I have a twenty minute break in my revision, so I'mma post the two chappers I've already written from my iPod :D
Woop woop! Part nine!! Here we go!!
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"Unh.... wha..?" I mumbled as I came to. The room swirled in front of my eyes, before finally settling to a stop. I slowly made myself sit up, only to jerk and start coughing, hunching my chest over.
"Nee-chan!" Only then, did I notice the other people in the room.
"You better not get too close, Naruto-kun, or you might catch her sickness." Itachi said calmly, holding Naruto back from glomping me. The boy scowled.
"I don't care, I wanna hug my nee-chan!"
"Naruto..." I cut off with another cough, and covered my mouth with my hand, "Itachi's right... I don't want to have to look after you the moment I've got better."
My feeble teasing and weak smile didn't seem to do anything to relieve Naruto of his worry, nor Itachi. I frowned slightly.
"Look, you guys, relax, I'm fine-" once more, I cut off with a harsh coughing fit. Itachi stood up, and put his hands on my shoulders. They felt cold against my sickness-flushed skin as he gently pushed me back into a laying position.
"I think you ought to just stay lying down, Kaoru-chan." he said gently. I scowled half-heartedly, too absorbed in the wonderful cool feeling his skin gave me. It was like eating an ice cream on a really hot day, except now it was gone.
"Uzumaki-san?" there was a knock at the door, and I groaned.
"Yes?" an old and wrinkly woman came in, thin-faced and thin-bodied to match. She had a scowl on her face as she looked all of us over, and I wanted to hit her as she scowled even more when she saw Naruto. Obviously, she was one of those people.
I wanted to hit her even more when Naruto flinched, and came and stood at the side of my bed, further away from her, and closer to me. I sent him a reassuring look, then returned the nurse's scowl with one of my own.
"Do you mind? That is my little brother you are glaring at." I said stiffly, through gritted teeth. I didn't care if I was halfway through death's door; I would kick her ass into next week for treating my little brother like that!!
The nurse cleared her throat, and then said in an unpleasant, nasal voice, "Yes, well, I have your test results Uzumaki-san. It turns out that you have been poisoned. We have yet to determine when this occurred, but it has effected your immune system, and you have now got a fever. You will have to remain in hospital for a few days on antibiotics, but then you should be good to go. But in the mean time, you should get some rest, we will give you your antibiotics soon."
"Thank you." Itachi said after a long pause, probably for the best, seeing as I certainly wasn't going to. Stupid woman... I was glad when she left, she was making Naruto uncomfortable.
"It's all right, Naruto. Just ignore her, she's an idiot." I said to him, and he looked up at me. I grinned at him, and he smiled faintly back. I coughed, then brushed my hair back off of my sweat-sticky forehead. I heard Naruto gasp.
"Nee-chan, what's that?!" he asked, and I cursed in my mind. I had forgotten about the seal mark. Itachi also looked surprised.
"Oh, this? It's just a tattoo. Don't worry about it." I said slightly uneasily, but luckily, the coughs that came every so often covered it up. I then yawned, "Well, I'm gonna get some sleep now guys..."
They both nodded, and I rolled onto my side, my back to them. "Oh, and one more thing..." I began, burying my face in my arms and shutting my eyes, "Naruto, don't just eat only ramen for the next few days... get some fruit and veg too..." then I fell into a deep sleep.
-Itachi's POV-
It took a while, but eventually, Kaoru's breathing slowed, and she was asleep. I smirked a little; she was a very... curious woman. Always worrying about Naruto. It was almost as if she didn't give a damn about anyone, not even herself, as long as her little brother was okay.
I could mildly relate to that. Sasuke was the most important thing in the world to me. But, there was one other person that I cared for most...
I wonder if it meant anything to her? Of course, I could see how nervous she was, if her speeding heart and bright red face told me anything. But I highly doubted she could hold anything of affection for me.
"I'm gonna go... I've got stuff to do." I was pulled out of my reverie by Naruto as he stood straight, and sent me a glance. He was so alike to his sister.
"Okay. I'm going to stay here a while longer. I think Sasuke's home if you want to go and see him?" I suggested, and, much to my relief, Naruto grinned.
"'kay, I'll go see Sasuke! Bye, Itachi! Oh, and if nee-chan wakes up..." he paused, and I nodded, a small smile on my lips.
"Don't worry, I'll come and get you." with that, he grinned broadly and dashed off, no doubt to go and pester people with my little brother.
I just sat down in the uncomfortable leather chair at the side of her bed, set for a long wait.
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"Grruhh..." I heard a groan, and Kaoru shifted in her bed. She had been quite restless to start with, but once that sour-faced nurse gave her the antibiotics she was out like a log on sleeping drugs. She seemed to still be groggy, as she sat up and rubbed her eye with her knuckle, actually looking kind of adorable.
But then, she started to giggle. I just blinked at her as she burst into an all out fit of unexplained laughter, and then abruotly stopped, and looked at me. Her face crinkled up, and she looked ready to burst into tears.
"Itachi... there's an orange leprechaun above your head, and he's trying to get me!!" she cried, backing away in her bed. I just stared at her... what the heck was wrong with her all of a sudden?
Then, as Kaoru started mumbling about llama-eating socks fighting spacemen in her treehouse, I realised.
The poison must have had some sort of hallucinogen in it, that was making her act this way. I just had to sit back and let the craziness take it's course.
"Itachiii!!! Stop the leprechaun, he's mad at me!!" Kaoru suddenly cried, somehow managing to struggle out of her bed and clinging to me like a small child. I blinked, then patted her head.
"It's okay, Kaoru-chan. I won't let him get you." I cooed softly, seeing no point in telling her that what she was seeing wasn't real. And anyway, this woman does the puppy eyes almost as well as Sasuke, so how could I resist?
"Re... really..?" she sniffled, gazing up at me with big, teary eyes. I nodded, smiling comfortingly, and she smiled back, hugging me.
"So come on, get back in your bed, Kaoru-chan. You're too ill to get up." I said, helping her back onto the mattress and then tucking the covers over her carefully. She still felt extremely hot to me, but she was shivering, and the nurse had said she needed to sweat it out. So she had to keep warm.
"No! Go away, Kyou!"
I blinked, and looked back to Kaoru. She was staring at a patch of emptiness on the other side of her bed, a frown on her face.
"Kyou?" I asked, and she frowned at me.
"Yes! Can't you see him? He's right there!" she pointed, and looked back at this 'Kyou'. I sighed and sat back down in my chair. It was just another hallucination.
"No way Kyou, get lost!" Kaoru started to get angry, and began to get up again, "Go away!!"
"Hey, hey, calm down Kaoru-chan! Why are you getting so het up?" I asked, and she laid back and folded her arms. She was silent for a long while, but then smiled slightly.
"Kyou wanted me to go on a date with him."
I rose an eyebrow, but she just continued.
"But I can't."
"You.. can't..?" why couldn't she? If she thought he was real, then why would she say that she couldn't go on a date with this 'Kyou'?
"Because I'm already in love with somebody!" she smiled a little more as she said it, but my heart sped up a little, and my eyes widened slightly. She loved somebody?! But who?!
"What? Who?" I asked, careful not to sound to interested, on the off chance that she remembered any of this once the effect of the craziness wore off.
"I'm not telling!" she said in a singsong voice, and then yawned again, her eyelids drooping.
"Aw, c'mon, Kaoru-chan, you can tell me!" I said, forcing a playfulness into my tone that was completely out of character for me. Kaoru just shook her head, starting to shift into a laying position.
"Nope!" before I knew it, my body moved by itself, grabbing her by the shoulders.
"Just tell me, Kaoru-chan!" she stared at me in surprise, then shrugged offhandedly.
"Well fine, if you wanna know that badly." she said groggily. I held my breath as she leaned in really close to my ear, and whispered, "The person I love is..." she paused for a long time, "Uchiha..." my heart stuttered and skipped, "Itachi..."
I remained frozen as she leaned away, and smiled cheekily at me, "But don't tell him that... it's a secret!" she then put her finger to her lips and made a 'shh' sound, before laying down and falling back asleep.
I sat back down in my chair, shock dominant over everything else, but a mess of raging emotions mixed in my head. I didn't know what I was feeling.
Happiness, that my feelings were reciprocated. That was one. Love, that was there, of course.
But one other dominant emotion...
Guilt, of what this connection would mean for the both of us.
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-Kaoru's POV-
WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING?!
I think that's the point. I wasn't.
But why?! World, do you hate me or something?! Of all the things to make me say, you had to make me tell Itachi that I FUCKING LOVE HIM!!!
WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!
I'M SO SCREWED!!!
...
Well, at least it's off my chest. And I suppose, he doesn't know that I know that I told him, so it's not quite so bad. But still, it was going to be so awkward now! I wonder how he felt about it? I desperately want to know what his response is, but how can I approach the subject? I can't exactly just bring it up out of the blue!
Stupid, stupid, stupid!!
I don't know why I'm so eager to find out, anyway, I'm just setting myself up for disappointment!
I sighed heavily, slumping down in the bed that I had been stuck in for the past few days.
"Uzumaki-san, you have... visitors." the unpleasant voice rang, and Sasuke and Naruto entered the room. I sat up a little straighter, but couldn't help drooping when I noticed that Itachi wasn't with them.
""Hey nee-chan!"
"Hi, Kaoru-chan."
I smiled half-heartedly at them, "Hi Naruto, Sasuke-kun." I scratched my cheek and averted my gaze, "Um, where's Itachi?"
Sasuke blinked at me, then grinned, "Oh, he's on a date, so he couldn't come, but he told me to wish you well from him!"
I didn't reply. I was frozen.
"I don't get why people go on dates. Girls are so scary..." the two boys' voices faded into the background easily.
Itachi... was on a date..?
Well... I guess I know my answer then...
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Exciting chapter, ne? Lolll, Kaoru's confession makes me giggle. It kinda reminds me of that 'david after dentist' video on Youtube. Search it, it's sooo funny xD
Well, fan vote and comment! I think this story is almost over, so enjoy it while it's here! XD