Gaara shuffled in the seat next to Sasuke, the heavy tome of the book he was holding was jutting out at an awkward angle which kept pushing on dark haired man's pile of papers. He frowned at Gaara who looked at him superciliously over whatever the edition of Homer and the Odyssey he was currently clutching.
"Don't look at me like that," Gaara said authoritatively, lazily turning a page with his thumb. "No one is making you fill that application out."
Sasuke grumbled to himself, moving his pen down the page of this extremely tedious document. That wasn't quite true, sure no one was physically holding a gun to his head but Madara had proposed Sasuke apply for an internship at his company. And when Madara spoke others jumped.
"I thought you weren't interested in financial Law." Gaara said, putting the book down on the table with a heavy 'thwump' his bottle green eyes studying Sasuke's face and then the form before him disapprovingly.
"It's not my favourite." Sasuke quietly as if somehow lowering his voice made the scenario more tolerable.
"Not your favourite?" Gaara snorted, "You told me a few months ago you couldn't stand your financial modules."
"Yes…well."
"Yes well, what?" Gaara looked at Sasuke as if he had failed to answer a particularly crucial interview question. There was a frankness in his pale features and unearthly lime green eyes which made his gaze difficult to evade.
"Madara was pretty insistent I apply."
"Oh." Gaara made a small snappy noise and disgruntledly picked up his book again. "Him."
"Well I can't exactly say no, can I?" Sasuke snapped, flipping one of the documents over and giving his red headed friend a nasty glare.
Gaara very sarcastically made an exasperated motion at the ceiling. "That's exactly what you can do, you moron."
Sasuke scowled at him, no one ever told Madara no. In truth Sasuke was not being forced to apply for an internship but the unspoken action of him complying was there. Madara had come over specifically to discuss this with Itachi (and he supposed himself).
But Sasuke had no interest in financial law, not that he supposed that mattered and neither had he voiced that to Itachi when his brother had turned around and asked Sasuke if he thought applying to Madara's company was a good idea.
It was on paper a very wise plan, but Sasuke could almost feel his skin crawl at the idea of spending any more time than was strictly necessary under the presence of Madara. Who had of course taken the time to remind him that this is what his parents would have wanted, had they still been around. If it weren't for him of course.
Gaara was still looking at him like a lime carved statue.
"What do you want me to do?" Sasuke hissed back.
Gaara looked back at the pages of his book and then back to Sasuke again, "Oh I don't know, grow a pair and tell him to fuck off?"
There was a nasty curl to the red-head's lips as he said this, Gaara despised Madara having only met him a handful of times and mostly going from what small snippets that Sasuke had let slip out about his past.
Sasuke snorted, "I like my head attached to my shoulders."
Gaara rolled his eyes, "Then tell him please and thank you, but you're not interested. You're on a First for Christ's sake. There are plenty of other places you could apply to."
Sasuke frowned, his pen poised above yet another dull paragraph he had to fill out. Should he do that?
Madara lost nothing by Sasuke not applying for an internship but perhaps it was a matter of family pride. He chewed the inside of his lip in agitation, not knowing what to do.
To his right his phone buzzed, some students across the row from them shot Sasuke a scandalized look and the dark-haired man resisted the temptation to stick his middle finger up at them.
He glanced down at the screen very aware of the fact Gaara was still staring intently at him.
It was Naruto.
Hey, see u tonight?
Sasuke fought down a grin which was threatening to spread across his face, he purposefully turned the phone screen down so Gaara could not read the text message. Not that that mattered, his friend had seemed to have guessed what was up and had raised his forehead.
Sasuke scribbled a few more lines on a piece of paper, carefully avoiding Gaara's gaze. It was like being locked in a staring contest with an oil on canvas, the red-head seemed to be able to suspend all outward animation at the slightest drop of a hat.
There was a moment's pause and Gaara said, his voice betraying no emotion: "Well, aren't you going to answer that?"
Sasuke had to hold himself back from lunging across the desk and throttling Gaara with his bookmark but instead he ran his tongue across his teeth and settled for pretending to be interested in the dreary application form.
His phone buzzed again.
Sasuke dived at it before Gaara could reach it, snatching the mobile out from under the red head's pale fingers. Several people glanced their way and Sasuke fought down the flush that was creeping up into his cheeks as his friend surveyed him coolly.
I hope u've not forgotten after you made me ask you so nicely
A very vivid memory of Naruto talking in low throaty tones into his ear shot through Sasuke's mind, a fresh ripple of goose bumps flew down his arms at the recollection of it.
Who is this?
This was very bold Sasuke thought, clicking send before his mind had fully processed what he was doing.
….
Sasuke pretended to be interested in turning the page of his document, strategically positioning a pile of papers in front of his phone to restrict Gaara's access to the screen.
….
Maybe that was too bold?
This is Kiba's events and campaign manager, Naruto Uzumaki
Sasuke bit down a smile, putting the tip of his pen near his mouth and pretending to play it cool. His insides felt like grinning, he was acutely aware of the fact that Gaara's lime green bone scanning vision was fixed his way. He cleared his throat and shrugged his shoulders in a poor attempt at looking nonchalant.
Well, Naruto Uzumaki I'm not sure if I've been sufficiently convinced to attend … whatever it is this evening.
Christ this must have been the most drawn out flirting over text he had ever participated in. Whatever happened to good old bog-standard genital pictures when you needed them?
….
….
Gaara had actually put down his book, head resting on his hands to stare at Sasuke; who was going through the motions of not trying to look too pleased with himself.
We are very sorry to hear that our staff did not sufficiently convince you to attend Kiba's Hostile Take Over Plans ™; they will be reprimanded accordingly. How can we make this up to you?
Sasuke's fingers paused over his reply, his application form forgotten on the desk before him.
Isn't that for you to decide?
Gaara cleared his throat but Sasuke ignored him.
….
….
He bit the end of the pen and put the phone down, determinedly not looking his friend in the face as he very slowly began to write down another sentence. Another buzz.
Rest assured it will be brought up in the quarterly review; but it would be easier to convince you further in person this evening.
Sasuke kept his gaze fixed down as he replied, his long-feathered eyelashes perfectly framing his eyes as he did so.
That sounds like an interesting proposition.
Gaara had actually swung back in his chair now, one hand pushing on the desk looking at Sasuke as if he was torn between berating him or laughing at him.
….
….
He should probably be concentrating on this application form.
I'll make it worth your time
Sasuke felt heat rise in his face.
I guess we can put the quarterly review on hold then
What paragraph had he been on again?
….
….
Looking forward to it, c u later
Sasuke put the phone firmly screen down on the table and did his best to avoid Gaara's laser vision.
"What?" He asked in his best imitation of an innocent voice.
"Would you like me to leave you and the phone alone?" Gaara asked sarcastically letting his chair fall back to the floor, but he looked greatly entertained by whatever exchange had just occurred in front of him.
"I don't know what you mean." Sasuke said in his best impersonation of a frosty tone which seemed to be falling flat at the present moment.
"I hear you had him over for dinner." Gaara said, his fingers steepled as he stared unblinkingly at Sasuke, who felt the slightly mad urge to pick up the edition of the Odyssey and beat his friend over the head with it.
Sasuke didn't dignify Gaara's question with an answer; he had completely forgotten what he was supposed to be doing, and his pen to top it all off had run out of ink.
"Well?" Gaara continued looking at him assessingly, the dark-haired man could tell his friend was not about to let this go. He was like a dog to a bone.
"Does nobody have anything else to talk about?" He asked mulishly, trying to retreat behind the pile of papers before him.
"I'll take that as a yes." Gaara said in a self-satisfied tone, earmarking a page in his book.
Sasuke did not reply but leant over to search in his bag for another pen with which to write with.
"Do you like him?" That was a very Gaara question, straight to the point and no-preamble. Sasuke sat bolt upright looking about them conspiratorially as if he thought someone was hanging from the ceiling with a microphone.
Gaara rolled his eyes.
"What do you mean do I like him?" Sasuke hissed, "He's likeable enough."
"Deliberate dodging of the question when asked." Gaara mimed as if writing on an invisible clipboard, "Patient becomes evasive and confrontational when asked to describe his relations with Naruto –"
Sasuke kicked him hard under the table.
"Shh!" It was the girls across the other table shushing them now, looking at the two young men as if they were scandalised by the commotion.
Gaara fixed them with his eerie lime green stare for a long moment before turning his head back to Sasuke; his expression brazen.
"I've got tickets to the Prince Charles Cinema tonight if you want to go."
Sasuke picked up a stack of papers and held them in front of his face so Gaara could not see the light crimson his cheeks had just turned.
"I said …" he began, feeling his tongue twist awkwardly in his mouth as he tried to stammer out the sentence. "I said, I'd go to something this evening."
For a moment a look of what could have been triumph passed across Gaara's face, his mouth was as always impassive and gave no clue as to what he was thinking.
"I'm going to get some more coffee," he said pushing the chair away from the desk with a noisy scrape, shooting a deliberate stare over to the table next to them. "Do you want some?"
"No." Sasuke said without thinking, and then lowering the papers from his face, conceded: "Probably."
Naruto was late back from placement, as a general rule he tried not to do this but a patient in Majors had taken the time to vomit all over the front of his clothes and he had been forced to change into the department's light turquoise scrubs after accepting apologises for the tenth time in a row. It wasn't the worst thing to have happened to him on placement, urine could be an issue in some specialities and he wasn't stranger to being spat on, sadly.
In his haste to get out he had barely remembered to throw on his jacket as he had bolted out of the main doors. He knew this evening meant a lot to Kiba, but he would be lying to say this was the only reason he was keen to get back.
True his best friend had been nagging him about this all week, with a sudden upsurge in comments in the last twenty fours with remarks like: 'You have asked him, haven't you?' and 'Are you sure you've asked him?' and also 'Should I ask him again?'.
He didn't quite know why Kiba was so worked up about this round of student elections, well scratch that, he did know why his friend had become so peculiarly worked up about it. The other main contender looked like it was going to be Neji Hyuuga whom Kiba on principle could not stand on sight.
Neji and Kiba were a bit like stray cats passing each other in an alley, both arching their backs and crab walking sideways whilst yowling at each other. It was always a lot of bark with those two without the bite.
The string of texts he had received from Sasuke earlier that day still hung in his head as he raced down the steps of the hospital, bolting to the tube. Along with the image of Sasuke lying under him, dark pupils blown so his silvered eyes were almost black. The slight hitching of his breath as Naruto had whispered into his ear, that sharp sweet smell of citrus assailing his senses as he had felt Sasuke's pulse race beneath his fingers.
He looked up at the yellow digits on the announcement screens as he ran onto the platform.
Fuck it was a fifteen-minute wait.
He was just going to have to be late.
Kiba had arranged a litany of election handbook samples on the countertop for Sasuke to look at, bribing him the second he got through the door with a drink and hastily ushering him into the kitchen.
Kiba was staring at Sasuke intensely as the dark-haired man gazed somewhat confused at the various different leaflets that were piled up in front of him.
"What do you think?" Kiba said quietly, his wolf tattoo very prominent under the kitchen light. He looked slightly pained as if Sasuke's analysis physically hurt him.
"I um…" Sasuke looked up at Shikamaru who was standing behind Kiba and rolling his eyes.
"I mean…they all have words and pictures on them."
"But my vision," Kiba said slapping the countertop with his hand, "needs to be realised."
"Then get some glasses." Shikamaru said offhandedly, thumbing through a few almost identical pamphlets.
Kiba shot his friend an incredibly dirty look.
"What do you think Sasuke?" The auburn-haired man asked earnestly, "Any that particularly catch your eye? Any winning combination? We should also brainstorm a slogan after this, I was thinking something like BRAWN meets BRAIN or something like that."
Shikamaru blanched behind him.
"Oh no one asked you." Kiba snapped, both elbows on the table now as he leant over Sasuke.
"I think…I think there are other slogans we could consider." Sasuke said diplomatically, catching Shikamaru's eye who walked off into the other room so Kiba couldn't see him laughing.
"Oh, you think?" Kiba looked a little deflated at this but visibly perked up when he heard the front door open.
"Hey," they could hear Naruto from the corridor stopping to take off his shoes. "Sorry I'm late, a little old lady puked on me."
"Why?" Kiba said suspiciously eyeing Naruto in his turquoise scrubs as he ambled into the kitchen. "What did you do to her?"
"Nothing," Naruto retorted back at him raising an eyebrow, "I was just taking her bloods at the wrong moment. I had a shower though, so it's okay, but my stuff needs to be put through an industrial washer."
He turned brightly and saw the dark-haired man sitting at the kitchen counter and grinned.
"Hey Sasuke." He said casually, reaching forwards to touch him lightly on the back.
Sasuke felt his whole body react to the lightest of brushes from the blond's fingertips but tried to pass it off as simply trying to sit up straighter. He hadn't seen Naruto in turquoise before, the loose-fitting square top with its V neckline and short sleeves left little to the imagination. The shade of blue bringing out the brightness in Naruto's eyes and the warmth of his skin tone, as well as accentuating the toned muscle of his upper body. He looked unreasonably good Sasuke thought, and then averted his vision to look back at the campaign leaflets, making a note not to make visual contact with Kiba who was looking at the both of them with narrowed eyes.
Naruto moved to get a drink out of the fridge and shuffled to where they were examining the many different pieces of paper over the kitchen counter. He put his hand on the back of Sasuke's chair and leant over him so Sasuke could smell that strong smell of soap again and feel the heat radiate from his chest. Without looking, he felt more than saw Kiba look directly at where Naruto had placed his hand.
"I like this one." Naruto said, tapping at a pamphlet which was decorated in bright garish colours, similar to the ones adorning the motorcycle helmet he had given Sasuke to wear.
"Yes, well..." Kiba said nippily, picking it up and moving it off the counter a little sulkily. "That was a mistake it shouldn't be in this pile."
"Oh Kib!"
"This one is good." Sasuke said, tapping at one of the papers decorated with yellow and purple.
Kiba titled his head to examine it and said in officious tones, "Yes, that was one of my favourites too."
Naruto pulled a chair up to the kitchen counter. Sasuke noted he was sitting on it back to front again, ignoring Kiba's most displeased expression as he did so.
"So, what have I missed?" He asked taking a long draft of his drink, Sasuke watched the smooth column of his throat for a moment before looking back down at the leaflets again, the tips of his ears feeling hot.
"Don't feel like you have to join in Naruto, it's late." Kiba said pettily, "I wouldn't want to take up more of your precious time."
"We were debating their slogan." Shikamaru said, emerging from the other room and to his credit maintaining a straight face. "BRAWN meets BRAIN."
"Yes, well. We don't have to talk about that now." Kiba said clearing his throat, his face turning a little red as Naruto looked at him as if he had genuinely lost his marbles.
"How about we have a 'Strong Breadth of Experience' or something like that." Sasuke interjected as Naruto opened his mouth. "Then it's not…too … on the nose."
Kiba stroked his chin considering, his septum ring and multiple ear piercings glinting silver in the artificial kitchen down lights.
"That's not a bad shout," the auburn-haired man conceded. "I was also thinking we could go with 'Ruff and Ready' but yours makes more sense. We could tweak it a bit to our needs."
Naruto looked up at his friend politely, one finger placed over his lips as if he was restraining himself from saying what he was thinking. He moved his hand.
"That sounds, really good Kib."
Kiba looked at Naruto and inhaled. He had an expression on his face that indicated he would quite like to smack his friend's head nose first into the kitchen counter, but with some great internal effort restrained himself.
"Be quiet or I'll vomit on you as well."
Naruto took another sip of his drink, his eyes dancing with great amusement as Kiba turned his attention back to Sasuke and began to discuss the use of 'power words'.
"I should probably get going in a bit." Sasuke said, he had been navigated to the sofa after several hours of talking and was now just finishing the soda and lime Shikamaru had made him. Turned out Shikamaru bartended at a club Kankaro often played at which had led to him dating Temari. Small world.
"Thanks for your help today." Kiba said contentedly from beside Sasuke, "I feel a lot better about how this is going to play out now." Naruto was sitting on the edge of the sofa finishing a can of beer and trying to keep a straight face. He had initially tried to sit next to Sasuke but had been pushed out the way by Kiba who had given him a warning look as he had forced himself between the blond and the dark-haired man.
"I'll mock up the pamphlets and then we can look at the rough draft next week, does that sound cool?"
"That sounds fine." Sasuke said casually taking a sip from his drink as Kiba got up and shook his hand in a business-like manner. He walked out the room before sticking his head back through the door and mouthed something that looked like 'Behave' in Naruto's direction.
"We think he was dropped on his head as a child." Naruto said as soon as he heard Kiba's door close upstairs.
"That's rich coming from you."
Naruto put the beer can down on the floor and then lifted his arms up behind his head, stretching out his legs so they were almost touching Sasuke's thighs. For a moment Sasuke wondered if Naruto was about to initiate physical contact, the base of his feet mere milometers away from his body. There was a sort of charge in the air between the two of them, as if corporal touch might lead quickly to something else.
"Yeah I probably can't talk." He admitted with that generous smile and a slight nod of his head, he didn't move closer Sasuke noticed but eyes seemed aware of the minute distance between them. "He mostly keeps me out of trouble though."
"And does it work?" Sasuke asked finishing his drink and moving to place it on the coffee table.
"Sometimes," Naruto conceded tilting his head and looking at Sasuke as if he was analysing him. "Likes to keep me away from tall dark handsome strangers though."
"Hn, interesting. If you know any point some my way."
Naruto gave a short bark of laughter, his blue eyes dancing from his side of the sofa.
"So," he said quietly, his tone slightly lower and slightly huskier now. "Was it worth you coming over?" He was leaning forward slightly now; the V neck of the scrubs top he was wearing did very little to disguise his toned chest underneath it. Sasuke allowed his eyes to slide down past his clavicle, resting on his tanned sternum surrounded by taught and muscular skin. Noting that Naruto seemed to have very little body hair, if he leant further forward he would be able to see all the way down to his abs. His own abdomen tingled painfully.
"We will have to see at the monthly review." He said, averting his eyes from Naruto's chest.
There was flash of Naruto's white canines in the dim light as his eyes seemed to scan Sasuke's face intently and Sasuke felt his stomach lurch.
"I look forward to the meeting."
Sasuke got up from the sofa, his mind turning to thoughts of the last tubes. Naruto watched him rise, his eyes slowly raking over all of Sasuke's body as he did so as if evaluating the lithe proportions of his form.
They moved to the hallway and Sasuke stooped to pick up his bag, the tip of the paper application form peeking out from the top of it. He paused for a moment and then straightened up.
"Naruto," he said suddenly serious, "would you apply for something you really didn't want to do because others expected you to do it?"
The blond looked at him curiously and raised an eyebrow, "I guess it depends what it was?" He said, tilting his head to the side like an owl.
"If it was a job application or something…let's say."
"Oh." Naruto paused as if lost in thought for a moment. "Like applying to become a doctor when I didn't really want to do it? No… I wouldn't be able to genuinely commit to that."
Sasuke swung his bag over his shoulder, "But what if your family expected you to?"
Naruto made a funny expression with his mouth and frowned, "My Godparents didn't have any expectations for me except 'Do your best' and I don't really know what my birth parents would have wanted. Hopefully the same thing."
Sasuke opened his mouth and then shut it again, feeling the weight of the paperwork over his shoulder, seeming to drag him down.
'I don't know what to do' is what he wanted to say but for some reason the words vanished on the way out of his throat.
Naruto stood looking at him for a while in the hallway, his expression unusually serious. "Don't bind yourself to promises that will make you miserable." He said after a moments silence, "At least I wouldn't."
Sasuke inclined his head and moved out the door, standing on the stone steps.
"I'll see you at the monthly review then?" He said turning his head to give Naruto a goodbye wave. The blond watched him for a moment with his arms crossed and leaning against the door frame, his eyes dark in the September gloom. He did not respond.
Sasuke raised his eyebrows slightly unsure of what to do next when Naruto stepped forward and pulled the dark-haired man in for a hug. Sasuke's nose ended up buried in the blond's hair as he felt strong hands move deliciously up his back. He was assailed again by the smell of salt and soap, the heat from Naruto's body slicing through him and settling uncomfortably in his abdomen as his pulse began to race.
They broke apart and Sasuke hoped the darkness may at least reduce the bright crimson of his face.
"Yeah, I'll see you soon." Naruto said in that soft gravelly voice as Sasuke walked down the steps, grateful for the cool night air.
Sasuke felt his phone buzz in his pocket and discreetly lifted it out, careful to keep it under the table and away from the gaze of the lecturer he was supposed to be listening to.
This is Kiba's Hostile Take Over Plans ™ Incorporated, requesting leaflet drop off this evening.
Sasuke put his elbow on the table and turned slightly sideways so that his body blocked the view of the phone from anyone looking directly at him.
What time would this leaflet be landing? We will have to clear this with headquarters.
Sasuke raised his head with an impassive expression to look at the board as his insides turned excited somersaults. Naruto was going to come over later today then?
…
…
Sasuke tried not to keep his eyes glued to his phone screen, he picked up a pen and wrote a half-hearted sentence on the corner of his piece of paper and shuffled his laptop so it appeared as if he was doing something.
Just conferred with my seniors, drop off would be around 8pm tonight? Can you confirm?
Sasuke bit the top of his pen, he did not have any concrete plans this evening and no early tutorials tomorrow. He felt an excited ripple of butterflies settle in his stomach. He had not seen Naruto since last stopping past his flat to talk student elections with Kiba, who had spent the entire evening officiously keeping them separated like some sort of overbearing bulldog.
We can confirm.
He clicked send, feeling a rush of heat rise into his face. Itachi wouldn't be around this evening, he was currently away on the case which he had been oddly hush-hush about for the last month.
Sasuke was pretty used to Itachi coming back with grim stories about work, as a he worked in Homicide and Major crime command but it was unusual for his brother to be so recalcitrant with information regarding his whereabouts. He had walked into the study the other day to quietly announce that he would be away for the next week and a half and would Sasuke be in for their online grocery delivery?
….
….
The lecture ended and Sasuke slowly began to pack away his things, he had said he would meet Gaara at the Maughan Library after lunch, and he had no desire to give away the fact that Naruto had just proposed turning up at his, this evening. And that they would be alone together.
C u then
Sasuke chewed the inside of his cheek, butterflies seeming to escape from his stomach to rest in his chest. Was this a good idea? Or a very very bad idea? A small part of him wanted to text back and say something urgent had come up … like he had been called upon to enter outer space, immediately! But a larger part of him was curious to see what would happen.
"What's up with you?" Gaara asked astutely as he sat down at the table the red head had secured for them.
"Nothing." Sasuke said in his best carefree voice, purposefully not meeting his friend's penetrating gaze and with deliberate care began to rifle through the contents of his bag.
Gaara narrowed his lime green eyes at Sasuke but said nothing further.
Sasuke had just stepped out of the shower and was hunting down his slightly darker black jumper when he heard the hallway phone ring. Deciding not to dash downstairs he let the answer machine pick it up as he pulled on a pair of cigarette jeans and ran a brush through his gravity defying hair.
He regretted this instantly when he heard the voice on the end of the line.
Madara.
Asking for Sasuke to call him back.
Sasuke felt his stomach drop as he walked slowly down the stairs and towards the phone as if being pulled in by the crushing gravity of a black hole. The little red light blinking ominously on the machine.
As if commanded by an invisible force he picked up and dialled back the number, his fingers knuckle white on the end of the receiver.
Three rings and Madara picked up, Sasuke felt his mouth become dry.
"Your application has not arrived yet Sasuke, it is very unlike you to be tardy. The deadline is in three days."
A slight sweat had broken out across the dark-haired man's forehead, he had not forgotten about the application, but neither had he spoken to Itachi about it before he had left. His stomach seemed to knot over itself, bringing up an acrid tinge of nausea as it did so.
"I…" he began, his tongue felt like it was stuck to the roof of his mouth. "I meant to … to …" He had a vision of Gaara telling him to grow a pair from the other side of a wooden table.
"I meant to talk to you about that."
There was a silence on the other side of the line which plummeted horribly.
"And what exactly did you want to ask me about it?" There was dry sarcasm in Madara's voice; Sasuke's free hand clenched by his side.
Naruto's bright hair and generous mouth suddenly popped into Sasuke's head and he forced himself on.
"I'm…I'm not sure if I'm going to apply."
The stillness was deafening.
"So, let me get this straight." Madara said in quiet deadly tones. "You are going to squander the opportunity given to you for no reason whatsoever?"
"No, no not at all." Sasuke stammered to correct this grave mistake. "I am very grateful for the opportunity to apply, it's just… I'm not sure if I want to…do…"
"Perhaps it's a good thing your parents are not here to witness what a disappointment their son is turning out to be." Madara said, his words cold and acrid, each individual letter sliced through Sasuke like a steel blade and digging into his heart.
"I cannot imagine what Fugaku would have said to me if he could see you now, he would be so disappointed. Perhaps it is best Sasuke that he is not here to witness this."
Sasuke felt as if he was about to be sick, his heart was pumping erratically in his ears and his vision slipped in and out of focus as he held the receiver painfully close to his ear.
"I don't…" Sasuke stuttered, his breath starting the quicken. "I didn't mean…"
"Was it not enough to be the cause of my brother's death Sasuke?" Madara asked in a cool almost casual manner. "That you must disrespect his memory so?"
Sasuke's breath was coming out in short sharp bursts now, surging inside of his chest like a ravenous wildfire, the image of his mother on an ICU bed flitted past his eyes - staff filtering around her with sharp instruments; the image scarring itself on his retina as he recalled the merciless tone of the hospital machines.
"I shall hope you do the correct thing and reconsider."
The dial tone rang in Sasuke's ear.
Sasuke leant back against the wall, dropping the receiver and sinking down to his knees. His heart seemed to be trying to break out of his chest as he rested his head on his knee caps and willed the world to stop spinning. A crushing weight seemed to settle over his ribcage, dragging him down towards the centre of the earth, he felt compressed and burned at the same time as if his soul was gently scorching at the edges, embers searing through his soul.
Panic and anxiety bubbled through him like an unstoppable wave as thoughts spiralled throughout his mind, intrusive thoughts that he tried to keep locked away assailing his consciousness, claws and teeth digging mercilessly into his flesh.
His phone buzzed in his pocket but he ignored it, instead standing shakily up and walking down the hallway to the kitchen. Pulling the nearly full vodka bottle out of the side cabinet.
He did not bother with a glass.