BIG THANKS to my beta sharingan.swirl for being so patient with me. It is truly an honor:D

Sorry for the prolonged delay by the way, I just graduated today and have been through hell and back with my family. :D Hope you enjoy!

ANDANTE VI.

By: Ian-Michael

Sasuke ran his fingers through the silken blond strands of Naruto's hair as they kissed. His other hand was holding Naruto from behind, bringing the distance between them to a bare minimum. The only senses that seemed to have any significance at this point were touch and hearing which was realized when he felt Naruto press his bare torso against his. He could feel all his nerves shoot electricity from axon to axon as Naruto's nerves pressed into him. The low vibrations coming from Naruto's throat made his ears tingle, sending yet another wave of sensual currents coursing through his body. Feeling the weakening of his legs, Sasuke motioned them to Naruto's bed—not once breaking their kiss. After laying the blond down gently, Sasuke straddled the boy he had been longing for.

Completely lost in the feeling of fulfilled longing, Naruto whimpered into the dark haired boy's mouth, "Sasuke." He could feel every single excited cell in his body come alive with every fire infused touch. Wanting more contact, Naruto placed both of his hands on Sasuke's back and traced a feverish line down the dark haired boy's spine, grazing the band of Sasuke's pajamas teasingly.

Naruto's fingers danced so dangerously low on Sasuke's lower back that he couldn't help but buck under the scintillating pressure. The force was so abrupt that Sasuke broke their kiss.

"Naruto," he breathed, looking at the blond who was slowly opening his eyes with a wistful expression. Sasuke was so completely enthralled by the blond below him, yet he couldn't help but feel that they might be moving too fast. "You take away all my control…" he trailed.

From the expression on Sasuke's face, Naruto could tell that they might have been moving too hurriedly for Sasuke's comfort. And although the blond wouldn't mind losing the night tangled up in the other boy's body, he knew, somewhere in the back of his mind, that taking it slower would be more wise for the both of them. "You know Sasuke, I'm completely happy here with just kissing and holding each other. I did not expect anything more." He reached out to touch Sasuke's face.

Upon feeling Naruto's warm touch, Sasuke felt relieved and understood. "Me too," he said with a smile.

Feeling elated, Naruto smiled back. "Let's lay down."

Both boys moved up to the pillows and laid beside each other. They were on their sides looking at each other while their hands were entwined between them.

Staring into Sasuke's bottomless eyes, Naruto asked, "It's so unreal, isn't it?"

"Us?"

"Yeah."

Sasuke reminisced about his experiences with the blond up until the first time they met in Tsunade's office. "Nope, it's pretty real to me." Sasuke smirked at the blond looking straight at him. "What I find unreal is that you actually like me back."

Naruto moved closer to Sasuke, "Of course I like you! I liked you even before I knew I did."

Sasuke gave Naruto a smile before leaning in to kiss the blond goodnight.

The beautiful thing about falling in love is the process of noticing what makes that person different from others. As Sasuke closed his eyes to sleep, Naruto stayed awake to study his special other. Sasuke's back was facing the window that glowed a blue-gray as the moon shone through. He remembered how much he loved the way Sasuke looked under the moonlight which played so well with Sasuke's milky skin. The dark lines on the boy's body seemed to blur into the dim light, creating an aeriform glow. He watched Sasuke's defined chest rise and fall with each breath—it was the only thing that made Naruto sure that the person lying beside him was real. Naruto internalized every single one of Sasuke's characteristics and placed them close to his heart. Feeling the effects of the moon, Naruto began to slowly fall asleep.

The once dim room now radiated with the sun's first rays. A warm yellow glow filled Naruto's room, signaling the start of a new day.

Sasuke could feel his back warm up as the sunlight danced on his skin. He yawned and stretched out his arms before opening his eyes. The first thing he saw was the sleeping blond beside him. He couldn't help but smile as he gazed at the peaceful expression on Naruto's face. Leaning down, he kissed Naruto on the forehead gently, noticing how god-like the blond looked when the sun reflected off his skin.

He got up from the bed and went over to the adjoining bathroom to rinse his face with water.

Naruto shifted, noticing that the shield he had against the sunlight was now gone. He opened one eye to see the sun in his window and let out a yawn. Slowly he got up and looked around. 'Where's Sasuke,' he thought. 'Was it a dream?' Suddenly, he heard running water coming from his bathroom. "Sasuke?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you doing?"

"Just rinsing my face off with water."

A feeling of relief came over Naruto as he saw Sasuke walk out of the bathroom, in his pajama pants. 'It was real,' he thought with a smile.

Sasuke made his way back to the bed and leaned towards the blond to kiss him good morning. "You look cute when you sleep," he smiled.

"You too," Naruto replied, gleaming.

Without warning, a loud knocking came to Naruto's door. "Naruto!! It's morning!! Wake up and have breakfast with me!" Naruto could hear Iruka try to open the door and heard him gasp as he realized the door was locked. "Naruto! Why is the door locked?! Who's in there with you?!"

"Uh, good morning Iruka!" Naruto felt nervous because he had never heard Iruka's voice at that pitch.

"Who else is in there?! Identify yourself!"

Sasuke felt a ball form in his throat. "Uh, good morning Iruka."

"Oooooooooooh, it's you Sasuke! Good morning!" Iruka felt relieved that it was Sasuke. A part of him was glad that Naruto was beginning to let someone into his life in that manner again. "Would you join us for breakfast, Sasuke?"

The choking feeling in his throat disappeared as he heard Iruka's voice ease. "I would love to."

"Alright. Well, you two get dressed and stop whatever it is you're doing." And with that, Iruka made his way to the kitchen.

Naruto stammered, "I do apologize for that, Sasuke. He can be really nosy sometimes."

Sasuke just gave a light laugh. "It's fine, Naruto. It could have been worse, right?"

Naruto nodded in agreement as a mental picture flashed of Iruka busting down his door and charging after Sasuke with murderous intent. They both went to the dresser and put a shirt on before they made their way to the kitchen.

As they entered the kitchen, Naruto flinched as he saw Iruka sitting at the breakfast table with a huge grin on his face.

Naruto was beginning to get anxious—he didn't know what was behind that grin. "Are you okay, Iruka? What's up with your face?"

Iruka frowned at the comment and then answered, "There is nothing wrong with my face, Naruto. I'm just happy for you and Sasuke. So, I'm guessing you two are FINALLY together."

"WHAT!? What do you mean FINALLY!?" Naruto felt a blush rush to his cheeks. He couldn't believe how obvious he was, yet he was the last one that seemed to notice.

"Well you two have been spending a lot of time together."

Sasuke reached over to hold Naruto's hand with hopes of calming the blond down.

Looking at how the simple contact of Sasuke's hand eased the blond, Iruka smiled, "So, I'll take that as a yes. I'm happy for you two. Now, how about some breakfast?"

Both boys nodded and sat down to a table full of pancakes, bacon, eggs, and toast. During breakfast, Iruka asked about when the boys became a couple. Realizing that they had only been together for a day, Iruka understood why Naruto reacted the way he did.

"So, what are your plans for the day," asked Iruka, looking at Naruto.

"Hm. I didn't really think about it yet. I wanted to take Sasuke out somewhere. How about you?"

"Well, I'm actually thinking of going by the hospital to help out," sighed Iruka. "What a way to spend a Saturday, huh?"

"It's not too bad. At least you won't be bored," Naruto laughed.

"Naruto, why don't you take Sasuke to the beach?"

'Oh! Why didn't I think of that before?' Naruto thought. "That sounds like a great idea," Naruto exclaimed. He turned to Sasuke, "Would you like to go to the beach, Sasuke?"

Sasuke turned to face Naruto's blue eyes with a smile, "Yeah, sounds like fun."

Looking at the dynamic between the two boys made Iruka feel lonely all of a sudden, but a feeling of happiness dominated over the loneliness as he saw Naruto starting to love again. It had been years since he'd seen Naruto open up to anybody in that manner and now he felt relieved that Naruto had given someone a chance to move closer to his heart.

Naruto and Sasuke held hands while sitting in the back of the car. This was the first time Naruto had ever taken anyone to THIS beach—the beach that his parents use to take him as a child. To Naruto, it just wasn't any beach; it was a place where his most treasured memory resided. As he gazed out the window, he revisited a scene that was so precious to him.

"Naruto, come here, look at this," said a blonde woman.

As Naruto went over to his mom, he looked up at her face. "Yes, mom?"

"Look at the horizon, dear. Do you see that?"

With a giggle Naruto replied, "Mom, stop being weird. Of course I see it. That's the sun and that's the water."

As Mrs. Uzumaki picked up her son, "No, Naruto it's not just that. When I look at the setting sun and the ocean, I always feel like I see my life in front of me."

A little Naruto looked up at his mom a little confused. "You're life is the sun and ocean?"

With a giggle, Naruto's mom lovingly replied, "No, dear, it's not just the sun or the ocean, it's what they represent. The water represents the fluidity of life. It can be so calm and beautiful, but at the same time it can be restless and destructive. Just remember Naruto, life will make you happy at times and will try you, but always remember that the stronger the storm, the longer the following calm."

With a nod, Naruto hugged his mother and looked out at the ocean. Then it struck him. "Mom, how about the sun? What does the sun represent?"

"To me, the sun is the cause of all life. Without it, the ocean would be a dead thing, not full of any life. The sun is you and your father, my dear Naruto."

"Mom."

Mrs. Uzumaki looked down at her son who was looking up at her while holding her tight.

"You and dad are my sun," And with that the young Naruto closed his eyes and rested his head on his mother.

This beach is where that memory occurred so long ago. Now, he was going to share this place with someone else very special to him. His hand clenched Sasuke's tighter, as if to make sure that he was still there.

Feeling the pressure on his hand, Sasuke looked at Naruto, who was still gazing out the window. 'I wonder what he's thinking about,' he thought as he moved closer to the blond and kissed his cheek.

Naruto turned and gave Sasuke a smile—a painful yet genuine smile. "We're almost there."

"Here you are," said the driver as he dropped the two boys off. "Just give me a call when you're ready to leave, Naruto."

The blond nodded at the driver as he pulled Sasuke's hand out of the car and into the sunlight. Sasuke and Naruto were dressed in board shorts and tank tops—completely and utterly beach ready. As they made their way to the warm sand, they paused at a metal railing that divided the beach from the street—the same rail that Naruto and his parents stood against before. The couple walked towards the railing and leaned against it as they looked at the sun which was floating above the cool blue waters, casting an orange tint on the waters closer to the horizon. Emotions ran through the blond as he looked at the sun and thought of his parents—and now Sasuke.

The dark eyed boy didn't yet understand the significance this beach had to the blond. However, looking at Naruto's eyes he could see a pained yet joyful expression as he look towards the horizon. The sun complemented Naruto's features in such a way that the blond's hair now looked like it was kindled from the sun itself, while the azure eyes now resembled the ocean waters which had been tinted by the sun's orange light. He released Naruto's hand and pulled him closer, resting his hand around the blue eyed boy's waist.

Resting his head on Sasuke's shoulder, Naruto said, "I wanted to take you here; this is my special place. As a child, this is where my parents took me on weekends after we had lunch. They always told me that the waters in the ocean were the currents of life, and how the sun was the reason for the ocean's vitality—it was the reason life was able to exist and perpetuate. Without it, my mother said life wouldn't be possible. She then told me my father and I were the sun to her current of life. I wanted to take you here because I wanted to show you how much you mean to me. Sasuke, you make me feel alive again and the warmth you give me reminds me of the sun."

Sasuke now understood why Naruto looked so pained earlier—he was making himself extremely vulnerable by sharing this with him. Sasuke moved to face Naruto who was looking at the ground. Bringing the golden face to his, Sasuke said, "You don't ever have to feel like I'm going to walk away from you, Naruto. You are the reason I've been so happy these past few weeks. Thank you, for sharing this with me." He brought Naruto closer to him and kissed him gently. This was one of those moments that everyone wished they could take a picture of. One of those slots in time that could only be internalized as a feeling and not by some photographer. Sasuke didn't think he would ever forget this moment—the moment when the boy he was falling for showed him complete trust.

Naruto smiled into the kiss before their lips parted. He couldn't believe he was feeling this again—the security, love, and acceptance. Marveling at the smiling boy in front of him, Naruto grabbed Sasuke's hand. "Let's go down there. I want to swim."

Sasuke laughed, "You always want to swim." He grinned as Naruto excitedly pulled him towards the sand and water.

Throughout the afternoon, Naruto kept trying to persuade Sasuke to go into the water with promises of being taught how to swim. After much physical exertion, Naruto finally got Sasuke into the water where they laughed and talked until the sun began to set, with an occasional romantic kiss and touch placed sporadically in between. Every moment they spent together only seemed to bring the two closer.

Once they got back out of the water, Naruto called the driver to pick them up. As they dried off, they waited while sitting on the rail they stood at earlier.

Naruto looked at Sasuke. "I hope you had fun today."

Sasuke replied with a smile, "Aside from being cold and smelling like salt, I had a lot of fun with you."

Both boys heard a car honking at them, and as they looked up they saw Naruto's car pull up. As they entered the car, the driver greeted them, "You guys looked like you had fun."

Naruto grinned, "We sure did!"

A few minutes after they had gotten into the car, Naruto's phone rang with a "Private caller" as the caller ID. The blond looked at his phone and groaned, "Who could this be?"

He answered, "Hello, who is this?" His eyes opened in shock as he heard the reply. "NEJI!?"

Sasuke felt his back stiffen and his fists clench. 'What the hell is that bastard doing calling MY boyfriend?!'