The Challenge

This chapter took longer because it is very information heavy. The next should be easier and quicker.

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Chapter Eight: “Talk It Out”

Sasuke sat in a plush arm chair next to his brother who was reading the Wall-Street-Journal. The ability to learn any language was another talent of his brother’s that he envied. There were a couple publications from America that Itachi had delivered to the house in the original English like The New Yorker and The Washington Post in addition to the Journal. Itachi easily read the left to right format where he could barely make out half the words in any given sentence. He was conversational in English but his brother was completely fluent.

“Out holdings in Takamiki Energy have gone up a couple points and stayed there for the last week.” Itachi smiled over at him making Sasuke smile back. He really didn’t know what Itachi was talking about but it must have been good if he felt the need to share. Managing the finances was his brother’s job so he didn’t concern himself with it. When ever Itachi mentioned stocks or credit scores he just nodded or smiled.

Itachi returned to his reading so Sasuke looked around the room and settled on the girl next to him. She had to be about ten years old and wore a flower covered sun dress over snow boots. Her winter coat sat on the couch next to her. As he stared at her she turned to him and smiled brightly. Half of her face was covered in burn scars that disappeared under a short black wig. She beamed up at him, “Hi there.”

“Hi,” he returned looking into her eyes to avoid the scar. In her hands she played with a small doll that had all it’s hair cut off. The girl drew black lines all over one side of it’s face and colored it red.

“My daddy set me on fire.” Before anymore could be said a woman came out of the room and gathered her up. “Bye-bye,” she waved back at him as her guardian pulled her away.

He hated this place. It was supposed to be a place of healing but all he could see was relived suffering. The children who came to this place were forced to talk about the most horrible degrading actions that were done to them. It already happened once so he didn’t understand why sharing it with another helped.

“Uchiha, Sasuke.” His counselor called out to him from her doorway. Itachi stood with him and hugged him but didn’t follow.

He slowly followed the young woman into the room and walked to the leather couch in the back. Her office was divided up into different sections each tailored to different reveling techniques. There was a small table to one side where he remembered drawing angry pictures of pain and shame. That had been his outlet. Others chose the doll house in the corner that housed the family of anatomically correct dolls. The doctor had tried once to get him to play the ‘Where did the bad man touch you’ game but he didn’t take to it. Around the office there were also some plain toys and furniture but he was beyond all that. In the back were more mature settings; two couches, some chairs, a bookshelf, and her desk.

He settled on the couch burrowing deep into the soft cushions. His doctor took a seat across from him on a chair. “Shall we begin?” She spoke this one phrase louder than how she normally spoke. He had come to know that she used it to trigger the recorder she had set up on her computer. There was no notepad like a stereotypical therapist’s office so it felt more like a conversation and not an interrogation. “Come on now it’s warm in here. Fell free to make yourself comfortable.” He knew what she wanted so he removed his coat and sweater. This left him in only his oversized t-shirt an jeans.

It was part of their therapy for him to feel comfortable in his own skin. Each visit she forced him to shed his shield and lay bare what he perceived as his shame for him own inspection. Overtime she taught him that his body was not his shame and never had been. It had taken a while but he could look at himself in a mirror with out breaking down. Of all the doctors who had tried to get information out of him he liked her the best.

“I heard you had some trouble the other day, would you like to tell me about it?” Her smile was soft and her voice softer.

“It was just a panic attack.” He practically growled at her. Just because he liked her more than the others didn’t mean he liked her. “I hyperventilated and passed out. It’s not a big deal.”

“What triggered a panic attack?” He shrugged. “Was it a flashback?” No shrug this time just silent stillness. “Tell me what happened that reminded you of past events to give you a panic attack.” When he shrugged she kicked his twenty dollar sneakers with her hundred dollar designer pumps. “We are not playing twenty questions here young man. Talk to me.”

“A boy cornered me in the bathroom. It was kind of like deja-vu. Then later on when a friend asked me about what happened I blurred the two memories together.” That was vague enough to keep him feeling comfortable unfortunately she had to ruin that feeling.

“What happened in the bathroom?” She twitched in her seat. From being together for so long he knew that she wanted to lean forward and touch him. Instead she crossed her legs and laid her interlaced fingers on her stomach.

He swallowed painfully and looked anywhere in the room other than her face. “He held me against the door and kissed me.” It had been years since he’d told her anything this personal and embarrassing. “It wasn’t a big deal. He scared me more than anything.”

“Why were you scared?” Confusion crossed his face prompting her to revise the question. “Were you frightened because of what he might do or because of what was done before?”

Sasuke sunk lower in his seat and crossed his arms. In the past he had fought reveling anything to the doctors who asked too many questions. Over time he learned that if he hurried up and just spilled his guts then she would move on. “In the bathroom I was scared of what he might do. I was fine until later, like I said.” He slid one finger under his too big watch and rubbed at the lines it hid.

“How did you feel afterwards?”

“Shaken up but this is a different place and I’m a different person. I told my brother and if he does it again then I tell the school officials.” She nodded approval at his answer. He’d learned what she wanted to hear in order to change the subject. Other people’s actions were not his fault and there were those who would help him.

“Who was this friend who took you home the other day? I’ve only heard you talk about Hinata.” To his relief she changed the subject. He didn’t mind talking about normal things like school and friends.

“His name is Naruto. He talked me into tutoring him in the mornings.” He shook his head and smiled. “I think he’s part American because he has blond hair and blue eyes. At first I thought he was some jerk trying to steal my lunch money or something. He didn’t seem at all like I thought he’d be: he’s a lot nicer.” After a moment of silence he risked a glance at her face to find her smiling.

“It sounds like you really like this boy.” She laughed at how fast the blood ran to his face. “I didn’t mean it like that kiddo.”

“I know,” he stuttered. “He’s the first friend I’ve made besides Hinata.”

“So how are you and Hinata?”

He perked up and leaned forward to explain the project. Most school work was paraphrasing textbook facts but projects were different. Independent projects had the freedom to create all aspects of the elements. He was not only happy about their project but he liked getting out of the house and away from Itachi. This comment got her attention.

“What about Itachi? Is he lightening up?” Her voice and face turned serious at mention of his brother.

“Since we developed the schedule he seems better. He even let me go to Hinata’s house with out him. It’s not much but it’s something. Now that this has happened I think he might go back to watching my every move.” It was the subject that got the biggest response out of him. “Someday he’ll realize I’m not a porcelain doll.”

“He’s just worried about you. In his mind he failed to protect you not just once but twice. I’ll talk to him about it at our joint session. Is there anything else you want to talk about before we call it a day?” He shook his head no. This session wasn’t as bad as other’s where he’d cry and scream and go home feeling dirty and in pain. He didn’t mind when all they spoke of was his daily life but now because of stupid Gaara he had to think about things he had almost forgotten.

When she stood up he followed and put his sweatshirt and coat back on. “I’ll see you at our next session.” This was her way of saying good-bye and stopping her computer recorder.

As he exited the room Itachi scrambled to his side. “How’d it go?”

“Fine, I want to go home now.” The twice a month sessions always left him feeling drained. He wanted to go home and take a nap. Itachi wouldn’t ask him any questions; his older brother knew he wasn’t ready for that. Almost every sessions his doctor reminded him that eventually he needed to give some one close to him the details of what happened. He rushed out the door ahead of Itachi so he didn’t notice the worried look he gave hi doctor.

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Anko watched the boy leave followed closely by his brother. In her years of working she’d counseled several children dealing with divorcing or abusive parents and sexual or physical abuse. Sasuke was a special case that hit her close to home. At first she didn’t want to be the boy’s doctor because listening to his story woke her own demons. Now she was glad she stayed and was proud of the progress Sasuke had made so quickly.

After Sasuke she had two empty slots for lunch and up dating her records. At her desk she printed up a hard copy of her conversation and saved a copy in his folder. She opened a new program that recorded and typed what she said out loud. This would be the official report she’d send to Ebisu-sama, the Uchiha’s social worker.

“Start record, Saturday November 20th, subject Uchiha, Sasuke. Sasuke is continuing to adapt to life after abuse better than any other subject I’ve worked with. In the past year nightmares and flashbacks have all but stopped until now. It took an act of aggression from another to trigger an attack where before flashbacks came unprovoked. With the nature of abuse he endured this kind of reaction is natural. In my personal opinion this is only a slight set back but also an important step. Sasuke needs to learn how to react to embraces similar to the assault.”

She paused and consulted her notes for a second. “I’m proud of his progress with dealing with the abuse but I’m concerned about the actions of his guardian, his older brother. Itachi is still refusing therapy of his own for the trauma of losing their parents but does participate in Sasuke’s group therapy. His over protection of his younger brother is detrimental to Sasuke’s healing process. I’m bringing that up in our next session.”

Closing her notes, she looked out the window to ponder her next words carefully. “On the subject of Itachi and Ebisu’s concerns for his ability to care for Sasuke. I feel that though his concerns are sound they are unfounded. With the progress Sasuke has made and his response to the schedule Itachi has set up it would be the wrong thing to separate them. Like any other overprotective parent he needs to be taught how to let go.”

That ended her official report and she was about to close everything up when she thought of something else. “On a side note during our session Sasuke mentioned a new male friend. I see this as a good sign. Even after the attack he was still comfortable with this new friend. Up until this point Sasuke has formed several short term friendships with other female students. The one girl that he mentions the most has been described by him as severely shy and withdrawn. I feel this is because he feels safer with those he deems as no threat. This new male friend is different.” Anko smiled to herself as she though about his smile as he spoke of this Naruto.

“I don’t want to jump to conclusions but I feel that there is something more to this friendship that Sasuke formed. The way he spoke of this boy was almost fond. With the nature of his past abuse it is normal and expected for him to be unsure and even freighted of his own sexual orientation. Stop record.”

Anko took a moment to reread over the report and manually type in some things she forgot. Lastly she rethought the last paragraph and in the end erased and replaced it. “In the end it is my professional opinion that Sasuke is happy and health in his currant situation. Any change to this would be forcing Sasuke away from a comfortable place where he is progressing rapidly. Stop record.”

Rereading it one more time she decided she was a lot happier with this version. With everything else Sasuke deserved some privacy and it was not her place to assume anything. The only thing Ebisu really needed to know was how well Itachi was raising his younger brother.

This report was printed up for her files and to be sent to Ebisu. She was both a personal and court appointed therapist. They already filled out the paperwork to drop the patient/doctor confidentiality for only certain sessions. This allowed her to report her findings to their social worker.


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Itachi sat on the edge of Sasuke’s bed running his fingers threw his brother’s hair humming softly. The younger boy’s eyes were closed but he wasn’t asleep. Sasuke came strait home from the doctor’s office and climbed into bed; he didn’t even bother to take off his shoes. The older boy followed behind and made him comfortable staying to try and sooth him to sleep. Sasuke sighed heavily and burrowed deeper into his pillows before speaking to his brother. “When do you have to meet Ebisu-sama?”

It would probably take a couple of days for him to look over the doctor’s notes with all his other clients. He didn’t know yet if Ebisu was going to just spot check them or haul them into court. “Maybe a week or so. He won’t wait too long.”

Under his hand Sasuke shifted and his breathing changed but he wasn’t sleeping yet. Sasuke was playing possum to get Itachi to leave. Instead he sat a while longer running his fingers through his brother’s hair. “I’m going to make tea and in a while I’ll cook dinner. When you’re ready go ahead and come out.” He tucked Sasuke’s blanket in under his chin and gave him a light kiss on his forehead. Before walking out he shut the heavy blinds and curtains blocking out the mid-day light. He also left the door open so he could hear anything that happened in Sasuke’s room.

In the kitchen he put a kettle of water on to boil. Instead of tea bags he dug through some glass jars of herbs and pulled together a mixture of mint and orange zest, both Sasuke’s favorites. While the water heated he checked down the hall to make sure Sasuke wasn’t heading out then dug into the back of a high cupboard. Hidden there behind jars of cooking oil and spices was a tiny bottle of vodka. There was only a small amount left that he poured into a cup. He washed out the bottle and put it into his book bag. Later that night he would put it into the neighbor’s trash. In addition to the meeting Ebisu would certainly do a house call and sometimes looked through the trash.

He had learned that when, before a meeting, Sasuke cut his finger while chopping carrots for a salad. They cleaned the wound and bandaged it. Neither one of them told him about the cut but when he found the bloody paper towels in the kitchen garbage he was angry. Ebisu-sama almost made a report until Itachi explained how they cleaned out the wound, applied antibiotics, and put a bandage on it. He also promised that Sasuke wouldn’t be able to use the knives anymore without his strict supervision. Sasuke sat back and snorted at both of them angry about being treated like a little kid.

Itachi always felt a little torn about the strict rules put on them by the social workers. He liked being able to keep his brother safe but it kept Sasuke from doing the things normal fifteen year olds did. Some of it was his own fault by taking the rules to the extreme. He had five years left of keeping Ebisu convinced that he was a fit guardian by keeping Sasuke under lock and key. Sometimes it frustrated him that he was held to a different standard just because he was wealthy.

Shaking his head he cleared the thoughts and concentrated on getting Sasuke back. The younger boy always retreated into himself after spilling his guts to his doctor. She assured him that it was perfectly normal as long as he didn’t isolate himself for too long. Usually Sasuke took a nap or at least faked to be asleep then rejoined him as if nothing happened. He took a deep breath and swallowed the small amount of alcohol in the bottom of his cup.

When the tea was done Sasuke still hadn’t emerged from his room. He poured a cup and walked down the hallway. The door was closed to his brother’s room. While he was lost in thought Sasuke must have shut the door because he couldn’t remember hearing anything. He knew the door wasn’t locked because it didn’t work but he didn’t open it knowing that his brother closed it for a reason. Instead he returned to the living room.

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Neji’s strong grip and slightly rough fingertips made up for the pain in his lower back. The other boy had managed to get to sit against the pillows propped up by the headboard. He wanted to lay back and pull Neji on top of him but Neji was gripping his arm roughly keeping him close. Shifting closer he moved his hand faster prompting his friend to do the same.

The older boy adjusted his fingers and went back to work rubbing Naruto’s hard flesh. Naruto thrust his hips towards Neji’s hand and wrapped an arm around one shoulder hugging the other body close. In this position he could only see pale skin and black hair making him forget who he was with. Naruto opened his mouth around this hand laying on Neji’s shoulder and bit down to keep himself from calling someone else’s name as he came to his friend’s hand. He had to stay awkwardly bent forward for a while longer until Neji called his name coming into his hand.

He took a deep breath before pushing back to lay down with his legs still entangled around Neji’s. There was a towel nearby that he used to clean his hand off. Neji brought his hand to mouth and licked his hand clean. Naruto groaned and threw the towel at his head. “I told you not to fucking do that.”

“You’re just mad that you settle for a hand job when you could’ve gotten a blowjob.” He used the towel to dry his saliva slicked hand.

“If I wanted a blow job I would have gotten one.” Naruto shifted away and fixed his pants. “It’s just that it’s been a while since I’ve been checked out.”

That didn’t shake Neji who just sat up and fixed his own pants. Naruto’s guardian Jiraiya gave him hell about his behavior but never punished him for it. He paid to keep his medical insurance up to pay for Naruto’s check ups. Jiraiya agreed the year before that if Naruto was careful and got tested regularly for STDs then he wouldn’t make a big deal about it. For the most part he messed around with other students only picking people up at clubs once and a while.

“I haven’t heard any rumors floating around about anyone.” In their school as with most schools nothing stayed between two people or in private. By Monday everyone knew who slept with who, who broke up with who, who cheated, and who hooked up at the Saturday night party. He had already heard a couple rumors that Naruto had fucked Sasuke but none of them had caught on.

“How goes seducing Sasuke?” Neji asked after a while.

Naruto stood up and pulled his sweaty T-shirt off before standing in front of Neji’s mirror. “It was going good until I took him home a couple days ago and met his brother. I thought Itachi was a piece of work before then I met him. For a second I thought he was going to kill me and bury my mutilated body in the back yard.” The blond put his hands on his hips making his pants drop some. His hand drifted to the line of fine blond hair under his belly button and he pressed his palm to his flat stomach. “Now for some dumb reason Sasuke is trying to hook me up with Hinata.”

“He’s what?” Neji sat forward.

He turned is head slightly. “When I meet him in the mornings for tutoring all he talks about is Hinata this and Hinata that. Just Friday she was there and he conveniently forgot something leaving us alone.” Naruto noticed the angry look on Neji’s face and laughed. “Don’t worry I’m the perfect gentleman to her and I’m not going to let this get out of hand.” Hinata was sweet and he really liker her but not in that way. He wasn’t about to hurt her by making her think that he returned her feelings then leave her for Sasuke.

“You and Sasuke are the only boys I’ve ever seen her interested in. I know she liked Shino and Kiba when the three of them worked on some project but they hooked up.” Neji dug in his bedside dresser drawer and grabbed a pack of cigarettes. When he took one out Naruto turned and looked at him. “Want one?”

Yes he did but he promised Sasuke. “No, I quit.”

Neji cocked an eyebrow. “Since when?”

He turned back to the mirror as Neji pulled his desk chair over to his window and opened it. “Since Sasuke destroyed my last pack.” Back when Sasuke did it he was pissed but now it was funny. His attention went back to what he saw in the mirror. The chiseled muscle definition of his stomach had faded a bit from his lack of exercise during the off season. He sucked his stomach in and pinched at the still slack skin. “Goddamn I can’t wait until winter’s over. I’m getting flabby around the middle.”

Behind him Neji snorted in laughter. “You look like some anorexic girl; pinching at a little skin thinking it’s fat.” He laughed out loud then added shrilly, “Ugh look I’m so fat.” Naruto looked at him oddly; it wasn’t often that Neji told a joke. “Just because it’s the off season doesn’t mean you can’t work out. The school has a gym.”

“Yeah but I’m lazy.” Neji grunted, obviously agreeing with him. Sighing he stole a T-shirt from Neji’s drawer and put it on. It was too small and fit snuggly across his broad shoulders. Neji was taller than him but thinner. He played sports where Neji was a book worm studying to become the successor to his uncle’s company.

Behind him Neji made a strange noise as he closed the window attracting his attention. “How do you chose who you want to fuck, I mean, why Sasuke.”

“At first it was just because he had no interest in me what so ever. Then when we started hanging out I noticed how fragile he seems. It’s not about just fucking him anymore. I’m starting to like him more than a friend.” He sat down on Neji’s bed and looked at the pack of cigarettes in his friend’s hand then at Neji’s face. “Now with Gaara’s sudden interest in him and Sasuke trying to hook me up with Hinata I want him even more.”

“You’re terrible.” Neji grabbed the pack and put it out of sight noticing the relieved look on the blonde’s face. “What are you going to do once you have him?”

He hadn’t thought of that. Most of the time when he pursued people it didn’t take very long so finally sleeping with them wasn’t so much a reward as it was inevitable. Never before had he gone after a long shot. He didn’t like Sasuke but who knew how he’d feel once they were together. Would he stay with him or would someone else attract his attention? “I don’t now.”

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Notes:

1) This chapter was written somewhere around May earlier this year back before the economy nose dived. When I started typing the first chapter about their stocks raising I cracked up laughing.

2) I have never seen a therapist and I only took a experimental High School course in psychology. The scene with Anko was created from common sense and some movie references.

3) For the most part every character I use is place somewhere for a reason. Ebisu became the social worker because I hate OCs but Anko was picked more carefully. Hopefully her conversation with Sasuke tells you who hurt him. He is the go to bad guy for most fan fiction after all.

4) This is the last chapter for a while where Sasuke’s abuse in the past plays a main part. I want to get back to happier times: the project and getting Naruto and Sasuke together.

5) The lobby scene is illogical because I don’t think therapists would let their patients see each other. I like the lobby scene because it sets up an uncomfortable feeling with Sasuke meeting the little girl.

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Title Notes:

Alternate titles for this chapter were: “Ther Rape Me” and “The Rapist”

The first comes from the movie “Girl Interrupted”. Angelina Jolie’s character says it to Winona Rider’s character. The second is the word therapist broken down.

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Review Notes.

Thank you so much every one who reviewed I love each and every one of them.

Kyra: What happened to Sasuke might have started with a “R” or maybe just “M”. I haven’t decided yet.

Lane: Your review scared the crap out of me. When I read my eyes are drawn to big words so I thought I was being flamed and I remembered you from other reviews. I don’t think out the notes as well as I should but I will now. Don’t worry more twists are coming. I apologize humble and beg for forgiveness.