From the first time he went there, the Hyuga house had seemed a frivolous place. Everything was designed to be envied: the gate, the well-kept path, the pristine facade. The fact that he was practically in the middle of a forest did not seem to be an excuse to let the slightest carelessness affect him.

The sky was cloudy, black, angry, a storm ready to strike, and inevitably his mind transported him to the events of a year ago, to the moment when all the chaos began. He could imagine her, coming out carefree and happy, completely ignorant of the things she was about to go through, becoming prey as soon as she took the first step out of the safety of her home, and he pitied her.

But he couldn't think about the past, his visit had a purpose and he had to fulfill it before the regret of not doing the right thing came back to him, so he rang the bell and introduced himself, waiting for the gate to be opened to give way to the entrance of the great house.

Once inside, he waited in the living room for Hinata to be notified he was there, but he asked they to refer to him only by his last name, he needed her to come down to greet him as if it were Sasuke who was waiting for her there.

—I… tachi? —She called and he looked at her, she was on the stairs, she seemed confused, with the traces of what seemed to be a smile still on her mouth, as she looked slowly from side to side, he supposed she was trying to hide it although she had not succeeded —Did you come with Sasuke? Where is he?

—No, I came alone, I…— He took a deep breath and observed her, still standing in the middle of the stairs, dressed in a jumpsuit and under it what appeared to be a short green top, which probably reached a little lower than her breasts, while the sleeves were long. Her hair was tied in a bun and her feet were kept bare.

Slowly he walked towards the stairs and extended a hand to help her down, but this gesture seemed to alarm her, and instead of accepting his hand, she went down carelessly almost stumbling and stood in front of him, very close but not touching him in any way and with her face bathed in concern.

—D-id something happen to Sasuke? — She asked raggedly and Itachi held his breath at the sight of her bright eyes, wet from the tears that formed in them. —Itachi, tell me please.

He cursed inwardly; it wasn't what he expected. His original plan was to meet her and tell her the truth, that he knew everything, that Sasuke was gone, and he could never hurt her again, he could not force her to anything anymore and that she was now free.

But seeing her like this made him doubt himself, wonder if it was the right thing to do as he looked directly into her begging eyes.

—Easy, he's fine— he said, taking her by the shoulders, felt her tremble under his grip, but at the same time she sighed in relief and smiled —But he would not be able to come around for a time —he said, starting to make up a whole story in his main to tell her.

—Why?

—He has been asked to help with a new case in another city and he had to leave immediately

She looked disoriented both ways and then looked back at him.

—T-that's a good thing, right? — She asked and he smiled softly at her, nodding —then I'll call him to congratulate him— she said trying to turn around, but he, with his grip, prevented her from doing so.

—Hinata— he called her attention, —you can't do that— he said, denying —this new assignment for Sasuke is something very subtle and must remain as a secret, it is likely that he will have to go under cover at some point, so he is prohibited communicate with anyone

—But… he didn't say goodbye to me— she whispered, finally dropping a tear that slid slowly down her cheeks.

—I know, and he´s really sorry— he said as he wiped her face with one hand —But it's something that if everything goes well will really help him in his career, he will return, but you must be patient— He promise her, and after a minute, she nodded

—Okay, okey— she said finally with dismay, —I ... I have to go back up; I have some projects to finish and ... —But she did not continue, she only pursed her lips and tried to smile, which told Itachi that he should go.

—If I get any new information from him I'll let you know —he told her, stroking her arms up and down, trying to comfort her until she nodded, then he released her.

She waved faintly as he turned and finally left the house. Inside his car he took a deep breath, just realizing how much he needed it. After a few minutes he opened the glove compartment and took out his brother's cell phone from where he had kept it the night before and stared at it, waiting for it to ring even though he knew the device was off.

He put his vehicle in gear and finally left the property, thinking about everything he had said and how he should proceed from now on.

And it is that not everything he had said was a lie. Sasuke was gone, but the only communication prohibitions he had were the ones he had imposed on him. Sasuke's new job was in a small coastal town where crime and violence had started to increase exponentially, and where old corruption problems caused the inhabitants to mistrust the authorities and were quite hostile to the them, so no one wanted an important position in the forces there. Sasuke's responsibility would be to practically restructure the entire system, help with the training of new police officers and detectives, and take charge of evaluating the new deputy chiefs of each unit, all while continuing to fulfill his duties as a detective.

He didn't lie when he said it would be a good thing for Sasuke's career, it was quite a challenge, but he trusted his brother's abilities and capabilities.

It had been something that had originally offered to him, and he had already resolved to accept the proposal that the Department of Homeland Security had made, or at least that was the way it had been before discovering everything Sasuke had done, so he wasted no time and proposed him for that assignment instead, and while he was questioned about this decision at first, the reality was that Sasuke had an impeccable record, he had solved more cases than anyone else with his time or even more. He had solved small cases, large cases, also the Uchiha surname had a weight in that world, so it was only a matter of a couple of days before Sasuke was the one who took over the position.

Now he only had how to solve this whole situation he had gotten into without hurting Hinata more than necessary.

It would be a very interesting few days, to say the least.


—He says he misses me— she whispered with a soft smile and a slight blush, pressing the letter to her chest, careful not to squeeze it.

Itachi raised his cup of tea to his lips and looked around the place, trying to ignore the discomfort the whole situation caused him.

They were in a quaint little cafeteria near Sasuke's old house that she had chosen, much to his dismay. There were few customers, but it seemed like it was the norm there. He had asked her for such a meeting, and once they were reunited, they chatted a bit, enough for two people who barely knew each other. He saw her want to say something a couple of times, or ask something, he supposed, but she always ended up backing down, he knew, of course, she wanted to ask about Sasuke, so he did not waste much time and handed her the letter that Sasuke had sent her.

Or at least, that was what she believed.

It had been three weeks since Sasuke had left, three weeks in which he had concentrated on assessing the situation in every spare moment.

Everything seemed to be going well, normal, as it had to be, at least that was how he believed it has to be.

One night he received the call from Hinata, which surprised him a bit since that had never happened, but his surprise turned to anger when she told him the reason for said contact.

She had received calls, calls that were cut off immediately she answered, which scared her a bit at first, but once she realized where the area code belonged, the illusion reached her, leading her to call him to confirm if it was from where Sasuke was.

And indeed, it was a call from Sasuke, it could not be from anyone else, but he lied to her and denied everything even assuring her he was in a completely different place, effectively destroying any sign of hope that grew in her, and she, Embarrassed, confessed that she had sent him some messages hoping that at some point he would respond and thought that her efforts had finally paid off.

In frustration, Itachi repeatedly ran a hand through his hair as he explained again, over and over, she should not contact with Sasuke for a long time and she had nothing left to do but wait, which she accepted with defeat.

He also recommended changing her number as it was possible it was just someone undesirable trying to annoy her and she also accepted it.

When his call ended, Itachi stayed up until the wee hours of the morning, finally deciding to turn on Sasuke's cell phone and read the messages she had sent him.

Sasuke was never someone technological, his phone totally lacked any type of social network or other application, so when the phone was connected to the communication tower in his area, the messages began to arrive ... they were quite a lot.

"I miss you" "I hope you are well" "Have you already eaten?" "Goodnight"

They were short, sweet messages and if Sasuke really had his cell phone, he wouldn't hesitate to come back.

So, he put on his glasses, sat in front of his computer, and began to write trying to emulate whatever Sasuke would put into a letter, which proved to be more difficult than he initially considered, but he seemed to have succeeded as she kept reading the letter over and over, smiling.

—Hinata, I'm sorry, but I have to go —he said, standing up as he took out his wallet and left enough money on the table to pay for what they had consumed and something else.

—Wait! —Like him, Hinata stood up and came around the table to approach him. —W-why didn't he send this directly to my house? I-I want to answer him but ... I don't know how ...

—You know that's not possible, Hinata, sending you that letter was risky enough of his part — and before these words, her face fell, darkened and something in him was alarmed for a few seconds, doubting what he would say next —But how about if you write back? I will look for a way to get it to him

Her eyes filled with light again once she looked at him, she seemed genuinely happy with those simple words.

—I will do it! tomorrow ... tomorrow I'll give it to you, I-I know all I want to say to him — and then she stood on tiptoe, surprisingly wrapping her arms around his neck, hugging him — thank you — she whispered close to his ear, and only then did he realize that he had leaned over, easing her grasp.

When she released him, they said goodbye and he walked outside, giving her one last look before leaving.

And just as she had said, she already had her letter ready the next day, she called him in the middle of the afternoon and he went in search of the piece of paper as soon as he had the opportunity, receiving it in a white envelope with her initials in one corner.

Lately his work had been scarce, so he spent more nights in his bed, he could not remember when was the last time he slept three nights in a row at home, so he assumed that his reluctance to sleep was normal. That was the reason he was still awake, with that letter in his hands, not sure if he should read it because it was a private letter for Sasuke, but it was a response to something he had written, would it really be wrong to read it? He decided not to think about it anymore and opened it carefully not to tear the envelope, he took out the letter and the first thing he noticed were the beautiful letters with such neat calligraphy that for a moment he doubted that it was really handwritten.

Dear…

Not being able to write your name seems like a punishment, but I understand that it is something small compared to what you are doing.

it still hurt that you left without saying a word, but the pride I feel for you takes away all that pain and having received your letter is the most wonderful thing that has happened to me in recent weeks, knowing that you have not abandoned me is more than enough.

If I close my eyes, I can feel your breath, your hands, your lips and it is as if you are still with me, by my side.

Our relationship didn't start in the most conventional way, but it wouldn't change even if I had a choice.

I will always be waiting for you, when you come back, we will be together forever, when you come back things will be different, when you come back, I will love you more than I loved you the last time.

I love you too, I miss you too and I will always be yours.

With love, Hinata

He read the letter over and over again, sure that if his brother ever read it, he would not hesitate to return.

He slowly got to his feet and walked to his desk, opening the top drawer of it and slowly placing the letter inside. Before closing it, he looked at Sasuke's cell phone and after thinking about it he took it and turned it on. He noticed that there were new messages from her, good night, I love you said the last one.

He began to review some things, the old messages were between the two of them the majority and a few of his, the contacts were few, those that Sasuke considered strictly necessary, he also noted with regret that he also continued to keep the old numbers of his parents, those that already had more than a decade without being answered.

He preferred to move on to other things and went directly to the photo gallery, and the last one saved caught his attention, despite the fact that the others showed to be somewhat suggestive and risqué, however that was the only one that caught his attention.

As he enlarged it, he looked at it more closely; It was Hinata, completely ignoring the camera, slightly in profile, with a vanilla ice cream in the nearest hand and the other smeared with said dessert near her mouth as she seemed to lick her palm in an attempt to wipe herself, her lips curved slightly upwards in a soft smile, looking at something out of the frame. The light behind her highlighted her, making her dark hair glow.

She was beautiful he had to admit, he could see what had caught Sasuke's attention in the first place.

...

No.

He couldn't have those thoughts.

He had to stick to his plan, he would slowly end this relationship and walk away from it all.

His only goal was to protect her from his brother and give her her life back.

The path that did not include what happened.

The life that didn't include Sasuke.

The life that didn't include him.

And that would be all it would be.


And finally, here I am, clearing Itachi's name… maybe.