Taking Time

Alone

It had been twenty minutes since Sasuke confessed to possibly leaving to Tokyo sometime soon. During that period of time, Naruto felt his emotions range from anger and rage, to sadness, then guilt, and finally desperation.

Naruto could feel his eyes trembling in their sockets, while his shallow breath's restrained him from controlling his body. It was like the unimaginable was now happening and there was no rewinding time to fix it all. No, whatever relationship they once shared was no more. Sasuke had made it clear. It felt odd—while his body was swelling with tension and anxiety, his mind was now blank. He couldn't even find the willpower to break the intense eye contact between them. And that silence was deafening. As he stared at Sasuke—his eyes begging for the raven to kick him out again, so he'd, at least, have the physical push he needed to leave—he tried to calm himself down and be positive. However, he just couldn't. What was there to be positive about in this situation? His person was no longer that. Sasuke'd been humiliated by Naruto's actions and words. On top of that, Sasuke hadn't treated Naruto that much better. What, with dismissing his wants and needs and, now, lying to him about moving. Naruto took in a shaky breath, instantly regretting it as his eyes started to water. It wasn't like Naruto could change anything by asking Sasuke to stay in Konoha. What good would that do? All it would be is: confusing. In fact, Naruto didn't even know if he wanted Sasuke to stay. If their relationship did actually end tonight, then it would be easier for Naruto to move on without Sasuke around. That way, Sasuke could also do what he needed to do and be successful without Naruto bothering him about elementary things... Like a wedding, for instance.

He hated to admit it, but fate wasn't on his side anymore. He couldn't help but wonder what good would come next... Would he find success, like Sasuke? Would he be happy without the man by his side? Finding a silver lining was hard, especially when the dark eyes of the man he once was so deeply in love with were staring back at him clouded in shallow hatred.

Naruto was lost in his despair.

"You should go." Sasuke broke the silence. "Itachi is coming by and I need to..." His eyes moved to the glass on the floor.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah."

Even though there was an agreement that Naruto should be leaving, the blonde couldn't find it in him to follow through. The moment he'd take a step outside their once shared apartment, he didn't know if or when he'd see Sasuke again. He didn't know when he'd touch him... Would he even have the right to?

He looked at Sasuke's profile, his dark hair falling over it, blocking Naruto's clear view of his eyes. He felt tortured—seeing the remnants of his greatest lover in front of him, but not feeling the grandeur of it to fill him up. Why did it happen like this? His goal wasn't to end things, but, at the same time, his actions came off that way. He couldn't deny it.

"Naruto." Sasuke stated, firmly, not looking up at him.

Naruto felt shattered. He came to talk to Sasuke because... because... He was confused. That's it. He was just acting out before. He realized it. And he didn't want his suspicions to become reality. He wanted to wake himself up because he was afraid he wouldn't recognize the world outside anymore. As he watched Sasuke bend down to start picking up the glass from the floor with his damaged hands, all he wanted to do was bend down and help him and apologize profusely. God, he wished they could've approached their chat in a civil way, but perhaps Naruto could've thought a bit more before he'd acted. He'd already left Sasuke in a terrible and dramatic way. And now, he was barging in on him, unannounced... Naruto had no right to hope for civility. He's the one who was causing the dramatics. Why wouldn't Sasuke suspect their relationship was over. He had every indication that it was. No matter what Naruto said now, it would all fall short.