The relationship between you and Shisui was a complicated one, to say the very least. It wasn't that you two hated each other, in fact, it was far from that.
No, in reality, the two of you got along well. So well, in fact, that people had begun to suspect that you were both engaging in affairs that you had chosen to keep secret from the public.
You were quite flustered when you heard the gossip being whispered as you walked down the dirt path, turning a nice colour of scarlet as you nearly ran to go hide from the gaze of the women who more than likely envied your situation. Shisui wasn't exactly bad-looking, and this wouldn't have been the first time that someone had said something to hopefully get you to 'stay away', so to speak.
Shisui had laughed when he heard this news from you, as he did love you, but not in that way. It was nothing against you, you just weren't his type.
You were, however, Itachi's type. He felt things that he had never quite felt for anyone else before. Sure, there was Izumi, but the emotions that he had felt towards her had dwindled down to friendly love when he was formally introduced to you by Shisui. And while you two had been classmates back at the Academy, he never really paid you any mind.
So when Itachi heard this news himself, from admittedly not one of the most reliable sources in Konoha, he went to confront Shisui himself. He would have confronted you on the matter, but he knew Shisui more than he knew you, and he didn't want you to catch onto any negative emotions he could possibly express if you had told him that the rumours were true.
⠀
"They're not true," Shisui had calmly stated when his younger cousin had confronted him, "I love Y/N, yes, but she's not my type. She's more of your type if I'm being honest."
Itachi wondered how the older male had even gathered that information, but if he was being honest, that wasn't what was entirely on his mind at the moment.
What was on his mind was working on his relationship with you so that the relationship between the two of you could potentially turn into something more than friendship.
⠀
And, years later, it finally happened.
If you were being perfectly honest with yourself, you had no idea that Itachi had felt the same way about you. You had fancied him for quite some time, you weren't sure exactly how long it was, but it was certainly long enough that it seemed weird for you to not feel something for him that was more than just friendly love.
The relationship was mainly Shisui pressuring Itachi to do something about his crush on you, which he still denied he had despite his cousin knowing full well that he was lying about his feelings.
You don't remember ever telling Shisui about your feelings, either, when you thought about it. The man just knew these kinds of things, you supposed. Did this mean that he wasn't oblivious to all the girls that stared in his direction at pretty much all times? It was more likely than you would've thought.
It had started with Shisui showing up at your front door at a time that was far too early for anyone to be up and told you to 'dress all pretty', which, of course, you demanded an explanation for, since Shisui had never once cared about how you looked or what your attire was.
He didn't give you one and simply shut your door.
"What the hell am I supposed to dress up in?" you had muttered to yourself while standing in front of all your clothes, "how pretty is too pretty?"
Eventually, you had found an outfit to wear, and met up with Shisui wherever the hell he had told you to meet. However, you were met with Itachi, also dressed up and almost as flustered as you were.
Fortunately, the day had ended in the two of you exchanging how you felt about one another, and you both went home happy.
⠀
But despite being in a relationship with you for several years now, Itachi still had his insecurities. He knew he had nothing to worry about, you loved him and he loved you. But feelings he hadn't felt since he was a young child had spiked up when he saw you and Shisui sitting on a log in a patch of wilderness that was situated between a pair of rivers, both flowing south. Trees decorated the place in a disarrayed fashion, and if it was quiet enough, it would let out a slight echo at times. It was a calming place at times, and you enjoyed coming here with your friend. You hadn't even thought about Itachi becoming insecure about the fact that you didn't share this place with him. You had simply assumed that he would be okay with it if he ever found out.
And he was. He wasn't mad at you, per se, but when he came across you throwing your head back in laughter at a joke that Shisui had cracked seconds prior, he felt his heart sink to his stomach.
⠀
When you got home, you felt the arms of your boyfriend wrap around your waist. Something that wasn't uncommon, but it usually wasn't before you managed to shut the door.
You were confused, but when Itachi let out a muffled "don't leave me..." you understood immediately that he had seen you and Shisui in the kaira.
"I don't plan on it, darling," you smiled, running your fingers through his hair.
When it became apparent that he wasn't planning on letting you go anytime soon, you let him carry you into your shared bedroom, laying you down on the comforting sheets of your bed before getting in after you, arranging you both so that you were holding each other and looking at each other simultaneously.
"I can't stand the thought of losing you," Itachi whispered into your ear. "Hold me and never let me go. Promise?"
You hummed in response as a yes to the man in front of you, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. "I promise, Itachi. You are mine and mine only, always and forever. And I'll love you exactly that long."
He chuckled, rubbing his nose against yours. "I'm glad we're in agreement about that."
The day ended with the two of you falling asleep in each others' arms, and, if you were being completely, 100 percent honest, you wouldn't have it any other way.
