A/N: So this took way longer than it should have and honestly I may come back and edit this later. I had three versions of chapter two and this is the one I chose. Hope you enjoy. If you guys want I can add the other two versions later on~
Feelings On A Whim| Chapter Two
Deidara lay comfortably in the water, his head tilted back and resting on the rock behind him. The mission with Sasori had been more stressful than he could have imagined and it had mostly been a morbid reminder of how much he was itching to get away from the older puppet.
Their mission had been simple enough: act as mercenaries to help take out some enemy camp site. Nothing out of the ordinary. The two of them had done plenty of missions like this before but this time it had been more tedious. What normally would have taken two or three days took almost a week after the two Akatsuki members got stuck in a shoot out, so to speak. Their targets may not have been strong but damn they were persistent.
In the end the bomber and the puppeteer were victorious and as an added bonus were paid extra for their troubles.
After a few weeks of being back in Ame, Deidara had decided to take advantage of this extra pay to treat himself to a well deserved, and a much needed break at a hot spring. This particular spring was a bit more expensive than most considering that all rooms had their own personal spring that was section off from the others for added privacy, but the young blonde didn't mind. It had been so long since he had gotten a chance to truly splurge on himself.
The blonde stared up into the night sky, steam veiling his view of the stars but not enough to shield them from him completely. He took solace in the warm ambience and the low lighting provided by the lanterns stationed around his section of spring. Soft music could be heard in the distance, originating from another part of the resort.
As he listened and star gazed his mind began to wander to an incident that happened shortly after he arrived back at the Akatsuki base a few weeks earlier.
Something he wasn't sure that he wanted to remember or to forget.
Two days had passed since his return from his mission. Deidara wandered from his room at the base towards the kitchen. Passing through a maze of hallways and doorways without a second thought to where he was actually heading. His feet simply walking the familiar paths as they had always done.
As he entered the kitchen his attention finally set itself on the movement in front of him. Dark raven hair and a warm smoky, pine like scent graced his senses.
Blue eyes widened slightly as they were caught in the gaze of crimson ones.
"I..Itachi..?" The young blonde spoke his name with a mixture of confusion and surprise. He had not been expecting to see the Uchiha here. It was rare to see Itachi out of his room whenever he was stationed at this base.
He received nothing in response but a blank stare and for a few moments the two of them stood there in awkward silence.
The older member finally broke the silence. "Something is bothering you."
Deidara tilted his head as the statement reached him. He hadn't felt as though something was bothering him and he felt odd receiving this much attention from the man he felt he loathed.
"Of course, yeah. I'm hungry that's why I came into the kitchen." The bomber snorted out. He just wanted to get food and get out. The longer he stayed in the Uchiha's presence the more agitated he was becoming.
He moved forward attempting to get to the refrigerator. Itachi slowly moved aside but did not take his intense glare off the younger member.
"Will you always pretend to hate me?"
Deidara stopped mid stride, his hand in the air, held in its place and prevented from coming down to the fridge handle. The blonde snapped his gaze back to the raven haired man. "What? It's not pretend, yeah, I actually fucking hate you. You.. you think you're above my art. You don't even know what true art is, hmm!"
He couldn't help himself. He always attempted to keep a calm cool demeanor around Itachi in order to study him, to get the better of him but it never worked. The damn Uchiha just pissed him off so much.
Itachi closed his eyes and finally pulled himself away from the bomber's space. "I never said I was above your art." He walked off and stopped at the doorway, not bothering to turn around as he added, "And who are you to assume that I know nothing about art or that I cannot appreciate it."
When Itachi had finally gone and he was sure he was alone in the kitchen Deidara allowed himself to breathe again. What the hell had that been? Had the Uchiha actually admitted to appreciating his art? Deidara was unsure. Whatever Itachi had meant by those words had given the blonde butterflies in his stomach. Much like the kind he used to get during his first days in Sasori's presence.
Deidara glanced wistfully at the fridge. He no longer seemed to have an appetite.
Letting out a long sigh Deidara allowed his right hand to toy with several strands of hair. He still had no idea what this meant or why it had made him feel so alive to hear Itachi say those words. They had replayed over and over again as the days went on.
He wanted nothing more than to confront the Uchiha about it. Demand that he explain himself. But how? When? The raven haired man was so elusive; even so the bomber wasn't even sure he wanted to talk to Itachi.
He felt as though he shouldn't speak with him. As if doing so would make him a betrayer in Sasori's eyes. Even now, even when he and Sasori truly had nothing left but a sliver of intimacy that was ninety-eight percent once sided, he still thought of the puppeteer. Still yearned for his approval and considered his feelings.
Deidara sucked his teeth in annoyance and in a quick spur of immaturity he slapped a hand down into the water. Steam and water droplets moved about at the suddenly assault. As he watched his own reflection in the ripples Deidara made the decision final.
Fuck the puppeteer and pride be damned. He would confront Itachi, and if it led to other things then so be it. He was his own man, his own person. He did not belong to Sasori anymore.