Author's Note: My second Naruto fic, my first Neji/Gaara attempt. Flame appropriately!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Pairing: Neji/Gaara
Warning: Yaoi/Slash/etc.
Neji pressed the round doorbell, hearing the sound echo throughout the house. Stepping back, he sighed and shifted the books in his arms. How did he get stuck doing this, anyway? Oh, right.
Flashback
"Alright, class. Before you leave for the weekend, I have a favor to ask- Sabaku no Gaara is sick with mono. I need one of you to tutor him while he's out of school, since it's unlikely that he'll be back for a while."
Naruto jumped up, waving his hand wildly in the air.
"Kurenai-sensei! I'll do it, I'll tutor him!" Kurenai scowled in response, rolling her scarlet eyes.
"Naruto, you're on the verge of failing this class. How could you possibly tutor someone when you can't even comprehend the material?" The blonde pouted as he dropped back into his seat, ignoring the delighted expression on a certain Uchiha's face. Kurenai scanned her eyes around the room and frowned.
"No one else?"
Tenten raised her gaze from the book hidden under her desk to look at her lab partner. "Why don't you do it, Neji? You and Shino have the highest grades in class, but I don't picture him as much of a tutor." She gave him a slight nudge. "Besides, you need to socialize more."
Neji closed his notebook, neatly placing his pen in his shirt pocket. "Tenten." His voice was calm, but final. "I have no interest in tutoring. I don't like to socialize- You know that."
"Neji? Oh, you'll do it? Excellent!" Kurenai flitted to their table with a triumphant grin, dropping a stack of papers in front of the startled Hyūga. "These are the notes and worksheets we've gone over during the past week. Hand them back to me next Thursday before the test."
"But-"
RIIIIIIIINGGG.
"Class is dismissed! Have a good weekend, everyone!" Kurenai grabbed her things, skittering out the door before any of the students had a chance. "Oy! Thanks again, Neji!"
End Flashback
Stupid Kurenai-sensei. She tricked him, knowing that he wouldn't simply ignore her wishes or clumsily 'forget'.
"So this is the punishment for being dependable," Neji grumbled, pressing the doorbell again.
"I'm coming, damn it! Don't you idiots have any patience!" The door was roughly yanked open, and a baffled, brown-haired man pulled a toothbrush out of his mouth with a soft 'pop'.
"What is it, kid?" He lifted the towel that was around his neck, wiping the paste from his lips. Neji resisted the urge to turn around and run far, far away.
"Is this the home of Sabaku no Gaara?" Trying his best to sound polite, he straightened his posture and gave the man a cool expression.
The man seemed surprised for a moment, but he soon pushed the door open more and stepped to the side. "Up the stairs, to the right. The right.Temari will have a fit if you accidentally go into her room." He shut the door behind the long-haired Hyūga, then shoved his toothbrush back into his mouth and began brushing fiercely as he wandered off down the hall.
Neji took a deep breath. Hygiene issues, perhaps? Shaking his head, he slid off his shoes and shifted to walk up the stairs, turning to knock on the door.
"It's open." He pushed open the door, though paused in the doorway.
"Gaara?" His voice was uncertain. The redhead was no where to be seen. Suddenly, said hair and a pair of mint green eyes appeared from behind what Neji assumed was the door to a closet.
"Hyūga Neji? What are you doing here?" Frowning, he shut the door, pulling on a dark shirt that matched his pajama bottoms. Neji lifted the biology books in his arms so that the other boy could see them.
"Kurenai-sensei sent me. She wants me to tutor you while you're sick."
Gaara's frown deepened. Neji, tutor him? No thanks. "Why didn't she pick Naruto?" A light bulb inside his head flickered on at Neji's 'Why do you think?' expression. "Oh.. right." He walked over to his bed, sitting and suppressing a yawn.
"Just leave the books here. I can figure it out on my own."
Neji dropped the books on the desk next to Gaara's bed, seating himself in the chair. "Idiot. What's the point in refusing help? I'm not going to go against her wishes just because of your egocentrism."
Gaara narrowed his eyes, and Neji immediately noticed the dark circles around them. Was that why he wore the kohl around his eyes at school? Glancing to the bed, the brunette noted that it was perfectly made, the sheets not even wrinkled. Didn't he sleep at all?
"You do know that mono is contagious, right?"
"It doesn't matter. I don't get sick."
Gaara scowled, and cast his eyes aside. When he said nothing, Neji took out a handful of papers from inside one of the books. "We're covering bacteria now. You need to copy these notes.." He pulled out another stack, consisting of less papers. "And complete these worksheets. Do that in your own time." Giving a sigh at the redhead's lack of enthusiasm, he cracked open the book and began to read the first section aloud. "Chapter 30. Bacteria are the most numerous organisms on Earth, as well as the most ancient.."
XXX
"I'll come again tomorrow, around noon. Try and get some of that work done by then." Neji hesitated, standing in front of the doorway with his back to the silent boy behind him.
"Oh.. and get some sleep."
With that, he disappeared out the door, and Gaara shifted to stare out of his window until he was certain that Neji had left the house.
Get some sleep? Easier said than done. Gaara fell back on his bed, arms crossed over his chest. Neji was so annoying. Egocentrism? What a hypocrite. Neji practically bathed in his own amazing-ness. Maybe a car would run him over while he was walking home.
Smiling at that thought, Gaara buried his face into a pillow and closed his eyes. Perhaps dreams could come true.
Gaara glared. Oh, did he glare. Neji did not get hit by a car. He probably didn't run into a tree or step in dog poop, either.
Sigh.
The redhead narrowed his eyes more, and attempted to make a threatening growl like he'd heard Kiba do once before. Instead of cowering in a corner from fear, Neji raised a brow and said:
"Are you okay? Maybe you should get a glass of water.."
Growl attempt, failure. Double sigh.
"I'm fine. Let's go to the park today.. I've been inside too long." Gaara zipped up his jacket, stepping onto the porch next to the older boy when he had nodded his agreement.
"Have you finished any of those worksheets yet?"
Gaara locked the door.
"No." He walked down the steps, and Neji was soon next to him.
"No? It's already Sunday. What do you do, mope around all day?"
"Actually, I keep getting harassed by this ugly smartass who won't leave me alone. I tried to shoo him away with my negativity, but alas, his massive brain prevails."
Neji started to retort, but clamped his mouth shut. "Do you think we could at least try to be civil to each other?"
"Do you think you could at least jump off a cliff and die?" Neji scowled. Guess that's a no.
Gaara slipped his hands into the pockets of his coat, diverting his eyes to the ground as they walked along. The wind picked up and blew his hair across his eyes, but he didn't seem to mind.
"You know, I've lived here since I was six, and I don't think we've ever said more than two words to each other before now." He didn't raise his eyes, but he knew the Hyūga was shrugging his shoulders.
"You always gave me evil looks. Why would I talk to you?"
"I was just making a statement. Besides, I give everyone evil looks," He pointed out. Neji frowned, and tossed a loose lock of hair over his shoulder.
"True." They both fell silent, until Gaara spoke up when they approached the park.
"So what's the lesson today, Neji-sensei ?" He grinned slightly, but Neji only rolled his eyes.
"Pathology. Antibiotics, mostly; like penicillin."
"Boring." He sighed. "Why don't I just take the day off?" Neji shook his head. "No.. you need to be able to understand this material in time for the test."
"What if we make a deal? I'll do.. three of those worksheets tonight."
Pause.
"And a page of notes."
"Half a page?"
"No."
Cheapskate. "Fine. Three worksheets, and a page of notes. Deal?"
"Deal. What do you want to do instead?" Gaara shrugged, sitting on an uncomfortable metal bench.
"Just relax, I guess." Neji sat beside of him, leaning his head back to watch the clouds. "Isn't your brother a senior? Why didn't he pick up your work for you?"
Gaara glanced over, and frowned. "He goes to a different school. He probably wouldn't do me any favors, anyway."
Neji quirked a brow, lowering his eyes for a moment. "What's that supposed to mean?" The redhead wrinkled his nose and shifted to stare off towards the playground. "Nothing, I-"
"Oy! Gaara!"
Great, it's Naruto..
Giving a small wave, Gaara looked to his companion, who seemed to be eerily calm.
"Hey, Gaara!" Naruto beamed down at the red-haired boy, hands on his hips. "Oh, Neji, you're here too?" He stuck out his lower lip in a pout. "Kurenai-sensei is cruel, isn't she?"
Neji raised a hand, pretending to inspect his fingernails. "Not really. She just doesn't like you." His lips twitched into a smile, and the blonde knew he was joking.
"Ah! Don't kid- all the teachers love me!" Naruto squeezed himself between the two, casually draping his arms around their shoulders. "So, are you guys studying, or what? I don't see any books anywhere.." Neji shrugged his arm off, and Gaara did likewise.
"We made a deal. I'm letting him off easy today." Naruto grinned, jumping back up. "Great! Let's all go eat some ramen!"
Gaara closed his eyes. "I'm not really hungry."
Neji hesitated, his pale eyes wandering to the redhead before returning to Naruto. "Me either. Sorry, Naruto. Maybe you could ask Sasuke or Sakura-chan.. ?" His voice trailed off, as Naruto was already walking away, slumping over in defeat.
Neji snorted at the dramatics.
"That Naruto.. In a weird way, he seems to bring out the best in people, don't you think?"
Gaara opened an eye, regarding Neji with a questioning look. After a moment, he sighed, letting the lid slide shut.
"Hmm.. I guess you're right. When I first met Naruto, he challenged me to a game of 20 Questions. I threatened to saw off his fingers and toes with a dull knife." He smiled faintly and allowed his head to lean on the back of the bench. "He was the only person who never took me seriously, even if I wasn't joking. It was refreshing.. normally, everyone would just run away. Naruto was different."
Neji arched a brow, watching the other boy curiously. "Why are you like that? …Violent?"
Gaara opened his eyes, resting them on Neji's ivory ones. "Just because you're my tutor, doesn't mean we're friends. Don't get involved with me."
XXX
"It's getting late. I'm sure your father will be worried if you're not back soon." Neji stood, stretching a little. The sun had already set. They'd sat there the whole day, mostly in silence. The pale boy was still somewhat shaken by the other's words. Don't get involved with me. The intensity in his eyes when he'd spoken was almost frightening.
Gaara inwardly laughed. Father, worried? Not likely… he'd probably be relieved, if anything. "He won't mind," He said simply. Neji reached back to redo his ponytail that had come undone.
"We could go get something to eat, then." Gaara shrugged, standing as well. Truthfully, he had grown quite hungry since Naruto had come by, which had been several hours ago. He crossed his arms, blowing a few strands of hair from his face.
"The Ichiraku ramen shop is nearby. Let's just go there." When Neji didn't complain, he started towards the shop with a sniffle. By the time he got home, it'd probably be dark. Good.
"Wait up!" Neji came up next to him and laughed softly. "Geez, are you hungry or something? I've never seen you walk this fast."
Gaara glanced over, surprised to hear him laughing. He'd never heard the Hyūga do that before. It wasn't irritating, like Naruto's laugh often was, but quiet and pleasant. It seemed like a natural thing for him to do, yet Gaara wasn't even aware that he was capable of doing it.
Neji's smile faded and a slight frown graced his lips. "Are you okay?" Gaara looked down and realized he'd stopped walking. What an idiot. Was Neji's laugh really that entrancing?
"Yeah.." He said slowly. "Just spaced out for a minute."
Soon they were sitting side-by-side at the ramen shop, both having ordered shoyu ramen. Gaara fiddled with his chopsticks as they waited, while Neji sat calmly with his hands folded across his lap.
"What about you?" Neji raised his head. "Huh?"
"Are you allowed to stay out as late as you want or something?"
Neji shrugged. "My uncle tells me to be home by ten, but he doesn't really care. If I come in any later, he'll only scold me and then forget about it by morning."
"How stupid." Gaara shook his head. "If you don't care about someone, then you shouldn't act like you do."
Neji opened his mouth to reply, but paused when their bowls were put before them. They both said 'Itadakimasu' in unison before the brunette continued.
"I suppose that's true. He's harder on Hinata because she is expected to outdo me in everything. It's almost like he's jealous of my father for having me, when he was 'stuck' (/air quotations) with her." He broke apart his chopsticks, attacking the noodles first.
Gaara sipped his soup thoughtfully, and Neji looked up to find the boy staring at him. He swallowed uncomfortably under the scrutiny. "What is it?"
"What? Oh.. I was just wondering- where's your father?" He regretted the question immediately. The look Neji gave him was the same look he'd given people when they'd asked about his mother. The look disappeared, leaving him with Neji's usual emotionless expression.
"He's dead." The dark-haired boy returned to his ramen, slurping the noodles rather loudly. Gaara set down his spoon and stared into his full bowl. He'd lost his appetite.
XXX
Neji waved goodbye to Ayame, stopping outside of the shop. Where'd Gaara go? His eyes adjusted to the darkness and he set out after the boy, putting his hand on his shoulder to stop him. "You couldn't even wait for me?"
Gaara glanced up, shrugging. "Your house is in that direction." He nodded back towards the shop. The older boy rolled his eyes. "So? I can't just let you go home alone. You could pass out and die or something."
"…"
"Okay, maybe not, but still.. You are sick. I want to make sure you get home in one piece."
"Right." He started walking again, and Neji fell into step beside him.
"I have a piano lesson tomorrow. I won't be able to come by after school." Gaara watched his feet and let out an uninterested sigh.
Neji pursed his lips. "Are you really going to do that work?"
Gaara looked up sharply. "I don't lie."
"I wasn't saying you do.." Gaara's gaze drifted back to the ground and Neji clenched the hem of his shirt. What was with him? One minute they're having an actual conversation, and the next he's giving him the cold shoulder. Neji bit his lower lip in dismay and stayed quiet until they walked up Gaara's porch steps.
"Well, I guess I'll see you-" The younger boy had already walked inside and had slammed the door in his face.
"Later.." Neji glared at the door, then turned and started the trek home.