Hello! As some as you know, this is one of the one-shots that was a part of a poll in my profile. EXCEPT, (after fighting with my beta Rachel about it for like ten minutes) I have decided to break it up! So it's a two-shot…haha come on, you all knew I couldn't do two one-shots in a row. ANYWAYS, there will be another poll coming up soon, so be on the lookout for that! I know I wasn't sure which boy was going to lead in this one, but I'm pretty sure this will be a SasuNaru. But don't worry for those who are waiting on a NaruSasu, it'll be coming up soon. I promise!

Rachel: No idea what Niki is talking about, I DID NOT GIVE UP THAT EASY. It was more like four hours.

Warning: There will be se--….intimate relationship…-snickers- with Sasuke and Naruto

Disclaimer: GO RED SOX! WHOO—watches lead disappear—…-whines- I don't own Naruto…friggen Red Sox…

Tattoo

Summer meant a lot of things to me after graduation. There were parties every weekend the entire month of June. The sun stayed out later, which meant my skin darkened considerably from all of the beach trips with the gang. Working at my dad's rundown bowling alley at night let me reclaim my title as the second best sleeper in Konoha (aside from Shikamaru, of course). Money seemed infinite, and nothing was too expensive to buy. Summer after graduation was freedom for Uzumaki Naruto. Pure, sweet freedom.

It wasn't just me who switched during the seasons, though. Haruno Sakura had completely changed her closet to 'summer mode' which consisted of flip flops and sundresses. Yamanaka Ino had started getting her annual summer luau ready, which was always the best party of the season. Nara Shikamaru had Akimichi Chouji help set up his hammock, which he had dozed off in more days than not while Chouji ate in a lawn chair next to him. Inuzuka Kiba had spent most of his time trying to woo the shy Hyuuga Hinata into a summer romance while avoiding her father and cousin. Said cousin named Hyuuga Neji, accompanied by his best friend Rock Lee, spent much of their summer training at their mentor's karate dojo or, at least Lee's mentor. I didn't see Aburame Shino much, since he had spent most of his summer researching exotic bugs with his father in the Amazon. Tenten was scarce as well, working at an internship at the dance studio.

And then there was him. Uchiha Sasuke was a thorn in my side, my best friend and…something else…since eighth grade. Like normal rivals, we fought over everything. Sports, talents, hobbies, school. Anything that could be made into a competition became a contest to see which one could outdo the other. He pushed me to study to match his intelligence while I made him practice his free throws to compete with my athletic edge. Nothing was safe when it came to our constant competition.

Like best friends, we were always there to back each other up if anyone else tried to mess with us. When Sasuke was getting picked on for being so scrawny at the end of freshman year, I ended up getting suspended for punching out the other kid's tooth. I was bigger than Sasuke until the middle of junior year, when genetics screwed me over and left me at a measly 5'6 while Sasuke shot up to 5'8. It was his turn to have my back. Normally, he preferred verbal embarrassment over physical violence. I didn't expect him to get into the middle of a fight—well, more like a beating— that I had been forced into by a group of wanna-be thugs. And when he did, I still didn't believe it. It wasn't until he helped me limp home, one arm secured around my waist that I realized our friendship meant something to Sasuke, too.

It was the same night I realized there was something else between us. After Sasuke had helped me home, he didn't bother asking if he could stay the night. Half of the time, my parents expected him and made dinner for four instead of three. Hell, he had his own toothbrush and deodorant stored away in our medicine cabinet. An entire drawer of my bureau was filled with clothes of his that he had left. And that night was no different. He had helped me get up my stairs and stumble into my bathroom, where he left me to wash out the battle wounds I had gotten during the scuffle. By the time I had gotten back to my room, Sasuke had retrieved the medical kit that I kept in my room. Like any other time, Sasuke watched me try to bandage myself up. Once I got to everything I could get to without hurting myself even more, Sasuke would mutter some type of insult and then take over, both of us fighting the entire time.

But this was where the familiarity ended. It was one touch, one simple brush of Sasuke's fingertips against my right shoulder blade that altered everything. I shouldn't have been affected by the accidental contact. My body wasn't supposed to shutter and suddenly become aware of how close Sasuke sat behind me. And most importantly, my cock wasn't supposed to twitch from stirring arousal. But the teasing way Sasuke's pale digits rolled down my sensitive skin affected me in a way that had my eyes wide and my breath hitching. Whoever was talking stopped, and an unusual silence fell between us. His fingers stilled, but never pulled away from my skin. He didn't have to speak to tell me he had felt my reaction from our minor contact. So when my dad called us down for dinner, I scrambled away from him and rushed as fast as my bruised legs would let me out of the room.

That was two months before we graduated. We both didn't mention the night again, but it altered the way I saw Sasuke. I still got angry at the bastard, and we didn't stop fighting. And as long as he kept his distance from me, I was able to act like nothing was wrong with me. But when we'd be close, or any of our skin touched, the same reactions would bubble up in my body. And it didn't take a genius to realize that it wasn't a coincidence that it only happened around Sasuke. Despite every part of me that wanted to deny any feelings toward the dark haired bastard, I couldn't.

And when the proof literally materialized the day of Ino's luau, I was not ready for it.

"Why does this always happen to me?!" I nearly ripped my hair out of my head as I stared at the back of my shoulder through Ino's mirror. I couldn't tear my eyes away from the intricate ink work that covered the skin there, looking good considering the embarrassment it was causing me. I hissed when I pressed my fingers too close to the abused skin, which was still tender from the work.

"Explanation, dobe. Now." I tried to glare at Sasuke through the mirror, but he was much better at it. Plus, I wasn't sure my blush was quite as intimidating as I wanted it to be.

"I don't know! It's not like I wanted it!" I turned sharply to look back at him, hitting back against the dresser under the mirror when he walked toward me. Pressing too close to be considered 'friendly', he stared down at me with a predatory aura surrounding him. It made me shiver in places I knew weren't right.

"It didn't appear from thin air."

"No shit!" I snapped, completely frustrated at the situation. The heat of Sasuke's bare chest so close to mine made the air around us even more humid which I wouldn't have thought possible until the stupid teme proved me wrong. He seemed to do that a lot more than I wanted to admit. We stared at each other in silence, the loud music from Ino's backyard drifting into the opened door of the hallway. Though the room was dark from the lack of lighting, the tiki torches near the back door gave off enough glow to light up the bastard's pale face.

"Then explain to me why it's there." Despite his attempt to keep his voice level, I could see the restraint starting to snap in his features. Not sure what he was holding back, I avoided his gaze while I let out an annoyed breath.

"I wanted it…but not this. That stupid prick screwed it up! This is all Sai's fault." And while I felt Sasuke's heavy glare rest over my shoulder and through the mirror to look at the ink work, I let my thoughts wander to the beginning of this entire mess. It was Sasuke's fault, anyways; his and Sai's, the guy who soon wouldn't be breathing. How two people who had barely met could ruin my life so fast I couldn't understand, but if I wanted to try, I'd have to rewind.

***

It was middle of July when Ino announced her party was going to be in exactly one week. I stared with the rest of the group while Ino passed out envelopes to everyone at the table. I seemed like the only one actually excited to get my invitation, while Shikamaru barely glanced at the envelope in front of him. Chouji was too busy eating the appetizer to get excited over a flimsy card. Neji and Hinata both politely took theirs, while Kiba didn't bother to look at it before shoving it into his pocket. It wasn't until she lazily tossed her last invitation to her best friend that the pink haired girl spoke.

"Why do you bother with invitations? You could have just sent out emails or something you know."

"I would, except I know some people wouldn't waste their 'energy' checking their mail." Ino sent a meaningful glare at Shika, who shrugged it off while sipping his soda.

"Too troublesome."

"There's a shocker," Sakura said, shaking her head while both Ino and I laughed.

"Know what else is shocking? Anti-social Uchiha ain't here." I rolled my eyes at Kiba's sarcastic remark before answering.

"He's got some shit to take care of. He should be here any minute now. Don't worry about ordering for him, he'll probably just try to eat off my plate, the teme. Ah, damn. I'm out of soda. Now where the heck is our waitress with our food?" I looked up from my ice-filled cup, slowly blinking at the odd stares that I got. "What?"

"Sometimes it's creepy how much you two know about each other."

"Chouji, if you're going to talk, at least finish chewing the food in your mouth!" Ino chided, sending the larger boy a warning look before turning her focus back on me. "Though I hate to admit it…Chouji is right."

"What the hell are you yapping about? Me and Sasuke aren't creepy, we're best friends. It's normal to know shit like that," I said, trying to brush off their comments by bringing the rim of my glass up to my lips. Like I really needed to be reminded that me and Sasuke's association was a little different than friendship.

"So are Sakura and I, but that doesn't mean I'm up her ass all the time." I choked on an ice-cube that fell into my mouth from Ino's comment. Instantly I coughed, feeling a soft hand rub against my back in concern.

"Naruto! Are you okay?" I nodded at Sakura, who sent me a smile before looking back to Ino. "They're not that bad, Ino. Sasuke and Naruto just spend more time together than we do. Plus, they've been best friends for almost as long as we have, and they didn't hate each other for two years."

"Well yeah, that's true." Ino sighed, as if remembering the dark time of her and Sakura's friendship during sophomore and junior year. It was stupid really, fighting over a guy that didn't like either of them (then again, Sasuke never really showed interest in any of the girls at our school). Ino felt betrayed when Sakura started to like the same boy she did, and it almost completely destroyed their friendship. But after seeing Sakura get humiliated by her date at the junior prom, Ino poured her glass of soda onto his head and turned the attention onto him while pulling Sakura away from the crowd. And somewhere between make-up reconstruction and the last song of the dance, Sakura and Ino mended their friendship. And now, both were much happier than any guy could have made them.

"It's a good thing you two made up, Ino. I don't think I could have handled listening to Sakura complain about you for one more day." I grinned over to Sakura, who used the hand on my back to hit me.

"I wasn't complaining!" But her blush gave it away as the table laughed. I was so pre-occupied by Sakura's pout that I almost missed Kiba's low whistle. I looked over to him, and then brought my gaze toward the area he was looking at while he spoke.

"Jesus Sasuke, what'd you do to yourself? Get into a necking fight with a vacuum and lose?" I stared quietly at the pale guy who walked toward our table, automatically knowing what Kiba was talking about. There, resting comfortably against Sasuke's neck was a large bandage that had not been there the night before. Just what type of stuff did Sasuke have to do anyways? By the way he was walking I knew that he wasn't too injured. In fact, it seemed that his neck was the only spot that was damaged.

"Nothing." He seemed to realize almost nobody believed him, which caused him to snort and glare. "Stop staring at me."

"So Itachi gave you your graduation present." I blinked slowly as I looked over to Neji, who seemed as composed as normal. But when I squinted my eyes, I could see the sides of his mouth were quirked up slightly while he looked to the bandage. "How long did it take?"

"Two hours." When Sasuke answered, I suddenly got offended.

"Whoa wait a second. Why the hell does Neji get to know what you did? We're supposed to be best friends bastard!" Alright, maybe not the best way to prove our friendship.

"I don't need to tell you everything." I knew I glared, which Sasuke ignored.

"Guess we were wrong, you really don't know everything about him," Kiba said, smirking when I flicked an ice cube at him. He avoided it, which only added to my anger.

"Will you two stop that?" Ino sent us both firm looks, like a teacher would to two mischievous kids. Once I slumped back in my chair to mutter to myself, Ino decided to pry deeper into the mystery bandage. "You know…I think I know what type of present Itachi got you."

"Hn."

"Yup." As if none of us were staring at the blonde, Ino casually swirled her straw in her strawberry milkshake. Finally she lifted her gaze back at the group, a wide grin on her face. "Did I ever tell you guys what my dad used to do before he became a weapons specialist?"

"Uh…a ninja assassin?" At the strange faces, I rolled my eyes. "What? Have you ever seen her dad? He's pretty scary."

"Sometimes I wonder if you were born brain dead, or if it occurred during your childhood." I growled at Neji, who seemed satisfied with his insult. Before I could make a comeback, Sakura quickly cut in.

"Didn't he work as a tattoo specialist after high school? He used it to pay for his katana collection." Ino nodded quickly, and from the corner of my eye I saw a small tension form in Sasuke's shoulders. What was his problem? "What's that got to do with anything?"

"Well, my dad used to tell me all of these infection stories when I was little because he never wanted me to get a tattoo. And every time, he would talk about the steps that the person ignored that caused it to mess up. Most of the stories revolved around the very first step. You see, when you get a tattoo, you have to put some type of ointment and a bandage over the inked area for about two hours. Some tattoo artists, like my dad, will bandage it up for you. There isn't a specific type of bandage they use, but most will just buy a normal large gauze bandage depending on the size. Just like the one on Sasuke's neck."

After Ino finished her explanation, the table went silent. I stared at Sasuke in pure shock, not able to believe the theory even when it processed through my head. Sasuke didn't look at anyone, simply staring in front of him with an all too telling scowl across his lips. But saying that Sasuke, the most straight-edged one out of our group (besides Hinata of course), would get a tattoo seemed impossible. So when Sasuke didn't confirm or disagree, I quickly spoke.

"Did you get a friggen tattoo?!" He shot a look over at me, and I already knew what was coming next.

"Keep your voice down."

"Did or did you not get a tattoo?" It seemed like the thousandth eye lock we had gone through, but it lasted much shorter than normal before Neji spoke.

"In such an obvious spot, it will be difficult to hide. Unless you plan to wear turtlenecks the rest of your life." Sasuke narrowed his eyes on me, though I knew it was from Neji's flat humor. Slowly the bastard turned back to the table, crossing his arms over his chest and nodding. Instantly, a set of squeals shot from Ino and Sakura's mouth, while the rest of the table seemed to instantly perk in interest.

"A real tattoo? That's so cool. Let us see it Sasuke-kun!" Sakura's eyes lit up in excitement as she continued to glance at the bandage that hid away the new subject of conversation.

"I can't take it off for another half hour." He almost sounded like he was reprimanding her instead of responding. Ino scoffed at how neatly Sasuke followed the rules before she leaned her head in her hand.

"It won't hurt to just show us it for a minute. Just peel off the top of the bandage and then press it back on afterwards. Dad said that as long as you don't leave it exposed for too long, you don't have to worry. Plus, the last half hour is more of an insurance than anything else, especially since yours is so small."

"I never thought someone so straight edged like you would get a tattoo Uchiha. I'm way impressed." The scowl on Sasuke's face showed he didn't care what Kiba thought of him or his tattoo. In fact, by the way he continued to casually glance back at me while the others continued to chatter about the tattoo, it was almost like he only cared about my response. From the wide eyed, open mouth look I was sporting, I knew the smirk was not a mere coincidence.

"What's the matter dobe? Cat got your tongue?" I snapped out of my daze to focus on Sasuke's mocking.

"No! Just wondering what the hell would possess you to get a tattoo."

"You should clean your ears out, Naruto. Neji already said that Itachi got it for him." I ignored Chouji while I glanced at the bandage, trying to see through the tan material to see what lay underneath it.

"What, was it a bet or something?"

"No." I waited for him to explain why he had actually allowed Itachi to convince him to get the tattoo, but Sasuke didn't speak again. Not wanting to seem too interested in his reasoning, I grinned in a way I knew irritated Sasuke.

"Never thought someone like you would get for a tattoo."

"Hn."

"It's probably girly." He scoffed at my guess, and immediately started to peel off the top of his bandage even as he denied my claim.

"I would not waste my time on something girlish." And once the sticky top of the bandage was pulled back from his skin, Sasuke tilted his head to the side to give me better access to his neck. I hesitated for a moment, swallowing to clear my suddenly dry throat when I realized how close I'd have to get to see into the bandage. I didn't meet Sasuke's eyes, knowing they were watching me challengingly. Instead, I held my breath while I leaned against his arm rest. My cheek barely brushed the side of his jaw as I looked down at the small tattoo that peeked out from the dressing. I ignored the slight shiver that swam straight toward my groin. The tattoo was completely black, with three swirling tear-drop looking shapes forming a triangle. It was simple, which surprisingly threw me off. Somehow, I expected something bigger or more intricate. But the quiet design worked against Sasuke's pale skin well, making it almost look like a part of his skin instead of a mere tattoo.

"Shit Sasuke, you really…" I slowly looked up at him, easily catching his gaze. Really it would have been impossible to ignore, since he was staring at me. To gauge my reaction or for his own reasons, I wasn't sure. I had to steady myself with a hand on his armrest, which brushed the pale skin of his forearm. At the accidental brush he glared at me, which made me realize just how close to him I was. Jumping slightly, I jerked back away from him and immediately darted my gaze to the empty drink in front of me. I spent the rest of the night popping the melted ice cubes into my mouth, trying to help cool down my cheeks. Most of the group was too caught up in seeing Sasuke's tattoo, which became the topic throughout the rest of the night, to notice.

"You sure lost interest in Sasuke's tattoo pretty fast Monday night," But apparently not everyone was oblivious. I glanced up slowly from the scorecard to look at Shika, who was stretched out on the bench next to me.

"Who cares if Sasuke got a tattoo?" I said, scoffing to try and emphasis my lack of concern. At the sound of pins crashing down, I looked up to see that Chouji had finished his string with three still standing. I couldn't help but grin.

"You know, even after all of these years, you still haven't gotten any better."

"It's not like I spend every day here. Besides, I'm not motivated to try," Chouji replied, switching spots with me while I moved in front of the lane.

"You would if I strapped Hershey bars onto the pins. Then again, you might gnaw through the pins and we barely have enough to play with as it is." I snickered when I heard the feminine voice move closer, and I glanced over my shoulder to see Ino with her hands on both of her hips.

"Naruto, what are you doing?"

"Well, I was going to paint a picture of the complex pattern of the ten pins in front of me, but I found a pretty orange ball resting here and I decided to smash them instead." She didn't find as much humor in my comment as the guys. I got a roll of the eyes and squeaks moving over toward the shoe rack.

"You're supposed to be leaving room for paying customers, not taking up their space."

"…What paying customers? The entire place is empty!" I turned back to my lane, tossing my first ball down and watching nine of the pins meet their ultimate doom. I swore slightly before turning on my heels to grab another ball while the automatic sensor cleaned up my deadwood.

"You really should charge Chouji and Shikamaru. It's not like they're scraping pennies right now. In fact, one of them got a full scholarship to their school, so they don't have to worry about college debts."

"Hey, don't be like that. He's told you several times you don't have to pay," Chouji said, and I didn't have to look back to know who was dropping the change onto the front counter. I picked off the last pin, fist pumping once before moving to accompany Ino on the other bench. I slid my arm along the top of the bench and behind Ino, who was tying her bowling shoes up.

"Make sure to add Ino's name after yours, Chouji. You're up Shika." As if the weight of the world fell on his shoulders, Shikamaru took his sweet time getting off of the bench. Ino huffed at the lethargic boy before leaning back against my arm.

"You are the laziest boy I have ever met, Shikamaru." He waved her off, which didn't stop her from crossing her arms. "If you plan on getting out this sleepy town, you better get your priorities in order."

"Sorry, I'll act more like Uchiha." The sarcasm bled from Shika's voice while he dragged his fingers along an emerald green ball resting in the landing zone. I could see the look in Ino's features turn from irritation to guilt.

"That's not what I meant." Shika didn't respond, and I mentally sighed. Sakura wasn't the only one that had been affected by Ino's quite open affection of Sasuke during high school. Shikamaru, Chouji, and Ino had all literally grown up with each other. Their dads had been best friends in high school, and passed the tradition down to their children. The only difference was that Ino wasn't a boy. And so, naturally, feelings became deeper and intertwined between Shikamaru and Ino. Chouji once told me that it had started all the way back in first grade. I didn't know if that was true or not, because the town's kids were split into two different elementary schools depending on what side of town they lived on, and then merged for middle and high school. I, unfortunately, lived away from everyone else. According to the only witness, Ino had bought Shikamaru a special box of chocolate for Valentine's Day. In return, Shikamaru started to walk Ino home, even though both his and Chouji's house came before hers. That tradition, I knew, continued into middle school where I had met them. And really, it had seemed like a match made by fate. Unfortunately, fate didn't take Shikamaru's lazy tendencies into account. Ino got upset easily, which only made the situation worse between the two.

So when Sasuke showed up the first day of eighth grade, Ino was smitten. Unlike most of us, Sasuke had been in a private school for most of his school life. But when Itachi showed interest in going into a public high school, his mother suggested Sasuke follow. While it was the same year I found my best friend, it caused a strange energy with Ino and Shikamaru. The jealousy was quiet, and Shikamaru never acted on it. Maybe if he had, Ino would have realized she only liked Sasuke because she wanted some type of reaction from her best friend. Even after Ino got over her obsession with Sasuke, Shikamaru didn't seem to care for him. Several times, I knew that Shika made sure to keep on the opposite side of any event Sasuke was at. The two were extremely different, only sharing their intelligence. But even that was used for different future goals.

For some reason everyone, especially Ino, considered Sasuke's planning smart and mature. I thought it was stupid. Sasuke planned out his future job, salary, home location, and everything else materialistic. And what did Shikamaru plan? Shikamaru's goal was the same one he had created while munching on a special box of chocolates one Valentine's Day.

All he planned out was the girl. He just hadn't told her yet.

"Just what we need. Another tattoo covered monkey boy." Ino relaxed into a set of laughter and hit my side gently, which made me grin. I liked seeing Ino happy, because it rubbed off on everyone around her. As if checking my own observation, I glanced over at the lane to see a relaxed look on the lazy boy's face a second before he turned back to bowl.

"The tattoo is kind of cool though, don't you think? I'm thinking I might get one soon."

"Like your dad would let you! And let's not compliment the bastard, or it'll go straight to his head." I groaned just at the thought of his cocky smirk. Really, he needed a new set of facial expressions.

"I don't know, Naruto. You sure seemed to like it at the dinner table." I borrowed one of Sasuke's glares and sent it at Chouji, who replied with a nervous smile before moving toward the lane.

"I was not interested in it! It was stupid and pointless! That stupid teme, acting like he's so great because he got some stupid tattoo over his stupid neck." I know I sounded childish, and it was only emphasized when I felt my cheeks puff out in anger. I felt a gentle pat on my shoulder while Ino rested her head against my shoulder.

"Aw, don't be upset Naruto. I'm sure if you wanted to, you'd be able to pull off a tattoo too." Both she and Chouji laughed while Shikamaru rolled his eyes and flopped down on his designated sleep bench. And somewhere in the back of my head, I knew that she was kidding. But slowly, as I continued to flip the idea over in my head through the rest of the night, it started to sound better and better. Getting the tattoo wouldn't be hard. All I had to do was get dad to sign some stupid permission slip. I'd probably have to do it without mom knowing, since she has an issue with needles. Finding out her only son was going to be pricked several times with a needle was not something she would think fondly of. But really, dad owed me from the time I took the fall for the broken vase he hit with the football in the house.

Yeah, my dad wasn't exactly parent of the year.

The real problem came with finding someone good enough to do my tattoo without messing it up. The last thing I needed was some guy making my design looking completely different than I imagined. I needed someone with precision as well as art skills.

"Hey, Ino?" She looked up from the ground, pausing in tying her sneakers to watch me fidget. "Say you were going to really get that tattoo. Who would you ask to do it?"

"Maybe my father, just to see his expression." She stood up after finishing with her shoe, dusting her skirt with her hands. "But, if I really was going to go through with it, I'd probably ask my friend Sai. He's got his own shop in town next to the liquor store. He graduated last year and inherited the store from a relative. I've seen a bunch of his work, and he's really good. He can take a tattoo and make slight changes based on the person to better fit them. Sometimes he even picks out the design for them if they're not sure what they want. He's got a talent."

"Really? How much do you think he charges?" Before Ino could reply, Shikamaru tossed his shoes onto the shoe rack and glanced back at me.

"You're turning this into a competition with Uchiha, huh?" I grumbled about 'nosy geniuses' before I crossed my arms.

"Maybe I just wanted a tattoo! You never thought of that, did ya?"

"Eh, I guess." Knowing it'd take too much energy to fight with me, Shika slid his gaze over to Ino. "Dad drop you off?"

"Car's still in the shop," She said, sighing to show her irritation. Silently I laughed, because I knew if I said anything out loud she would kill me. Ino had bought a car last year, which had caused her nothing but problems. She spent more time out of it than in it.

"Chouji drove me." He slid his hands into his pockets and glanced away from her and up at the old ceiling. I knew exactly what he was waiting for. Chouji had already left ten minutes ago.

"Wanna walk home again?" Even though he got the response he wanted, Shikamaru lazily shrugged his shoulders and acted like the question was more of a burden than anything else. Still, he waited for her to grab her purse and say goodbye to me before the two of them left. Through the windows in the front of the bowling alley, I could see Ino chattering away while Shikamaru simply stared up at the sky. But there was no denying that it was exactly how Shikamaru wanted his night to end. I smiled to myself before I started to close up. I should have locked the front doors first, because I felt my eye twitch at the smooth voice that entered the desolate air.

"And here I thought you exploded if left alone for too long."

"You know, you should tell that one at parties," I said sarcastically, turning to face him. I glanced to his tattoo, which seemed to practically glow against his pale skin.

"People bother me enough at social gatherings." His confidence amazed me. Scoffing, I walked over to him, though made it look like I was focused on fixing the candy shelves. Once I finished the whopping three seconds of rearranging, I turned to lean on the counter that separated us.

"Did you come here for a reason, or did you just miss me?" I teased, grinning up at his scowl. He held up a plastic bag and dropped it on the counter.

"Your mother let my mother borrow some Tupperware containers a little while ago. I was sent to return them."

"And you didn't go to my house…why?"

"Because I saw your car and decided to save time. Though it may be a mistake to entrust you with anything." I snatched the bag away from him, sending him a glare before dropping it under the counter. By the time I looked up, Sasuke was now staring at the only lit ally in the place.

"I didn't forget about it, if that's what you're thinking. I was just gonna bowl another string before I left, not that I need an explanation."

"I didn't ask for one." I watched him casually walk toward the alley, not bothering to even waste a minute to look over at the shoe rack. Instead, he calmly stepped into the ally and took one of the bowling balls I had left for myself. He stood silently before he glanced back at me and raised an eyebrow in an unspoken challenge. I hopped over the counter quickly, immediately agreeing to a bowling match. And we spent almost an hour bowling, both taking the lead at some point during our games. We'd send smirks or insults to make the other one push harder to regain the lead. And finally, when the night crept up on us, we both sat in front of the lane with our backs against each other. I closed my eyes, trying to ignore the warmth that was seeping into my back from the quiet touch.

"I'm getting a tattoo." Why I bothered to tell him, I wasn't sure. I could feel him shift against my back slowly before responding.

"Hn."

"It's gonna look better than yours, I bet." I opened my eyes slowly to look out the windows in front of me, watching the cars pass by. Headlights bounced off of the glass, creating momentary shadows in the bowling alley.

"You don't know for once? How modest of you, dobe." I blushed when I felt his neck casually brush the back of my head, but I didn't move.

"It's gonna be way better than yours teme! You watch, I'll show you at Ino's party." He scoffed, and slowly I turned my head to glance back at him. It was hard to see his face from the angle I was at, but the tattoo rested right in front of me. For a moment I couldn't help but wonder what it'd feel like to touch it. Tattoos had fascinated me since my dad had gotten my mother's name along his heart four years ago. I had wanted to wait until I was legally old enough to get one, since mom had literally passed out after dad showed it to her on their 20th anniversary. But now that I had set a date for my tattoo to get done, I knew I couldn't put it off.

"I'll pretend to care." When he spoke, I could barely see his tattoo move in beat with his pulse.

"Yeah…" So distracted by the ink spot, I didn't notice until I felt his breath on my cheeks that Sasuke had turned his head to face mine. Feeling the breeze I looked up, my eyes widening when our noses brushed quietly against each other. I parted my lips to say something, but I soon realized that thinking of something to say came before that particular action. It was my room all over again, the rippling of nerves and arousal starting to fill my stomach. As emotionless as normal, Sasuke stared down at me while I raced through things to do or say. So when he barely leaned closer, I decided Sasuke could make the next move. My breath hitched and I slammed my eyes shut to keep myself from revealing the embarrassment I was feeling. I could hear another car pass, their headlights probably illuminating my blush. But it wasn't like it mattered. I mean, it wasn't like he'd actually do anything. He was my rival, my best friend!

"Hn." I was still disappointed when I felt him pull away. I opened my gaze, but Sasuke was already up on his feet before I even had time to tell him to wait. My neck felt strained from the position I had kept it in, and I rubbed the tender muscles in my neck while I watched him casually push open the door. When he stopped to look back at me, I blinked once at the confident smirk he sent me. "Impress me, dobe."

"I…I will, teme!" I tried to fall back into my cocky attitude and act like none of the previous intimacy affected me. He rolled his eyes and left the bowling alley silently, and I waited until he drove out of the parking lot to smack my forehead. I didn't know what was worse; the fact I promised to get a tattoo in three days, or the fact I had acted like a hormonal teenage girl as soon as he got close to me. Deciding that was a debate best left alone, I finished closing up the store before driving home. It wasn't until I saw my mother cooking in the kitchen that I remembered the Tupperware I left sitting under the counter. Sasuke had been right.

"Shit!" at the exclamation my mother looked up and waved a wooden spoon in my direction.

"Naruto! What did I say about your mouth?" Sending her the best apologetic smile, I sniffed the air before letting out a relaxed sigh.

"Did I mention how much I love your cooking?" Because really, I did. Whenever mom wasn't home, dad played 'menu roulette' and ordered food from the winner. Sometimes it was better when they both weren't home; giving me to opportunity to see how many cups of ramen I could eat in one sitting. My record was seven.

"Compliments will get you nowhere. Your beautiful mother can see through any mode of brown nosing. She's far too intelligent to fall for childish tricks, right darling?" I frowned when a large hand came down on my head, ruffling my hair until it frizzed. Once dad felt accomplished, he moved to stand behind mom. I could see the content smile on her face when my dad wrapped his arms around her waist, gently swaying both of them to an imaginary song in his head. Despite the scrunched nose I made, a part of me wanted to smile. Twenty four years into their relationship and they still acted like newlyweds.

"Mmm, yes dear." There was a moment of silence before my mother's smile turned into a grin that could mirror my own. "You broke the washer again, didn't you?"

"Now why would you assume that?" If she could have seen his panicked face behind that innocent voice, she would have laughed as much as I wanted to.

"Because I can smell the laundry detergent on your skin, and you're not wearing the same clothes that you went into the basement with. I put the rest of the puzzle together on my own from the last two times you've tried to 'fix' the washing machine." Coyly she glanced over her shoulder, completely satisfied with outwitting my dad. Again. "I've already called the mechanic to come fix it tomorrow morning."

"I meant it when I said you were too smart." He laughed while scratching the back of his head, his eyes glowing in admiration.

"And you can't seem to keep your fingers out of anything." On cue, she smacked the top of his hand before he had a chance to snatch any of the cooling chicken. "Now go sit at the table like a good boy before I feed your dinner to the neighbor's dogs."

"I love you too, Kushina." Completely unfazed by her weak threat, dad kissed her quietly before humming his way over to the set up dinner table. I rolled my eyes and sat down in my own seat while sighing. I didn't understand how it was possible that two strong personalities like my parents could end up together. Then again, wasn't I the one who couldn't ignore Sasuke's accidental touches? We were like night and day, and yet I couldn't seem to keep my mind off of him. Maybe if mom could deal with dad, she could help me understand my own problem.

"Mom, why did you pick dad?"

"And why do you want to know that?" Trying to keep my underlying purpose secret, I shrugged.

"Just wondering why you'd bother with him."

"Hey, I take offence to that," My dad, despite his age and 'maturity' whined. I could tell my mom had to keep herself from laughing while she looked back at me and smiled.

"First of all, your father pursued me."

"I was quite a glutton for punishment back then. Your mother threw the best right hook of anybody in our high school." As if reliving the memory, dad gently rubbed the side of his cheek with a lopsided smile on his face.

"I still do." Despite how pretty my mom was, she had never been one to let people push her around. She especially hated when people mistook her for weak because of her sex. She could cook, clean, and kick anyone's ass with the several years of karate training my grandfather taught her. Several times my dad had told me bedtime stories of the fiery spirit that made him fall in love with her so long ago. And beneath the gentle forehead kisses and bear hugs, I could still see the flames flicker in her eyes every now and then.

"But I grew on her eventually. Charm can change everything."

"And the rest was fate really. Sometimes fate's got plans for you before you even realize what they are. You've just got to learn to accept the unexplainable if it feels right." She sent me a perceptive look as she placed our dinner in front of us. It felt like she knew about Sasuke without me even mentioning the teme. Sometimes, my mom's intuition was freaky.

Luckily, she left the topic alone and switched to ask about my day. Our dinner went well, and I cornered dad while mom was cleaning up the dinner mess. We had both offered to help clean up the clutter, but mom claimed we'd cause more problems than she needed. I easily blackmail—uh…convinced dad to agree to my tattoo after I promised not to get something extravagant. After I got the okay from dad, I quickly set my plan into action.

Big mistake.

And that's the end of part one! I hope that you all enjoyed it, and part two will be coming out soon! So Naruto is getting a tattoo, and showing it to Sasuke. Seems pretty easy right? What could POSSIBLY go wrong? –cackles- …Uh…yeah…anyways, review and be on the lookout for the second half! See ya soon!