Through Pain And Strife {A Naruto Fanfic}

Why'd This Happen

No One's POV

Almost a year has passed since their meeting and they've gotten really close. One day, Gaara was walking to their meeting spot. He was passing by a group of kids that were talking and froze when he heard her name.

"I haven't seen Akane much lately," one of them said.

"I have, she's been hanging around him a lot." The other answered.

"That's really annoying. Why is she hanging out with that monster so much?"

"It's probably just out of pity." They laughed, "She probably just feels bad for him since no one else wants to hang out with him."

"Ooh, o~r-or maybe she was dared to do it. You know she can't back down from one of those." Someone else said and they laughed some more until they realized Gaara was there and then they ran away.

Gaara's POV

She's hanging out with me because of pity? Or a dare? I sighed internally I should've known it was something like that. That's probably it so, I should just—

"Gaara~! What're you doing over there? Come sit with me." I was pulled from my thoughts to see that my feet had brought me to the meeting spot, out by the swing where we first became 'friends'.

I sat down beside her under the shade in silence.

"What's the matter Gaara? Something on your mind?" She asked with a smile.

I pulled my knees to my chest in thought of the right words but all that I managed to say was, "Why?" I could feel her eyes on me and looked at her un-faltered smile through the corner of my eye.

"Hm?" She asked and I put my legs flat.

I clutched my bear and looked over at her, "Why are you hanging out with...'a monster like me'?" Her smile vanished.

"Monster...?"

"Yes. I'm a monster as everyone says. I have killed and done very bad things, so doesn't that make me a monster?" I asked her and she took off her cat eared hood before looking away from me.

"....Yes...." She said and something in my chest tightened. She sat on her knees facing me.

"So it's true..." I muttered and she looked at me with soft eyes. "I killed my mother and Yashimaru after all. Everyone was right" I said.

SMACK

My cheeks suddenly hurt and I looked at her with wide eyes. She... hit me. "Listen and listen close, Gaara. From what you've told me before, it wasn't your fault that your mother died. She's not the only woman to have died after giving birth to a child. Also, with the whole Yashimaru thing, he did try to kill you first. You were only defending yourself. You have to... stop......" She faded off as she noticed something. She lifted my hair over my forehead, "Is that what this is all about?" she asked, looking into my eyes and I didn't say anything.

"You're only hanging out with me... out of pity... o-or because you were dared to, right? You can stop now. I don't need it. You can just go back to your old friends, you don't have to hang around me anymore... I.. I don't want you to hang out with me.. anymore." I felt my chest tighten again as I said it. Removing her hands from my face I saw that her eyes widened when I glanced back at her.

She went from shocked to upset in just a few seconds.

Akane's POV

"You're only hanging out with me...out of pity...o-or because you were dared to, right? You can stop now. I don't need it. You can just go back to your old friends, you don't have to hang around me anymore... I.. I don't want you to hang out with me.. anymore." He said, pulling my hands off and turning away from me.

What? My eyes widened as I tried to process what I just heard. I searched his face for some kind of sign if this being a joke, but... he only glanced back at me. But... but why? What... what'd I do wrong?

"Pity...? A... dare?" I repeated his words "Do I really..... seem like the type to do something like that?" My heart hurt a lot as I put my still out reached hand down. "But I--"

"I said I don't want to hang out with you anymore!" He yelled at me... I sat there for a moment looking at the ground. "I.... I understand" I told him and stood up.

"Let me just make something perfectly clear though. I don't feel things like pity. Also, I would never accept a dare that involves me having to string someone along. I stopped being friends with those other people because of the way they treated you. I didn't care if they'd stopped liking me because of it. I just......" he looked up at me with hurt eyes, "...I was just happy to have become your friend. I am sorry for being such an untrustworthy bother to you, Gaara" I told him before walking away.

"But why?! Why did you want to--?!" He called and I cut him of with my answer.

"Because!" I shouted, "because... I thought... I thought i'd finally found... someone.. like me." I told him before hurrying elsewhere.

No One's POV

Gaara sat on the swing with his bear in hand and tears began rolling down his face as he pushed off into a sway. Akane stopped to take a breath and tears started rolling down hers as she tried to gather herself.

'Why... why'd this happen?' They both wondered as they silently cried to themselves.