Chapter Text
"The reason it hurts so much to separate is because our souls are connected."
- Nicholas Sparks
Sasuke Uchiha hated Club Locust. The moment he walks in, it’s as if he’s entering a cloud of smog. The air is stiff and it clings to everyone’s scent, creating a putrid aura that only those too drunk to think about it could stand.
And yet, he found himself at the second floor bar every now and then on a busy Saturday, his dark eyes peering at the clumsy, brunet bartender who couldn’t quite get through a shift without screwing up a drink or dropping a glass. The bartender’s Club Locust shirt was never on properly, he preferred to throw it over his shoulder and use it as a towel to wipe the sweat from his forehead. Sasuke found it distasteful.
He sipped on his bitter whiskey, and watched idly as the bartender threw flirtatious smiles his way. The young man wanted to have sex with him, that was clear, but Sasuke never seemed to be in the mood.
He wasn’t sure why.
Or maybe he knew why, but even in three years, he wasn’t willing to admit it.
His phone buzzed. He lifted it from the bar to check the notification.
It was from Sai. He’d sent a picture of Sarada holding something up at the camera that looked like her hairbrush. She looked angry, and even as a six year old, she was more and more resembling his mother, Mikoto’s, disapproving look.
Sasuke downed the rest of his liquor, then got up from the bar as if he didn’t notice the longing stare the bartender sent his way.
Stepping out of the club, Sasuke finally felt like he could breathe. He hadn’t realized how much he appreciated fresh air until he’d started coming here.
He clicked on Sai’s name and held the phone up to his ear as he exited the alleyway.
As soon as the call connected, “Why is my daughter awake at three in the morning?”
Even though his voice sounded neutral, he knew Sai would sense the heat in his tone.
“Uchiha-sama, did you have a pleasant evening?” Sasuke almost scoffed at Sai’s attempt to diffuse the situation.
“You’re funny,” he said, his voice void of the humor he suggested.
“Sarada-chan is unhappy with the way I’ve combed her hair. And now she refuses to brush her teeth for bed.” Sai reported, as if the issue at hand wasn’t charged by a six year old.
“Why are you telling me this now?” Sasuke asked as he entered the parking lot where he’d left his car. He unlocked the door and slipped in, noting the prolonged silence.
Finally, “She wanted to watch a movie.”
Sasuke sighed, because he was very close to firing Sai. But, as capable as Sai is in all other aspects of being a personal assistant, helping raise a child wasn’t his forte and he’d never pretended that it was. He would have to be reasonable.
“I should fire you,” Sasuke breathed out despite himself, and Sai chuckled in return.
“That would not be your most wisest decision, Uchiha-sama.”
Sasuke rolled his eyes. Whatever. He wanted to out of spite now. But, he wouldn’t be childish. He was nearly thirty-five now after all.
He turned the key in the ignition and started up the engine. After rubbing his tired eyes he said, “I’ll be there in ten,” and hung up.
Three years ago he’d moved into a new complex for Sarada’s sake. He hadn’t realized that Karin would give up custody of Sarada after the divorce. She loved their daughter, but he guessed she wanted to get whatever years back that she’d wasted being in love with a gay man.
He stayed in Tokyo, this time in a three bedroom flat. Sai stayed overnight most days, especially at times where Sasuke wanted to go out and blow off some steam. He could have hired more staff, but Sasuke hated having unfamiliar people in his home, so Sai would have to do. However, more often than not, Sasuke ended up coming home early to diffuse some sort of fire.
In this case, it was an improper brush job.
As soon as he closed the door to his place, Sarada came from around the corner in her nightgown with the same hairbrush from the picture in her little fist.
Sasuke kneeled down to get to her level as she stopped in front of him.
“What’s wrong? It’s far past your bedtime.” Sasuke said, not bothering to look at a clock.
Sarada huffed, “I have knots in my hair,” she grumbled.
Sasuke sighed and ran a hand through her lightly tangled hair. It was growing long, past her shoulders now. Sasuke had asked about a hair cut, since she’d always worn it short, but she wanted to try something different.
“It’s not that bad,” he concluded. His answer wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
“Uncle Sai is bad at putting me to bed.” He wondered if she were too old to be put to bed. Living in the mansion had definitely spoiled her more than Sasuke had imagined.
Sai walked in at that moment, and Sasuke gave him a look out of the corner of his eye before returning his attention to Sarada. “He’s doing his best.”
She huffed again and stomped a foot. Sasuke smiled, because even if this was a tad aggravating, she really was cute. Even in her anger, he could see from the way she swayed from one side to the other that she was seconds away from passing out.
“Come on,” he opened his arms and she gripped his shoulder with one hand, her other hand still holding onto the brush. He lifted her up and her legs went around his waist.
He carried her to the bathroom through her room. He sat her on the sink and took the brush from her hands. She lightly kicked her feet at the air while he started to brush her hair.
“You shouldn’t be up this late,” he chided, and not for the first time since he’d taken over custody. Even so, being up at four AM was more than ridiculous at her age.
“I’m tired,” she responded with a yawn. He snorted out a chuckle, one that he never did around anyone but her, and shook his head.
“You start school on Monday, do you want to get in trouble for sleeping in class?” He switched from one side of her head to the other while he spoke.
“But you never sleep until it’s morning again,” she replied, looking smug.
He stopped and gave her a look, “You really think I get enough sleep? Besides, if you don’t sleep you’ll end up with bad skin.” He lightly pinched her pouting cheek. He remembered his mothering saying that to him and his brother when they were younger. Turns out, it worked.
She shrugged and looked away, and he knew he’d won so he kept on brushing.
By the time that he was done, she’d fallen asleep. Her head was resting heavily on his shoulder while he placed the brush behind her on the sink and lifted her back into his arms.
When he’d put her down in bed he noticed Sai was standing by the doorframe with a tablet in his hand. Sasuke peeked at him before he tucked his daughter in, unable to stop himself from rubbing her soft cheek with his hand before he addressed Sai.
“What?” He asked, voice stark and so different from the one he used with Sarada. Sai wasn’t fazed, and stepped aside while Sasuke exited the room and shut the door behind him.
Sai followed Sasuke down the hall, back into the living room. He began speaking once Sasuke made it to the kitchen.
“Have you taken a look at the email sent from Sarada-chan’s school?” Sai asked, eyes still scrolling over what Sasuke could only assume was said email.
“Isn’t that what I pay you for?” Sasuke answered, pulling a glass out the cabinet before searching for a bottle in the nearby wine cooler.
Sai made a sound that could have been a chuckle, but didn’t answer right away.
Sasuke poured his glass then turned to face Sai again while he took a slow sip. Sai was smiling oddly at the screen of the tablet, and Sasuke hated that his interest was peaked.
“What?” He asked when Sai was stubbornly silent.
Sai shrugged, “I believe you’d be interested to know who will be teaching her homeroom this year.”
Sasuke snorted, “Doubtful.” He turned his back again and downed the rest of his wine. He thought about pouring another glass, but figured he would much rather be in bed. So he placed the glass on the counter for Sai to take care of, and promptly walked out of the kitchen.
As he walked down the hallway towards the end where the master bedroom was placed, Sai poked his head from the kitchen to call out to him.
“Are you certain you wouldn’t want to know?”
Sasuke stopped, his eyebrow twitching at the playfulness in Sai’s voice.
He turned to Sai with a glare, “Shouldn’t you be folding clothes or something more productive than pestering me?”
Sai’s smile grew wider, and then he shrugged as if Sasuke were right and turned to walk back into the living room.
Sasuke sighed and shook his head. His patience was wearing thin, and he was tired now. He hadn’t been able to get much sleep lately.
In the solidarity his room presented him, Sasuke felt almost sane again. By now the sun was coming up, so he was grateful that Sai had thought to draw the curtains to fend off most of the light.
He tossed his tie, undid his shirt and dropped his slacks, walking towards his bed in only his briefs.
As he lay back in his bed and curled into his covers he wondered how long it had been since he’d had sex. It was partially because of Sarada being there, and the idea of pulling a stranger to some hotel had never appealed to him. But there was something else, something underlying that made the idea of finding someone to shag for the sake of shagging unsavory.
He pulled the covers tight around his shoulders, and noted that the bed felt a bit colder than usual. He thought for a moment that perhaps his California King bed was too big for just him.
Then he scolded himself because it seemed like it was just the old age talking.
And even if it weren’t, he would chalk it up to just that.
The next day Sasuke woke up with a headache. It might have been the alcohol, but thinking about that only irritated him on his way to relieve himself before starting his day.
Surprisingly, Sarada was up before him, eating pancakes Sai had prepared.
Sasuke approached them in his sweatpants, and sat down at the table beside his daughter. “Coffee,” he demanded in a gruff, sleep-filled voice.
Sai had already anticipated this, and sat a hot mug of the bitter liquid in front of his bratty employer.
Sasuke assumed today would be just like any other, but he was starting to realize something was looking down on him. And that something was cursing him to hell.
The front door opened, and mid-sip, Sasuke glared in its direction. The only person who had a key, other than the three individuals in the room, was his ex-wife. But, it wasn’t the irritable redhead who walked through the door.
“Uncle!” Sarada cheered with her mouth half-full, jumped out of her chair and sprinted over to the ageless man.
Sasuke continued to glare as he swallowed his coffee. He watched silently as his unwelcome brother picked Sarada up as if he had been invited.
“You’re getting heavy, you know,” his brother, Itachi, said to Sarada, as he poked her forehead the way he would do to Sasuke when they were younger.
Sarada giggled, immediately grabbing hold of Itachi’s long, silky hair that was pulled down into a low ponytail.
“I think your father’s live-in call boy might be overfeeding you,” Itachi remarked in a tone of sarcasm that went right over Sarada’s head.
“Fuck off,” Sasuke grumbled.
Sai didn’t comment.
Itachi walked over, disregarding the foul language as he went to sit Sarada back at her seat. She reluctantly let go of his hair.
“What are you doing here?” Sasuke asked, instead of the nagging question of where the hell did he get a key. He knew he wouldn’t get a straight answer.
“I was in the neighborhood,” Itachi shrugged. He looked around and was obviously putting his nose up at Sasuke’s state of living. He didn’t bother hiding his distaste “This is… different…”
Sasuke rolled his eyes, “It’s easy.”
Itachi snorted at that. Sasuke didn’t see what was so funny.
“Mother’s worried,” Itachi said this time.
“Mother’s dead,” Sasuke replied back.
“Doesn’t mean she’s not rolling in her grave,” Itachi chided.
Sasuke snorted this time, “I’m sure you’d like that.”
Itachi glared. Sarada looked between them as she chewed her pancakes. She could feel the tension, but couldn’t quite understand it.
Sasuke sighed. “I’m assuming you’re not here to catch up with your little brother,” he rolled his eyes at the thought.
He knew Itachi had heard the news that hit three years ago. How couldn’t he? Sasuke outed publicly by his then-wife, the substantial dip in his business’s stock; nearly everyone had some inkling of what occurred during that hellish dinner party. But, Itachi didn’t speak on it then. And in fact, this was the first time seeing his brother face-to-face since he’d left America. Their last meeting wasn’t the most agreeable one.
Even so, walking in as if he’d been coming by routinely was Itachi’s style. You never knew when he’d pop up, but you’d better be damn sure that eventually he would. And with his presence, there was always abysmal news.
Itachi chuckled this time, “In that, you are correct.” He sat down at the table across from Sasuke and looked to Sai expectantly.
Sai didn’t need to ask, and quickly placed a mug of coffee in front of him.
Itachi took a sip before he spoke again, “I’m getting married.”
Sasuke’s eyes widened. That, he wasn’t expecting. He felt like there was something he was missing.
“What?” He asked dumbly, because at the moment his big brain couldn’t think of anything better to say.
“Are you having trouble hearing me?” Itachi asked instead of answering, then took another sip.
Sasuke didn’t waver. That was Itachi’s game, always trying to get Sasuke to take the bait, dangling snide remarks and sarcasm at him as if it was a treat for a dog. Sasuke steeled his expression and rephrased, “You’ve been seeing someone?”
Itachi simply nodded. “A very lovely young woman. Her name is Konan.” Another sip.
Sasuke looked away, his mind trying to force itself out of its current state of shock.
“I know this might be a bit surprising for you, little brother. But, as you know, I’ve never been very fond of sharing my personal life with others,” Itachi said, and finally sat the coffee aside as a way to show that he was content with letting it be forgotten and cold.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the statement, because within it, the core of Sasuke’s resentment towards him laid there. Itachi was always the favorite. Sasuke was the project. Something for his parents to fix. Whether it is because he was gay or because of that one fucking B he’d gotten when he was in grade school.
Itachi was left alone to do whatever he wanted, but never Sasuke. If there was a charity, Sasuke was there. If there was a business event, Sasuke was there. If there were a woman available to marry, Sasuke would marry her. If there was a business to take over, it was in Sasuke’s name. And why? So that people wouldn’t know the truth? So that people would think of Sasuke like the prodigy Itachi was?
But he wasn’t surprised that Itachi was getting married to a woman Sasuke didn’t even know about. He was more so surprised that Itachi was telling him at all. The last time they’d met was at his father’s funeral in Washington, DC. Itachi had wanted him to stay behind to help settle the businesses their father had started in America during his time as the Ambassador. But, Sasuke took his family and went as far away from that world as he could. He pursued the business he’d started with Suigetsu and didn’t bother looking back.
“Okay,” Sasuke said after a long pause. Sarada had finished her pancakes and had moved on to nag Sai about playing dolls with her. Itachi was simply staring, waiting for him to go on because he could sense the oncoming words. “Why tell me?”
Itachi chuckled, as if what Sasuke said was truly humorous. He shook his head after that and folded his arms over his chest.
“As much as you think I’m out to get you, Sasuke, I do love you,” Itachi said, and if his face weren’t so serious Sasuke would’ve been inclined to laugh this time. But instead, he felt his cheeks and neck heat up from embarrassment. He looked away as if that would keep Itachi from seeing it.
It didn’t, of course. But, Itachi was kind enough not to pick on him for it.
Itachi sucked in a breath and stood up while Sarada pulled Sai out of the kitchen towards her room. Poor guy.
Sasuke didn’t bother looking up at his brother, and instead took a long sip of his coffee. Itachi spoke up then, “Are you still seeing that boy who all but ruined your reputation?” He asked as if those words weren’t supposed to grit at Sasuke’s nerves. Maybe he was genuinely curious, but Itachi never asked questions he didn’t already know the answer to. You’d have to be a fool to think this man was truly innocent.
Sasuke swallowed, sat his mug aside and gave Itachi a serious look, “No.” He felt his chest heat up and wondered if it was heartburn.
Itachi shrugged, “Then I suppose you’ll be coming alone.”
“I suppose,” Sasuke answered.
“Hn,” Itachi nodded, looking now at the picture tacked to the fridge. It was an old picture of Sasuke and their mother, a rare picture of the two of them laughing at something out of frame. Itachi remembered taking the picture.
“Is that all?” Sasuke asked, interrupting Itachi’s private musing.
“It’ll be this November,” he said, and walked around the table to exit the kitchen. “Say goodbye to Sarada for me.” He left after that.
Sasuke continued to sit at the table, fidgeting with the handle of his mug. He hated weddings, and hated his brother even if he really didn’t. He just wished things hadn’t gone this way. There was something missing. It wasn’t Karin, though a deeper part of him could say he missed her in some way.
He sighed, letting go of the handle and rubbing the space between his brows. He was getting a headache.
Monday came, and Sasuke pondered over whether or not he should have Sai take her to the new semester ceremony. Sai had taken her to the entrance ceremony the year before, and he knew that Sarada wished it were him instead.
He figured he’d resented his parents for not taking him for similarly childish reasons. But when he remembered how those reasons turned into his toxic teenage years, he figured he shouldn’t give Sarada the chance to hate him.
He drove to the school with Sai in the passenger seat and Sarada in the back. She was looking over one of Sasuke’s large books about analyzing statistics, pretending to read it while he weaved through traffic.
Sasuke never understood the point of entrance or semester ceremonies. He questioned it even more once he was there and seated. The parent sitting next to him was crying at their child who was standing in the front row of the cluster of new students. He scoffed and rolled his eyes, then crossed his arms as if that would keep him from catching whatever the man next to him had.
Sarada was in the front as well, standing in her uniform looking nervous and skittish of the noise around her. He would’ve thought she’d be used to it by now with all the parties Karin loved to throw. But he supposed this was a little different. And when her eyes landed on him, and the tension in her shoulder eased a bit, Sasuke was glad he’d chosen to come, even if his narrowed eyes and stoic expression didn’t show it. He nodded at her and she straightened her back as if she was told to. He almost smiled.
Sai brushed past him to take his seat next to Sasuke’s just as the ceremony began.
It was agonizingly boring, and Sasuke scrolled the news on his phone for most of it. After the Principal’s opening speech, old and new students began sharing their knowledge and experience or encouraging them to do their best, half of which made Sasuke roll his eyes. It wasn’t until he heard Sai chuckle that he looked up at him.
“What?” He asked, because what Sai found funny had to be more interesting than Class Representative, Kakei Sumire’s overly inspiring speech.
Sai looked to him, his eyes narrowed slyly and mouth crooked. “Nothing, Uchiha-sama,” there was something teasing in his voice that Sasuke didn’t like. But, he wasn’t going to ask twice, so he looked back down at his phone and continued reading a story about the Prime Minister’s alleged drinking problem.
Then Sai did it again.
Sasuke slowly peered at him, assessing his behavior to see if he could figure it out just by staring. But, it didn’t take long for it to click.
“I’d like to thank you all for joining us today! All of your children worked hard to get here—”
Sasuke’s eyes widened at the raspy voice. He whipped his head to the center of the stage. The person standing behind the podium, in front of the students, was unmistakably recognizable.
He felt himself rising from his seat, but Sai rested his hand on his arm to get him to stop. He’d have to thank him later.
He readjusted himself and stared like a wide-eyed fool at the man with golden blond hair and blue eyes he could see even from this distance.
“Naruto…” he breathed out the name without meaning to.
Naruto was still speaking, but Sasuke’s mind was far too muddled to catch anything he was saying.
Sai leaned over, “He will, apparently, be in charge of Sarada-chan’s class.”
Sasuke snapped his head back to Sai, glaring now. Now he knew why Sai was pestering him so much the night, and it pissed him off because if he’d known he would have, at least, been prepared for this.
Sai shrugged and smiled with a look that said, “I told you so”. But, how would he have known that this was what Sai was going to tell him?
By the time he managed to look back at the stage, Naruto had stepped down to stand beside the other teachers. The Principal stepped forward next.
“Again, thank you!” The principal began to conclude. “Please encourage all of our new students and…”
Sasuke wasn’t listening. His eyes were glued to Naruto who was so oblivious to his staring. He was looking to his left and chatting quietly with another teacher. The teacher must have said something funny, because he watched Naruto’s eyes crinkle while a large grin stretched across his face.
He felt something pull at the inside of his gut, and he shifted in his chair, adjusting himself in an attempt to get rid of that pesky feeling. It was frustrating, more than anything.
The Principal bowed at the end of his speech. Naruto and the other teachers walked off stage after that; the students followed behind them.
As the parents began to collect their belongings, Sasuke and Sai sat there for a moment longer. Sasuke glared at the stage, hating that his heart was beating painfully in his chest. He wanted to rip it out and throw it onto the stage out of spite.
“Should we leave now?” Sai asked once most of the parents had abandoned their seats. Sasuke sighed and ran a hand through his hair, bringing himself back to reality.
He looked to Sai, “Go. I’ll meet you in a moment.”
Sai nodded and stood without further questioning. Sasuke watched him walk around the chairs and out of the auditorium before getting up to find a bathroom. He needed to collect himself. He needed to calm down. What was he getting so excited for anyway? It was three years ago. It had already been three years.
He repeated these things in his head, feeling silly for doing so, but also finding that it helped a bit to rationalize it in his head. There were so many things he wanted to do, some of which probably would’ve gotten him and his daughter kicked out of the school. But, the sane part of him just wanted to get it together and go home. Naruto was Sarada’s teacher. There was no reason to panic. Chances are, they wouldn’t even meet.
Sasuke let out a breath as he walked down the empty hall towards the restroom. He pushed the door opened and immediately went for the sink.
He ran the water and cupped it in his hands. The feeling of it against his face was enough for him to take the images out of his mind, even if it was just a little. His face, his skin, his body; why was it all haunting him this way? He prided himself on being able to let people go easily, but this time, things were different. And he’d hate to admit it was because of something so trivial like lov…
The door opened, and he would have disregarded the interruption had he not been able to see the person in the mirror’s reflection.
He straightened his back and turned the water off; unbothered by the way it dripped from his face onto the collar of his shirt. He reached over and grabbed a few paper towels from the dispenser, unwilling to glance at the reflection again to see the shocked expression on Naruto’s face.
Naruto stepped closer, but not towards him. He went to the sink, staring at the back of Sasuke’s head on the way there. But nothing was said right away. He turned on another sink and used it to wash his hands. Possibly not what he’d come into the bathroom to do, but Sasuke could guess he also hadn’t gone into the bathroom expecting to see Sasuke there.
Sasuke wiped his face and finally looked at Naruto. By then, Naruto’s eyes were focused on his hands, maybe too focused. Sasuke cleared his throat, and he thought he’d seen Naruto jump a little. But the reaction came and went in a flash. Naruto finished, shutting off the sink and wiping his hands against his pants the way Sasuke expected him to.
Naruto stood straight this time and looked up into Sasuke’s eyes. There was a wavering resistance there, but Naruto didn’t look away.
“Hey,” Naruto said, sounding oddly casual.
“Hn,” Sasuke couldn’t think of anything else to say. A greeting in return would’ve been more of the norm, but not for Sasuke.
Naruto scratched the back of his head, looking shy but still not bothering to break their lingering eye contact. Sasuke felt his throat swell, and wondered if it would impede his ability to speak.
“How’ve you been?”
Sasuke should’ve expected that question, but his eyes widened slightly as if it had came right out of left field. The last time they’d seen each other they’d fallen asleep in his old bed, nestled together like lovers after a night of passion, or something frivolously similar.
Sasuke was the first to look away, and he almost pinched himself for being the weaker one. “I’ve been fine.” That wasn’t the whole truth, but it was all he was willing to say.
Naruto nodded slowly, finding it easier to look away now that Sasuke’s eyes weren’t boring into his.
“Still talkative, I see,” Naruto joked awkwardly. Sasuke’s lips twitched up into a small smirk, but the expression didn’t last. He turned his eyes back on Naruto and narrowed them into a calculating glare. God, he hated this feeling. It was confusing and unusually overwhelming. He wanted so much to grab Naruto and choke him for disappearing the way he did, but at the same time…
“Well… I should go back to—“ Naruto started to say, but Sasuke cut in.
“Why did you leave?” It came out so suddenly that even Sasuke was surprised by his words. Naruto didn’t hide his own shock. His brilliant blue eyes were wide like they just might explode. Sasuke didn’t waver, and he didn’t look away this time. He cleared his throat and awaited his answer as if he wasn’t experiencing prepubescent word-vomit.
“What are you talking about?” Naruto’s face twisted into a mixture of embarrassment and sadness. Sasuke wasn’t sure which feeling was willing over the other.
Sasuke didn’t answer, because Naruto knew what he was talking about, and Sasuke wasn’t going to give him the opportunity to write this off or whatever the hell the moron had been doing for the past three years. Forgetting about him, maybe? Moving on, perhaps? Bullshit.
He stood calmly, still waiting for Naruto to give him an answer instead of the run-around.
Naruto looked away again, this time biting his lip. He looked like he was thinking over his answer and Sasuke’s patience was running thin. However, he didn’t rush him. He just stared, training his expression to hide the frustration and irritation that was slowly blossoming.
It didn’t help that there was a troublesome feeling bubbling up in the pit of Sasuke’s stomach. He didn’t know if it was nerves or because his eyes were being drawn to the reddening skin appearing just beneath Naruto’s collar. The bubbling was turning into a funny tingle around Sasuke’s privates. He ignored it and scratched his hip as if to get rid of an itch.
Finally, Naruto spoke, but he didn’t answer his question; “I can’t talk about this now.”
“Then when?” Sasuke said, again not meaning to. It seems as if his logical brain was on sabbatical.
Naruto stammered, unable to form any real words. He was squirming now, and Sasuke almost felt compelled to let him go. And yet, another part of him, a more sadistic part, was enjoying seeing Naruto here, flustered and unable to think straight. Sasuke wanted to, more than anything, cross over the room, push their bodies together and take Naruto right against these dinosaur-painted tiled walls.
But, he wasn’t that person anymore. He hadn’t been in years.
Naruto sighed, obviously frustrated now, “Look. I can’t do this, okay? I just…” the door busted open then.
A young boy in his school uniform slowed down once he spotted them. He eyed them curiously as he walked by towards the stalls.
Once the stall door was closed and locked, Sasuke huffed and looked away. The tension was only heightened.
“I’ve got to go,” Naruto rushed to say and quickly made his exit.
Sasuke stared at the door Naruto left through and then turned to glare at the stall where the boy was, wondering if he would go to hell for cursing a child.
Sasuke approached Sai outside of the school where he stood by the passenger’s side looking pleased with himself. Sasuke knew he looked ruffled, and Sai was likely finding it far too funny.
He ignored Sai in favor of walking around to the driver’s side.
“Get in,” he growled, and Sai followed his lead without a fight.
Sasuke sat in the car for a moment, thinking and trying not to think about that encounter with Naruto.
Sai sat calmly, buckling up and looking at Sasuke expectantly. Again, Sasuke chose to ignore him. He leaned back in his seat and rubbed a hand over his tired face. His heart wouldn’t settle down, it made him want to punch something.
“Would you like me to drive?” Sai offered, because it had already been a full minute since they’d sat down and Sasuke didn’t look ready to go anywhere.
Sasuke sat up straight and glared at him. “Shut up,” was his only answer. He put the car in drive and backed out of the parking lot. His mind couldn’t help but think of when they’d meet again.
“Please sit,” the class president, Sumire, said and everyone sat with her command.
Naruto stood over the class, looking over everyone. He felt sweaty and uncomfortable, like he just wanted to take a bath and curl up in his bed. But the school day was just beginning. Hell, the school year had just begun. And all he could think about was fucking Sasuke.
It didn’t help that Sarada sat up front, fingers laced and staring with those same dark, mysterious eyes her father had.
She didn’t seem to recognize him. He didn’t blame her. It’d been three years and she could only have been just as old. That was relieving, at least. He wouldn’t want to have to pull her aside to explain that: Yes, we are cousins. Yes, I am the man your father was sleeping with. Yes, I am the reason your parents divorced. Yes, I do regret it. Yes, I do miss him…
“Uzumaki-sensei,” a chubby student called from the back. He looked to her, and nearly thanked her for taking him out of that train of thought.
He cleared his throat and walked around to the chalkboard tacked onto the wall behind his desk. “Yes, sorry,” he smiled cheekily at them. “This is your homeroom class. I’ll be explaining how you’ll be spending the rest of the year.”
When the bell rung to signal the end of the day, Naruto’s body sagged with exhaustion. Since seeing his class roster, he’d anticipated meeting Sasuke again. Just, not this soon.
He was childish those years ago; reacting impulsively to everything Sasuke did, wanting him to be something he wasn’t. He realized that as time went by. He’d thought that he’d let that part of himself go, or most of it, at least. To think that just looking into Sasuke’s eyes, being in the same space as him for the first time in so long would emit that same feeling of want inside of him. It was terrifying.
If he didn’t stop this now, contact Sasuke and tell him that he never wanted to see him again the way he should have instead of disappearing without a final word. If he didn’t do that now, then the possibility of him slipping and falling into that same lust entangled web would be too easy. Sasuke wasn’t capable of loving him. He knew that, because he’d stupidly tried to obtain something similar with him in the past. He wasn’t capable of commitment or any of the things Naruto had longed for since Neji.
But then, why did Sasuke look at him like that when they’d bumped into each other in the bathroom? It wasn’t the same look he’d given him before that slowly peeled Naruto’s clothes off and left him naked. It was as if he wanted something different from Naruto.
“Why did you leave?”
Jesus, how was he supposed to answer that?
Naruto walked around and sat at his desk. He loosened the tie around his neck so that he could breathe easier.
He was overthinking this. Knowing Sasuke, he was probably pissed because he wasn’t the one who’d finally ended it. Whatever it had been, anyway.
Just as he was relaxing into his seat a call came through to his phone.
He picked it up without checking the caller ID. “Yo,” he spoke lazily.
“Hey,” it was Gaara. Naruto’s heart was ramming in his chest and he had no idea why. Why did he feel so panicked?
“H-hey…” Naruto said, sitting up and pulling a hand through his hair. “What’s up?”
“Are you done? I was thinking we could go out for dinner.”
“Um,” Naruto hesitated, and again, he didn’t know why. They were good, weren’t they? Better than good. There was nothing to feel nervous about.
“Naruto?” Gaara spoke when Naruto didn’t immediately answer.
“Yeah, yeah, sorry. That sounds good.” Naruto nodded to himself as if he needed his own affirmation.
Gaara was silent this time. He knew Naruto was acting strangely. Naruto never was very good at hiding anything. He should just tell him about what happened today with Sasuke. It’s not like he’d done anything that would’ve been considered stepping out of bounds. They’d just talked, and Naruto was planning to keep their interactions to a minimum. Why shouldn’t he tell Gaara? He should. He knew he should.
“Is everything alright?” Gaara asked, and Naruto saw this as an opening.
“No. Nothing’s wrong. I’ll meet you at the place, just text me where to go,” he shut his eyes tightly, because that is NOT what he’d wanted to say. But he knew, deep down, that it wasn’t just a casual conversation he’d had with Sasuke. There was so much more to it. He wanted to believe it was just a passing look or his own imagination, but he knew what he saw in Sasuke’s eyes was real. He’d be fooling himself to believe that Sasuke’s intentions were some petty way of getting back at him.
“Okay,” Gaara said after another long moment. “I’ll see you in an hour.” He hung up after that. Naruto dropped his phone onto his desk and was tempted to bang his head against it next. He didn’t, because if any other teacher saw him doing that, there’s no way they’d trust that he wasn’t going insane.
So, he just sat there, looking at the empty seats and wondering if or when they would meet again.