Bruises & Bitemarks (SasuNaru)

58.

I wander downtown alone, feeling the city and the people rushing around me while I stand isolated in the middle. Everyone's got things to do, people to meet, places to go. I descend into the subway station to watch the comings and goings of the transit. My eye is automatically drawn to teen groups and couples, talking, laughing, having a good time.

I think of Sasuke. What's he doing now? Praying to his parents? Standing in Itachi's room? Crying? Sleeping? Or has he not even moved from the table where I left him nearly an hour ago?

With nothing to do and no indication as to when it will be appropriate for me to return home, I consider calling someone up to hang out. Not Kiba – he's probably spending his time happily with Sui and I don't want to bother them. They're a good match; I'm glad they're together. Shikamaru's on vacation in Nara Prefecture with his family (we've made all the jokes about his last name and the deer and everything). So I call Sai.

When his phone picks up, there's a bit of shuffling, then a bleary voice says, "Naruto-kun? 'M kinda busy..."

I frown as more shifting goes on and a different muffled voice murmurs indistinctly. I can hear a deep bass thrumming in the background, like a shout from far away.

"What're you up to?" I ask.

"Friday Night" is all he mutters, then a long bout of giggling erupts from the muffled voice. "S'ry, we—"

A loud crash, made to sound a bit like a gun going off in the cellphone, blasts into my ear, scaring me out of my wits. When I collect myself again and press the phone back to my ear, the line's dead.

Well then. Not only is it the middle of the day, but Sai's totally smashed, and by the sounds of it so was his partner – whatever gender they were; I couldn't tell. Hell, I didn't know the Stoneheads was even open at this hour. Whatever floats his boat, I guess. I take a moment to let my still-racing heart to slow down and my ear regain normal hearing, then I call Gaara.

"Naruto? Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing much, just wondering if you wanted to hang out for a bit."

"What, you're not with Sasuke?" He sounds incredulous. "Next you'll tell me the world is ending."

"Hey!" I say in mock accusing tones. Then more seriously I go on, "Well, you know us, never a day without drama... I can't say the details, but Sasuke needed some time to think, so I let him be. I'm just killing time now."

"Whatever it is, I hope it works out okay. I'd love to chill, but... well, the truth is..." Gaara pauses. "I'm on a date."

"What? That's awesome, who with?"

"A girl from Konoha Middle School; she'll be coming to Konoha High next year. Met her on the train yesterday. Look, I can't talk long, I'm in the guys' bathroom right now—"

"Right, sorry. Have a good time. You'll have to tell me all about it later, you hear me?"

"Roger that," he says, a smile clear in his voice. Then he hangs up.

Huh. Everyone's hooking up, it seems. What about Neji? He went through his entire high school career without ever dating. Surely he'll find someone in university, though. He's not the type for a summer fling, and he's leaving town for uni, so he can't be busy, right? (Knock on wood.)

As luck would have it, Neji is free after all, so we meet up at a subway station we can both easily get to. Since it's just killing time, we walk around downtown and chat.

"Are you ready for uni?" I ask him. Since I've been spending so much time with Sasuke this past week of summer, I haven't chatted with my friends much, by phone, text, email, or instant messaging. It's about time we caught up a little.