naruto oneshots

'tis the damn season

pairing: sasuke x naruto
type: angst with happy ending
setting: various
era: various

xxx

it's cold in konoha. just months ago, the world was in the middle of a brutal war. friends, family and comrades are dead.

sasuke is in his old house. the windows are foggy and every surface is dusty, and sasuke himself feels unmotivated. he's feeling cold and broken.

he doesn't know where to go from here.

to some people, it feels as if he's trying to hibernate, having not left the house in almost four days; and even if he did, they wouldn't mind him any attention. he's just a criminal and a traitor. almost nobody has respect for sasuke, but enough do that it's bearable.

because the only person sasuke needs respect from is naruto. time flew, messy as the destroyed town, and sasuke now finds himself missing naruto's smile. they could walk around the town just for old times sake, then they'd stay up late, just taking the time to adapt to one another's presence again.

sasuke never imagined that the only person he'd wonder about would be naruto, the only person who can tell which of his smiles are real.

sheer curiosity wins him over. he swiftly sits up, forcing himself out of bed. he then strides over to the closet and searches for a scarf and a hat, though all he can find is some ear warmers. across the room, he puts on his cloak, then rushes to the front door.

outside, the air is extremely cold, but it's nothing compared to the arctic infatuation in his heart. snow falls, reminding sasuke of the winters he would spend making snowmen and snow angels with itachi. the thought puts another dent in his bruised soul.

battling the powerful gusts of air, sasuke hurriedly leaves the uchiha district, venturing into town at full tilt. some of the townsfolk give him strange looks, and some ignore his existence altogether. sasuke could care less.

he knows that there's an ache in naruto put there by the ache in him. sasuke will forever feel guilty, because he's heard stories of how naruto would plead and fight for sasuke, even though he was a rogue ninja and everybody viewed him as a maniac.

but it's all the same to naruto, so it's all the same to sasuke.

sasuke passed the academy that used to be theirs. forgotten memories were suddenly retrieved, and he bookmarked them to look back at later.

he inferences how the holidays have lingered like bad perfume. you can run from them, but only so far with the festive lights that are visibly still strung. not even a cheerful few weeks were able to save the year.

and, to say that sasuke can escape things is an understatement. he has the power to desert entire lifetimes in weeks, months, years to achieve his goals. he remembers how naruto always used to watch him leave and he recalls everytime naruto chased after him, longing for a happy ending.

after an eternity, sasuke stood in front of naruto's apartment door. the morning light shone down onto the floor, but the ceiling shades sasuke from achieving that extra warmth.

he gently knocks, jitters roaming his body. the only noises audible are the gentle shuffling from inside the apartment and the jostling wind currents. "hang on," naruto calls, rushing to get to the door.

everything appears to be in slow motion. sasuke feels his dark hair take to one side, the wind messing with it. the brown door opens slowly, and reveals naruto in orange sweatpants and a white t-shirt, showing his strained muscles. he does not have socks on, meaning his feet are probably icicles. 

sasuke takes all of this information in, watching naruto's face vary from confused to excited as he greets, "hey." his tone sounds breathless, like he's wanted this for years. (which he has. that's the whole point.)

"hi," sasuke replies, shoving naruto past and walking inside. he looks around the apartment. messy, as always, but not a train wreck like it was when they were twelve. "uh," naruto starts, "what's up?" sasuke turns around. he feels pressure, and it's like he's reached a dead-end.

it's a brand new feeling, one that he's never felt. 

and for the first time in forever, sasuke doesn't know what to do. he doesn't know why he left, or why he came to see naruto. he is unsure what path to take, and his mind is blank.

so he doesn't think. he stands up, walks forward, and is cupping naruto's face. he observes naruto's wide, blue eyes for a split second before their lips are molded, and everything feels perfect. 

naruto pushes sasuke away, and tucks a piece of his hair behind his ear. "what are you doing?" he asks, even more breathless than before.

sasuke doesn't reply, only diverts his gaze to the wooden floor. 

and it would be silly to say that naruto doesn't understand. he knows the feeling of not knowing what to do. 

so he wraps his arms around sasuke, pulls his close and it's warm. they're at peace.