"Excuse me, are you Izumi?"

A girl with long, brown hair turned around slowly from the hall announcements she was helping to staple up on the wall. She dropped the stapler she held and tried to hide the surprise on her face. The man in front of her had to be the most attractive guy she had ever seen. He had chiseled features with light, perfect skin. His eyes were dark and his black hair hung behind his back in a loose ponytail.

He didn't even flinch when she dropped the stapler. Apparently he was used to women acting idiotically around him. Go figure. Izumi rolled her eyes and tried to keep from staring at his handsome features. She really didn't need a popular guy talking to her. It would complicate her life more than she was wanting. She just knew it.

"How can I help you?" She didn't try to hide her sudden disdain for the man in front of her no matter how attractive he was. Seriously, there's a guy in this world that actually looks like this?

"My name is Itachi. I heard that you are the person I need to come to for some help with one of my classes." Her eyes opened wide and she reached down for the stapler. Itachi? Why did that name sound slightly familiar? She shook her head and tried to think about the other part of what he said. She was an average student and wasn't particularly awesome in any of her classes. Who the heck would tell him to come to her for help?

"Who told you that?" He seemed a little surprised by her answer but he didn't let it bother him for long.

"Nohara Rin."

"What class?"

"Latin ballroom." She dropped the stapler again. She really needed to stop doing that. Especially since he thought she was the person that was going to help him with his ballroom dance. This was definitely a good way to show him that she lacked any grace. Izumi laughed at her joke.

"Well, I'm not really sure why she told you that I'm the one who is the best choice to help you but I'd love to help out." His face filled with the most beautiful smile she had ever seen. Was he even real? "Now, do you live on campus or off?" His smile faltered and he seemed to be regretting his decision to ask her for help. "I just need to know so we can set up a practice location and stuff." Itachi relaxed and she smiled sweetly.

"I live off campus and my house has a ballroom so we can just practice there. Is that okay?" His house has a freaking ballroom? This kid had to be loaded."Yeah, that's fine. What time should we do this and where do you live?"

"How about five tomorrow? I live at the Uchiha estate. See you then!" She nodded her approval of the time and noted where he lived as she waved goodbye to him. Izumi returned to stapling the rest of the papers on the bulletin board.

Hm, Itachi. He was super cute and she got to dance with him. A definite plus. He also lived at the Uchiha estate which Izumi heard was absolutely gorgeous. The Uchiha estate. Uchiha. Uchiha Itachi. Izumi's hand stilled as she stapled the last corner. She finally put two and two together. She was tutoring Uchiha Itachi in ballroom dance. The most eligible bachelor in the city.

Izumi clenched the stapler in her hand and turned around brusquely. She dashed as quickly as possible out the door, tossing the stapler on the couch on her way out. There was someone she needed to see. Someone who apparently had a sick sense of humor. And that person happened to be her best friend's cousin.

Izumi stomped into the student health center where Rin sat at the receptionist desk. She slammed her hand down on the counter and Rin jumped. A small snicker sounded next to the computer and Izumi's best friend Keiko slid her chair out.

"What's the matter Izumi dear?"

"The matter?! You" Izumi pointed at Rin "told Itachi that I could help tutor him in Latin ballroom! Are you kidding me?" Keiko snickered.

"Sorry, I just thought it would be a good opportunity for you. Besides, he's hot and you need to spend sometime with a hot guy. I'm sure that Keiko agrees with me."

"I do, totally."

Izumi huffed. "How did you even?"

Rin shrugged and typed something on the computer. "It was easy. I'm engaged to his cousin so naturally it came up in conversation that he needed a tutor and I thought of you."

"But why? Keiko is the better ballroom dancer!"

Rin smiled mischievously. "That's not true and you know it. Besides I already have plans for Keiko to help someone else with a project."

Keiko sighed. "You're not trying to get me set up with your best friend again are you? Isn't he like way older than me or something?"

"Yeah, but who cares? He's perfect for you."

"Um, guys? Still having a crisis over here!" Izumi slammed her hands on the counter again.

"Okay, okay, calm down love. Just give it a chance. If anything you could get a new friend out of this and that's it. Itachi is a really sweet guy from what I hear and I think this will be good for you to come out of your comfort zone and help someone else." Izumi frowned at Keiko's words but then nodded.

"Okay, I'll give it a shot." Rin and Keiko squealed and grabbed her into a bone crushing hug. Here goes nothing.

Izumi knew she was insane the minute she agreed to tutor Itachi. She stood outside of the Uchiha estate with her hands shaking slightly as she reached for the doorbell. It sounded deep within the house and she swallowed whatever nervousness she had down.

The door swung open a few seconds later and a well dressed man with graying dark hair bowed slightly in front of her. He smiled sweetly at her and she returned it. "Hello miss, how can I help you?"

Izumi cleared her throat so her voice would be strong. "Hello, I'm Izumi and I'm here to tutor Itachi in ballroom." Izumi cheered internally that she had managed to speak clearly and without any sort of tremor. She would have to thank Keiko later for making her do all those musicals in high school.

"Ah, of course, he's expecting you. Right this way Miss Izumi." The butler moved to the side and waited for her to enter. After she did he shut the door and then directed her through the winding hallways of the house.

Izumi stared in awe at all of the ornate decorations around her. It was amazing that one family could have this much wealth. Though, if she was being honest it was a little more understated than she expected. It was beautiful but not over the top. She couldn't help but admire the paintings on her way and wonder the story behind all of them. The Uchiha fan, of course, was on display all around her.

Izumi was an Uchiha but from a different family. Hers was more modest in profession and attitude. But they did display the fan all over their houses as well. She felt more at home with the fan on the wall then she did before. Izumi took a deep breath and wiped her palms on her legs. This wasn't going to be too hard. Dancing was fun and this time she could set the pace and everything would be okay.

They rounded the corner and the butler motioned to the ballroom. "Thank you sir. Uh, sir. . . what do I call you?"

The butler chuckled and dropped his hand slightly. "My name is Franklin. You can just call me Frank."

"Perfect. Well, thank you Frank." She smiled brightly at him. He nodded and turned back down the hallway. Izumi turned and saw Itachi sitting on the front of a stage area with his dance shoes on scrolling through his phone.

He looked up at her as she made her way into the room. Okay, she would be fine if those impossibly deep, black eyes didn't look at her too long. She might just melt. Izumi took a deep breath to push that thought out of her head and to make sure that she was ready for this. It had been only a few months since she had taken the class that Itachi needed help with. She could distinctly remember the steps for the dances. There were only two dances thank goodness.

"Good evening Izumi."

"Evening. How was your day?" Izumi almost slapped her self for being so casual but she needed to get her mind off the the dance instruction as much as possible so she decided to try a little small talk.

"Good. I only have two classes on Fridays so I have more time to study. But one of my business classes has a project due and I have a paper in my philosophy class."

Izumi took a seat on the floor and pulled her shoes out of her backpack. She had come from the library herself so she had all of her books. "Wow, that sounds like quite a heavy load. What's your major?"

"I'm majoring in Business with a minor in philosophy and political science."

Izumi finished putting on her shoes and stood up. She stared at him for a few seconds. "Dang, you sound really smart and motivated. What do you want to be when you grow up?"

Itachi shrugged. "I'm not completely sure. My father wants me to eventually take over the company and I might do that but I wanted to make sure that I understood all sorts of things."

"My best friend's cousin said you were a genius once and now I believe her."

Itachi blushed a slight amount. "What's your major?"

"Sociology and then I'm going to get a masters in social work."

Itachi froze in his spot. He scrutinized her for a few seconds. She did seem to be someone that was insanely loving and kind. After all, she had agreed to help him after only talking to him for a few minutes. "That is a very noble career path. Why did you choose it?"

Izumi laughed as she stretched a tiny amount of her legs and opened her dance book to review the steps. "I really want to help people if I can. My father is determined to help those around him as much as possible. My mother always taught me that if I saw someone in need I needed to help. It just seemed like the most logical move for me." Itachi nodded.

"Okay, so where are you at in class and what exactly do you need help with?"

"We have finished the Rumba and we are about halfway through the Samba. My teacher says that I'm too stiff in my dancing and that I need to learn how to do the steps correctly and on the right time but with the right feeling. We have a small dance competition next week for the Rumba. My partner is really good."

"I see. Well, let's start by reviewing the Rumba so I can see your dancing for myself."

Itachi nodded and turned on the music he had selected on his phone. He obviously had found music to practice to with his partner. He grabbed Izumi's hand and started the dance. Izumi followed his every movement. He was unbelievably stiff. He didn't move his hips once. She could see the concentration on his face. He seemed to be trying incredibly too hard to not mess up. She stifled the giggle that threatened to come out of her.

Izumi concentrated on her part and got lost in the dance for a few minutes. Itachi might have been stiff and definitely counting in his head but he was surprisingly easy to dance with. His hand hold was gentle but firm enough to direct her where she needed to be. Izumi found herself being transported into the dance. It was probably a good thing that he was stiff. If he wasn't there might be a little too much chemistry between the two of them.

The song ended and the two of them bowed a little before stepping back from each other. Izumi opened her mouth to speak but Itachi beat her to it. "Wow, Rin was right. You really are a fantastic dancer."

Izumi involuntarily blushed. "Thank you. I was going to say the same about you. I can definitely tell what your teacher was talking about but in general you are not that far from being an amazing dancer."

"Thank you."

"All right, first things first. Stop thinking so hard."

"Excuse me?" Itachi put his hands behind his back and regarded her with confusion.

"You think too much. I can literally see the counting behind your eyes. Dancing is about feeling the music and moving along with it. You are very smart and do all the steps and counts perfectly but the person that is going to win the competitions, and the person that it going to get the best grade in the class, is the person that can do both."

"I see. So what do I do then? I can't turn my brain off."

Izumi laughed. She grabbed his hands and got them ready for the first few steps. "We are going to start again from the beginning and I'm going to talk the whole time we do so. You know these steps and you can multitask. You need to respond to me, okay? We will do this until I feel like you are focusing more on me than on the steps."

Itachi nodded and then swallowed. He looked nervous and Izumi noticed that all of her nervousness was gone. Itachi was a surprisingly easy person to be around. They started the first step./

"So, why are you taking ballroom dance and why do you need a tutor?"

"Uh. . ." Itachi looked down at his feet for a few seconds. "Business. My father wants. . ." He stepped a little hesitantly. Izumi watched everything. "He wants me to be able to participate fully in events with business partners. I want to make sure that I'm exceptional. . . so as to not. . . as to not. . . embarrass the family." He spun her around and didn't have to count at all. Izumi slightly rolled her eyes. This was going to take a while.

"I see. I took it because my best friend wanted to and we decided it was more fun together. We actually are pretty good. No, it's the separate sequence now. We are both in the second level now." Itachi furrowed his brow as he tried to listen to Izumi speak but he had already forgotten a step or two. She kept following him regardless.

"I see. And who is your best friend?" Izumi pulled on Itachi's hand so that he went back into the first step.

"Keiko Nohara. Her cousin is Rin. You know, the one that's engaged to Obito to told you about me." Itachi nodded as he stopped the dance. They had finally reached the end.

Izumi looked him up and down in a teasing manner. "Well that wasn't too bad."

"Are you kidding? That was a train wreck. Even I could tell that."

"I just wanted to let you down gently." Izumi laughed. "Okay, it was awful. I'm not even sure that the full sentence you gave me even made sense. But we have time to work through it. Let's go again."

Izumi and Itachi practiced the Rumba for an hour and a half with Izumi trying to hold a conversation as Itachi tried not to think too hard. She talked about her major and her favorite classes. She asked him about his family and found out that his best friend was his cousin and that he adored his little brother.

Just before seven as they were going through the Rumba for the umpteenth time Frank entered the ballroom and cleared his throat. "Excuse me Master Itachi but it is dinner time."

"Thank you Frank." Frank bowed and disappeared around the corner again.

Itachi slowly dropped his hands from Izumi's. She had to admit that she liked the feel of his hands around hers. Izumi shook her head vigorously. She really needed to get a boyfriend if these were the thoughts going through her head as she was tutoring.

"Am I getting any better?" Itachi seemed depressed. It was odd that he was so upset about his dance class. It wasn't like he was failing it or anything.

"Yep. We just managed to have quite a decent conversation about Sasuke and still get the steps right. Anyway, I should probably be heading out."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, you have dinner right now and I'm sure Keiko has something planned for tonight."

"Why don't you stay for dinner? It's the least I can do since you're tutoring me and spending all this time trying to get me to feel the music."

Izumi thought about it for a few minutes. Dinner actually would be marvelous. She was starving and Keiko was probably studying still so she would just grab something quick on the way.

"That would actually be really great. Thanks." Izumi smiled brightly and Itachi returned it. The two of them changed their shoes and Izumi grabbed her backpack and they headed through the maze of hallways to the dining room.

"My mother insists on family dinners everyday. She doesn't really care if other people join. Sasuke usually has Naruto or Sakura over. My friend Kisame has stayed a few times. Don't be nervous."

"I'm not that nervous actually. It's probably because I just realized that I could literally eat a feast." Itachi laughed.

"Well I hope our food is satisfactory."

"I'm sure it is."

They reached the dining room that was pretty close to the front door so Izumi rested her backpack against a wall out of the way. Itachi lead her into the dining room where his parents were already sitting. His father was at the head of the table with his mother on the left . Next to her was Sasuke and a boy with bright blonde hair who Izumi assumed was Naruto.

Itachi took the seat to the right of his father and Izumi sat next to him. Mikoto's eyes brightened at the sight of her and a smile overtook her face. "Oh my! Who is this beautiful girl? Itachi never brings girls to dinner."

Izumi smiled and tried her best not to laugh. Mikoto was just like a teenager. She reminded Izumi of Rin. "I'm Izumi. I'm just here because I'm tutoring Itachi in ballroom."

Sasuke snorted. "You need a tutor for a dance class? Pathetic."

"Actually he's really good but he needs a little help at becoming the best." Itachi leaned over and whispered a thanks in Izumi's ear. Mikoto watched the whole thing and squealed in excitement.

"I'm Naruto by the way. Since no one wants to introduce me. Darn Uchihas. So rude." Sasuke rolled his eyes and Izumi chuckled.

"Hello Naruto. It's very nice to meet you. You remind me of Obito." The whole table burst into laughter.

"Obito is such a cool guy! Thanks!"

"No problem."

"So you're acquainted with my nephew?" Fugaku asked as he began eating. Izumi hungrily tore into her own plate as soon as she noticed everyone else. She quickly took a drink of water before she answered.

"Yes. My best friend is Rin's cousin. I've spent quite a lot of time with them. Obito is crazy but a good guy."

"He is indeed. So, Sasuke how is the season starting out? I know it's February but you've had a few games so far."

Izumi continued eating as the conversation turned to Sasuke and Itachi's lives and what was going on. Izumi soaked everything in as she watched their cheerful interactions. Well, cheerful to a point. Fugaku was grumpy no matter the topic. But they all treated Naruto with love and there was a lot of laughter from everyone else. Soon dinner was over and Izumi picked up her backpack to head out.

"Oh, Izumi dear, make sure that you come to dinner every time you tutor Itachi, okay?"

"Okay, Mrs. Uchiha. Thank you." Izumi smiled and soon arrived at the door. "Thank you Frank."

"My pleasure Miss Izumi." He opened the door for her and just as she was about to step outside Itachi stopped her.

"Izumi, how about we do five o'clock everyday? Except maybe Sundays? Let's exchange numbers in case something changes."

Izumi handed over her phone and took his. "Five works for me but I'll let you know if something comes up."

"Perfect. See you tomorrow."

"Bye."

Izumi left the mansion and booked it as fast as her feet could carry her to her apartment. Keiko sat on the couch with some sort of craft project in her lap and the TV on a chick flick. Izumi ungracefully flopped onto the couch and dropped her backpack on the floor.

"Hey, how was it?"

"Kei, he's so nice and their family is so nice. I really hope that after this we continue to stay close."

"I'm sure that won't be too hard. You know our families are all connected I'm sure it will be a cinch to stay in contact."

"True." Izumi opened her eyes and looked at the screen. "So what's on the docket for tonight?"

"Apparently Sasori, Deidara, and a few others are going to an escape room. You in?"

"Honestly? I'm not really feeling it. You?"

"I was thinking that we just do our own thing tonight. Rin is trying on wedding dresses tomorrow so we'll be pretty busy."

"I forgot about that. Yeah, let's just do homework and watch movies."

"Done."