Author's Note: Heya, people. I published this story months ago, then deleted it, and now I'm publishing it again. The story explores darker themes than my usual writing.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Warnings: Stalking, creepiness, mental illness, sexual themes, substance abuse, mentions of child abuse, PTSD, kidnapping.

"Don't go too far." Sasuke said. He kneeled into a crouch behind some bushes, peering through and watching as blond hair bobbed across the clearing. This was one of the more dangerous parts of town, and Naruto always came by on Sunday. He kept the look of someone who knew what they were doing, and refused to show just how much of a mess he really was.

Naruto disappeared into a building, leaving Sasuke stranded in the woods once again. Rather than sitting around to wait for him to come back out, Sasuke crawled over the nearest window, peeking in to see what was happening.

Another dealer.

It was the third dealer this month. Last week, a dealer said Naruto's usual guy was sick, and Naruto took the excuse as the truth. But Sasuke knew the kinds of people Naruto was dealing with. He'd worked with these kinds of people before. The first time Naruto came by this building, Sasuke did extensive research on the people residing here, and found that this wasn't a dealer-client kind of thing, but a gang.

Subconsciously, Naruto knew this too. There were too many signs pinpointing towards criminal activity that went beyond drug dealing for him not too. But being the crackhead he was, Naruto didn't care so long as he got his fix.

Sasuke watched as Naruto gave his money away, and the dealer went to the back room to grab whichever drugs were requested. These were the worst situations Naruto got into, and Sasuke hated watching them.

And yet, tomorrow Naruto would be smiling as if nothing happened. He'd go to school, finish his work, and pretend the bruise around his eye was from a fall. Teachers had no reason to question him, especially with his guardian working at the school. And his guardian didn't care enough to ask where the bruise came from.

But his lips would still quirk up, and he'd laugh when Kiba mocked him. Soon, the bruise would be forgotten, and still, he'd smile.

Naruto's smile was always so disgustingly happy. He was always telling himself about how in a few years, things would be better. But Sasuke knew it never would. After all, Sasuke said the same thing to himself. Day after day, he repeated, "things will get better" until he finally accepted that that optimism was an illusion.

To see that same optimism reflected in Naruto was a curse Sasuke both loved and hated. Somehow, Sasuke needed to ensure Naruto lost that false hope and accepted that he'd never be happy. He hadn't figured out how to handle it yet, but in time, Sasuke knew he would.

Blue eyes flittered to the window. Sasuke ducked down. This had been happening more often lately. Sasuke suspected Naruto sensed Sasuke watching. Either that, or he saw a figure move from time to time.

Perhaps Sasuke had been getting careless. Years ago, Sasuke wouldn't dare get this close to Naruto. But more often he found himself outside the school window and following him as he scavenged dumpsters around town, eventually heading back to his car and ending the day with sleep. Sasuke used to watch from afar and rarely ever got close. But now, he often found himself inching closer to Naruto, desperate just to have some form of contact, even if it was in the form of strangers.

I could be your dealer. He thought. Naruto would question a man who came offering drugs, but if he saw an exchange he made with someone he might stray from this gang and request Sasuke to provide the drugs he needed. It was a simple solution to a difficult problem. However, a simple money-for-drugs relationship wasn't what Sasuke sought.

Naruto's gaze travelled back to the dealer, and Sasuke was free to peer over the window again. It had been years since he started looking out for Naruto, and he had never suspected Sasuke's presence until recently. Perhaps getting closer meant getting caught. But if that was to be the case, Sasuke wanted to be caught as someone who cared for someone, not as the label the police gave him.

Looking out for someone was different than stalking. Police were fools for believing otherwise.

Sasuke's eyes roved over Naruto's tantalizing lips. He wanted to wrap his arms around Naruto's body. To draw his hands through sunny hair, worshipping him in a way he'd never done before. He wanted Naruto to know him. To see him. To worship Sasuke just as much as Sasuke worshipped him. His fingers would trace over the scars on each cheek, and Naruto's eyes would light up as they did when there was no homework that night. Naruto would whisper his name over and over again, like a mantra meant only for Sasuke's ears.

Sasuke breathed in deeply, shuddering. Naruto was his. No officer was going to take that away.

It wasn't even Naruto who filed a report against him. It was a goddamn teacher.

The dealer grabbed Naruto's wrist, pushing him into the wall and whispering something into his ear.

Sasuke coiled his fingers into the ground, eyes dilating as his pulse quickened. He'd fought against lovers and friends, forcing any acquaintance Naruto knew to vanish. Yet a drug dealer never made the list of people Sasuke needed to disappear. He hadn't prepared himself for the need to force a drug dealer out of Naruto's life.

He licked his lips, burning rage coiling in his gut as the dealer dragged Naruto to another room and out of Sasuke's sight. Sasuke had never seen Naruto disappear before. He was always within sight, no matter where he travelled.

He ground his teeth together, scurrying to the entrance of the building. No one took Naruto out of his eyeshot. Not unless it was someone Sasuke knew was safe.

No one was safe enough for Naruto.

The electricity was shut off. So, Sasuke waited for his eyes to adjust and continued forward. The moonlight was an effective source of light. Most wouldn't notice a difference between darkness and moonlight, but Sasuke had been watching Naruto day and night, so his eyes had adapted to the brightest and lowest lighting.

The building was mostly empty. A few footsteps echoed in the distance, but nothing that threatened Sasuke. It was eerily similar to his first home, back when he was a child. But while his home was full of riches and decorations, this was dusty and decaying.

Just like that night.

Blood swarmed through his mind's eye. His parent's corpse' lying cold in a puddle of crimson. Itachi standing by the door, red dripping from his fingertips. His brother's hands were behind his back, so Sasuke didn't see the knife until after he'd embraced Itachi and found himself dripping with his parent's blood.

Muddled voices spilled from the room beside him. Sasuke pressed his ear against it, trying to hear Naruto's voice among the dealers. A gun could be pressed against Naruto's head, and while Sasuke was trapped in the memory of that night, Naruto was dealing with a dealer who wanted more than just money.

Forget that night. It doesn't matter anymore.

Naruto was everything that mattered in this world.

A sob poured through his throat. His parent's screams ran through his brain until all that was left was Itachi. He hid in a cupboard until the screams died, then swam through blood until he reached his parents room.

His heart raced through his head, stomach dropping as nausea crawled through his body. His hands were shaking, and sweat formed beneath his neck.

Itachi stood above their dying bodies. Sasuke had thought his brother was going to help them.

Something cold pressed against his temple, bruising his skull. Sasuke's eyes focused immediately. His parent's corpses gone from his mind. Itachi disappearing into oblivion just as he did that night. He was in a decaying warehouse, not the mansion filled with blood. Naruto was in the room beside him, and Sasuke was too stupid to be rid of the dealer while he had the chance.

"One wrong move and I shoot. Refuse to answer my questions and I shoot. Understand?"

Sasuke nodded. Under normal circumstances, this was a simple situation of answer questions and hope they didn't shoot. But Naruto was in the next room. Any wrong move, and Sasuke's danger became Naruto's. If Sasuke got killed, Naruto was a witness, even if he didn't actually see anything.

That's not how this gang works.

The gang wouldn't hurt Naruto.

"Who are you?"

They would make Naruto hurt him.

He closed his eyes. "No one important."

The man slammed the barrel into his head, grabbing a lock of hair and keeping him upright. Sasuke bit his lip, tasting iron. Any noise would draw attention, and Sasuke didn't want Naruto's curious eyes shining through the door.

"Who are you?" The man said. Sasuke eyed him warily. Some gang members were stupid, and this might just be one of them. Sasuke however, was not stupid, and had handled worse situations than this.

"Izumo Tanaka."

"What are you here for?"

Sasuke gave the best answer he could think of. "Drugs."

It was better than the truth.

The man released him, laughing loud enough for Naruto to hear. Sasuke cringed, glancing over at the door and just waiting for Naruto to see what was going on just inches away.

The man grabbed Sasuke's hand and helped him stand. Sasuke clenched his teeth. This man wanted Naruto for something. And anything anyone wanted from Naruto meant Sasuke lost to someone else in the game of who gets Naruto.

He'd never lost before. He wasn't starting now.

But he's not really yours, is he?

What were they talking about in the next room?

"You should've said so. How much you got?"

Sasuke left his wallet at home. He never needed it while watching Naruto.

"I don't have any. I'd hoped I can pay you later."

"Go into debt, huh? That's alright. What are you interested in?"

"Anything that works. Though my favorite's always been cocaine."

The last time he bought drugs was in high school, and it'd been longer since he'd taken any. His brother forced him into a rehabilitation center upon his release from juvie. Sasuke was still a minor then, but the program had helped him get better control of himself.

Then he found Naruto.

"Stay here. I'll be right back." The man said.

Sasuke embraced the chill of winter air as he left the building. He'd wait outside the bushes for Naruto to leave, then kill everyone in the gang.

Naruto belonged to him. Lovers. Friends. Acquaintances. He wasn't allowed any.

He doesn't even know you exist.

"He's still mine."