Bruises & Bitemarks (SasuNaru)

1.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, but I can't do that."

"Why not?"

"There are no other dorms available, and we don't want to inconvenience anyone by making them move out."

"What if I find someone who's willing?"

"That doesn't matter. You can't switch. Besides, as someone who knows you personally, I think it's best if you remain with who you're with right now."

"Why?" I can feel my temper rising. I grit my teeth and try to beat it back. "I don't see anything positive coming out of keeping things like this."

"It'll be good for you to get to know other people," Tsunade no baa-chan says in what seems to be a patient voice – it's hard to tell because I'm angry at her. "Why are you so insistent on moving?"

Because he's a fucking bastard who doesn't know how to mind his own business. But obviously I can't say that to the principal. I try to shift the words in my mind, make them more presentable. Because I hate him? No, better not make it sound too personal. Because... he bothers me. Ugh, no. I'm not a weak tattletale. Thing is, the only reason I want to move is because of him in relation to me.

Tsunade no baa-chan takes my silence as a sign that I don't know. Geez, I thought I was easy to read. I mean, look at me. I rocket around all day grinning or laughing or yelling or pouting. Is it hard to know what I'm thinking? Tsunade no baa-chan is probably just taking it as an excuse. She says, "Well, that's settled, then. Unless you have another issue you'd like to take up with me, I'm sure you have homework, or want to catch up with your friends..."

"R...right." I clench my fists, willing myself not to burst out. I turn on my heel, stride to the door, wrench it open, step through it, and slam it shut. Damn. That was probably a bad move. But whatever, a door slam hardly amounts to a shouting match.

The guys are waiting across the hall, on the benches. They don't see me until I'm five feet away. You'd think that with my bright hair I'd be impossible to miss. I can kinda understand Kiba being out of it, because he's in my history class, and our teacher has a knack for making us space out and stay like that even after the class – which can suck, since we sometimes have history last. Shikamaru is excused too, because he's always like that. But I'd at least expect Neji or Gaara or even Sai to be a bit more attentive.

So when they finally notice me, Sai says, "Oh, there you are, Naruto-kun. I didn't notice you'd finished. So how was it?"

I shake my head. "Nothing doing."

"Isn't it too troublesome to be doing all this?" Shikamaru asks in his usual drawl. "It can't be thatbad, can it?"

They all get up and we make our way towards the exit. "You have no idea, Shikamaru," I say darkly. "He is that bad."

"He seems okay," says Gaara. "I've never heard him swear or insult anyone, or anything like that."

"That's just the problem!" I retort. "He only ever puts me down when there's no one around to hear or see him. He gets to keep up his godly reputation and still make me feel like dirt."

"Have you tried talking to him?" suggests Neji. Damn Neji. He's always being smart, logical, sensible. It's aggravating.

"D'you honestly think I'd try talking to someone when experience has taught me that the only thing I'm going to get out of a conversation with him is misery?" I'm not going to admit that the only conversations I've ever had with the bastard were started by him, and only really consisted of insults.

"Well we all know Naruto's not particularly bright—"

"You're one to talk, Kiba," I shoot at him. He grunts and looks away defiantly.