Me: I don't own, so you have no reason to sue me. The fic was inspired by a song (it's country, but I forgot the name, if anyone can guess the name, please tell me) that I heard on the radio today in driver's ed.
Kakashi woke early to see his Iruka off to work, like hehad when they had first started dating. They had been dating for two years, and they had lived together for a year and three quarters of that time, and for a while he had slipped from the habit. But this morning, as soon as he felt the warmth next to him shift to get up, he jumped up himself. Iruka had been acting oddly the past few weeks; He was quieter, he stared off into space a lot more than was usual, (and by that, he meant he constantly had to pull Iruka aside when one of his students decided he made a good target for kunai practice), and he just didn't talk to Kakashi the way he used to. They still had good sex, of coarse, hell, it was excellent sex, but something was missing. And the rather forlorn looks Iruka kept giving him forlorn looks when he thought the other man was not looking were beginning to worry the silver-haired jonin. Like any problem or puzzle, he was determined to find the reason behind his lover's longing distance.
Iruka blinked at him in puzzlement as he stood and began to pull on his clothes next to him, but he didn't ask anything. That kind of hurt. Before, the teacher would have questioned his intentions, usually assuming them to be less than pure (having learned his lesson the way of experience). But this morning he simply watched him quietly from the corner of his eye as the jounin pulled on his uniform. They dressed in silence, but as Iruka went to pull his hair back into his pony-tail he found his hand gently enveloped by a warm, longer, slightly larger one.
"What's the matter?" Kakashi's voice was warm and gentle against his ear, and he shivered slightly. It was amazing that, even after being his lover for two years, the older man still had that effect on him. But that was part of what Iruka loved so desperately about the man. He shook his head and flashed Kakashi what he hoped was a dismissing smile and moved to pull his hand away and go back to work on his hair. Kakashi, however, was not going to let the issue drop. He also was not going to let go of the young teacher's hands. Tugging gently on Iruka's hand, he pulled the rather puzzled chunnin over to the dresser in the corner and sat him down in front of the mirror. Then, taking up the brush that was lieing there, he began to gently brush the dolphin's hair.
"I'm not letting you off with just a grin like I usually do. You've been acting strangely for weeks now, and I'm worried about you." Not pausing in his ministrations to the man's sable hair, he studied his lover's face in the reflective surface across from him. He gave voice to something that had been bothering him for a while now.
"Did I do something wrong?"
At the softly voiced question, Iruka's eyes snapped up to his lover's face in surprise.
"No!" he exclaimed, truly startled. "No, of course not! I just….well….." he paused, then gave Kakashi another smile, this one with less behind it then his last one. "it's nothing, I've just been really tired lately." Kakashi scowled at him and yanked his hair none to gently.
"I've told you before!" He snapped over his lover's yelp. "Don't lie to me, you suck at it. Now I'll ask you one more time, and if you don't answer me, you will have one pissed jounin lover following you around every step of the way until I found out what the hell is making you so….sad all the time! Hell, even Naruto has noticed! He keeps asking "What the hell have you done to Iruka-sensei, you bastard!" and truthfully, I would like to know myself." He glared at the quiet young man with both eyes. Iruka blushed and lowered his eyes from Kakashi's reflection. Kakashi set the brush down and knelt beside the teacher, once again taking one of his hands in between the two of his own, rubbing them gently.
"please tell me what it was that I did wrong?" He asked, his voice now a whisper. Iruka looked over at him, his head lowered so that he was looking at the jounin through his eyelashes.
"it's nothing you did." He said softly. He took a deep breath, and Kakashi waited patently, knowing his lover would tell him what was bothering him in his own time, now that Kakashi had made it clear that he wouldn't take anything less then the truth.
"I-I mean- it's just that, I, you've been working and I've been working, and he haven't really been seeing much of each other, except at night, and then we're usually to……busy, to talk or anything….I just, I guess…." Here his blush intensified, and he got a look on his face that Kakashi recognized as his I-can't-believe-I'm-saying-this-because-it-makes-me-feel-whiny look. (Kakashi had been surprised when he had realized that that was what that look was, but there was nothing else it could be) "I guess since we haven't been really talking much like we used to, I felt like I was getting in the way, and I guess I just don't feel like I'm special to you anymore." he finished finally, still blushing and waited silently for his lover's reaction.
Kakashi didn't know what to say, or what to do. Had he really been ignoring his dolphin like that?
"Why didn't you tell me?" He asked softly. Iruka shrugged, refusing to look Kakashi in the eye.
"I felt like I was maybe being to needy, like I might be getting in the way. And besides, we agreed at the beginning that if we ever got tired of one another, we had no obligation to stay." he answered softly. Kakashi felt his heart clinch slightly at the words.
"Do you want to break up?" He asked softly. Iruka's head snapped up again, his eyes wide and slightly panicked.
"No! of course not! I just thought maybe you were getting tired of me, that's all." His voice had decreased in volume during this sentence, and he ended it in a soft near-whisper. Kakashi rubbed his hand a bit harder. He used one hand to reach up and lift Iruka's chin gently, turning him to face him. Sad brown eyes stared longingly into loving mismatched blue and crimson ones.
"I could never get tired of you, 'Ruka. I love you to much." Iruka blushed as Kakashi leaned down and kissed him gently, lovingly. Then he pulled away and pulled a scroll from his pocket, slicing the tip of one of his fingers on a kunai, he swiped the bloody finger down the paper. Puukan appeared seconds later.
"I was napping." the dog snapped irritably with a yawn. "What's the matter now, brat?" Kakashi grinned as Iruka gave him another puzzled look.
"Mind going to inform them that Iruka-sensei is not feeling good toady, and they will need to find a substitute for the mini-brats today?" Kakashi asked in a voice that was way to sweet. Puukan scratched behind his ear lazily for a moment, glaring at his master.
"What am I, your messenger dog now?" he demanded irritably, but he stood anyway. "I'll do it because I like Iruka-sensei, and because he needs a vacation. Not for you." and, tail held high, he stalked out the door. Iruka blinked up at his irritated but smug looking lover.
"What are you doing?" He asked the jounin. "I have to get to school today and teach. Why would I need a sub?" Kakashi just shushed him and picked the brush back up, returning to his original spot behind the chunnin and resumed brushing his hair gently.
"We are going to spend the day home alone, together, and I am going to prove to you in any way I can that I could never get tired of you, and that I love you with all my heart, and-" He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on the top of Iruka's head. "That I'm sorry, and I want to fix my mistake." Iruka smiled softly and tipped his head up to look Kakashi in the eyes, reaching up and pulling the older man's face down to his.
"I love you so much. Nothing will ever changed that." he whispered, and pressed his lips to his lover's in a kiss that proved just that.
Me: Ok, I'm sorry that that wasn't very good. I wish it were better, but it's my first fluffu fic, much less one about this pair. So,I appoligise. Please reveiw, so i will know just how poorly i have done.