Work Text:
There was a familiar knock at the door.
I didn’t bother to get up.
“Heeeeey,” Naruto said, barging in like usual.
“Did I invite you in?” I asked, staring him down over the sword I was cleaning.
“Nope,” he said, flopping on the floor cushions. “I brought sake.”
“Did you buy it at the discount store?” I asked, rolling my eyes.
“No, I got it from Baa-chan,” he said, holding up the bottle.
I squinted at it. “That actually looks… decent.”
“Right?” he said, grinning.
“I still didn’t invite you in.”
“Yeah, but you never invite me in,” he said, putting the sake bottle on the table and moving over to the kitchen.
“Maybe you should take the hint.”
Naruto just grinned, pulling down two cups from the cupboard. “And deprive you of my company?”
“Are you still this pathetically lonely?” I asked. I stood up, pushing in my chair. “You got divorced over a year ago. Get a hobby.”
“You’re my hobby,” Naruto said, blowing me a kiss.
I stared at him.
“Come drink,” he said, sitting back down and pouring sake into the two cups.
I sat across the table from him and picked up my cup, breathing in the sake before drinking it.
“Good shit, yeah?”
“Excellent shit,” I agreed.
Naruto laughed, clinking his cup with mine.
Everything went quiet. I’d built my cabin in the woods, on the outskirts of Konoha. There were no people for miles, just the sounds of nature.
Even Naruto fell quiet, sipping his sake as the tension from the week drained from his face. He caught me watching him, and his smile was slow and soft. “Hey, you got any snacks?”
I rolled my eyes. “Do you just come to someone else’s house and demand things?”
“Okay, first of all I practically live here.”
I raised an eyebrow at him.
“And second of all, I brought the booze.”
“You usually bring shitty booze.”
“Yes, but this time I actually brought something good, so I should be rewarded.”
“You said you got it from Tsunade.”
“Yes, and I generously brought it here to share with you instead of keeping it for myself.”
“Well, since you supposedly live here, why don’t you go through my kitchen and find your own damn snacks.”
“I think I will,” Naruto said, getting up and sauntering into the kitchen. It wasn’t far, since the whole cabin was only one room.
I poured myself some more sake. It actually was high-quality, so I let myself indulge a little. Naruto probably thought it tasted the same as the swill he usually bought for half off at the convenience store. He was never going to be a sake connoisseur. If we were talking ramen, all he had to do was take a bite and he could tell you what country the wheat had been grown in and what the climate had been like that year. Ask him to pick the best sake in the room and he’d pick the cheapest one.
We really had nothing in common sometimes.
“You always have the worst snacks,” he complained, digging through the cupboards. “Good thing there’s some chips left from last time!”
“Good thing.”
Naruto came back, settling next to me instead of his spot across the table.
I looked at him.
He poured the chips into a bowl, tossing the bag on the table.
I made a face.
He glanced at me, grinning.
“Throw out your garbage.”
“I’ll do it later.”
“Or you could do it now. And get me the edamame from the fridge.”
“Ohhh, Sasuke is drinking seriously tonight,” Naruto said, bouncing to his feet. He left the dirty chip bag on the table and went to the refrigerator.
I waited.
He put the plate on table.
I looked at him.
“What?”
I looked at the bag.
He waved me off. “You can use it for the pods.”
“Or I could use a plate like a civilized person.”
“You live in the middle of the woods like a hermit and you wanna talk about being civilized?”
I looked at him.
“You’re so damn uppity,” Naruto muttered. He stood up and snatched the empty bag from the table as dramatically as possible, stomping over to the trash and depositing it with a flourish. He returned with a plate from the cupboard, clattering it on the table.
“Thank you,” I said, touching his arm briefly.
He immediately melted back into smiles.
We resumed drinking, exchanging occasional banter.
I felt relaxed, so when Naruto settled his hand on my knee, I let him keep it there.
When he poured me another drink, I drank it.
When he leaned in too close, I didn’t lean away.
“Sasuke,” he said, face so close that I could almost feel the brush of his lashes as he blinked.
“No.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“No.”
He leaned back.
I could still feel his hand.
“Sasuke.”
“It’s not going to happen.”
His brow scrunched up in confusion.
“Eat your nasty chips,” I said, moving his hand.
Naruto glanced at me, his cheeks flushed, then turned back to his chips. “They’re delicious, are you sure you don’t want any?”
“Give me one,” I said, because I was pleasantly sauced, and a thinly-sliced, deep-fried potato suddenly seemed like a good idea.
“Say ‘ah’,” he instructed, holding one up in my face.
I opened my mouth and he popped it in. I chewed carefully, deciding that the artificial barbecue flavor wasn’t as awful as I thought it would be. It was awful, it just didn’t live up to my expectations of awfulness.
“More?” he offered.
I picked up an edamame instead, popping the beans into my mouth and dropping the pod on the plate.
He was staring at me.
I knew he wanted me, and that was exactly the problem.
“We should talk about it,” he said abruptly.
I’d thought for sure he’d move on after my subtle rejection. But tonight wasn’t like every other night. He’d brought his expensive sake and his determination.
“Sasuke.”
“Talk about what?” I finally said.
“Don’t do that,” he said, frowning.
“Maybe you should take the hint.”
“Uh, yeah, I’ve taken a lot of hints,” he said, eyes meeting mine evenly. That damn hand was on my knee again. “The way you look at me. The way you only smile for me. The way you love me as much as I love you.”
“You’re just going all the way tonight,” I marveled.
“Why do you think I brought the good sake?!” he said. “We’re doing this, Sasuke. We’re saying it. Stop trying to put me off.”
“You know why this isn’t going to work.”
“How do you know if we don’t even try?”
“Because it didn’t work with Sakura.”
“What has that got to do with you and me?!”
“I’m not capable of being in a relationship.”
Naruto let out a frustrated sigh. “Then what the hell do you call this?” he asked, gesturing vaguely between us.
“You barging into my house uninvited every chance you get?”
“Sasuke. I’m trying to have a serious conversation.”
“I feel that was a perfectly serious answer.”
“Sasuke.”
“Naruto.”
“Sasuke.”
I took pity on him, resting my hand over his on my knee. “You know how I feel about you. Can’t that be enough?”
“Why does it have to be enough?” he asked, casting his eyes to the floor. “I mean, we’re finally both divorced-”
“Finally?”
“You know what I mean!”
“Do I?”
“I didn’t make a mistake marrying Hinata, okay? I love her, and I always will. But I just… love you… more…?”
“Hope she doesn’t hear you saying that.”
“Shaddup. I’m saying really nice and romantic shit to you, and you’re over here being your usual sarcastic bitch self,” Naruto complained.
“Well, don’t you love all of me, even my sarcastic bitch self?”
Naruto bit his lip, trying to hide his smile. “Yeah, okay, maybe.”
It would be so easy to kiss him then. To just lean in and touch our lips together.
“We could figure out a way to make this work,” he said, squeezing my knee. He was always so tactile.
I did want to kiss him.
“-completely different points in our life, with different wants and expectations.”
I realized he was still talking, and I wasn’t listening at all.
“What are you going on about?”
Naruto stuck his bottom lip out in a pout. He was still cute middle-aged, not that I’d tell him so. “I’m going on about you and me, being in a consensual adult relationship, possibly lacking in sexual intercourse.”
“Yeah? You’re going to be celibate for me?” I asked.
“I’ve pretty much been celibate since Hima was born, so…”
I tried not to laugh.
“I don’t even know how two guys do it, anyway, so I won’t know what I’m missing out on.”
I cracked up. “You are so dumb, Naruto.”
“What, do you know how two guys have sex?!”
I shook my head in dismay. “Why am I even considering this?” I muttered to myself.
“You’re smiling a lot, did you actually get drunk?” Naruto asked, eyeing me.
“It’s either that or you’re the wittiest guy in Konoha, take your pick.”
“I choose the second one!”
I turned to him more fully, putting down my sake so I could rest my hand against his cheek. “Naruto. I do love you.”
His whole face seemed to light up.
“But you already knew that,” I said, pinching his cheek.
“It’s nice to hear.”
“I love you.”
“Sasuke,” he said, getting all emotional.
I rolled my eyes.
“Oi, don’t give me sass,” he sniffed.
“Why are you such a loser?” I said, shaking my head.
“Hey, you’re the one who likes me, so who’s the loser now?” he shot back.
It had taken us 42 years to get to this point, and here we were acting like our 12-year-old selves.
It was comforting. I hated to think myself old.
“Hey,” Naruto said. His hand was squeezing my knee again. “I’ve got a great idea.”
“Oh, no,” I muttered.
“You love my ideas, Sasuke, you love them.”
“I love to make fun of them.”
“Listen. Listen, listen, listen. Let’s play truth or dare!”
“No.”
“You didn’t even consider it.”
“Next idea, Naruto, move it along.”
“Okay. So. We play a drinking game.”
“What kind of drinking game?” I asked, giving the idea some credence.
“Whoever can do the most shots in one minute wins.”
I stared at him for a long time.
“What?”
“Are we doing shots of sake?” I asked.
“Well, that’s all the booze I brought, so…”
“No. You are an idiot. Next idea.”
“Arm wrestling.”
I considered it. “No. You have the obvious advantage with your fake Senju arm.”
“In what way?!”
“Next.”
“So are you admitting defeat?!”
That wily idiot had me. “Fine,” I said, setting my elbow on the table.
“Wait, we gotta decide terms!” Naruto said. “Terms! Very important terms!”
“If I win, you stop barging into my house whenever you feel like it,” I said.
Naruto looked shocked and offended. “No way!”
I stared at him.
He pouted.
Dammit, he was cute. “You will call before you come.”
“You never charge your phone!”
I shrugged.
“Okay, whatever, fine. I will call before I come,” Naruto agreed. He looked like he thought there was no way he could lose anyway. “And if I win, you go on a date with me!”
“Isn’t that what we’re doing right now?” I asked. I thought he’d go for something more dramatic, like if he won I’d have to marry him. I was almost disappointed.
“This is a date?!” Naruto cried.
I shrugged.
“I’d really like it if it was a date,” he said, suddenly soft and sincere.
“Stupid,” I said, flexing my fist.
Naruto took the hint and gripped my hand.
It was more of a stalemate than I expected.
“How come you’re not losing?!” Naruto complained. “I have this powerful Senju arm!”
“I was lying about that,” I said. “Obviously I have the advantage, since I put all my power in one arm.”
“Whaaaaat?”
“You’re so cute when you’re dumb.”
He immediately lost.
I smirked.
“Were you just flirting with me to make me lose?!” Naruto demanded.
“Yes.”
“You…”
“And now you can stop barging into my house.”
“I demand a rematch.”
“So you can lose again?”
“I’m not gonna fall for your dirty tricks twice!”
I poured him more sake. The bottle was almost empty.
He took the bottle from me and poured the rest into my cup. “Am I annoying you?” he asked quietly.
“No,” I said, taking a lingering sip of my drink.
“If you really want me to stop…”
“I don’t.”
He looked at me, hopeful but anxious.
“I want you to convince me,” I said, looking away.
Naruto was quiet.
I looked out the window, where the moon was a distant glow behind storm clouds. “It took Sakura and I a long time to be in the same room together.”
“That’s not going to happen with us,” Naruto said. He spoke with conviction, even though he knew the situation better than anyone.
Sakura and I were divorced less than a year after I came back to Konoha.
“She wants things from me that I can’t give her.”
“Do you love her?”
“…yes.”
“Shouldn’t that be enough?”
“I thought it was.”
It wasn’t.
Then again, what I felt for Sakura had never been romantic.
I often wondered if what I felt for Naruto was.
Had I always been in love with him? Was I even capable of romantic love?
“Yes,” he said, like he was reading my thoughts. He cradled my cheek, pulling me into him.
I wasn’t sure. I was always sure, I always knew the answer, I always knew what step to take next, but here I was, drowning in Naruto’s eyes, and I wasn’t sure.
I didn’t want to lose him to some experiment gone horribly wrong.
I didn’t want to become repulsed by him the way…
“No,” I said quietly.
“Why not?”
“Because you’re incapable of looking at me without lust.”
“I think I take offense to that.”
“It makes my skin crawl.”
“Sasuke…” Naruto said, looking sad. His lips were so close, and I really did want to kiss them.
“You’re a sexual person, Naruto,” I said, looking away. “There’s nothing wrong with that. I’m the abnormal one.”
“There’s nothing wrong with you, either,” Naruto said fiercely.
I laughed.
“What?” he asked, confused.
“Can you imagine us having this conversation twenty years ago?”
Naruto snorted. “Definitely not. One of us would have already been punched.” He leaned back on his arms. “God, we were awful at communicating.”
“I think we do okay now,” I offered.
Naruto smiled. “Haven’t stopped fighting, but yeah, I think so. We’re adults. Very adult-y. All adulting, all the time.”
I rolled my eyes. “If hiding from your responsibilities is being an adult, then sure, you’re the best.”
“Hey! I’m doing better,” he protested. He pulled me towards him and I let him. “Hinata said I’m a much better father when we’re not married.”
“That’s a pretty low bar.”
Naruto glared at me but couldn’t protest. His constant prioritizing of his job over his family was why he was no longer married.
I pulled away, picking up his cup and drinking the rest.
“What’re you doin’, drinkin’ other people’s drinks?!” Naruto cried.
“You didn’t appreciate it, anyway,” I said. “If you bring more of this next time, you can come without calling.”
“But Baa-chan got it in the Land of Lightning…”
“I guess you’ve got a long journey ahead of you.”
“Hey, Sas’?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m gonna kiss you now.”
“I thought we already discussed this,” I said, still facing away from him.
“You told me to convince you, and the best way to do that is with my superior kissing ability.”
“From what I remember, that’s really not going to work in your favor.”
“From what you…” Naruto started, then burst out laughing. “That kiss doesn’t count!”
“You kissed me in front of the whole damn Academy,” I said. “I’ll never live down the shame, so it counts.”
“I didn’t kiss you!”
“My lips beg to differ.”
“I fell! FELL!”
“Your lips just fell on my lips?”
“YES!”
“Hn.”
Naruto surged into me, sealing our lips together.
It wasn’t what I expected.
He kept his tongue to himself, just whispering his lips against mine.
I felt warm.
I felt… loved.
I kissed him back.
When Naruto pulled away to take a breath, I realized both of his hands were clutching the front of my shirt.
I caught his right hand, pressing my lips to each bandaged knuckle.
He looked overwhelmed. “We have to make this work, Sas’. We have to.”
I rested his closed hand against my chest and he opened it, holding it over my heart. I nodded my head slowly.
We kissed again briefly, and I knew it was the start of something. Where it would end… well, hopefully, it wouldn’t.