Against The Odds

Chapter 7

The muted blaring of horns and the bustling of the city resonated through the grey walls. Case files upon case files were stacked on the sleek desk, none of them close to being completed. Ebony eyes stared down at the papers in front of him, the words just merging with each other as nothing was registering in Sasuke's head. He felt overwhelmed, every sound in his surroundings from the car horns to the AC blowing and even his own sighs were amplified in his brain. His ears began to ring, getting louder and louder at each second. 

*SWISH* 

Sasuke pushed himself from the desk and leaned back against the cushion surface his chair. He closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. Breathing in deeply, he began to focus on that and distancing himself from his surroundings. 

'Okay... just breathe. 1...2...3...'

He counted till 15 and slowly Sasuke began to feel control of himself again. He squeezed his fists, a soft exhale releasing from his lips and he opened his eyes.

Everything was back to normal. 

'Fuck... I need a break.' Sasuke thought, getting up and making his way to the his mini-fridge. He pulled out a chilled water and pressed it onto his forehead, the wet coolness equalising the warmth. Taking a swig of water, he leaned against his table and looked out into the distance, his face in deep thought. 

'Everything's been going downhill lately. Especially Naruto.' The raven frowned as he thought about his love. He noticed things. Small differences in Naruto's behaviour that were too unorthodox to ignore. Physically and mentally. 

He noticed Naruto's spacey behaviour where he would go into a trance like state - it was almost like he was lost in his own headspace. He noticed the sad expressions and tired eyes - it pulled Sasuke's heartstrings to see Naruto like that. He noticed Naruto's aversion to touch and affection which is strange because his dobe always loved affection.

'We've even been fighting more recently. Not just petty arguments. Full blown fights. I know it's the mood swings and honestly... probably the stress of being pregnant as well. We just really need to talk and work our way through this.' The raven thought, his worry for Naruto and their baby deepening every second. 

"Naruto! I'm sorry okay? Here... just come here and we'll talk this out." Sasuke opened his arms towards his boyfriend, guilt clawing him for making him cry. Naruto glared at the raven, his arms crossed around his chest. He scowled, baring his teeth before swiftly turning and walking away. 

Sasuke sighed. Deciding to follow him, he made his way to the bathroom. Naruto was standing there, staring at the full length mirror with the same melancholy expression he has been wearing for days. He slowly went up from behind and wrapped his arms around Naruto's waist. Sasuke's eyebrow raised at the immediate rigidness of Naruto's body but he decided not to comment on that. 

"Talk to me Naruto. What's wrong?" He softly asked, laying his chin on Naruto's shoulder as they both stared at each other from the mirror. The blond bristled, looking down at his sock-covered feet. 

"You... just treated me like as if I was crazy. It pissed me off." Naruto whispered, trying to move away from Sasuke's grip on him but the arms tightened around him, locking him in place. 

"I'm still pissed off." He pouted, looking up at the mirror. Sasuke's eyes looked back in love. 

Sasuke straightened up to kiss Naruto's head but managed to escape Sasuke's grip and move away. He glared at the confused raven. "You can't give a few kisses and expect to be forgiven teme." Naruto growled and took off, leaving Sasuke there - completely baffled and slightly miffed.