- Nine Shots of Love and Life -
Summary: Nine different One Shots, nine different Naruto boys, nine different stories. Filled with Tragedy, Romance, Humor, these tales are sure to pull at your heartstrings! Itachi, Sasori, Deidara, Naruto, Sasuke, Shika, Kiba, Gaara, Neji x OC.
Disclaimer: The boys all belong to Kishimoto-Sensei, I just kidnap them and make them do weird things. xD
Setting: NOT set in the Naruto NINJA world. Set in the Naruto COLLEGE world, where all of the guys are in Konoha College. Persumably, Members of Akatsuki or Jonin (With the exception of Neji) are in higher classes(Juniors/Seniors) because of age, while the Chunin/Genin) are in lower classes (Freshmen/Sophmores). Girls are namely the same age, a little younger or older, but nothing drastic ( Like pairing a 21yr.old with a 15yr.old.).
Notes: YES. The first of NINE. Of course I'm insane, what did you think? I tend to get distrated from my main stories a lot and when I don't feel like writing them, I tend to write other things, like these one shots. If there is a guy I forgot or just didn't write about, (AKA, Kankuro, Hidan, Kakashi, etc...) Let me know and I'll write one about them. And of course, you are allowed to send ideas along with it. Though, this particular story will take longer amounts of time to be updated because I spend lots of time on it. I mean, this one took me like 2 months to write, even though it's like 20 pages. But anyways, hope you like it!!
- Leukemia -
"Itachi!" He whispered.
Sitting in class, Itachi was too focused on texting a friend of his, hiding his phone under the desk.
"Hey, dumbass!" Again, whispering, Kisame, Itachi's best friend since before either of them could remember, tried to catch Itachi's attention.
Itachi sighed in annoyance, rolling his eyes and shutting his phone. "What do you want, Kisame?" He asked his blue-haired friend.
Kisame looked down near the professor and said, "There's a new chick in class."
Itachi's black eyes looked up at the front of the room and found that this was true. But, she wasn't a new student, at least to Itachi.
From her reddish brown hair and deep blue eyes, he recognized her as his childhood friend, Kiyume.
Her navy eyes scanned the room and as her eyes landed on Itachi, she smiled. She walked up to the row in which he was sitting and took the open seat next to him. "Long time, no see, Itachi. Mind if I sit here?" She asked sweetly.
He smirked back. "Nope." Slyly, as she sat and got her supplies out, he watched her. Since not having seen her for about 10 or so years, she didn't look all that bad. Her naturally straight hair was still straight as it draped over her shoulders, her long bangs framing her face.
After pulling out her notebook, she ripped out a piece from the top and scribbled on it and passed it over to Itachi. It said, "How's life been? It's been too long."
He chuckled. "It has been way too long. Got any classes after this one?" He passed it back and continued to take notes from the professor.
She smiled. "Nope. I'm guessing you don't because you asked, but wanna hit the playground?"
"Sure."
Kisame, who was on the other side of Itachi, watched with much curiosity. He'd known Itachi forever and had never once met this girl. So, without talking, he sent a note. "Itachi how do you know this girl?"
Itachi sighed. Was he ever going to get through a class without notes? "Long time friend of the family. My mom and her mom are like sisters."
"Oh, Okay then. She's pretty cute, though."
Itachi smirked. "Yeah, after all this time, I've still got a crush on her."
"Awww, gonna ask her out?" Kisame couldn't believe what he was reading. Itachi. Having a crush. On a GIRL.
"Try to, at least."
"Good luck."
"Thanks. I'll need it."
- lLl -
A little while later, they found themselves outside in the parking lot. Kisame had already split for swim practice, so it was just Kiyume and Itachi.
"Want me to drive?" Itachi asked, unlocking his black Cavalier.
"Sure, just lemme put my stuff in my car."
He nodded. "Sure." He waited, seeing her throw her stuff in her silver Grand AM. He saw her grab a small bag to take with her and even saw her throw something inside it, but shrugged it off. It was her business after all.
"Okay, I'm ready!" She smiled, jumping into the passenger seat.
He chuckled. "Haven't changed at all, have we?"
She looked out the window, a small sadness in her eyes. "You'd be surprised."
- lLl -
After arriving at the playground, they walked side by side to the swings, Kiyume's favorite part of the playground.
"So, how's life been?" Kiyume asked, smiling as she walked.
"Pretty good…boring with school and all, but it's been good." He answered, a cardinal catching his eye as it flew by. "You?"
She sighed, looking down. "Well…it's been interesting. How long are you staying in college?"
"6 years. But I've already got 3 done." He answered, smirking. "And how has life been interesting?"
She smiled, but it wasn't exactly happy. She wished she could keep hearing about him. "How's your mom been?" She asked, completely avoiding his previous question.
Looking at her, he figured there had to be a reason for the avoidance, so he let it go. "She's good. Actually, she's been wondering about your mom. How is she doing?" He asked, looking at her this time.
She sighed.
"Or am I not gonna get an answer this time?" He asked curtly.
She sighed once more. "Look…I know I didn't answer anything…" She was silent for a minute. "But…I don't want you to feel bad once you hear it."
He ruffled his brows. "Feel bad?"
"Yeah…" She gulped. "You asked how my mom is, right?"
He nodded.
She turned to look at him, navy meeting coal and said, "She died."
"What?" He asked incredulously.
She smiled sadly. "Yeah…it happened a year ago…we were coming home from a friend's birthday party and we were hit by a drunk driver."
"Oh, wow…I'm sorry to hear that." He answered as she shook her head, trying not to cry.
"That's not the worst of the news, Itachi…nor is it what I came to tell you."
He looked in her eyes, seeing an unfathomable sadness in them and felt a little hesitant to ask. "…What is it then?" He asked meekly.
Before answering, she sighed very heavily, walking a few steps, eyes closed, letting the sun and wind caress her face and hair. "What I came to tell you was this…"
He watched her, feeling as if what she would tell him would break her.
"While in the hospital the doctors there found something abnormal in my charts and sent me for testing and such," she explained. "And I found out that I have leukemia."
He blinked, unable to process what she said. After a few minutes it started to set in and in a very small voice he asked, "How long did they give you?"
She looked even sadder at him. "They said I wouldn't live to see my 21st birthday."
Astonished, he looked at her. "But…you're…"
"I know." She smiled. "I turned 21 a week ago. I beat the odds." She giggled. "And since I did, I thought that if something happened to me, I at least wanted you to know. Cause, you know, even after all this time, I haven't forgotten you."
Still a bit dazed he answered, "I haven't either. How could I forget you?"
"I don't know, really. But, I also wanted to come back because there're things I want to do before I die and most of the stuff I want to do, I can only do here." She said, a huge grin painted on her face.
"Like what?" He asked, a smile starting to take his lips.
She smiled slyly. "You'll find out."
Instead of the playground, they found themselves at the bank of the lake and decided to sit and chat, talking about their lives and school. Catching up, really.
But suddenly, Kiyume's phone, stuck deep inside her purse began to ring. "Oh, god!" She exclaimed, digging through the purse to pull out her phone and a case of pills.
"What's that?" Itachi asked, eyeing the pills in her hands.
She shut the phone's ringer off, setting back in her purse and opening the container. "It's some pain medication I hafta take. Once a week." She explained. "If I don't take them, I start to shake really bad." She pulled out two and a bottle of water. "I can wait to take them, if you wanna see it." She looked at him.
"Um, that's okay. Any problems with them though?" He asked as she popped them in her mouth and swigged them back.
She nodded, gulping. "They knock me out during the first few hours." She answered. "And since I'm taking them, I should probably be getting back."
He agreed. "Yeah, we should anyway. Few friends of mine are going to this party tonight and their dragging me along." He got up and held out his hand to help Kiyume up.
"Sounds like fun." Kiyume said, taking his hand and pulling herself up. "But, you'll need to drop me off at a hotel because the movers haven't exactly moved in everything yet..." She said, walking along with him back to this car.
"Really?"
She nodded, closing her eyelids, which grew heavy with every blink. "Yeah and in about half an hour, I'll be out."
"Well, if you want, instead of renting an apartment for the night and wasting money, do you wanna just use my dorm? I'm not gonna be there for most of the night, so you could sleep in peace." He suggested.
"Really?"
He nodded.
"Yep. It'd be a lot safer, too." He added. "And I'd feel better knowing you weren't knocked out in a hotel somewhere."
"You don't have to, you know. I mean, I did just show up, basically. I don't want to impose."
He chuckled, looking at her. "Trust me, you aren't."
- lLl -
Reaching the parking lot of the school, also where his dorm room was, he quietly exited his side of the car, being that Kiyume had fallen asleep on the way back.
"Hey, Itachi!!"
Before Itachi had the chance to walk over to Kiyume's door, Deidara, another friend of his, yelled to him, walking up. "What's going on, yeah?"
He rolled his eyes. Deidara was a good friend, but he could get annoying…a lot. But, he had a use for Deidara. "Come 'ere."
Cautiously, the blonde walked over. "What?" When his eyes landed on the sleeping girl, a huge grin covered his face. "Got yourself a girl, yeah?"
Again, he rolled his eyes. "She's just a friend that I'm helping out."
""Helping out…yeah…"." He mumbled sarcastically.
Itachi just looked at him in annoyance. "Listen, I'm gonna pick her up and I want you to grab her stuff, okay?"
But being Deidara, the sweetheart that he was said, "Alright. Where are we taking her, yeah?"
Itachi averted his gaze, knowing that if he said he was taking her up to his dorm, Deidara would just laugh.
"Come on, tell me!" Noticing how Itachi was silent, he slowly caught on. "…Wait, yeah…you're taking her up to your dorm!"
Itachi still looked away.
Deidara grinned, slapping his shoulder. "Score, Itachi! And she's pretty cute, yeah!"
"Just shut up and do what I told you to, Deidara!" Itachi yelled, glaring at Deidara. So, before Deidara could make a rebuttal he opened the car door and picked her up marriage style, letting her sleep. It wasn't like he was going to wake her anyway.
He waited for Deidara to grab her stuff in the backseat and walked his way up to his dorm.
Only a few minutes later, Itachi carefully and quietly lowered the still sleeping Kiyume onto his bed, pulling the covers out from underneath her first and then bringing them up and tucking her in.
Feeling that she was comfortable, he left the room shutting the door behind him quietly, meeting up with Deidara out in the living room.
"Shit dude, yeah! Your dorm's huge!!" Deidara exclaimed, staring at the immense proportions of the room.
"That's because I got a scholarship, dumbass." He replied, setting his keys on the counter that adjoined the kitchen and the living room. "Now, are we going to that party or what?"
Deidara's eyes lit up at the mention of the party he had totally forgotten about. "YEAH!"
"Good. When's it start?" Itachi asked, dragging Deidara into the kitchen so if he ended up destroying something, it wouldn't be that expensive.
Deidara pulled up his sleeve, flipping his hair from out of his face and looked at the watch on his sleeve. "Umm…in a few minutes, so we should head out, yeah."
"Alright," Itachi turned toward the door, which was located down the hallway from the kitchen. "Let's go."
Deidara followed Itachi down the hall, but hesitantly turned back and looked at the door that led to Itachi's room. "But…are you okay with leaving her here, by herself, yeah?"
Itachi took a glance back as well, but continued to exit the dorm. "She'll be fine, Deidara. Let's go."
Still hesitant, he turned around and followed Itachi out of the dorm. "Let's go get wasted, yeah!!" He screamed as the door closed behind him.
- lLl -
Sighing as he walked into his room, Itachi reveled in the silence. Deidara was such a loud drunk…and of course, Itachi was the one taking him home, since they rode to the party together.
But now, Itachi could just listen to nothing. "God, I love silence…" He said, walking into his room and almost flipping on the light. He shut his eyes, remembering something. "That's right…Kiyume's here…" He whispered, leaving the light off and the door open just a crack. He quickly and quietly got his things and left the room, hearing her roll over and sigh in her sleep.
He chuckled, walking back into the living room, preparing to sleep on the couch and sleep in for a long time. Thank God he didn't have any classes tomorrow.
Before heading to bed finally, he looked at the clock, seeing that it was 2:34 AM. His eyes narrowed. "I hate parties." He said, laying on the couch and drifting off to sleep.
- lLl -
"Come on, Itachi! Faster!" Kiyume yelled, their last class finally finished.
He chuckled, seeing her enthusiasm as she walked out of class. "What's the rush? Classes are over for the day."
She smiled, walking backwards. "The movers finally finished my dorm!" She answered.
Yes, it had been two days since Kiyume had spent the night – and most of the day – sleeping in Itachi's dorm. She was very thankful, but kept her reason for coming back a big secret and little to Itachi's knowing, she was going to spill the beans…at least for one of her reasons.
"Alright, alright, let's go then." He said, smirking. He couldn't help but smile. Kiyume was cute in her childish fashion and for some time it had bothered him why she had acted this way when she was at least 21. He finally realized the answer as he walked with her to her dorm, which wasn't that far from his own. She acted like a child now because she never could before.
She turned to him as they arrived at her door. "Ready?" She asked, smiling.
"Yeah."
"Okay, then…" She unlocked the door and led him inside, flicking on the lights only after he stepped inside.
One thing was certain. Her dorm was much better than his.
His was very plain, like any students' would be, but hers was much different. She had plants and flowers growing from the ceiling with small spotlights hanging around the rafters of the ceiling, aiming their light on huge and small pictures of landscapes, flowers, anything.
"This is my secret." She said, setting her stuff upon the counter between the kitchen and living room, reaching for something below and pulling it up for him to see.
He turned to face her, stunned at the pictures as a bright flash went off in his face. "What the hell?" He mumbled, blinking to regain his sight.
"Oh, my god that was priceless!!" Kiyume laughed, holding the photography camera in her hands. "I can't believe you didn't know I was a photographer!!" She laughed.
Looking back at the room, he said, "I had no clue…" He walked toward one that was next to the window. It was a pretty scene, a dirt road with trees of orange, red and yellow lining it. "Did you take these, Kiyume?" He looked back at her to see her sitting at the counter, smiling at him.
"Yeah. I always loved taking pictures, you know." She smiled even more, looking at the photo.
He smiled back, "Yeah, I know. You never stopped even when we took the camera from you." He answered, walking around to see all the different pictures, while looking at her every time and again. He had known for some time that he did in fact, love Kiyume. He realized it a few years after she left Konoha and his feelings faded…but when she came back, so did his feelings. He couldn't stand the thought of losing her again, even to Leukemia.
Pulling out of his thoughts, he looked back over at her, only to distort his face in horror.
Kiyume was lying on the floor, chair on its side behind her as she lay, eyes closed, unconscious.
"Kiyume!" He yelled, running over to her and kneeling, shaking her shoulder to wake her, though she did not wake. "Oh, shit, oh, shit…please don't die on me…" He mumbled, pulling out his phone and calling 911.
He wouldn't lose her…
Not if he could help it.
- lLl -
Itachi waited as patiently as he could in the lobby of Konoha's Hospital, hands shaking from fear and nerves. He paced, unable to stay seated for more than a few minutes, wearing his shoes to nothing more than laces if he continued.
"Excuse me,"
Itachi immediately turned to face the nurse, ready for some news on her condition. "Yes?"
"You can see her, if you'd like." She said, smiling. With a nod from him, the nurse led him down the hall, to an elevator and up to the second floor, down yet another hall and finally to her room. Before opening it, she said, "Your friend collapsed because she was weak from her chemotherapy treatment, so you know. She'll be released tomorrow as long as she feels okay. Oh and you might want to keep it quiet…She's still a little tired." She added, opening the door, walking inside, Itachi following.
She was the only person in the room, lying on the hospital bed, breathing tube set upon her face, right below her nose and an IV in her arm.
When she saw him through heavyset eyes, a small smile crept onto her face. "Hey." She said quietly.
He smiled back, hiding his distaste in hospitals and the fact that she was in one. "Hey." He pulled up a seat beside her, watching as the nurse left with a nod and smile.
It was silent for a minute between the two as Kiyume closed her eyes and Itachi watched her.
"Why didn't you tell me you had chemo and weren't feeling well?" Itachi asked quietly, reaching up and grabbing her cold hand.
She smiled. "I didn't want you to worry." She answered, gripping his hand with little strength.
"I'm gonna worry either way, Kiyume. You can't expect me to not take care of you."
She chuckled. "But you don't need to take care of me, Itachi…I'm not gonna be here for that much longer. The doctors here told me I have a little over a year. Maybe two." She said quietly. "And it sucks because I won't have time to do what I want…" She mumbled.
He thought about what to say, watching her eyes close. Could he tell her he was in love with her? "Kiyume…" He said, drawing her eyes open and looking into his. "I want to take care of you."
She sighed. "But Itachi – "
"No, just listen to me…. I can't help but want to take care of you because I love you."
Her eyes widened a little, watching more intently.
"I have since we were kids and it really…sucked when you left and I don't want to lose you again." He continued.
"…but you will…"
He sighed. "You said something about doing what you want before, right?"
She nodded, still upset that he loved her. She loved him back, ever since the day they met and loved that her feelings were returned, but hated it as well. Even if her will didn't want to break his heart, her life would anyway. She also knew that Itachi was the most stubborn man she had ever met and whatever he wanted to do, she couldn't stop him. "Yeah…"
He smiled, knowing she was giving into him. "I don't care what they are or how long they take…we're going to finish each and every one, okay?"
She laughed, causing a slight cough. "Yeah, right. There's not enough time!" She replied.
"I don't care. I'll do anything to make you happy, Kiyume." He answered. "Tell me."
She sighed, knowing he wasn't going to settle for anything less than her dreams. Very quietly, she spoke. "…a family."
He blinked, staring at her. "…What?"
She looked at him, gripping his hand. "Well…you know my dad left my mom and I…and then she died…I want something I never had."
He smiled. He knew it all along and was even prepared for this. "Good." He let go of her hand and slipped it into his pocket, pulling out a small box. He set it on her stomach, smiling as he did. "Open it."
She smiled, sitting up and gently grabbing the box, knowing what was inside. She took a deep breath and opened it, seeing the most perfect diamond ring sitting inside. She smiled even more.
"I saw it one day a few years ago and it just…reminded me so much of you…" He didn't even bother or need to ask her to marry him because he already knew the answer.
She looked over at him, taking the ring from the box and slipping it onto her left ring finger. "It's perfect." She said breathlessly, her mind void of anything else to say.
He smiled at her expression. "I knew you'd say that. You're so predictable."
She arched an eyebrow. "Oh really?"
"Yeah."
"Well, did you predict this?" She removed the oxygen tube, slipping it over her head, leaning over the edge of the bed and kissing him passionately. Within a few minutes the kiss got very zealous and Kiyume scooted a little too far to the side of the bed, slipping right off the side and right onto Itachi's lap.
Before she slipped off of his lap, he held onto her and whispered into his ear, "No, not exactly that…"
She giggled at his breath tickling her neck. "Can't get anything past you, can I?" She kissed his lips just once and pulled back, teasing him.
"Nope."
- lLl -
Before the month was over, after midterms, Itachi and Kiyume were married in a very small, off campus ceremony with only a few close friends, mostly Itachi's friends since Kiyume had just moved back to Konoha just a little more than a month ago. A lot of the people on campus never knew, some professors did, being Kiyume was absent a lot – due to her chemotherapy – but Itachi always made it a staple to get her work and bring it back to his dorm, since she lived there when she had her chemo and took her "sleepy" pills, as named by Itachi.
But within the next month, they were both in for a big surprise…
Kiyume had once again taken the day off, not from her chemo, but from throwing up a few times during the night. She had wanted to go but Itachi made her stay home.
So while sitting and watching TV, an episode of Reba, a thought embedded itself in her mind, but she was quick to shake it off. Through more of the episode, it became very clear that the idea in her mind could be very, very true.
She sighed heavily, getting up off the couch and walking into the bathroom. She closed the toilet lid, standing on it to get a better view inside the medicine cabinet. She rummaged through it and suddenly tilted her head, finding what she was looking for. "Why does Itachi have a pregnancy test in his medicine cabinet?" She mumbled, jumping off the toilet seat. She sighed again, sitting on the closed lid. "I'm only doing this to make sure…" She assured herself. "There's no way it could be positive…"
3 very long minutes later…
"HOLY SHIT……" The positive test fell right out of Kiyume's hands and dropped onto the floor as she stood there. "There's no way…we were really careful!"
And before Kiyume knew it there was a knock at the bathroom door, which she had carelessly left unlocked. "Kiyume? Are you throwing up again?" Itachi received silence for an answer. "I'm coming in."
Before she could reply, he had opened the door and walked only two steps in, immediately seeing the test lying at Kiyume's feet. She looked over at him, a worried look in her eyes.
"Kiyume…" He said, taking a few steps toward her, still eyeing the test on the floor. "Are you…" He had to ask, his brain already answering the question, but still needing to know.
She sighed shakily. "Ummm…." She looked down, away from him and quietly shook her head yes, closing her eyes and trying to hold back tears.
"Come 'ere, sweetheart." Itachi said, pulling her into a hug. He could feel her crying lightly but he couldn't figure out why. "It's okay…This is a good thing."
She sighed shakily. "No…it's not!" She gripped the back of his shirt, pulling it into her fingertips.
He pulled her into a tighter embrace. "Yeah, it is…" He assured her.
But with tear stained eyes, she looked into his. "Itachi…with a baby…"
He waited.
"I can't have chemo…it would hurt the baby…" She said quietly.
His eyes seemed to drift away from hers and the thought entered and set in his mind. "Oh…" He said barely, voice gone from shock. He hadn't thought about that.
Would he really lose his wife for his baby?
"Yeah." She said, burying her face into his chest.
Quickly, Itachi thought of something to do. "Well…how about this…" He stroked her hair. "We'll go out on the couch and sleep for a bit…then we'll decide…together. Okay?"
She nodded, sniffling, letting him usher her out of the bathroom and onto the couch.
He sat down first, letting her sit and then pulling her into his arms as he laid back on the couch, making her rest against him.
"Itachi?"
"Hm?" He answered, eyes closed.
"I love you."
He kissed the top of her head, knotting her fingers with his. "I love you, too."
- lLl -
Within the next few weeks, Kiyume had seen her own regular doctor and her chemotherapy doctor to consult her options. Of course, Itachi insisted on going with her, which she gladly accepted.
"So what you do guys think?" She asked, sitting upon the bench placed inside the doctor's office, Itachi standing next to her, both doctors in chairs on the opposite side of the small room.
"Well," Her regular doctor addressed her, pulling down her glasses. "first off, I think it's wonderful that you're having a baby." She said smiling. "But, I worry about the health of you and the baby in the long term of things."
"Yes, I agree." Her male doctor, the chemo doctor, jumped in. "Without your chemo, the chance of your Leukemia advancing is about…" He flipped over a few papers on the chart he held in his hand. "55 chance. Plus, without the chemo, your body might not be able to sustain the baby, physically of course."
"And that," The female doctor said. "could result in a premature baby and your death."
Noticing her shaking hands Itachi wrapped his arm around her, grabbing both of her hands, almost resting on her. "Okay, we've heard the bad stuff, tell us what could be good about this, because there's always a good side."
The male nodded. "Right. There's a 45 chance that your Leukemia will only progress enough to not affect you and a few weeks after birth, you could start chemo again and maybe even beat your Leukemia."
"Plus, your baby would be in good health." The female nodded.
Itachi smiled, looking over at her, whispering in her ear. "See? I told you it would be okay."
Kiyume thought it over, looking away from him and down to her feet, which swished back and forth. She knew a baby was a good thing – plus, they were married, which made it even better – but she also knew that it would be hard to have a baby without chemo…and she couldn't stand the thought of leaving Itachi as a single father. Who was she to make him explain to their child why mommy is gone?
She sighed heavily and slightly shaky. "Okay."
Itachi grinned, holding her hands even tighter, kissing her neck.
She pulled away, setting her forehead against his. "But you have to promise me something."
He smiled. "Anything."
"If," She stressed. "Something does happen to me after the baby is born…"
He frowned a bit, not wanting to think about something like that.
"You'll tell him or her about mommy everyday…and that you won't raise him or her alone." She finished.
He smiled. "Mommy will always be telling the stories." He replied. "But there won't ever be another mommy in his or her life. Just you."
She smiled back. "I didn't mean another mommy…just help. From Uncle Deidei or Uncle Pinocchio."
He laughed. "Don't you mean Auntie Deidei?"
She laughed. "Well, whatever. I just don't want you to suffer as a single parent."
"I won't cause I'll have you right there with me."
"Well," Her female doctor said, bringing both Itachi and Kiyume to look at them. "I wish you guys the best of luck."
"Me too." Her male doctor finished, both of them smiling.
- lLl -
Within the next 8 and a half months, Kiyume permanently moved into Itachi's dorm and took a leave of absence from all of her classes except one.
Her photography class, which she wouldn't dare miss.
Of course, Itachi had no debate in making her miss. He knew her photography was way too important to her to miss. Usually he escorted her to her outdoors class and if she couldn't, "Auntie" Deidara would take her, becoming good friends and eventually, the Godfather of the baby to be born.
Sasori played a special part as well. He became "Uncle" Sasori and stayed with Kiyume when Itachi would be gone for a long amount of time. He and Kiyume had a special kinship – being that her late grandfather was a puppeteer, just like Sasori – so, he became the second Godfather.
But it seemed to go way to fast for the four because, before they knew it, Kiyume went into labor.
Though, it wasn't the ideal place to go into labor.
She was with Deidara, Itachi busy studying for his finals in the campus library, in her outdoor photography class more than half an hour away from any hospital.
"Whatdoido, whatdoido, whatdoido!!!" Deidara screamed frantically, almost ripping his hair out.
Kiyume, who was standing, held her hand on the underside of her enlarged belly and then grabbed and clenched Deidara's hand with her free hand. "Call Itachi." She said. "I just started labor. The contractions are that bad yet."
His blue gray eyes stared into hers for only a second and then did as she said.
"But," She stopped him. "Get me to the hospital as soon as you can because there is no way I'm having this baby in your car!" She yelled, making his eyes go wide.
"You're freaking right! There's no way in hell you're having a baby in MY baby!!" Deidara said, walking with her to his prized yellow Ferrari (a gift from his very rich dad who owns an explosive company.).
She smiled after wincing from a contraction. "I know. I wouldn't dream of ruining your "baby"."
Rushed to the hospital (and getting a speeding ticket along the way), Kiyume was quickly run up into a room via wheelchair, Deidara following along behind frantically, finding Itachi's number and calling it.
Almost immediately, he picked up, a gruff and angry tone in his voice. "What? I told you not to call me. I'm studying." He hissed.
"Well," Deidara huffed. "You might want to pack up and come here, yeah." He added.
Itachi, in the library, set down his pencil and asked, "Well…where is here?"
"The hospital."
With the word hospital, Itachi's brain linked it all together as he stood up, knocking his chair back, yelling, "WHAT?! WHY DIDN'T YOU – "
"Hush!!!" The librarian hissed at him.
Everyone in the library was looking over at him.
On the other side of the phone, Deidara was laughing hysterically, still breathing hard. "Yeah, don't worry she's not far along, but she's in labor. You better get your ass in gear, Dad."
"Alright. I'll be there soon." Itachi said grinning, packing up his stuff and holding his phone to his ear with his shoulder.
"Oh and you owe me $100 bucks."
"WHAT?!"
"SHUT UP." The librarian said sternly, glaring at Itachi.
Again, Deidara laughed. "Got a speeding ticket for you, yeah."
"Great." Itachi said with disgust, yet joy. The day he had been waiting for, for 8 and a half long months, was here. "I'll be there."
Deidara smiled. "Alright. I'll hold you to it, yeah."
It was less than 15 minutes before Itachi arrived, running into her room and sighing. He hadn't missed anything – or at least, anything important.
Kiyume, tired and a bit sweaty, looked over at him and smiled, but suddenly threw her head back on the bed and screamed loudly, gripping Deidara's hand, who stood to her left.
He smiled and walked over to her right side, grabbing her other free hand.
Resting her head on the pillow behind her, she looked up at him. "You made it."
He smiled, kissing her forehead. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."
She chuckled and smiled at him. "And I'd kill you if," She winced and held back a scream. "you did." She finished, sighing.
"Don't worry, you're doing great." The doctor, standing in front of her said, smiling.
It wasn't very long before Sasori arrived, thanks to Deidara's call after he called Itachi, giving Kiyume further support.
And only a few minutes later, a very loud wail filled the near silent room, save for Kiyume's screams and the support of Itachi, Deidara and Sasori.
They all saw the doctor smile through his mask as he said, "It's a healthy baby boy."
Itachi grinned, gripping Kiyume's hand tightly. They had never found out the baby's gender; as long as it was healthy, along with Kiyume, they were happy. In secret, though, Itachi wish for a boy – like any father would.
But when he looked down at Kiyume to kiss her, his heart almost stopped. "Ki...Kiyume?"
Lying there, her eyes closed and breathing shallow, her head had rolled to the side and she showed no sign of knowing what had just happened.
"Kiyume!" He yelled, shaking her shoulder, trying to wake her.
The doctor, hearing his cry, looked up. His eyes widened a bit and handed the baby to a nurse, who wrapped him in a blanket and took him from the room. He walked up to Kiyume, Deidara moving aside to let him through as he lifted her eyelids and checked her pupils. "I'm sorry," He said, looking at the three of them. "But you'll need to leave and go wait in the waiting room until I call you back." He said sternly.
Deidara and Sasori looked at each other and then nodded.
"No. I won't leave her." Itachi said just as sternly as the doctor did. "She's my wife."
"She's my patient, sir."
"Come on, dude. You'll see her soon enough." Sasori said as he and Deidara dragged Itachi from the room.
In the waiting room, fashioned much like a living room would be, Deidara and Sasori simply sat down, not ever knowing about Kiyume's cancer and never even thinking it was a possibility.
They both just thought that Itachi wanted Kiyume all to himself, the reason for their marriage and that he just liked sex, the reason she was now in the hospital with a baby.
But Itachi, pacing just like before, bit his fingernail and sighed often, looking out the door to see if the doctor was coming with any news.
"What are you worried about, yeah? She probably just passed out." Deidara said, shrugging his shoulders.
"You wouldn't understand." Itachi replied curtly.
"Well, no need to get mad about it." Sasori jumped in.
Itachi stopped and glared at him. "I'm not mad. I just want to know if she's alright, because if she's not, it's all my fault."
Deidara gave him a very strange look.
Suddenly, the door opened and in walked her doctor, mask hanging around his neck.
All three stood up.
"Here's the deal." He said, looking mainly at Itachi. "You're wife is in a coma, to be frank. The leu– "
"Wait." Itachi said, glancing back at Deidara and Sasori, who looked very confused. "Let's talk outside." He said as the doctor nodded, walking with him out of the room. Itachi turned back to Deidara and Sasori. "You two stay here. This doesn't concern you."
"LIKE HELL IT DOESN'T!!" Deidara yelled.
Itachi simply glared and walked out the door. "Sorry. Continue."
He smiled back. "I understand, you don't want them to know. But anyway, your wife slipped into a coma when the baby was born. I check her stats and they all seem to be fine other than her cell count, which is very low." He paused for a minute. "I hate to say this, but your wife's leukemia has progressed during her time without chemotherapy and that is why she's in a coma. It made her too weak to carry the baby, though we were lucky that she had it now and not earlier."
Itachi closed his eyes. It was his fault. He sighed as heavily as he could and asked, "Will she wake up?"
He sighed. "We don't know when or if she'll wake up. It could be in a few minutes…or never."
Itachi closed his eyes in pain. They were warned about all this…but Kiyume went along with it just because of him. It was all his fault.
"Look, you may see her…and I believe she can hear things…" He looked behind Itachi, to the waiting room and found a very curious blonde and redhead watching from the window. "And you might want to tell your friends what's going on…they seem to want to know." He said, making Itachi look up and behind them to the waiting room.
He squinted his eyes, seeing the fleeting colors of blonde and red. "Yeah, I will. Is she still in the same room as before?" He asked.
"Yes."
He smiled a bit. "Thanks, doc."
He nodded. "I'll be back in a bit to check on her."
"Alright." Itachi turned around, just as the doctor did and both walked in separate directions.
"What's going on?" Sasori immediately asked, seeing Itachi walk back in the room.
"Is Kiyume okay, yeah? What's happened? Does he know wh – "
Itachi cut him off, pulling up a chair and sitting on it. "Yeah, he knows. I know too."
Deidara, on the edge of his seat, shook his head slightly in confusion. "What?"
Itachi sighed. This was gonna be ugly… "Well, you two don't know this, but Kiyume and I got married so quickly for a certain reason."
Deidara chuckled a bit. "Because you like her and sex, too, yeah."
Itachi looked over at him with narrowed eyes. "Uh, no…well…yeah, but that's not it."
"You married her because she's sick, isn't she?" Sasori asked, leaning against the back of the couch.
Deidara looked at Itachi with wide eyes. Kiyume was like his sister and she didn't even tell him she was sick?!
Itachi sighed again. "Yeah. She's had leukemia for about…3 years now."
Deidara fell back into his seat, speechless.
Sasori wasn't as speechless. "I kinda figured as much. It was way too obvious…. I just wanted to see if she would tell me… I didn't think it was leukemia though."
"Yeah, that's why we decided to get married and have a baby…just in case something happened to her. We were warned when we found out that something like this would happen…and I…" He found himself at a loss for words, never before expressing much emotion to anyone other than family.
"You feel like it's your fault, don't you, yeah?" Deidara asked, eyes very calm.
"Yeah." Suddenly, Itachi was whacked on the head. "What the – ?!" He rubbed his head, seeing Deidara and Sasori standing above him.
"Such an idiot, yeah."
Sasori smirked. "If she was more worried about her health, she never would've agreed to have a baby, let alone get married." He explained.
"Yeah, so let's go see her and the baby!!" Deidara exclaimed, pulling Itachi up and beginning to pull him out of the room.
"Well…you two can go see the baby…I don't want to see him until she wakes up." He answered, taking his arm back and walking with them to Kiyume's room.
Deidara and Sasori looked at each other. Someone had to ask it…
"What if…"
Reaching the door, Itachi set his hand on it, refraining from looking at either of them. "She will. She's too stubborn to die."
And fortunately for Itachi's nerves, within the month, Kiyume did wake up. He was sitting with her, holding her hand gently, tracing circles around her knuckles, while Sasori was trying reading a book in the corner of the room, distracted by Deidara in the seat next to him, playing "mommy" while holding the little boy Itachi refused to see.
As he traced her knuckles, staring blankly into her closed eyes, her fingers twitched and she very quietly moaned as if she was waking up. "…mmmm…"
All movement other than the baby's ceased.
Itachi, wide-eyed, stared at her face watching as she tilted her head and very slowly, opened her deep blue eyes.
She gripped the hand that held hers, using it to try and sit up, but was stopped by a calm voice.
"Shhh…You've been asleep for a while…don't go getting up now."
She smiled a weak smile, recognizing it as the one she loved.
"Tachi-kun…" She spoke softly, heavyset eyes drifting to meet his gaze. "…love you…"
He could not help but smile. "Kiyume…do you remember anything before going to sleep?"
She shut her eyes, taking a deep breath. "…baby."
One word. That one word was all he needed.
"Here…" Deidara said softly, getting up and gently handing the child to Itachi, who said,
"Wait one second…"
He got up, helping Kiyume up to a seated position and sat behind her, leaning against the wall. He pulled her closer, letting her rest on him. "Okay, Deidara."
Deidara smiled. This was just way too damn cute. Lucky thing Deidara had his camera…
He gently set the child into Kiyume's arms, supported by Itachi's arms, both of them holding him at the same time.
"…son?" Kiyume asked, looking up at Itachi. She had no idea of the baby's gender, since she did slip into a coma.
Itachi smiled, kissing her neck. "Our son."
Sasori got up, removing his glasses and closing his book, setting them both down and walking over. "Have you guys decided on a name yet?"
Kiyume looked up at Itachi, who looked down at her.
"No." Itachi said, looking back down at the big dark bluish, nearly black eyes of his son.
Kiyume removed one of her hands, brushing his very dark hair back, loving eyes watching as his hands reached for hers. "Keitaro."
The three men looked at her.
"Blessed?" Deidara asked, a confused smile on his face.
Kiyume cleared her throat, ready to explain. "He's blessed to be alive…because I should've been dead 2 and a half years ago."
Just as she finished, the door quietly opened and in walked the doctor. He stopped dead, almost dropping his chart, eyes wide. "Y…you're awake!" He said quietly, noticing the baby in her arms.
She smiled and nodded. "Yeah. A little tired, but awake." She paused. "And alive."
- lLl -
Two very happy years passed for all of them. Keitaro, nicknamed, "Taro" by his mother whom he loved very much, was an adorable little boy.
He still retained his dark blue/blackish eyes, his eye shape mirroring that of his fathers'. His black with a slight dark red sheen shaggy hair was soft like his mothers…and as shaggy as hers too.
With him always was a medium sized stuffed white bunny, which he had named Gin. He carried Gin around by the arm, dragging it constantly. It was a present he had had since birth, given to him by none other than his own father, who Gin used to belong to.
In his other hand was always Kiyume's, Itachi's, Deidara's or Sasori's hand – whoever was with him at the time. He was a bit attached to all of them, his mom in particular.
Somehow, she was always there for him. He didn't know how but every time he cut his finger or scraped his knee, mommy was always there to make it better. She always rocked him to sleep and read him stories…always had his food ready, just always there.
Of course, daddy was there too, just not as much. He was a smart kid; he knew daddy was helping them and he was always with mommy at night, helping her out whenever she needed it.
And there was "Auntie" Dei-dei and "Uncle" Sasori, who baby-sat Taro whenever Itachi and Kiyume wanted to go out or when Kiyume had appointments, for she went back on chemotherapy soon after Taro was born.
But one day in particular was very different for Taro.
It was spring break at campus and the four of them decided to have a small picnic at the local park, right by the swings.
"Mommy!" Taro said, climbing onto his mother's lap, Gin limply lying next to her, his hand with Taro's.
She smiled sweetly at him, holding him. "Yes, Keitaro?"
He put his finger to her face. "I gotsa cuts." He said, big blue eyes watery.
She chuckled. "Okay." She kissed it, keeping her eyes on his. "There. All better!"
He hugged her and then kissed her. "Tanks, mommy!!" He turned around, jumping off of her lap and ran off the blanket, toward his dad, who was walking up with Deidara and Sasori.
"Sorry we're late, yeah. Traffic." Deidara said as Taro pulled on his pants for attention. "Dei-Dei!!" He yelled, smiling at lot like Kiyume would.
Deidara kneeled down, messing up his hair. "What's going on, buddy?"
Taro smiled, thrusting his finger into Deidara's face. "Cuts!!"
While Deidara kept Taro busy, Itachi smiled when he saw Kiyume sitting there and went over to her, sitting next to her and kissing her sweetly. "I missed you."
She kissed back. "I missed you, too."
"EEEWWWWW!"
Itachi and Kiyume laughed. Taro always did hate it when they kissed. But he came over, climbing over his mother's lap, crawling right into dad's lap.
"Play in sandbox, daddy!!" He yelled, waving his arms around and pointing to the giant sandbox next to the swings.
It was for certain he had inherited Kiyume's personality…at least while he was happy. Taro always was a little…stoic when he got mad…just like his dad.
"Okay, okay." He smiled, letting Taro get off of his lap and standing up. He grabbed his son's hand, beginning to walk to the sand box, where Deidara had already gone while Sasori was also making his way over. When he noticed that his wife was not with them, he ushered Taro on and went back to Kiyume. "What's wrong?"
She chuckled a bit. "Nothing, you go ahead and play. You've had a tougher day than me." She answered with a smile.
But he knew that smile. That fake smile…one that showed she was worried…and had a lot on her mind. "Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I'll watch from here." She answered, folding her hands.
He planted a kiss on her forehead. "Okay…you yell if you need something."
"Don't I always?"
He smiled and walked back to the sandbox, seeing Taro throw sand at Deidara. But, it wasn't like he didn't notice. He knew, had always known that Kiyume could never sit in one spot without moving a few times to get comfortable, and then move more to find a new spot.
Ever since they showed up, five minutes ago, she had not moved from one spot. Not even just brining her legs out in front of her. She hadn't moved at all – and knew exactly what that meant.
But to keep it from bothering Taro, he kept it to the back of his mind.
Even though, Taro wasn't a stupid kid.
When Itachi sat with them, Taro looked up at him. "Daddy, is mommy sick?"
All three men looked at each other. When had Taro figured it out?? HOW????
"Why do you say that, Taro?" Sasori asked, being the only one not speechless.
"No smiles." He answered, lifting up the bucket full of sand to produce a tower.
Itachi looked at his son and helped him with the castle he was beginning to build. "No, buddy, she's not sick." He lied.
"No lying." He answered, looking at his father. He had those same eyes…. Eyes just like her's…
"Than I'll go see mommy and ask, her, okay?" He began to stand up, handing his empty bucket to Deidara, who was still trying to get sand from his hair.
"Tanks daddy!!" He smiled.
Itachi smiled too, noticing he also had that smile…
But he walked out of the sandbox and back to his wife, who tilted her head at him as he arrived.
"Something wrong?" She asked, still sitting in the same position as when he left.
"Yeah," He began, sitting next to her. "Taro thinks you're sick."
She laughed. "I can't get anything past him or you, can I?"
He looked at her, not believing she was laughing. Something so serious and she was laughing. "Kiyume, this is serious. What's going on?" He asked sternly, not looking away from her.
She sighed, knowing that she wasn't going to get out of it. "Well…" She started. "You know I had my chemo yesterday…"
He nodded.
She sighed again. "I haven't told anyone yet…but the chemo stopped working a few months ago."
His heart dropped. "…" He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
Using her arms, she nearly dragged herself closer to him, legs too weak to support her. She set her head on his chest.
He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her onto his lab.
"I wanna go on the swings." She said quietly.
He smiled a bit. "Okay."
To make it seem as though she was okay, since Taro was within sight of them, Itachi stood up first, pulling Kiyume up on her very unstable legs and holding her up by the waist. She had her arm around his neck, hand clutching his shoulder to keep up.
He walked along, his side nearest to Taro, not showing Kiyume's dragging feet.
When they reached the swings, a little further off from the sandbox, he set her on the swing, arms able to hold herself up.
"Better?" Itachi asked, pulling her back.
She turned to him and smiled. "Much."
He continued to push and pull, since she couldn't do it herself. "So, you said it stopped working a few months ago?"
"Yeah." She answered. "I've been getting weak like this for a while…"
He contemplated on asking what he wanted. But he did anyway. "Why didn't you say anything?"
She was quiet for a few minutes. "…I didn't want to worry you guys…" She said meekly.
He was also quiet. "Is there anything more we can do?"
"I don't want to do anything else." She answered, voice growing.
"Why?" Itachi asked, confused. If she didn't do anything, she would die, and Itachi wasn't going to go through that.
"I'm tired of going to the hospital and having treatments. I'm tired of being away from my son and my friends and you! I'm tired of being tired!! I'm so weak, I can't even pick up my own son!!! " She yelled.
Her swing slowed to a stop.
"Tachi-kun?"
Itachi had stopped pushing and moved in front of her. "Koibito…" He started off, pulling her up and looking at her in the eyes. "…I didn't know…but if that's what you want…I'm with you on it."
Tears slowly started to form on her eyes and she held him, burying her face in his shoulder. "I don't want to die, Itachi…but I'm tired of being weak and sick…I just want to be with you and Keitaro…"
He rubbed her back, closing his eyes.
"Mommy!!!!"
Kiyume immediately cleaned her eyes on Itachi's sleeve. She couldn't let her son see her tears.
"Mommy!!" Taro was there, pulling on Itachi's pant leg. "I wanna hug too!!" He yelled.
Itachi was the one to pick him up, both of them hugging him, his small arms around both of their necks.
"Love you mommy, daddy." He said, his face touching the both of theirs.
Tears almost fell from Kiyume's eyes, her smile stopping her.
"I love you too, Keitaro." She answered, her voice cracking. "Both of you. So much."
That night was the last night Kiyume would ever read to him. His favorite book, 100 Acre Wood, hearing about Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh always put him to sleep quickly.
But just as she left the room, legs shaking…she shut the door behind her, she slid down the door, eyes blurry and unfocused finally shut.
Itachi found her moments later, standing first in shock, then moving to wake her. He kneeled and gently slapped her cheek, then shook her shoulders, softly calling her name. "Kiyume…Wake up."
She did not move.
"Wake up!" He hissed.
Her head simply rolled to the side and she still did not wake.
He pulled her closer to him, able to feel her soft and steady breathing, a tear falling from his cheek. He suddenly pulled out his phone. "Deidara, pick up, you lazy ass…"
"What's up, yeah?" He answered normally, figuring it was Kiyume who was calling him, since she always called from Itachi's phone when they were home.
"Deidara, I need you over here. Something's happened to Kiyume and she won't wake up." Itachi said, standing up and pulling Kiyume up with him.
Deidara's heart sank. He knew exactly what those words meant. "Okay."
Early the next morning, around 2am, Itachi walked back into his dorm, meeting up with an awake Deidara, Sasori and Keitaro.
"Daddy!!!" He yelled, jumping off the back of the couch and running to his father, hugging his legs.
Itachi knelt down, hugging his son as tight as he could.
"Daddy?" Taro asked, looking at his father. Only at very rare times would his father hug him. But why now?
Then Taro realized it.
"Where's mommy?"
Itachi held him tighter.
Only Auntie was here when Taro had a nightmare and had gone running to his parent's room to sleep with mommy and daddy…but both were gone. And now, only daddy came back.
"She's…" Itachi could barely speak, his voice cracking. "Sleeping."
Taro pulled back, his eyes staring into his father's. "Sleeping?"
It was killing Itachi to look straight into Taro's eyes, seeing his wife's in place of his. "Yes. Sleeping. She'll be asleep for a long time."
He tilted his head. "How long?"
"Long."
"Why?" He asked, his huge eyes begging for an answer.
"She was tired." He answered, voice quiet. But, he smiled. "And you, mister, should be in bed. We have a busy day tomorrow."
"Okay, daddy." He let go of his father and grabbed his large hand as he stood up. "Would you read to me, daddy?"
As Taro led the way, Itachi asked, "Of course, Keitaro. Which story, 100 Acre Wood?"
"No!" Taro yelled. "Mommy's gonna read that to me when she wakes up!!" He answered, making Itachi frown just a little.
In that case, he'd never hear it again.
Just as they walked down the hall, Deidara got up, but was soon stopped.
"No, Deidara. He needs to spend time with his son." Sasori stated, looking at him.
He fell over onto the couch, eyes low. "So…we're really never gonna see her again?"
"…"
"Alright."
- Epilogue -
It had been 4 years since Kiyume passed away. At first, life was rough…Itachi always at school or in the library, Deidara usually the one to take care of Keitaro.
It was only a certain event in where Keitaro disappeared that Itachi became a very frantic…
"Keitaro!!! Keitaro!!!" Itachi called frantically, looking every in the park for his son.
He had been on the jungle gym; Itachi swore he saw him there. He had been reading a book for his Literature class, looking up every once in a while.
But this time, he looked up and Keitaro was nowhere to be found.
"Keitaro!! Where are you!?!" He yelled. He would be damned if he lost his son, the only connection of his wife that was left.
Not at the jungle gym, he checked the teeter-totter and the round spiny thing, but he still wasn't there.
Maybe the sandbox?
Itachi ran there, seeing lots of kids and their mothers playing there.
"Try the swings." A voice told him.
He whipped around, swearing whoever it was was behind him. "Who – " His eyes landed on the swing set, where a lonely little boy swung softly, a white bunny swinging along with him.
Itachi sighed in relief. "Taro!!" He ran up to him, kneeling and hugging his son as tight as he could. "You scared me!!" He noticed just exactly where they were.
Keitaro was sitting on the same swing that Kiyume had sat on 4 years ago…on that very day.
"Sorry, daddy…. I scrappded my knee and mommy made it better…Then she said to come here and we would play." Keitaro explained.
"Mommy?" Itachi questioned, looking at his son. "Mommy's sleeping, remember?"
"Not all the time, Daddy." A very soft voice said as the swing Keitaro was sitting on pushed forward a bit.
Itachi smiled. "Thanks, Mommy." He got up and went behind Keitaro, pulling the swing back as he had done so many years ago. "Ready, Taro?!"
"Yeah!!!" He laughed, grabbing his bunny and setting it on his lap.
Itachi's smile grew more and more as he remembered a very small, but key detail.
Kiyume though gone in person, lived on in spirit – and more importantly, in Keitaro.