Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

The Day He Said Goodbye	By : Shaylilin Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1163 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 2
- 3
- 4
A/N: Still sad and angsty, but it will get better. It wouldn’t be realistic if the break-up of a couple that really cared about each other was light and everyone went back to happy-go-lucky (or as happy-go-lucky as an Uchiha gets) right away. Enjoy. As always, I appreciate feedback (read as: feed the review slut).

Thanks to those who reviewed my first two chapters. I am glad that you like what has happened so far.

Chapter Two: The Next Day

Shikamaru stretched and moaned as his alarm clock went off. He thrashed around in his sleep induced haze, trying to find the damn thing to throw against the wall. He could see the sun was shining, which seemed like an insult to his very soul. How could it be possible that anything positive would happen today? He’d go to school and people would treat him the way they had been since that day, only he wouldn’t have Sasuke to hold him tonight.

Neji opened the door. “You woke up,” he stated matter-of-factly, a small smile gracing the corners of his mouth as he realized that Shikamaru’s alarm clock was still ringing. He walked over to the small thing and turned it off. “Take a shower. I’ve gotten some breakfast from your mother. She says you can eat it up here this morning.”

Shikamaru nodded before standing and stretching while groaning slightly. It had been both a sleepless and dreamless night. He wasn’t ready to face the day yet. He wasn’t ready to face other people. But students weren’t afforded that luxury; students didn’t get to have mental breakdowns on school days. Shikamaru nodded to Neji and took a short shower. He didn’t feel like standing in the shower where he would do nothing but think on the situation.

Neji smiled as he saw Shikamaru come back into the room. He seemed to be more depressed than he was yesterday, but he was hiding it better. Neji sighed softly as Shikamaru took only a glass of tea and a piece of dry toast. “You should eat more than that,” he chided softly.

Shikamaru shrugged. He tried to smile, but it became a sad grimace. “I can’t. My stomach wants to escape my body.” He swallowed the toast before quickly drinking the tea. It was good tea. He put the dishes on the tray Neji had brought the food up on. He grabbed his bag and groaned. “Don’t make me do this, Neji.”

Neji looked with sympathy at his friend. “You know you have to.” He took pity on Shikamaru and smirked. “Make it through half of the day, and I’ll skip out with you to cloud watch this afternoon.” He picked up the tray, not waiting for Shikamaru. He knew that Shika would come with a bribe like that.

Neji dropped the tray back off in the kitchen with Shikamaru’s mom. “Thank you for breakfast, Mrs. Nara.” He bowed slightly, before following Shikamaru out of his home. Neji noticed Shikamaru tensing up as they headed toward the school and toward Sasuke. “Don’t worry, Shika. You’ve always got me and Chouji, if you need a friend.” Shikamaru nodded and swallowed as they reached the school grounds. The younger children were running around, playing before school began. For the first time in his life, Shikamaru seriously considered causing a child harm. Their happiness only served to fuel his depression.

*****************************

Sasuke trudged home after receiving his box of belongings back from Shikamaru. He knew he’d been the one to screw up. It wasn’t easy being him or with him, but Shikamaru had been so patient with him. The scowl was still on his face, and only those people who knew him best would know just how much that last hug Shikamaru had given him had disturbed him. He let out a sigh. He knew he should have told Naruto he was with Shikamaru.

It was just that he had a reputation to uphold. Shikamaru was kind of coward. He would back down from situations instead of getting into fights, which may have been a good thing in the civilian world, but not in the shinobi world. He would rather sleep through lessons than skip the grades he could have. Worst of all, Shikamaru wasn’t really popular. Naruto had started off almost more unpopular than Shika, but had become one of the most popular kids in school by this point. Shikamaru never tried to make friends though. He never tried to increase his status. He thought getting to know people was too troublesome. He had a small group of friends, and he was fine with that. Sasuke was the most popular guy on campus. He had throngs of girls throwing themselves at him. He snickered internally, “What a waste of time.”

He climbed up the tree by his window. He would sneak back inside and get his mask back to perfection before confronting his family. They would know something was wrong, and tell him to suck it up. They didn’t care when something was wrong with him. Even if they did, it wasn’t as if he could tell them he broke up with a boyfriend they didn’t even know about. No one knew.

He tossed the box Shikamaru had given him on his bed before lying down himself, and closing his eyes. He took deep calming breaths and forced himself to focus on something else. After 15 minutes he was able to look at his face without seeing any trace of his distress in his eyes. His family probably wouldn’t be looking that close anyway.

Sasuke went down the stairs to the kitchen. His mom was just coming to call him for supper. If nothing else, they didn’t starve him. He nodded briefly as his mother told him to set the table. The job was done quickly, mindlessly, as the task had been repeated his entire 15 years of life. He sat down at his seat on the left side of the table. His father sat at one end; Itachi at the other. His mother sat across from him. Itachi and his father were speaking about Itachi’s newest achievement, whatever it may have been. It was probably some new jutsu, but Sasuke no longer cared what Itachi achieved. He knew even if he were to achieve it himself, they wouldn’t care.

As supper was ending Sasuke became aware of the fact that his mother was speaking to him. “Sasuke, your father and I are taking Itachi out in celebration of his engagement. It will be late when we get back. Please have the dishes washed and put away. If you get hungry later, you can make yourself something.”

“Hn,” he grunted at his mom. She’d take it as a yes. They always took it as a yes. Sasuke stood up and on automatic did the dishes and put them away. He only allowed himself to think about the dishes. As he finished putting the last of the dishes away he heard the door close. There was never a ‘good night, Sasuke’ or a ‘do you want anything, Sasuke’ or even a ‘see you in the morning, Sasuke’; no there was only ever the sound of the door locking.

Sasuke sighed and finally allowed the mask to slip from his face. His eyes were full of pain and his face sagged with the weight of his stupidity, because really that was the only way to describe letting Shikamaru leave. He went to the spot his parents kept the key to the liquor cabinet. Years before he’d learned how much he could drink of their private stock without them noticing. He smiled when he saw there was a new bottle of Tequila behind the almost empty one. He could finish the first. They would think they had done it. He grabbed the bottle and locked the cabinet again, making sure the key was securely in place.

He climbed the stairs to the second floor and trudged down to his room. Pushing the door shut and locking it behind him, he moved to the window. He shut that as well and pulled the blinds. He was going to be alone tonight. It would just be him and José tonight. He twisted the cap off the bottle, placed the opening to his mouth, and tossed back a large swig, letting the liquid slide down his throat. The sweet burn of the alcohol was almost forgotten. He’d done this often in the past, when his parents would ignore him in favor of Itachi. He hadn’t since he and Shikamaru had started dating. When this happened while he had Shikamaru, he’d just go out after doing his chores for the night. Most of the time, he just stayed with Shikamaru.

He sat down on the bed and went through the box Shikamaru had given him. Right on top, folded carefully, was the shirt he left with Shikamaru. It was the shirt he would always sleep in when he stayed over. It was the shirt he been wearing the first time they had sex. He didn’t try to stop the tears that fell as he took another deep swig of the tequila. He fisted the shirt up, not even looking at the rest of the box, and pressed it to his face. These were the last connections he had had to Shikamaru after Shikamaru had broken off their relationship.

He really hadn’t deserved Shikamaru. They guy practically radiated caring and concern for him of all people. When he first got up the courage to ask Shikamaru out, it had been met with skepticism, but no one could blame Shikamaru. Still, even though he wouldn’t let the knowledge out to the general public, just knowing he had Shikamaru to turn to when things went bad made it somehow better. He took another swig as the pain increased and the tears came faster and harder.

For 15 minutes he just sat on the bed, crying into an old shirt: a shirt that no longer had any meaning; a shirt that had meant everything. He would not despair enough to contemplate suicide. He hadn’t had enough time to absorb what had happened for his Uchiha possessiveness to have fully kicked in. Right now, the alcohol was making him numb. Right now, he just cried over the ending of the best thing he’d had and the thing he was stupid enough to throw away. He tossed the empty bottle out the window; he doubted anyone would take notice.

When morning came, the alarm jerked him awake. His head thrashed, but he knew he had to be up and pretend it was a normal morning. One thing he had learned, staying home sick was worse than going to school with a hangover. When he stayed home his parents figured since he wasn’t going to be doing anything anyway, he should just do all of Itachi’s chores as well. He shut the alarm off, slightly harder than he meant to before dragging himself to the shower. He growled as all he had left was cold water. Itachi always used the hot water. It only served to intensify his headache.

Before he left the bathroom he tossed back a couple Ibuprofen. He shoved the bottle in his pack; he just knew he’d need more by the time the day was over. Shikamaru was only in a few of his classes, but those would be hell. At least they were all in the afternoon. He’d have all morning to recover from the massive hangover he was suffering from. Naruto would get on his nerves today, Sakura would piss him off, Itachi would make him angry, his parents would push him to his limits, and he no longer had Shikamaru to look forward to. Even if he had always only glared at or insulted Shikamaru at school, there was always the softness in Shikamaru’s eyes. There had always been Shikamaru’s silent understanding and acceptance.

He sighed and put his mask securely in place before walking to the kitchen. He had to eat with his family. It was expected of him if he spent the night at home. He ate as quickly as possible, trying to ignore all his family members. Itachi had to but in, “What’s wrong, little brother? You seem to want to get out of here especially quickly this morning.”

He grunted in response, chugged his orange juice, and stood up. “I’m leaving.” He grabbed his pack and headed out the door. He scowled at the entire Uchiha clan that day. Everyone kept telling him how happy he must be for Itachi to have made such a wonderful connection with that Hyuuga girl. They never asked him if he had anyone he had had that kind of connection with, not that he would have answered. Still, he was never asked.

When he arrived at the school, he saw Shikamaru and Neji standing together, talking. It hit him then how alone he truly was in this situation. Shikamaru had someone to hold the pieces together, but he hadn’t even told anyone about his relationship. How could someone help when they didn’t know it had even occurred? He sighed and wished that he had a water bottle full of vodka to bring to class. It seemed like he would have an easier time of dealing with everything Shikamaru if he could be permanently plastered.

********************

Shikamaru sighed as he stared at the clock. He’d heard when Naruto came up to Sasuke earlier that day, wondering why he hadn’t gone out last night. Sasuke had only grunted. Shikamaru understood. It was the hung over grunt. He hadn’t heard it often, but he knew it. Some would think it would make him feel better to know Sasuke was hurting just as much, but that just wasn’t the kind of person he was. Ten more minutes and he could walk off campus with Neji and call the day done.

The bell rang and for once Shikamaru was one of the first people out the door. He waited for Neji at the front doors. Neji smiled softly, “How are you doing?”

Shikamaru shrugged. “I’ve been better. I hate that he’s hurting, Neji. I know I did the right thing, but I hate knowing that I’ve caused him to go back to drinking.”

Neji nodded. Shikamaru had told Neji what he knew about Sasuke’s ‘hang over grunt’ and when Sasuke had resorted to alcohol in the past. He knew that was almost as hard as the break-up for Shikamaru. “He didn’t deserve you when he had you, and he doesn’t deserve you now.” He smiled softly when Shikamaru turned a half-assed glare his way. “I know you don’t want me to talk that way, so I won’t. I just hate seeing you hurt.”

Shikamaru sighed loudly. He was getting frustrated with the entire situation. He wanted to go back to Sasuke even though he knew that wouldn’t help. He wanted to hold Sasuke, to kiss Sasuke, and mostly just to have Sasuke speaking to him without making him feel like the biggest ass on the planet. “Let’s go. I need to get out of here.” He hurried down the steps with Neji on his heels.

They headed to clearing not far from the school, but that wasn’t frequented very often. Shikamaru had only ever brought Neji and Sasuke here before. So it wasn’t a total surprise when Shikamaru sensed Sasuke sitting there. Neji grabbed Shika’s upper arm softly, stopping his movements. “We can go somewhere else?”

Shikamaru shook his head. “I have to talk to him. He’s going to kill himself if he doesn’t talk about this. Since he never told his friends and his family doesn’t give a shit, who else does he have?” Seeing the worried look in Neji’s soft lavender eyes, he smiled. “I promise not to get back together with him. I know you’re worried about me.”

Neji nodded. “I’ll be at the other spot, waiting for you.” Shikamaru gave Neji a hug before heading toward his ex. Neji shook his head, but honored his word and trusted his friend to do the right thing. After all, even if Sasuke had been an ass and only using Shikamaru, still someone should care whether he lived or died.

Shikamaru walked quietly to Sasuke, slipping down in the grass easily as he had when they were still a couple. Sasuke tried to stand up, but Shikamaru grabbed his wrist. “You can’t drink yourself to death, so I’m not letting you go until you talk to me.”

Sasuke shot eyes, bloodshot from the tears shed, toward Shikamaru. “What do you fucking care?”

Shikamaru was hurt, but it only registered on his face for a second. “I might not be with you anymore, but that doesn’t mean I don’t care. I can’t let you hurt yourself.” His face softened. “Please, I’d still like to be your friend.”

Sasuke choked back a sob. “Didn’t this affect you at all? You only need one day to pretend like nothing ever existed between us?” He was almost furious, but his voice absolutely wouldn’t allow that, with his emotions flowing so freely, as they always did around the lazy boy. He choked another sob as his brain registered the fact that he was the lazy boy who had always been there for him.

Shikamaru shook his head. “I’m holding it together right now for you. I broke apart last night, and I’m skipping classes with Neji this afternoon just to avoid you.” A small, miserable smile found its way to Shikamaru’s face. “I didn’t think you’d be out here, but I know you need me. So here I am.”

Sasuke sighed. “I never did deserve you, did I?” Shikamaru smiled softly. Sasuke did deserve someone like Shikamaru, but Sasuke didn’t deserve him anymore.

Shikamaru shrugged. “You want to talk about it?”

Sasuke nodded. “I shouldn’t have let Naruto call you a rapist. I should have come clean to Naruto. I should have trusted that he would respect me and my decisions, but I’ve just got such a difficult time trusting anyone. How I trusted you so quickly is still a mystery to me. It scares me.”

Shikamaru nodded. “How do you think I felt when the most popular guy in school asked me if I wanted to go out with him?” Sasuke smirked. Shikamaru relaxed a little. If he was back to himself even a little bit, Sasuke would be fine. Shikamaru sighed. “Sasuke, you know this had to happen. I couldn’t wait around forever for you to decide what you wanted from me. I’m sorry that it’s hurting you so badly. I never wanted to cause you pain, but I have had more pain in this last three months than in my entire life. Do you have any idea how I felt each time they called me a rapist because I was getting hot with my boyfriend?”

Sasuke shook his head. “No idea. I won’t lie and say I do.” He growled and grabbed the bottle of water from his bag. Shikamaru stopped his hand as he moved to drink the water. Sasuke smiled softly. “It’s actually water.” He held the bottle out for Shikamaru to smell. Shikamaru relaxed a little more. “I needed it to take more ibuprofen. Apparently a fourth a bottle of tequila doesn’t sit well with early morning and Naruto.” A small chuckle passed Sasuke’s lips. He saw the concern that was still in Shikamaru’s eyes, but it was different. It didn’t have as intimate a feel as before. He nodded. “I know Neji’s waiting. I promise I’ll come to you before I kill myself, deal?”

Shikamaru growled but nodded. “Don’t even joke, Sasuke. If you killed yourself, I’d feel it. It would hurt me.” Sasuke nodded, tossing back some water with the pills he’d dumped out onto his hand. “Give me time. I really do want you to think of me as a friend,” with that Shikamaru headed off to find Neji.
- 2
- 3
- 4
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

The Day He Said Goodbye