We're A Wreck

3

Sasuke was sitting in his bathtub, frowning down at the soapy water around him. In an attempt to make himself feel better, he had run a bath for himself, adding in scented soaps to assist in calming his nerves.

It didn't help.

He couldn't stop thinking about the fact that Naruto was out on a date with some chick that didn't even love him back. That wasn't the only problem, though. Sasuke had been prepared to spend all day with Naruto, something they hadn't done in some time. Now, though, Naruto was out with his girlfriend. Great.

In all honesty, Sasuke wasn't sure why he liked Naruto. The guy was loud, annoying, frustrating, and idiotic. And yet, Sasuke found himself relaxed in his company, content to just be near him. The simple fact that Naruto was there was enough to get him through the day. That constant reassurance, that gentle push Naruto gave him whenever Sasuke was getting down again, that bright smile that seemed to be a lamp in a pitch-black room to Sasuke, all of it—that's what appealed to Sasuke. The fact Naruto never seemed to be affected by the world, as if he was the world, as if nothing was ever going to say his opinion was something Sasuke leaned on whenever conflicted or in distress. Naruto was someone he felt he could trust completely and without regret.

In other words, Naruto was Sasuke's person, the one he relied on the most, the one he cared for the most, the one he wanted by his side forever.

Groaning, Sasuke slid down in the bath, letting the water cover his head.

Maybe if he stayed down there long enough he'd drown. And maybe then he wouldn't have to deal with the fact he'd fallen for an idiotic moron who was dating a woman who was in love with someone else—someone who happened happened be Sasuke.

This love-triangle was getting tiring, and Sasuke was done with it. He was done with everything, with the loneliness eating him whole, with the fact he loved a man who would never love him back, with the fact he never seemed to be able to love fully without restraint, with the fact life kept throwing things at him that he wasn't capable of handling. Everything.

Sasuke's lungs were burning, but the feeling was pleasant. At least, it was until he physically couldn't stand it anymore and the ache in his lungs became so strong that it felt like his entire being was on fire. Only then did he resurface, gasping for air. Water drilled down his face, and he swiped at it with his hand, panting.

What was Sasuke going to do now that Naruto wasn't coming over immediately? Maybe he could head to the shopping district nearby and buy some snacks for tonight, or perhaps he could buy tissues for tonight when Naruto never shows up.

Either way, it sounded like a plan, and the only plan he had.

So, it was decided, Sasuke would go to the shopping district where he got lost last time! What a great idea...

But what else was there to do? Go to the park? Cry? Or both? Or maybe he could visit someone, not that he has anyone to visit, but it was better than sitting alone in his bathroom, trying to drown himself.

With a loud sigh, Sasuke opted to simply go where his feet took him. Which would lead to a complete disaster, but oh well, so was life.

...

Sasuke was, in fact, not lost, but boy did he wish he was. He had managed to run into someone he really didn't want to see.

"Hello," Gaara murmured, looking around awkwardly.

Nodding politely, Sasuke wondered what would happen if he just turned around and left. He didn't need those tissues that badly.

For a moment, the two boys stood there, silently, staring at one another in confusion and unease. Sasuke didn't know what to say or do. He hadn't spoke to Gaara since the last time the red-head and Naruto had been parading around town together, acting as stupid as ever.

Sasuke didn't hate Gaara, but he didn't like him either. It was something about the way he acted better than everyone else when they first that threw Sasuke off. And the two had gone head-to-head in academic battles and competitions in the past, so he felt conflicted about so much as looking at Gaara with anything but competitiveness in his gaze. Of course, their rivalry wasn't an entertaining one, unlike Naruto and Sasuke's. Naruto had managed to make the whole ordeal interesting, at least. All Gaara did was infuriate Sasuke.

"So, have you seen Naruto?" Gaara asked, blinking slowly at Sasuke as they made eye contact.

Sasuke shook his head. "He's on a date with Sakura right now, sorry."

"Ah...I forgot those two were together..."

Sasuke didn't miss the discomfort in Gaara's voice, nor did he miss the way he shifted on his feet, as if wanting to run away.

Odd, Sasuke thought, suspicious of the man in front of him.

"Yeah, they've been together for almost a year," Sasuke added, prodding the small hole he'd made in Gaara's foundation.

"Mm... okay. Well, later than," he said hurriedly, scurrying off. He stepped around Sasuke and sped-walked away.

Sasuke just stood there, in the middle of the street, watching the stupid redhead waddle away. Then, as Gaara turned a corner, Sasuke decided to let the matter go and began to walk in the direction of the coffee shop he'd seen.

He wasn't even five feet away when he noticed the door of the shop he'd been wanting to go into open. A couple walked out, one with bright blond hair and the other with pink hair. The two were giggling together, looking happy.

Sasuke stopped. His heart sank, dropping into the pit of his stomach. For a second, he was breathless, feeling as if someone had kicked the air out of his lungs, or as if someone had squeezed him like an accordion, pressing the air from him while dancing and singing, as if it were the funniest thing in the world. Said instrument resided within the hands of the universe. She has pressed and pulled and pushed and now Sasuke had flattened against the tile beneath his feet, watching as the man he loved walked away from him, hand in hand with a woman he couldn't quite put a finger on, someone who loved and didn't, a cheater who didn't cheat.

Fuck shopping, Sasuke thought, turning on his heels and heading home, feeling as if his heart would crash through his ribcage anytime now.