Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Troubles (Song Fic) ❯ Troubles ( One-Shot )

I've been watching you from a distance

The distance sees through your disguise

All I want from you is your hurting

I want to heal you

I want to save you from the dark

 

Why should I care if they hurt you?

Somehow it matters more to me

Than if I were hurting myself

Save you (save you)

I'll save you

 

Give unto me your troubles

I'll endure your suffering

Place onto me your burden

I'll drink your deadly poison

 

~*~*~*~

 

The room was empty. A dark-haired boy sighed in relief and entered, turning off the light and plunging everything into shadow. He'd sought out a place to be alone and he never thought he'd find one here. Sasuke Uchiha walked to the back of the classroom and sat at a desk. His fan club had been following him everywhere, prattling on about trivial nonsense. He'd faked a right and zigged when they thought he'd zagged. He lost them in a crowd of students on their way to the buses and turned back to the high school. Thinking back on it, the high school had been the perfect place to hide- when the lions are after you, return to their den where they're least likely to look for you. He smiled slightly at the thought of Sakura and Ino with their hair teased out to look like manes. He thought it suited them.

 

He was so lost in daydreams of snarling, rabid fangirls biting and clawing each other that he almost didn't hear the footsteps approaching in the quiet hall outside the door. He quickly shook his head to clear out the fuzz, then slid quietly from the desk and slunk into the shadows, his dark hair and clothes camouflaging him perfectly as he crouched to the floor. A figure entered the room slowly, sighing to himself. Even in the darkness, Sasuke could see that the face was troubled. The blonde boy began in his direction and as he neared, Sasuke recognized him and his eyes grew wide.

 

Naruto Uzumaki was a happy teenager; he had many friends and always wore a smile. To see him look so sad was so shocking that Sasuke almost revealed himself by approaching the other boy to ask what was wrong. He kept himself hidden, however, reminding himself that he cared about no one. As the thought entered his mind, he called himself a liar. He cared about Naruto.

 

Naruto was everything that Sasuke was not: cheerful, polite, friendly, excited, enthusiastic…happy. Sasuke was simply stoic. He showed no emotion, mostly because he felt little of it, other then the occasional jolt of anger or the almost constant state of annoyance. He was a handsome boy and girls followed him everywhere, but he had no friends and usually had no need for them. This boy, however, had intrigued him. He'd been dealt some pretty shitty hands in life, but he was still happy. Another boy had punched him in the face once and Naruto had simply smiled, beat him to the ground, and wiped the blood from his nose. Sasuke had marveled at how the boy had kept his cool, but he wasn't sure it was completely sincere, so he'd followed him that day to see if it was an act. He had shadowed him to a classroom where the boy had changed almost immediately. His perfect posture slacked as his shoulders slumped and he touched his nose gingerly. He'd winced and whimpered and balled his hands into fists, mumbling something to himself about being weak and stupid. He'd turned to leave and had come face to face with a Sasuke who had wanted to remain unnoticed. At first, Sasuke had simply sputtered, searching for an explanation that would make sense. Naruto's eyes had gotten wide, but then they had softened as he sent Sasuke a warm smile that told him he wasn't angry. Sasuke had shocked himself by returning the smile. They had walked to the nurse's station together in search of an ice pack for the blonde.

 

Sasuke had spoken to the boy in passing quite a bit since then, every time receiving dazzling and sincere smiles of warm greeting and fond goodbye. Sasuke had found himself going out of his way to try to find the only person who could bring a ray of sunshine into his lonely world with a huge smile and a flash of bright blue eyes. It had only been a few weeks after the incident with the bully that Sasuke had finally admitted to himself that he liked the cheerful blonde as so much more than a friend. But he could never tell him. He had his pride to consider, after all.

 

Sasuke returned from his musings to the boy in the dark classroom with him. Naruto's sunshine-blonde hair and orange tee-shirt stood out like a lantern, drawing Sasuke to his feet. The boy was now seated at the same desk that Sasuke had occupied only moments before. The usually-cheerful face was buried in tan hands and firm shoulders shook with silent sobs. Sasuke's heart wrenched and he swallowed the knot in his throat. He slowly lifted his hand and, before he could lose his nerve, placed it on the other boy's shoulders.

 

Naruto started and whirled his head to look at the presence he hadn't sensed. He looked shocked and almost frightened at first, but his eyes sent the image to his brain and he relaxed when he realized that the boy was his friend. The blonde rose to his feet, holding his companion's gaze. Sasuke noticed sadly that the boy's eyes were brimming with barely-controlled tears. Naruto's face softened, but he didn't deliver his usual smile.

 

“Sasuke…” Naruto's voice was so soft that Sasuke barely heard him. He smiled at the troubled boy and squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. Naruto suddenly threw himself into the other's arms, shaking uncontrollably. Sasuke simply stood still for a moment, shocked beyond measure, before bringing his arms around Naruto's back and holding him tightly.

 

“Naruto, what is it? What's wrong?”

 

Naruto simply shook his head and buried his face in Sasuke's neck. “Just hold me for a minute. I need my best friend.” Sasuke beamed with pride at hearing Naruto call him his best friend. It was closer than he'd ever hoped to get to anyone. “I went looking for you,” Naruto continued, “but I couldn't find you. Sakura said she didn't know where you were and I gave up. She keeps constant tabs on you. I figured if she didn't know, then no one would.”

 

Sasuke chuckled and Naruto smiled into the dark-haired boy's neck. He loved that sound. It relaxed him completely. Sasuke always knew what to say and what to do to make his day brighter- even the already-sunny days got sunnier when Sasuke was around. He'd never really considered anyone his best friend before, but if Sasuke wasn't it, then there was no such thing.

 

“No one knows where I am,” Sasuke explained. “The hormone squad was following me around and it bothered me more today than it usually does. So I ditched them. Dodged through crowds of students and turned back to the school. I wanted an empty place to just be alone, but now that you're here, I feel like having company.” Naruto raised his head to look at his best friend and gave him a weak smile. Sasuke's brow furrowed and he pulled away from the boy to hold him at arm's length. “You there, with the sad face. Who are you and what have you done with my happy Naruto?”

 

Naruto gave him a sad smile, elated, despite his pain, that Sasuke had called him his, and lowered his gaze from warm, dark eyes. The other boy knew him too well. If he looked into those eyes for too long, Sasuke would be able to figure out what was wrong. The guy could read him like a friggin' book sometimes.

 

“I'm not sure,” Naruto began. “I don't even think it's just one thing, really. I guess…I guess I'm just lonely. I have so many friends, everyone knows me, and I always have someone to hang out with, but to be honest, you're my only real friend, Sasuke. You're the only person that really knows me. You're the only person I can stand to be around.” Naruto looked at him and Sasuke smiled and nodded for him to continue. “Sometimes I wish I could be like you…you know? Distance myself from everyone and just be alone. I wish I knew what it felt like to be able to complete a thought in my head without someone interrupting it to tell me some stupid joke or complain about a test they failed because they're dumb.” Sasuke snickered at this and Naruto smiled genuinely before continuing. “I know I'm not smart, but I try. I don't get good grades, but it doesn't mean that I'm stupid. I just can't remember the things I learn until I don't need them anymore, which figures. Someone like Kiba or Chouji will see that I got a lower grade than they did and they'll be glad someone screwed up worse than them so that they can at least know they're not the worst student. Everyone comes to me with their problems and unloads them on my shoulders expecting me to know what to do to fix it, but when I have a problem, I can't even talk about it. It's dismissed before it's even brought up. It's like I'm only their friend when they want me and when they don't, they just shove me in a mental closet somewhere until they're bored and need a good laugh at the loser.” Naruto's voice began to break towards the end and he looked to the floor when he'd finished, intently studying the patterns of lines on the linoleum. It felt good to have it out, but now he just wondered what would be said in return.

 

Sasuke had been genuinely taken aback. What Naruto had confessed to him just now had caused him pain in places in his heart that he thought had frozen. He didn't know what to say to the boy, so he simply hugged him. Naruto's hands desperately clung to the back of his shirt and he buried his face in the crook of Sasuke's neck. Sasuke could feel the boy's panting breath on his pale skin as the boy tried to calm his sobs. Sasuke indulged himself and began to run his fingers through sunshine locks in a calming gesture as he murmured words of comfort in the boy's ear. Naruto eventually stayed his tears and regained his composure, but he stayed in Sasuke's warm embrace, enjoying the feeling of being comforted.

 

Sasuke took a breath and braced himself. He hoped he wasn't making a stupid mistake.

 

“Naruto…I want you to know that I am your best friend. I care about you. And I've never shoved you into a mental closet. I need you. All the time. You're the only thing I really have in this world that brings me any joy. I'm shocked that you would want to be like me. It saddens me, really. I've always wanted to be like you.” Naruto looked at him with wide eyes as Sasuke continued. “I have. I'm so unhappy, Naruto. I'm cold and distant and I don't care about anyone or anything. At least, I didn't. Do you remember the day that you got into that fight with Neji and I took you to the nurse? You changed something in me that day. You made me feel something. I felt happy and excited that someone was looking at me without contempt or lust or jealousy. You were my first true friend, Naruto Uzumaki,” he paused, “and I love you.”

 

Naruto's breathing hitched. Had Sasuke just told him he loved him? Naruto swallowed hard, realizing that his throat was suddenly dry. Naruto loved him, too, as a friend, but the look in Sasuke's eyes told him that it wasn't quite what Sasuke had meant. Naruto looked deep into the warm, dark pools and suddenly found himself completely without breath. He had a pleasant butterfly feeling in his stomach and he began to see white spots around the edges of his vision. His eyes widened as an epiphany smacked him in the head. He knew now what the feeling was. The friendly, brotherly love that he'd shared with Sasuke the past few months had progressed without Naruto even noticing. He loved him. Naruto loved Sasuke in return. The feeling warmed him inside, like hot chocolate on a winter day. His toes tingled and he noticed that his limbs felt heavy. His arms were numb, but everywhere Sasuke's body touched his, he felt liquid fire begin to dance on the surface of his skin. He suddenly noticed everything, from the smell of Sasuke's shampoo to the almost inaudible hum of the fluorescent lights in the hall. He gulped again, unsure how to put into words the feeling that had just made itself known to him. What could he possibly say to convey this emotion without cheapening it?

 

Sasuke misinterpreted Naruto's silence. After a few moments, his dark eyes fell from the bright blue ones and he released Naruto, not noticing that the boy staggered to stand on weak legs. He looked back at the boy briefly and smiled sadly before turning away.

 

“I understand,” he said simply.

 

He was about to move to leave the room when Naruto's hand shot out to grab his arm. Sasuke looked at the slender fingers firmly gripping his arm, surprised, before his wide eyes found Naruto's face. Sasuke noticed that the boy's eyes were alight with a new fire, one that Sasuke had never seen before, and that they almost glowed in the darkness. Naruto's lips curled into a soft smile and his eyes began to tear again. The blonde boy stepped toward a shocked Sasuke and, before the dark-haired boy could react, placed his lips softly against the other's.

 

Sasuke's eyes widened even more as he realized that the object of his affection returned his love. Sasuke relaxed and smiled into the kiss, wrapping his arms protectively around his treasure. Naruto's hands roamed down Sasuke's back to hold his waist as the blonde boy tilted his head to deepen the kiss. Sasuke's smile grew as he complied, licking his companion's lower lip. Naruto obeyed the silent command and parted his lips slightly so that an expert tongue could dip to twine with his own. They engaged in a battle for dominance, neither minding when the other grew more forceful and began to take control. Sasuke released small sounds of contentment into Naruto's mouth, which the blonde swallowed greedily. The passionate, desperate kiss was beginning to take its toll on Sasuke, whose knees weakened. He allowed his companion to guide him to the floor where they sat together, still wrapped in each other's arms.

 

Naruto broke the kiss, out of breath and completely satisfied. He left a trail of open-mouthed kisses across Sasuke's jaw and down his neck, making the boy shiver. Naruto smirked and licked Sasuke's neck where it met the shoulder and sucked hungrily on the pulse point. Sasuke's sharp intake of breath was more than enough to make Naruto light-headed with the feeling of control. He smirked as he decided to take advantage of it, grateful that Sasuke was wearing a shirt with a lower collar to grant him more access. He applied more suction to the sensitive area and Sasuke began to pant and he gripped Naruto's orange shirt, nearly tearing the fabric. Naruto released the pale skin from his teeth and gave it one last gentle lick, satisfied to see that the skin was already beginning to darken into a bruise. Naruto grinned evilly at the thought of Sasuke's fan club noticing the hickey and crying to themselves, wondering who the lucky girl was.

 

Naruto met his companion's dark eyes and was amused to see that Sasuke was also smirking, probably thinking along the same lines. Naruto placed one last chaste kiss on his closest friend's full lips before smiling and moving to stand. Sasuke accepted the hand that Naruto offered him and brought himself to his feet. They stood regarding each other for a moment, hands clasped with neither wanting to relinquish the contact. Naruto smiled softly at Sasuke and he had to fight not to throw himself back into the warm embrace and return to their previous activities. He simply smiled in return, and allowed the blonde to lead him from the darkness to the doorway of the classroom.

 

Naruto leaned to Sasuke and kissed his cheek lightly. “Thanks for kissing away my troubles, Sasuke.”

 

Sasuke smiled and cupped his friend's tan cheek. “Anytime, koishii.” Naruto's eyes widened in surprise at the pet name falling from Sasuke's lips, but he regained himself and smiled gratefully and accepted the affection.

 

They left the room hand in hand, not caring who saw, and playfully argued over who got to walk whom home. Sasuke decided that maybe life wasn't so bad after all.

 

At least, not anymore…