CHAPTER 28: A Failed Escape

A/N: Hello people~ I would like to inform you all that we are officially more than halfway through the book! ＼(^o^)／ (most likely) And I would like to thank all of you who have been giving love and support to my work till now!Anyway, enjoy reading ~

"Say something, dobe..."

Sasuke averted his gaze from the blond in front of him after being given a silent treatment upon his confession. Call it anticipation or anxiousness, but the raven's hands were sweating. His heartbeat was the only sound ringing in his ears.

To anyone else, Sasuke's voice would have sounded as normal as ever, but Naruto could hear the lingering sadness behind it, along with the very tiny spark of hope that Sasuke had tried his hardest to conceal.

Sasuke was very well aware of Naruto's answer; however, Naruto's silence was enough to tell him that at the very least, he was not being outright rejected, which meant that maybe he had a chance, maybe Naruto would accept him... right?

'Why is he not saying anything...? Giving me false hopes...'

Despite knowing Naruto's decision, Sasuke just wanted the blond to confirm it for him because he didn't want to let go of that hope any time sooner than required. Just this once, he needed to listen to it from Naruto's mouth.

'I'm not asking too much of him, am I?'

Sasuke's face didn't show even an ounce of what he was feeling, yet the tone of his voice when he confessed, and even right now, was enough to tell the whiskered man things that he wished he never had to face.

While Sasuke was met with a deafening silence, Naruto's mind was clouded with silent screams from the demon deep inside his heart.

~●~●~●~NARUTO'S POV~

'What are you waiting for?'

Sai's voice rang once again in my head, that very soft yet intimidating voice.

I... I want...

I was afraid to even think about wanting to embrace those forbidden feelings that I had tried to hide in the deepest corner of my heart. Sasuke's confession had triggered them, and now they were swimming up to the surface.

I want to...

'Don't tell me, you actually want to accept him?'

I was suddenly interrupted by Sai. I knew that telling the truth would get me into a lot more trouble than I'd like, but avoiding the situation at this point would have been the worst thing I could have ever done to Sasuke.

Y- Yes...

As soon as I answered Sai's question, I began hearing laughter. It was Sai who was laughing at me because of my answer. He was mocking me.

'Oh my God, Naruto! You're so funny. I can't even... hahaha.'

His laugh was starting to annoy me. I wanted to, for the first time, not think of anything, not even Sai. I just wished to let my feelings out in the open for Sasuke to see how much I've been wanting to love him all this time. But things were never so easy for me to begin with.

'Come on, Naru-chan~. Who are you kidding? You want Sasuke? Great, but you should remember why I exist only for you in the first place. Sasuke wouldn't like to partner up with a murderer, right?'

What Sai was saying was true, but only for me. If it were true for Sasuke as well, then he wouldn't be here right now, confessing to me... right?

No... he's here even after knowing the whole truth, dattebayo, so he doesn't care about that.

I argued back for the very first time since this all began. Instead of accepting, I wanted to fight my never-ending guilt. It had been tormenting me for way too long, and maybe now was my chance to escape.

Just the thought of leaving this hell was causing my heartbeat to speed up. Maybe, just maybe, I can give in to my hidden truths.

'Well, he doesn't care now, but he'll regret it later.'

No... I'll make sure he doesn't.

'Ok, let's say he doesn't, then what about you, Naruto? Are you sure you won't regret choosing him over me?'

Why would I regret it?

'*scoffs* Don't you dare say you forgot about the promise you made with me! I thought you'd never leave me, and now you're ready to even fight me for that person who has known you for just over a month? IS THIS YOUR LOVE FOR ME?!'

...

That shut me up. I had momentarily forgotten about what my life was supposed to be like. I was bound to Sai by the chains of my love for him, and I had no right to even wish for Sasuke to be mine.

However, even then, I wanted to go to Sasuke more than anything else at the moment.

'You don't love him, Naruto. You're just using him as a replacement for me.'

I... I'm not.

I couldn't bring myself to deny Sai's claims instantly. I didn't want to accept what he was implying because his version of truth scared me more.

Why would I use him as a replacement for you?

'Because you love me?'

What if I love him as well?

I knew I was being very resistant to my only possible fate, which included losing Sasuke, but I wasn't someone who would have given in without a fight. Not after coming this far.

'What if you don't love him for who 'he' is?'

How can you be so sure, dattebayo?!

'Well, just look at him. Who do you see?'

I was hesitant at first, but I lifted my vision from the floor to Sasuke's face, whose eyes were darting around, and nervousness was shining through them. He had been patiently waiting for my answer. I got lost in my thoughts while admiring Sasuke's looks, when a sudden realization hit me, making my blood run cold.

'His eyes are black, his skin is pale, just like me, isn't it?'

No... stop.

'Oh~ Now you don't even want to agree with the obvious?'

It's not so obvious...

However much I denied, after what Sai said, I couldn't help but see Sasuke in Sai's shadow. I knew it wasn't him but Sasuke, who was quietly standing there, waiting for me to speak, but I just couldn't unsee the fact that he was similar to Sai, very similar.

I...

'You still think you love him for him and not because of me?'

A shiver ran down my spine as soon as Sai spoke these words. Loving Sasuke just because he looked like my dead lover was extremely unfair to him. My mind was somewhat aware of this, but my heart was just unwilling to accept it.

'*sighs* OK, listen to me, Naruto. What you feel for him isn't love. Look at that face! You know very well that you approached him because he looked like me! And now? You love him?! Think carefully, Naruto. Who is it that you actually love?'

Sai... was right. I loved him, and I had approached Sasuke only because he looked like him, though I didn't want to agree with it at first, but I knew it better than anyone else that I originally wanted to take care of him to ease the guilt I felt towards Sai, and now, I was claiming that I loved him.

This is so wrong...

I could feel a tear rolling down my cheek. I wished I could love Sasuke for who he was, but I knew how true my feelings towards Sai were. They were so strong that for a moment, I was mistaking them for being for Sasuke.

If I go to Sasuke, then I'll be leaving Sai behind... I... I don't want to feel guilty towards him anymore. I'm sorry, Sasuke...

~●~●~●~

"I'm sorry, Sasuke, but my heart already belongs to someone else."

Naruto's voice quivered ever so slightly as he spoke after a very long silence, leading Sasuke to think that he never should've confessed to the blond in the first place.

His heart felt like it had been pierced by the sharpest of needles each time it beat, and his legs were losing their strength to hold him up any longer.

'I didn't know it would hurt this much... *scoffs* You're really something else, Naruto.'

Just one sentence from the blond caused Sasuke's love, which had always sung a harmonious melody of hope whenever he was around Naruto to scream the tunes of laments.

Naruto wished he could give the raven in front of him an answer that he wanted, but he also knew that Sasuke would break even more if he ever got to know that he was loved, not because of who he was, but because of someone whom he was like.

He had always known Naruto's decision. He had known that Naruto was never going to choose him. He knew what he had gotten himself into. He had been preparing himself for this ever since he was told about Naruto's past, and yet, when his fears became reality, he was unable to hold himself together.

'I... I have to get out of here...'

The Uchiha was falling apart, but his face couldn't express any less. His face was stone cold, as if he was never burdened by his heartbreak to begin with.

"Hn."

Was all he could say at the moment. Naruto had clearly declared his choice, and Sasuke felt pathetic for not being able to accept it the way he had said he would.

Naruto felt a pang of pain arise inside him as he watched Sasuke just stand motionless while unknowingly fiddling with his fingers, looking lost. Only Naruto knew how heartbroken Sasuke actually was.

'Shit...'

Naruto never wanted to see Sasuke in such a vulnerable state. He hated how fragile the raven was looking right now.

Their hearts were beating terribly fast as they both stood in the suffocating silence, which was broken only when Sasuke spoke after managing to calm himself down a little.

"I'll just ask one thing. Is it because of Sai?"

The question caused Naruto to flinch. He didn't know why, but he was suddenly feeling guilty.

'I don't want to give him any false hopes...'

Naruto knew that choosing Sai over Sasuke would require cutting all the threads of any sort of hope that either he or Sasuke was holding onto. He needed to be strict in his approach to Sasuke because he knew that that was the only way the raven would ever back off from him... or so he thought.

"Yeah... I only approached you because you looked like him. I can't be with you. It might sound insane but even though Sai is gone, he's still here with me."

'So, I hope you understand my decision, dattebayo...'

Sasuke's heart clenched at the blond's words yet again, which sounded anything but insane to him. He knew exactly how Sai was there with Naruto; he resided in the blond's heart.

Sasuke was happy that Naruto was being honest with him, but he couldn't help his stupid heart that just wouldn't stop yearning and aching for the blond.

"Hn... I kinda guessed... Anyway, don't worry, I understand, dattebayo."

Sasuke mimicked Naruto and smiled at him to help ease some of the blond's guilt that he knew was looming inside Naruto's heart.

"I'll go now. I won't be bothering you about it from today."

Sasuke spoke again, but this time with a heavy heart and a stable voice before he turned around to leave. Naruto wanted to stop the raven, but he knew that anyone except him had the right to ask Sasuke not to go.

Naruto could only watch as Sasuke left with an expressionless face. He was glad that Sasuke was able to accept his decision without any questions, but some part of him felt deeply hurt.

'He just... went...'

Naruto couldn't help but resent the fact that Sasuke was able to accept his rejection so easily. In a way, he had wanted the raven to retaliate at least a little.

'Well, I made the choice in the first place...'

He wished he could blame somebody, anybody, for taking Sasuke away from him, but in the end, he himself was responsible for the situation turning out this way.

His heart was aching, but he knew that there was no turning back.

He waited until Sasuke was out of sight, and just after the raven closed the door behind him, the cerulean orbs of the blond began to see blur. Without realizing it, Naruto was crying a river of emotions he had failed to express.

Kurama, who had been watching the entire event from the sidelines yet again, immediately sprang to Naruto's side at once and began nuzzling the blond's legs.

Naruto gained some control over his tears upon seeing his fox trying to comfort him. He sniffled and wiped his tears away before picking the animal in his arms and slowly striding to his room.

He lay down on the bed and curled up into a fetal position with the fox acting as his comfort pillow, but nothing seemed to be working against the storm of pain raging inside his heart. Naruto's tears ran out of control once again, and the blond cried himself to sleep because staying awake at this moment seemed worse than death for him.

He didn't know why, but this decision he took was causing the regret and guilt inside him to grow tenfold, even though it was supposed to be the perfect choice.

'What have I done...?'

Sasuke's face flashed before his closed eyes as this was the last thought swirling in his mind before he finally gave in to the temporary comfort he was supposed to get by sleeping it all away.

Naruto had failed to escape the cage he had put himself in.

A/N: So... this was it...I know I know, don't hate me for this please!('Д｀)You all might get happier chapters going ahead!But it's still sad to see these two struggling for love, don't you all think so? 🥺Also, I promise I'll try my best to bring you all better quality chapters in the future! But I still hope you liked this one too! See you all in the next chapter!Author sound out ~ ✌🏻