Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Soup's On	By : OfFansAndFlames Category: Naruto AU/AR > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1793 -:- Recommendations : 4 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters mentioned. I make no money on this fiction.

Chapter List
- 9
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Sasuke shook a sticky soda can into his bag as Naruto held it out for him. In Naruto's other hand, he held a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Ignoring Naruto's protests, Sasuke made a habit of packing himself two meals whenever working at the park. It was repayment for all of Naruto's help in the kitchen and at the park, Sasuke explained. A simple quid pro quo. He had also brought an old black track jacket he had outgrown in the past year for Naruto, which Sasuke no longer had use for.
The leaves had begun to change, occasional dabs or red and yellow dispersed among a sea of palm trees. As far as autumns went, this was as drastic as southern California got. The weather had begun to cool, and now Sasuke frequented the park in a jacket.
Sasuke explained to Naruto that the cool weather had caused the beach to become less popular, meaning that less cleanup was required. Thus, his only other possible option was the park. He neglected to mention that he could've also cleaned up a number of hiking trails, as well as the grass around the freeway. It was a white lie.
In the time that passed, Sasuke was dragged to a few more parties. He was beginning to find them somewhat more tolerable, and they broke the monotony of his week. Sasuke had also developed something of a shoplifting habit. Most of the nervousness and adrenaline of his first time was gone. He stole without thinking now, quick and dirty. But as he neared the security censors, he still experienced a rush, if only just a small one. He found himself stealing even if he hadn't originally wanted to. It became a compulsion for him. While he admitted this to himself on some level, he took few measures to remedy it other than occasionally avoiding stores. He seemed to have a knack for it and had never come near to getting caught.
Of course, Naruto knew nothing of this. Sasuke never talked about his friends, the ways they misbehaved together, or the parties they went to. He didn't talk about how he'd made out with some random girl, or about when they had to drop Suigetsu off at the hospital because he drank too much that night. Nor did he mention the fate of his parents, his stressed and overworked brother, or their perpetually empty house.
He didn't want to talk to Naruto about any of those things. Despite Naruto's situation, and the fact that he was far less sheltered than even Sasuke, he seemed innocent to the Uchiha, untainted. How would Naruto react if he knew the truth? Aside from that, Sasuke enjoyed getting away from his normal life. When he was around Naruto, the person he used to be returned to the surface. There was no need to mar these moments of blissful escape with reality.
Sasuke had been especially quiet today, the hangover from the previous night not yet abated. Sasuke told Naruto that he had simply woken up with a random headache, which Naruto bought without questioning. The light around them ached, feeling as if someone were jabbing their thumb into the back of Sasuke's eyes. He was prone to migraines, and hangovers certainly didn't help matters.
"So I've been getting more trouble from the cops..." Naruto trailed off, frowning.
"Oh?"
Sasuke recalled the time that he had talked Naruto out of one of his last run-ins with the police. How frequently did that happen, anyhow? Naruto shrugged.
"Yeah. I don't know how much longer I can stay in the park. They told me to leave yesterday."
The ping of a baseball bat sounded as a boy hit a double in the field to their right. Sasuke glanced over at Naruto, whose discouragement was obvious.
"Do you know where you're going to stay now?"
Naruto shook his head, his frown sinking lower.
"I have a few options. None of them are very good, but it is what it is I suppose."
Sasuke wasn't sure how to respond. As ironic as it sounded, he had just lost his home. Naruto must have been filled with dread, sadness, and maybe even fear. He should be comforting Naruto, and he knew this. But this was something he had always been horrible with.
"Naruto, there's a shelter a city over. Why don't you just go there?"
"No. I can't," Naruto answered quickly, not giving Sasuke's suggestion even an instant of consideration.
It wasn't that Sasuke was angry with Naruto. But he wondered why Naruto would submit himself to this if he had any choice in the matter. Why was he doing this to himself? Why was he turning down, no, running from shelter, food, and a relatively safe environment when they were immediately in his grasp?
"What do you mean, you can't? Yes, you can. I can even take you there."
Naruto contended, "No, I can't. It's pretty obvious that I'm not over eighteen. If I check myself into the shelter, they'll call social services, and I'm back in foster care."
There was something Naruto wasn't telling him. This story made no sense. What was he hiding? Why was Naruto trying so hard to dodge the system? And what had he experienced in foster care that had been so horrible?
It enraged him. If someone else had been inflicting this on Naruto, they would have been lucky to get off with something as simple as a broken nose. But in this situation, Sasuke was completely helpless. He had brought this issue up with Naruto once before, and Naruto had refused to budge. He hated to watch this, and to him, it was totally unnecessary. He didn't bother to hide the anger in his voice.
"So? So what, you end up in foster care. You'll have a roof over your head, food, and a bed to sleep in. Look at you. You live in a goddamned park, you're dressed in rags, and you're way too fucking thin. Stop moping and take care of yourself for once!"
Perhaps he had gone too far. He didn't care. He just wanted this to stop. He couldn't stand watching this anymore. He worried about Naruto far more often than he would admit to himself. What if he got mugged? What if he got sick and couldn't get to a hospital? Who would protect him then? Naruto was just a kid, hardly older than he was.
Naruto growled, hiding the hurt in his voice as he shouted at Sasuke, "You really don't get it, do you? You're a sheltered, spoiled little brat, and you have no idea what I've lived through. Just shut up."
This had been the first time he had ever seen Naruto truly angry. Sasuke understood that Naruto had been through a lot, probably much more than Sasuke had. Yet still, Sasuke resented the implication that his own life was sunshine and roses just because he had a roof over his head. Naruto wasn't the only one with secrets.
"Then what is it? What am I not getting? Explain it to me, so a spoiled brat like me can understand."
His tone towards the end was mocking, his frustration mounting as they continued to argue.
Naruto seethed, "I don't have to explain anything to you. It's none of your damned business."
Naruto was right. Sasuke had entered Naruto's life just over a month ago, and he had no right to decide how Naruto should live. As much as it hurt him, he needed to respect this. He had been intrusive. Sasuke walked in silence, doing his best to muster up the words he knew he needed to say.
"I'm sorry, Naruto. I went too far."
Naruto was still incensed, but he recognized that Sasuke probably wasn't a guy who often apologized. He attempted to calm himself before responding to Sasuke. He knew why Sasuke was acting like this. Although Sasuke's words had stung, Naruto was at least happy to know that someone cared about him.
"It's alright. I know you didn't mean anything bad by it."
Naruto accepted the apology, but Sasuke could tell that his hurt and frustration over it had clearly not abided.
"Mn."
They were close to finishing the park, and the next fifteen minutes were spent in near silence. Although the two had reconciled, there was an awkwardness between them that didn't dissipate. Naruto tossed the bag in the dumpster as their job came to an end.
"I'll probably be staying near Eighth and J, if you want to see me. I won't be at the park much anymore."
Sasuke tried not to make his disappointment apparent. Nothing good happened in that part of town. He'd heard of a few cars getting broken into, and even an armed robbery about a couple miles from that intersection several years back.
Despite their earlier disagreement, he couldn't help but comment, "That's a pretty shady part of town, Naruto."
Naruto shrugged.
"Yeah, I know. But I know for a fact that the cops don't bug you there."
He nodded, refraining himself from making any more comments. He'd already created an image for himself as a worried mother hen. He wondered at how Naruto could make him behave so uncharacteristically.
"Alright. Well, Thursday then."
He'd wanted to say more. He wanted to tell him to just use his brain and protect his own safety and wellbeing, that this situation was crazy.
"Yeah, Thursday," Sasuke responded, and it seemed entirely inadequate to him.
Sasuke was frustrated with himself when he lost a couple hours of sleep that night worrying about Naruto. Had Naruto moved yet? Had the cops gotten to him? Was there something else he could've said to him to get him to go to the shelter? Was there anything he could have done?
It didn't take long for things to happen to people. By the time anyone even suspected, they could already be gone. He didn't expect Naruto to vanish, of course. It wasn't that serious. But his mind wandered, and his dreams were fitful.
By Monday, he was able to forget. His teachers appeared to have consorted against him, scheduling a twenty page paper, two different tests, and a speech within a three day period. He stayed up until the wee hours of the morning studying every night, though he'd never admit as much to his friends. By the time he bussed out to the soup kitchen from school, he had dark bags under his eyes and a nasty headache.
This time, they had him handing out rolls and salad. He did his job without thinking, casting a nod and several "you're welcome"s at the patrons. However, the words "soup's on" did not announce the beginning of his shift this evening. Sasuke did his best to ignore this, even smiling at a small girl who seemed especially pleased by the rolls. From time to time, he would halt his routine to scan the room for Naruto. He was nowhere to be found. Naruto had shown up every Thursday just as the doors were opened, shouting the same damned phrase like clockwork. And now, where was he?
This was unusual, but Sasuke dismissed it. They would be open for almost three hours, so Naruto had plenty of time to arrive. But when one hour passed, and then two hours, Sasuke began to remember their conversation from Saturday. As tired as he already was, he grew distracted, placing a salad on the wrong plate and dropping a roll. He recalled that the two of them had fought bitterly but quickly, and they parted awkwardly. Though Sasuke had apologized, he didn't know if Naruto had fully forgiven him. Is this why he wasn't showing up?
Or had something happened to him? He'd spent almost a full week in his new spot. His feelings from Saturday night began to return. He tried to talk himself out of worrying. Maybe Naruto had mixed up his new bus routes. Or maybe he was just angry with Sasuke. Maybe he had a cold, or maybe someone had fed him today. Sasuke frowned as the kitchen closed for the night, the pit of his stomach turned to sludge.
When Itachi picked him up, his face was pale. Undoubtedly, he was exhausted and probably once again coming down with a low-grade illness. He noticed that Sasuke was particularly withdrawn. Sasuke reassured his brother that he was simply tired from studying. After the kitchen closed, he wanted to find Naruto himself. But he had no time to do this before Itachi arrived, and he knew Itachi wouldn't want Sasuke out late on a school night. And besides, he didn't want to overreact. So he decided to wait until after school on Friday to find Naruto.
It was late afternoon when he finally arrived at Eighth and J. There were tents poked in alleyways, against a backdrop of concrete buildings. Sasuke walked down the stretch slowly, browsing for Naruto. He covered the block. He had been walking about five minutes when he saw someone walking forward, resting his body against a brick building. Sasuke noticed a familiar T-shirt trudging along.
"Naruto?"
The boy continued walking, ignoring Sasuke's voice. As a noisy bus passed them, Sasuke wondered if Naruto misheard. He came up closer, speaking more loudly now.
"Hey, Naruto."
The shorter of the two stopped moving, lifting his head.
"Oh, hi, S'uke..."
Naruto's voice was clumsy and nervous, and Sasuke immediately suspected that something was amiss. Naruto had a horrible poker face. He walked in front of Naruto, looking behind him to finally get a glimpse of the blond. Gathering his will, Naruto turned his face directly towards Sasuke, smiling as if nothing were different.
The blond had a swollen black eye, a swollen nose, and a scabbed over lip. Sasuke's eyes broadened as he took in the damage, and he swallowed hard. But at least his voice didn't fail him, flat and collected as always.
"What the hell happened to you?"
Naruto blinked abashedly, "Oh... Just got in a little fight. No big deal."
Sasuke scrunched a brow, looking Naruto over.
"No big deal? You look like you were pummeled by a baboon."
Naruto grinned widely, pointing to his face with his thumb.
"Please, you're just jealous of how majestically rugged I look now."
Sasuke sighed, crossing his arms as Naruto's tone put him at ease.
"Right. You should stop picking fights, dumbass."
Naruto smiled again, and it seemed rather rigid to Sasuke.
"Yeah... I will then."
They took several paces in silence before Sasuke cast Naruto a look of suspicion, sighing, "Naruto, what really happened?"
Blue eyes looked up at Sasuke.
"Honest?"
He nodded.
"Some older guy... I think he was homeless too... He kind of tired to...get sexual with me."
Sasuke unconsciously held his breath, his eyes falling towards Naruto in disbelief.
"I'd been asleep by the curb, so I wasn't expecting it. He was a big guy, so I had trouble getting away. But I did escape before he...you know..."
Sasuke stared at Naruto vacantly, the shock on his face impossible to overlook. He searched for words. What was he supposed to do in this situation? His friend had just been assaulted, molested, and nearly raped. Any good friend would have done something about it, would've found something comforting and meaningful to say.
As articulate as Sasuke ordinarily was, all he could get out was, "So. You..."
Naruto turned his head away in embarrassment.
"Jeez, Sasuke. You don't gotta look at me like I'm a maimed baby penguin or something."
Naruto's statement snapped Sasuke out of his thoughts, and shock was replaced by anger. Ice was rushing through his veins and capillaries, his heart thudding with desire for payment. Someone had to pay.
He knew it. This had been a horrible idea. If Naruto had only listened to him, this wouldn't have happened. But he wouldn't blame Naruto for this. No, he was angry at the situation, and angry at what had happened and what could have happened.
"Jesus, that is...so fucked up. Where is he?"
Naruto placed his hand on Sasuke's forearm, a calming smile on his face. He didn't want Sasuke to be upset, but seeing him get upset over him... It made him happy that Sasuke cared so much.
"Sasuke, he wasn't right in the head, you know? I don't think he even fully understood what he was doing."
He knew that Naruto was trying to calm him down, but somehow this only made him angrier. He didn't want to hear that.
"That's no excuse. See, people are worthless. They're fucking scum."
Naruto scratched his cheek, shaking his head.
"Ah... People aren't so bad, you know? Even the ones you think are bad... Maybe they just need to be pushed in the right direction."
Sasuke paused, turning to Naruto. He didn't understand how Naruto could say something like that, covered in cuts and bruises. How could he be so forgiving? His brain detoured towards a more selfish subject: If Naruto knew about him, would he feel the same?
Sasuke couldn't agree with Naruto. He could not bring himself to be so understanding, and he still wanted to break that man's jaw. But his features softened as Naruto beamed up at him, trying to get him to reconsider.
"It's...really dangerous out there, isn't it?"
Naruto scoffed, his voice tired as he replied, "Well, it isn't Disneyland."
He frowned, giving Naruto another look over. He was not short, but he was thin. He didn't seem to be all that experienced with the streets, considering how he acted when he ran into that cop and his current situation. He had known that this situation was dangerous, but despite his misgivings, he had let Naruto do as he wished. Who knows what would happen the next time? He grabbed Naruto's wrist snugly.
"You're coming with me," Sasuke stated, his tone authoritative.
Naruto backed away, his palms facing outward as each eyebrow moved in the opposite direction.
"I am?"
Sasuke stared directly into Naruto's eyes as he insisted. Something about Sasuke's confidence made Naruto actually consider this.
"My house is empty all the time. My brother's in law school full-time and has a part time job, and my parents..."
Sasuke needed to make a quick decision. He didn't want a pause to give him away.
"They're always traveling for business. So I have people over sometimes, even for nights, and I get away with it."
This was it. If Naruto insisted on avoiding the system, this was the only way Sasuke could keep him safe. This would fix everything, if only for a little while. It was insane, but what other choice did he have? Naruto's eyes widened as he shook his head.
"No, I can't do that to you."
Sasuke smirked, turning towards the bus stop.
"I'm not giving you a choice in the matter."
He tugged Naruto forward by his sleeve. He had been told that he whenever he was angry or upset, he got tunnel vision. He was fixated, charging directly towards the bus stop. Nothing else existed. Naruto deadpanned.
"So, you're kidnapping me?"
Sasuke didn't bother to look back.
"So it would seem."
Naruto laughed, shaking his head at Sasuke in disbelief.
"No offense, but are you crazy? Like clinically, psychologically insane?"
"Entirely possible."
Maybe he was crazy. He was inviting a homeless person into his home, and he'd have to leave him there alone. And even if Naruto proved trustworthy (he'd returned the wallet, right?), this entire scheme was destined for failure. As rarely as Itachi frequented the house, he was still bound to find them eventually. Sasuke was taking quite a risk.
Usually when he got this feeling, Sasuke did something bad. It was that restlessness, that itch to do something that would get his synapses sparking. And this was crazy in the same way, but he felt good about it.
"It's just a matter of time until your family catches us."
Sasuke shot back his responses, giving Naruto's protests no mind.
"And you'll have somewhere to stay until then."
"I'll be fine, Sasuke. You don't need to..."
This aggravated him. He didn't want Naruto to say he'd be fine. He didn't believe him anymore.
As they neared the bus stop, he interrupted Naruto, "Stop talking. I'm not listening."
Naruto accepted Sasuke's plans with a faint smile, attempting to hide his relief.
"Maybe we can try one night. But let me grab my stuff."
Sasuke sheepishly supposed that this would have been a prudent consideration before storming off to the bus stop in a fit of determination and protective rage. Naruto grabbed his possessions, and they waited for the bus in silence with the large black bag beside them. It was not a tense silence. Perhaps they were both overwhelmed by what had just happened, deep in thought and trying to come to terms with it.
Sasuke had spoken out of passion. He knew from the beginning that this wasn't going to last. But he at least hoped that until then he could figure out a safe alternative for Naruto that he would accept. He hadn't thought about the specifics. Where would Naruto sleep? How would he feed him? What would happen if Naruto got sick? He remained calm, answering these questions as best he could. This idea was crazy enough as is. It would take a level head now.
The bus ride was no different. As with any Friday night, the bus was packed tight. They both stood, Naruto's belongings crammed between them. The noisy bus didn't leave much room for conversation, Naruto seeming to be almost in a daze. A couple of the more tactless occupants stared at Naruto, the boy obviously injured and in rags. As Naruto looked over to Sasuke, the younger boy smiled back at him faintly. He raised his pointer and middle finger to Naruto's forehead, pressing against his anxiously knit brows as his brother had always done for him.
"Don't worry so much, dumbass. It'll work out."
Through what appeared to be a great effort, Naruto smiled back at Sasuke brightly.

Thank you for the reviews, everyone! Keep them coming; I find it really encouraging.
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Soup's On