I have no idea why I wrote this oneshot. I felt inspired and very fluffy so here is the end result of my labours. I hope you like it but either way, please let me know? Many thanks to all of you!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own KHR nor do I claim any rights to it or any of the characters/locations depicted in this fan fiction story. I am only responsible for the plot and nothing else.
The world was tilting.
Gokudera Hayako leaned heavily against the wall and sighed. Why was she so weak? Honestly, she hadn't been sick in years and this was because she had been training her body. When she was needed by the Tenth, she wanted to be there for him.
She tried to push herself off the wall, wobbled, staggered then leaned against the wall again. She shouldn't have stayed up too late. And that sweater she had been told to carry hadn't been a very bad idea. She slid down the wall and landed on the ground in a veritable heap.
The last thing she remembered was a pair of eyes that she vaguely recognised. After that, her strength disappeared and she blacked out.
She woke up not understanding where she was. She looked around and blinked. She recognised the ceiling of the school clinic. By the slanting of the rays shining through her window, it was afternoon. She gasped and tried to get out of bed but she had moved too fast and raised a hand to her head to stop the world from tilting again.
That was when she realised she was not alone. A surprisingly strong pair of hands lay on her shoulders and pulled her to lie back down.
"No, Haya-chan. You have to lie down."
She sighed hearing the voice behind her. It was the one voice in the world that she hadn't particularly wanted to hear, but the only one that could have made her relax. Since he'd asked so nicely and since she didn't really feel up to the task of arguing with him, she leaned back against the pillow and lay a hand over her eyes.
Takeshi Yamamoto, her comrade in arms, her ally and, she still blushed to admit it at all, her boyfriend. He had confessed to her once they were alone and she, in her surprise had rejected him. That hadn't stopped him though and once they had shared their first kiss, she had known she could never go back. They had managed to keep it a secret from everyone so far. Not even Tsuna knew about them.
"Honestly, you should take better care of yourself Haya-chan," he said leaning back in his seat.
Yamamoto was not a very serious guy but she could tell by his tone that he was serious this time.
"Where is the Tenth? You were supposed to be looking out for him when I'm not around. You promised."
"I also promised Tsuna that I would take care of you. What were you thinking? If I hadn't been in the hallway at that time..."
"You're making a big deal out of it. I would have been fine. I just needed a nap."
A frustrated sigh sounded at her side and a long silence ensued. It was her own fault really, for a number of things. She had been stubborn on insisting that she go to school this morning even though Bianchi had told her to relax at home. Her fever had spiked at lunch and she hadn't said a word all through her lessons. She'd had to be there for the Tenth...
She heard the scraping of a chair and then suddenly there was a crushing weight on top of her. Her eyes flew open as she prepared to fight whomever it was that had trapped her. Her eyes met blazing amber ones and she flinched a little at the intensity she saw there.
"What are you doing? Get off me!" she said feeling herself begin to worry. What was wrong with him?
"Fight me," he said with all seriousness. She stopped struggling and gave him a quizzical look. What on earth was he talking about?
"I don't want to fight you. Get off me now or you'll be sorry you ever crossed me," she tried again wresting her hands from the firm grip he had them in. In a normal situation, she would have been able to get loose as quickly and as easily as if she was handling a child and not a grown man. She tried again and failed. What did he want from her like this?
"Like I said, fight me off," he replied. Gokudera realised what he was getting at and stopped resisting. Her eyes shut and she let all her muscles relax.
"It's my duty to take care of you. What do you think I would have done if you'd collapsed like that in the middle of the street? If I wasn't there..."
He dipped his head beside her neck and she sighed. She had asked for this. His grip on her wrists loosened and she smiled now.
"But you were there this time," she said with uncharacteristic gentleness. Yamamoto raised his head and a small smile graced his features. He was there. He had been there and that was what mattered now. He could deal with her later, but now, all he wanted was to hold her and assure himself that she was still in one piece. Seeing her that vulnerable had made him panic. She never showed weakness. There was only strength where she was concerned.
What was he going to do with her? She was stubborn as a mule. She would have come to school even if he'd ordered her to stay home – especially if he had.
This time she had pushed herself too hard.
He lay beside her on the narrow bed giving no heed to her protests and held her facing him.
"I don't want you pushing yourself like this again. Even Tsuna was worried when Bianchi told him you had been sick this morning. Why didn't you tell me?"
"You would have stopped me," she muttered grumpily. He chuckled at that. Still determined and mule-headed as ever. She must be getting better. He reached up and kissed her forehead gently then moved to get off the bed before the others came back. It had been her idea to keep it a secret and until she was ready, he wouldn't force anything on her.
A hand clamped on his shirt and stopped him from moving.
"Don't go," she said in a small voice. He looked down at her blushing face which was turned towards her hand.
Honestly, her hand and mouth had worked before her head. She didn't really care. She had never felt this kind of warmth before. Sometimes her sister would sleep in her room if she'd had a nightmare but that had been a long time ago and even so, it wasn't the same. She scooted closer and her fist closed tighter around his shirt. She squeezed her eyes shut wondering what he must think of her weakness right now.
She felt his arm around her again and chanced a look into his bright amber eyes.
"The nurse will have a fit if she finds me here."
"I don't care about the nurse," she replied in a small voice, "she's far too nosy for her own good anyway." He smiled and pushed some hair from her face.
The kiss they shared then didn't lack the simple innocence with which they had ventured the uncharted waters of their relationship. Her hand tightened once more on his shirt and she let herself drown in this feeling. Only he could take her mind away so completely from everything.
In the doorway, a blushing Tsuna and a smiling hitman stood watching the scene. Honestly, who would have thought? They had hated each other and when they were not arguing about him, they were arguing about something else.
"Don't they... d-don't they hate each other?" asked Tsuna turning away. Somehow, he felt like he should give them some privacy.
"Dame-Tsuna," said Reborn hitting him on the head, "you still have a lot to learn."
