Stay [SasuNaru]

Chapter 8

"Shika.. Naruto was going to confess to me.. and I basically rejected him.."

Shikamaru could hear the break in Sasuke's voice as he spoke.

"How could I have done that?! He looked dejected and I just let him go!" Sasuke had gotten off of the bed and was pacing the room. Shikamaru just stayed in the chair, letting Sasuke vent his frustrations.

"Well, how do you feel about him?" Shikamaru asked, making the raven suddenly stop in his tracks.

"What do you mean?"

"He means, how do you feel about Naruto? Stupid." Another voice from the hallway caused Sasuke to flinch.

Kiba had made his way to Naruto's apartment once Shikamaru told him that's where Sasuke was. Shikamaru thought that maybe Sasuke needed a reality check, someone to not pull punches with him. Someone similar to Naruto in that aspect.

Kiba couldn't see Naruto like Sasuke and Shikamaru could. Naruto was surprised to see Kiba show up, but was also disappointed in a way. He knew that Sasuke wouldn't open to Kiba like he would to Shikamaru. And based on the silence from the raven after Kiba had questioned him, he was right. However, he still stayed rooted in place.

Sasuke stood by the bed, staring at the floor, slightly clenching his fist. He had a bunch of different emotions running through his head. 'How do I feel about Naruto?'

"Well are you just gonna stand there looking at the floor for answers, or are you going to man up and face your feelings?" Kiba's tone was stern and slightly annoyed. He made his way into the room, never once breaking eye contact on the raven.

Sasuke's head shot in the direction of Kiba and they both glared at each other. Shikamaru let out a sigh and mumbled "what a drag.." causing both of the other boys to shift their stares at him instead.

"He has a point Sasuke" Shikamaru stated as he blankly stared at the young raven.

Sasuke still didn't say anything, causing Kiba to blow a fuse. "I never took you for such a fucking coward" Before Sasuke could respond, Kiba grabbed him by his collar.

"We all see it. Every single person who knows Naruto, can see how he looks at you. I know you're not stupid Uchiha. You have seen it before too. You also have looked at him that same way." Kiba had lowered his voice at the last statement, hoping Sasuke would realize his own feelings.

Sasuke's eyes widened slightly as he heard Kiba's words. 'I've looked at him the same way?' He was frantically trying to think of what look Kiba was talking about. Kiba saw the slight panic in the ravens eyes.

Kiba sighed and released the raven. He closed his eyes and grabbed the bridge of his nose, slightly annoyed but also baffled.

"Did you really not notice?" He asked as he dropped his arms to his side and sympathetically looked at Sasuke. Sasuke's mind was clearly running in circles. He sat down on the edge of the bed, staring at his hands in his lap. 'How I feel... about... Naruto.."

"Think about it dude. How did you feel when he was around? How did you feel when you guys hung out? How do you feel if you imagine your life without him?"

The last question hit Sasuke in the chest like a brick. 'How would I feel... without him?' He subconsciously grabbed the orange fox that was still on the bed, fiddling with the little feet as he thought. "I-I don't.. know.." he stated in barely a whisper.

Kiba put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "I think you do.." he responded with a small smile. "And Naruto loves you. More than you can even possibly imagine. You have to be fucking blind not to see it."

Naruto all of a sudden felt the blood rush to his head listening to this conversation. He hadn't ever told Sasuke how he felt, and yet Kiba just blurted it out for the world to hear. The lack of response from the raven haired boy sent Naruto into a panic. His feelings were just laid out and there was no response from the one they were laid out to. In a way, Naruto was happy he didn't have to face the rejection himself.. but he was also torn that he wasn't the one who was able to say it directly. Feeling the lump in his throat grow and the tears welling up, he opted to leave for the moment.

Shikamaru felt Naruto's presence leave. He sighed as he figured Naruto took that as a sign of rejection. "You're running out of time Sasuke. You need to go see him."

"But.. how can I.. I don't even.." he was struggling for words as he tried to piece his feelings together.

"Can you imagine your life without him?" Kiba asked in a direct manner, causing Sasuke to flinch a little bit.

"No.. I.. I can't imagine my life without the dobe.." he frowned as he was trying to imagine the sunshine in his life, gone forever. The thought made his stomach turn and he felt uneasy.

Naruto was literally the light of Sasuke's dreary life. That golden blond hair that you could pick out of a crowd, his ocean blue eyes that you could drown in when he looked at you, his brilliant smile that could be seen for miles, his whiskered cheeks that he would lightly scratch when he was nervous or embarrassed, those pink lips that looked so soft..

Sasuke blushed as he realized just how he was seeing the blond. He had never thought about it before. Maybe because Naruto was always around? He had never had to imagine his life without him otherwise. Sure they had their fair share of stupid fights and arguments, but they had always made up. This time was different though. They had a pretty bad fight and now Sasuke might not have the chance to apologize to Naruto.

The thought of not being able to make up with Naruto or ever speak to him again, sent Sasuke over the edge. He gripped the fox tightly against his chest, holding back the tears as best as he could. Shikamaru and Kiba both saw his body start to shake and looked at one another.

Without another word, both of the brunette boys silently left the room, making their way to the living room. They sat on the couch and turned on the TV, putting the volume up slightly higher than needed.

Sasuke crawled into Naruto's bed and let all of his tears flow. He heard the TV from the other room and finally let everything he had bottled up, out. He sobbed into the pillow, never letting go of the orange fox that was being clung to like his life depended on it.

He had so many emotions that were being bottled up. He felt regret for kicking Naruto out of the house that night. He felt anger at himself for being so blind. He felt sad and heartbroken at the thought of not ever speaking to the blond again.. but, the one that sent him over the edge.. was love. He realized in that moment that he truly loved Naruto, more than just a friend. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with Naruto by his side.

After he let all of his emotions go, Sasuke felt more exhausted now than he had ever felt in his life. He slowly rose from the bed, shuffling his way into the living room. The other two boys looked up and each scooted over so there was room for Sasuke to sit.

The raven haired boy sat between the other two and the three of them sat in a comfortable silence for a while. Sasuke finally spoke with his hoarse voice, breaking the silence.

"Do you guys.. think.. I'll get the chance to tell him.."

Kiba gave a light smile and Shikamaru followed. "Of course you will. Naruto could fall out of an airplane and be fine in a week or two." Kiba laughed as he thought about how durable the blond idiot was.

"I bet he's been awake and has just been faking it. Not wanting to go to school while all of us have to suffer.." Kiba whined while tossing his head back on the couch.

Sasuke couldn't help but let out a light chuckle as did Shikamaru. "He's going to flip shit over all the makeup work he is going to have to do" Sasuke smiled as he thought about how the blond would react.

Shikamaru elbowed Sasuke lightly in the side. "Like you're not going to be the one to end up doing it."

Sasuke rubbed his side and smiled. "The things we do for love" he mumbled, mostly to himself.

"What a drag" Shikamaru said as he yawned, causing the other two to yawn in agreement. Soon, all three of the boys were fast asleep on the couch. All of them exhausted.