Leaning Towards the Sun

Chapter Four

Once again, Sasuke was spending hours at a time just wandering around aimlessly, without any actual destination in mind; he just went wherever his legs took him. Here in London, he had no real responsibilities- no studying, no work. It meant a lot of free time, so...he walked.

He got lost a fair bit. It was cold, and rainy. And there were a lot of people around, no matter where he went. He didn't mind that; those things didn't bother him. But it occurred to him that he'd come full circle, and despite all the progress he'd made in the past two years, he was back to where he'd started- wandering aimlessly, drifting, floating. He was in limbo, and he didn't know what to do about it.

Naruto had kissed him. It probably barely counted as a kiss; it had only been a few moments, and it had been so light, so gentle- nothing, really. But it was still a kiss, and Sasuke could still feel that warmth on his cheek. He still remembered, vividly, what he'd felt like, standing there in Naruto's arms on that day.

Sasuke didn't like that he'd become such a sentimental person. How could he have let this guy take over his mind like this, turn his brain into mush? It didn't make sense. Sasuke had seen his pathetic little baby crush evolve into something intense and powerful, a need deep within him- but there was nothing he could do about it.

Obviously, the situation was complicated, and even if Sasuke was fine with it, and willing to overlook the strangeness in their relationship, that didn't mean that Naruto was. Or did he just need more time? Or should Sasuke just be trying harder?

He didn't know, and so he walked, and he thought, and didn't really get anywhere at all.

***

"Did you speak to Kiba today?" Itachi asked him over dinner, as he divided up their takeaway Chinese onto two plates.

Sasuke nodded. He made himself call his boyfriend once every few days. That's what you did, wasn't it, when you were in a relationship but you went away for several months? "Yeah," he said. "Seems like he's having a fun holiday."

"If only you were having a fun holiday," Itachi said to that, pushing a plate of noodles towards him.

Sasuke scowled. "I'm having a great time," he declared, taking a fork and digging into his dinner. "Honestly!"

His brother stared at him critically for a few moments. "I have a few days off next week. We'll go do some sightseeing."

"Fine," Sasuke said with a shrug. "And really, I like it here. You don't need to worry about me."

Itachi sighed. "I always worry about you," he said.

Well, it's not like Sasuke could do anything about that.

***

A month passed. One day Sasuke stopped on a random street and saw one of those huge red buses coming towards him. He still wasn't used to things like that, those bizarrely British things that were actually real. Like, people here really did say 'lovely' all the time, and drank insane amounts of tea- a habit he'd quickly picked up as well, despite having never drunk tea before in his life. It was like he and Itachi had stepped into another dimension, a world apart from their usual lives.

On instinct, Sasuke quickly got his phone out of his pocket and snapped a photo of the bus before it disappeared. He got ready to send it to- well, who should he send it to, actually? His thumb hovered over his two favourited contacts, his mind going back and forth, before he finally made a decision and clicked 'send'.

He didn't have to wait long for a reply. What?? Those things are real?! wrote Naruto. Please tell me you've actually been on one.