~By athenesnowman~
My long fingers scraped across the wooden surface with anxiety. What was I anxious about? If I'm completely honest, I didn't really know. I seemed to get nervous about the slightest of things; a change in the village, a new shinobi joining our ranks, the Chunin Exams taking place... pretty much anything left me on edge.
However, there were a few people who could settle my nerves by simply being close to me. My brother, Iruka, would sit and chat to me while I tended the Leaf Village Library. He and Kakashi Hatake, the Jounin of the Leaf, visited me often, knowing how my work bored me.
I'll admit... it was Kakashi's company I craved... even more so than my own brother's. Is that bad?
The white-haired shinobi walked in briskly, knocking me out of my little daze. He wore a tired frown, one that indicated he was stressed over something - Kakashi was never stressed. The Jounin put the latest instalment of Icha Icha Paradise on the desk in front of me silently, staring at nothing in particular.
"A good read?" I asked brightly, sliding the book towards me and stamping the first page, scribbling down in the log book that it had been returned to the library.
"Even better the second time 'round." Kakashi looked up at me and his one visible eye portrayed the joy that was hidden inside him - he showed it rarely.
"I'm glad to hear it. Anything else you need from me today?" Kakashi hesitated for a moment before shaking his head.
"No... not today." He mumbled slowly, turning towards the door. "Farewell." With that, the shinobi left the room, leaving me to ponder over what his odd words could have meant.
"A good day Kakashi?" Iruka asked his friend casually, sipping his cup of green tea. Kakashi gave a small hum and nodded, glaring at his tea as if he were trying to make it explode. "You'll never guess what I saw today; two children transformed into pigs! Right in the middle of the street! At least now Ton-Ton has some friends now."
"Cool..." Said the Jounin distantly, not taking his eye off the cup in front of him.
"What's up Kakashi? You haven't said a word all day."
Kakashi sat back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling of the tea house, gazing at its plain design with little emotion. "Nothing's wrong Iruka..." The shinobi sighed.
Iruka grinned at his friend. "You really think you can lie to me after all these years? You can tell me anything, Kakashi."
"Even if it affected you?"
Iruka felt slightly taken aback by this, but he was a persistent man. "Yes." He said bluntly.
"Your sister..." Kakashi coughed awkwardly into his hand. "She's a fine specimen of a woman, is she not?"
Iruka struggled not to laugh. "You like my sister?"
"Well... yes." Kakashi looked down guiltily. "I suppose I do." The males stayed silent for a few moments, glancing at each other uncomfortably.
"So..." Iruka began. "Are you going to tell her?"
"No." Kakashi said quickly, shaking his head. "I'm not going to say anything." Iruka gave the Jounin a doubtful look. "This'll all blow over... I'm sure."
I left the library relatively early, so I found myself walking home just as nighttime fell over the Leaf Village. My footsteps echoed eerily, giving the quiet street a frightening feeling. I quickened my pace as my heart raced - I hated being alone in the dark. I turned a corner swiftly, bumping into a tall figure.
"You should look where you're going." Kakashi scoffed patronisingly as his hands caught my flailing arms.
"I'm sorry!" I gasped, standing just inches in front of him. His visible eye closed as he smiled, laughing at my clumsy, incompetent behaviour.
"It really boggles me how you got through the Chunin Exams." His mask moved as spoke, increasing my suspicion about what lay beyond those two pieces of cloth. "You know... if you want to see what's behind my mask, all you need to do is ask." Kakashi said quietly, catching onto what I was thinking.
"You'd let me see?" The excitement bounced along my words, making me sound manic. Kakashi gave a slight nod, leaning down to my level. I reached out and touched his cheek gently, biting my lip as I took hold of the dark fabric and gently slid it down his soft skin.
A long, thin nose appeared, a surprisingly full pair of lips following it. Kakashi looked at me innocently while I studied his pale features, taking in every detail so I wouldn't forget. "Happy now?"
I opened and closed my mouth a few times, unsure of how to describe my feelings towards this perfect face in front of me. I subconsciously ran my fingers through his white tufts of hair, playing with its silky feel calmly. Without thinking, I pulled Kakashi towards me, planting a soft kiss onto his mouth. Though my eyes were closed, I could practically feel Kakashi's shocked expression radiating off him. I'd dug myself this far down, so I figured... 'in for a penny, in for a pound.'
I pushed his back against a nearby wall, wrapping my arms around his neck while he made little gasp-like noises against my lips. Kakashi's hands hovered over me, eventually settling around my waist tentatively.
I stopped, resting my forehead against his as my breath trembled out of my lungs. I tugged his mask back over his face, dragging myself away from his grasp. "I'm sorry..." I whispered.
"That was rather unexpected."
"I'm sorry..." I said again, this time whilst holding back tears at the same time.
"Next time, give me some warning... if you wouldn't mind?" He smiled, putting his arm around my shoulder.
"N-next time?"
"Well I'd rather have some form of notification when you kiss me in the future, but whatever's good for you." He shrugged, ushered me to walk alongside him. I let out a little chuckle, smiling at Kakashi.
"You... want me to kiss you again?"
He gave me an odd look, furrowing his brow slightly. "You know, for a Chunin, you don't seem to catch onto the obvious very quickly." He teased, squeezing my shoulder as we made our way through the village, not thinking about anything aside what the future may hold.
