The silence for sure was awkward: Konan looked at Obito as he didn't take his eyes away from the short-haired female standing in front of them. Konan looked back at her, noticing how the girl focused on the floor as she spoke. Her soft voice wavered, reminding Konan of a small mouse.
"Um...sorry… didn't mean to interrupt…"
"It's fine, you weren't interrupting. Konan was just leaving," Obito said, and Konan looked up at him.
"You still owe me five minutes," the purple-haired beauty reminded him lowly, and he glared down at her.
"I owe you nothing,"
"No, it's fine," Rin cut in, "I actually have to go. I need… I have homework to do,"
"I'll drop you off," Obito said, signaling the waiter over.
"No, it's OK. I know how to get home,"
It was a lie. She wasn't sure where she was, nor did she have enough money to get home. But she would figure it out. She was about to start a new job in a field she always wanted to be in. All of this was just distraction.
Obito paid the waiter in cash as quickly as possible, ready to catch up to Rin. But Konan's hand stopped him as she grabbed onto his arm.
"Obito, please-"
"I can't do this," he said, repeating the same words she told him moments before she had walked away.
He pulled his arm back and left, leaving the purple-haired woman standing at the center of the restaurant with a stunned look and heavy feeling on her chest.
Rin let her feet do the work as her mind kept going back to the beautiful purple-haired woman and Obito. She could tell that the two of them had some type of history, most likely romantic. And while Rin told herself that Obito was no more than just a friend, seeing the woman sit at the table across from him, in her seat, and then hug him set off a chain of emotional events within her mind. She knew that it was too good to be true. Maybe this was a sign that she should focus more on her upcoming career and her mother's search, rather than-
"Rin,"
He was suddenly standing in front of her, his hand on her upper arm. She blinked several times, realizing that she had not sensed him at all.
"Where are you going?"
"I'm just heading home," she replied casually.
"By walking?" he asked, "That's not possible. We're on the other side of town, and it's dark,"
Rin looked around as her mind scrambled to respond to that. But he immediately added more to that.
"And don't say that you'll take the bus. There's no buses that'll take you from this area to your home,"
Obito watched as she still refused eye contact, staring blankly at the ground beneath instead. She didn't say anything else, and Obito mentally cursed. Tonight was supposed to be for her. To celebrate her, and he felt like a traitor ruining it. Konan appearing by coincidence surprised him a lot. He thought he had buried that history with her the moment she walked away; but seeing her surprised him, especially when it came to her persistence on talking to him.
Nonetheless, Obito knew that what he used to feel for Konan was long gone. Any other man would have held some type of anger towards her, but not Obito. In fact, he felt no anger at all. Especially with the brown-haired beauty suddenly showing up in his life; deep down he knew that Rin was meant to be his. And he wasn't going to let anything interfere with his plan tonight.
"Come, I'll take you home,"
He grabbed her hand and led her across the street and to his car. She remained quiet as he opened the passenger door for her.
There was nothing but silence throughout the entirety of the car ride. Obito would look at her from the corner of his eyes, his frown deepening when she continued keeping her head down. It was during his fifth or sixth glance that he caught a brief glimpse of the content on her phone. The heading was large as he read the words 'Have you seen me?', followed by a picture of a brain-haired woman. His eyes went back to the road as he remembered Rin telling him everything regarding her missing mother. The guilt within him grew to the point that he held onto the steering wheel tightly. She had been through so much and he couldn't even take her on a proper date. To him, Rin deserved all of the happiness in the world.
Obito slowed down before parking across her home. He turned off the engine and took off his seatbelt, leaning back before turning his head towards her. She took off her seatbelt as well, placing her hand by the door handle.
"Thanks for the dinner, Obito," she said, finally looking at him with a smile. But the smile was different - it wasn't genuine, and he could see the hurt in it.
They exited the car at the same time, and with great strides he approached her. Rin looked up at him, taking a step back until her back was against the side of his vehicle. Obito stood directly in front of her, allowing only a few inches of space between them.
"I hurt you, didn't I?"
Surprised by the directness of the question, Rin blinked several times before replying. Her heart was beating fast.
"N-No, it's fine. I'm fine, don't worry about me. I just need to...review some stuff before my new job...and-"
"I can tell that you're lying," he said.
"I'm no-"
"And I can see that you're upset. And it has to do with Konan,"
Rin was about to look away, but he grabbed her chin and made her look up at him.
"I'm sorry for ruining our night together,"
"Don't be. And besides, she seemed like she really wanted to talk to you. I can tell you both have some history and...I don't want her to think that I'm getting in the way of you two...getting together…"
Her throat ached and she pressed her lips together, trying her best in making sure that her voice didn't crack.
"Fuck…" Obito groaned, closing his eyes tightly before looking at her again, "Rin… Konan was my… ex-girlfriend. I don't know if our relationship was even that…"
"So you were friends with benefits?" the question was direct, and Rin mentally kicked herself for sounding like a jealous girlfriend. Well she was jealous. Nonetheless, she was just his friend.
Obito didn't respond for a while, and Rin gave him a smile. "Actually, you don't have to explain it to me, Obito. At the end, it's your life...right? We're just friends and she's very...beautiful-"
"Rin, stop it," his voice was louder and he cupped her face, "Konan is in the past. I don't want her. Yes, she surprised me today...last time I saw her was a year ago… and things didn't end well,"
"...O-Obito-"
"But I want you, Rin. I want you now...in my present...and in my future…"
She raised her eyebrows, her brown eyes staring into his tired dark ones.
"Wh-What?"
"Rin, I wanted this night to be about you. And I also wanted to ask you...to be...you know...my girlfriend…"
She gaped at him as those butterflies fluttered in her stomach. She wanted to say yes so badly… say yes to him and then wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him. But she couldn't...something was stopping her… She was…
"...I'm scared,"
"What?" Obito asked her, feeling confused at her answer.
"Sorry," she apologized, "I'm just surprised and...yes...a little scared,"
"Why are you scared?"
She didn't respond, but Obito guessed what could possibly be scaring her.
"Are you afraid that I would cheat on you? Or leave you?"
"I...don't know? Sorry, Obito. I...I've never been with anyone...and I'm scared that…"
"Scared of what?"
That this won't work out…
"...That I'm not good enough…"
He wanted to shake some sense into her.
"Rin, why do you believe that?"
She shrugged, and Obito felt like he had no choice but to me more up front about his feelings. He leaned his forehead against hers, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs.
"Rin, to me...you are perfect. You make me happy...you make me look forward to the future… When I'm with you, I feel like I have everything I've ever wanted… I want you to be by my side… And I'll be by yours… So I will ask you one more time… Rin, will you be my girlfriend?"
Rin was amazed that her heart hadn't dropped yet, as it was hammering through her chest loudly. Her face was incredibly warm. Her mind went to her mother briefly, and she remembered her mother telling her to be happy. She missed her mother terribly, and wished she was here to advise her.
"Rin?"
"H-huh?"
"Will you go out with me?"
"...I….yes?"
Obito's eyebrows furrowed, "You're not sure?"
"No...I mean, yes," Rin corrected herself, watching as he narrowed his eyes confusingly, "Sorry… I've never been asked out before,"
The corner of his lips raised, "So I'm the first,"
She giggled at the reaction, "Yes, you are…"
"And your answer is…?"
"...Yes...my answer is yes,"
The feeling of happiness and relief swept through his chest, and Obito leaned down to kiss her. Just as her eyes started to close, her body flinched and she looked at him with wide eyes before hiding her face onto his chest.
Obito placed a hand on the roof of his car in order to steady himself, trying not to fall on her as she held on to him tightly.
"R-Rin? What's the matter-"
"Shh!" she said, raising her hand and covering his mouth.
Obito simply blinked down at her, confused as to what was going on.
"Is he gone?" she whispered, her face still on his chest.
"Who?"
"That man with the limp…"
Obito looked around, shaking his head afterwards. "There's no one around us,"
Rin's head came up, and Obito studied her as she carefully looked around, getting on her toes. After a couple of seconds, she sighed and her face relaxed.
"Sorry," she apologized, "I saw my father from my peripheral. It looked like he was heading towards us, but then he just turned and crossed the street,"
"Why did you have to hide your face though?"
He knew that her father was a piece of shit. But at the same time, Rin was an adult. Unless something else was going on…
"He's...just very difficult to deal with...and...I just don't want to anger him,"
"Why? Is he going to hit you or something?"
Rin thought about an answer, which angered Obito.
"Don't tell me that he's going to hurt you if he saw you with a man,"
"I don't think so...but-"
"Rin, I want you to do something for me," Obito said with a stern tone, grabbing her and pulling her close to him, "If he even tries to lay a hand on you, leave and call the police. And after you call them, call me and I'll be here,"
"Obito, I doubt he's capable of-"
"That's what they all say before he does become capable of that," Obito said, feeling angry. Why wasn't she getting it?
Rin was about to say something but closed her mouth.
"Promise me that you'll call me if things get out of hand. You'll call the police, and then me. I don't care what the timing is,"
She eventually nodded, smiling at him.
"I will, Obito. Thank you, I mean it," Rin hugged him, breathing in his scent as he rubbed her back. She got on her toes again and kissed the bottom of his cheek, near the corner of his lips, "I'll see you tomorrow, OK? It's late."
"OK," he replied, letting go of her as she started to cross the street. Before entering her home, Rin gave him another wave and he waved back.
He stared at the house for a couple of seconds, just in case. He didn't trust her father, and Obito wished he could have seen how he looked. His mind went to the dangerous men he and his team went after during his deployment. These men were always known as loving husbands and fathers. But deep inside, they were monsters.
Sighing, Obito got inside his vehicle and drove away. His chest still felt uneasy. There were many things bothering him - he was afraid of what Rin's father could do...he was afraid that Konan's interruption ruined his chances with Rin…
Shit, he needed advice. And asap.
Grabbing his phone, he dialed Izumi. His finger tapped the steering wheel impatiently as the phone rang a few times before she picked up.
"Hey Obito! What's up?"
"Did I wake you?" he asked, putting the phone on speaker so he could focus on the road ahead.
"Nah. Watching TV. What's up?"
"I need your advice…"
"Ahhh… let me guess, Rin? What happened?"
"I took her out tonight for dinner,"
"Good!"
"...And Konan was there,"
"What!? That bitch was there!?"
Obito remembered that Izumi hated the purple-haired woman… a lot…
"Yeah… she was there. I didn't notice at first. Not until Rin went to take a call that Konan appeared and sat in our table,"
"The fucking nerve of her!"
~ In the meantime ~
Itachi paused from finishing his tea as he heard the colorful words coming out of his girlfriend's mouth. The long-haired girl walked back and forth in the living room with the phone by her ear. Sighing, he turned back to what he was doing, telling himself that he would ask her about it later.
~ Back to the scene ~
"Who the hell does she think she is appearing out of nowhere like that?! After the shit she pulled on you a year ago! Anyway, what did she want?"
"She wanted to talk to me-"
"Oh, give me a fucking break! That wench had plenty of time to talk to you in the last twelve or thirteen months! And now that she sees with you someone else, she wants to talk!? Oh, please! And you said no, right?"
Obito gulped, already predicting Izumi's reaction. "I said yes...since she said that it would only be five minutes-"
"Obito, you idiot! Why would you agree!? She walked away on you when you were hooked up to a damn machine at the hospital! Don't tell me you have feelings for her?"
"I don't, and that's the truth. I said yes because I still question why she...did that…"
"Because she's selfish, Obito. She used you because that other guy that she really liked wasn't paying attention to her! She used you like you were her property, and was probably upset when she saw you with someone else. Was Rin there when all of this happened?"
Obito exited the freeway and made a turn, turning his vehicle towards the empty street that led to his condo.
"Not for the whole thing. But she saw how Konan hugged me and insisted on talking to me. And from there, things got worse. Rin's attitude...changed. She became distant, and barely acknowledged me. She even left the restaurant and was actually trying to walk home,"
"Obito, you idiot. Rin felt jealous, and probably insecure about herself. You and Konan had some history, even if it was short. She probably thinks that you and Konan want to hook up again!"
"I don't want her to feel that way… or even think that," he replied, entering the parking garage. "Izumi, Rin is like...an angel who appeared right in front of me… and… I don't want to lose her,"
"Obito, you sound like you're in love,"
He chuckled at that. "I think I am. I've known her for less than three weeks, and I feel like I'm in love with her already,"
"And do you know how she feels about you?"
"I know she feels something for me… It felt like we were heading in the right direction...getting to that stage. I was actually thinking of asking her to be my girlfriend tonight. But after what she saw with Konan, I'm scared that she's...not interested,"
"Well of course she's going to feel that way. It doesn't take much to make a woman jealous, Obito. And this was supposed to be a date between the two of you. You letting Konan interfere broke that,"
"I know… I know… Looking back, I regret it,"
He heard Izumi sigh, "So, where does things leave off for you and Rin?"
"I just dropped her off home," he purposely omitted the details about her father, "And I asked her to be my girlfriend,"
"Oh, so you still got to ask her!?"
"Yeah,"
"And what was her response?"
"She agreed...but she didn't seem sure... And I don't know what to do to convince her otherwise,"
"Well, there's several things you can do. Number one - stop letting Konan get to you. I don't care if she gives you a birthday card. You will stop talking, seeing, or even thinking about that woman! She manipulated and hurt you once - she can do it again. If you're serious about Rin, you will make Rin your priority! Number two - does Rin know the real you?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean...does she know that you joined the military? And that you literally came back broken? That we all thought you would be paralized for the rest of your life?"
"No, she doesn't. I don't want to scare her…"
"Obito, you need to stop thinking of her like some child. Yes, the details are...pretty scary. But, she'll at least get to know the real you… and not see you as just some guy who wants to get into her panties!"
His mind went back to the red panties that she wore underneath that dress. But he remained shut. He would think about that fantasy later.
"I don't even know where to start… with that conversation,"
"Well, one thing's for sure - you have this conversation privately. That way, there are no interruptions and it's only the two of you. Stop worrying about taking her to fancy restaurants. Girls don't always want that. Sometimes, we just want the man to do something unexpected for us. Take her to a picnic or something,"
An idea suddenly came to his mind, and he nodded. "You're right… And I think I know the perfect place. I just got home, I'll talk to you tomorrow and tell you how it goes,"
"Great! I wish you luck! Don't screw this up,"
"Yeah yeah… Goodnight," he said, disconnecting the call as he walked inside his condo and locked the door.
He noticed an unread text message from Rin, and quickly opened it. His mind went to the negative immediately. Did her father touch her? Obito was ready to head out again.
But upon seeing the content, he smiled.
Rin had sent him a selfie. She was wearing the sweater he had given to her the first night he met her, and had the stuffed bear in her hands. The bear he had won for her at the fair. The words 'good night' were at the bottom, with a smile at the end.
Obito quickly texted back with a 'Goodnight, sweetie. I'll see you tomorrow after work', a heart at the end as well. He felt happy, already looking forward to the next day.
Obito left early the next day and immediately headed to the cafe. Today was Rin's last day working there. Tomorrow would be her first day at her new job, and Obito couldn't be prouder.
The cafe had no customers when he arrived as the sign on the door read 'Closed'. However, he could see Jiraiya, Anko, Rin, and the two chefs from the large opening within the restaurant. He knocked on the glass door gently with his knuckle, and Jiraiya ran over to open the door.
"I knew you would be coming!" Jiraiya said with excitement, "Come in before Anko eats all of the cake!"
"I heard that, old man!"
Obito followed the owner towards the back of the kitchen, his eyes landing on Rin as she cut the round cake into small slices. She placed each slice onto small plates, and handed them around. Her smile brightened upon seeing him, as she handed him the plate.
"I can't believe you're leaving me alone," Anko said sadly, giving Rin a hug.
"I'm not going far," she replied, "You still have my number,"
"But it won't be as fun… especially when it comes to gossipping,"
The girls laughed together, remembering the times they would gossip and vent about ungrateful and rude customers. Or whenever they would see a cute man walk in.
"It'll definitely be quiet," Jiraiya added, "But please stop by when you get a chance, Rin. Even if it's just for coffee,"
"I sure will!"
"So," Anko narrowed her eyes and looked between her friend and the Uchiha man standing quietly, "Are you two official yet?"
Rin almost choked on her last bite as she looked at Obito from the corner of her eyes. It had barely been twenty-four hours since that.
"And why do you want to know?" Obito asked back, challenging Anko's stare.
The nosy woman gasped, "So you two are together! Aw, that's great Ugh, finally. Rin, why are you acting all shy?"
"I...I am not! It's just...you know…" Rin could feel her face reddening as all eyes were on her, and she focused on scraping the left over cake from her plate.
"Well, I'm happy for both of you. But as your closest friend, I need to give him the talk,"
"The talk?" the couple asked at the same time.
Anko nodded before placing her hands on her hips, narrowing her eyes at the Uchiha male. "You, sir, are now dating my best friend… and as her best friend, I want you to know one thing. Break her heart, and I will be coming after you!"
Jiraiya and Rin laughed, and Obito chuckled before replying. "Don't worry about that. I'll be making her happy for the rest of her life,"
Jiraiya raised his eyebrows in surprise, "Well, he sounds very committed. Rin, should we expect you married in one year, and a baby in two?"
The piece of cake went down the wrong pipe, and Rin started coughing. Eventually, she cleared her throat and glared at her now ex-boss. "Jiraiya, it's too early for that!"
"Well if it happens, don't forget to invite us to the wedding,"
Rin rolled her eyes and looked away, trying her hardest not to smile from ear to ear as a wave of embarrassment went through her body. Obito, from what she could tell, was enjoying this conversation.
Fifteen minutes and several goodbye hugs later, Obito and Rin exited the cafe hand in hand and towards his car.
"Where are we going?" she asked curiously.
"Somewhere special," he replied, getting in the driver's seat.
He drove them away swiftly, enjoying her attempts at trying to guess where he was taking them.
Two hours later…
Rin gaped as Obito slowed in front of a pair of gates. He scanned a badge, and the gates started to part. Behind the large gates stood a very large, concrete building. It wasn't tall, probably no more than five or six stories high. However, it was extremely wide. She also noticed how there was nothing within the vicinity. It was all empty land, which surprised her.
"Where are we?" she asked.
Obito led the car towards the side of the building, where he scanned the same badge again but entered some numbers in addition. The side of the building shifted, and Rin noticed how it was a wide door instead.
"This is where I work," he replied casually, driving underground before parking in an empty spot. There were a few vehicles around.
They exited the car, and he grabbed her hand again as they walked towards an elevator. Rin continued looking around with wide eyes, and Obito couldn't help but admire her reaction.
The elevator was also big, and it made a loud noise before taking them up the sixth floor. The elevator doors parted, and Rin raised her eyebrows as she noticed several men sitting down by a large lounge area. The walls of the room were mostly wide windows, and Rin saw a long landing strip. There were a couple of small airplanes parked nearby.
"Ah, you finally brought the girlfriend!" the one with blonde hair and blue eyes said, and Rin looked at him as he walked over to her, "It's nice to finally meet you, Rin! I'm Deidara-"
"What lousy introduction!" the one with gray-ish hair said. This one was taller, and he playfully shoved the one named Deidara to the side. "My name's Hidan. This buffoon is Deidara-"
"Oi!"
"And the red head over there is Sasori. Quiet tall dude is Kakuzu. Don't worry, he's always been scary looking. And the other red head over there is Nagato!"
The one named Nagato gave her a welcoming smile, and Rin smiled back at all of them.
"Nice to meet you all! I'm Rin,"
"Oh, we know!" Deidara said, throwing his arm roughly over Obito's shoulders, "Boss man here told us he would be bringing you over today! By the way," he then said, turning his attention to Obito, "the room's ready. Food's in there,"
"Thanks," he said before looking down at her, "Come, you must be hungry,"
She remembered how her stomach had growled during the long car ride, and looked away embarrassingly.
He led her towards a back door. Upon him opening it, Rin gasped as she saw a large telescope occupying half the room. Near the telescope was a table with two chairs. There was a wine bottle in the middle, and a large container next to it.
"Whoa, this is cool,"
"It's a small observatory room. I had it built a few months ago,"
As he placed two plates on each end of the table and began to serve the food, Rin stood in front of the telescope. The instrument was large, protruding out from the ceiling. She looked at the cylindrical piece with curiosity.
"Let me show you how to use it, and then we can go eat," Obito said, standing right behind her, "Stand here, and look into here,"
She did as told, and gasped in awe seeing the bright flashes from above. "Obito, this is so cool! I can see the stars from here! Oh, they look so close!"
"I know," he said, keeping his eyes on her as she continued to look through the telescope, "Each of them have a name,"
"Really? What are they?"
"I never bothered in remembering them," Obito said with a shrug, "Long, complicated names,"
Rin giggled with a shake of her head, standing straight and looking up at him. "This is so cool, Obito. I've never seen the stars like this before,"
"We may be getting a new telescope in the next five years. You'll be able to see the stars even closer with that one,"
She caught the hidden meaning in his statement, and she couldn't help but blush.
"Come, let's eat,"
They walked to the table, and Rin's mouth watered. It was chicken parmesan with spaghetti on the side. He poured some of the wine in each of their glasses. Obito then grabbed his glass, and she did the same.
"To your new adventure," he said, and she repeated the same before lightly tapping their glasses together.
They ate their meal while talking about her new job. She relayed her schedule to him: school for the first six hours in the early morning, three times a week. Work at the medical center every day, except Sundays, until six or seven in the evening.
"I'll admit, I'm very nervous for tomorrow. This is not the same as serving food. I'm scared that I won't be able to balance work and school...and us…"
The last piece she said with a low tone, almost a whisper, but Obito still heard it.
"You'll be fine," he said, grabbing her hand from above the table. "And in terms of us...we'll make it work. Whatever happens, we'll make it work,"
She liked that. While she did want this opportunity, and wanted to finish her education, she didn't want to lose Obito. Obito coming into her life was something that excited her, that made her look forward to the future.
"The medical center is actually not far from my place," Obito added, finishing his meal, "So if you ever need a place to stay the night, you know where to come,"
Rin's smile tilted, an eyebrow raising. "Hmm, that doesn't sound like a bad idea at all… But you won't distract me from getting my homework done, right?"
"I promise not to distract you," he said with a smirk, "But not my fault if you get distracted,"
She snorted at that, covering her mouth immediately before laughing. Obito took it as a challenge, and stood up. Rin looked up at him, seeing how his face turned serious and she frowned, wondering if she probably offended him.
"Stand up," he ordered, that stern voice there again. And she did as told. Was he angry?
As soon as she did, he wrapped an arm around her waist and brought her closer to him. His face was much closer to hers now.
"Obito, what are you…"
"Rin, I've been very patient," he admitted, his voice sounding hoarse, "And I didn't want to scare you. But...I need to kiss you…"
"You want to kiss me?"
"I've been thinking about it since I first met you," he admitted, studying her expression carefully. Her big brown eyes continued to stare up at him, and he wanted nothing more than to break that innocence. But he had to be careful, and instead he slowly lowered his head.
"I'm going to kiss you, Rin. And then tell me if you like it...or not…"
Her eyes were on his lips as she nodded, closing her eyes just as his lips touched hers fully. With his arm still around her, her hands went to his chest as she allowed him to take over. Rin felt that sensual pressure travel down to her navel area just as his tongue went inside her mouth. And slowly, her lips started moving too. Her inexperience showed, and she let Obito lead. Her hands travelled upward, arms wrapping around his neck as his other arm came around her as well, holding her smaller frame right against his. After a while, and much to her disappointment, he pulled back and looked at her questioningly. Her lips were puffy, and her face was flushed.
"Well?" he asked, and she blinked several times, realizing that he had asked her a question.
"That...was...very good…" she licked her lips, and Obito couldn't tell if she did that on purpose or not. One thing's for sure - it turned him on. He could also see that she was feeling a certain way too. Her breathing was louder, and she was holding on to him tightly.
"Want more?" Obito asked, almost laughing as she simply nodded with her lips parted.
He kissed her again, slower this time. He allowed her to experiment, her tongue brushing against his as she deepened the kiss. Obito had to admit that he was surprised at Rin's sudden dominance over the kiss. He had worried that her feelings for him weren't as strong as his feelings for her. Yes, he lusted for her. But to him, she wasn't just anybody. She was Rin, and he wanted her all for himself. His ears picked up the slight moans escaping her mouth, making his groin tighten in response.
Obito pulled back, watching as her eyebrows furrowed. She seemed irritated, which he found adorable.
"Wh-What?" she asked, her lips puffier and cheeks redder.
"Things may get carried away...if we're not careful…"
She seemed confused for a moment, before realizing what he meant. And with such embarrassment, she pulled her arms back.
"Uh...sorry...you're right…"
"Doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it," he told her, loving her embarrassment. He wondered how she would react once things progressed between them, and they started having sex. He couldn't wait to start teasing her…
"Can I look through the telescope again?" Rin asked, and he nodded.
She walked over to the large instrument and looked through the cylindrical piece. He cleaned the table in the meantime, discarding the plastic plates into the trash bin.
"What made you want to install a telescope?" Rin asked, and Obito took a moment to respond. He knew that his response would open the gate to more questions. More questions about himself, and his past.
"I wanted to look at the stars...it was what I could only look at when I was trapped underground during battle,"
As expected, his answer had her standing straight and looking at him.
"You were trapped underground?"
"Yeah,"
"H-How?" she quickly changed her question, "Actually, if you're not comfortable, it's OK. You don't have to tell me,"
"No, it's fine," he stood next to her, leaning his back against the telescope as he looked up, "You told me about yourself...about what happened to your mother. It's only fair that I told you more about myself,"
Rin remained quiet, walking towards him.
"I was in the military for a couple of months… I was a sniper,"
She had a surprised look, "S-So...you...killed…"
"Yeah," he replied, "We were chasing the leader of an extremist group. I was one of the three snipers in the team. Kakashi Hatake was my sergeant,"
He analyzed her reaction, worried that the idea of him killing would push her away. But she remained still before offering him a smile.
"Thank you for your service then,"
Obito snorted, "You don't have to thank me. I just did my job,"
"Why did you decide to join the military?"
"I wasn't sure what to do with my life back then, and Kakashi asked. I joined the military, Madara wasn't happy of course. But I still did it,"
"And Konan?"
The question surprised him, but he replied. "She didn't care… Besides, we were together for a few months,"
"I see… The military… is that how you got your… scar?"
It was the first time she directly asked about the scar.
"Yeah… It was during our last operation… We were able to locate the group we were after for months. They were hiding in some mountain. We went in… and… I knew something was wrong… I couldn't pinpoint, but something just felt wrong. I was about to warn the team, but then it went dark…"
"What happened?"
"There was a loud sound… and when I woke up, I had a large boulder on my face, arm, and even part of my leg"
Rin's eyes widened, her hands going to her mouth as she led out a gasp. She thought that trapped underground meant that he was stuck in some cave...or in a jail cell… But to be buried underground? Her heart started breaking for him.
"You were buried underground?"
"Yup… There was a very small opening, and that's how I was able to get some oxygen. It was through that small opening that I was able to see the stars during the days I was trapped,"
"Days? How long were you trapped underground?"
He gave a light shrug, "Not entirely sure, but more than five days at least,"
She released her breath as she got closer to him, touching his arm, "And your team?"
"None of them made it… When I was rescued, they found their bodies. They told me I was lucky that the boulder fell at an angle, or else I would've been nothing but broken pieces,"
"Oh my… Obito… I am so sorry," she leaned her head against his chest. She couldn't imagine the pain and agony he must've felt for those days. To be alone for days, with nothing but darkness around. It made sense now why he had a lot of medications in the bathroom.
"Don't feel sorry for me," he held the back of her head, brushing her short hair with his fingers, "It was over a year ago…"
She touched the scarred side of his face before touching his chest and arms, "You've made a pretty good recovery though…"
Obito nodded, "Yeah, it wasn't easy. My arm was dislocated, and broken… My left side got most of the bruising. I had other injuries as well… I remember when rescue came… they were surprised that I was even alive. It took hours getting me out… I actually blacked out during the process… The last thing I remember hearing was them talking about how they couldn't find Kakashi's body,"
"Your sergeant?"
"Yeah," he answered, "They found the bodies of everybody else… they found me… but as of today, they cannot find his body. When I woke up at the hospital, they asked me if I remembered where he had been before the explosion,"
"What do you think happened to him?"
"Not sure… Sometimes I think that one day they'll call me and tell me that they've found him… either dead or alive…"
It reminded her of her own situation with her mother. She also hoped that one day, someone from the police department would call her and tell her that her mother had been found, and alive.
"I can understand that feeling," she said, "But… I'm glad you're here… Y-You're an awesome guy…"
He cupped her face with his hand, rubbing her cheek with his thumb, "Everything must happen for a reason. The day that the doctors told me that they weren't sure if I would be able to walk again or not, Konan visited me… looked at me in the face… and told me that she couldn't do it… and walked away,"
"What a bitch," Rin muttered, and Obito chuckled as he thought about Izumi. She had the same reaction too, just with more colorful words.
"Sorry, didn't mean to curse like that," Rin added.
"It's OK… I was angry… but after some time I moved on. That's why I was surprised when I saw her yesterday,"
"Did she tell you why she wanted to talk to you?"
Obito noticed how she looked elsewhere while asking him the question. Grabbing her chin, he gently turned her head so her brown eyes focused on him.
"No, she didn't. And personally, I don't care," he leaned down closer to her, "I have you now,"
Rin smiled before he kissed her again, pulling her closer as her arms went around his neck again.
Author's Note: Thank you for reading! Let me know your thoughts and the progression of this story! Hope you're all still enjoying it.