She swallowed down everything. All of the harsh words, all of her pointless questions, everything had been kept to herself when Yasuo left. Now, Aiko sat in the center of her bed staring at a blank canvas. She wanted to draw everything out and try to make sense of it. She wanted to speak with Mamoru, but she was sure she was not even close to ready.
A soft knock at her bedroom door made her jump. She slowly got out of the bed and walked to the door. She opened it and met the gaze of Gaara. He looked calm but not curious. He had known Aiko was listening when he spoke with Yasuo. He knew that Aiko had seen him before he left. Now, he knew Aiko was tired. Still, he had to come and see her.
Aiko looked up at Gaara with an emotionless expression but stepped aside to allow him to come inside. He walked in and she gently closed the door behind him. He turned to look at her, but she was still facing the door. Her hand was still on the doorknob and was trembling.
Gaara's eyes softened. He reached for Aiko and gently pulled her close to him. She did not struggle. She rested her head on his chest and for the first time at all that day, she felt completely safe. Then she felt her tears come. Gaara held her as she cried. He felt a bit helpless. He wanted to be able to do more to comfort her, but at the same time he knew that his allowing her to cry with him was helping too.
After a short time, Aiko calmed down. She was not crying, but she was beyond exhausted. "You should get some rest." Gaara suggested. It was very late.
Aiko nodded. She went to her bed and picked up her canvas and pencils. She set them on the dresser. Gaara began to walk to the door. "Wait!" She suddenly said. Gaara stopped and turned back to look at her. Aiko blushed and looked down at the ground. "If it isn't any trouble..." She bit her lip and put her hands behind her back. "Maybe you could stay... with me." She softly.
Gaara was surprised. He thought for sure Aiko would want space. He only came because he needed to be sure she was really going to be okay. She had not been harmed physically at least beyond being exhausted. He looked at her curiously. Aiko was not sure if his expression was more positive or negative.
"You don't have to of course." Aiko added quickly. Gaara walked up to her and pulled her close again. She responded by putting her arms around his waist and holding him. He then pulled back and led her over to the bed. He pulled back the comforter and motioned for her to climb in. She did. Gaara then removed the small gourd of sand he carried at his waist and got in bed next to her.
Once Gaara was comfortable, Aiko moved close to him and rested her head on his chest. He was warm. Gaara moved his arm and gently held her. She was exactly what he wanted. The day had been stressful, but they had gotten through it together. This feeling he had now was worth it. Having Aiko in his arms was worth all of the fighting that they had endured.
She was feeling secure too. She never expected she would have the chance to feel this way. Growing up, she often avoided any real relationships besides Rin. She knew she would never have the chance for this kind of thing as long as she lived there. Now, Suna was her home. Gaara had become the most important thing in the world to her. Aiko fell asleep feeling happy for what she had.
The dream world was strange. It was familiar and somehow it was also extremely new. Aiko walked down a sandy path. That was all she could see though. Everything else was thick darkness. It was as if there was absolutely nothing but the path. As eerie as it was, Aiko continued to follow it.
A figure appeared further down. Aiko saw a small boy hunched over. He looked to be crying. Aiko hurried down the path to reach him. She wanted to help him. "Hey..." She spoke gently. She reached down to touch the child. Then he looked up at her. It was Gaara. He was young. She looked at him surprised.
For a moment, he looked surprised. Then it quickly turned to anger. "You are just like them." His voice was dark. He spoke clearly through his tears though.
"Gaara..." Aiko reached out. As she was about to touch the boy, he disappeared into a mist of sand. Aiko sat for a moment feeling stunned and confused. That Gaara was very different from the one she knew now. She had seen bits and pieces of Gaara's life, but it was difficult. He protected himself well and he was difficult to read. It was hard to know for sure what he was thinking.
She stood up and decided to continue onward. Before she could though, she noticed that the ground had taken hold of her feet. She couldn't move. She tried to struggle and free herself. Gaara's voice caught her attention. He was in front of her. He was a bit older. He looked only to be twelve or thirteen. His eyes were angry and uncaring. He looked at her and lifted a hand.
"Now, make me feel alive!" He said and clenched his fist closed.
Aiko opened her eyes. She was still lying on Gaara's chest. She felt him begin to softly rub her back with the hand he had around her. She carefully looked up to see him looking at her. She sat up. "I'm sorry if I woke you." She said quietly.
Gaara sat up. "You didn't." He said and reached to put his hand over hers. "You should go back to sleep." Aiko had only been asleep for around two hours. He was surprised that she had woken up so quickly.
"If you are having trouble getting comfortable here, you could go." Aiko said quietly. It wasn't that she wanted Gaara to leave, but she did not want to make him uncomfortable. He needed rest too. He had a lot of responsibilities.
He looked at her with a calm expression and then smiled slightly. "Do not worry about me Aiko. It is not you, so please don't blame yourself." He noticed she was giving him a strange look. It was as if she was a little confused. He lifted his hand to touch her cheek but when he went to reach for her, she flinched slightly.
Most people might have ignored it, but Gaara had become more open and sensitive to the other people around him over the years. He withdrew his hand. Aiko saw this and her heart sank. "I'm sorry Gaara. I just had a bad dream and I am a bit on edge." It wasn't just the dream, but everything. The dream was just the most recent thing on her mind.
Gaara appeared to be understanding. "Perhaps if you spoke to me about it, it might offer you some kind of relief." He said softly.
Aiko looked at him for a moment. Then she looked down at her hands in her lap. She hesitated to share the dream because she didn't want Gaara to feel like she was invading his personal life. She recalled all to well how it had gone when she had accidentally seen things. Gaara was not cruel or harsh but it was obvious to Aiko that he did not like it.
In the end, she decided it was probably best to be honest. Even if she lied, Gaara would know. He may not say anything, but it would likely hurt his feelings. That was the last thing that Aiko wanted to do. Honestly, she felt that she had put him through enough. She hoped that this would not upset him.
"I had a dream, and you were there." Aiko began. Gaara looked calm and attentive. She looked back down at her hands again. It made her nervous to look in his eyes. He could be so intimidating just because he was so stoic. "At first, you were a child. I approached you, not realizing at first that it was you. I just saw a child crying and thought I should help." Aiko explained. She was speaking a bit faster than normal. "You looked up at me, and then you told me that I was just like them and disappeared." She looked sad.
Gaara's expression grew more serious. It was not anger that he was showing. It was a look more of concern or surprise even. Aiko still kept her gaze low. "I went to continue on and my feet had been wrapped up by the sand on the ground." Her voice slowed down and lowered a bit. "I heard your voice. You were only a young teen. 'Now, make me feel alive...' That is what you said and then I woke up."
Gaara was stunned. To Aiko, the dream was in pieces and was difficult to understand completely. Gaara understood it exactly though. He remembered all of the bloodshed and anger. His past was stained with blood and pain. Not only was he hurting, but he was hurting everyone around him as well. Aiko was picking up on these things from being around him and so close to him all the time.
He closed his eyes and then looked at Aiko with a calm expression once more. "I'm very sorry that you saw what you did Aiko." He said softly.
She looked at him with worry. She had seen things before. In other visions of Gaara, when she got to close, or he did, she saw his younger self. He was vicious and angry. He was also in a lot of pain though. As much as he wanted to hate the world, deep in his heart he truly didn't.
Aiko looked at him. Her expression hardened and grew serious. She had not looked at him quite like that before. "No." She said firmly and shook her head. "I want to be able to get to know you and understand who you are." She looked down and her expression softened. "I care about you... so I would like to know you."
Gaara looked sad. He spoke softly. "Aiko, seeing those things... it could be very..." He was having a hard time deciding how to explain it. "It will not be pleasant." He finally said.
"You could always just tell me then." Aiko suggested. She looked up at him and her eyes as well as her tone, were full of hope.
He looked at her with a softer but worried expression. He had never felt quite so nervous about sharing his life story with someone. Usually when he shared anything from his past, it was to help uplift the spirits of his fellow ninja and their friends and families. Now, it was to help someone get to know him. It was to help her get closer to him. It would make him feel more vulnerable too.
Then he remembered something. Aiko would never hurt him. He was so sure of that. Even when she was in danger because of him, she would not harm him. He relaxed finally. His eyes looked more calm. "Very well." She smiled at him. He felt more comfortable. Telling her about his past would do nothing more but make her understand him. She would not hate him. He was sure of this.
Gaara started from the beginning. He explained to Aiko about the sand demon Shukaku and how it had been sealed within him before he was even born. He told her about his mother and her death. He told her about his father. The man had tried to have Gaara assassinated so many times as a child.
It was even more difficult it seemed to speak about his Uncle Yashamaru. He was the brother of Gaara's mother. He was also one of the assassins that Gaara's father had sent to him. Gaara killed him and upon discovering that the assassin was his uncle, he broke. He began to hate and distrust everyone. He only loved and cared for himself, just as his mother had supposedly wanted.
Gaara did not go into details about the people he hurt and killed. He was honest though. He admitted to being a murderer. He then spoke about Naruto. Gaara spoke of him in high regards. Naruto helped Gaara see that he did not have to be alone and that he could forge his own bonds and follow his own path. He didn't have to feel so isolated.
Aiko learned about how Gaara worked hard following his encounter with Naruto. He wanted to change his life and the way people perceived him. It had taken a lot. It had taken help from his friends from the leaf village as well, but he had been successful. He had cemented his change in everyone's eyes when he was killed by the Akatsuki protecting Suna. The Shukaku had been extracted from him and the process hand taken his life.
When he was brought back by the elder woman, Lady Chiyo, he finally understood how much he meant to everyone. Although he no longer had the Shukaku residing inside him, he was still strong and he could still protect his people. He had changed his whole life.
Later he was able to learn the truth about his mother from his father. His father had been brought back by a terrible jutsu that forced him to attack Gaara and the other sand shinobi. His father had learned that he was the Kazekage now and that the Shukaku was no longer with him. His father was shocked and had a difficult time believing it. In the end though, he apologized to Gaara for his failure as a father. He told Gaara the truth about his mother. She had loved him. She loved him more than anything in the world. She wanted him to be happy and she wished for him to grow to be strong and safe.
There were other things he told her briefly about. He spoke about how he was to be married at one time, but the girl had been in love with another. He had helped them to escape together and he had been happy to do so. He would never want someone to feel forced into marriage. That was why he did not want the council pressuring Aiko.
Aiko listened attentively to Gaara's story. She rarely interrupted him. Some of the things she had seen made more sense now. She felt that she was truly beginning to understand what kind of person Gaara was.
He was a good person. That was her final decision about it. He had done wrong in his past and he had accepted that he could not change it. Still, he worked hard to change himself and his future. Because of that, he had been able to aid and save many people.
Aiko smiled at him gently. Gaara felt good about talking with Aiko and being so open. She certainly seemed to be very pleased. Her opinion of him had not changed. It was strange and different now. Gaara felt his bond with Aiko change and strengthen. On top of that, there was another thing. He had never felt this kind of love, but that was what it was. He loved her.