It was nearly 9 o'clock before they found themselves stumbling up the stairs to Sasuke's apartment. How it was possible to fill about four hours talking about the most useless stuff, Naruto had no idea, but he had to say that the beer and wine had probably helped a whole hell of a lot. They were laughing as they walked along the outside corridor. It was a little slick from the rain. Naruto leaned by the door as Sasuke tried to get his key into the lock. He had so much trouble, Naruto had to ask him whether or not this was really his apartment.

"Of course, it's my apartment, idiot! I have the keys right here!" He took them out of the doorknob and jingled them in front of Naruto's face.

Naruto had his own keys in his pocket and pulled them out to show. "Wanna use mine?" he asked, grinning.

Sasuke glared. "I'm not that drunk. It just gets stuck sometimes when it's cold out."

"That's what she said."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and gave it another go. This time the door opened. Sasuke went in, and Naruto followed, closing the door behind. Immediately, there was a mewl of greeting as an orange ball of fluff came flouncing toward them. If flouncing was even what cats did. The cat made an attempt at rubbing its side against Sasuke's leg, but he was busy rushing off into another part of the apartment. The cat mewled again as if questioning where his master was going, but then it turned its yellowish eyes upon Naruto.

"Hey," he said, crouching down. Tentatively the cat came toward him, sniffing at his outstretched fingers. "You have a name now, what do you think of that? Do you like the name Ollie?" He'd put on one of those funny voices that people automatically use for babies. Was that an instinct? The cat seemed to like it though, he burrowed his head against Naruto's hand, urging him to pet him some more. Naruto obliged, combing the hair along Ollie's spine and tail.

Finally, Sasuke came back into the living room. He looked at Naruto and Ollie, then slowly smirked.

Naruto was smiling. "He likes his name." He scratched Ollie under the chin, and the cat purred affectionately.

"Simple minds," Sasuke said.

"You changed." Sasuke had been dressed business casual before, but now he was in a pair of snug jeans and a t-shirt for some music festival he'd never heard of.

"How observant."

Naruto got to his feet and was about to walk onto the carpet.

"Shoes," said Sasuke.

"Oh yeah, sorry." He slipped out of them and placed them by the doormat.

Sasuke stretched and folded his arms above his head, shirt riding up enough to absently catch Naruto's notice.

"Want anything to drink?"

"Beer's cool if you have some," he answered as he started snooping around the room, but there wasn't much to look at. The walls were painted white. There weren't any photographs or anything. There was, however, a couple of colorful festival posters on the wall behind the entertainment center. Naruto took a closer look at them. Reading and Glastonbury festivals? Well at least he'd heard of the latter.

Three minutes later, Sasuke came back with a couple of beer bottles in hand. He offered one to Naruto. "I hope Stella's, okay? It's all I had."

Naruto looked at the label as he took a seat on the couch, beside Sasuke. Ollie had propped himself on the sofa back, behind Sasuke's head, curled tail twitching occasionally. "I'm not picky about my beer. Say, Sasuke? I like those posters over there. Have you actually been to them?"

Sasuke glanced over to where Naruto had pointed. "Yeah. That's the business I do. I coordinate events. My company deals a lot in international music festivals. I was in Edinburgh about three months ago for the Fringe Festival."

"Fucking shit!" Naruto nearly spit out his beer. "Do you do Lollapalooza by chance then?"

"Not this year, I didn't, but the year before, yes. I've only been with the company for about four years."

"Get me tickets, man."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Why can't you get your own?"

"No, no, I mean, like, backstage passes. Ah shit, and they had Muse this year. Ah, and Coldplay and Crystal Castles and that one hot British chick whose songs sound all techno-y."

"Ellie Goulding, yeah," Sasuke replied with a brief nod of his head. He gave Naruto a look. " 'Techno-y'? Really?"

Naruto rolled his eyes and reached around Sasuke to pet Ollie's head. "That's why I'm not in the music business."

"Clearly."

There was a sort of lull in the conversation after that. Ollie purred as Naruto scratched behind his ear.

Sasuke shifted. "Should I leave you two alone? You seem to like one another an awful lot."

"Aw, don't be jealous. It's obvious he's starved for affection."

"Another thing you two have in common."

Naruto scoffed and dropped his hand back into his lap. "On what do you base that in the five hours we've known one another?"

"Please," said Sasuke. "I can practically smell the desperation coming off of you. You would've struck up a conversation with anyone had they sat at your table."

"True." Naruto sighed, sipping his Stella. "But you're the one who ended up sitting there. It's fate, you see."

"Fate?" Sasuke turned around, brought his feet up onto the couch, and leaned against the arm. He stroked Ollie's spine. "What exactly are we fated for then?"

Naruto shrugged. "Dunno. That's not for me to decide."

"Fair is foul and foul is fair, eh?"

Naruto stared at him blankly. Sasuke shook his head.

"Nevermind."

Naruto found himself staring at Sasuke's dark blue socks. "So do you travel a lot then?"

"A fair amount, yes."

"Like, all over the world?"

"Hm." Sasuke picked at a bit of lint on the big toe of his right foot. Why this was fascinating to Naruto as an observation, he had no idea. "Europe mostly. But I've been to Australia, Japan. South Africa, once. Canada."

"Ah. Yeah. Canada. They have...stuff there."

Sasuke gave a low chuckle. "Yes. They do have stuff there."

"Like Wayne Gretzky."

"Maple syrup," Sasuke supplied helpfully.

"Celine Dion."

"Yeah," deadpanned Sasuke, "I have all her records. She's simply fabulous."

Naruto laughed and turned around on the cushion so that he was facing Sasuke. The sole of Sasuke's foot brushed his knee. "No, I've been once. To Vancouver. I loved it there. It was really clean, and the mountains were everywhere. That was back before you needed a passport to get in."

"You don't have a passport?"

"Oh, no. I do. I just wanted to savor the injustice for a moment."

Sasuke tilted his head, a crooked smile on his lips as he pet the cat, scratching him behind the ear. "It's good you know how to pick your battles."

"For someone who says he's not terribly fond of his pet, you seem to be givin' him lots of lovin' and attention tonight."

"If that's a euphemism for something, you're barking up the wrong tree." Sasuke smirked.

Naruto blinked for a moment and then started roaring with laughter, forcing Sasuke to grin a little. "You're... you're really clever, you know that? I'm sure you do 'cause you have the tendency to be such a smug bastard, but you are. I hope you always use these powers for good and not evil."

"I'll be careful not to let anyone turn me."

"Like a vampire?"

Sasuke scrunched his nose. "No, the dark side."

"Oh. Yeah. I've never seen Star Warsif you can believe it."

"What."

"Haha, no I'm kidding. I've seen it. My Dad has about every box set ever made for it. He's a geek."

"At least I know where you get it from then."

They both watched as Ollie jumped down between them, gazed ambiguously at Sasuke, then Naruto, and then jumped onto the floor with his tail up in the air.

"What do you think that's about?" asked Naruto.

"Beats me. He's moody like that."

"At least I know where he gets it from then."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Want another beer?"

"Yeah, sure." Sasuke took the empty one from him and started to get up from the couch.

"When do I get the full tour of the place?"

"Well, follow me, and we can start with the kitchen," said Sasuke as he hopped on one foot when he stood. "Shit, foot fell asleep."

Naruto laughed at him and gave him a shove from behind. "It must've been that thrilling conversation we were having there."

"Probably."

He followed Sasuke into the kitchen, which was just down the hallway and to the right. It was clean and modern, much less plain than the living room. The cabinetry was dark, nearly black, with silver finishes. There was an island with a granite countertop and two stools tucked underneath the overhanging part of the slab. Two simply designed pendant lights hung above it. The backsplash behind the sink and gas range was a very light tan subway tile. The appliances were all stainless steel. Everything was where it should be. The complete opposite of Naruto's apartment. He whistled appreciatively.

"Did you decorate this yourself?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke was searching through the fridge. "Hardly. Most of the apartments are furnished like this. It's not really my style though."

"No? Why's that? I think it's pretty great."

"You just think that because it's clean."

"How'd you guess?" He grinned as Sasuke handed him the bottle and an opener. Naruto made quick work of it. "I love this. I need to buy it. Is it imported or something?"

"No. It's Belgian, but you can find it wherever here. Well, mostly wherever."

"Ah, mmkay."

Sasuke grabbed one for himself, but Naruto took it from him to remove the bottlecap. He handed it back. Sasuke nodded his thanks, eyeing Naruto as he brought it to his lips and drank.

"What?" asked Naruto.

"Can I ask how you got those scars?"

Self-consciously, Naruto's hand went to his cheek. "Oh these...? Er. Just an accident from when I was a kid. It's a stupid story."

Sasuke put his elbow on the island and leaned his head on his hand. His cheeks were fairly flushed and his eyes appeared a bit glazed.

"You're drunk," Naruto said.

"I'm buzzed."

"Uh huh. You're such a lightweight."

"Excuse me? I think I had two bottles of wine by myself since you had to order a red when you don't even like it."

"I thought I did. I didn't know. So I prefer white. I drank it all. You said you liked red better anyway!"

"I do. But I liked that pinot grigio, as well."

"You would."

"Oh, is that an attack on my sexuality?"

"If it was, it was certainly a lame one."

Sasuke straightened up, took a step closer and gently slapped Naruto's cheek. "That it was." He removed his hand. "Shall I give you the rest of the tour?" But without waiting for Naruto's answer, he headed out of the kitchen and into the hallway.

Naruto stared a moment, and then saw Ollie padding quickly by the doorway and after Sasuke. He followed suit, finding Sasuke waiting by the bathroom.

"Here," he said, with a gesture of his hand. "Is the half bath. Suitable for guests, and," he clicked on the light, "For the cat to do his business."

"Lovely."

Sasuke turned off the light and moved on, stopping at the next door, which was obviously a bedroom. "This is where guests sleep. Not that I've had any since I've been here, but, that's where I'd put them."

"You're so good at this," Naruto said, grinning. "You should be a tour guide."

"I will take that under consideration," Sasuke said dryly and carried on. "And here," he entered another bedroom, flopping down on the foot of the bed with a bounce, patting his hand on top of the thick, neutral-colored duvet. "Is where the magic happens." He smirked at Naruto.

"Yeah right. You already said you haven't had any guests yet."

"Touché. You saw right through my plan again, didn't you?"

"I did." Naruto stepped into the room. Again, modern furnishings. The dresser on the side of the wall was made of a darker wood. There was a large oval antique mirror that hung above it. At least the walls had been painted. They were a soft grey in color that matched some of the bedding and pillows. He took a seat on the bed, as well, glancing around. "Very nice."

"It meets your approval?"

"It most certainly does. I've never lived somewhere this nice in my life. It must be expensive."

Sasuke, modestly, shrugged his shoulders. He pointed. "There's the master bath. There's the closet."

"And I won't be finding you in there," Naruto quipped and then, immediately realizing what he'd said, he looked at Sasuke sheepishly. But Sasuke had a faint smile on his face.

"I guess you could say that," he replied and moved his hair out of his eyes.

"Why are you so cool?" asked Naruto, just staring at him.

Sasuke looked back at him. "Born that way?"

Naruto closed his eyes and put his hand over his heart. "Yes, this was definitely fate."

"Hm?"

Naruto opened his eyes and smiled. "Nothing. Nevermind."

"No," Sasuke groaned. "You can't do that."

"Sure I can. I learned how to be vague and cryptic from you! You were so good at it during dinner tonight. At least until your third glass of wine."

"Yeah, I do tend to get a bit verbose when I'm on the wine."

"Yeah," Naruto said, narrowing his eyes playfully, "You also use big words. How can you do that drunk?"

"Vocabulary doesn't leave you just from imbibing alcohol. You never had a proper one to begin with is all, Naruto."

"Oh wow, yeah. You fuckin' rock. You're drunk, and I still can't even understand what the hell you just said, but I know I should be insulted."

Slowly, Sasuke reached over and, pausing only briefly in the process of pointing his finger, poked Naruto in the arm. Naruto laughed a little, highly amused.

"What was that?" he asked.

"A gesture of endearment," answered Sasuke, and, for an instant, smiled genuinely at him.

Naruto smiled in return, his eyes lighting up with amusement. "Yeah, you need to stop being this charming or I'm gonna fall for you hardcore."

"Hardcore, eh? It's my charm isn't it?" Sasuke grabbed the collar of his own shirt and sniffed himself. "Or is it my laundry detergent?"

Naruto leaned over and sniffed the sleeve. "Mm. Spring fresh."

"Indeed. Spring rain, rather." He cocked his head. "I think."

"If you were a girl, I would've asked for your number by now."

"You already did ask for my number as I recall, idiot."

"Oh right. I did, didn't I?"

Sasuke nodded and looked at him with an oddly open expression.

"What?" Naruto asked. Sasuke made him so self-conscious sometimes. Maybe it was the way he'd look at Naruto but had no way of knowing what the other was thinking.

"You have nice eyes."

"Really? That's what you were thinking?"

Sasuke frowned, going on the defensive. "It's just a compliment," he said, glancing away.

"Aw. No. I like it. I was just surprised is all. Thank you. I'm glad you think my eyes are pretty."

"I didn't say they were pretty." Sasuke glared, but it was sort of adorable in a way. Like a puppy or...

Ollie hopped up on the bed and settled into Sasuke's lap. He purred loudly as Sasuke stroked his fur. The cat rolled on his side and Sasuke leaned over him, squishing his cheeks with both hands. "You're such a fat cat. I need to put you on a diet."

Naruto watched this and had no words for the strange things entering his mind. It was just... so fucking cute!

"Why are you this adorable?" Naruto asked when he couldn't hold it in any longer.

Without looking up from the cat, Sasuke replied good-humoredly, "Me or the cat?"

"Both."

Sasuke raised his eyes, and, one more time, graced Naruto with a true smile. "You are falling for me, aren't you?" His tone was sarcastic, obviously, but Naruto just wanted to gank him into a hug or wrestle him to the floor. Very weird things. He felt nothing but a giant blob of affection levitating in his chest like an alien baby waiting to burst from his abdomen.

"What's with that face?" asked Sasuke, eyebrow raised. Ollie also seemed to be giving him a quizzical look.

"What face?"

"That one there." Sasuke pointed at him.

Naruto grabbed hold of the finger. "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's not polite to point?" he asked, voice low and a little gruff. Sasuke must have sensed the change in his tone. Naruto still held his finger, his thoughts fuzzy. He let go of Sasuke before he tried to do anything strange to the digit. Embarrassed, he glanced away from him and scratched the back of his neck. "What do they call this paint color?" he asked lamely.

"Angela's Ashes Grey."

"Really?"

"No, moron. I have no idea what it's called."

"You suck."

"It's not unheard of." He smirked suggestively at Naruto.

Naruto squinted at him distrustfully. "You're seducing me, aren't you? You're like a succubus."

"No. I'd be an incubus. A succubus is the female."

Naruto twisted around and face-planted into the duvet, fisting the smooth-textured fabric in both hands. "Fuuuuuuck!" he yelled into it.

He felt Sasuke rub his back soothingly. Naruto shot up on the bed. Sasuke was staring at him very calmly, Ollie mirroring a similarly placid expression, though his tail twitched where it rested in the crook of its owner's folded leg.

"It's me, isn't it?" Sasuke asked, that goddam, ever present smirk on his face because he's such a smug, smugbastard. "I'm irresistible."

"You are," Naruto whined. "Why must it be so?" He tried to hide his face with his arm, but Sasuke snagged his wrist and drew it away.

"Naruto," he said his name in a teasing way, and where he had a hold of Naruto's wrist, the skin was getting all hot and splotchy.

Affectionately, Naruto glared at him.

"You wanna be my first overnight guest, don't you?" Sasuke asked, shaking Naruto's arm side to side. Ollie got up and started batting his front paws, hooking them around their arms and hanging there.

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, I really sort of do. Can we stay up and talk about whether there's a God or not and maybe play with each other's hair?"

"No." Sasuke tilted his head, then grinned. "But we can have some more beer and play a bit of Call of Duty."

"I think..." Naruto started to say, and then shut his eyes and lowered his head. He reached for Sasuke's ankle and squeezed it. "I'm gonna need a new pair of pants and underwear, 'cause I'm pretty sure I just jizzed myself."

Sasuke laughed genuinely, and Naruto, again, felt that desire to tackle him. Sasuke got up from the bed, nearly knocking Ollie to the floor.

"Let's go then." He walked out of the room, Ollie trailing behind, angrily mewling his feelings of contempt at having been dumped onto the carpet.

Naruto breathed in deeply, his hand over his heartbeat. Was it possible to be so fucking absolutely in love with someone after only a few hours? He just wanted to crawl inside Sasuke's chest and make a home there for the rest of his life. He could turn his insides into a nice throw and pillow so that he might stay warm. He shivered from pure happiness, then bounded after them toward the living room, shouting "Survival moooode!" at the top of his lungs as he jumped onto the couch and snatched the extra controller out of Sasuke's hand.