Life has been pretty crazy and I'm really sorry.

That's all I'm going to say about my four month absence.

Anyway, I would like to thank everyone for their patience and for your reviews.

I really do appreciate them.

Enjoy!

"The truth is, wherever you choose to be, it's the wrong place."

-Chuck Palahniuk

Hikaru's P.O.V.

As surprising as this might sound, not everyone in this town likes me. I never understood why, but there's something about me that just doesn't click with him. It might be the fact that I'm always around and I get more attention than he does… or the fact that Hisako and I are always together… or maybe it's the fact that Hisako trusts me more than him.

Through the glass door, I could see Kiyoshi restlessly pacing back and forth behind the counter while his son dusted the books on the upper shelves. I wonder why Kiyoshi is here instead of Hisako. Maybe she had another bar hopping night with Kakashi.

I shook my head and smiled.

Well there is only one way to find out.

The bells hung over the door rang which informed everyone in the room of my entrance. Kiyoshi gave me a quick glance but didn't stop pacing. Usually he would give me a fake smile and start shallow conversation with me but today seemed to be different.

"Hello family!"

Kiyoshi didn't stop pacing but his kid looked over, grinned, and dropped the duster. "Uncle Hikaru!"

I smiled and said, "Sup kid?"

The kid quickly jumped off the ladder and tried to tackle me down but I managed to stop him with my left hand. I crouched in front of him and softly petted his hair. He looked back at Kiyoshi then grabbed my collar and whispered, "I think my Dad's gone crazy!"

Well this kid likes to get down to the point. While I held back a snicker, I looked at pacing Kiyoshi and shook my head. "What makes you think that?"

"Well, last night Auntie Coco's one-eyed pervert friend had dinner with us along with Aunties' ex-boyfriend."

Wow, this sounds like one big drama. I can already guess what happened but I might as well ask this kid for the full story. It seems like he likes to gossip as much as his mother. I grinned at Kiyoshi's kid and said, "Continue."

He shifted his eyes from left to right and whispered, "During dinner, Grandpa asked the one-eyed pervert what he wanted with Auntie Coco and he tells everyone that Auntie Coco and him have been going out for a really long time."

My grin got bigger because of the laughter I was holding back. How did I miss this? What in the world was I doing which caused me to not come here sooner? Well a better question is, where in the world are these two? I need to know.

"Then what happened?" I enthusiastically asked.

The kid opened his mouth to reply but Kiyoshi's dark voice interrupted with a, "Toshiro, go upstairs."

The child's face became so pale that if I didn't know any better, I could have sworn he was a mannequin. He didn't even reply to Kiyoshi, he just ran upstairs most likely to complain to his Grandmother. This kid tends to do that a lot.

Kiyoshi didn't stop pacing; on the contrary, he paced even faster. "Did you know anything about this?" he demanded.

I leaned on the bookshelf closest to the door, just incase he snaps and goes on a rampage. "Well, I knew they had a thing for each other," I responded as my fingers grabbed the book closest to my head. "I didn't know they were going out."

"I thought Hisako and you were close," he growled.

I opened the book and pretended to browse through it as I said, "We are… but we all have our little secrets."

I heard Kiyoshi slam his fists on the counter but I kept looking at him through the corner of my eyes. He exclaimed, "No! Brothers and sisters don't keep secrets from each other… not us!"

My eyebrows shot up at this new revelation. So that's what's been bothering him. I flipped the page and responded, "Well apparently Hisako does…"

Even after he slammed his fists on the counter, Kiyoshi hadn't stopped pacing. "Doesn't it bother you?"

This time I felt that it was time to shut the book I was "browsing" through because this wasn't just another bitch fit. This was a bit more than a bitch fit and I feel that it deserves my full attention. "What, that Hisako's life doesn't revolve around me?"

My remark seemed to have made an impact because his pacing slowly turned into a halt. Kiyoshi's gaze moved from his feet, to his hands, and then ended up on me. I smiled and waited for his response.

He shook his head, "No… the fact that she kept this secret from you… Hisako is your best friend and she kept this from you… Doesn't this make you doubt her at all?"

As much as I hate to admit it, Kiyoshi would have a point… if any of this weren't a big fat lie. I shrugged, "Like I said, we all have secrets. Plus I can't be here all the time, things are bound to happen that I don't about, and Hisako probably doesn't want to talk about them. People grow up and get lives… that's just the way it is."

Kiyoshi stomped closer to where I was and demanded, "So what, is Kakashi now her life?"

I put my hands up as a sign of peace and responded, "I didn't mean it like that. You're just twisting my words now." As Kiyoshi inched closer, I took a step back and continued," What I'm trying to say is that, Hisako isn't a teenager anymore. She's all grown up, she knows what she wants… and apparently Kakashi is what she wants."

I think this is the first time I've been legitimately scared of Hisako's brother. The fact that Hisako kept a secret from him shouldn't be such a big deal. After all, she's kept many secrets from Kiyoshi that he now knows about and they have never really bothered him… For a short time even Arashi was a secret Hisako kept but he wasn't this upset when he found out about it so what makes Kakashi so special? There has to be something else going on here.

"But there's something else that's bothering you, isn't there?"

His eyes flickered from deadly assassin to frightened hypocrite.

As I walked away from Kiyoshi and toward the safety of the counter, I asked, "So what do you have against Kakashi?" I turned around and Kiyoshi was staring dead at me but his mind seemed to be elsewhere. "Did he somehow—"

"Kakashi is a great shinobi," Kiyoshi interrupted, "But I don't think he's much of a…" he winced as he tried to blurt the word, "husband."

I leaned back on the counter and caught a glimpse of silver hair moving through the shop windows. Curiouser and curiouser. This is about to get interesting. I smiled and continued to poke the angry bear, "Why?"

"Because," he aggressively threw his hands in the air as the door behind him opened and Kakashi waltzed in with his usual slacker pose. The small bell on top of the door rang but Kakashi's presence was left unnoticed by Kiyoshi. His anger seemed to blind all five of his senses because he continued to viciously rant, "He's Kakashi! On a mission, I would trust him with my life but I would never, ever trust him with my sister!"

Kakashi's face didn't show a sign of anger or hurt. Instead he casually said, "Morning Hikaru… Kiyoshi."

Kiyoshi's complexion turned as white as a ghost. Actually, he looked exactly like Toshiro when he yelled at him to go upstairs. The irony. I should have warned him that Kakashi was coming but that wouldn't have been fun. Plus, I believe there should be no secrets between family members.

I sighed and shook my head, "Morning Kakashi." Unfortunately, my happy greeting wasn't enough to help lighten the mood up so I continued to strike up conversation, "What are you up to today?"

Kakashi put his hands in his pockets and said, "Well Hisako spent the night in my apartment last night and she woke up feeling under the weather. She asked me to pick up a couple of things for her from her room…"

Kiyoshi's right eye twitched but he still hadn't moved an inch. I don't know if he's too scared, embarrassed, or angry to face Kakashi after what he just said. Personally, I don't know Kiyoshi all that well so I'm just going to say he's scared of him. Actually, I would be too if I were in his position. Kakashi can be a douche bag when he wants to be.

"Really? I didn't think it was going to get any worse…"

"Worse?" asked Kakashi with confusion in his voice. "Hisako's been sick since yesterday?"

I nodded, "Yeah… but she said it wasn't feeling extremely sick though... It's too bad because we were suppose to hang out today."

I'm just lying through my teeth today. Oh well… a small lie won't hurt once in a while.

Kiyoshi and Kakashi didn't give any sort of signal of trying to communicate with each other so I tried to remedy the situation with, "I have some of Hisako's clothes at my place if you want to go ahead and grab them for her."

This seemed to grab Kiyoshi's attention because his gaze switched from scared to serial killer. "Why does Hisako have her belongings in your apartment."

I smiled and shrugged. "So she sleeps over sometimes. Big deal."

My attention shifted back to Kakashi. "Do you think that would be okay with her?"

"Well clothes are clothes," he replied.

Ignoring Kiyoshi, I began to walk toward the door in order to lead Kakashi out of this poisonous shop when surprisingly, I saw the least person I expected to show their face around here. I stopped dead in my tracks as Arashi opened the glass door and walked in with the same expression I probably have on my face right now. Through the corner of my eyes, I looked over toward my right at Kakashi who was standing a bit stiffer than usual.

Mentally, I sighed and shook my head. Well Hikaru, it looks like you have your work cut out for you. Not only do you have to stop Kiyoshi from killing Kakashi and yourself, now you have to stop Arashi and Kakashi from wringing each other's necks. Great. What a perfect way to start off the morning.

I swear, if Hisako wasn't my friend I would let them battle to the death here and now but, I have to be a good little shinobi and keep the peace. After all, a bookstore is a place for romance and learning… not violence.

I reluctantly put a smile on my face and greeted him with a, "Hey Arashi! Fancy meeting you here. I didn't expect you to have such little shame as you walked through that door."

I'm really not making things any better but… eh, whatever. If it happens it happens. I'll try to hold back Kakashi and hope to some supernatural being that Kiyoshi will hold back Arashi instead of joining him.

"Have you met Kakashi?" I blurted out as I nodded toward him. "Hisako is sleeping in his bed right now. Isn't that interesting?"

Wow, I really am terrible. Why can't I stop myself? Oh lordly, lord, why can't I hold my tongue? Well, to be quite honestly, because it's too much fun. Hisako will thank me for this someday… well at least I hope.

The room was so tense that I reluctantly coughed out a nervous laugh. I scratched the back of my head and said, "So, this is what Hisako had to go through last night? Poor kid, no wonder her health got worse."

Unfortunately my "light hearted" comment didn't go well with everyone else in the room. How did I know? Well, the three icy glares directed at me were probably my biggest hint.

I reluctantly vomited out a, "Hahaha, well Kakashi and I should be heading out now. Time is money after all."

Time is money? Where do I come up with this crap?

Arashi stepped aside and left the doorway free for my quick escape. Unfortunately as I opened the door, I looked back and noticed that Kakashi hadn't budged. Arashi and him were still in an evil glare competition, which was honestly interesting to watch, but I didn't have time to enjoy the spectacle.

Hisako and probably the Hokage would murder me if I let Arashi or Kakashi touch a hair off of each other's head over something as ridiculous as pride and jealousy. If these two get in a fight, I might as well be the one causing it because in the end it would be my entire fault. This is what I get for trying to be a good person.

Before I could open my mouth in order to persuade Kakashi to not sign my death sentence, Arashi asked, "Have you taken advantage of her?"

Unfortunately, being the sarcastic idiot I am, I snorted and immediately replied without thinking, "It isn't taking advantage of if Hisako wanted it."

I realized that my stupid comment is probably going to be the spark that starts the fire. As much as I wanted to physically show how even my own audacity could shock me, I kept it cool and pretended like it was just a small insignificant comment. If I treated it like something else, it might just make the situation worse.

Fortunately, everyone seemed to go along with my ignorance because they were too wrapped up in their own glaring contest to notice little Hikaru in the background. Even Kiyoshi was intensely watching these two, which was quite interesting. I'd expect him to be in the middle of all this, giving Kakashi a little bit of hate as well.

Before the room intensified (which in my opinion is impossible but what can I say, miracles happen everyday), Kakashi began to walk toward the door but he took a quick stop in front of Arashi and said, "I would never lay a finger on her, unless she wanted me to."

Well so much for leaving the bookstore in one piece. So much for trying to stay alive. Now I know, that miracles do happen everyday because this room is about to explode with intense anger and kunai. I'm so dead.

I braced myself for the worse but nothing happened. I even shut my eyes and got ready to dodge anything coming my way but there was silence. Complete and total silence.

After a couple of seconds I opened my eyes and saw Kakashi walking toward me with the same casual aloof manner he always has. It was almost as if nothing had happened. I fought really hard to keep my mouth shut. This is insane. After all of this, how did a fight not break out?

Kakashi shot me a puzzled look as if to ask, "Hey, are you alright?"

I shook my head and tried to come back to my usual Hikaru self. I took a deep breath and as I opened the door to walk out of the store, I quickly said, "Later Kiyoshi… Have a nice life Arashi," and quickly began to walk toward my apartment with Kakashi slowly following.

I took a couple of deep breaths and tried to calm myself down. Fuck, no wonder Hisako hates these people. Look at all this stupid drama she has to go through. I can only imagine her parents and Ishiko. Even the kid Toshiro is in on it!

"Hey, slow down!" I could hear Kakashi say. "This isn't a race."

I shook my head but didn't stop. I reduced my speed and waited for Kakashi to catch up with his turtle like pace. I couldn't wait to interrogate him because as soon as he was walking right next to me I asked, "So did Hisako and you elope because Kiyoshi is about ready to smother you with a pillow."

I heard a light chuckle come from Kakashi as he said, "No but we might as well had."

I could help but smile. Oh damn, this is going to be good. I think I should probably play off my curiosity because that's the best way to get information out of anyone. If I act like I'm not interested, people try to get me interesting by telling me all the small details. It's the best way to hear the whole story.

"So what happened? Did you knock her up or something? If that's it, then it's not very surprising."

Okay, so maybe that didn't sound like I was uninterested but whatever. Kakashi has to tell me. I'm the best friend. If he doesn't have my approval, then the relationship doesn't work at all. Trust me, I know this.

Kakashi shook his head and replied, "No…"

I'm sure this is to his disappointment.

I tried not to laugh at my own stupid joke and asked, "So what is it?"

"I'm not sure if I should tell you…"

I rolled my eyes and replied, "Fine, don't tell me… but I'm bound to find out sooner or later anyway so it might as well be now. After all, I am the best friend and I know how to console her best… but it's your decision."

There was silence as Kakashi thought this through which gave me a chance to observe our surroundings. Because of the chunin exams, there were a lot of people out even though it was early in the morning. It seems the parties never stop during this time of year.

The only thing that seemed a bit off was that the majority of villagers would stare at Kakashi and begin to whisper amongst themselves. I wonder what they're talking about. There is no way this has anything to do with Hisako. I mean, I know news travels fast but I don't think it travels this fast. After all, I am always the first to know and since I don't know yet means no one else knows yet.

"Well," Kakashi began.

I couldn't help but begin to swell up in excitement. This is going to be great.

"Since you're going to find out anyway, you might as well just wait," Kakashi lamely finished.

"What!" I exclaimed.

Unfortunately, half of the people on the street began to stare at us as we continued to walk through the crowded area.

I growled with a lower voice, "You're joking, right?"

He shot me an incredulous look as if asking, "Do you really want me to repeat myself?"

"You know," I began with devilish intentions, "Making enemies with your girlfriend's best friend isn't exactly a bright move on your part. You need all the friends you can get now that her family is against you."

Installing fear in a preys mind is the best tactic you can use when trying to get what you want. I learned that from my mother.

Kakashi still didn't answer so I continued to taunt him. "You know, if I really wanted to, I could easily just probe your mind and get it out of you by force."

This time he laughed and replied, "Hikaru, patience is a virtue."

I snorted and shot back, "Look who's talking Mr. I-became-a-Jonin-before-I-hit-puberty." It was a lame comeback but I couldn't really think of anything else to say.

"It's not going to kill you…"

"Well what if it does?"

Kakashi dramatically sighed and responded, "I'm willing to take that risk."

I glared at the ground and threatened, "I hope you know you've made another enemy for yourself."

This time it was my turn to laugh.