02
Iruka rolled over in bed to slap his alarm clock quiet, before groaning into the pillow.
4:45 am.
It felt like 4:45 am. He had stayed up past two, fucking Kakashi, who was apparently so passed out, the alarm didn't reach him.
Lucky bastard, he thought, getting out of bed, fully enjoying a view of Kakashi in his boxer briefs. The backside of his body was outside the blanket, with his leg curled around it. Iruka wanted to slip in behind him and rub against him. Wanted to rake his nails down the brightly colored arm that contrasted so starkly against the white of their comforter. His gaze went back to his ass.
Damn his perfect ass, he cursed, finding it harder and harder to fight the urge. He peeled his eyes away and reluctantly walked into the kitchen to start his coffee.
—
Kakashi didn't wake until 10.
Shit.
He only had an hour before he had to leave for Iruka's show at 1. Traffic into the city would be a little heavier than usual, since it was the weekend and the weather was still nice.
He sat up in bed, stretched his arms over his head, and glanced at the indentations Iruka had left in the mattress. He smirked to himself, remembering last night. Whoever said sex got boring after you're married, was clearly wrong, at least in their case. Their sex life was still as hot as it ever was, if not more so.
Kakashi's cock twitched, thinking about seeing Iruka in a wetsuit today. It was one of his secret kinks. The way that material hugged his husband's body was just so. delicious. He had the body of a swimmer; his pectoral muscles and quadriceps really popped in that suit. Not to mention his ass. And his dick. And well, everything really. Kakashi licked his lips and wondered if he could ever convince Iruka to bring one of those suits home.
He got out of bed, slipped into a pair of track pants and a hoodie, and went into the hallway, grabbing Pakkun's leash.
"It's going to be a short one today, Pak," he said, clipping it to his collar.
When Kakashi got back, he changed his clothes, washed his face, and headed into the kitchen to open the freezer. He didn't have time to cook anything, so he grabbed one of the pre-portioned bags of fruit that Iruka had meticulously measured for the perfect smoothie. Iruka was the Queen of meal prep, and right now Kakashi was very grateful (even though he sometimes poked fun at him for it).
He threw it all into the blender with some coconut cream, almond butter, and a scoop of oats, chia, and flax (also pre-mixed). He quickly poured it into a mason jar, pulled on his shoes and coat, and headed out the door.
—
By the time he got to the aquarium, it was five minutes to show time. Considering Kakashi was late for almost everything, he was proud of himself. Now, if only he could get to his seat before it started, that'd really be something.
That is, if he could even find a seat to begin with.
The bleachers were packed. Kakashi had passed a poster on the way in, announcing that the show was sold out and the next one wouldn't be until four. He weaved his way through the crowd, eventually finding a spot left of the middle, a couple rows from the back. He regretted not leaving earlier, in order to have ample time to snag a good seat. Oh well, the auditorium wasn't that big, so he could still see fine. By the time he pulled off his jacket, Iruka and three other people, had stepped out onto the stage.
—-
Kakashi knew that at the end of each show, a trainer came out into the bleachers to answer any questions the audience might have. They rotated every show, so Kakashi was delighted to see his husband take up the post in front of the glass tank, near the first row of bleachers.
Kakashi reached into his pocket to pull out his phone and snap a picture, before Iruka found out where he was. He posted it to his instagram with a caption that read,
when you're still crushin' hard on your husband, -heart eye emoji-.
"Good afternoon, everyone! Buenas tardes a todos. Bienvenidos," Iruka began, talking into his headset. "Thank you for coming to see the show today. I hope you enjoyed it and learned something new. Does anyone have a question they're burning to ask? Now's your chance!"
Kakashi thought, yeah, how flexible are those suits and does the zipper go down far enough for me to fuck you in the ass? But he decided that might be a little inappropriate. Definitely not family-friendly.
Several hands shots into the air.
"Go ahead," Iruka said, pointing at a young black boy.
"Do dolphins ever sleep?"
"Thats a great question. In order to answer it, I think we first need to understand what happens when humans sleep. When we sleep, our blood pressure and breathing rate drops, and our eyes close. Our muscle activity reduces, as well as our consciousness. Dolphins are different. Because dolphins breathe air, they would drown if they slept or rested too long underwater. So, they rest near the surface, with their blowhole exposed, in order to breathe. Their breathing rate slows down a little, but still appears to be voluntary, pointing to a more wakeful level of consciousness. Put simply, dolphins rest or 'sleep' for short periods of time, but not in the same way we do."
He pointed to a teenage girl next.
"Are you ever afraid to get in the water with them? Could they ever hurt you?"
"Never. Dolphins, especially the pacific-white sided dolphins that you saw today, are very friendly and curious by nature. There has never been a case of a dolphin hurting someone intentionally. However, accidents can happen, and we do everything we can to ensure we avoid them. For example, we don't rub their tongues like we do with the beluga, because the dolphins have many pairs of sharp teeth lining their mouth."
The next question was asked by a blonde headed girl who looked to be in her early 20's.
"How do you become a trainer? Do you have to go to college?"
This question got asked after every show without fail.
"There are several paths you can take to end up here. My best advice is to get involved with animals any way you can. Volunteer or intern at the aquarium or any other animal care facility. A college degree isn't always required, but it does help to have a background in zoology, marine biology, or animal behavior. Also, take swim lessons! You need to be an excellent swimmer to work with marine mammals. Almost all jobs in the field require you to be SCUBA certified."
Kakashi raised his hand, causing Iruka's eyes to rove in his direction, seeing him for the first time. He fought a smile, hesitating for a split second, before giving him permission to speak.
"Is there an advantage to wearing such a tight suit?" Kakashi asked, innocently.
You asshole, Iruka thought, trying to tame the heat in his cheeks before it broke into a full out blush.
"Um," he swallowed, collecting himself, "actually, it mimics the body of a dolphin. Like all cetaceans, dolphins have smooth bodies, enabling them to propel through the water with ease. It helps them swim more efficiently. Cetaceans need to achieve what is called 'laminar flow' of water over their skin, if they are to swim at high speeds. A suit like this allows for easy, fast swimming, too. It also insulates against the cold water. It's only fifty-five degrees in there," Iruka said, pointing at the tank, "which doesn't seem cold for those of us who live in Chicago, but swimming in it is entirely different."
I refuse to let you fluster me, Iruka thought, before moving his eyes from Kakashi's smug smile.
After a few more questions, the time was up, and Iruka shot Kakashi one last look, who winked at him in return, before disappearing behind a door.
—
When Kakashi got out of the bathroom, he had a text from Iruka.
How dare you tempt me in public
Kakashi scoffed.
Pft. Please. That was nothing. How dare YOU tempt me in public. You don't know what its like to see you decked out in a slick, wet, bodysuit. Pure. Fucking. Torture.
Iruka sent an embarrassed emoji, followed by,
Sorry I couldn't see you off. I'll call you later tonight, gotta go. Love you.
Kakashi sent a heart in reply, before pocketing his phone.
—
Iruka's work day had finally come to end, allowing him an hour break to grab some dinner before the guests for the overnight event arrived. Tonight was a bit different. One of their major donors had bought tickets for all the kids at one of the local orphanages. There would be 12 kids coming in total.
"Iruka," a voice cracked over the radio. "Your food is here."
He removed it from his waist, and brought it to his mouth, holding down the button on the side.
"Thanks Julie, I'm on my way."
He had ordered Indian take-out, deciding to eat it outside on the aquarium's steps for some fresh air. It was after hours, so no one would be climbing them anyway. Not until the bus of kids arrived.
Half-way through his chicken masala, he saw Kisame walking up the steps.
"You look like you're ready for a nap," he said, stopping in front of him.
"I feel like it. It's been a long day."
"Oh shit, thats right. You had to work today, too."
Iruka sighed.
"Yeah, I hope the kids aren't too rowdy tonight," he said, looking up at Kisame's towering figure.
"When have they not been?" Kisame laughed. "But don't worry, I'll wrangle them for you."
Iruka smiled. In truth, he didn't mind, he was just really tired. He liked the excitement that filled the kids. The wonder and amazement. Plus, he figured this would be a real treat for kids who may not have much to be excited about. The thought energized him. He stood up.
"We should probably start setting up, huh?"
"Probably," Kisame said.
They went inside together.
—
Tonight the kids were sleeping beneath the "Wild Reef" exhibit, which featured corals, rays, and sharks of the Philippines. Iruka was glad; since Kisame was the resident shark specialist, this was his territory, and Iruka could more or less stay in the background.
The kids arrived, at first in a hushed silence, as they walked through the tunnel. It struck Iruka that this might be the first time many of them had ever even been to an aquarium. It was impressive, to be surrounded by the exhibit on all sides, even below your feet. A small girl shrieked, as one of the sharks passed by overhead.
"It can't hurt you! Look!" a little blonde boy shouted, sticking his hand against the glass.
"Heh!" He smiled widely. "See! It's not scary."
But when the shark circled around and passed an inch from his palm, the boy fell back in surprise, causing Iruka to laugh.
"That's a sandbar shark," Kisame said. "They're one of our obligate ram ventilators, which simply means they have to keep swimming to push oxygen-carrying water over their gills so they can breathe. The other ORV, is our blacktip sharks, who are pretty easy to identify, because their dorsal fin, the one on their back, looks like it's been dipped in black paint."
He pointed to one that was swimming higher in the tank.
"Oh, I see one!" one of the kids squealed.
"It does look like paint!" another giggled.
"But don't worry, you're perfectly safe," Kisame said, ruffling the blonde kid's hair, who swatted him away. He had a pout on his face that Iruka found oddly adorable.
"You're separated by about 8 inches of plexiglass. It may not seem like a lot but it has twice the tensile strength of regular glass. But don't go trying to test it's strength," Kisame warned them. "So, who wants to touch one?!"
Kisame walked over to a low make-shift pool. The real touch tank was in a different part of the aquarium, but they constructed a miniature one here, in order to avoid the kids walking through the facility at night.
"A shark?!" a red-headed, freckled face girl asked.
"Yep! We've got three different kinds in our touch pool. There's white-spotted bamboo sharks, marbled sharks, and epaulette sharks. All of them belong to the catshark family, which are a bottom-dwelling species. See those whiskers or barbels on their mouths?" he asked, pointing at one. "They help them locate food that may be buried."
"Cool!" one of the boys shouted.
Iruka walked slowly around the children, (as he heard one of them ask Kisame if you could keep sharks as a pet), making sure none of them tried to grab one out of the water or handled them too harshly.
The blonde-haired boy from before kept sticking his hand in the water, but jerking it back in reflex whenever one of the sharks got close.
"Do you want me to help you?" Iruka asked, crouching down behind him. "I can hold your hand in place. They won't bite, I promise."
The boy didn't say anything. He had a conflicted look on his face, which told Iruka he really wanted to touch the shark, but didn't want to admit he needed help either.
"What's your name?" Iruka asked, not being able to see his name tag from behind.
"Naruto," the boy answered, shyly.
"Ok, Naruto. I'm Iruka. Let me see your hand."
Naruto held out his hand and Iruka placed his on top.
"I'm going to put it in the water, ready?"
The boy nodded.
Iruka submerged their hands. A shark was on it's way to them.
"Steady now. It's okay," Iruka said softly.
When the shark was below their hands, he felt Naruto pull back, but he anchored their hands there, allowing Naruto's fingers to graze the shark's skin. When Naruto's face lit up, Iruka felt a similar sensation in his heart.
"I did it!" Naruto shouted, before disconnecting their hands and running to another section of the pool, to touch every shark he could.
Iruka remained crouching there for a moment, contemplating what had just happened.
He watched Naruto, full of confidence now, chatting up anyone who would listen. He marveled as Naruto offered to hold other kid's hands in the same way.
Something stirred inside Iruka. Something warm and bright. Something he couldn't quite put his finger on.
—
After several aquatic crafts and a scavenger hunt later, the kids had been put to bed in their sleeping bags, on top of large padded mats.
Iruka stole away for a moment to call Kakashi.
"Yo," Kakashi answered.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
"Mmm.. playing Final Fantasy. I called Itachi to hang out but he was too busy working on his grad research."
"Ah, yeah. Kisame said he was holed up in his room when he left."
"Figures. How's your night going?"
"Good. We just put the kids to bed. It's been relatively easy."
"I'm glad. You sound tired."
"I am. I can't wait to crash. What did you think of the show?" Iruka asked. He'd been dying to know.
"It was fantastic, Iru. You were amazing. I love the new direction, all the educational videos and talk about conservation. It's a lot different. And…" He paused. "I can't stop thinking about you in that fucking wetsuit."
Iruka laughed.
"You're still on about that?"
"I'm very on about that. I'll have to do something about it before I go to bed."
Iruka felt his body heat up at the thought of Kakashi pleasuring himself.
"No me dejas eso, Kakashi. Maybe you should just take care of it right now."
(Don't tell me that, Kakashi).
"While we're on the phone?"
Iruka bit his lip.
"Si."
"That's a little risky, don't you think?" Kakashi asked, even though he had already slipped his hand into his pants the moment Iruka suggested it.
"Callate. Cuentame."
(Shh. Talk to me.)
"About what?"
But Iruka didn't respond, not wanting to get caught talking dirty.
"About what I'd do to you in that suit?"
"Si."
"Well, I've been wondering if it would unzip far enough for me to fuck you from behind. I wanted to ask that question, during your little session, but figured I'd keep it PG."
Kakashi let out a breathy groan. It sent a shiver down Iruka's spine.
"Que más?"
(What else?)
"I'd run my hands over every inch of you. Tease your cock through the fabric with my mouth. Mmph." Kakashi moaned. "I'd love to see your erection in that thing. It'd be so fucking sexy."
Speaking of erections, Iruka was fighting hard to keep from forming one himself.
"Iruka," one of the volunteers called, causing him to spin around and clutch his phone to his chest, as if she'd be able to hear what was going on.
"Y-yes?" he cleared his throat.
"Are we allowed to give the kids juice or snacks this late? One of them is asking for some."
"Oh, uh, I think it's fine."
"Ok, sorry to bother you."
You should be, Iruka thought, before bringing the phone back to his ear.
"Don't tell me you finished."
Kakashi chuckled softly. It was deep and sexy and dammit did Iruka want to be there right now, watching this.
"As if I'd do that to you."
"Good. Termina pero don't be quiet about it."
( Finish, but don't be quiet about it.)
Kakashi quit talking and focused on making other sounds, sounds that hummed so fucking sweetly against his ear. When he heard Kakashi come, Iruka gripped the railing in front of him tightly with his free hand, afraid he might cry out himself.
"Loud enough for you?"
"Ay papi," Iruka whispered, feeling an ache all over his body. "El mejor." (The best.)
Kakashi laughed.
"Well, I guess this is goodnight."
"Hm. Yeah. I should probably go," Iruka said, even though that was the last thing he wanted to do. He sighed.
"Te quiero."
"I love you, too."
"Ciao."
Iruka hung up.
—
On the way back to his air mattress, Iruka spotted one of the kids sitting next to the aquarium glass, with a blanket draped around their head. When he got closer, he saw it was Naruto, the subtle blue light illuminating his face. He was sucking on the straw of a juice box.
"Can't sleep, Naruto?" Iruka asked, kneeling down beside him.
The boy shook his head.
They sat in silence for a moment, as they both watched a stingray swim by.
"Can I live here?" Naruto asked, all of a sudden.
Iruka let out a small laugh.
"I remember wishing that too, when I was your age. But in reality, it wouldn't be a very nice place to live. The fish have everything they need in that tank, but you wouldn't have everything you need out here."
"That's okay. I still like it. It's better than any of the places I've lived," Naruto said innocently, looking into Iruka's face for the first time.
Iruka was struck by his bright blue eyes. It wasn't the aquarium glow, after all. He felt his heart break all over. He had forgotten, for a second, that all of these kids were orphans.
"Have you lived many places Naruto?"
Naruto nodded his head, chewing on the straw.
"Everyone always gives me back."
He said it neutral enough, but his face revealed something else. Iruka watched the pain etch itself into Naruto's features. Tears stung at his eyes, imaging this little boy being passed from house to house. He had a strange desire to cradle Naruto in his arms, to smooth his hair over his forehead. For a split second, he wished he could take him home. Make him a cup of something warm and comforting. His heart stopped.
He could take him home. If…if he adopted him.
A million emotions raced through him at once. He and Kakashi had talked about children before, but they never came to a concrete answer that would propel them forward into action. However, it wasn't something they ruled out either. Both of them were open to it.
Iruka's stomach turned to knots.
Relax, he thought. It's not like it would happen right this second.
He was sure it would be a long process with a lot of paperwork.
Besides, it's not like he could just surprise Kakashi with him, like he did with Pakkun two years ago. Naruto wasn't a puppy. He'd need to thoroughly discuss it with him first.
Iruka sighed. He was exhausted. His whole body was begging him for sleep. He knew he should make sure Naruto was situated in his sleeping bag before retiring to bed himself, but he couldn't bring himself to pull the boy away from the glass.
"I'm going to go lay down, Naruto. Right over there," Iruka pointed at his mattress. "Come get me if you need anything."
The boy didn't respond, his eyes glued to the glass, flicking back and forth with the movement of the fish.
Iruka got up and reached out to touch Naruto's head, but let his hand fall away, feeling shy.
He climbed onto his mattress and gave Naruto one last look, before closing his eyes.
—
Iruka awoke the next morning to Kisame shaking his shoulder.
"Hey, buddy," he said, "You've out-slept the kids."
Iruka blinked open his eyes, seeing movement all around him.
"S-sorry," he croaked out.
"No problem," Kisame laughed, "but we should take them to breakfast soon," he said, before a kid pulled him away by the hand, asking if he could touch a shark again.
Iruka sat up and pulled his hair out of it's loose bun, messy from sleep. After running his fingers through it, he tossed it back up again. He glanced at the spot near the glass, the spot Naruto had occupied the night before. He was no longer there, but the blanket still was. Iruka wondered if he had fallen asleep there, or if he had even managed to sleep at all.
—
After they had all eaten a warm breakfast in the food court, Iruka supervised the kids while they brushed their teeth in the bathroom. Naruto was still at it, toothpaste dripping onto his shirt that was embellished with the face of a frog. He was the last one in the bathroom. Iruka could feel the sadness radiating off him.
"Don't worry, Naruto. I'll make sure you can come back here," he said, looking at him in the mirror.
Iruka didn't know what in the hell he was doing, promising that to him. It just kind of spilled out. He decided to go with it.
"You like frogs, huh? Maybe I can show you our amphibians next time. And even have you meet my friend Isla. She's a dolphin."
Naruto spun around, pulling the toothbrush out of his mouth.
"You pr-m-se?" he asked, through foamy lips, prompting more toothpaste to slip out off his mouth and onto his chin.
Iruka grabbed a paper towel and wiped it off.
"I promise."