Temptation (NEW)

Chapter Nineteen

"You need to eat something," I urged Sasuke.

He had been poking at his breakfast for the last twenty minutes with a dull look. Last night, he barely ate any of his dinner. The thought of his parents finding out was weighing on him heavily. He hadn't heard from them yet, but it was only a matter of time. I'm sure it was gnawing at him until he did.

"I'm honestly not hungry," Sasuke sighed. "I just want to get this day over with."

"We could always ditch," I offered up.

"I've missed enough class so I can't skip." He finally took a bite, but I could tell it was hard for him to swallow. He instantly grimaced. "Plus, I don't want to look like a coward."

"Do you honestly think people will say something to you?" I don't know of any person willing to act out towards Sasuke. He is notoriously brutal in a fight, but it was probably pent-up anger he could never release. "I think they'd say something to me before you."

He glared up at me. "I'll kick their ass if they do."

Oh, it's actually kind of nice to be on the good side of Sasuke. Normally, I'm the one getting threatened. I've never had a protective boyfriend before---er, if I can actually call him that now. It's kind of cute in a scary way.

I felt fine on the drive up to the school, but as soon as we parked, things changed. Sasuke was clearly feeling the anxiety, too. His fingers tapped nervously on the steering wheel as he stared up at the building. No one was really in the parking lot at 7:30AM, so that was relieving. The real challenge would be all the students waiting inside for us.

"Should we walk in separately?" I asked.

"No, that's ridiculous."

"Do you need another minute?" I looked over at him with sympathetic eyes. Honestly, I could have used another minute to gather myself, too.

"No, I think I'm ready."

He hopped out of the car and I reluctantly followed. The cold, windy air ripped through me. Normally, I'd speedwalk into the warm building, but I think I'd rather freeze today. I was in no rush to be stared at. We walked side by side, keeping our heads low.

Even though I stared at the floor, I could feel the eyes of everyone that walked past us. I was curious to know what expressions they held on their faces, but I was too scared to actually look. Sure, people are way more accepting of gay people nowadays, but they still gawk at us like we're wild animals. With Sasuke basically coming out, everyone is going to want to see him to look for the signs they had missed.

"Nice to have you back, Mr. Uchiha." Our professor was standing outside of his office with a real smile. It was weird to see him look thrilled. He typically looks like his only life support is coffee.

"Thanks," Sasuke muttered. He stopped walking to look towards our professor, so of course I stopped, too.

"You two are getting along, I see," he nodded towards both of us. It was a subtle way of telling us he knew.

We blushed, glancing at each other. Just as we turned to keep walking, our professor called out one last thing. "Sasuke, if you need to talk to someone, Mr. Umino is really nice. Or, my door is always open, too."

Mr. Umino is one of the counselors at the school. I think Sasuke needed to hear that he'd have support. Or rather, he does have support. I'm sure it felt like the world was closing in around him.

I could hear him suck in his breath as soon as we stepped through the threshold of the classroom. For an 8AM class, it sure was awake and alive today. Whispers erupted like popcorn to each of the scattered students. They were all trying so hard not to stare, but it ended up happening anyways. Some snickered, some smiled as if we were brave heroes, but it was mostly just curiosity.