Comments: I've been writing action so long, I forgot how to do romance...wierd. Anyway, I think there is going to be...maybe...one more action scene in this? I'm not sure. I have a few ways I wanna end it, but I haven't decided on the best one yet. Happy reading.

He smelled like salt. My hands clung to the thick black fabric, pulling him as close as I could. He didn't seem to mind, but he wasn't responding either. Part of me was scared of what on earth could be going through his mind, but the other half wasn't caring at all. I was shaking; partly because I was crying like an idiot, and partly because the water was freezing.

After several eternities passed, I felt his arm raise. He lifted is slowly, then placed his palm on my head. He patted it a couples times as if I were a child.

"Okay…just…uh, stop crying." he mumbled. His voice was awkward.

I inhaled deeply and looked up at him. I must had looked ridiculous, a mixture of tears and snot and dirt decorating my face. He glanced down, and quickly looked the other way. I blinked back the liquid in my eyes. I took a slow step back and wiped my face on my sleeve. My head was lowered, I was biting my lower lip.

Okay, here you are, Sadako. You made the situation awkward enough, you might as well come on out with it and tell him how you feel. I swallowed, then opened my mouth,

Kisame turned and started walking off. I tensed and gasped,

"Wh-where you going?"

"Get out of the water," he mumbled.

I looked down and realized I was still standing shin-deep in the freezing river. Blushing, I trudged forward and followed him to the bank on the opposite side of the stream.

When I got out, I bent over and pulled my wet sandals off. I placed them on the ground, but since it was dark out it wasn't likely they were going to get dry fast. Kisame was just standing there, looking at me, yet avoiding my gaze at the same time. It was obvious he wasn't going to say anything until I started talking, so I cleared my throat and ventured.

"Um…Kisame, I, uh…" my voice trailed. What was I going to say again…?

"Why are you here?" he asked. It sounded more like a statement however than a question. My voice was cracking when I spoke.

"I…I'm onna mission," I muttered, though I didn't sound very convincing.

He rose and eyebrow at me. I flustered.

"I…uh, I, well….I kinda….missed you," I said. He seemed to be unresponsive at first, but after a moment, he exhaled and shook his head.

"…what?" he asked. He sounded…skeptical? I don't know.

That kind of got on my nerves. My face heated, and my response was a bit snippy sounding.

"I said I missed you. The least you could do is pretend to be happy about it," I snorted, crossing my arms.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because," I spat, "Most people should be happy when they found out someone actually gives a rat's ass about where they are!" He shook his head.

"No," he said, "I meant, why did you miss me?"

I stopped short. Blushing, I took a little time to consider why, when of course the answer was obvious. My face heated tremendously. My hands rose, and I subconsciously began poking my index fingers together in a sheepish gesture. I avoided his eyes.

"Uh…b-because…I, um…"

It was as if all words in the word had jumped out of my brain. Oh, crap…what was I going to say to him? I…I couldn't remember…

My gazed faltered and met his.

Oh, don't look at me like that…

He took an ungainly step forward and slowly raised his hand, placing it awkwardly on my shoulder.

"Sadako, you should just g--"

"Kisame, I'm in love with you!" I spat suddenly. A second later, however, I wished I could grab my words and shoved them back down my throat. The peculiar look that suddenly crossed his face, a mixture of unidentifiable emotions, set a shock of "oh crap what did I just do?" across my brain.

He withdrew his hand, and stared at me. He stared for the longest time, drinking in what I said. I stood there, frozen in horror of my own actions, and waited. It took him several moments to process everything. After what seemed like forever, he finally responded.

He sighed and turned his head slightly to the side, as if looking at something far off in the distance. I swallowed and just stood there. After a moment, he turned and stared at me, really hard. A look of contemplating and pity. My eyes lowered to the earth. I felt reluctant tears growing again.

Well, what did you expect, Sadako? You probably freaked him out now. Quick, do something…say you were just kidding, or something. Anything! Just…

…I don't want him to look at me like that anymore.

I wet my lips and tried my best to sound convincing.

"Eh…hahaha…sorry, I just…" My voice trailed off.

And then something peculiar happened.

Kisame bent forward and kissed me.

And my eyes went as large as dinner plates. I couldn't process what on earth was happening at first, but moments passed and I realized I just didn't care. I closed my eyes and lifted my arms to wrap around him again.

This one was different than the one before. It was…softer? Not as claiming…tender, affectionate.

I felt his hand on the back of my head, his rough fingers entwining in my hair. A serene flood of pacification and contentment washed over me. My eyes were still wet, but the tears had been assigned a different motive.

And then, he parted, just barely. His lips suspend, hovering over mine. He traced across my cheek, down. His breath hung in my ear tantalizingly, sending a chill through me. And time stood still. His breath, silent, words trailed out through his barely parted lips. Words meant for me. Words that I could claim for my own. Words meant for no one else on earth but twenty-three year old Sadako Ai of the Leaf.

Three little words…

"I love you…"

Those were at least the ones I expected to hear. However, those weren't the ones I got. They fell more along the lines of,

"God, you're stupid…"

My face heated, but there was a slight aura of humor in his voice. He pulled away, still holding on to me. I blushed and stared at him, waiting for him to respond more properly. My face muscles felt tight, like I was struggling not to say something stupid. However, I needn't worry, I think he covered that department well enough.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked.

He looked down at me and smiled. Smiled. Not a creepy, threatening, "I'm going to chop your legs off" kind of smile, but a softer, more genuine one that caused my face to heat up more than it already was. I bit my lower lip again, contemplating what I should say.

"S-so…uh…" I choked out, clearing my throat.

I lifted my two hands up and made a linking-motion with them. My voice was cracking, but calmer than it had been.

"Does this mean…um…we're boyfriend-and-girlfriend now?"

He was still, and looked at me with a very peculiar face. He didn't need to say anything, his expression screamed, "Seriously, are you that stupid?". I blushed but stood there hopefully for a response.

"What are you, in middle school?" he said skeptically. I blushed furiously and shot my gaze the opposite way.

"N-no, I just thought that…uh…"

He shook his head. Letting me free from his grasp, he turned and started walking. My head shot up.

"Wh-where'ya going?"

He stopped, without turning. "It's late, your team will probably be wondering where you are, you should get going."

My face fell.

"We…we're not returning to Konoha until we get that scroll back, you know." I spoke softly.

He stood completely still. I swallowed.

"Tomorrow…will…will you meet me here again?" I asked sheepishly. He turned his head slightly back, looking at me.

"For what purpose? I can't just hand it over to you," he said. I shook my head.

"N-no…I…" I muttered. "I just…want to spend time with you, I guess."

He was quiet for a moment. After several silent moments, he replied.

"…fine,"

Despite the fact I had to walk back in wet shoes, I was smiling the whole way.

-to be continued in the next installment-