Iruka was nervous as he came home for two reasons.
One, Kakashi seemed to be missing. Usually, when he wasn't out on a mission, Kakashi would wait at the door for Iruka to come home.
Two, there was a horrendous screeching sound coming from behind the door; it was worse than nails on a chalk board. Carefully opening the door and disarming the traps Kakashi always set, Iruka peered inside.
The front room was dark, but the room to their bedroom had a light creeping out from under the door, which appeared to be where the noise was coming from. Slowly and silently Iruka approached pulling out a kunai. As he threw open the door the screeching abruptly stopped and Iruka found himself pinned to the wall; both hands immobilized at his sides.
"Iruka?" Kakashi asked as though he wasn't expecting him to be home for another hour. "You're not supposed to be home yet."
"Actually I'm an hour late. You usually have dinner ready and are waiting at the door for me by now."
"I'm sorry. Dinner isn't ready yet; I kinda lost track of time."
" What were you doing?" Iruka asked, trying to look past Kakashi's head.
"Nothing," he said far too quickly, shoving his face in front of Iruka's eyes blocking the bed from view.
"Right. Well, I'll go make dinner than while you finish… whatever it is you were doing here."
"Okay! That sounds great!" Kakashi beamed quickly turning Iruka and shoving him out the door.
Iruka huffed at the quiet click of the door being locked and winced as the screeching returned. "God, Kakashi! What the hell is that noise?"
The screeching stopped as Kakashi poked his head out. "You don't like it?"
"No. Should I? It sounds like a mixture of some strange bird dieing and nails on a chalkboard."
"You don't like it." Kakashi pouted, lower lip obvious even with the mask in place.
Iruka sighed and approached his lover arms outstretched. "Come here and tell me what's wrong."
Kakashi put something down behind the door with a toned thud and exited the room to get between Iruka's arms head still pointed down. "I was hoping you'd like it."
"Why don't you tell me what it is first, so I can know if I like it?" Iruka said gently, stroking Kakashi's back like he might one of his students when they had failed at something they had tried so hard at.
"I can't tell you." Kakashi mumbled.
"And why not?" Iruka asked skeptically.
"Because it's for your birthday and it would spoil the surprise… even though you don't seem to like it." Kakashi added truly morbid.
"Here," Iruka said gently leading Kakashi to the couch. Seating his lover in his lap head pillowed against his shoulder. Iruka kissed his forehead before reassuring, "Well, it's still a couple months before my birthday, whatever it is I'm sure you'll get good enough at it by then that my reaction will be totally different."
"You don't understand," Kakashi said his breath starting to hitch. "I've… been practicing… all year to try to get good enough at this… If I'm still so bad by now… there's no hope… that it'll be good enough… for you." He was wailing by now.
"Hush, hush. It's alright. I'm here. You're okay." Iruka said rocking Kakashi gently. "It's you giving it to me it will always sound beautiful, because it's your love you're giving to me." Gods did he sound sappy just then, but it seemed to be working; his shirt wasn't getting and wetter at least.
"Really?" Kakashi asked wiping his eyes and looking up with stained cheeks.
"Of course. I love you and I always will. Anything you give me will be cherishable to the end of time."
"Wait here." Kakashi said excitement filling his voice as he got up and padded over to the door of their room. "Now don't look until I tell you to."
"Alright," Iruka chuckled closing his eyes.
There were noises of metal joints creaking with movement and of musical strings being bumped about for a minute as Iruka waited patiently on the couch.
"Okay," Kakashi said his voice nervous. "It's all ready."
Iruka only just caught himself before he burst out laughing. Kakashi was standing in the middle of the room poised and ready with a violin tucked under his chin and a bow resting gently on the strings. "You're learning to play an instrument for me? That's wonderful!" Iruka amazed himself when he didn't falter over the laughter he was still bottling in. "So what are you going to play for me?"
Kakashi faltered remembering the whole point of this was for Iruka's birthday, and it was still far away. "Um, well, it's not the right time yet, but I was going to play Happy Birthday for you."
"You could save that for my birthday and play something else then," Iruka said cheerfully.
"I don't know anything else," Kakashi mumbled looking at his feet.
"Then we'll just celebrate my birthday early this year."
"But we don't have a cake."
"We can go buy one when you're finished… but the cake platter is still broken, so you may have to use my stomach like you did last year." He added suggestively.
"Sounds like a plan." Kakashi grinned turning to the music stand.
Iruka almost winced as the first excruciating note screeched through the room but managed to hold a façade of a smile on his face for all 8 measures of a very out of tune violin accompanying a very tone deaf copy-nin. "Thank you so much Kakashi. I love it," Iruka said as soon as the assault to his ears had finished.
Kakashi grinned and set down the violin before hugging his boyfriend. "I think you said something about cake and a lack of plates?"
"Oh, forget the cake," Iruka said pulling the jounin down onto himself.
A bit later Iruka was the first to speak voice still slightly slurred. "Mmm, that was good 'Kashi."
"Guh" was all he could manage.
"Still plastered, huh?" a chuckle.
"Guh."
"We should shower."
"Guh." Kakashi said tightening his arms, denying the chuunin freedom.
"But I guess we can stay here for a bit." Iruka said voice trailing off as he snuggled in closer to his overly sated lover.
They fell into a peaceful slumber then, still tangled up in each other atop their discarded clothing.
This is an altered version the full version is on my lj
