Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

The Art of Emotion	By : DeviousDevil Category: Naruto AU/AR > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1166 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor do I make any money off this fiction.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
Hello Again~
So here is Chapter 4~
Beta'd By: CantHelpThisSmile
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Deidara sat rigidly in the tall chair that was situated at a table in the back corner of the library. Gaara sat silently to his right, as they waited for Tobi to return with hot chocolate. Deidara imagined only a high scale school such as KHS could afford to serve hot chocolate in their library, but this did make the library more preferable to hang out in.
"Alright! French Vanilla for Gaara, and normal for me and Deidara!" gushed Tobi in a hushed voice. Deidara smiled. Only Tobi could be quiet while acting as if he was yelling.
He took his hot chocolate thankfully and waited for Tobi to get situated.
"Alright," Gaara broke the silence, "Now tell us."
"Okay, un," sighed Deidara, "But I'll just give you an abbreviated version." At Gaara's glare he quickly added, "If you have any questions you can ask me, and I'll answer truthfully, but I don't want to sit here for hours telling details that probably don't matter."
Gaara frowned, but after a moment's contemplation he nodded.
"Okay, so quick and to the point, my parents died when I was fourteen. All their money was left to pay for my schooling and the government pays for my apartment. I work part-time at a jewelry store to pay for everything else." Deidara leaned back in his chair to get more comfortable; his eyes settled comfortably on his hands holding his cup.
"In the past year, I went to two schools previous to this one. And at each school I stood out as a troublemaker. I love to make art, which both of you know, but only Gaara has seen my favorite type of art before yesterday. Although, I don't think he saw it as art," Deidara added as an afterthought. "Anyway, I believe art should be fleeting." He didn't go into his reasons. Now was not the time to get into a rant about his personal opinion. "Before I came here, I would always make small fireworks, colorful flames, or anything that would disappear eventually. My favorite was, and always has been, flammable clay. However, clay is expensive and thanks to a friends I have gotten into origami. The vase and flowers from yesterday are true examples of my art."
"So, the origami bird that Tobi lit on fire yesterday was one of them?" inquired Gaara. Tobi seemed more alert at this as he glanced at Gaara before turning back to Deidara, who was smiling.
"Un, I had to put it out before it exploded. And on that note," continued Deidara, "I started making things that exploded when I was 11 years old. I went to the hospital quite a bit back then until I learned the right measurements.
"Anyway, at each school I made quite a few friends; usually problem kids who liked the idea of explosives. Eventually though, complications would cause my friends to turn on me. I used my art in my defense, and I ended up expelled, both times. When I came here, the school board threatened that if I so much as thought about explosives while attending this school, they would expel me." Deidara paused before mumbling quietly, "And… I like it here."
Tobi reached out to pat his wrist comfortingly, and was probably smiling, but neither Deidara nor Gaara could see with his mask on.
"What 'complications'?" asked Gaara after a few moments of the three of them staring at each other, drinking hot chocolate.
Deidara hesitated here. Tobi already knew, but only part of it, and he didn't want to share the other part. His eye had always freaked people out, but it was his hands that had them running.
Slowly, making a decision, Deidara swept the hair from his face behind his ear. He could feel Gaara's gaze resting intently on his eye, which for the moment was clenched shut despite his decision. Letting out a long breath, he opened his eye.
Gaara leaned forward slightly, to get a better look.
"When my parents died," explained Deidara, his eyes firmly staring at the table, avoiding eye contact with Gaara, "it was in a car accident. Glass skewered my eye in the accident and damaged it beyond repair. But I wanted to be able to see again. I was sent to a special doctor who would make me a false eye, and it was there I found out he was working on a biomechanical eye. I asked him if it would allow me to see. He said 'yes, hypothetically' but that it had never been tested. I offered to let him use me as an experiment if I could have the surgery for free. I had already completely lost my sight in my left eye, I had nothing to lose."
"What were the risks?" asked Tobi curiously. Deidara already knew that the boy was curious about his eye.
"There was the high possibility that it wouldn't work and I'd have to get a glass eye, and then there was a small possibility that my right eye could be damaged. The chance that it would actually work was slim to none, but I took it and it turned out better than either the doctor or I could have hoped." Deidara smiled slightly at this, still avoiding eye contact. It wasn't until Gaara grabbed his chin and turned his head so he could see his eye better that he actually met his eyes.
"What did you mean when you were you talking about a 'low profile'?" asked Tobi.
Deidara sighed wearily, never breaking eye contact with Gaara. "Well, un, I have a tendency to pick fights with those who think they're all high and mighty," Deidara broke eye contact with Gaara so he could look at Tobi. "The Akatsuki are the epitome of my least favorite kind of people. But not only can I not do anything without risking being expelled, but the Akatsuki could ruin my life!" Deidara's voice was becoming panicked. "I thought I'd avoided them pretty well, since coming here, but ever since yesterday, it's like I'm the center of their universe, un!" he cried distressed.
"After the explosion?" asked Gaara.
"That's the worst part, un!" whined Deidara, "As far as I can tell, they don't suspect I have anything to do with it! The only thing I did that caught their attention was running to Hidan to find you yesterday!" He waved his arm at Tobi, despite not really needing to clarify who he meant.
"Don't worry Deidara-sempai," Tobi placed a comforting hand on the blonde's shoulder. "As long as you're friends with me, Itachi can't kick you out of school or do anything to affect your job. I won't let him." Tobi spoke firmly.
Deidara noticed Tobi was acting like he had the day before. He was being more serious. It was still a little weird, but as long as Tobi kept his mask on Deidara didn't feel too freaked out. In fact, he felt relieved.
"So, you won't tell anyone, right?" The question was directed more towards Gaara. He already knew Tobi wouldn't say anything.
Gaara nodded in understanding, before cocking his head slightly as a thought came to mind.
"What? Un," asked Deidara.
"Why do you not want people to see your eye? A lot of people have fake eyes," asked Gaara.
Deidara smirked wryly at this. "Well, Ga-chan," Gaara glared, "because it is obviously mechanical, many people freak out and say I'm an android or that I'm x-raying their clothes." Deidara rolled his eyes. "They tend to exaggerate and then eventually, they begin to bully- well, attempt to bully- me," Deidara shrugged, pretending he didn't care, but the though brought back bad memories.
Gaara nodded at this explanation. Tobi was… well, they couldn't really tell, but Deidara thought he was smiling.
Deidara smiled at both of them before draping his hair back over his face. He had gotten so used to the veil that he felt almost naked without it.
Just as Deidara realized he hadn't even touched his drink, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch.
"Ooh! Tobi is a good boy! Tobi must get to class early!"
Before either Gaara or Deidara could react, Tobi was gone.
"I swear he's bipolar, un!" mumbled the blonde.
Gaara just rolled his eyes and stood up. However, instead of leaving, he turned to look at Deidara. "I hope, after trusting us with this secret, that you might feel you can trust us with the rest." Gaara spoke calmly, "We won't judge you. We aren't that shallow." He let his gazed drop to Deidara's gloved hands, making the blonde stiffen. "But, do not rush; we will wait until you are ready." The last part was said so quietly, Deidara almost didn't hear it, and then Gaara was gone as well.
Deidara wanted nothing more than to sprawl across the library table and just pass out. He had officially exhausted himself with all his worrying. But he couldn't, he had to go to class: Free Period. The blonde groaned. Free Period, that meant Sasori, which meant there was a high possibility that other Akatsuki members would be there. He really didn't want to go, but he knew he didn't really have a choice.

When he arrived at class he noticed Itachi standing next to Sasori's table, talking with the redhead. Deidara took the same seat as the day before, refusing to show any fear. The Uchiha quit talking as soon as he sat down, but Deidara ignored the other to the best of his ability and pulled out his iPod in hopes of forgetting the eyes drilling holes in the back of his head.
He turned the volume up high enough that he couldn't hear the other two and pulled out his sketch book so he could work on some more designs. As he began working he felt the Uchiha's stare leave him, making him feel more relaxed. He had been worried they might try to coerce him like they had at lunch. He had actually worried that all of the Akatsuki might be waiting for him, but that was a bit much. They did have their own classes to attend, after all.
It was while his music was transitioning between songs that he overheard something that caught his interest.
"Kisame wants to know what we are going to do." Itachi spoke in a low voice, which normally wouldn't be heard by someone with an iPod in their ears, but Deidara had heard it.
Without drawing too much attention, Deidara muted his iPod before going back to drawing. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop, but he had a feeling he should keep his ears open.
"I don't care," sighed Sasori in response to Itachi's comment.
"We need to do something different. He's grown used to our normal tactics, and we can't get rid of him because Tobi is protecting him."
This caught Deidara's interest. Who are they talking about? They couldn't be talking about him. Was there someone they were bullying?"
"I don't care what happens to the Jashin-worshipping idiot," said Sasori. Based on his tone, Deidara assumed he was scowling.
"I know, but you usually have some good ideas when it comes to torturing someone," insisted Itachi.
There was a long pause in which Deidara had to force himself to draw, but every stroke of his pencil sounded louder than it actually was.
Finally, Sasori answered.
"If it will make you leave me the fuck alone, please, just destroy that thing you keep stealing from him if it's that important. I mean seriously, I don't see the point because your options are limited thanks to your cousin's protection. Just forget that fowl-mouthed cure. He isn't worth the effort." Sasori spoke without any emotion, but sighed at the end, "I really don't care."
Itachi chuckles, "But you are always so evil when it comes to thinking up these types of things. Hm, meet you after Free Period? We'll go steal the cross at the end of school."
"Whatever."
Deidara tensed when Itachi passed him on his way out. He didn't like the boy. He was handsome, sure, but very dark.
Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Sasori absorbed in whatever he was making that day.
He kept thinking about what he'd overheard. He had to do something. And he knew just what to do. He put his sketch book down and pulled out the bag that held his black thread and false stones. He was running out, but they should last him until supplies by the school were ordered.
He glanced toward Haku's desk, but the teacher was once more absent. Why the hell is he always gone? Un! One more glance at Sasori to make sure he wasn't paying any attention to him, and Deidara reached for a small bag that was meant to hold precious stones. He didn't have any at the moment, but he did use it to hold something else….
He upturned the bag and smiled evilly when a bunch of small, plastic-wrapped balls fell out. Each was marked with a color to say what they did. Tsunade did say I wasn't allowed to damage school property. Deidara smirked to himself, she never said anything about personal property.
Slowly, so as not to attract attention, he slipped off one of his gloves before palming through his materials once more. He was missing a few materials in particular because he wasn't planning on risking his enrollment anytime soon, but he could make do with what he had.
It took half of class, and many anxious glances to make sure Sasori wasn't watching, before he was done.
Quietly, he slipped only what he needed at the moment in his pocket before standing up and heading toward the door.
"Where are you going, brat?"
Deidara froze momentarily before relaxing. There was no way Sasori could know he was up to something. Without turning his body, Deidara glanced back over his shoulder at the redhead. "I'm simply going to the bathroom, Sasori-san." He spoke as calmly as he could before walking out of the room.
Sasori's eyes narrowed suspiciously. The brat never called him anything other than 'danna', and despite his calm nature, Sasori had suspected the blonde kept looking at him during class. He knew the other was up to something, and this made him somewhat curious, which was odd, because he never cared about anyone other than himself. He decided to dismiss the thought, however, as him wondering if Deidara's secret had anything to do with him. And, because that was highly unlikely, he dismissed his thoughts of Deidara all together…
Hm, wonder what the brat was doing before he left?
"Okay, so you understand the instructions, right Tobi?" inquired Deidara.
"Yes! Tobi is a good boy! Tobi has photographic memory!" exclaimed his exuberant friend.
"Okay, now listen, un," insisted Deidara, " I can't be there when it goes off. I have to get back to class before it ends. Otherwise, Sasori might get suspicious."
""I understand, Deidara," replied Tobi in a more serious voice. All the childishness disappeared.
"Un," nodded Deidara, "Now, show me which car is Itachi's…"

Itachi strode down the hall with confidence, as always. Kisame and Zabuza flanked him on either side. The rest of the student body made way for them automatically. They were, after all, the 'top dogs' (so to speak). Upon reaching the main hallway, their target stood next to next to his locker, as well as Itachi's cousin. This didn't deter Itachi though. Tobi could fight the system to protect his friend from being expelled or foreclosed on, but it wasn't like they had to go through some sort of system to steal and destroy a necklace. Tobi could do nothing in this instant; he may be smart, but he sure as hell wasn't a fighter.
Pein stood on the opposite side of the hall, eyes on the target, in case he made a run for it. Itachi noted curiously that Sasori was walking next to a certain blonde down a side hallway that connected to the art room.
The entire hall seemed to go quiet when people realized that the Akatsuki weren't just walking through. Students within ten feet of Tobi and Hidan dispersed immediately upon seeing where Itachi's gaze was directed.
And with this silence came awareness. Hidan stiffened before turning to face his oncoming predicament, while Tobi stepped just a tad closer to his friend.
"Hello," Itachi spoke first, his tone that of someone about to conduct business. "Well, I am pleased to inform you that today will be your last day of misery." Itachi smirk contradicted what he was saying, "However, unfortunately for you, our last act won't be as mild as in the past."
To everyone's surprise Hidan remained quiet. It had become well-known that Hidan jumped at any chance to cuss out the Akatsuki. And now that the big showdown had come, he kept his mouth closed.
"'Tachi," began Tobi, his voice a mild whisper, but with a hint of pleading, "Just leave it where it is. There's no need to do any of this."
Itachi scoffed. "Zabuza, Kisame." Itachi stepped back so his partners in crime could do all the dirty work.
After a few seconds, however, Kisame was growling, "Where is it?"
"Where is what?" asked Itachi, unaware of the situation.
"The necklace," informed Zabuza, "he isn't wearing it."
Itachi checked for himself, but it was true. Instead of the usually mutated cross, Hidan's chest was naked.
"Let's search him," stated Zabuza. Zabuza pulled the Uchiha back so that he and Kisame could do said search.
It wasn't until the two of them had already stepped forward that Itachi noticed the small origami figure in Tobi's hand and the flash of a spark, "Wait-"
The origami figure, now clear to be a swan, was quickly flipped into the air between the three of them, and in a shower of purple sparks the entire thing exploded into a rain of crimson paint.
To Itachi's displeasure, he still received a heavy wave of paint on his person, despite having two big oafs in front of him.
Time seemed to freeze in that moment. The students stood gaping at the scene.
Itachi had paint streaking down his body in a line from head to toe, and his face was covered. The other two were completely covered. No one knew what to do. Nothing like this had ever happened before.
"Here 'Tachi, the creator left a note for you." Tobi held out an origami weasel with words written on it. After a few seconds Itachi reached for the note with trembling hands.
Tobi could tell Itachi was pissed. The mechanics in his eye had stopped spinning, which meant he was either thoroughly pissed or shocked. Maybe… maybe it was both?
Slowly, Itachi unfolded the paper weasel until he could read the entire note. By that time, Pein had walked over to see what was up. He and Itachi read the note together.
You clearly didn't heed my warning and if
you are reading this it means you tried something.
I'm sorry to say that this isn't your punishment
for going after Hidan. This was merely protection.
Now, your punishment begins…
Before Itachi or Pein could even comprehend what they had read, a loud boom shook the school.
"What the hell" Exclaimed Kisame.
"What was that?" asked Zabuza somewhat uneasily.
Students in the main hall were looking at each other and whispering.
"What's going on?" Sasori and Deidara approached together.
"Hidan! Tobi! Are you guys okay? That was cool, un!" Deidara exclaimed.
Upon seeing Sasori's suspicious gaze and Itachi's glare, Deidara quickly attempted to amend his statement. "What? The paint was awesome! I mean, it's like a work of art! You're an artist! How can you not like it Sasori-danna?"
Sasori scoffed at this, "I don't like anything that's…messy.
Deidara just cocked his one visible eyebrow before shrugging. "So what was the-"
Before he could finish yells could be heard from outside. It started as a small commotion, but it gradually increased in volume as students could be seen rushing from the parking lot toward the school.
"Someone call the fire department!"
"-huge explosion-"
"It just blew up-"
"-car looked like Uchiha's-"
At the last statement everyone in the room seemed to go silent. All eyes slowly turned toward Itachi who stood frozen, note in hand. Slowly, his hand crushed the note and he briskly started toward the door. Pein, Zabuza, and Kisame followed after him curiously.
"Shit! That was fuckin' awesome! Tobi! How did you know they were going to come after me today? And where did you get that bomb?" Hidan was practically bouncing of the walls in excitement.
Tobi giggled while handing Hidan his necklace that had been stashed in his pocket.
"Well…"Tobi threw a glance at Sasori who was still standing next to Deidara. He would have to make something up. It was times like this that he was glad Hidan was dense. One would think the boy would be able to connect the dots between the previous incident and the one that just took place. "Let's just say I've been keeping an eye on my cousin, and I asked a friend of mind to make 'this'," he gestured at lump of burnt paper, "And they were more than happy to oblige. Of course, if 'Tachi-san had just been a good boy, his car wouldn't have been attacked! I specifically told my friend to only detonate the car bomb if he didn't back down!"
"You attacked his car?" asked Sasori.
"Yup!"
"You know he loves that car right?" Sasori sighed.
"Yup!"
"And now I'm gonna have to deal with him moping and plotting?"
"Yup! …oh, sorry," Tobi quit his active bouncing for a moment to give Sasori a sincere apology.
Deidara just rolled his eyes, how bad could Itachi be?
"Aren't you gonna go see what happened like the rest of them?" inquired Deidara, before feigning curious excitement, "I wonder if it was another paint bomb! Un!"
"No." Sasori scowled, "Why would I go looking for him when he's going to find me later? I don't care what happens to his 'precious' car. He has enough money to buy ten of them."
With that said Sasori walked off in a pissy mood, making Deidara chuckle. "Thanks for covering for me Tobi."
"No problem Dei-sempai!" exclaimed Tobi.
Hidan looked slowly between the two before realization hit him. "It was-"
A hand slapped over his mouth before he could finish announcing Deidara's secret to the entire student body. Thankfully none were in hearing distance of a normal talking level.
"Thanks Gaara," said Deidara with a smile.
"Gaara nodded before turning to glare at the white-haired man. "You. Shut up."
Hidan merely nodded before Gaara removed his hand.
Gaara turned to Deidara with a smirk. "I happened to be skipping class behind the school and got a good view of your handy work."
"Did it turn out well?" laughed Deidara.
"Very…fiery," commented Gaara.
This only made Deidara chuckle more.
"How did you detonate it?" asked Gaara.
"I had Tobi give me one of the remotes to Itachi's car, and I strategically placed the igniter fuel near the engine. All I had to do was hit one little button," said Deidara smugly.
"Well, I'm going to go offer my cousin a ride home… and call a tow truck. He'll probably be in mourning all night before he begins plotting revenge." Tobi stated rather calmly before turning to leave. Gaara followed him wordlessly, leaving Deidara and Hidan just standing there.
"So…" Hidan paused in thought, "I haven't done anything to make you angry at me, right?"
Deidara rolled his eyes before turning away with a scoff.

Sasori carried his finished piece to his car while dreading the upcoming days. There was no way Itachi wasn't going to try to get him to help. After all, he apparently was good at coming up with shit like that. He was pretty sure the brat was the one who told Tobi what Itachi was planning. They had been talking about it in class, and Deidara had started acting weird after Itachi left. However, he wasn't going to tell Itachi that. It would probably be harder to befriend the blonde if Itachi was going after him in a blinded rage.
For now, he was trying to figure out how to get the boy to hang out with Akatsuki. He had gone a whole class period without calling the brat 'brat'. Ok, maybe he called him brat once. The point was, he was stumped. He had managed to make it so the two of them left together without actually asking, but other than tolerating each other, he hadn't made any progress. He was going to have to actually put effort into this, or he'd never hear the end of it. The last thing he needed was Kisame and Itachi ragging on him for ruining their fun.

Deidara sat behind the desk, lounging across two chairs with his sketch book in his lap. It was another slow day, like always. Kurenai had said she hadn't had one customer all day, and it hadn't changed with Deidara's arrival. Even the weather was dismal; it was pouring outside. Because business was literally non-existent, Kurenai had actually left her son in his care while she ran to the coffee shop just down the street. Deidara didn't like coffee, but he did enjoy a good cup of hot chocolate. So he waited patiently while sketching out ideas. Asuma, the baby was named after the father, slept peacefully in his carrier under the counter.
The bell rang signaling the entrance of someone.
"Oh my," laughed Kurenai as she pulled off a rain coat. "It is pouring."
Deidara chuckled but nodded in agreement.
"How was my baby boy?" she inquired gently as she came around the counter and handed Deidara his hot chocolate.
"Slept the whole time, un." Deidara laughed mentally at the way the woman made faces at her sleeping child. He wondered if his parents ever did that to him.
"Oh, Deidara, did you know one of your friends is waiting for you?" asked Kurenai.
"What? What do you mean?" Deidara looked at her confused.
"There's a boy standing outside the shop in the rain. I asked him if he was waiting for someone and he said he was waiting for you. I asked him if he wanted to come inside, but he declined. No matter how much I insisted he wouldn't come in." She spoke in an exasperated tone with her hands on her hips. "Stubborn brat."
"What did he look like?" frowned Deidara. He had never told his friends where the place he worked was.
"Well, he had red hair. Other than that, I couldn't really see him with how hard the rain was falling. It's like a curtain of water out there!
"I'll go talk to him," Deidara stood quickly and headed toward the door. He couldn't help but wonder why Gaara would be waiting for him, or how he even found him!
"Hey! Umbrella!" yelled Kurenai
He grabbed an umbrella at the last second before slipping outside and looking around. It didn't take long for him to spot the head of crimson hair which looked darker when wet.
"Gaara-," Deidara stopped once he got close enough. It wasn't Gaara. Gaara was a good head shorter than him, though it did not diminish his intimidating attitude. This figure was at an equal height as him, if not slightly taller.
"What-," Deidara couldn't even begin to comprehend why the boy in front of him was there, or how he knew where he worked! Wait, yes he did, Akatsuki knew where he worked, it was simply a matter of how they found out where he worked. "What are you doing here Sasori-danna?"
The boy looked at him with a blank face. He leaned calmly against the brick building behind him with his arms crossed. From the way he acted, one would assume it wasn't raining.
Deidara stepped closer, raising the umbrella so it would go over Sasori's head and cover both of them. This action brought them relatively close, but Deidara ignored it as it was necessary. His conscious wouldn't allow him to let someone, even Sasori, stand in the pouring rain.
Sasori, on the other hand, was very aware of their closeness. He wasn't one for being close to people, hell, he didn't like sitting at the lunch table because someone was always next to him, but he didn't mind this. He was surprised that Deidara had offered him part of the umbrella though. Realizing the blonde was waiting for an answer to his question, Sasori shrugged.
"Aren't you cold?" asked Deidara.
Sasori shrugged once more, he honestly didn't really feel it.
Deidara reached out to brush his fingers against the redhead's arm; both boys flinched in surprise; Sasori because of surprise, and Deidara because of how cold the other boy's skin was. Sasori vaguely noted that this was the second time Deidara had touched him of his own accord, which not many people did. Occasionally an Akatsuki member would dare, but a glare quickly put them in their place for a few months. He didn't really mind the blonde's touch though; it wasn't uncomfortable.
He was jolted out of his inner musings by something being jammed over his head, and suddenly he was enveloped in warmth. His arms were pinned to his sides and, looking down, he noted that Deidara had somehow shoved his white hoodie over his head without letting go of the umbrella. Looking at Deidara, he noted that the blonde wore a rather interesting black shirt that read 'Bite Me' with fishnet sleeves. He wondered if the boy dared to wear it to school. Maybe that was why he never took his hoodie off.
Hmmm, did Sasori know for a fact that he never took it off? That would require staring at the blonde quite a bit, but yes, he was certain the blonde didn't take it off all day.
"Quit staring like that! It's creepy, un!" Deidara grabbed the other by a hollow sleeve and began tugging him toward the jewelry shop.
Sasori followed without question, but mainly, he was dazed by the warmth he felt. He supposed after wearing the thing all day that Deidara's body had warmed it, but that didn't explain why he felt it.
Deidara dragged him inside and past the front desk to the back room. After the blonde released him, Sasori stood in the middle of the room at a loss of what he was supposed to do. He supposed he could start with pulling his arms through the sleeves of the hoodie –or take it off all together- but he couldn't bother himself with such a task at the moment. He was watching the blonde curiously as he dragged in a chair from another room and placed it in the corner by the open door where one could see the empty shop.
Intrigued, Sasori let the blonde drag him once more, but this time in the direction of the chair where he was then man-handled into sitting in it.
"There, un. The room back here is warmer, but you can still talk- er, see me at the counter from here." The blonde bit his lip as he looked Sasori up and down, which –although not uncomfortable- Sasori found slightly annoying.
Deidara couldn't help but notice that the redhead looked extremely alluring with his hair plastered to his face and his clothes soaked through. The boy didn't seem affected by the rain at all. It was almost like he couldn't feel it. But despite how the boy felt, Deidara was not going to stand by and watch someone die of hypothermia!
Sasori watch as the blonde walked back into the store part of the building but returned almost immediately with a paper cup of steaming liquid. "Here, un."
Deidara waited patiently while the other boy simply stared at the cup as if it was going to attack him. "Well," Deidara raised an eyebrow, "Are you going to drink it? It's hot chocolate; it'll warm you up."
Sasori scoffed mentally at this because he wasn't cold – or at least, he couldn't feel it - but moved to take the cup. It took him a moment to work his arms through the sleeves of the hoodie – Deidara had glared when he tried to take it off - so he could grasp the cup. At the blonde's insistent staring Sasori took a sip of the liquid, but he didn't taste it. His sense of taste had long since dulled.
Deidara leaned in the doorway so he could keep an eye on the shop and the boy at the same time.
Under the blonde's watchful eyes, Sasori finished the drink.
Deidara shifted slightly when Sasori turned his gaze upon him. The redhead stared at him emotionlessly, creating a tension in the air. Deidara wished that Kurenai would come down, but she was probably putting her son to sleep.
Finally, unable to put up with the silence, Deidara spoke, albeit uneasily, "So…un, why are you here again?"
Sasori shrugged.
Deidara scowled.
Sasori rolled his eyes before deciding to answer, "To see you."
Now, Deidara had never been a particularly romantic person, but those words set off some butterflies in his stomach. He put it off as being crept out by Sasori's intense gaze. After this little contemplation, he quickly responded.
"Yeah, I figured that out on my own," he retorted, "What I meant was, why are you here to see me?"
Sasori didn't respond because he honestly didn't know. He knew he had been thinking about how to make the blond trust him, but he didn't really think showing up at the blonde's work would do anything other than freak him out.
"Hello?" Deidara tried to get his attention.
"Hn," Sasori focused on Deidara, "I came to make a suggestion."
"A suggestion?" now Deidara was thrown for a loop.
"About the rings Pein wants you to-
"No."
"I was going to suggest-
"No."
"Will you shut up and listen?" growled Sasori.
"…No," Deidara smirked, but it quickly vanished as Sasori stood up, put the hot chocolate down, and walked forward until Deidara was trapped in the door jam. Deidara could literally taste the hot chocolate in the air as Sasori spoke, that was how close the were.
"Now, will you listen?" Sasori demanded to know.
"…maybe," Deidara never usually gave into pressure, but this was starting to get a little uncomfortable for him. Or at least weird.
"I was going to suggest you make each of them their own unique ring, but with a similar design to mine. They don't have to be the same," stated Sasori, "It can still be artwork that way."
Deidara opened his mouth to respond, but Sasori interrupted him.
"Pein will pay for any supplies you need, as well as for your time."
Deidara hesitated, normally he'd refuse like he did earlier, but now that he wasn't in a rage, and money had been mentioned, he didn't know what to there was the little fact that Sasori came out of his way to make the offer... though he didn't know why that made him think differently on the matter. It's because he's an artist too and understands my passion, un,reasoned Deidara. "How much?" he asked after a few moments of contemplating.
"Name a reasonable price," offered Sasori.
"Uh," Deidara racked his mind. He really had no idea, but he figured if he aimed low, he could still get a good chunk of cash. "$500?"
Sasori raised an eyebrow at this before scoffing. "Your going to get taken advantage of if you don't think to squeeze the rich bastard for all you can get. Fine, $2000 for your supplies, you can keep what you don't use, and if you need more just ask; $2000, for your services beforehand and an extra $2000 if you agree to make extras. I'm sure Pein would appreciate them for the future."
Deidara's eyes widened; he was in shock. He had no idea what to say. He turned his gaze to the floor. How could he say no?
Sasori watched as the other boy chewed his lip; obviously, money was a necessity for the other boy. He almost felt bad for exploiting the boy's weakness, but it was necessary.
Deidara sighed in defeat. "Ask your friends what colors they want and then I'll look into prices. It probably won't even cost $2000 for the materials." Deidara felt extremely weak, giving in to Akatsuki's demands so quickly, but… he could really use the money, and not just for things around the house, but he had to think about college. If he ever wanted to become a successful artist in the future, or…anything for that matter, he would need to go to college.
"Good," nodded Sasori, now at least they won't bug me about that. Not that the Akatsuki had bugged him about making Deidara make the rings, but since he was in charge of making the blonde trust him, it was only a matter of time. Also, this way, his original job was even easier. If the blonde had been fighting against the Akatsuki over the rings, it would have been more difficult for Sasori to befriend him.
Deidara opened his mouth to say something when the bell connected to the front door rung. Deidara looked out into the shop to see who it was and immediately recognized someone who had brought their watch in to be cleaned. "One sec," he told the redhead before calmly pushing Sasori out of his space and stepping into the shop. Good evening Ms. Yamanaka, I was worried you weren't going to make it. It's almost 8 o'clock." Deidara welcomed the lady kindly while bringing her order out from under the counter.
"I know. I rushed all the way here. I almost forgot it to be honest," laughed the lady.
"Here you are" Deidara passed the small pouch over the counter, "and you've already paid I believe?" inquired Deidara as he pulled off the receipt attached to the pouch, "Yup, you're good to go!" He flashed a brilliant smile at the woman as she thanked him and headed toward the door.
"Come back again!" called Deidara as he waved. He smiled contentedly as she left; he loved making people happy. It wasn't until he felt the warm breath on the back of his neck that his smile dropped. He turned around to find Sasori's face only inches from his own. Deidara quickly looked off to the side so that his hair hid his face. There was no way, he was letting Sasori see the blush that was covering his face due to their close proximity.
Of course, that was precisely the reason he didn't see Sasori lean just a little bit closer until his nose brushed Deidara's hair.
"Uh," Deidara slipped to the side a little bit so there was some more space between them. "Ok, so you can tell Pein I'll make the rings. Um," Deidara didn't really know what to say. He glanced at the front of the shop and saw that it was still pouring. "How did you get here?"
Sasori stared at the back of the blonde's head- the boy was still avoiding his gaze. He didn't know why he had felt the need to stand so close to the other boy. He shrugged in response to Deidara's question, but realized that the boy wasn't looking at him. "I walked."
"In this rain?" Deidara turned around in shock, completely forgetting the awkward moment.
Sasori shrugged. "I don't mind the rain."
"Tch! Alright, just use the phone on the counter to call someone to pick you up." Deidara shook his head in the way one might do to scold a child.
"It's not important," Sasori replied, "I'll just walk back." He moved toward the door only to be stopped by a gloved hand grasping his cloak.
"At least call a taxi, I don't want to be blamed if you get sick," insisted Deidara.
Sasori stared at the hand that was on his shoulder. This was the third time the blonde had touched him, and yet, he didn't feel the need to kill him.
Deidara blushed when he realized what Sasori was looking at. He began to retract his hand when Sasori grabbed his wrist and dragged him closer.
Sasori smirked when he noticed Deidara's blush increase.
"Well then, how were you going to get home?" inquired Sasori with a raised eyebrow.
"Huh?" Deidara froze at the way Sasori was looking at him. "I was going to walk…"
Sasori's smirk widened, "So I need to take a taxi, and you can walk? Aren't you being a little bit hypocritical?" Sasori noticed the glove of Deidara's hand and casually ran is thumb over the blonde's palm. It surprised him when a shiver ran along the smaller boy's body.
"It's different!" insisted Deidara, ripping his arm out of Sasori's grasp. It had felt so weird having someone touch him there, one of his most sensitive spots. He decided to shout in order to hide his embarrassment. "I have an umbrella and my house is only a few blocks away! Your house is across town and you don't have an umbrella!"
"Hm," Sasori crossed his arms. "Fine, I'll walk with you."
"Good- wait, what?" Deidara was taken by surprise, but quickly his mood became irritated, "I am not walking you all the way home!"
"I meant I would walk with you to your house," explained the redhead.
"What?" Deidara was officially floored, "That's even worse! Then you'd have to walk even further to get home and it'd still be pouring!"
Sasori's brow furrowed as he began to get irritated with how stubborn and loud the other boy was being. "You are awful sure of yourself. How do you know where I live?"
"Because you're rich! All the rich people live on the other side of town. I don't need to investigate you in order to find out where you live and work," growled Deidara as he was reminded by the fact that Akatsuki had in fact been looking up information about him. "You live on the rich side of town and don't work because you don't have to!"
Sasori quickly realized that in his attempt to get closer to the blonde, he was actually angering the boy by bringing out some hidden resentment towards those with a lot of money; for example, him and the rest of the Akatsuki. He thought about just leaving to pacify the boy but decided against it. He had made some sort of progress and if he left now, it would be back to square one; not to mention it would be awkward the next time they spoke to each other.
"I would like to see your home." He didn't know why he said that; it would definitely have the opposite effect. He was right in that assumption because Deidara's face immediately turned red, and not from embarrassment. Before the blonde could explode, Sasori stepped forward and slapped a hand over the blonde's mouth. When the smaller boy tried to step out of reach, Sasori grasped the other's arm. "What I meant," he began again in an attempt to take his foot out of his mouth, "was, I would like to make sure you make it home safely. There are many things that could happen in a storm like this. Also, I would appreciate it if after we got to your home, you would lend me your umbrella to get back to my house."
Deidara glared and was very tempted to bite the other's hand, but for some reason he didn't. He was too busy starring the other boy down.
They stood there for a while until Sasori finally lowered his hand slowly.
"You expect me to believe that?" growled Deidara, a little more quietly than before. He didn't want Kurenai coming down to see what was wrong; actually, he was surprised she hadn't come down when he first started shouting. "I know exactly what you want. You just want a good laugh! I'm not stupid." He hissed.
Sasori was racking his brain. This was exactly why he hated talking to people. Not only were other people annoying, but he was simply not compatible with any other human being on the face of the earth! That and his people skills were seriously lacking. Now, he really needed to back track. The somewhat friendly atmosphere was completely gone. He didn't know why he decided to do what he was about to do, but he told himself it was because it was believable.
Using the hand that was still holding on to the blonde's upper arm, he spun the blond around until Deidara's back was pressed against the front counter and Sasori was leaning over him.
Deidara froze at the new position. He had not been expecting that! He could already feel his heart speeding up, which was ridiculous because there was absolutely nothing attractive about those piercing brown eyes.
Their nosed brushed slightly, but instead of closing the inch of space between them, Sasori slipped his head to the side so that he was whispering directly in the blonde's ear. "I was actually hoping we could spend more time together to get to know each other. I also figured that, not only was your house closer but that you would also be more comfortable in your own environment." He frown as he force the next part passed though his teeth. "I apologize if I upset you." He had never apologized to anyone in his life! But, it was necessary if he wanted this human interaction thing to be over as soon as possible, and he was definitely not enjoying the way the blonde shuddered against him.
"You expect me to believe that?" mumbled Deidara, a little breathless. He still couldn't get over the shock.
"I would have thought it was obvious," retorted Sasori as a back away a little bit. "After all, I wasn't exactly being inconspicuous at school." To be honest, he had merely been teasing the boy at school, but this was exactly where he got the idea from. It was notoriously known that he and the rest of the Akatsuki were gay, and the way he'd been teasing the blonde had been a little bit sexual. There was no turning back either way; if he said it was a joke then he'd be even further back than square one. "Do I really look like someone who jokes around with others? You should have realized that when I actually began to have serious conversations with you."
Actually, now that Sasori thought about it; why did he converse with the blonde? It wasn't until the night before that they'd deemed it necessary for Sasori to get close to him.
Deidara was very uncomfortable right now. Sure, he was gay too; what guy with waist length hair wasn't? But that was beside the point. He was very uncomfortable with the way Sasori was acting, maybe even a bit nervous? Either way, Deidara only had one defense for feeling uncomfortable: avoid it.
"Like I would know that?" he growled, "I've been going to Konoha High for two weeks and two days. That hardly gives me the knowledge of every aspect of your personality." He quickly pushed the redhead back, avoided the intense brown eyes he could feel starring at him, and began to get his things together to leave. "Anyway, I really need to get home, homework and all," Yeah right! All electives remember? "I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"
Sasori frowned. Yes, the blonde no longer seemed angry, but he wondered if perhaps his little plan had backfired to some extent. Sure, the boy may still talk to him, but if he wasn't gay he might feel a little uncomfortable. Though, Sasori was pretty sure the blonde was gay; takes one to know one afterall. Shrugging he headed toward the door to leave, but froze when the blonde addressed him.
"Wait." Deidara spoke on instinct and internally cursed his caring personality. "Are you still going to walk in the rain?"
Sasori just shrugged and turned back toward the door.
"Wait," Deidara hissed when the redhead seemed to brush off his comment. Seeing the other's impatient glare he sighed, "Fine, you can walk under my umbrella, but you are not coming in my house. I'm not even going to tell you which apartment is mine. You're going to take my umbrella to walk home and return it tomorrow, got it? Un."
Deidara didn't notice the smirk on the other's face as he grabbed his book bag and headed towards the door. "Are you ready?" He opened the door and locked it but waited for the redhead to step outside before closing it.
"I should be asking you that," said Sasori, "I tried to leave ten minutes ago. Can we go now? I don't want to be out all night."
Deidara rolled his eyes as he opened the umbrella, "Right this way Danna…" he mumbled. However he jumped when he felt a warm breath against his neck.
"I'm beginning to wonder what sorts of things go on in your mind; especially with how you favor that nickname. Not that I mind," chuckled Sasori. He hadn't planned on going further with the romance plan, but he couldn't help himself. This was getting entertaining… and the blonde had totally set himself up for that one.
"What goes on in my mind has nothing to do with it!" Shouted Deidara; once again on the defensive. "I gave you that nickname because of how demanding you are!"
"Hm, demanding..." pondered Sasori, "Well, I can assure you that I am a very demanding person…"
Deidara couldn't hide the blush that now covered every inch of his body. His new nickname should be pervert! "Just come on!" He practically dragged the redhead toward his home in order to keep him under the umbrella.
"Impatient are we?"
"Aaah! Just shut up!" growled Deidara as he began dragging the other even faster. Yeah, impatient to get home so I can get rid of you!
Sasori just smirked. Oh, yes, he definitely found his way into the blonde's heart, a little unconventional, but in the end, he would be entertained and the Akatsuki would be happy.
Deidara sighed in relief when he saw the alcohol store under his flat just up ahead. He dragged the other boy under the awning above the shop door before he stopped and handed the other boy the umbrella. "There, my home is within running distance. Now you can go home."
"Young man?"
Deidara immediately turned around to see his landlord coming out of the shop. "Yes sir?"
"Oh thank goodness, I was beginning to get worried when you hadn't returned home yet. There's a tornado warning; they just announced it on the radio. You and your friend should hurry up to your room."
"That's horrible. We should hurry inside, right brat?" a taunting voice said from behind him.
Deidara stiffen. He could almost imagine the smirk on Sasori's face.
You have got to be kidding me!

Hope all enjoyed that!
Until Next Time...
Con amor! ~ ;D
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