Naruto stared at the blue glow of his laptop screen, the only light in his office at 9:47 p.m. on a Thursday night. The meeting reminder from Sasuke Uchiha—Weekly Project Review, 10:00 a.m. tomorrow, Conference Room B—sat in his inbox like a landmine. His heart had actually skipped when it arrived, pathetically grateful for any acknowledgment after a week of silence. "God, Uzumaki, you're pathetic," he muttered, scrubbing his hands over his face. "Getting all worked up over a fucking Outlook notification." He slammed his laptop shut with more force than necessary, wincing at the sound. The last thing he needed was to break his computer over Sasuke Uchiha. Again. He jammed it into his bag, flicked off the desk lamp, and double-checked the locks on his filing cabinet before hitting the lights. The darkness felt appropriate.
By 10 p.m., darkness had claimed the building, with only emergency lights and the eerie glow of lobby vending machines offering any resistance. Naruto dragged himself down the hallway, laptop bag weighing on his shoulder like an anchor, each blink a struggle against the sandpaper feeling of sixteen hours without rest. Though his muscles begged for sleep, his thoughts refused to quiet—cycling endlessly through tomorrow's Weekly Review meeting with Sasuke, imagining a dozen different versions of the same uncomfortable disaster.
Outside, the air was sharp with late winter, slicing through the thinnest parts of his jacket. The security lights in the parking lot flickered, fighting a losing battle with the darkness. Most of the cars were gone, just a handful of lonely sedans and the battered blue hatchback Naruto drove on late nights at the office, He made for it in a straight line, keys already in hand, mind already skipping ahead to what sort of caffeine-laden breakfast would get him through Friday.
Behind him, footsteps echoed, deliberate and unhurried.
Naruto turned, squinting through the blue-white haze. Sai stood at the edge of the sidewalk, hands tucked into his black windbreaker, a large art tube slung over one shoulder. His eyes, pale and flat, gave nothing away.
"You're out late," Naruto called, voice cracking in the night.
Sai regarded him for a long, still moment. "You are too," he replied. He walked forward, each step careful, and stopped just out of arm's reach. "I had to finish the cover spread for your launch. You made a lot of changes."
Naruto snorted, too tired to put up a front. "That's my job."
Sai tilted his head. "Some people's jobs make them happier than others." He said it like a statement of cosmic law. He looked at the ground, then back up, as if calculating whether or not to proceed. "You are not sleeping well."
Naruto grinned, thin and weary. "Did you break into my apartment and watch me sleep?"
Sai shook his head. "Your emails have timestamp errors. Sent at 3 a.m., sometimes 4." He said it with clinical precision, as if reading off a patient chart. "I read a book on insomnia last year. It recommended meditation and limiting blue light exposure."
Naruto waited for the punchline, but none came. He rocked back on his heels. "I'll try that," he said.
Sai nodded, apparently satisfied. The silence stretched, so brittle it might have snapped if not for the wind whistling around the light pole.
Then, with no warning, Sai stepped closer. "Would you like to go on a date with me?"
Naruto choked on air. For a split second, he thought he'd misheard, but the blank, hopeful sincerity on Sai's face left no room for alternate readings.
"I—I don't…" Naruto fumbled, running a hand through his hair. "You're great, but—"
Sai cut him off with a raised hand. "You do not find me attractive," he said, voice even, not a hint of judgment in it. "That is acceptable."
"No, it's not that—" Naruto tried, but Sai shook his head.
Sai's eyes narrowed. "You are still in love with someone else."
Sasuke's face from last week flashed in Naruto's mind—not laughing, but with that rare softness around his eyes when he'd leaned across the conference table to pass Naruto coffee, their fingers brushing for a half-second too long. Shit. Naruto looked down, jaw working, angry at how easily the warmth had spread through his chest at the memory. "I don't... It's complicated."
Sai's mouth twitched into a facsimile of a smile. "It is always complicated."
For a moment, Naruto wanted to argue, but something else caught his attention—a prickle at the back of his neck, the feeling of being watched. He glanced toward the parking lot entrance, then deliberately turned away, focusing on Sai's pale face instead. "Look, it wouldn't be fair to you. I'm a mess." He rubbed his neck where the sensation lingered, willing himself not to look again. "You deserve someone better."
Sai considered this, his eyes tracking Naruto's nervous hand movement. "That is a cliché. But I appreciate your candor."
Naruto let out a breath, forcing his shoulders to relax even as the feeling of eyes on him intensified. "I'm sorry, Sai. I really am. You're a good friend."
Sai's smile faded, the lines of his face shifting into something unreadable. "Thank you for telling me the truth." He shifted his grip on the art tube. "Then, forgive me for this."
Naruto had a split second to register confusion before Sai grabbed him by the collar, pulled him forward, and pressed his mouth against Naruto's. The kiss was hard, almost violent, tasting of peppermint and printer ink. For a moment, Naruto was too stunned to react. Then his hands went up, palms pressed against Sai's chest, pushing him back.
Sai let go instantly, stepping away and composing himself with a flick of his hair. The smirk he wore was both genuine and mocking, the expression of a man who'd just performed a social experiment and gotten exactly the result he expected.
Naruto wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, shock quickly morphing into anger. "What the hell was that for?"
Sai shrugged. "It is called closure." He looked over Naruto's shoulder, eyes focusing on something in the distance. "But perhaps it was also an experiment."
Naruto's stomach clenched as he turned, pulse hammering in his throat. His neck muscles fought the movement, as if his body knew what his mind feared. When he finally managed to look, the sight confirmed his worst suspicion. At the mouth of the parking lot, illuminated by a lone security light that cast more shadows than clarity, stood Sasuke.
The man was barely recognizable—shoulders hunched like a cornered animal, dark hair windblown, a manila folder crushed in a white-knuckled grip. Even from this distance, Naruto could see the dangerous tightness in his jaw, sharp enough to draw blood.
Naruto's heart plummeted. Sasuke's face went blank—worse than anger—before he pivoted and strode away, manila folder crushed in his white-knuckled grip.
Something tore loose inside Naruto's chest. His feet moved before his brain could catch up, laptop bag slamming against his ribs with each desperate stride. Sai's existence evaporated from his awareness. There was only Sasuke's retreating back, the growing distance between them like a physical pain.
"Wait!" The word ripped from his throat as Sasuke reached for his car. "Bastard, STOP!" His voice cracked, raw with something he couldn't name.
Sasuke froze, hand suspended above the door handle.
Naruto skidded to a halt, doubled over, lungs burning. When he finally looked up, Sasuke was staring down at him, eyes midnight-dark and utterly unreadable. Naruto's mouth opened, but the explanation he'd been so desperate to give moments ago had vanished, leaving only the thundering certainty that he couldn't let Sasuke walk away.
Sasuke broke the silence first, shoving the folder at him. Naruto caught it, fingers fumbling. "I saw you accepted the meeting invite, so I..." Sasuke cleared his throat, eyes darting to the ground then back up. "I figured you were still at the office." His finger jabbed toward the folder with unnecessary force. "Just the agenda for tomorrow. Thought I'd run through it with you. Since I was in the area." The last part came out rushed, an afterthought.
Naruto looked down at the folder, something fluttering in his chest he couldn't quite place. Before he could say anything, Sasuke turned away again to grab the door handle, then hesitated. "I was just driving by. After dinner. With a client. Who lives... nearby." Each phrase came out more stilted than the last, his knuckles whitening around the handle. "I didn't mean to interrupt your... meeting." The last word escaped through clenched teeth.
The folder crashed to the asphalt as Naruto lunged forward, slamming his palm against the car door. "Wait!" His breath came in ragged bursts, heart hammering so loudly he was sure Sasuke could hear it. Their bodies were suddenly inches apart, Sasuke trapped between Naruto and the cold metal. For a suspended moment, Naruto could smell the faint trace of Sasuke's cologne—sandalwood and something uniquely him. Sasuke's eyes widened, pupils dilating in the dim light. Naruto swallowed hard, backing away just enough to speak but not enough to let Sasuke escape. "You didn't interrupt anything," he said, the words tumbling out breathlessly.