(Alright, this was the very first yaoi one-shot I ever wrote, so let me apologize if it is a little cheesy. I wrote it years ago, and just happened to come across it the other night. Anyway, if you like it, feel free to tell me. I would appreciate any comments you may have. AS far as disclaimers go, I do not own the characters or anything Naruto related.
Mks, well enjoy )
Kisame blinked as he woke up, the light of the early dawn shining in through his window. He yawned, rubbing his eyes, and crawled out of bed. Moving lazily, he dressed and headed out of his room and to the kitchen where he found Pain, Tobi, and Deidara.
"Is Itachi awake yet?" Kisame asked as he held back a yawn, forcing himself to fight back his morning drowsiness.
"No." answered Pain bluntly. Kisame nodded and went to the fridge, rummaging through it.
"Why, hm?" Deidara questioned, watching him with a bored expression.
"I want to make him breakfast." Kisame answered with a simple shrug.
"I don't see why you bother." Deidara said, leaning back in his chair. "You know he hates surprises… especially on his birthday, hm?"
Kisame ignored him and gathered some food to make for Itachi; pancakes, eggs, and bacon. "Yes, well," he murmured. "I'm going to be kind and do this for him." After all, I do love him… He thought that last part to himself.
"Oh! Oh! Tobi wants to help!" Tobi yelled excitedly, waving his arms around like an eager student. "Tobi's a good boy, let Tobi help! Please, please, pleeeaassee!"
"Tobi, SHUT UP!" Deidara shouted, annoyed as he covered his ears.
"It's ok, Tobi," Kisame told him as he began cooking. "Help isn't necessary."
Kisame spent the next while cooking, and when he finished, he placed a plate of sweet looking pancakes, crispy bacon, and well cooked eggs onto the table, Tobi completing it with a glass of orange juice next to it. "Yay!" he exclaimed happily. "Tobi help. Oh, here he comes."
Kisame looked towards the door and sure enough, there was Itachi walking into the kitchen. Kisame smiled slightly at him. "Morning, Itachi," he greeted him, his eyes scanning over the sight of Itachi's drowsy eyes and messy hair, finding his appearance appealing. "I made you breakfast." He gestured to the plate of food with his hand. Itachi walked over to the table and picked up the glass of orange juice.
"Swell," he said with his usual emotionless tone and left the kitchen with the glass. Kisame watched him leave the room, hurt by his actions.
Deidara shrugged. "Hm, I told ya."
"That's just Itachi for you." Pain commented.
Tobi appeared behind Kisame and looked up over his shoulder. "Kisame-san want a hug..?"
"Hmm, well I can't let a good breakfast go to waste." Deidara said as he grabbed a piece of bacon. Kisame turned his head and glared at Deidara, stopping the blonde in the midst of taking a bite.
"Whaaat?" Deidara asked innocently, glaring back. Kisame rolled his eyes and left the kitchen, heading to his room. He was a little upset about Itachi's reaction to the breakfast, but he tried to not worry about it. After all, he had another surprise planned for Itachi.
When Kisame reached his room, he shut the door behind him and went to his closet. "If Itachi didn't like the breakfast, then that's no big deal," he said aloud to himself. "There's a better chance that he'll appreciate this more." Kisame knelt down and picked up a kitten from inside his closet, holding it out in front of him. The kitten meowed softly and Kisame smiled. He had found him outside, wandering around the Akatsuki hideout the other day and thought that it would be a nice gift to give Itachi.
Kisame held the kitten in his arm and left his room in search of Itachi, soon finding him sitting on the couch, watching T.V. Kisame hid the kitten behind him and gently sat down next to Itachi.
"Itachi..?" Kisame faced him, pausing as he waited for his partner to respond. When he didn't, Kisame cleared his throat quietly. "I know today is your birthday," he explained. "And so I wanted to be traditional and get you a gift." Kisame moved his hands out in front of him, revealing the kitten in his blue palms. "I found him outside." He placed the kitten down beside Itachi and watched as it sniffed Itachi curiously before crawling onto his lap and curling into a ball. Itachi's expression remained the same as he glanced down to the kitten now warming his lap, but Kisame's expression softened at the sight. He was sure Itachi liked his new pet, and he waited patiently for Itachi's response.
After a moment, Itachi nodded slightly and turned his gaze back to the T.V. Kisame waited another moment, but soon realized that that was all the answer he was going to get; just a nod. No 'thank you', no sign of appreciation or anything. His expression saddening, Kisame stood from the couch and left Itachi and his new pet alone.
Although Kisame was upset and hurt by Itachi's coldness, he was used to it and wasn't about to give up. He loved Itachi, and holding it in for as long as he has, has been killing him inside. He needed to confess these feelings and see if Itachi possibly felt the same. The two have been through a lot as partners in this organization, and the two seemed to have a connection from the first day they met. Kisame wasn't going to disregard these facts and let Itachi's usual cruelness stop him. As cold as the Uchiha is, he is still human, Kisame thought, and it's only natural that he must feel other emotions such as love.
The other members of the organization were aware of how Kisame felt towards Itachi, but they all thought him either crazy or stupid for pursuing his feelings. None of them expected Itachi to show any sign of love back, and they told Kisame that. Kisame ignored them though, and later that day, he found himself standing in front of Itachi's bedroom door. He wasn't sure what he was going to do or say, but he knew he couldn't keep avoiding letting his feeling out.
Hesitating slightly, Kisame knocked on the door. "Itachi?"
"You can come in." Came Itachi's response, Kisame shivering slightly; just hearing Itachi's voice gave the shark chills. Letting out a sigh to calm himself, Kisame opened the door and let himself in. When he did, the first thing he noticed was the smell; the sweet aura of Itachi that he loved so much. Closing his eyes, Kisame took in a breath, savoring the scent.
"What is it, Kisame?"
Kisame opened his eyes and looked over to Itachi, finding that he couldn't help but stare when he did. Itachi stood by his bed, gathering his laundry, but what caught Kisame off guard was the way the sun shined in through the window. The cascades of light seemed to hit Itachi perfectly, his long black hair glistening, and his red sharigan eyes brighter than usual.
"What is it, Kisame?" Itachi repeated, though there was no hint of irritation in his tone. His voice interrupted Kisame's daze, and the shark's cheeks turned a light shade of purple, hoping Itachi hadn't noticed the way he had been staring at him. He watched his partner gather his clothes for a moment before realizing that he hadn't decided on what he was going to say when he got in here.
"I," the shark stumbled over his words slightly. "…was just curious as to whether you needed help with anything or not." A small 'meow' was heard and Kisame glanced down to see Itachi's kitten yawning and stretching on the bed. Itachi finished putting his clothes into a basket and picked it up, turning towards Kisame. "I don't need any help." He said simply and waited for Kisame to step aside, Kisame doing so reluctantly, watching as the kitten jumped off the bed and followed Itachi out.
Kisame looked down sadly, thinking that maybe he should take the others' advice and give up on Itachi. Itachi didn't seem to have any feelings for him at all. He turned to leave, but stopped when he noticed something: Itachi's room was a total mess. Funny, Kisame hadn't noticed that until now; he hated messes. He thought for a moment, thinking of Itachi and how much he loved him. Despite Itachi's earlier remark on not needing any help, Kisame knew how busy Pain usually keeps Itachi, so he quickly came to the decision to clean the room. One more good deed for Itachi on his birthday couldn't hurt, right? Keeping Itachi in mind, Kisame got to work on straightening up the trashed room.
Kisame cleaned the entire room and was finishing up when the door opened and Itachi walked in. "Oh," Kisame mumbled, surprised, and turned to face him. "Itachi. I know you declined my offer for any help earlier, but it's obvious that you've been busy, so I hope you don't mind that I straightened up your room." Although Kisame sounded casual about doing what he did, he was sincerely hoping that Itachi would offer him some sort of gratitude. As he watched the smaller man look around the room, Kisame blushed lightly, waiting for his response. When Itachi remained silent, as usual, Kisame set his jaw, his sharp teeth grinding slightly. "Well..?" he questioned.
Itachi finished looking around the room before lowering his head and nodding as he walked over to the bed, setting the basket of freshly cleaned clothes down on it. Kisame stared at him in disbelief. Did Itachi really not care? Could he really be that cold and heartless of a human? Lowering his gaze, the shark lowered his voice as well as he spoke.
"So…that's it then?" he murmured. "You really don't care?" Itachi didn't comment, instead beginning to busy himself with folding his clothes. "…Why?" Kisame continued, and when Itachi continued to ignore him, it succeeded in causing a long time retained frustration to rise inside of the shark. "I…I don't understand!" he suddenly exclaimed, his low voice now raised in hurt and anger as he clenched his fists. He raised his head and moved forward, gripping Itachi's arm tightly and forcing the smaller man to face him. "Despite all of the things I do for you, this is what I get?" he questioned harshly, glaring down at the man. Itachi stared back, the shark's sudden actions having caught him off guard. "Do you not appreciate me?" Kisame continued. "We've worked together for years, and never once have you shown me any shred of emotion or humanity! I've gone out of my way countless times to do things for you. Things that weren't necessary for me to do, things that I hoped would make you happy. Things…" Kisame quieted his voice, his gaze softening slightly. "Things that would help you see how I really feel about you…" Itachi's eyes widened slightly when he heard that, and Kisame stared down at him, catching the other mans eyes with his own. "…Do you've no heart?" he asked softly.
When Itachi didn't answer, Kisame sighed inwardly and closed his eyes. He released Itachi's arm and moved around him to exit the room, but was suddenly forced to stop when he felt something grab his hand. Confused, Kisame looked to surprisingly see Itachi's small hand holding his. Turning Kisame to face him, Itachi moved him with ease, the shark too confused to resist. The smaller man moved Kisame's hands, placing them on his waist before sliding his own hands up to Kisame's chest, his fingers clutching the cloak. He then rested his head between his hands, Kisame's eyes widening as he stood still.
"Itachi..?" he questioned hesitantly. "wha-?" Not letting Kisame say anything more, Itachi leaned up and placed his lips on the older males. This action shocked Kisame, and his body stiffened under the touch, unsure of what to think. Here he was thinking that Itachi didn't have any feelings for him, or any feelings at all for that matter, but now Itachi was pressed up against him, kissing him softer than he could have ever imagined. Although Kisame hadn't been expecting this affection, it felt wonderful to him and it sent chills up in spine, his heart rate increasing.
Itachi gripped Kisame's cloak tighter, desiring for him to respond to the kiss. Kisame smirked lightly against Itachi's lips before closing his eyes and kissing Itachi back gently, pulling the smaller man closer. The two held that position for a moment longer, savoring the sweet, wet kiss, and basking in the warm embrace of their bodies pressed together.
Finally, for what seemed too soon for Kisame, Itachi pulled away slowly and looked up into Kisame's eyes.
"Kisame," Itachi murmured softly. "I..I love you. It took a while for me to understand that. I just wasn't sure on how to act upon these feelings, they are unfamiliar to me."
Itachi's words surprised Kisame, but he smiled softly and raised a hand, cupping Itachi's small cheek inside his palm. He should have known that with Itachi's past, it would be a struggle for him to know how to confront his emotions. Kisame would help him with this though, and hopefully soon have Itachi being more comfortable with his feelings. For now, Kisame was just happy to know that Itachi loved him back.
"It's alright," Kisame told him, his thumb rubbing small circles on Itachi's cheek. "I understand, there's no need to blame yourself. And," Kisame brought Itachi's face closer as he leaned down and planted a small kiss on his lips, smiling as he pulled away. "I love you too."