He put a hand in front of his face so his eyes could adjust to the spotlight that was put on him. He probably looked so plain in comparison to the other performers who had time to design sets and costumes. All the lights had become dim, making him the center of everyone's attention as he stood on the stage with an awkward chuckle. He had never acted in front of so many people before and he was feeling the anxiety begin to push against his chest with an uncomfortable pressure.

"Good evening, everyone," he spoke hoarsely before clearing his throat. "I am Naruto Uzumaki and I will be playing Ryan... A man that will live forever."

There was nothing but silence as he took in one last breath to attempt to calm his nerves. Of course they wouldn't be that enthused to see some random kid reciting a few lines. Who was he to them? A commoner, a nobody? His eyes panned over the unfamiliar faces until he found one that made his heart almost stop completely. Sasuke was looking directly at him, unafraid of meeting the blond's eyes. Don't stop now. This is what I need to say.

"I've never been able to say why... why I left. And, I think it was... that I just felt so... horrible. Guilty and... unworthy. I didn't deserve to live, when so many other people have to die," he stammered, but there was something more confident about the way he spoke. "And I didn't deserve to have someone love me the way you do... and trust me so much." He closed his eyes, not wanting to see the Uchiha's face as he shook his head with a frown.

"When we first jumped off this building... I found your devotion so inspiring, so moving... but after a while, it just started to weigh on me, and... everything that had comforted me started to torture me instead." He opened his eyes again and found Neji not too far from where Sasuke was standing. He took a brief moment to look at him as well, feeling the pressure begin to tighten. "I couldn't say anything, I couldn't even understand it, and I definitely couldn't cope with it... and I left."

He managed to find Hinata as well, and she was looking up at him with a look of question, something he remembered having all this time. "I'm not trying to make excuses. I still feel... like I had no choice, like it was important to leave." His gaze trailed back to Sasuke, unable to read his face clearly through the dimness now. "But... at the same time, I regret it, because I've spent every day since then feeling like something was missing. And now, I realize... I realize what I've lost. What I've been missing all this time."

He took in a deliberate sharp breath as he looked up at the muted chandeliers. "For a thousand years, you've sought me out, you've shown me how much you cared. And... when you left... I realized that if I ever wanted to fix things... I would have to be the one to find you." It was probably a good thing that he chose not to look at Sasuke as he spoke now. "You knew you couldn't make me come back. And you were right. But I know that you never gave up on me. I know that you never stopped loving me."

"I'm going to live forever. And I don't want to spend another minute without you. You're the one." He gathered the courage to look back down at Sasuke, and he was able to make out the expression of utter distress that was plastered on his features. The erratic beating was becoming the only sound he could hear due to the silence. "I don't mean... that you're the only person I've ever cared about. I don't mean that you're the only person in the world that I could be with. But you're the one I want to be with. You're the one person, in my very long life... that I miss."

He clasped his hands together as he brought them to his lips for a moment of deep thought. "I know you have no reason to trust me again." Another pause to look back at Sasuke. "And... I can't promise that I won't change. I can't promise I won't hurt you again. You made me a promise once. I broke every promise that I ever made to you. But you've always kept the promise you made me. I think we deserve a chance to get it right."

The monologue was over, but somehow he didn't feel as if it was enough. He had to gather all the strength and courage he could to finish it the way he wanted to.

"Because..." He paused again feeling a nauseating feeling in his stomach as he looked directly into those black eyes. "I love you too..."

He stared at the raven who seemed to go into a state of complete anguish as all the air escaped his lungs from the pressure that had been tightening around his chest. The applause was louder than he anticipated, and it came so abruptly that he almost fell back from dizziness. It buzzed in his ears painfully as he stumbled from the stage, taking no time to acknowledge those who gave him compliments or pats on the back. I need air!

He staggered through the crowd almost blindly. The flashes of light and gentle hum of music, clapping, and chatter were beginning to defeat his senses as he tried to find the doors that led to the garden out back. A hand was laid on his shoulder firmly before he was pushed forward and led to his destination.

Shikamaru closed the doors behind them as they stood out on the terrace that overlooked the garden. The moonlight lit up the surroundings and Naruto allowed himself to take in a gulp of air.

"Thanks..." he whispered shakily as his hands grabbed onto the stone railings. He could hear the music begin to resume and the melody was muffled through the thick walls. "I don't know what was happening for a second."

"You looked like you were about to faint, if that helps," Shikamaru pointed out as he leaned against the barrier. "But, I've said it before. You sure know how to put on a show."

"Really?" He mumbled feebly as he felt his knees begin to shake. "I feel like I lost myself for a moment."

His friend shrugged it off. "Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing that you did."

Naruto opened his mouth to say something when he heard the doors open briefly, letting out the music and loud chatter from within. His body went tense before he noticed that Kakashi had walked out.

Shikamaru chuckled, "Well, I was going to act as your bodyguard for the rest of the night, but I can't really compete with a teacher."

"Well, I wouldn't," Kakashi stated as he walked toward them with a smirk. "But you're always welcome to try." With that, Shikamaru dismissed himself almost immediately, giving Naruto a comforting pat on the back before going inside.

"Your performance was stunning."

"Thanks," he croaked, his knees still trembling.

"How are you feeling?"

"I... I'm not sure..." he tried to laugh it off but the sound came out as a whimper. "I thought that after this... I was supposed to feel better, but nothing has changed."

"You know that isn't true. A lot has changed, Naruto," his voice was reassuring as he stood next to the blond. "You just haven't taken the time to notice, or you simply don't want to."

"Notice what?!" He shouted, suddenly enraged. "That I've successfully managed to fall for the one person in the entire school that I should have left alone because it could spell out the destruction of his own company while hurting one of my closest friends, taking away another girl's only chance of success while her cousin suffers in the background, and ruining two of the largest corporations out there in one fell swoop! Is there anything else that I could possibly change right now?!"

"You've left a couple out," he laughed as Naruto fell to his knees, beside himself. "This school is infected, Naruto." He looked up with a curious expression. "It is infected with students who have felt that they were too tied down by these invisible chains of fate that never gave them a chance to act or think freely for themselves. Is Neji the same as he always was?"

Naruto thought about it for a moment. "In a way, but at the same time, not really. Neji never believed that there was anything he could do with the hand that he'd been dealt. All I ever wanted was to be accepted by him."

"By doing so you've incited curiosity, anger, and perhaps a bit of admiration from him in such a short amount of time that I'm sure he can see, now, that he is capable of so much more."

It had always bothered him whenever Neji would act as his babysitter. By trying to get him to break free of that habit, he saw emotions that he never thought he's witness from the usually mild tempered Hyuuga. If that were true... Then maybe he would take the company from Hinata instead.

"And what about Hinata?" Kakashi continued.

He couldn't help but laugh at the memory. She was the jumpiest person he had ever met and he thought that something may have been seriously wrong with her. "She dropped her books whenever we talked, no matter how much warning I gave her that I was approaching. Once she warmed up to me, I think she found something of a voice."

He smiled at the thought that Hinata did stutter remarkably less than when he had met her. But then another face came to mind as he frowned. "But... I hurt Sakura... She told me about her feelings for Sasuke and what it would feel like to know he liked someone else..."

"Sakura is not the hopeless frail girl you think she is," his teacher replied with a nod. "I have the pleasure of having her in one of my classes. I think you must be misreading her which is a bit unfair."

There was a pang of guilt. He had been so cautious, withholding the truth and sometimes outright lying to her face when all she ever did was look at him with concern. "She fiercely loyal to a fault. She wasn't mad about Sasuke. She was mad that I lied to her because I perceived her to be weak."

"Worthy of a slap to the face?" Kakashi laughed at the glare he received.

"You've become a part of these students' lives, Naruto. You've moved them in a way that no one else has been able to. Especially Sasuke."

He felt a sudden painful twinge as he put a hand over his chest. "I hated him... He was an asshole who didn't care about anybody..."

Kakashi seemed thoughtful. "I always guessed that there was more than that, but in the years I've known him he would never have been that forthcoming with himself, let alone me."

"Well, that's only because he thought no one cared about him." He added numbly as he stood back up. "When I found out that we weren't so different... Everything changed. I noticed things that I knew weren't there in the beginning. His eyes... were kind."

"You have an odd talent for reading people when you look into their eyes," Kakashi added with a small laugh as he leaned back leisurely. "When I took you out to lunch that day, you were positively fascinating."

"Is that why you brought me here?" Naruto asked as he looked to the older man with anticipation. "So I could start this?"

"To be honest, I didn't know how well you would do," he admitted. "I was just glad you were safe in a place where you would have the chance to choose what you wanted to do. And it kept you in one place long enough to be found." A sly smile now played on his lips as Naruto looked up at his with a horrified expression.

"F-found... You mean..." he stammered.

"Your social worker and the man that you were supposed to be with last have been looking for you," he verified the blond's suspicions, making him feel dizzy again. "His name is Jiraiya."

"Oh god..." He muttered as he held onto the railing for support.

"He has agreed to let you stay here if you wish, but he would like to have the chance to meet you," Kakashi reassured him with another smile. "You scared him when you ran off."

He managed a small nod as he felt as if he was about to vomit. He didn't think that this man would be any different from the others. All this time he had grown tired of being passed around between people who obviously didn't want him, so he thought he'd spare this last one the misery and leave before they could start the process over again...

"Naruto?" Someone called to him from the door, but he was too stiff to try and turn around.

"I'll be inside if you need anything," the teacher whispered before he excused himself.

"Thanks," he croaked as Neji stood next to him. "Hey... Neji..." He wasn't in the mood to be yelled at. Not after all of this. "Look, I get it. I fucked up and I'm a horrible person. Could we please not do this right now?"

"I can't really blame you for thinking that way," Neji sighed. "I come in peace if that makes you feel any better."

"Define peace."

"I'm not going to throw you into a wall or kiss you."

Naruto felt heat rush to his cheeks, making the Hyuuga cough back a snicker. "You're not funny," he joked back lightly. There was an uncomfortable silence. The Hyuuga had to have been fully aware of the Naruto's feelings for Sasuke, but somehow it still felt like a weird subject to talk about. "I'm sorry that I made things hard for you Neji," he spoke up, "But I can't be sorry for what I feel anymore. I can't be sorry for what he feels either. I never meant to hurt you."

"To be honest, I'm not in any pain," Neji admitted as Naruto finally turned to look at him. There was a readable sadness about him, but he remained standing tall. "That monologue was made for you."

"I had seen it about a week ago, but it didn't make any sense to me so I had skipped it," the blond recalled with a smile. "Living forever seemed like too much of a burden."

Neji frowned as he began to fumble over his words. "The reason I… It wasn't because I didn't..." He trailed off as he bit his lip, something so uncharacteristically vulnerable that Naruto couldn't help but find it cute. They both knew that it couldn't be said, not at this point, but still knowing that the feeling was there made Naruto start to smile again. "I do accept you, Naruto. I'm sorry that I never told you that before." He finally was able to push the right words out as he lightly touched a hand to the young blond's cheek. "I do think that we can be friends."

"It means the world to me," he spoke against the other's hand before Neji took a step back. He watched the Hyuuga walk away as he stood there with nothing but the sound of crickets echoing through the air.

He leaned against the stone railing, staring out at the garden glittering with darkened colors. The smell was sweet as he took another calming breath through his nose. He could hear a fountain somewhere behind the hedges but he was much too tired to try and find it. For the first time in a while he felt as if he was going to be okay.

"You're gaping again."

"Sasuke..." he breathed the name, not wanting to look back as brisk steps approached him faster. "I didn't think you'd want to see me."

"I can't believe you!" Sasuke shouted, his voice echoing off of the stone. "I never know what you want anymore! I've never had someone aggravate me the way you do! You are the biggest idiot I have ever met!"

He felt find hands begin to tremble as the raven approached. He knew that it should have made him angry, but he wasn't. As soon as Sasuke was close enough his arms wrapped around the older boy and immediately pulled him into a tight embrace. The pain in his chest was gone, the buzzing in his ears had ceased, and the warmth of the other boy was soon the only thing that could bring him comfort. He was done being sorry for everything, and he was done being afraid.

"I love you!" He cried into Sasuke's chest, feeling the happiest he had ever felt in his life. Nothing could be said or done to wipe that stupid grin off of his face.

Sasuke's arms instantly wrapped around Naruto as he pulled him even closer. "I love you too, Naruto."

That's what it had been called the whole time. Those moments when he felt as if his skin was on fire, when his heartbeat was so fast that he felt dizzy, and the happiness he felt when the other boy was near. He had been falling more and more in love with Sasuke and he didn't even know it, and couldn't admit it, until now. If there was anything he was sure of in this whole ordeal it was this. He never wanted to let go of Sasuke, and he didn't want to live another moment knowing that he might lose him.

Sasuke's hand gently tilted the blond's head as his lips were quickly captured. He didn't reject the shivers that ran up his spine or the fact that his skin was starting to burn pleasantly. He didn't want to feel this ever again if he couldn't share it with him.

"What do we do now?" He asked as he buried his head into Sasuke's chest again.

A faint "hn" from the Uchiha faded softly into the night air. The biggest night of the year was starting to pass them by just on the other side of those doors, and he had everything he ever wanted right in front of him.

Updated Author's Note: I want to thank everyone who took the time to read this story and leave their kind words as well as criticisms. It was fun to write and I hope you guys will stick around for more stories!

The sequel is currently out and it is titled The Silver Lining if you are interested.

Thank you again! You've been such a lovely audience!

THE END