Mind games

Forget goodbye

"The one thing I wish I'd forget, the memory I want to forget, is goodbye."

It didn't matter that it'd been years. It didn't matter that Naruto ended up successful and brought Sasuke Uchiha back to the village. It didn't matter that he was regarded as a hero and could possibly be achieving his goal of becoming Hokage soon. Nothing mattered.

Nothing except the memories that seemed to be haunting him nonstop. He couldn't sleep without a moment from his past surfacing. He would think back to when he and Sasuke first met. When they were on the same team. When they were friends.

He'd remember their first kiss. He couldn't help but smile, despite the fact that their accidental kiss got the crap kicked out of him by every girl in the school. That moment was the start of something.

He would wake up at night, panting and on the verge of crying from his nightmares. He couldn't sleep anymore without replaying the moment when Sasuke nearly died for him. The look in Sasuke's eyes. The last words he uttered to Naruto...

"Naruto, don't let your dream die,"

Naruto would never forget when Sasuke admitted his dream in life. When he said that all he could be was an avenger and nothing else mattered. It was at that moment Naruto decided that Sasuke couldn't go at it alone. It was then that his new goal became to befriend the young Uchiha and to help him through his life.

Of course, this only made it harder for Naruto to bear when Sasuke left him and everyone else behind. But that was the past. He couldn't change it, no matter how hard he tried. He couldn't stop dwelling on it either. It was sort of bitter sweet to think back to when he and Sasuke were close.

Naruto's blue eyes fluttered open. He blinked a few times, realizing that he was still in his apartment. He sat up slowly, ignoring the shakes in his body. He was getting used to these dreams. Sasuke haunted him night and day, dream world and real world.

With still sleepy eyes, Naruto glanced out the window. He could see the sky starting to turn reds and yellows, which meant that the sunrise was on its way. Sighing and knowing that he couldn't get back to sleep (not that he wanted to anyways), he stood from his bed and headed off to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

The whole time he got dressed and ready, Sasuke flooded his mind. Often Naruto found himself wondering what he had done wrong. Why he wasn't able to be there for Sasuke like he always tried to be. He wondered why he had to stand there that night and say goodbye to his best friend, not knowing if he'd ever come back.

As Naruto walked out of his apartment for the day, he let a heavy sigh escape his lips. He knew that he'd run into the young Uchiha today. He saw him everyday. It nearly killed Naruto every single time. The two didn't speak anymore. They used to be best friends and now they were... well, he didn't know what they were.

He shut and locked the door to his apartment, turning on his heel and heading into the village. He could feel a familiar sting at the corners of his eyes. He would never give into it and actually cry, but the thought was tempting.

It broke Naruto's heart, if he was honest with himself, that Sasuke just pushed him aside like that. He... No, he couldn't say it, not even to himself. His pride (and broken heart) refused to let him admit the feelings he secretly harbored for the young raven-haired boy. He believed that they didn't exist as long as he didn't acknowledge them.

He made his way through the village, pushing the tears away from his eyes. Everyone he passed greeted him and waved to him with warm smiles on their faces. It was what he'd always wanted- to be regarded and loved by everyone in the village. So why did it feel so wrong?