Monday, January 11th 2016

1:30 PM

Kisame Hoshigaki really was a patient person. Truly, he was. However, if he had to wait five more minutes for the smarmy younger brother of his roommate to get his skinny ass to the café he told Itachi he'd meet him at, he was going to seriously blow a gasket. Itachi was busy shadowing his father and had asked him to deliver the things his brother had (purposely) left at their home the night before. Kisame had much better things to do than wait for Sasuke fucking Uchiha to come get his stupid kendo gear, such as study for his review testing. Kisame had worked his ass off to get the grades needed to be accepted into his graduate program and Sasuke's brother complex was not going to ruin it for him. Said little bastard was opening the door just as the red cloud of anger was beginning to settle over his brain.

The disgruntled Uchiha didn't so much as say "thank you" before grabbing his bag and making his way out. Sasuke was obviously upset that his beloved aniki didn't meet him and all manner of politeness had left him. Kisame shrugged, it wasn't his problem anymore. He knew he couldn't go home worked up as he was, he'd end up taking his aggression out on Itachi, and while the normally stoic man gave as good as he got, Kisame didn't feel right taking his anger at Sasuke out on his roommate. Resigning himself to the knowledge that he'd be taking a couple of laps in the pool to calm himself before making his way home, he turned to go, subsequently bumping into someone and knocking their drink from their hands. Kisame grunted. This was shaping up to be a clusterfuck of a day and it was only one thirty in the afternoon. He turned to confront the person who bumped into him, refusing to acknowledge bumping them; his day was bad enough as it was.

"I'm so sorry!" a sweet, clearly upset voice spoke out from below him. He looked down to see curly blonde hair spilling down the back of a rather short girl. Well, Kisame was six foot four, so almost everyone was short to him. Said girl, no, young woman stood back up, holding her mostly empty coffee cup and looked up at him with the prettiest eyes he had ever seen. He couldn't tell if they were blue or gray, but they were his new favorite color. She couldn't have been taller than five foot five, five foot seven at the tallest. Call him a sap, but damn she was beautiful. A moment passed and Kisame waited for that calculating glint to cast itself over her features. It was a look he had become very accustomed to once it was announced that he was his father's successor. Mist Inc. was a very successful importing and exporting company that worked with several other high status corporations, Uchiha Enterprises being one of them. He had become used to women wanting to use him for his wealth and status. Kisame was rather apt at reading people, and when another moment passed and the woman's features never strayed from being embarrassed, upset and concerned he knew she had truly no idea who he was.

"Thank goodness it was iced! Are you alright? You didn't get any on you, did you?" His feet were freezing and wet in his sandals, and the poor little thing looked like she was going to cry. Kisame grabbed napkins and started to clean up the mess at their feet while signaling the guy behind the counter that there was a spill. Her white tennis shoes had coffee on them, but other than that she looked unmarred.

"No, I'm sorry. I didn't see you." He grumbled as a barista came over with a mop and bucket. Kisame put a hand to her lower back and gently steered her to the rest room so that they could both clean up. As he washed his shoes in the sink he couldn't help but ponder the situation. There was a very pretty girl who had no idea who he was at Konoha University. From this he gathered that he was older than her, and that she wasn't interested in business or the sports of their prestigious university. Once he stepped out of the restroom he scanned the room but didn't see her. Of course she'd left; a sweet looking thing like her was probably terrified of his gruff stature. He stood to leave, even more pissed off than before when he felt a small tug on the back of his shirt. He whirled, ready to snap, only to stop short as the young women from before bowed to him in apology.

"I'm very sorry for spilling coffee on you" her bow was neat, almost perfect. His mother would be proud of a bow like that, always saying the youth of today had no manners. Now he really felt bad, he had bumped her after all.

"No, I'm sorry for not looking where I was going" he bowed his own apology. Needing to right his wrong, he continued. "Please allow me to replace the coffee I spilled." He could see her hesitate.

"There really is no need, I was just leaving" she still looked upset and he couldn't help but try again.

"I'm at fault, I bumped you. Please, that coffee looked full and I would like to replace it." He could see her giving in and led her to the counter, being careful not to crowd her. "I'd like a large black coffee, two sugars and for the lady… " He looked down at her and was met with a tentative smile.

"A small iced caramel latte, please". Kisame frowned down at her; the drink he had knocked from her hands had been a large. The cashier, seeing his frown looked back and forth between them unsure what to put and not wanting to make Kisame angry.

"A large iced caramel latte for the lady, exactly the way she had asked for it before". The young man flushed and fumbled with a few slips at the sight of Kisame's glare, clearly impatient.

"A-a large iced caramel latte, with extra caramel, w-whipped cream, and a caramel drizzle…sir" the cashier looked like he was going to piss his pants.

"A large black coffee with two sugars, a large iced caramel latte with extra caramel, whipped cream and caramel drizzle and two cromuffins". Kisame couldn't help a small smirk; it seemed the little lady had a sweet tooth. He watched the cashier visibly calm down.

"Names for the drinks please?"

"Kisame for the black coffee, and…" he trailed off, realizing he didn't know her name.

"Sachiko. Um, could you use skim milk in the latte, please?" She mumbled, still embarrassed and not wanting to cause a hassle. Sachiko, that was a pretty name, he couldn't help but think it suited her.

"Yes miss. That will be $12.40 please. Thank you for choosing Starbucks." It was clear he'd be happy to see the back of them. Kisame spotted an empty table and pointed it out to her. She gave a shy nod and made her way over while a man behind the counter handed him the cromuffins. As he walked to her he noticed she still looked upset and gave a frustrated sigh, he was going to have to ask what was wrong so he could fix it.

"Not to be forward, but is something bothering you?" he regretted asking as soon as the words came out of his mouth. Her shy smile dropped and was quickly replaced with a look of embarrassment. He well and truly felt like an idiot. He placed her pastry in front of her.

"Thank you. I'm fine, thank you for asking" she spoke to her cromuffin as she began to pick it apart.

"No, you aren't. Tell me." His voice took on that gruffness it did when he was annoyed.

"It's silly, really nothing , don't worry a-" she stopped speaking when she saw the look on his face screamed that he wasn't going to let the matter drop and she did spill coffee all over him. Resigned, Sachiko looked at the table and muttered "my date stood me up". Kisame was gob smacked. Someone was actually stupid enough to stand her up? Before he could say anything their names were called and he stood before her. He grabbed their drinks and returned to their table. Walking back he took another look at her. She was gorgeous and not in the vein sense that she spent a lot of time on how she looked. Her makeup, if she was even wearing any was light and natural looking, her outfit wasn't casual, but not formal and she was well mannered, why would anyone stand her up? Handing her the cup of more sugar than beverage, he considered his words carefully.

"Well, his loss is my gain." Her head snapped up and he sent her a toothy grin. "I'm Kisame Hoshigaki". The shy smile was back, lighting up her face and he got a peek at some rather cute dimples. Yes, this was his gain indeed.

"Sachiko Nekozawa, it's nice to meet you". She smiled wider, a bit of that shyness melting away to reveal a face that was so open and honest he could tell that she was actually happy to meet him. With that, they really hit it off and he was shocked to find that baby faced Sachiko was actually a third year undergrad in information technologies as well as political science. He wasn't prepared for her questioning him though; too used to the women he associated with wanting to know more of his bank account and less of the man holding the checkbook. He'd never actually been that good at talking to girls that weren't after him for the wrong reasons. "What is your major Kisame-sempai?"

"I'm in the Marine Biology graduate program here". As soon as he finished speaking it was like the sun was called by her smile. God he was a sap but her smile was infectious. It was another point in her favor that she didn't cringe when he smiled in return. He knew he wasn't classically handsome like Itachi, but he wasn't too bad looking.

"How cool! You must be so excited for the new aquarium then! I read they're even going to have penguins and dolphins and many exotic fish exhibits and some interactive ones too!" Sachiko blushed when she realized she was babbling. It was most becoming on her.

"I'm looking forward to it; I have a particular interest in the sharks that will be on exhibit" that sounded rougher than he'd intended but she didn't seem too phased as they continued to sit and chat. He was about to pull his head out of his ass and ask her on a date when her phone chimed. He heard her murmured "excuse me" as she checked her screen for the first time in their entire conversation. Her eyes widened and shocked and Kisame felt his heart drop into his stomach. This was it, her date was probably on his way and he would be just a guy who bumped into her one day.

"Is that the time?! I'm so sorry Kisame-sempai, I have to go!" she sent him a regretful look. Yep, he knew it. "Its 4:30 and I have a class in fifteen minutes and it's across campus." Sachiko explained quickly as she gathered her things and swept her trash up to throw away. She wasn't ditching him for another guy, but for class, perhaps there was hope.

"Kisame" at her look of bewilderment he continued. "I want you to call me Kisame, there's no need for the sempai". She blushed and he knew he was being way too forward but he couldn't help himself. "Sachiko-san, please consider accompanying me to the aquarium." He rubbed the back of his neck, nervous and afraid of rejection. Kisame did not put himself out there. He was captain of the swim team, females came to him and he knew what to expect from them most of the time. There was just something about her and none of the girls he had met before had ever made an impression like her. He didn't like talking to people, yet had sat and conversed with Sachiko for almost three hours. She grabbed a napkin, wrote something down, and gave him that megawatt smile.

"It's a date" she blushed, not sure if that was what he meant.

"Yes" it came out low but she heard him just fine.

"Call me? Or texting is fine too! I really need to go or I'll be late. See you Kisame-sem" she paused. "See you, Kisame." with that she was out the door and walking hurriedly to her class. He watched her until she was out of sight before looking down at the napkin she had slid in front of him. In neat, feminine handwriting was her name and phone number. Wanting to be sure it was her, he pulled out his phone and sent a quick text, it wouldn't be the first time he'd gotten a fake number.

[Kisame] Sachiko? This is Kisame.

[Sachiko] Hello! Yes, this is Sachiko.

He saved her number.

[Kisame] Would this Saturday work for you?

[Sachiko] I thought the aquarium didn't open until next week?

Shit. How was he supposed to explain that they could go Saturday without revealing that his father's company was one of the main sponsors of the aquarium? Think fish for brains, think, think, think.

[Kisame] I know some of the people who work there and they can get us in for a tour.

Technically he wasn't lying to her. His father bank rolled their pay checks and they wouldn't deny him. Kisame usually didn't like to exploit his connections, unlike some of his friends. Deidara, Sasori, Hidan and that whelp Sasuke often exploited their parent's reputations to get their way. They wouldn't know hard work if it bit them in the ass.

[Sachiko] As long as they don't get in trouble…

[Kisame] I'll double check, but I'm sure it will be fine.

[Sachiko] sounds great! Got to go, class is about to start. Talk to you later Kisame!

Kisame smiled down at his phone before standing up and throwing his trash away. Well, this was certainly not how he thought his day was going to go. Instead of feeling the need to work off some steam at the pool, he'd rather go home. He wasn't angry anymore. As a matter of fact, Kisame was more in a happy daze than anything else as he drove to Uchiha District, the apartment complex where he and Itachi lived.

Sometimes the pros outweighed the cons of being Itachi's best friend. That's what they'd been since they were in diapers; forced on playdates as their fathers made business deals. It worked out for both of them though. Itachi got a confidant and Kisame a friend whom he knew would always have his back. Honestly, out of all the sons of his father's business partners, Itachi was the only one that Kisame could stand. Kisame only had a small group of people he considered tolerable, let alone friends. Two of those people were his cousins and on the Konoha Swim Team with him. Due to his best friend status, he and Itachi shared an apartment owned by the Uchiha family. Itachi's mother hadn't wanted him to live alone, it was close to the university they both went to, and as it was family owned they got to live there free of charge. They didn't pay for housing or utilities, and Itachi didn't care about Kisame keeping fish tanks in their shared living spaces. They really didn't argue about anything, the only thing that really pissed Itachi off is if Kisame ate his dango and leaving the dango alone was a lesson Kisame had learned years ago. That's not to say Kisame was a bad roommate either, if you asked him he'd say he was a pretty good one. He cleaned up after himself; made sure Itachi did human things (such as eat and sleep) and often did the cooking because heaven knows that Itachi Uchiha did NOT get his mother's cooking ability. To this day Kisame still doesn't know how Itachi set fire to a pot of water.

Unlocking the door to his and Itachi's apartment, Kisame called a quick greeting before removing his shoes. He was about to hang his swim jacket on the peg by the door only to notice two extra pairs of shoes, and an obnoxious black and red blazer on his peg. Great. Deidara and Sasori were here. You never had one without the other unfortunately. Kisame would not let this ruin his good mood. He had a date with a very pretty girl this weekend who liked marine life and him apparently.

"Hey, Fish Face, you're home, yeah!" Deidara was on track for ruining the good mood. Just take a deep breath Kisame, deep breaths. Kisame studiously ignored Deidara before walking into the kitchen, grabbing a pen and circling this coming Saturday on the calendar. Itachi looked up from the kitchen table where he was drinking tea with Sasori at Deidara's next outburst. "What's the sixteenth, un? They finally going to release your ugly ass back into the ocean?"

"I have a date." Kisame tried not to sound smug.

"WHAT?! Deidara screeched indignantly. It was no secret he'd been single for a few weeks now.

"What?" Sasori sounded surprised, but not nearly as offensive as Deidara.

"Hn" Itachi replied in true Uchiha fashion.

"I have a date, with a girl who has no idea who I am." Kisame clarified for Itachi's sake, the other two could go to hell for all he cared. "How do you date a girl who thinks you're just a normal guy?"

"Easy, don't be you, yeah. Don't talk about fish or any of that weird stuff your into, un." Of course Deidara would be the one to answer him. Sometimes Kisame just wanted to stuff his mouth with the clay that Deidara loved so much, maybe then he'd learn to keep it shut.

"She likes marine life; we're going to check some out on Saturday." There was no way he was telling them where exactly they were going. Deidara would follow them and try to sabotage the date just to be an ass.

"Hn. Just be yourself Kisame. She liked you enough to agree to the date." Leave it to Itachi to be the voice of reason.

"Hey Danna. Two hundred says she dumps him in the first three weeks. Yeah. "Deidara had one of his stupid shit eating grins as he looked to his own best friend, the bastard. Kisame cursed them both when Sasori nodded in agreement to the bet. They could both go to hell; and take Sasori creepy dolls with them while they were at it. Those things gave him the willies.

Kisame stomped out of the kitchen to his bedroom, ready to crack open his books. Without even thinking he sent Sachiko a text telling her that he hoped her class was going well before he got a jump on the homework due Wednesday. He missed the days of undergrad at times like this, homework sucked. What he thought was going to be quick text to his surprise turned into a back and forth conversation, which then led to them texting all night and Kisame getting his homework done much later than normal.

His cheeks hurt from smiling so much.