-
Arrgh. Sasuke didn't want to appear clingy or obsessed.
He had never been like this before. Usually, he was the one complaining about his clinging girlfriend, or Naruto calling him more than once a week.
God, he felt like Sakura now. Can't last a day after seeing Itachi without wanting to call him back. And if he called him back, he feared Itachi would react like Sasuke often did with Sakura and all the girls he had slept with, and that is, ignore the call and leave the text messages 'unread' for as long as he could.
As he pondered his options, he realized that he still didn't know Itachi's phone number. He didn't even add him on LINE. Did Itachi have LINE even? Oh wait, he almost forgot: he broke Itachi's phone.
Great. Sasuke really needed to stop breaking Itachi's things.
Wait, he did have his office number. His actual office number, not the general company number.
Should he call?
What would he say?
Maybe he… could offer to cook for him. You know, as payback for breaking his phone, his expensive wine bottle, and whatever other financial damage he caused him.
It wasn't the same, but food still costs money, and cooking food costs labor.
Sounds like a reasonable offer, right? He would offer some food, and offer to cook that food for Itachi – not out of clinginess, but as a genuine gesture of goodwill.
Also, hopefully, he would get to sleep again at his ridiculously comfortable bed in an air-conditioned room, powered by paid electricity bills.
Making up his mind, Sasuke reached for his phone and scrolled through his contacts until he found the name he was looking for. His heart began racing with apprehension. What if he was rejected? No, don't think like that. He was just going to ask if they wanted some food, that's all. If Itachi declined, that was fine. It was no big deal. That's all it was.
That's all.
A female voice picked up from the other side.
"Thank you for calling Uchiha & Son Law Corporation. This is the Law office of Uchiha Itachi, how may I assist you?"
For a moment, Sasuke's voice was caught in his throat, and he had to clear it before speaking. "Um, I'd like to speak with Itachi."
"Mr. Uchiha is not available right now. May I ask who is calling?" she inquired.
Sasuke sighed in disappointment. "Is he busy? Can I know when he'll be available?"
"Mr. Uchiha is currently occupied, and I'm unable to provide a timeframe. Could you please leave your name, contact information, and a message, and he'll get back to you as soon as possible?"
He could feel her frustration growing in her tone.
"Oh... okay. Can you just let him know that I called then? My name is Sasuke."
There was a pregnant pause from the other end, making Sasuke wonder if he had said something wrong. He wasn't accustomed to formal communication or dealing with receptionists.
"Please hold for a moment," the receptionist finally said, and the line was switched to the on-hold music. Sasuke had anticipated to hear We Are the Champions again, but it seemed that the "Law office of Uchiha Itachi" had a different on-hold music which tune he immediately recognized: Beethoven's Für Elise. A less self-aggrandizing choice, no doubt, but not really the cheerful hold-on music one would expect to hear while waiting for a lawyer to pick up the phone.
Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long, as after a few seconds, the music ceased, and Itachi's voice came through the receiver. "Sasuke?"
Guess he wasn't all that busy.
"Yeah, it's me," Sasuke replied, his voice sounding awkward and shy. "Um, how are you doing?"
Okay, that was a stupid way of starting.
There was a moment of silence on the other end before Itachi's smooth voice filled the line. "I'm doing well, Sasuke. Thank you for checking in. Is everything alright?"
Sasuke grimaced. Right, thanks for checking in, you saw me just two hours ago. Something wrong with you? He felt his cheeks burning. This was too awkward.
"Yeah, everything's fine," he responded, trying to sound casual. "Um, we had a bit of an issue with the electricity here, so we're trying to salvage some food before it spoils."
There was another pause, followed by a soft chuckle from Itachi's end. "Ah, I see. Well, why don't you come over to my place? My refrigerator is more than capable of accommodating your food, and whatever other... needs you may have."
Sasuke felt his cheeks burning. Why did he have the feeling that Itachi misinterpreted Sasuke's food story? He was making it sound sexual.
"Yeah, that sounds good," he replied, continuing in his efforts to sound as casual and cool as possible. "When should I come over?"
"I'll wrap up work around 6 pm," Itachi replied in his usual polished manner. "But I will instruct my doorman to open the apartment door for you. Just come by at your leisure and make yourself at home."
"Thanks. I'll see you soon then," Sasuke said with a smile and hung up the call.
:: ::
Three hours had dragged by since Sasuke showed up at Itachi's place, and the man had yet to show up. It was pushing 7 pm, and the food was getting cold. His office wasn't that far, so what was taking him so damn long?
Sasuke conceded that he had probably arrived too early. He hoped Itachi liked sweat & sour shrimp at least. It was not the most original dish in the world, but it was one of only three Chinese dishes he knew how to cook well, and the only one that had a sweet element to it - something he had learned the day prior that Itachi had quite the penchant for, after he ordered sushi with dessert. Sasuke didn't think sushi goes well with a dessert finish, but it seemed that, for Itachi, everything goes well with desserts. And while he had no idea how to make a cake, he knew at least how to utilize copious amounts of sugar in a meal.
He hoped Itachi liked his cooking at least.
Sighing again in boredom, Sasuke turned off the TV and resigned himself to the task of apartment exploration.
Not much caught his eye amidst the minimalist décor of the apartment, save for a few Chinese landscape paintings and a lone calligraphy scroll adorning the walls. The complete absence of family photos struck him as peculiar, though. Not even pictures of friends or former colleagues. Or past lovers.
Even Sasuke had pictures of Sakura and Naruto and other people in his room. Not framed ones. Actually, it was just a small pin board with a collage of photographs that Sakura made for him and insisted on installing on his bedroom wall – "so you never forget about us", she said, but he didn't need a pin board of photos for that, because he saw them almost every fricking day. But whatever, he still had that pin board in his room, and never felt any need to remove it. Even Tenten was in there, ironically.
Itachi didn't have anything like that. No photographic memories on display whatsoever. Not even in his room. It was just… a little odd, he supposed.
There was a picture frame on top of one of the shelves of the TV stand cabinet, he noticed. But it didn't have any actual photo – just a snapshot of spoons as default decor, which Sasuke thought was funny. Reminded him of the internet memes of the movie The Room. Well, yeah. Nevermind.
But the bookstand was impressive. It covered an entire wall and extended all the way to the ceiling, with a petite matching ladder tucked in the corner to help one fetch the volumes from the upper shelf. Books of all shapes and sizes filled almost every available space, in an enigmatic arrangement of titles – or better yet, complete lack of arrangement, a Sasuke noticed upon closer inspection.
Unlike the straight-from-catalog orderly nature of the rest of the apartment, Sasuke was rather puzzled by the disorganized jumble of Itachi's book collection, with so many unrelated titles crammed together haphazardly without any obvious organization system. Volumes on economic history were positioned next to romance paperbacks, and Sasuke even discovered that the various installments of the 1001 Arabian Nights series had scattered across multiple shelves, intermingling with criminal law dissertations and catalogs of Salvador Dali's artworks. He wondered how Itachi could even find a book in this maze of literature.
He felt an urge to reorganize all these randomly assorted books into some kind of organized system that made sense. But he held back, figuring Itachi wouldn't like others messing up with his system. Sasuke also disliked when Kurenai entered his room and rearranged his belongings without his consent.
There was one shelf that caught Sasuke's attention though, where books hung lazily, barely tucked in, as if Itachi fetched them often and couldn't be bothered to push them all the way in. He looked at the titles and authors, and recognized Karl Marx, Engels, Dostoevsky, '1984', Kawabata… oh, he also had the 'Count of Monte Cristo' there. Nice. There were also a few Chinese books with undecipherable titles.
One title stood out as anomalous: "Os Maias". Unlike the other non-Chinese foreign volumes on this shelf, this book did not appear to be a translated English or Japanese edition.
Curious, Sasuke plucked the book from the shelf and ran his hand across the textured surface. Flipping through the pages, he attempted to guess the language. Looked like it was in Spanish. Or maybe Latin. Or Italian? He couldn't tell. These European languages looked the same to him.
How many languages could Itachi read?
Suddenly, the entrance door swung open, startling Sasuke and sending the hard-covered book tumbling to the floor with an audible thud.
"Crap," Sasuke muttered, hastily retrieving the book and returning it to its original spot. "Sorry. I didn't break it," he reassured Itachi, who stood at the door with a curious expression.
"Apologies for startling you," Itachi replied with a smile, deftly closing the door behind him with one hand while the other balanced his jacket, suitcase, and a shopping bag. As he dropped his belongings on a nearby chair, he sniffed, his nose catching a whiff of something. "It smells wonderful here. Did you order something for dinner?"
"No. I cooked."
Itachi raised an eyebrow. "You cooked?"
"Yeah," Sasuke replied, and started making his way toward the kitchen. "And I stashed the food in your fridge. Hope you're a fan of tomatoes," he quipped.
Itachi followed him, growing more confused. "What food?"
Sasuke sighed. Yep, Itachi did misunderstand him over the phone. He probably thought he was just making up the food story as an excuse to come over.
He opened the fridge, revealing an inside full of fresh ingredients and assorted nutritional goods. "Remember what I told you on the phone? With our electricity situation? We're clearing out the fridge before everything spoils."
"Oh..." Itachi peered inside, his gaze landing on a shelf overflowing with a sea of red. "Looks like I'm set for tomatoes for the week."
Sasuke nodded with a wry smile. Maybe he shouldn't have brought all the tomatoes. But Kurenai had bought too many of them last week and now they were too ripe to be left out of the fridge under that hot summer weather.
Itachi's brow furrowed slightly, as he finally grasped the whole situation. "Wait, what is the story with the electricity then? Do you not have any power in your home?"
Sasuke waved off the concern with a casual wave of his hand. "Nah, it's all under control. Just a misunderstanding. It'll be sorted by next week."
He chose his words carefully, avoiding getting into details. He didn't want to admit it was due to unpaid bills, and hoped Itachi didn't ask further.
Sasuke was too aware of the vast social and economic gulf that separated them. They hailed from different worlds, after all. He had a feeling Itachi's understanding of financial struggles would be limited by his privileged upbringing. But also, Sasuke had no desire to linger on the glaring contrasts that made them different.
He would rather think, or even just pretend, that they belonged… they were just on the same level, that's all.
"In any case, the food is getting cold," Sasuke interjected, hoping to break the awkward silence and shift the conversation to a different topic.
Itachi's semi-worried expression lingered on his face for a moment longer seemingly studying Sasuke's expression, but thankfully, he didn't press the matter further.
The porcelain container caught his attention.
"Sweet and sour shrimp?" he said, peering inside.
"Yeah. I finished it 40 minutes ago. I thought you'd arrive sooner."
Itachi exhaled regretfully, looking contrite. "Please accept my deepest apologies. A troublesome client delayed me at the last moment." His long, nimble fingers ran through his hair as he loosened to knot of his tie and undid the collar of his shirt. "Nonetheless, I am quite famished, and I love sweet and sour dishes. And this one you made smells delicious," he commented, giving a kind smile.
Sasuke shrugged. "It's just a typical recipe, nothing extraordinary," he said, trying to sound casual.
Suddenly, he found himself enveloped in an embrace, as Itachi's arms wrapped around his waist and his cool lips pressed against his neck. Sasuke gasped, surprised by the sudden intimacy. He felt Itachi's hard chest pressed against his and the pleasant odor of faint green cedar fragrance mixed with Itachi's unique scent intoxicated his senses. Itachi's lips moved up to his ear, his breath hot against Sasuke's skin, and he murmured, "I've missed you."
Sasuke's heart skipped a beat and he felt a warm blush spreading across his cheeks. He too, had missed him, even if they had only been apart for less than a day. But his shyness prevented him from admitting it. Itachi, on the other hand, expressed it as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
He closed his eyes and let himself melt into the kiss, opening his mouth to let their tongues connect. Itachi's hands slid up his back, pulling him closer, and for a moment he felt the world around him fading away.
There was something surreal about this moment. Itachi's intimate touch felt simultaneously familiar and foreign, as if they had danced this dance a thousand times in alternate dimensions but this was the first time they were living it in this reality. Whereas yesterday they were kissing as a manifestation of their frustrations and arousals, now, they were kissing like it was just a normal, mundane thing. Sasuke wondered, when did they start behaving like a couple?
"Before I forget," Itachi said, pulling away from the kiss. Sasuke was disappointed. He didn't didn't want to break their connection.
He watched Itachi reaching into his pocket and producing a spare key on his palm.
"You're welcome to grace my home and my kitchen with your culinary prowess, anytime you desire," he smiled.
Sasuke blinked. He wasn't sure what to make of Itachi's gift. Isn't a key to one's apartment the next step in a romantic relationship?
He didn't know, he never had anyone give him the spare key to their house before. Ok, that was not entirely true – once Karin did give him her apartment's key but he rejected it, for reasons not needed to be explained. But save from Karin, his relationships so far have been mostly with people still living with their parents. In this economy, it's not easy to move out of your house once you're 18.
Was Itachi asking him to move in?
They barely started this… whatever this relationship was. Things seemed to be moving so fast. Just yesterday, they went from a violent argument to intense hot sex. They were still in the process of getting to know each other and Sasuke didn't want to jeopardize the delicate balance they had found. A part of him feared that Itachi would grow tired of him if he kept inviting himself over. Like the more time they spent together, the more Itachi would see his flaws and maybe rethink about this whole situation.
"Are you sure?" he asked, his fingers hovering over the key hesitantly before finally picking it up.
Maybe he was overthinking.
Maybe Itachi just wanted someone to come to his apartment and cook for him.
"The doorman is not always around to open you the door," Itachi explained. And, as if deflecting on purpose whatever possible implications that came attached to his offer, he turned around and picked up the porcelain container. "Anyway, shall we eat?"
Snapping out of his thoughts, Sasuke shoved the key into his pocket and followed Itachi, carrying the rice and soybean salad to the table. Itachi retrieved a wine bottle from the counter and poured the liquid into their glasses.
They both settled on the table, raised their glasses in a silent toast, and started eating.
Itachi complimented his cooking with exaggerated praise, which Sasuke brushed off with a casual remark about being just simply a normal home-cooked meal. Inwardly, he was deeply enjoying watching Itachi taking mouthfuls of sticky sauced shrimp and vegetables in unrestrained enthusiasm and savoring each bite so honestly as if he had just emerged from a prolonged hunger strike and that meal was all he wanted to eat for the next decade. It reminded him of moments when Asuma would go the extra mile in the kitchen, and at the table, he would observe Kurenai and Sasuke with eager anticipation for their reactions, much like Sasuke was doing now with Itachi.
"So, who was the client that kept you so late?" Sasuke had asked after a while, trying to steer the conversation into an interesting topic.
Itachi had just finished polishing off his plate and was reaching for a second serving. "Just a last-minute request from a demanding client. I turned it down, but he proved quite persistent." His brow furrowed slightly. "I must apologize once more for keeping you waiting."
Sasuke waved it off with a dismissive gesture, swirling his wine before taking another sip. "No worries. I found some entertainment in your bookshelf," he remarked casually, letting a small smile play on his lips.
"I see that you've delved into my collection," Itachi responded with a mischievous glint in his eye.
"Yeah. You have to tell me how your book arrangement works. Finding a book in your bookshelf feels like going on a treasure hunt without a map."
Itachi released a hearty laugh, the rich sound of his voice filling the room like a warm melody. "I've heard similar sentiments before," he acknowledged with a grin, his eyes sparkling with self-awareness. "Somehow, I always manage to locate what I need, but I'll admit my organizational skills leave much to be desired."
Sasuke chuckled, and he couldn't resist asking the question he was most curious about, "How many languages can you read, by the way?"
Itachi took a moment to thoroughly chew and swallow his last bite of food before responding. "Well, in university, I did study Latin," Itachi said. "I presume the book you knocked over when I arrived prompted this inquiry regarding my language skills?" A faint twitch of his lips hinted at his amusement.
"So, that book is in Latin?"
Itachi brought his glass of wine to his lips. "No, actually. It's in Portuguese. I had purchased it thinking my knowledge of Latin would be enough to understand the basic story. Unfortunately, I was wrong," he admitted ruefully. "I had to resort to the translation."
"Yeah, I hear you. My teacher says I'm pretty good with kanji, so I sometimes think I can read Chinese," Sasuke joked.
Itachi laughed again. There was something wholesome about hearing Itachi laugh at his silly jokes, and maybe that was the wine's influence, but Sasuke found himself relishing the moment.
"I admit, it was rather foolish of me to assume all these Romance languages are interchangeable. But regardless, the cover is lovely, and it sits well on my bookshelf. Plus, the story, even in its translated form, turned out to be quite interesting."
Sasuke raised a curious eyebrow. "What is it about then?"
"It's a romance, but also a critique of 19th-century society," Itachi explained. "The story revolves around the Maia family, particularly Carlos Maia, a young doctor. Carlos becomes entangled in a tragic love affair with a woman named Maria… Edouard, I believe? Sorry, I am forgetting the names. Their relationship is complicated by various social conventions, culminating in a heartbreaking conclusion."
"A heartbreaking conclusion? What, she dies?"
Itachi shook his head. "Not exactly. The heartbreaking twist comes when a long-hidden family secret is unveiled," he explained, pausing to take another sip of wine. "There's a pivotal moment in the story when a mysterious box is opened, and a shocking truth is revealed. Carlos and Maria, the two tragic lovers, are actually siblings separated at birth. Neither of them had any idea, but once the secret is revealed, their entire relationship comes crashing down."
Sasuke's eyes widened in subdued surprise as he reached for the wine bottle, pouring its contents into his glass. "Well, that is some twist," he remarked, swirling the wine thoughtfully. "Though, I'm surprised at your dedicated efforts in trying to read a tragic incest romance in another language."
Itachi chuckled. "A cousin of mine recommended it, and I certainly didn't anticipate the story would unravel in such a manner. Yet, it is thought-provoking. Not so much the element of incest itself, but rather the notion that one's perception of realit frequently clashes with the illusions individuals uphold about their own communities."
Sasuke regarded him with an inquisitive look. "What do you mean?"
Itachi paused, his eyes fixed on the chopsticks he held as he took another sip of wine. Then he continued:
"Consider this," he began. "Reality is nothing but a canvas upon which we not only portray our own perspectives but also those of others. Truth, as we perceive it, is filtered through the collective experiences, ancestral biases, and societal morals that shape our existence. Thus, our reality becomes an intricate illusion crafted from the perceptions of others. In this tale, Carlos, the protagonist, whose life was molded by his family's illusion of honor, discovers happiness in the immoral embrace of his own sister... Had the mystery remained sealed, and had they remained blissfully unaware of their shared blood, their love could have continued undisturbed by the complicated illusion of societal values created by community around them. And perhaps that is how it should have been."
"You don't think they shouldn't know they were siblings?" Sasuke asked, a brow arched in surprise.
Itachi's expression remained impassive as he pressed his point. "There's a reason we say 'ignorance is bliss,'" he said. "Often, those who know less seem happier. It's as if the pursuit of knowledge, of truth, burdens us with the layers of illusion others have built around us. Without those fabricated morals, we're free to live a reality that brings us happiness and fulfillment."
A brief silence enveloped them as Sasuke absorbed Itachi's words. It was indeed true that people could live their entire lives unaware of fundamental truths about themselves and about their family. Siblings, theoretically, could fall in love with each other without ever knowing they were siblings. Heck, he wouldn't be surprised if that had happened in reality, somewhere in the world.
But it was quite a troubling thought, wasn't it? Itachi seemed so nonchalant about the whole thing, talking about like it was just another plot twist in a book, like there was no big deal about it.
It brought to his memory the Korean movie The Oldboy, where the protagonist unknowingly falls in love with his own daughter. The ending, where he chooses to erase his memory to continue his controversial relationship in blissful ignorance, never sat right with Sasuke.
He even had an argument about it with Sakura, who was of the opinion that was the only right ending. Sasuke had argued, if you need to erase your memories just to be happy in a relationship, then maybe that relationship is wrong from the start and should never be pursued in the first place.
Like, why go through the trouble of concealing something you don't feel good about? Just don't do it, period.
And then, Sakura brought up his cheating and his concealing of his secret affairs, and he replied that was out of topic, and the discussion of the movie ended there on a sour note.
"But Itachi, do you really think happiness built on ignorance is sustainable?" Sasuke countered. "Even the happiness of your book characters seems like a fragile illusion about to shatter at any moment. They would find out the truth eventually, they would have to stop living in a lie."
"Ah, but is truth not a mere construct, Sasuke?" Itachi mused, his gaze drifting toward the window where the city lights flickered in the distance. "What we deem as 'truth' always arrives with subjective frameworks and arbitrary judgments, fabricated by culture and civilization to maintain order and control. We are all captives of our own perceptions, bound by the illusions we opt to accept."
Itachi's voice had taken on an unusual, tenebrous tone. Sasuke watched his slender finger tracing the rim of the wine glass, Itachi's eyes distant and lost in his ruminations.
"Is there really any difference between living in a lie and living in truth, other than the pointless suffering it brings?"
"Of course there is a difference!" Sasuke interjected.
"Oh..." Itachi smirked and glanced back at Sasuke, his long fingers curling around the glass and bringing it back to his lips for another sip. "What is that difference then?"
Sasuke leaned back in his chair, his mind churning. He grasped Itachi's point, but struggled to articulate his dissent. Itachi was attempting to engage him in a far-too-complex argument, shooting at him existentialist brainfarts to which Sasuke lacked the vocabulary or the literary knowledge to respond. He didn't know what the end goal of that discussion was. Or if there was any end goal. Itachi did seem like the kind of person who just enjoyed having random conversations about out-the-blue philosophical topics that went nowhere.
And normally, Sasuke wouldn't mind indulging him, but this time, he found himself growing increasingly uncomfortable. This particular topic hit too close to home for him, and the thought of possibly living his entire life without ever knowing the truth about his real parents left a knot in his stomach.
"You cannot alter the truth," Sasuke said. He took a pause to drink some more wine and gather the sentences forming in his brain, before he continued. "You can manipulate a lie, but the truth remains, whether you like it or not. We require oxygen to breathe, families share bloodlines, these are truths. People may construct illusions to make their lives better, but they do not alter reality," he paused again to sip more wine, buying a moment to organize the jumble of thoughts swirling in his mind. "And while society- societal morals may influence our perception of truth, I also think they serve to get us grounded… I mean, the dogmas we accept as truth, they exist for a reason. They anchor us to a shared reality."
His words felt clumsy on his tongue, as he tried his best to articulate his answer as eloquently as possible.
"I don't disagree with you," Itachi replied. "But when our perception of truth is already colored by subjective morality, I can't help but wonder if our relentless pursuit of truth blinds us to the beauty of ambiguity. Is there truly any need to be anchored to a shared reality, when that reality only brings us pain and distress? Ultimately, in our universal quest for happiness, does the revelation of truth in circumstances such as these serve any noble purpose? Might it not be more prudent to preserve the illusion, to keep the mystery box securely sealed, shielding the two lovers from the harsh judgment of a society that deems their love as taboo?"
"I… I just think they should know the truth. And if it sucks too much… get therapy or something. But the truth is what gives people power."
Itachi, taken aback by his response, raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "Power, huh?"
For some reason, the plot of Oldboy and the day he watched that movie with Sakura kept regurgitating back to his mind. Indeed, the detail that had truly bothered him wasn't even the erasing of the memories part. It was that the fact that the main character's daughter was never informed of their incestuous relationship in the first place. Only the father knew the truth and subsequently chose to erase it from his memory just to continue their illicit romance in blissful ignorance.
But she never had the chance to know. Just when the pivotal moment approached and she was about to find out, the father mutilated himself in a desperate bid to shield her from the truth.
It was written as an act of love, a sacrifice made in the name of protecting his loved one from the trauma of the truth. But Sasuke felt that wasn't quite fair. The father was the one making all the decisions for the relationship; the daughter didn't even have a say in the matter, because she was kept in ignorance on purpose.
He held all the power to choose the lie he wanted to live, because he knew the truth. She was just trapped in a lie.
And there lies the paradox. You never know if the illusion you live in was really of your choosing. Because if the person next to you knows more about you than you do, they can control the narrative of your story. And that thought was frightening.
He knew that as much, after living with Orochimaru.
"When you don't know anything, you don't really have any autonomy in the decisions you make in life," he responded in a somber voice, letting his gaze drop to his empty dish.
Itachi continued to stare at him, prompting him to elaborate.
"The truth may not bring happiness," Sasuke conceded, meeting Itachi's eyes "but it equips you to handle harsh realities when they come knocking. People always learn the truth eventually; lies can't be sustained forever. It didn't take me long to find out you lost the Orochimaru trial on purpose, and I wish you'd told me sooner."
There was a moment of silence between them. Itachi's expression turned solemn, in face of a subject that they had yet to be fully addressed.
In the end, Itachi dispersed the tension with a sigh. "So, if you were in Carlos or Maria's position… would you prefer to know the truth then? Would such knowledge not provoke a visceral response, potentially jeopardizing your quest for happiness?"
"I don't know how I would react, but that is not the point," Sasuke replied sharply, and almost immediately felt the need to adjust his tone. "People are different. They chose to let it affect them, but they could've also chosen to rebel against the system if they really wanted to be together. The point is, they have the right to know. They can't have a choice in the matter if they don't know what is going on. That is how societies change. It's not by living trapped in a perpetual illusion that you are going to change the system."
"I see…"
Itachi's face stayed inscrutable, but Sasuke felt that his response had taken him by surprise. The space between them lapsed into quiet once more and Sasuke pondered briefly how such an innocuous discussion about a stupid European novel had turned the atmosphere so solemn.
Exhaling, Sasuke got to his feet and started collecting their plates.
"Maybe next time, I'll just ask why a posh boy like you has so much communist propaganda on his bookshelf," he joked, aiming to lighten the mood.
Itachi immediately rose and halted Sasuke with a hand as if on cue. "No, allow me. You did the cooking, so I will handle the dishes."
Sasuke frowned. "You have a dishwasher. I saw it."
A smile of amusement flitted across Itachi's features as he let out a light chuckle. "Allow me to contribute by placing the dishes in the dishwasher," he responded, adjusting to Sasuke's statement. "Besides, I'm surprised to hear a punk kid like you complaining about communist propaganda. Have you truly paid attention to the lyrics of the music you listen?"
"Anarchy is different than communism," Sasuke retorted, allowing Itachi to collect all the tableware.
"Only in the smaller details," Itachi countered, neatly stacking the dishes.
Sasuke snickered as he poured the remaining wine from the bottle into his glass, surprised to find the bottle was nearly empty already. At the very least, Itachi no longer wore that somber expression and appeared to have returned to his usual demeanor.
He sauntered over to the living room and plopped down on the sofa, wine glass in hand, while Itachi diligently cleared the table. His curious eyes drifted to the shopping bag that Itachi had brought in earlier. After taking a sip, he placed his glass on the coffee table and leaned over the bag to peek inside.
"You bought the new iPhone?" Sasuke called out.
"I was in need of a new phone since you rendered mine inoperable," he replied from the kitchen, as he loaded the dishwasher.
"Ok, but an iPhone? So you chose the dark side."
"I wasn't aware my choice of smartphone indicated allegiance to either the light or dark side," Itachi reemerged from the kitchen, rubbing his hands dry with a cloth which he then dropped on the bar counter.
"You had a Samsung Galaxy. This is like an overpriced downgrade," Sasuke said, removing the phone from the box. He probably should've asked permission first, but he had become too comfortable around Itachi to be reminded of proper courtesy, and also, Itachi never said no to him. He noticed the sim card had already been set up, but the phone needed recharging. "Let me guess, you just went with the first pitch without further inquiry."
Itachi's lips twitched into an almost-smile. "Perhaps I'm too obvious." He walked to the TV set to put an extension cord from behind. "The clerk showed me the touchscreen and I was sold."
Sasuke rolled his eyes, as he helped unpack the charger and connect it to the extension cord. "I knew it," he said with a teasing grin. He could easily imagine it, Itachi looking like a clueless rich kid in an electronics shop and the perfect prey for a sales clerk looking to meet the monthly quota with minimal effort.
After they had settled the charging phone on the coffee table, Itachi came and sat on the sofa. Sasuke was suddenly reminded of a very important thing that he kept forgetting, and asked, "Do you have LINE?"
"Yes, I do."
"Cool. I'll add you after it's charged up," Sasuke stated matter-of-factly, as if his decision had already been made and Itachi's opinion was of no consequence.
Itachi, who sat next to Sasuke, did not reply immediately. He seemed to be lost in thought as he stared out into space. Having noticed Sasuke's gaze, he turned his attention back to him and managed a smile, "That would be great." However, his features quickly returned to their pensive state, as if worrying about something.
He didn't know why Itachi was being like that, but it certainly dampened the mood a bit.
Plus, Sasuke was feeling horny and he wanted some action. And Itachi was looking super hot as usual, having now unbuttoned the two upper buttons of his shirt and completely removed the tie. His cheeks were slightly flushed from the wine they drank, and his lips tinged in red, looking simultaneously cute and dangerously seductive.
So he moved closer, his leg brushing against Itachi's, and leaned in to capture his tempting lips. Itachi's eyes fluttered open as he became aware of Sasuke's movements, a soft moan escaping him as his breath hitched. The kiss was cut short, however, when Sasuke's hand brushed against his stomach, causing him to recoil and gently push Sasuke back.
"Wait, Sasuke," he murmured, sounding apprehensive. "There is something I should tell you first."
Sasuke pulled back, bewildered by the unexpected refusal. Inwardly, he wondered if he had done something wrong and felt a tinge of nervousness skulking in.
"What?"
He was trying to decipher the silent throughs that seemingly swirled inside Itachi's head, but his face remained stoic, his expression unreadable.
Itachi hesitated, appearing mulling over his reply. A small furrow emerged on his brow, and his lips pressed together thinly. He looked as if he was thinking hard about something, but his ruminations were made of stone and he struggled to get them out of his head.
"I cannot profess complete certainty, yet I do possess a degree of conviction on the matter..." he said, trailing off momentarily as Sasuke looked on bewildered.
"What are you talking about?"
Itachi's shoulders tensed in an anxious pause before continuing. "I've been withholding something from you that you have the right to know," Itachi uttered. "I have kept it from you for my own selfish reasons, because I fear how you will… respond, when you learn the truth."
Itachi averted his eyes and fixated instead on his iPhone lying on the table, as though incapable of withstanding the weight of Sasuke's probing glare.
A growing unease gripped Sasuke's throat as he questioned in a hushed tone, "What is it, Itachi?"
But just as Itachi was about to say something again, the ringing of Sasuke's phone abruptly punctured the tense atmosphere like a needle popping a balloon, startling them both.
Shit, Sasuke grunted. He forgot to put it on silence mode.
He swiftly retrieved it and glanced at the caller ID, ready to curse whoever was calling him for their awful timing, but was surprised to recognize his home number. Asuma and Kurenai only ever called him in emergencies or if Sasuke had been away for multiple days without prior notice. Why would they be calling now, of all times?
Sasuke declined the call, pushing aside the nagging thoughts that had now begun to take root as he refocused on Itachi.
Itachi regarded Sasuke with an inquisitive look, but didn't say anything.
Annoyed by the suspense, Sasuke blurted out, "What do you need to say, Itachi? Are you secretly married to someone or something?"
His mind was already racing trying to think guess Itachi's secret revelation, and this was his best guess so far.
Itachi shook his head. "What? No. I'm not married," he said. He stood silent again to collect his thoughts, but just when he was about to continue, Sasuke's phone started ringing again.
With a grunt, Sasuke retrieved the phone and muttering an "Hold on," he turned away from Itachi and took the call.
It was better to deal with this call now and swiftly, so he could give his full attention back to Itachi's whatever-little-secret he had to say with no more interruptions.
"Sasuke? Where are you?" he heard Kurenai asking from the other side of the line.
"I'm," he hesitated, thinking about his words. "…at a friend's house."
"I need you to come home now."
"Why? Did something happen?"
There was a strangely long silence hanging on her end.
"There is someone here who wants to speak with you," she finally said.
"At this hour? Who?"
"You better come now. It's about your family," she paused again, before continuing: "Your biological family."
Sasuke's heart sank.
What… what did she just say? His biological family?
What the fuck is going on?
"Who is it?" Sasuke demanded, his body jerking upright from the sofa. Itachi, who had begun tapping absentmindedly through his new phone, paused and eyed Sasuke with a puzzled expression.
"You'll find out when you get here. Just come here now," Kurenai replied cryptically, and she hung up the phone.
He stared at the phone in a mix of confusion and anxiety. His mind was still reeling, still trying to comprehend the sentence she had just uttered, as her words continued to reverberate against his chest.
"Is everything alright?" Itachi's eyes widened in surprise, looking at Sasuke with confusion and a hint of concern.
"I don't know," he mumbled. "I have to go home, sorry."
Hurriedly, Sasuke began gathering his belongings while his mind replayed Kurenai's cryptic words. It was mostly the way she said it. She sounded too serious. And a bit nervous too.
Itachi stood up and grabbed Sasuke's arm, halting his rushed movements.
"Wait, Sasuke," he hushed, concern evident in his voice. "It's raining heavily outside, and you've had some wine. I can't let you go like this."
Sasuke gently pulled his arm out of Itachi's grip. "It's fine, I'm not drunk," Sasuke replied.
"At least let me call you a taxi," Itachi said, already reaching for his half-charged new phone to make the call.
Sasuke tried to protest, but Itachi was already on the phone, arranging for a taxi. He really didn't want to waste money on a taxi ride, but he also didn't want to argue about it and knew it was pointless.
"They will send a taxi in 3 minutes," Itachi replied, finishing the call and placing the phone back on the table.
Sasuke couldn't disguise the look of surprise on his face. Three minutes? That was incredibly quick service. The last time Sasuke had called for a taxi himself, it had taken a full fifteen minutes before the car finally arrived. He wondered if Itachi had some special arrangement with this taxi company to provide such prompt pickups.
"I guess I'll have to swing by tomorrow to get my bike," Sasuke said, feeling somewhat regretful that he was leaving Itachi's place so abruptly.
Itachi had something important he wanted to say, something that was gnawing at him, and yet Sasuke was not staying to listen to it.
For a moment, he pondered if he should stay and be with him, instead of going home. He could just… ignore Kurenai and stay.
… Should he?
"We can talk about it tomorrow," Itachi said as if hearing his thoughts, and offered a reassuring smile.
Sasuke nodded, feeling a small sense of relief, but still frustrated with how the situation turned out.
"At least tell me it's not bad. You're not sick, right? It's not about some terminal disease right?" Sasuke implored, unable to disguise his worries seeping into his tone.
With a soft shake of his head, Itachi dispelled his concerns. "It's nothing like that. My health is fine."
"Is it something that will affect our relationship?"
Itachi's brow furrowed ever so slightly. "Depends on how you look at it."
Sasuke sighed, frustration mounting. That was not a good answer. And if Itachi couldn't easily divulge what the heck he wanted to say, then he could only guess it was something that will affect their relationship, and that didn't ease his growing anxiety.
And then there was the unsettling mystery at home. The way Kurenai had spoken to him had sent shivers down his spine. Like, something was wrong. He could feel it, and he was even a bit scared of going back home and finding out.
What if it all became too much for him to handle? What if he needed Itachi's support, but Itachi had his own burdens and secrets to contend with? He couldn't shake the nagging feeling that their relationship might change irreparably if he went home now instead of staying.
In an instant, Sasuke was engulfed by a feeling of suffocating trepidation, as if an invisible hand had clenched around his chest, and the world was moving away from his feet.
Oh… shit. He took a deep breath. His anxiety was now getting the best of him.
"Sasuke," Itachi's soft, melodic voice broke through his racing thoughts.
Sasuke turned to look at him, finding Itachi adorned with the gentlest expression he had ever witnessed as if he had just deciphered Sasuke's inner turmoil and sought to offer solace amidst the chaos.
"Whatever happens..." his voice trailed off into a near-whisper. "I will always be here for you. You have my key."
Sasuke's hand clutched the key inside his pocket, feeling the cold metal of the key grounding him. And for a moment, he felt his anxiety calming down a bit. Somehow, the future felt less daunting knowing he did not have to face it alone.
As if, no matter what, everything was going to be alright.
The doorbell rang.
"It seems the taxi has arrived," Itachi noted.
Sasuke nodded and smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow then."
He wanted to kiss him – just a small, goodbye kiss – but Itachi was still a bit too far away from him, and there was still this strange distance imposed between them.
So he just grabbed his jacket and exited his apartment, as he rushed to the taxi waiting for him downstairs.
:: ::
It had started raining intensively outside, and a looming storm was waiting around the corner.
As the taxi pulled over in front of his house, Sasuke reached for his wallet to pay, but the taxi driver refused it.
"The ride has been prepaid, sir," the driver informed him.
Sasuke felt a twinge of annoyance at Itachi's preemptive gesture, but also, somewhat, a bit glad for his stubborn thoughtfulness.
As he fast-walked towards the entrance, using his jacket to shield him from the now aggressive rain, he noticed a long-wheelbase black BMW parked right in front, which he had never seen before in that area. Right next to the car, standing outside, a black-suited man was standing still with an umbrella, looking as if waiting for someone.
Paying no mind to him, and with his heart now beating furiously, he reached the entrance and pushed the door open, only to be met with darkness save from some faint candlestick light creeping out of the living room. Instinctively he flicked the light switch but soon remembered that they had no electricity.
In the blurry glow, he walked towards the living room and the first thing he saw was Kurenai sitting on their living room couch, her face illuminated by the wavering candles that had been lit on top of furniture surfaces, and looking uncomfortably stiff. A puzzled Konohamaru was sitting next to her. Asuma stood erect at the edge of the couch, his stance rigid and defensive as if he had just emerged from a heated argument with an unknown foe.
Then a fourth person came into his view.
Uchiha Fugaku was there.
"Sasuke, this man came to talk to you!" Konohamaru exclaimed, just in case Sasuke needed an intro.
Fugaku was standing in the middle of his living room like a shadowy sentinel, his features partially obscured by darkness. Outside, the rain pounded against the windows with relentless fury.
Sasuke felt a shiver running down his spine. He was dripping wet from the rain, and his home felt so unusually cold, and so dark.
"What's going on?" he asked anxiously.
Sasuke locked eyes with Fugaku, who returned his gaze with an equal mix of intensity and suspicion. From the corner of his eye, he caught Kurenai nervously biting her lip and Asuma letting out a bushed sigh.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Sasuke," Fugaku's voice sliced through the tense atmosphere like a cold, serrated blade, sending a chill creeping through the room. "You may not remember, but we've crossed paths before. My name is Fug-"
"I know who you are," Sasuke interrupted him sharply. "What's going on? Why are you here?"
Perhaps, had this happened at an earlier time, many days and months ago, Sasuke would have wisely controlled himself before being so rude to Uchiha Fugaku. But his perspective had changed since the Orochimaru trial, and even more after Asuma started working for him. More than anything, he was just tired of being surprised by secrets.
Now, the only thing he cared about was getting a straight answer. Why was Uchiha Fugaku there, at that late hour of the night, in their home, looking like a harbinger of bad news?
Sasuke's suspicious gaze briefly shifted to Asuma, who now looked away with a scowl. Sasuke recognized that expression. Asuma wore it when he disagreed with something but couldn't find the words to voice his opinion, so he swallowed his thoughts and scowled at a nearby wall.
"Very well then," Fugaku replied, his tone still sharp and chilly. "There is no easy way of saying this, so I will go straight to the point." He stepped closer but halted as he saw Sasuke stepping back with apprehension.
Sighing, Fugaku continued, "Sasuke," pausing for effect before adding, "I am your father."
Sasuke's eyes widened in disbelief.
A sudden burst of lightning tore through the room, casting a blinding flash that harshly brightened the faces of those present. Soon after the room was plunged back into the thick, dim-lit darkness and a suffocating silence.
But before the silence could stretch into eternity, Konohamaru, unable to read a room as usual, began humming the Imperial March with cheerful abandon.
Kurenai jerked and elbowed him to stop, and he just responded with a glare that read 'what?', and he shut up, reluctantly.
"Is this a joke?" Sasuke finally uttered, his mind struggling to process the revelation.
His gaze flickered frenetically between the Fugaku and Asuma, as he desperately sought some sort of confirmation that that was all a bad joke, or an awful misunderstanding, and that life would return to normalcy on short notice.
Fugaku's stern expression was resolute, and Asuma continued looking away, a scowl on his face, evading Sasuke's stare, refusing to speak.
"It's not a one-hundred percent confirmation yet, but everything else indicates as much," Fugaku said. "You are an Uchiha, Sasuke. You have a family with a proud history, and you don't belong here."
"Now hold on," Asuma interjected, finally snapping out of his glaring contest with the wall. "We ARE his family. This is not the correct way or manner to drop a bombshell like this and we can't have you-"
"You call this, a family?" Fugaku's judging eyes swept around the room, silently highlighting the obvious deficiencies in the electrical department. "You can't even provide him with basic necessities. I know you have received money from the government to foster him; one has to wonder what on earth you did with it." His words dripped with spite. "Spare your words, Asuma. I am taking my son with me, and the decision is final."
"Oh, isn't that rich," Kurenai interjected, her tone cutting through the tension like a knife. Surprising even Fugaku, she chose this moment to break her silence. "Where were you or your wife this whole time?"
While Kurenai and Fugaku and Asuma continued to intense arguing in the background, Sasuke felt as though the ground had been pulled out from under him. His mind had hit the pause button after the "I am your father" revelation, and he was stuck in a mental loop while the same phrase repeated over and over in his head.
He wanted to vehemently contest the Uchiha's words, but his vocal cords felt as if they had been squeezed like a tight rope, and he was unable to produce any sound. A vast, dark gulf of hidden secrets and shocking revelations had opened before him, and he was just standing on the precipice, unsure of whether to take the leap or cling desperately to the familiarity of the life he had always known and accepted.
If what Fugaku was saying was true, then that meant Itachi was…
Itachi was his brother.
'It's not a one-hundred percent confirmation'… these were almost word-for-word, what Itachi had tried to tell him just before he left him.
Had Itachi been trying to tell him that they were brothers?
No. That can't be.
There was no way they were biological brothers.
All those feelings he felt for Itachi, all those moments they spent together, the rapturous sensation of bliss when they had sex, the dream of a future together with him…No. no. no.
That can't be. That's impossible.
"This bickering is pointless," Fugaku bellowed, attempting to quell the ongoing arguments. Redirecting his focus to Sasuke, he reached out his hand and urged, "Sasuke, come with me."
Sasuke didn't even have time to react before Konohmaru found yet another moment to remind everyone that he was still in the room, and his mind was totally in a different galaxy:
"Join me and together we shall rule the universe as..." He attempted his best Darth Vader impression of Fugaku, but late puberty still held a betraying grip on his vocal cords, so he ended up squeaking the last part: "… father and son!"
"Konohamaru!" Kurenai shot back reactively, her glare at Asuma signaling a 'Get him out, throw him out of the window if you must' silent request.
"Konohamaru, go to your room!" Asuma commanded his nephew.
Konohamaru protested, but Asuma repeated his order and he reluctantly complied, begrudgingly exiting the living room with a dissatisfied grunt.
Sighing heavily, Fugaku resumed his offer to Sasuke with a somber tone. "I understand that this is a lot to take in," he began, his voice carrying the weight of the moment. "But the evidence is undeniable. I am now offering you a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn the truth about your heritage and forge a new future for yourself as a Uchiha heir. This is a destiny that many could only dream of."
His words hung in the air, the gravity of the moment pressing down on Sasuke like a heavy burden.
In the back of his mind, he recalled Fugaku's earlier words about Asuma and Kurenai taking money from the government as a foster family. He hadn't known that. They were always poor, always in dire need of money.
How much money were they taking just to take care of him? Why didn't he know about that?
How many more secrets people were keeping away from him?
He looked at Fugaku's extended hand. He looked at Asuma's scowling face, who immediately said: "Sasuke you don't need to make any decision right now."
He looked at Kurenai, who was just standing still, not knowing what to say.
He felt like he was being forced to choose between the blue pill or the red pill, except, he didn't know which one was which at that moment, and he forgot how the Matrix ended.
"You said… not one hundred percent confirmed?" Sasuke finally said. "Does it mean you're not sure?"
"With your consent, I would like us to take a paternity test now and put all these doubts to rest," Fugaku replied.
"A test, at this hour?" Asuma shouted. "This is crazy, please just leave, we'll talk about this more calmly tomorrow or-"
"My driver outside shall take us to a certified lab that is ready to conduct the test on my urgent request," Fugaku said.
Sasuke weighed his options. Fugaku was unwavering in his belief that they were biological father and son, and Sasuke was still trying to cling on the hope that this was all a big joke.
Asuma, unsure of what to do, just kept trying shoosh Fugaku away.
But he was not going to go away, and someone needed to make a decision.
So, with a determined expression, Sasuke squared his shoulders and met Fugaku's gaze squarely.
"Fine," he said resolutely. "Let's sort this out."
::
::