Work Text:
When Naruto first saw the post, he went past it. Then he scrolled back up to read it again.
Looking for a soft dom. Age or gender doesn’t matter. Wishing for a non-sexual session with affection, closeness and reassurance.
I also wish the dom would use a mask and not reveal their name. DM for details.
Huh. During his years as a dom, Naruto hadn’t seen a posting like this. Of course, he’d played a lot and many of his sessions had been similar to what this person wanted—BDSM was more than just sex, after all.
Something in this spoke to him though, so he opened the poster’s DM and wrote a message.
kuramafox Today at 11:19 pm
hiya, i saw your post. you still looking for a soft dom?
tanukidesert Today at 11:23 pm
Yes, I am. Are you interested? You’re in Konoha too?
kuramafox Today at 11:24 pm
yup! just let me know when you want to meet. so you don’t want to hear my real name or see my face at all?
tanukidesert Today at 11:32 pm
Yes, exactly. Things are… difficult, and I need something—I couldn’t come up with anything else than this, for now. Are you fine with Friday at 7 pm?
kuramafox Today at 11:33 pm
Friday works! Do you want to meet at your place or would a club be better?
tanukidesert Today at 11:36 pm
The club is good. You know the Tsukuyomi? I’ll reserve a room from there. Just ask after Gaara at the reception.
Naruto snorted. The Tsukuyomi was very familiar to him—it was Sasuke’s club, something he’d established with his brother a few years ago.
kuramafox Today at 11:38 pm
sure thing, i’ll be there!
With that settled, Naruto got up from his sofa and went to rummage in his walk-in closet. He was sure he had—ah, there. He found the wooden box and carried it back to the living room. It was an expensive mask—something he only used for plays. He opened the box and took out the porcelain mask. He’d gotten it as a gift from Sasuke some time ago; it depicted a fox, his favorite animal. The mask had been done to fit his face specifically, and it had straps to hold it in place. Naruto put it on now, to make sure everything worked as intended.
When he was satisfied, he placed the mask back into the box to wait until Friday.
***
The Tsukuyomi wasn’t too packed when Naruto walked in.
“Oh, it’s you,” Sasuke said from behind the counter. “You have a session today?”
“Yeah, there should be a Gaara who reserved a room?” Naruto said and bumped fists with his friend before Sasuke turned to the computer.
“Sure is,” Sasuke said. “Room 707. It’s for one hour.”
“Alrighty. Thanks, pal!” Naruto waved and left for the private rooms upstairs. When he reached the right door, he took out the mask from his bag and settled it on his face.
Naruto knocked and waited.
“Are you wearing a mask?” a voice asked inside.
“I am, don’t worry,” Naruto assured him.
The door cracked open to reveal a red-haired young man with sad green eyes. He looked exhausted, like he hadn’t slept properly in a long time. There was also a tattoo on his forehead, the kanji for love.
“Gaara?” Naruto asked and the man nodded. He opened the door wider and Naruto stepped inside.
It was one of the tamer rooms, with less toys and less intimidating decor. The bed was huge as always, though, with a small fridge and a cabinet beside it for aftercare.
“So, what do you need from me, Gaara?” Naruto asked, slipping into his role of a soft dom. He’d done all of it—he’d been a soft dom, a stern dom, a brutal dom—whatever his subs wanted and what he thought was safe enough, he did.
“Just… sit with me,” Gaara said quietly. “Listen to me. Maybe… touch a bit. Not too much though.”
“As you wish. What’s your safe word?”
“Cactus,” Gaara said.
“Okay.” Naruto looked around and spotted a sofa in the corner. He went to it and sat down. “Come sit with me.”
Gaara sighed and then walked over to the sofa, sitting beside Naruto. He placed his arm on Gaara’s shoulder. “Color?” he asked.
“Green,” Gaara whispered. “I’m fine.”
“Good boy,” Naruto said, and the instant the words left his mouth, there was a change in Gaara’s expression. It looked surprised, happy even. So this baby had a thing for praise? Naruto could work with that.
They sat like that for a while, and then Gaara just… started talking. He talked about how bad his insomnia was, how tired he was that his father didn’t appreciate him no matter how much he tried. He got perfect grades at the university he attended, got multiple scholarships, and it still wasn’t enough.
“I think he just hates me because my mom died while giving birth to me,” Gaara said quietly. At some point, he’d taken Naruto’s free hand, and was now playing with his fingers. It seemed to ground him—or he had a hand kink. Naruto smiled behind his mask and let Gaara touch it as much as he wanted. “It was my fault she died, of course, but—”
“That’s not true,” Naruto said sharply, and Gaara turned to look at him. “Listen. I’m sure your mom loved you the moment you came into this world. I have no doubt about that. It’s not your fault that she died. There was nothing you could’ve done to prevent it.”
Gaara blinked, then moved his eyes back to his hands, still playing with Naruto’s fingers. “Really?”
“Yeah. I think so, at least. And you’ve been handling everything so well too! Do you at least enjoy studying?” Naruto moved his fingers, so that his palm was against Gaara’s, and then hooked them a bit. Gaara took the hint and intertwined their fingers. It made the sub sigh.
“I do love school, I’m studying a major I love,” Gaara admitted. “So even though I do study a lot and not… spend a lot of time on other things, I find it rewarding. I already have several places that want to offer me a job when I graduate.”
“See? You’re doing so fine. I’m sure your mom is very proud of you,” Naruto praised. Gaara squeezed his hand tighter, and he was shaking a bit. Naruto paused for a bit, and then asked, “Color?”
“Green,” Gaara said. “Thank you. I haven’t—I don’t have friends, really. I’ve never had one. I have a brother and a sister, but we’re really distant. My father has tried to put a wedge between us for years and, well… It’s working. Not because my siblings don’t want to see me—they work for Father, so he just keeps them so busy they never have time for me.”
“That’s… that really sucks,” Naruto said. He pulled Gaara a bit closer, rubbing his hand along Gaara’s left arm. “You must be lonely.”
“I guess I am,” Gaara muttered. “There wasn’t… anyone who I could’ve contacted to actually just talk. I’ve never been good with people. Even now—I had to ask you to wear a mask, so that I wouldn’t have to… you know… really see who I’m with.”
“If you’re fine with it, we can keep meeting like this, if you need someone to talk to,” Naruto suggested. “I can always wear the mask if you want.”
“I’ll think about it. Thank you.” Gaara shifted, then his eyes landed on the bed.
“Do you want to lay down for a while?” Naruto asked.
“I was thinking about it, but—would you lay down with me?” Gaara bit his lip. “Nothing… much, I just feel like I need to be close to someone.”
“Of course,” Naruto said softly. “Go lay on the bed, baby—I’ll join you.”
Gaara seemed to also like pet names, if the way he seemed to perk up meant anything. Naruto needed to be careful with it, though.
Gaara let go of his hand reluctantly, and then moved to the bed. He removed his shoes and lay on his back.
Naruto got up too and kicked off his sneakers. He was familiar with this too, so he settled down, then reached out to Gaara. “C’mere.”
Gaara scooted closer, until he was touching Naruto’s side. He lay his head on Naruto’s chest and didn’t protest when Naruto placed his arm against his back.
“Color?” Naruto confirmed again. This obviously wasn’t Gaara’s first session, but it didn’t hurt to be careful.
“Green,” Gaara said again. Then he moved to take Naruto’s left hand and continued playing with his fingers.
Naruto had been with enough subs to recognize what each liked. Gaara liked to be praised and reassured, and he had a thing for Naruto’s hands (which was very flattering, since Naruto’s hands were callused and rough thanks to his job).
And, judging from the way Gaara leaned into him, he was damn touch-starved.
“You’re doing good, baby,” Naruto said. “So good. Tell me more about your studies—what do you like about them? What kind of job do you want to do?”
Naruto heard that Gaara was actually studying botany and biology. He was interested in nature and was already offered a job in Konoha’s Botanical Garden when he graduated.
“That’s amazing,” Naruto said, impressed. “The Garden is a wonderful place, I’ve gone there many times.”
“It’s my safe place too,” Gaara agreed. “I go there often when I need to get away from things.”
Naruto moved his arm and petted Gaara’s hair, and it almost made the sub melt into his touch.
After that, they didn’t talk much, but it was a comfortable silence. Gaara kept holding Naruto’s hand, he really seemed to like it, so Naruto didn’t mind.
At some point, Naruto checked the time from the clock on the wall, and saw that they had fifteen minutes left.
“We should start getting this session to a close,” Naruto said. “You don’t have to get up, but I think you should eat and drink something.”
Gaara made a strangled noise—had he been dozing off?—and then said, “Okay…”
“You can still lean on me, but sit up, at least,” Naruto said softly.
Gaara did, and he closed his eyes as he leaned back against the headboard. Naruto retrieved a bottle of water and a bar of chocolate from the cabinet, and handed them over.
From that, their session was over and Naruto let go of his dom persona. Now he was just, well, Naruto.
While Gaara ate, Naruto said, “I’m up for more sessions if you wish, but…”
Gaara raised his eyes to him. “But what?”
“You can message me outside of them too,” Naruto told him. “If you need company, or someone to talk to. I know what it’s like to be really lonely.”
“Do you have anyone to talk to?” Gaara asked.
“I do have more now,” Naruto nodded. “Sasuke, who owns this club, is my best friend. I have other friends too, and my adoptive father. But it wasn’t always so. I only started making friends when I went into high school. Before that I was mostly just… ignored.”
“I’ll think about it,” Gaara said quietly. “I need… some time. Having these sessions with different doms has helped me a lot.”
“It’s a good thing you’ve found something that helps you,” Naruto said with a smile.
“I’ll probably sleep a bit better after this too,” Gaara muttered and drank more water. “I always do after these sessions. The talking, the socializing, wear me out.”
“If you’re not used to playing more than this, it might get intense,” Naruto said. “These sessions are intimate, even without going further.”
“Yeah, they are,” Gaara said. He finished his water and his chocolate, and then gave them back. “I saw the trash bin on your side of the bed.”
Naruto threw the stuff into the trash. They cuddled on the bed until their hour was full, and then climbed out of the bed.
“Thank you,” Gaara said seriously. “This was really helpful.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Naruto said. “Don’t be a stranger, okay? Contact me every time you want.”
“I might.” Gaara went to get his jacket and his bag from the corner.
“You can leave first, I’m gonna stay at the club for a while and I need to take my mask off,” Naruto urged. “I hope to see you later.”
Gaara gave him another small smile, and then left the room.
Naruto waited for a while and then removed the mask. His face was a bit sweaty behind it, but nothing a rinse in the bathroom wouldn’t fix. He packed the mask back into the box and secured the box in his bag, and then left the room as well. After washing his face, he went to buy a drink from the bar and sat down with Sasuke to watch a shibari demonstration.
“So, how did the session go?” Sasuke asked as they clinked their glasses.
“I think it went well,” Naruto said. “I hope he’ll contact me again.”
He hoped for more sessions, but he also hoped that Gaara would message him if he felt like talking. Naruto was determined to be there, with or without his mask.
Just like his friends had been there for him, he would be there for Gaara.