Inbred

Another short chapter and no NC-17 stuff here either, but probably a WAFF.

Partial song-fic. Naruto's an ass, go figure! Please don't hit me.

--------------
Chapter 11

They drove in silence and while Sasuke was unnerved that even the usually talkative Naruto hadn't said a word, at least the boys weren't arguing. He had taken Naruto to a national park, an old temple, and showed him some relatively old structures that had been around for centuries. He took so many pictures that Sasuke was surprised he hadn't run out of space on his memory card yet but most of the pictures were of women and Sasuke had expected that much from his friend.

Hyuga was very cordial towards the hyper-active blond but he hadn't opened up quite yet and Naruto was still a little reserved around Neji. At least they were trying.

This trip was decidedly longer than the others since their next destination was a particular onsen that Sasuke liked that was just on the outskirts of town and Naruto finally grew tired of the awkward silence because he reached out to turn on the radio. He wasn't satisfied with any of the stations before making an exasperated noise. "Ugh! I can't understand anything."

Sasuke fished around in the compartment beneath the hand rest which housed his CDs. He shuffled through a few of them before finding the one he wanted. "Here," he said and handed it to the blond sitting in the passenger's seat.

Naruto fingered the compact disc when he realized what it was. "Sasuke...you...kept it?"

While Sasuke was at Naruto's school he was notorious for refusing, returning or disposing of the many, many gifts he had received from his adoring fans. It sounded heartless but Sasuke didn't want to lead anyone on when he clearly wasn't interested and he also didn't like amassing 'useless junk'. But while he was there Naruto noticed there were a few songs he had taken a liking to and made a CD with those particular songs along with others he thought his friend might enjoy. And he had kept it...

"Of course I kept it, it was a gift from a friend," he grinned before shifting the car into another gear and changing lanes. It was true he'd kept the CD Naruto had given him but he was ashamed to admit he'd never gotten around to actually listening to it. Well, now was as good a time as any.

Naruto hastily fed the disc into the radio and waited for the first song to play. "Then, then does that mean you kept those boxers I gave you? You know the one with the swirls?"

Sasuke thought for a second. "No, I actually got rid of those," he said truthfully.

Naruto glared at Sasuke but his face soon lit up when the song began and the woman started vocalizing. "Ooh, I love this song," he exclaimed then started vocalizing along with the woman. "My skin is like a maap, where my heaart has beeen. And I can't hide the maarks, but it's not a negative thiiing."

The dobe didn't sound too bad and he wasn't really drowning out the woman so the Uchiha allowed him this liberty. It was a beautiful song and he'd regretted not playing the CD before now.

"So I let down my guard, drop my defenses, down by my cloothes; and I'm learning to fall with no safety-net to cushion the blooow."

He chuckled to himself. This song was actually quite erotic, he'd like to play it the next time he and Neji ever made love.

"I bruise easily, so be gentle, when you handle me, there's a mark you leave, like a love-heart carved on a treee. I bruise easily, can't scratch the surface, without moving me, underneath I bruise easily. Yeah heah yeah."

Actually, listening to the lyrics carefully, he could apply the whole thing to Neji. Now the Hyuga was by no means 'soft' or anything, he could take care of himself but sometimes he just seemed so fragile. Sasuke remembered a time they had particularly rough sex and he had left bruises on his hips, thighs and wrists. The Hyuga assured him that it was nothing and he hardly even felt the pain but Sasuke was guilt-ridden when he saw the dark marks marring his perfect, alabaster skin.

"I saw your finger-priints, on a glass of wine. Do you, know you're leaving them all o-ver this heart of mine too?"

That wasn't the only pain he had caused Neji that he was so guilt-ridden about. A few months ago Sasuke did something that had jeopardized everything they had. He returned to their dorm one evening to find Neji standing at the door with a distant expression on his face. He blatantly told the Uchiha to get his things and leave. His eyes betrayed his harsh demeanor because Sasuke could see that he had clearly been crying although he had made every effort to hide it. Sasuke didn't ask and he didn't beg, he just took his stuff and moved back into his previous dorm across the hall. To this day he still didn't know what it was he had done.

"If I never take, this leap of faith, I'll ne-ver knoow. So I'm learning to fall, with no safety net, to cushion the bloow."

Neji had trusted him with one thing and one thing only and as far as Sasuke knew he hadn't betrayed that trust. He had kept Hyuga's little 'secret' a secret (although he knew he was going to tell Naruto sometime). Sasuke wasn't into black-mail and he hadn't threatened to tell anyone about Neji, he also wasn't going to blackmail the Hyuga prodigy into getting back together with him either.

"I bruise easily, so be gen-tle when you handle me, there's a mark you leave like a love-heart carved on a treee, I-I-I bruuuise easily, can't scratch the surface, without moving me underneath, I bruise easily. Oh yeahh yeahh."

But Neji wasn't the only one hurting here, he was hurting too but he didn't cry, he wasn't as emotional as Hyuga. For the first few weeks he hated waking up in the lonely bed without Neji's warm body next to his. He eventually got over it and as a consolation hoped the Hyuga was missing sleeping next to him too.

"Anyone who, can touch you, can hurt you, or heal you. Anyone who, can love you or leave you-ouuu. Yeah, yeah. So be gentle."

Sasuke looked over to the boy who was belting out the tune now. He wondered if Naruto had many 'women' problems.

"I bruise easily so be gentle, when you han-dle me. There's a-a-a mark you leave, like a love heart, carved on a tree. I bruise easily, can't scratch the surface, without moving me, underneath. I bruise easily."

He'd risk asking Naruto his opinion since the blond had a knack for dropping gems among his random ramblings. He wanted to reconcile with Neji and he was desperate enough to ask the world's second greatest pervert for advice. God, help him!

"I bruise- Anyone who, can touch you, can hurt you or heal you. Anyone who can reach you, can love you or leave you-ouuu! So be gentle! Yeah yeahh. I bruise easilyyyy."

Naruto exhaled and smiled with his eyes closed. "I love that song."

"I can tell," murmured the man in the driver's seat. He glanced up in the rear-view mirror to look at the boy who was safely belted in the back. He had been so quiet that Sasuke almost thought he had jumped out of the vehicle. From the mirror's angle he could only see the lower half of Neji's face and he appeared to be looking out of the window, lost in his thoughts.

"Oooh, I love this song," squealed the youth in the front as he turned up the volume on the radio another four notches.

"Aww, Naruto now the other song's jealous," Sasuke joked.

"Shut up, bastard. You like this song too." Naruto was right, this was one of the few songs that Sasuke had learned the lyrics to while he was in the States. It wasn't hard since Naruto sang the song all the damn time. He figured the constant repetition would have ruined it for him but after not hearing it all these years it seemed almost new to him.

"You're just too good to be true, I can't take my eyes off of you. You'd be like Heaven to touch, I wanna hold you so mu- C'mon, Sasuke you know the words."

Sasuke felt something move in the pit of his stomach. It must have been reluctance, because he really didn't want to sing along.

"-And I thank God I'm ali-ive," the boy was now singing into an invisible microphone he held in his hand. "You're just to good to be tru-uue," he moved to microphone to Sasuke's lips.

Sasuke gave him an annoyed look and purposely missed his cue.

"C'mon, Sasuke," he whined and shook the man's arm until the vibrations shot through to the steering-wheel almost making the vehicle wobble.

Sasuke made that sound behind his teeth then leaned into the 'mike'. "Pardon the way that I stare,"

"-Way that I sta-are," Naruto echoed his backup while alternating the mike between himself and Sasuke as necessary.

"There's nothing else to compare."

"-Else to compare."

"The sight of you leaves me weak."

"-You leave me weak."

"There are no words left too speak."

"-Words left to-o speak."

"But if you feel like I feel, Please let me know that it's re-al. You're just too good to be true, can't take my eyes off of you."

Naruto had to admit, Sasuke sounded good. His voice was much deeper than Naruto's and he pulled off the somewhat baritone notes in his own key. He sounded very sexy. He was also getting into it from the way he bobbed his head in tune to the beat and closed his eyes as he relinquished each word.

The boys looked at each other and grinned; they knew what was coming next.

"I LOVE YOU, BAY-BEE," they belted out at the top of their lungs as they shared Naruto's make-shift micrphone and neither boy noticing the man in the back seat staring at them as if they had suddenly grown two heads.

"And if it's quite alright, I need you bay-bee to warm the lonely nights, I love you baby; trust in me when I say, Oh-kay."

"OH PREETYY BAY-YAY-BE-"

"Fuck, Uzumaki you're singing off key," Sasuke laughed. Naruto was now trying to out-do the singer on the high notes and his voice just could get there comfortably.

"Fuck you, Sasuke," he returned the light-hearted gesture and punched his friend on the arm. "At least I can reach those notes, unlike you, Mr. Alto."

Sasuke heard a snort from the back seat and he looked up into the rear-view mirror again. Neji was no longer gazing outside the window and from the tiny smirk visible on his face he was obviously amused.

Sasuke adjusted the mirror so he could fit Neji's face in the reflective surface. Their eyes met and Neji scoffed again before returning his gaze to the view outside.

"-Let me love you, let me love you ba-by. oh baby," Sasuke resumed singing along with Naruto who had continued without him but this time he wasn't singing for Naruto's benefit.

"You're just too good to be true, can't take my eyes off of you. You'd be like Heaven to touch. I want to hold you soo much."

Neji bit on his lower lip and something flashed within his eyes, but before Sasuke could make out what it was he had closed them tightly as if to block out the man that was now serenading him.

"At long last love has arrived, and I thank God I'm alive. You're just too good to be true-"

Neji sighed through his nose and looked over at the Uchiha who was still staring at him through the rear-view mirror. Pale eyes met dark and Sasuke's gaze never faltered as he half hang, half spoke the next line.

"-Can't take my eyes off of you."

-------------
Dim Dong: There will be more Naru/Hina but it's gonna be much later, sorry.

Dragonsbreath: See above RE: Naru/Hina, Sorry it's taking so long to get there. Neji and Naruto may be on speaking terms right now but they will have playful banter.

Okay, as long as the story's going along the right path, no worries for me. Glad everyone's enjoying the read, once again I apologize it's moving so slowly.