It had only been a week. It had been a week since arriving in Sunagakure and starting a new life. Except, Aiko did not feel like she was starting a new life. She felt trapped. She stayed in her bedroom. The boring light brown clay made bedroom with the king size bed and white blankets. At least it was comfortable.
She had not seen the Kazekage much. He was very busy. That was fine. He made her a bit nervous. She couldn't really explain why though. Any time she passed him, he would smile at her. She would simply hurry away.
Yasuo stayed close by at all times. That was rather irritating after a while. Aiko was not used to such heavy monitoring. Back home she worked at least. She began to wonder if she could work in Suna. Surely there was something she could do. If they were going to be staying a while, she might as well be comfortable at least. Having a job would offer her some kind of routine which would make her feel normal which was a step towards comfortable.
Aiko got up. It was late and she had been lying awake thinking about things for a good solid hour now. It had only been a week but Aiko hated that she had yet to become comfortable enough to sleep easy. She lit a candle and then went and looked out her window. The sky was clear and full of stars. The moon lit up the desert easily and made the sand look to be light blue. It was interesting to see how the color theme of the desert could change so drastically just due to the time of day.
After staring out the window for a short bit, Aiko walked out into the hallway. It was quiet and dimly lit. She tried to step lightly, fearing that Yasuo might hear her and trail behind her. She didn't want him bothering her. She hurried away from their rooms and to the well supplied kitchen on their floor.
Aiko began to wonder who all stayed there and where. She knew that she and Yasuo were on the second floor. The Kazekage's office was on the third floor. Where was his room? Did anyone else live there too? She thought about these things while she had a glass of water.
She took her time and then decided that she was going to look around the building a bit before heading back to her room. She hoped that was okay. Gaara had said before to feel free to explore. It's not like she was looking for anything in particular.
After finishing her drink, Aiko cleaned her glass and then headed back into the dim hallway. It was a bit strange how quiet it was. She expected there to be a little commotion from guards or something. There wasn't even that. Yasuo had said he felt that Suna was the safest place to be. Aiko was having a very difficult time agreeing with him.
Eventually Aiko wandered and found a door that led outside onto a large balcony. She decided to go and check it out. She pulled her light blue pajama shirt closer to her. It was still hard to believe how much the desert cooled after the sun went down.
Aiko looked over the village and out into the desert. It seemed that the village was the only obvious life in the vast sands. It looked so lonely. It was a little sad actually. She sighed to herself quietly. She wondered how Rin was doing. She wondered where Mamoru was and what he might be like. She wondered how long they would get to stay here.
Thinking about all of these things began to bring a wave of depression over her. She decided it was time to head inside. She needed to get some rest. She needed to get used to this place. It was still not home. It was far from that. She needed to make it home.
Aiko tried to hurry back to her room and tried to clear her head along the way. She was so focused on that, she didn't see Gaara. She hurried and walked right into him. She blushed deeply and stepped back quickly lowering her head. "P-please forgive me Lord Kazekage." She said nervously. She couldn't believe she did that.
Gaara simply smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay Aiko." His voice was dark and deep, yet there was a gentle warmth to it.
She looked up and met his sea foam gaze. She had a hard time reading him. Her response to his smile was a look of curiosity and confusion. Who was he? Why did he feel so significant? It wasn't that he was Kazekage. It was something else. What was it though?
"Aiko?" Gaara's voice broke her train of relentless thoughts.
She quickly shook her head and smiled at him. "I'm so sorry. I'm not sure what is wrong with me..." She said nervously.
"Let me take you back to your room." Gaara said. He spoke calmly and yet there was a natural sound of authority in his tone. He gently took her arm and began walking with her to her room. She didn't know why she simply followed him. She did not protest in any way. They walked in silence, side by side.
Somehow, being so close to him felt so right. She was nervous. He was a powerful and an important person. He was dangerous too. She could feel it. She could also feel that he was not a danger to her. He wouldn't harm her.
They stopped outside her bedroom door. Gaara released his gentle hold on her. "Thank you." Aiko said with a soft smile. Gaara nodded and offered a returning smile. She headed inside her room and shut the door. It was dark. The only light was what was coming from the moon through the windows.
Aiko walked over to her bed and crawled in. She felt good. She thought of Gaara again. He was special. She knew that much for sure. She felt the urge to get closer to him. To speak with him and learn about his life. Perhaps he could even learn about her... Aiko smiled and pulled her blankets closer to her.
She wanted to see him again. Not just in her dreams. She wanted to see him in person. What could she say to him though? Would he have any interest in speaking with her anyways? Well, Aiko had one thing she wanted to speak with him about. In order to feel like she was starting a new life, she needed to get a job. That might make their new home feel like home.