"Kakashi-kun!"

Kakashi's heart skipped a beat at the voice and he looked over his shoulder. Sure enough, there she was. Bright smile and rosy cheeks, her pink hair swaying as she jogged towards him. She looked like a mess, her shirt was buttoned wrong and her blue sweater was falling off her shoulder from her book bag dragging it down. Her red ribbon in her hair was even lopsided. But to Kakashi - and plenty of other guys - she was beautiful.

Haruno Sakura. She was a year above him and was known among most of the first years – and even some of the second years - as the Cherry Blossom Queen. He had thought the name was ridiculous when he was a first year, but after seeing her he could see where she'd gotten it from. She was just as beautiful as he had heard and almost every guy was after her. He didn't know her very well, but she was friends with a couple of the guys in his club. He wasn't very good friends with her, but it didn't stop him from having a crush on her. She never paid anyone any mind, though, letting down every guy that was brave enough to ask her out.

He stopped in his walk, turning to greet her with a crinkled eye smile. She smiled back at him, a little breathless from her jog to him. Kakashi tried not to watch as her chest moved as she breathed. "Good morning, Sakura-senpai."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "You don't have to call me senpai, Kakashi-kun."

Kakashi didn't reply and just gestured to her shirt, "You buttoned it wrong. Running late again?"

Sakura chuckled as she dropped her book bag to the floor. Kakashi barely heard her answer as she – not the least bit shy – started to unbutton her blouse. She had a camisole under it but it was white and he could see the red flowers from her bra. How fitting. "Like you're one to talk."

And she was right, beside a few stragglers they were the only ones in hall. Class had started a couple minutes before she ran over to him. She started to button it back and Kakashi tore his eyes away to her face. She was already looking at him and had a coy smile on her face. Kakashi willed himself not to blush as he stepped closer to fix her ribbon. "Senpai, you're a mess."

He didn't meet her eyes as he tugged on her ribbon to retie it. He could feel his skin heating up, but tried to keep his usual cool and calm persona. When he was finished, Sakura leaned down and picked up her bag. She smiled at him and ruffled his hair. "I'm not the only one. I swear your hair has a mind of its own."

Then with a wink, she walked away. She looked over her shoulder at him and said, "I'll see you later, Kakashi-kun."

Kakashi stared after her, wondering why she had even stopped to talk to him when she was already late.

"Kakashi!" Kakashi looked to his left at the voice and barely managed to dodge a snowball aimed right at his head.

He glared, seeing the black coat sticking out at the corner of the building. He leaned his bag against the wall and walked over to the shadow that was shaking with laughter. He sighed, "Itachi-senpai, what are you doing?"

"Snowball fight." Itachi grinned at him and then put his hand on Kakashi's shoulder. He gave him an appraising look. "You know you have pretty quick reflexes."

Kakashi rolled his eyes at him. "We're in the kendo club together. Of course I do."

Itachi nodded and looked at him seriously. "You should join my team."

"Your team?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow at him and looked around the small courtyard. Then, he noticed the figures that were hidden. Some were taking cover behind trees, others walls.

"Sasuke-kun decided to attack his loveable brother," Itachi told him, his eyes glancing over to a tree where his little brother was probably hiding. "So, I brought in reinforcements and he did the same. It's an all-out battle now."

Kakashi held back a laugh at his senpai's antics. He'd only known Itachi a couple of years, but they were really good friends. Itachi was fun to be around. He always had a smile and was trying to find something fun to do. He was top of his year, but was in more clubs than Kakashi thought possible. Kakashi really admired him. He also quickly learned how much Itachi loved his little brother, Sasuke, who was now a freshman. He was always playing tricks on him and Sasuke did the same.

But Kakashi had studying to do and he should be heading home. He shook his head and put his hands in his pockets. "Maybe some other time."

Itachi pouted at him, so childishly Kakashi almost forgot he was a year older. "But Kakashi –"

Before he could finish his plea though, Kakashi felt a tug on his jacket and was being pulled away. It took him a second to realize it was Sakura and she called out to Itachi in a sing song voice, "I call Kakashi-kun!"

She pulled him to a small wall near the doors to the school, still in sight of Itachi. Kakashi looked at her in surprise and she winked at him, still not letting go of his arm. "Come on, you'll play with us, won't you?"

Kakashi wanted to say no, that he really did need to study. He had an exam tomorrow. But when he met her hopeful jade eyes and flushed cheeks, he couldn't. He nodded and smiled at her. "Alright, Sakura-senpai."

She playfully hit him on the arm and chided, "No senpai."

He could feel his heart rate pick up with how close she was to him, almost pressed against him as they were hiding from the other team. She peaked over the wall and yelped as a snowball flew right by her head from their right. Then, she frowned and looked over to Itachi. She yelled, "Hey, that was friendly fire!"

"That was for Kakashi!" Itachi yelled back at her and grumbled, "When I ask him to play, he says no. But oh when the Cherry Blossom Queen asks, of course he will."

Itachi met his eyes and Kakashi gave him a helpless shrug. Kakashi glanced at Sakura to see her reaction and she was glaring at Itachi. She scooped up some snow from the ground and made a snowball, quickly throwing it at him. Kakashi heard it hit and held back a laugh when Itachi mumbled as he dusted off his jacket, "Didn't have to make it so damn hard."

Sakura crouched back down and looked at Kakashi with a bashful smile. "Cherry Blossom Queen. Kami, I hate that." Her cheeks were less pink now and more red and Kakashi wondered if it was from the cold or if she was actually blushing. Either way, she looked like an angel. Her pink hair dusted with white. Her skin looking pale from the cold making her eyes pop out. Even her coat was a stark white. She really was beautiful. He didn't know why he kept getting surprised by the fact.

"Why?" he asked her. He had always wondered if Sakura even knew about her nickname, but he had guessed she did. How could she not? It was whispered in the halls when she would stroll by and he had even heard a couple of people call out to her like that. He hadn't known how she felt about it, though.

She shrugged, looking away from him and peaking over the side of the wall. "I don't know. When it all started, it had felt like teasing so I've never liked it."

Kakashi frowned. She thought people were teasing her when they said that? He hadn't ever heard anyone use it mockingly – well until just now with Itachi but he was just playing around with her. Most of the times Kakashi had heard it had been from dazed school boys, looking after her like she was some sort of goddess they could never obtain. Even some of the girls called her that, looking up to her for all of her intelligence and beauty. It was almost ridiculous that she thought people were teasing her with it.

He couldn't help it when a chuckle escaped him. Sakura looked at him questioningly after having thrown and hit a snowball directly at Sasuke's best friend. He could almost hear Naruto grumbling from the other side of the courtyard. Kakashi made his own and aimed one at a boy he thought was named Kiba. He missed, but threw another immediately afterwards and it hit Kiba as he was smirking from dodging the first.

"You just got it all wrong, Sakura-chan," Kakashi told her with a smile, but didn't look at her. "People call you that because you're so beautiful. And you're also smart and have a great personality. Funny and sociable. They look up to you, admire you. Believe me when I say they're trying to compliment you by giving you that ridiculous name. Itachi-senpai is probably the one of very few who would ever tease you with it."

Sakura didn't say anything and he wondered if he had said too much. His throat felt thick and he glanced at her. She was looking at him with a small smile and Kakashi's heart skipped a beat. He couldn't look away from her though, feeling trapped by her eyes. Why was she looking at him like that?

"What?" he asked her, his voice coming out a little shaky. He hoped she blamed it on the cold.

"You called me Sakura-chan." She smiled at him and Kakashi felt his breath catch in his throat. It didn't help that the cold was making it look like she was blushing.

Kakashi rolled his eyes at her, trying to keep his aloof persona. "It's not that big of a deal."

Sakura shrugged beside him, but her smile didn't drop. She helped make some snowballs and then they dominated the courtyard with the help of Itachi and their friends. Kakashi recognized a few of them, they were all from the class above him. He knew the girl with the long blonde hair and striking blue eyes was Sakura's best friend, Ino. Then there was her boyfriend, Shikamaru, who seemed extremely bored with the whole fight but participated nonetheless. He thought the guy with the bushy brown hair was called Choji, but he wasn't sure. He didn't recognize anyone else.

Kakashi didn't know how long they went at it, but at some point Itachi called for a draw. His mother had called him and Sasuke home so they could help with the small store they owned. Everyone gathered around, picking up their bags they'd left near the doors and arguing over who really won. Kakashi avoided the small crowd and swung his backpack over his shoulder. He gave one last glance towards Sakura laughing with Ino and turned to leave.

He stopped in his tracks when there was a gasp. "Sakura!"

He turned back around to see Sakura on the ground and he was instantly back over to her. Shikamaru helped her back to her feet and she winced in pain. Kakashi stopped worriedly in front of her and asked, "Are you alright?"

He felt the groups eyes move to him but he didn't care much, just focusing on Sakura. She avoided his eyes as she pulled away from Shikamaru and stepped towards him. "I'm fine, Kakashi-kun. I just slipped on the ice."

When she put weight on her right foot, she almost fell again as she jerked her foot away from the ground in pain. Kakashi caught her arm and she leaned into him. "You probably sprained your ankle when you fell."

Sakura sighed and Ino picked up her book bag that had fallen with her. She handed it to Sakura with a frown. "You should have someone walk you home, Sakura."

Sakura shook her head and leaned away from Kakashi, trying to stand on her own. Though Kakashi noticed she kept a hand gripped tightly on his sleeve. "No, I'll be fine."

Ino glanced at Kakashi and then her face lit up. She gestured to him with a grin. "Kakashi! You should walk her home."

Sakura immediately turned a deep red and moved away from Kakashi. She leaned against the wall and shook her head again, a glare thrown in Ino's direction. "Kakashi doesn't need to walk me home, Pig. I'm fine."

Kakashi opened his mouth to tell her he didn't mind, then felt a hand clamp down on his shoulder. He looked up and Itachi smiled sweetly down at him. He told Sakura, "It's not a problem, Sakura-chan. Kakashi lives in the same direction as you."

"Itachi." Sakura narrowed her eyes at him.

Kakashi didn't know why they were so determined for him to be the one to walk her home, but it wasn't like it bothered him. It was Sakura. He'd walk her home if she lived on the other side of town. He stepped out from under Itachi's hand and towards Sakura. He met her eyes with a smile and a shrug. "Sakura-chan, it's okay. Let me walk you home."

Sakura stared at him for a moment and then glanced at her friends. She muttered something under her breath Kakashi didn't catch and nodded. She returned his smile nervously. "Okay."

Kakashi's shoulders relaxed and he took her bag from her, putting it over his shoulder even as she protested. He held out his arm to her and fought back a chuckle at her blush. She grabbed on to him and said goodbye to her friends. He nodded goodbye to them, noticing they all had matching smiles on their faces. It was odd and a little creepy if he was being honest, but he shrugged it off and they walked away from the group.

Sakura didn't say much to him after telling him where she lived. Kakashi wondered if it was because her ankle was really bothering her or if she just wished someone else was walking her home. They couldn't go very fast since Sakura was practically limping as he supported her, but she didn't live very far from the school. The only problem was that the wind was picking up and it was only getting colder.

He could see Sakura's breath and her ears were turning almost as pink as her hair along with her nose. She looked adorable as she tugged her coat closer to her, even though he still wished she wasn't cold. She shivered against him and Kakashi paused in their walk. He wrapped his arm around her waist instead, feeling his heart beat against his chest. He glanced at her nervously and raised an eyebrow. "Better?"

Sakura didn't meet his eyes, but he could see her smile. She nodded and wrapped her own around him, snaking it under his jacket and around his torso. He pulled her closer and she leaned into his warmth. They walked like that for a couple of minutes like that and then Sakura told him almost shyly, "Thanks for walking me home, by the way. I'm sorry everyone put you on the spot."

"I would've offered to walk you home without any of them saying anything, anyway," Kakashi assured her and he would have. He was on the verge of offering before Ino had done it for him.

"Yeah?" she asked and Kakashi could hear the smile in her voice as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Yeah."

When they reached Sakura's house, Kakashi walked her up to the door. After she unlocked the door, she looked back at him and then nodded inside. "Why don't you come inside? I'll make you some hot chocolate as a thank you."

"You don't have to." Kakashi shook his head, but Sakura had already grabbed his hand and was pulling him inside.

Kakashi sighed with a tired smile, but didn't resist the smaller hand that tugged on him. After they discarded their coats and shoes, he wrapped his arm back around her waist to help her walk. When they reached the kitchen, she left his arms and leaned against the counter as she prepared them hot chocolate. Kakashi leaned his back against her small kitchen table and glanced around. "Are your parents home?"

Sakura shook her head with her back still to him. "No, my dad doesn't get home from work until late. What about you? Is somebody going to be worried that I'm keeping you here?"

She looked over shoulder at him with a sly smile, but Kakashi felt cold at the question. He didn't meet her eyes, choosing to stare at a painting that was hanging on her wall instead. "No, there isn't going to be anyone waiting for me to come home."

Sakura turned back to the hot chocolate, reaching up into one of her cabinets for marshmallows. He knew she understood what he was saying, but she didn't comment on it. She just told him in a sweet voice, "Well, you can stay here as long as you want."

The cold slowly left him, leaving just a faint feeling. Then, it was replaced by a warmth he felt when Sakura handed him a blue mug with a puppy on it. He smiled at her, mumbling a small, "Thank you."

She smiled back, taking a drink from her own mug. She didn't move away from him and when he met her beautiful jade green eyes, he felt his heart skip a beat. Then Sakura moved her mug away from her lips, leaving a white line above her lips from the whip cream.

Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle and she rose an eyebrow at him in question. He gestured to her lips and she brought a finger up to them . When she pulled it away and saw white, her cheeks turned pink and she wiped at her mouth with her sleeve. Kakashi thought she was adorable and bit his tongue from telling her so.

Sakura was looking at him with an odd look in her eyes and it made Kakashi's heart beat pick back up. He wondered if he was blushing, feeling the warmth creep up his neck. She leaned closer to him and she was only a breath away. She asked him, "Kakashi, do you call me the Cherry Blossom Queen too?"

Kakashi snorted, "No. That name's ridiculous."

Sakura's fingers loosened in his sleeve, but she didn't move away and - when had she grabbed his sleeve anyway? She raised an eyebrow at him with a lopsided smile. "Why do you think it's ridiculous?"

"It only creates a distance be. Staring after you like you're some goddess that they can't reach. You're a person with feelings, not something to be idolized. Though, I can see why they do it…" Kakashi trailed off, getting lost in the eyes that were staring up at him.

"And you wouldn't want to create a distance between you and me, would you, Kakashi-kun?" Her sweet voice asked him as she set her mug on the table and Kakashi wished he knew what she was playing at. Did she have any idea the kind of pull she had on him? What she was doing to him by just being this close to him? He felt like he was going to die from a heart attack and the knots in his stomach making him more nervous than ever.

"No," he answered, hoping his voice didn't sound as shaky as he thought it did.

He only saw her bright smile for a second before she grabbed his hand and put his mug on the table. Then, he felt a warm soft pair of lips pressed against his. Kakashi stilled beneath her, but quickly got over the shock to kiss her back. She circled her arms around his neck and Kakashi couldn't get over how amazing she felt. His hands went to her waist and she felt so warm against him. Her lips tasted sweet like the hot chocolate they had been drinking.

A thousand thoughts were running through his mind, questions about why she was doing this. Why Haruno Sakura had taken enough of a liking to him to kiss him. But Kakashi didn't pay them any mind, he couldn't. She was too distracting, her lips calling for attention as they moved against his and her hands tugging gently at his hair. He could smell her strawberry shampoo and when one of his hands went to her face, her skin was so soft.

When he felt her lick across his lips, he couldn't help the gasp that slipped out and she pulled away. He looked down at her and she smiled coyly at him. "You had whip cream on your lips."

Kakashi held back a chuckle. His thumb stroked across her cheek. He asked her with a smile, "Hmm, is that so?"

She nodded leaning into his touch and Kakashi leaned forward to kiss her again. He could feel her smile against his lips and he pulled her closer to him. When she broke away this time, her hands moved from around his neck to rest on his chest. She asked him, "Do you know why my friends insisted on you taking me home?"

Kakashi shook his head and she told him with a blush, "Because I have the biggest crush on you, Hatake."

Kakashi grinned and leaned his forehead against hers. He could feel his heart pounding against his chest, but it felt good now. He whispered back to her, "Well, that's a relief. Otherwise, I'd think you might have an unhealthy addiction to whip cream and were trying to get it all off of my lips."

She laughed and it was the most beautiful sound. He kissed the corner of her mouth. "And I also have the biggest crush on you" – he added teasingly – "my Cherry Blossom Queen."

"Now when you put the my in front it doesn't sound so bad. You should try it without the Cherry Blossom part too."

Kakashi grinned and told her, "Alright, Sakura-sama."

She giggled and kissed him in response. Kakashi melted against her, tasting hot chocolate and feeling flurries fall from her hair when his fingers combed through it. Winter was turning out to be his favorite time of year.