The sun is too bright, it hurts

Chapter 7

17 years old.

July.

"Happy birthday, bastard!"

Sasuke stares at his best friend in the darkness of his room. He wears a ridiculous hat made with gift wrap and a balloon in his hand. He is still wearing the Captain America's pajamas that Sasuke gave him last Christmas and his in bare feet.

Sasuke rubs his eyes and looks at the portable clock that rests on the bedside table on the side of his bed. 12:09 am. It reads in incandescent red numbers.

"Do you have any idea what time is it?" Sasuke hisses, as he gets out of bed, and he feels a bit stupid, because it's obvious that Naruto knows the time, it's obvious that Naruto would crawl out his window at twelve o'clock in the morning just because it's his birthday. It's obvious.

"I'm the first one to congratulate you, right?" He says, with a smile that covers half of his face. His hair is more messy than usual and several blond strands fall on his forehead. His blue eyes sparkle in the darkness. His blue shirt sticks to him in all the right angles and Sasuke thinks if you were not so damn attractive, I would surely kill you right now, you idiot. But he doesn't say it, because of course, that's not something you said to your best friend.

"Hn." Sasuke replies, in a bad mood.

But of course, Naruto is immune to that and laughs. "Well, it's a little cold outside so you better take your blue sweatshirt with the fan on the back that you like to wear so much. Time to go, bastard."

Sasuke stops halfway to put on his shoes, because, "What? Go where, you idiot?"

Naruto is already leaning over the window frame. "Mmm? There's a Waffle House near here, if you drive in my dad's van I think we can get there in half an hour, right?"

"Naruto," Sasuke says, and his eye contracts a little. "What?"

"You like waffles, don't you?" He replies. "Maybe I can make the manager put a tomato on them, I mean, it's your birthday after all..."

"Naruto, I'm not going to get into your father's van in the middle of the night and drive to a Waffle House at twelve in the morning."

Naruto seems confused. He keeps his balance on the window frame and raises his hand to show him the set of keys. "No problem, Sas. I have the keys."

Sasuke rolls his eyes. "And you want me to drive to a Waffle House in the middle of the night?"

Naruto shrugs. "All right, I'll drive, but if a policeman stops us I'll show him your driver's license. I'll wait for you below, birthday bastard."

And with that said, he disappears through the window.

Sasuke grunts as he looks back at the clock. He growls and curses against stupid blond guys with beautiful blue eyes who wake him up in the middle of the night to tell him happy birthday, and who make him steal his father's van to drive to a Waffle House at twelve o'clock at night just because he felt like it.

He drags his feet all the way to the door of his house, trying not to make noise, and he puts on the blue sweatshirt as he goes down the stairs and continues cursing and complaining between his teeth. Damn fucking Naruto. Damn stupid heart. Damn the one who decided up there that it would be a good idea to give him a nice smile and a beautiful personality and the eyes of Gods. Damn the one who decided it would be good for Sasuke to fall in love with a stupid blonde with a heart of gold, stubborn as hell. Damn the one who thought it would be a good idea for Sasuke to like his best friend. Damn the one who decided that the Waffle House's could open for 24 hours. Damn Naruto with beautiful eyes, damn, damn, damn and fucking dammit.

"Are you going somewhere?"

Sasuke stops and freezes, one sleeve still midway his arm and his mouth hanging open. He turns around, where his brother is sitting on the sofa in the living room in the middle of the darkness looking directly at him.

"Itachi," he says, and feels the warmth begin to creep up on his face. Shit, shit, shit. "Uh... I... Naruto..." He blurts out.

To his surprise, Itachi smiles. "Good." He says, and his eyes sparkle with amusement. "Don't make him wait. But come back for breakfast, will you? Mom will have a heart attack if she doesn't find you in the morning."

Sasuke blinks. "Uh... I... okay."

Itachi smiles. "Mm-hm."

When he is about to leave through the door, Itachi speaks again. "And happy birthday, Sasuke."

Sasuke smiles. Damn you Itachi.

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In the end, Sasuke ends up driving, because Naruto is bad for this, and Sasuke doesn't want to die on his birthday, no thanks. Naruto turns on the radio and hums the songs in a low voice because it's like a human jukebox and he knows all of them. He sits on the soft seat and raises his feet in shredded socks while crossing his legs and looks out the window all the trip.

It's strange that he's so quiet, but at least Sasuke can look at him out of the corner of his eye from time to time. And when the light from the headlights on the side of the street hits him right in the face, and Sasuke can admire how beautiful he is, how stunning his eyes are and how bright they look and how gleaming his hair is and the so pretty and alluring that is the whole him, all him... is those moments where Sasuke thinks that maybe it was not such a bad idea that Naruto woke him up in the middle of the night to drive to a Waffle House. Maybe it's not so bad that Naruto is crazy. Maybe it's not so bad that Sasuke is in love with him.

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Sasuke returns for breakfast time. It's around eight o'clock in the morning when he crosses the threshold of the door and although he is sleepy as hell and that waffle tasted like burnt oil, Sasuke could see Naruto for hours with his old pajamas and his cerulean eyes and his pretty gold hair. Sasuke could be sitting alone with him in an lonely Waffle House as if it were a date, and he could hear him talking nonsense for hours and sing the songs that came from the speakers on the place with no one bothering them. And even if it sounds a bit silly and a little girl-of-twelve years-with-a-crush, Sasuke could not be happier.