Sorry for taking so long with the update. The boyfriend visited from across the pond. I hope you enjoy! And thank you so much for all of the reviews last chapter. You're all the best!

Act I, Scene X:

"What?" Sakura asked her fist automatically clenching. Naruto eyed it nervously not really understanding why she was angry but she was definitely angry.

"What?" Kakashi questioned more bewildered than all else. Sasuke looked at him flatly.

"You two have been going out since I returned… the second time, nearly four years ago," Sasuke stated matter of factly and as though talking to a couple of two year olds.

"Nuh uh!" Sakura replied intelligently.

"Uh huh!" Naruto countered even more intelligently.

"Naruto," Naruto tried hard not to flinch at the look Sakura was giving him, "I'm pretty sure I know when I began dating Kakashi… and it was most definitely yesterday."

"Yesterday?" Sasuke inquired not disguising the unadulterated surprise in his voice. It took a lot to surprise Sasuke, so his tone did more to put both Sakura and Kakashi on edge than Naruto's bewildered spluttering.

"No shit… yesterday? Seriously?" Naruto barked with amusement as he watched Kakashi and Sakura interact with an emotive Sasuke before his smile suddenly fell, "But… I sent you guys on that vacation together last week where I only booked one hut…"

"So?" Sakura hissed as she flickered her eyes away from the Uchiha's gaping mouth.

"So- you didn't object!"

Kakashi contemplated on that stead fast reasoning for a second, determining it to be sound. The fact that Naruto was being more logical than Kakashi was unnerving to say the least. Why hadn't they objected?

"And they wonder why we think they're dating," Sasuke muttered with a roll of his eyes, his jaw finally snapping closed; his face returning to it's usual indifferent sort of scowl.

Kakashi having enough of being a bystander for this ridiculous conversation and questioning his own oversights in life, chimed in curiously, "What… else… made you guys think that we were dating? I mean we've all shared rooms before, it's not unusual for shinobi."

"Yeah, Naruto! Sasuke-kun! Kakashi and I can be friends you know!" Sakura sounded more angry than curious, her fist ready to slam into someone's face if for any reason she deemed them to have misspoke.

"You can be, but you weren't," Sasuke explained breezily. He had still not developed a healthy fear of Sakura's rage.

"We were though! Seriously, what were you guys thinking?" Sakura nearly screeched.

Naruto rolled his eyes as he took the Hokage hat off of his head, "Oh I don't know Sakura-chan. Maybe it's because you're always the first one to find him when he returns from a mission; it's like you have an antennae that senses when he passes through the village gates. Or how you always go to his place after work when he's in the village and you know… sleep… yes sleep over. Oh, how about the fact that you can even find him in the first place. I'm the mother fucking Hokage and I still can't find Kakashi when I need him. Also, like maybe how you buy some of his groceries for him and sometimes you go together looking all domestic and whatnot? I've seen married couples that look less domestic than you two. Oh, and how his ninken follow you around like you're their co-owner? Or how like everyone has seen you walking around arm in arm or maybe how often you two wear matching outfits—"

"It's standard issue uniforms, we all match," Kakashi cut in wondering if Sakura would explode from how red her face was getting. "Also, just because Sakura is very affectionate—"

"I'm going to kill you Kakashi."

"—doesn't mean that I am—"

"Don't even get me started with you and the way that you dote on and look at her," Naruto continued waving his hat in the air. Sasuke smirked at the look that appeared on both Kakashi's and Sakura's faces. Their eyes flashed to look at each other and they both began to blush, "I'm pretty sure you nearly gave us all a heart attack when you offered to pay for her meal that first time and then began doing it on a regular basis while still somehow running out when you knew she wasn't going to be the one to pay and you know that infamous 'incident' that happened in the hospital when Ba-chan was still in charge where all the ANBU within the country were suddenly summoned? That was because Rokudaime Hokage Hatake Kakashi, had come to the hospital out of his own free will just to make sure that Sakura-chan wasn't over working herself during the flu-season and above all of that…" Naruto breathed in a deep breath, "You've let Sakura-chan see your face!" Naruto began gesturing widely between Sasuke and himself, "We still don't know what half your face looks like and I'm the motherfucking Hokage! I could order you to show me your face and I would still not see your face!"

Kakashi, a bit more mortified than five seconds prior, because seriously, had he really done all those things, was completely unable to answer and so Sakura, a little more the shade of her hair brilliantly asked the first thing that came to her mind, "Um… how did you know that I had seen his face?"

Sasuke looked at her from the corner of his eye, "Because you had stopped looking for it."

"You're the only one in all of Konoha now that doesn't stare when Kakashi's about to take a drink or eat some food, so obviously you already know what he looks like!" Naruto shouted pulling at his hair, "It's so infuriating that you've obviously seen it so many times that it's not even novel to you anymore!"

"Oh…" Sakura murmured as a blush rose on her cheeks, "What? And you thought we just wouldn't tell you we were going out?"

"You didn't have to tell us. It was pretty obvious," Sasuke said.

Sakura gritted her teeth as she glared at Sasuke her blush slowly dying, "Not so obvious, since we weren't actually going out at the time!"

Naruto sighed as he placed a hand on Sakura's head, which she seethed at, and then looked at Kakashi, "We thought that you two were just being private about things," Naruto turned to look at Sakura in the eye, his gaze soft and his fingers running through her hair, "You know how Kakashi is and we thought you were just respecting that. Also…" Naruto seemed to pause, "You don't talk to me about these kind of things that much anymore and I just thought this was another one of those things…" Sakura swallowed deeply at the small, sad smile on Naruto's face and the way that his eyes were shining at her. He blinked then and the melancholy went away, "And so we decided to respect you two cause we didn't want our ribs to be caved in..." Naruto backed up several feet with a laugh and out of the range of Sakura's fist.

Naruto continued as he looked back and forth between the two other members of his childhood team, "And honestly we didn't need anymore details than what we could already see. You two just looked so happy together all the time even while you were both overworked in that Hokage tower. It was what you two deserved and we couldn't… wouldn't question that. It's hard enough in this world to find someone to spend your life with as it is. We didn't need anymore than your happiness, though Ino really wanted to wring out some information from you two; Shikamaru stopped her somehow, pretty sure it nearly cost him his life. No one is sure how still and Chouji refuses to talk about it. I'm pretty sure that all of the people involved in trying to shut her up were nearly killed. Anyways, I personally didn't need to know what you guys got up to between the sheets anyways."

"Hell Naruto," Sakura bit, her emotions conflicting as she noted for the first time the trace of sorrow that laced Naruto's gaze every time he looked at her. She was touched about Naruto's sweet and sincere words about a relationship that at that time had not even existed and resolved to be better, to try and let it go. "We haven't had sex yet."

Sasuke seemed to genuinely be surprised at this, his face once again letting go of his indifferent expression, "Seriously?"

Kakashi's eyes flashed in challenge at the Uchiha boy as Sakura rolled her eyes up to the sky in exasperation at all of her boys. "Let's get out of here Sakura." Kakashi gently grabbed Sakura's arm, knowing that her fist could easily turn on him if he did the wrong thing, but also… he did not like what Sasuke was implying and he wanted to take care of it… now.

"Oh fine. This is a mess anyways," Sakura muttered, "For the record though… we just started dating YES-TER-DAY."

And with a puff of smoke they were gone, leaving the Nanadaime Hokage and his assistant standing at the gates of Konoha both more flabbergasted than they had been mere minutes earlier.

Naruto rubbed the bridge of his nose, "God, I really wish that I didn't know what they were doing this very moment."

"Hn."

"So much for that wedding betting pool. All my hard work planning that damn vacation so he would propose gone."

"Oh, I think it's still on."

"You think so?"

"For my bet."

"Aww, fuck you teme."

They were not doing what Naruto imagined they were doing much to Kakashi's dismay as he remembered Sasuke's look. Instead they had opted for a walk around Konoha, for the sole purpose of testing the truth of Naruto and Sasuke's words. The ease at which Sakura wrapped her arm around Kakashi's made her wonder if Naruto had a point, but she kicked that thought out of the door as she made the effort to saddle closer to the man than she had ever thought she had before. At his utter and complete lack of reaction at her actions, he seemed to still be sulking about something, Sakura realized that… this was how close she always was with Kakashi. It was fairly damn close now that she was aware of it.

Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck with his other hand as they walked down the streets whispering to each other, "Is anyone looking?" Sakura asked leaning up and into his ear.

"No," Kakashi replied.

"Is no one seriously reacting at all?"

"Nope."

"What if I kissed you?" Sakura suggested, "Think people would look then?"

"Sakura, I'm not going to kiss you in public in order to test Naruto's stupid theory."

Sakura blinked at him before a large grin spread across her face, "I didn't realize how much of a romantic you were Kakashi, first kiss and all?"

Kakashi didn't deign her statement in need of a reply but she noticed the blush that crept above his mask as he scratched his chin bashfully.

"I know then," Sakura murmured as she pulled on his arm to alter his direction, he fell easily into step with her, "If Naruto was telling the truth and I was right about where you got the flowers then we should be getting our answer right about-"

"FOREHEAD!"

"Now."

A purple and blonde blur was suddenly in front of the pair, her hair perfect, and her ice blue gaze steady on them. Sakura had to take a moment to remind herself that Ino was one of the top shinobi in intelligence and that if she wanted something out of them, she was going to get it. What in all names had Shikamaru done to get Ino out of her business because that would be useful in what was probably the near future. "Good to see you back here so soon Kakashi," Ino said with a smile gracing her lips, the flower shop behind her punctuating her statement quite well.

Kakashi nodded at the Yamanaka. "Pig," Sakura teased back.

Ino clucked her tongue at her friend before she waved away the insult easily. "I'm guessing you're here with some good news?"

Sakura let out a small breath, slowly and steadily. Naruto and Sasuke were delusional. Ino was perceptive, clever, and above all, nosy. The woman would have never let Sakura get away with dating anyone without being able to at least talk about it. There wasn't a thing in the world that would have made her stay out of Sakura's business. Shikamaru wasn't a sorcerer after all. "Yeah, we're here with some news," Sakura smiled gently as she looked up at Kakashi. He was looking back down at her with his slate gray eyes, a telltale happy crinkle at the corners.

"I better have been the first person you told… maybe after those two idiots I suppose, but I better have been the third Forehead!"

Sakura laughed easily, "Of course, we've been friends for forever Pig."

Sakura was a little taken back by the moisture that seemed to cloud Ino's eyes as she stepped forward clasping her hands to heart, "I'm so happy for you two, you're going to make each other so happy."

"Um… thank you?" Sakura murmured wondering why Ino was getting so emotional. As Naruto had said, it was true that as a shinobi it was hard to find someone that you wanted to try and live a life with, but they were only just beginning to date. It wasn't like it was the be all and end all for them… yet.

"Let's see it then."

"See what?"

Ino blinked as her hands dropped and she rolled her eyes, "The ring Forehead."

"What are you talking about?" Sakura asked, her eyebrows pulling together. Kakashi, beside Sakura, had already caught onto the situation at hand and was scratching his cheek wondering if Sakura would beat him into the ground if he tried to escape the awkward situation. Maybe he would hurry to the tower and find a month long mission starting right away… but Naruto was right… Sakura would probably summon his dogs, hunt him down, and wring him dry.

"The engagement ring! Kakashi has never gotten you flowers before, or by the heaven's I hope he hasn't because if you've gone to some other shop…" Ino growled at the silver haired man, who had to use every bit of his will to not step back and away from what was obviously a dangerous situation. His generation feared Ibiki. This generation feared Ino.

"I haven't," Kakashi said calmly and truthfully, but still he swallowed deeply.

Ino perked back up and turned her attention away from him, much to Kakashi's relief. "So when he came by yesterday, I could only assume…" Sakura's mouth dropped. Ino stretched her neck to try and take a look at the fingers that were curled around Kakashi's arm. Ino's eyes narrowed as she didn't see what she expected to see, "There's no ring… Don't tell me you proposed to her with a ninken pup or something?" Ino snapped at Kakashi again causing the hairs to stand on his arms. This woman was going to replace Ibiki one day and there was a reason why. "I thought you were all about those old fashioned traditions and what not!" At the silence that Ino got as a reply, she looked closely at the faces of the pair that was in front of her. Her jaw dropped. "No… way."

Kakashi coughed, "I proposed my desire to court her yesterday?" He provided not helpfully.

"Yesterday?" Ino asked suddenly turning her head rapidly between the two, "YESTERDAY?"

"Oh god… Naruto was right," Sakura muttered in horror as she watched her friend slowly combust.

Ino shot forward and grabbed Sakura by the shoulder, finally causing Sakura's hands to let go of Kakashi who still considered bolting out of the situation all together. "What do you mean you've only starting going out yesterday Forehead? You've been going out since Sasuke returned… the second time!" Ino nearly screamed.

"No! We haven't!" Sakura shouted back in exasperation and squared her shoulders for a fight.

"But you haven't stopped talking about him since that time! I mean you were definitely talking about him as though you've seen him hot, bothered, and naked-"

"Oh?" Kakashi inquired.

"You shush," Sakura pointed at Kakashi and then turned back to her friend who was gripping her shoulders with her nails, "That's because I started working with him around that time and we were spending a lot of time together…"

"Naked?" Ino exclaimed.

"No! I just tended to his injuries a lot because the man refused to go to the damn hospital. Kakashi stop looking at me like that!"

"You just don't talk about co-workers… teammates…friends the way that you talk about him! I was so sure we were…" Ino shouted as she continued to shake Sakura's shoulders, "I can't believe this Forehead!"

"I think I'm the one having the harder time right now Pig! Now stop shaking me you crazy woman!"

"Me too," Kakashi chimed in perfunctorily.

"Oh shit, if I had known I never would have… that bouquet… I thought it was finally the day. Shit! I'm going to lose the damn bet!" Ino cried as she finally let go of Sakura's shoulder and seemed to rage inwardly at the world.

"The bet? What bet?"

"For when you two idiots would get married! If you had gotten engaged yesterday then we'd be right on track to my fame and fortune right about now!"

"Fortune?"

"Everyone and I mean EVERYONE is in on it—"

"Everyone?" Kakashi repeated.

Ino looked squarely at him, "Everyone from our generation and yours, from Tsunade-sama to the Kazekage and his siblings in freaking Suna, and all the other Kage and their damn villages! You've gone on missions together to all of them. They all thought you two were in a relationship and shacking it up. Tsunade-sama has been collecting bets while on her travels all these fucking years. They all thought you were together! Damn it Forehead! I could have been fucking rich!"

"This is not my fault!"

"How the hell are you two not dating?"

"Because we aren't! Weren't! ARG, this is a mess!"

"That's bullshit!"

"I can't…" Sakura screamed into her teeth, "Kakashi we need to go. Right now!"

"Don't you dare Forehead, you're telling me everything! Screw Shikamaru and your private lives, I swear—"

Kakashi and Sakura disappeared in a puff of smoke.

They sat on Kakashi's couch.

Both of them in a daze.

The day had not gone like either of them had expected.

"So…" Kakashi murmured.

"Ugg," Sakura groaned as she curled into herself and tumbled sideways so that her toes dug underneath Kakashi's thigh for warmth and her cheek rested on the arm rest.

Kakashi patted her knee in pity before he took one of her feet and rested it on his lap, massaging it gently. "So today was fun."

Sakura looked at him with narrowed eyes, the smile on his face was tense with suppressed laughter as he made his way down her arch. "I can't believe that's all you have to say about today."

Kakashi let out a breathy chuckle as he pressed his thumbs into the tough skin of her foot, gripping it gently when Sakura jerked from the sensation. "I think today was very enlightening."

"Enlightening," Sakura summarized deadpan.

"Yes."

"Enlightening how?" Sakura inquired as she rolled a little so that the back of her head was now on the arm rest and she was curled so that she could look right at him and he could easily access her other foot.

"Enlightening in the way that this wasn't a terrible idea."

Sakura quirked an eyebrow, "You thought dating me would be a terrible idea?"

"It was definitely one of the thoughts that went through my head while I was on my journey of life."

"You mean when you bounced from the Hokage tower and didn't finish your paperwork."

"That too."

"Back on topic, you thought dating me would be a terrible idea?"

"Didn't you think dating me would be a terrible idea at any point?"

Sakura paused for a moment as she closed her eyes and roamed through her memories, "Honestly, no."

"Oh…" Kakashi muttered as he looked at her, "Well then… maybe this conversation will swiftly change that."

Sakura simply laughed at him as she sat up and reached out to cup his cheek gingerly, running the pad of her thumb along the line of his face where his mask usually ended. Naruto was wrong about one thing… his face would never get old to her. "No… I don't think it will."

Kakashi smiled at her and she felt the skin of his cheek pull beneath her palm as he rested the weight of his head against it, "So nothing about this has you feeling nervous or scared at all?"

"Nervous and scared? Of course I'm feeling nervous and scared," Sakura said as she breathed out a long breath, "It's scary risking an amazing friendship for something so messy and crazy as a romantic relationship, I'm nervous just thinking about what is going to change between the two of us because of this. But that's not the same as thinking it's a bad idea, or not wanting it at all."
"Now you're equating silly things," Kakashi murmured, his voice dropping an octave as he brought a hand up to hers and cupped her hand, "I never considered not wanting it."

"Really?"

"I think from the moment I said it… I wanted it. Probably before I said it. It just felt so right…"

"Like lightning coming down to earth."

"Like lightning coming down to earth."

Both of them stared at each other for a long time, piercing green eyes meeting deep slate ones, both of them shining with acknowledged truth and reality.

Sakura was the first one to break out of the trance as she pulled her feet and calves back to her side and then folded them underneath her as she rose on her knees and placed her other hand on the crook between Kakashi's neck and shoulder. Like water running through the crevices, Kakashi's hands came up to hold her gently at the nape of her neck and softly at the back of her jaw, his fingers splayed around her ears. They looked at each other as they got closer before both of their eyes fluttered closed and Sakura felt Kakashi's soft lips press pliable onto hers.

Like sparks jumping between them, her chakra reacted to his, swirling in her head and deep within her core, letting her absorb each and every sensation of his lips on hers.

She forgot how to breath when she pulled back and only the sharp intake of her lungs demanding for air brought her back again. She focused on him slowly, seeing that his eyes were as hazy as hers.

Leaning in again and with a gentle pressure with his pinky at the top of her spine, Kakashi pulled her in and closed his eyes as their lips met again. Her lips were rough, but soft, the texture sending tingles down his spine as she slowly fell against him, their bodies curving together in a warm embrace. He felt his chest expand at the feeling of her up against him, her warmth running into him, healing him like her chakra couldn't. Contentment echoed in his bones.

When they pulled away this time, they exchanged the touch of their lips with the touch of their foreheads as both breathed quickly and deeply to regain their breaths, feeling the movements of the other vibrating through the hairs on their skin, eyes still closed.

"Wow," Sakura breathed, her voice barely audible.

Kakashi simply hummed in agreement as he pulled his hand closer to himself and gentle grasped her hand on the crook of his neck. "Sakura…"

It was Sakura's turn to gently hum as his fingers one by one interlocked with hers, "Hm?"

"This isn't a terrible idea."

Sakura choked out her laughter falling completely against him, her hands resting on his chest as she curled into his warmth. He embraced her tightly around the waist, feeling her against him and feeling the peace that he only ever had with her. "No, it isn't."

Pakkun found them hours later, having fallen asleep on the couch in each other's arms with the silence and peace that floated around them. He snuffled between the folds of his face at the smile that graced Kakashi's lips as Kakashi lay there with the pink haired woman in his embrace. "You deserve happiness boss," Pakkun grunted to himself before he trotted to the couch and jumped onto the cushions, nestling against Kakashi's hip. Soon enough Pakkun fell asleep too.

Thank you to Lysergic, DanielleZ13, Affectionate, SakuraxKakashi Fan, Leomae2.0, SasusakuSensei, JourneyB, Infernalbooks, Azerate, mamajensen827, Red Reaper88, Guest, LuizaMartins, Lady AlyseB630, Karen, , and mbravesgirl7 for all the wonderful reviews. You are all the best!

Secret's Corner

AND THAT IS ACT 1! WOOT! I hope you guys enjoyed that. Now begins the shenanigans of them dating each other. The updates are gonna be a little bit farther apart from now on since I really should be working on my thesis and the second act wasn't as complete as the first in terms of ideas, but it will get there! This story has turned from something originally 50,000 to probably 3 times that long... my bad.

Also don't get me wrong. Affectionate and loving friendships are a thing and also a thing to be treasured... just so happens that it's more for Kakashi and Sakura.

Before the next act starts I may have an interlude: Kakashi's Panic Jog. I might also just tack it onto the end of the next chapter. We'll see.