Title: One Two Three
Fandom: Naruto
Rating: K
Pairings: Gai and Anko, v. brief mention of KakaIru
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, if I did, trust me: YOU WOULD KNOW.
Authoress: CopyNinAstral (aka: Astral, hammy, Ayumi, many many others.)
A/N: My deepest apologies for never updating. I've convinced (read: beaten up until consent) my friend to help me out, May, perhaps?....
Key:
blah - thoughts
"blah" - speech
One Two Three
"How are you holding up?" She pressed.
He looked up at her from the hospital cot; his eyes were as dark as the bags beneath them. There was a long bandage across his right cheek, and the blankets were pulled up tightly against his frame. The heart monitor beeped.
"How did you know?"
"Sleeping men don't cough," she said, her expression softening.
She wasn't used to this, but maybe that was what made it so special. So different from the norm. She glanced up at the monitors, checking his heart rate and blood pressure, as well as his chakra levels. He was better than last week. Better than even yesterday, but there was something significantly absent from him. She hadn't seen him flash her a smile, a cheery thumbs-up, an Anko-don't-worry-I'll-be-fine yet.
Despite what most people saw, Anko knew that that wasn't all there was to him. They all had to separate themselves from their line of duty. Tsunade, Genma, Kakashi, Ibiki, herself: they all had their own quirks, their own little habits. And despite his most eccentric ways, she truly admired him.
"I should have known I couldn't fool you." There was a ghost of his smile. Anko felt her chest tighten; he'd been in this room for too long. She reached out to brush away some of his bangs, which had grown out over the length of the mission. She saw him relax; the tension easing away and a small smile tracing his lips. Suddenly, she understood exactly what Iruka meant when he told her that Kakashi had truly smiled. She swallowed, clearing the emotions that were quickly bottling in her throat.
"Those sound-nin did a number on you," she whispered, her voice still thick. She drew back the blanket and studied his chest. Anko reached out and traced the bandages there.
He winced, and startled, Anko removed her hand. He coughed viciously and his abdominal muscles contracted till he subconsciously was forced to turn to the side.
"You should see Genma," he whispered. "I got off much better thanks to him."
Anko frowned.
"He blocked for me," he said, "you should visit him."
I'm here for you, Anko's eyes rimmed with tears. "I'll thank him later." She said, meaning every word.
He tensed. "You must be busy," he said, evading her again. For someone who proclaimed Love and Youth and Companionship for all, he was unpredictably shy about relationships. She paused and pushed back his hair—already mussed up from the long mission and hospital hours.
Leaning out of her seat, Anko kissed him gently on the temple.
She squeezed his arm: One. Two. Three.
I. Love. You.
*~Owari~*