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Crossing Boundaries for You	By : Sasunarufan13 Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Naruto/Sasuke Views: 12499 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto nor make profit of it. Kishimoto owns it.

Chapter List
- 27
- 28
- 29
Author's note: Worked until two in the morning to finish this chapter on time *drops down*
Warnings: A bit of angst, but not much
I hope you'll like it!
Chapter 28
"You're sure you're going to be fine on your own?" Sasuke paused in putting his tie around his neck, furrowing his eyebrows.
"I'll be fine, I promise," Naruto smiled, taking small sips from his tea. Teasingly he added, "You do realise this is not the first time I'm on my own during the day, right?"
The other man scowled at him. "I know that," he muttered, tying his tie with rough, jerky movements. He was already dressed for work in an ensemble of a light blue shirt and black trousers.
Today he would start working for Itachi's company and he had acted rather jittery ever since he had woken up, fussing over Naruto more than he usually did.
"You nervous?" Naruto inquired curiously, putting his cup down on the table.
"I'm not nervous," Sasuke snapped, running a hand through his hair. "Why would I be?"
"It would be completely normal, you know. This is the first time you'll be working somewhere else and - "
"I'm not nervous, Naruto," Sasuke repeated annoyed and exhaled loudly. "I just don't want anyone there to think I only got the job because Itachi's my brother," he added bitterly; his frown marring his forehead.
"Hey, you didn't get the job just because you're his brother," the blond man refuted sharply. "You went through the proper channels: you got an interview, aced that one and you got the job. They would have been idiots not to realise you'll be a great asset to the company. Besides, do you really think Itachi would have recommended you for that position if he wasn't sure you could handle it?"
"I know that," Sasuke sighed; his hands resting on the back of a chair. "I know Itachi wouldn't do that, it's just … I don't want to fuck this up." The admission was quiet, barely audible, and the dark haired man looked annoyed at himself for having confessed that.
Naruto rose up and walked around the table, sliding his arms around Sasuke's waist as best as he could with his belly between them. "You're not going to fuck this up," he said determinedly, catching dark eyes so that the older man would know he was serious about this. "You're going to be amazing at this job and you're going to show everyone there that you're not one to be messed around with, okay? You've got this, Sasuke, I know you do."
An arm slipped around his waist, the hand warm against the side of his stomach, and lips pressed a fleeting kiss against his temple. "Yeah, you're right," Sasuke murmured and Naruto felt him relax slowly in his embrace. "I just don't like the thought of you being on your own now." The worry about disappointing his older brother played a part as well, even if he would never admit it aloud, but at least he was willing to believe Naruto's words.
"I'll be fine," Naruto sighed; his eyes slipping down to rest on his belly. "Gaara's planning to come over today, so it's not like I'll be alone anyway. And Deidara-kun doesn't live that far away either. Besides, I'll be busy finishing up the nursery; that's all I can do now anyway."
He hadn't meant to sound so bitter and he grimaced, realising his mistake at the way Sasuke subtly tensed. He couldn't really help it, though. After the euphory of sharing a house with Sasuke – of actually living together as a couple, no longer forced to remain a secret – had dissipated, he hadn't been able to stop himself from looking around the house and realising that the majority of their belongings, the house itself, had been bought with Sasuke's money. He had contributed where he could, but even after not having had to pay rent for months thanks to living with Deidara and Itachi, there was nowhere near enough money in his bank account to even afford half of the down payment of the house.
Now that he was on paternity leave, he also didn't have a full salary anymore and it would take a while to recover from the C-section, meaning he wouldn't be able to go back to work for at least several months. In the back of his mind he had always been aware of the discrepancy between his and Sasuke's salary; there was not much that could be done about that, though, given how much their jobs differed and he hadn't been too bothered by that at first.
But now, walking around in the house and using stuff that had mostly been bought with Sasuke's money, it really drove the fact home that Naruto would never be able to contribute to their household as much as Sasuke was doing. He could sell paintings, certainly, but art sadly wasn't a steady income provider and he could go months without selling even one painting.
No matter how many paintings he sold, how many hours he would teach classes, he would most likely never earn as much as Sasuke did and their contributions to the household would remain unequal – a realisation which tasted quite sour.
"What's bothering you exactly?" Sasuke questioned, furrowing his eyebrows.
"Nothing, don't worry about it," Naruto said quickly, taking a couple of steps back. His shirt had ridden up slightly and he pulled it back down, avoiding the heavy gaze resting on him.
"I know you as well as you know me, Naruto, and I know there's something bothering you. What is it?" Sasuke demanded, crossing his arms. "Does it have to do with the nursery? You don't have to do that on your own, I'll - "
"It's got nothing to do with the nursery, Sasuke," Naruto groaned, rubbing his hands over his face and feeling exasperated with himself. He should have just kept his mouth shut instead of worrying Sasuke; he definitely didn't need the extra worry on his first day at Itachi's company.
"What's on your mind then?"
Naruto chanced a glance at him and groaned inwardly. He recognised that look on Sasuke's face: that was the look he carried whenever he was determined to get to the bottom of something. He wouldn't give up until he knew exactly what was wrong. As much as he called Naruto stubborn, the dark eyed man could be quite tenacious himself when he wanted to be.
"Seriously, it's nothing, okay? It's stupid, so no need to worry about it."
"So you can support me, but I can't support you?" Sasuke scoffed; dark eyes flashing with annoyance. "That's bullshit and you know it, Naruto. It wouldn't bother you so much if it was really nothing."
Irritation, exasperation with himself and irrational anger smashed together and came out all at once instantly. "I'm 'bothered' by the fact that I'll never earn as much as you do, okay?! I'm bothered by the fact that you had to buy basically everything on your own, because my own salary doesn't cut it! I fucking hate that I can't contribute to our life together as much as you do, because my teacher's pay doesn't even come close to your pay!"
I fucking hate that I'm not your equal.
He didn't yell those last words, but the unspoken thought hovered between them nevertheless, pressing down on them.
"God damn it," Naruto hissed underneath his breath and whirled around, rubbing his hands briskly over his face; his cheeks feeling as hot as fire. Fuck this, he hated himself for losing control that easily. What the hell was wrong with him? Why the fuck did he have to go and unload all that heavy bullshit on Sasuke? They should be enjoying living together, finally being together in the open, instead of arguing about his damn issues.
Ever since he had laid eyes on Sasuke, a part of him had always been painfully aware of how different their status' were. Sasuke came from a rich, influential family, graced with both intelligence and beauty, while Naruto had never really known his parents, having lost them when he had been barely three years old. He had struggled in school, some courses easier for him than others, and had been known as the class clown – but one most people barely paid any attention to.
He was grateful to have found good friends in Gaara and Sasuke – and Sakura too in the past, he guessed was the best way to describe their relationship now – but he could remember all too well the whispers that had followed him wherever he went when people had seen him together with Sasuke.
Sasuke: the most handsome guy in their school, the most intelligent one, succeeding in everything he tried – and Naruto: class clown, loud mouthed with scars marring his cheeks, scraping by in most classes thanks to his friends' tutoring. A bigger contrast couldn't be found, especially not in a school where cliques and social standing had been so important.
Sasuke had never cared about any of those things, Naruto knew. He hadn't cared who was popular, who you should hang around with and who to avoid, and had never once cared that people thought it odd that he had befriended a weirdo like Naruto. He just had never given a shit and had done what he thought was best, even if that had meant people disagreeing with him.
The blond man knew this – but sometimes it was hard to remember that they were equals, when the world seemed to delight in pointing out their differences.
"That's what's been bothering you? Our salaries?" Sasuke asked; his voice carefully bland, not revealing what he thought of Naruto's tantrum just now.
Crossing his arms on top of his belly, Naruto muttered bitterly, "I know you think it's stupid, that's why - "
"You're right, it's stupid," Sasuke stated bluntly and Naruto couldn't stop himself from flinching, his nails biting into his arms.
Drawing closer to the door, he mumbled numbly, "Just forget about it. You need to leave soon anyway; you don't want to be - "
"It's stupid, because it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter that you make less money than I do – that doesn't make you any lesser than me," Sasuke said strongly and then he was grabbing Naruto's shoulder, turning him around. "Look at me."
Any other moment and the pregnant man would have told him to fuck off, but now he could only wordlessly obey and stare at the dark haired man with wide eyes.
"I don't care how much you earn, all right? You're my equal in everything that counts. You've always been my equal and that's not going to change," he continued, as always knowing how to pick out the real issues in Naruto's rants. "You can become a full time stay at home dad for all I care; it doesn't matter to me."
"I just … It doesn't feel right. It feels like I'm taking advantage of you and that fucking sucks, okay!" Naruto retorted roughly, breathing harshly. Fugaku's comment about him being a gold digger had hit home harder than he had thought, because he had strived all his life to be as independent as possible, refusing to be a burden on anyone.
To live here and know that this house had only been possible, because Sasuke was paying for most of it … It fucking sucked.
Sasuke snorted loudly and Naruto's hackles raised when he spotted the amusement – incredibly misplaced – dancing in his eyes. "You think this is funny?" he hissed and his hands came up to push Sasuke away.
Before they could connect to his shoulders, however, Sasuke snatched his hands and held them firmly in his own. "Yes, it's funny, because you're definitely the last person to ever take advantage of anyone, Naruto," he stated firmly. "Don't worry about our finances, all right? There's nothing wrong with how we arrange things. You think Sakura brought in as much money as I did?"
Naruto bit down on his lower lip, barely holding himself back from pointing out that even she still earnt more money than he did.
That particular comment had to be visible on his face, though, - and hadn't Gaara always told him he was easy to read? – because Sasuke sighed and released his hands; his own hands coming down to cup Naruto's belly to his surprise. "Look, if you're really bothered by how much each of us earns, then you should realise that you're richer than I am."
"What? That doesn't make any sense, bastard," Naruto retorted, frowning heavily, as he scowled at the other man. How the hell could he be richer than Sasuke when their wages differed with at least three zero's? Was Sasuke messing with him?
"You can't put a price on family," Sasuke stated bluntly, gazing intensely down at the blond man.
"What?" Naruto was feeling utterly lost now. What did family have to do with their argument about wages? Was the stress of the last couple of months finally getting to Sasuke? He started wondering whether he should call Itachi to see if he could make sense of his brother's cryptic comments.
Sasuke's features softened and he brushed a soft kiss against surprised, slack lips. "You're giving me a family, Naruto. That's worth more than any job could pay – our baby is worth everything. You are worth everything. You've always been on my side, you never abandoned me and now you're carrying my baby – you're the one enriching my life. All the money in the world doesn't measure up to what I have with you."
He breathed out slowly, his hands caressing Naruto's stomach lovingly, before they slipped around his waist and rested on his back; his touch hot even through the cloth of Naruto's shirt. "So stop worrying so much about who pays for what, all right? You're an idiot for worrying about something as stupid as that, anyway," he added with a touch of exasperation in his voice.
And of course he had to attach an insult to that. Naruto could hardly bring himself to care about that small insult, though, not when he was furiously blinking away some stray tears; his face feeling on fire and probably resembling a tomato by now. Naruto had always been the one most likely to say something emotional, practically wearing his emotions on his sleeve, but sometimes Sasuke opened up like now and well … that never failed to catch the blond man off guard.
Swallowing down the lump which had blocked his throat while listening to the dark eyed man, Naruto cleared his throat and released a jittery chuckle. "Man, this whole becoming a papa thing is really making you mushy as hell. Should I be worried that you've been replaced by a pod person?" he asked teasingly and laughed when Sasuke rolled his eyes, slapping the back of his head lightly.
"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke scoffed, but there was a faint frown lining his forehead. "You okay now?"
Naruto sighed softly, rolling his shoulders. "Yeah, I'm okay. I promise," he added when his words sparked nothing but wariness in dark eyes. "Just got into a mood."
"Instead of bottling it up, you should talk about it," Sasuke chided him and Naruto couldn't help but snort in disbelief at the irony of it.
"I don't need to hear that from you, bastard," he retorted pointedly, raising an eyebrow.
Sasuke scowled, but didn't refute his comment, knowing it would be futile. His gaze shifted towards the clock and he grimaced. "I need to leave now. Don't want to be late."
"That definitely wouldn't be a good first impression," Naruto chuckled and their son kicked harshly in agreement. Wincing a bit, he rubbed his stomach soothingly.
"All right, I'm going. I'll see you tonight, okay?"
"Yeah, have fun at the office." They shared a kiss before Sasuke left, leaving Naruto alone for the first time since they had moved in.
"Guess it's best if I work on your room a bit more, hm? Can't have you sleeping in an unfinished room when you're finally here," Naruto commented, stroking his belly a couple of times before he started cleaning the table.
There was still some unease and a sliver of frustration brimming in the pit of his stomach, but there wasn't much he could do now.
Except believe Sasuke that it really didn't matter how much they earnt.
"How's the nursery coming along?" Gaara asked curiously; the ice cubes clacking against his glass when he lifted it to take a sip of his iced tea.
"Quite well actually," Naruto smiled, plopping an apple slice in his mouth. "I'm turning one of the walls into a mini universe with stars and some planets. Might make another wall into a forest or so."
He had helped Sasuke with putting together the crib, the two dressers and the changing table this weekend. The furniture had been pushed to the middle of the room for now while Naruto decided on the themes for the walls. He was thinking of painting two walls in just a regular colour and push the furniture against those walls; some shelves had already been mounted to one wall and were awaiting the arrival of stuffed toys and picture books.
They still needed to buy clothes and diapers and some other miscellaneous stuff before the baby arrived, but they still had some time for that.
"Let me guess: he insists on doing the actual painting part," Gaara smirked, leaning back in his chair. Some ink was smudged across the back of his right hand and there were light bags darkening his eyes: proof that he hadn't been sleeping well this past week – or at all.
The blond man smiled wryly and nodded. "He does, yeah. He actually did a good job with the painting in the nursery of Deidara-kun and Itachi, so I can't really use that as an argument."
It was actually equally endearing and funny to witness Sasuke putting so much concentration in painting a piece of a wall. The creative insults that slipped out of him whenever he splattered paint on himself just made it more hilarious.
Gaara shifted on his chair and the way amusement slipped into solemnness had Naruto sitting up straighter. "What? Something wrong?"
Tapping fingers against the edge of the table, the red haired man inclined his head towards Naruto's rounded stomach. "Not to pry, but have you told Jiraiya yet?"
Rubbing the back of his neck, Naruto shook his head, feeling guilt simmer inside. "No, not yet. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to explain this to him," he admitted with a grimace.
As far as Jiraiya was aware, he was still only Sasuke's surrogate, counting down the days until he could hand over the baby to the couple. To be honest, Naruto was a bit worried how the older man would react. He'd always been a lady man, chasing down every skirt and dress he laid eyes upon, but he had always drawn the line at cheating. As soon as he knew a woman already had a relationship, he backed off and left her alone.
It was a sharp contrast to Naruto who, despite having sworn to never hurt anyone like that, had been having an affair with Sasuke for nearly two months before Sakura had discovered the truth.
He hated the thought of disappointing his godfather and being part of an affair, hurting one of his own friends, would be one of the fastest way to disappoint the older man. Not that he could blame Jiraiya if he reacted badly.
"Well, I'm not pushing you, but I wouldn't wait too much longer with telling him," Gaara remarked cautiously. "The longer you wait, the more difficult you make it for yourself."
Naruto groaned and scrubbed his hands over his face. "I know, trust me," he muttered. Lowering his hands he stared at his half empty glass with tea and pursed his lips. A look at his phone resting next to the glass informed him it had just turned three p.m.
He would still be at his office at this hour.
"You know what?" Naruto said abruptly, downing the rest of his tea. "No time like the present, right? I'll go talk to him now. Would you mind - "
"I'll drive," Gaara offered easily, rising up from his chair and snatching his keys from the counter.
He threw his friend a grateful smile, standing up and grabbing his phone. "Thanks, Gaara." On his way out, he stuffed his keys into his pocket and tried to ignore the way his stomach was doing flips. A part of him wanted to turn around and tell Gaara he would visit Jiraiya later, but he knew himself: if he didn't go now, he would keep seeking excuses until it was too late and Jiraiya deserved to be finally informed.
"You ready?" Gaara eyed him curiously when he slid into his seat and pulled the door of the car shut.
"Yeah, let's go." Before I change my mind.
Green eyes studied him a few seconds longer and then Gaara nodded and started the car, backing away from the house and onto the street.
Now there was no going back anymore. This was going to be one hell of an interesting conversation …
"So yeah, that's – that's what's happened in the last couple of months," Naruto finished and shut his mouth abruptly, fidgeting with his keys. His gaze fell down on the carpet covered floor, his courage deserting him all at once at the thought of having to look at Jiraiya now. Gaara was waiting outside in the hallway; he had said waiting in the cool hallway was better than relying on the air conditioning in his car, but Naruto suspected he was mainly waiting outside in case he needed to interfere.
The white haired man had listened quietly the whole time Naruto had talked – or well, blurted out the whole story to be more accurate – but now the silence was stifling, weighing down on him. He wasn't sure whether he preferred this silence over any kind of angry outburst to be honest.
The sound of the clock ticking away the seconds was especially loud in the heavy silence. Tick tock. Tick tock.
Jiraiya's chair groaned softly when he shifted and he uttered a loud sigh. When Naruto dared to peek up, the older man was rubbing his forehead; his lips pressed into a thin line. Dark eyes looked at him solemnly – a strange look on the otherwise general cheerful man.
"You've got yourself in quite the mess, kid," Jiraiya grimaced, leaning back in his chair.
"I know, all right?" Naruto mumbled, rubbing a hand over his left arm. His baby was fussing a bit, pushing out small fists and tiny feet occasionally. "You don't have to tell me that."
Jiraiya rubbed the back of his neck; an uncomfortable look crossing his face. "You think you'll make it up with her in the future?" he questioned tentatively.
The younger man grimaced, clasping his arms around his belly. "I – I don't think that will happen," he admitted haltingly. "She was – she was pretty pissed off when I last saw her."
"Well, I can't really say I blame her for that," Jiraiya muttered.
Naruto flinched, looking away. He was very much aware of the fact that he couldn't blame Sakura for getting upset – he didn't need his godfather to remind him of that.
"You happy with Uchiha?" Jiraiya asked abruptly; his voice gruff.
Naruto's head shot up in surprise, taken aback by the unexpected question. "Yes, I am," the words nevertheless instantly left his mouth.
His face must have shown something, because Jiraiya's face softened and he smiled wryly. "While I wish you wouldn't have got yourself into such a big mess, you're also an adult now and you have to make your own choices. If you're happy, though – then that's all that matters."
"You're not mad?" Naruto asked, worrying his lower lip between his teeth. He might be turning twenty-five this year, but a part of him would forever cling to getting approval from the parental figures in his life. He and Jiraiya had had to build their relationship from scratch after years of not knowing each other and he didn't want to lose their bond, because he had followed his heart instead of his mind.
Jiraiya snorted. "Not much point in getting mad is there?" he asked dryly. "What's done is done and it's your life. But no, brat, I'm not angry. I just want to see you happy and if Uchiha can make you happy…" He shrugged, a tad helpless. "Then I'm happy for you."
"Thanks, old man," Naruto smiled weakly; his voice thick. On a whim he stood up and walked around the desk, surprising the other man with a hug – as much as he could hug him with his large belly between them. "I mean it. Thanks."
Jiraiya patted his back awkwardly, standing up so that they could hug properly. "Yeah, yeah. Don't think you or Uchiha are getting out of an official dinner with me, though," he retorted gruffly.
Naruto laughed, shaking his head, but readily agreeing to the dinner. The hard part was done anyway; a dinner was like a walk in the park compared to this.
"I assume the conversation went well?" Gaara pushed himself off the wall, eyeing Naruto curiously when he closed the door to Jiraiya's office behind him.
The blond man grinned, scratching the bridge of his nose. "Yeah, it went fine. He's okay with everything."
"Of course he is," Gaara said and they started walking to the exit. "As if there was any doubt about that."
Naruto hummed, feeling lighter as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. In hindsight, it seemed ridiculous to have been nervous about Jiraiya's reaction, but well, one could never know. His attention was caught by the calendar standing on the reception's desk where the number 'eighteen' was framed with a bright red square. Right, it was the eighteenth of July already; that meant that in a couple of days …
Naruto turned to his red haired friend and grinned, excitement bubbling inside him. "Hey, Gaara, do you mind if we make a small detour? There's something I need to pick up."
AN2: I hope this chapter wasn't too bad! Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me!
The next chapter should normally be posted on the twentieth of April.
I hope to see you all back in the next chapter!
Cuddles
Melissa
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Crossing Boundaries for You