First Meeting, First Impression
This is nice...
So Kakashi thought to himself. For once he finally got the well-deserved break from all shinobi duties and he intended to really enjoy it. The weather was nice, the sun was shining brightly, the temperature was perfect, he was lying on the lush green meadows with his favorite book in one hand while his other arm---
"Ne, Kakashi… will you tell me?"
A man's peace wasn't meant to last forever, not when there was a woman curled up at his side who was using his arm as a pillow. Women generally loved to talk and this one was no exception.
He heard her all right, but he didn't feel like taking a break in his reading. The plot thickened and he really wanted to know what happened next. Besides, the great Hatake Kakashi was known for his multitasking ability. So he just let out a non-committal "Hnn…?" while absentmindedly running his fingers through her soft tresses to let her know that he was listening to her.
A scowl was finding its wayupon Sakura's countenance, but this was Kakashi she was dealing with. No need to get riled up about trivial matters. Besides, she kind of liked the way he tenderly caressed her pink hair.
Shifting her position a little bit, she snuggled closer to him, her eyes drank in his face—without the mask on. When asked about it, he had said that he refused to have his face unevenly tanned, so he'd slipped the mask off his face. Funny, she never thought of him as the vain type, but it seemed that he did care about his facial feature.
"What did you think of me when you first met me?"
His eyes still fixed on the illicit reading material, he said, "I thought I said that I didn't like you guys."
"Kakashi!" Sitting up, she slapped his side playfully. "I'm being serious here!"
"So am I," came the monotone reply.
"Hmph," she pouted in a childlike manner, "I didn't think you'd still hold a grudge for Naruto's ridiculous prank."
Finally putting down the book at his other side—he deliberately kept it away from her reach—he raised an eyebrow, amused at her antics. "Hey, you asked me a question and I answered truthfully. That's all that there is to it." He let his elbows support his weight as he faked an accusing expression. "Besides, it might be Naruto's idea, but you let him, so you're an accomplice."
"And just for the record," he added before she could say something, "I could've dodged the eraser if I'd wanted to."
Sakura sighed in defeat. "Why didn't you then?"
He shrugged his shoulder nonchalantly. "I just didn't feel like it. Plus I wanted to see if your generation still abided by the rule."
She was going to regret asking, but a part of her was curious. "Which rule?"
He didn't even try to hide the haughty look on his face. "You know, that rule: Honor thy teacher, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Hokage thy leader giveth thee."
"What a respect-craving bastard…" She muttered under her breath. One of these days she was going to find out how to win a verbal sparring against the witty Copy Ninja. No one told her that he had as much tricks up his sleeves for this kind of situation as for in a real battlefield.
Sakura sulked at the insufferable man's tendency to annoy her. "So since we didn't abide by your rule," the sarcasm in her voice wasn't lost on him, "you decided that you didn't like me?"
"Well, lucky for you…," she yelped when he suddenly pulled her toward him and secured her lithe form in his lap, "…not all first impressions last forever." Slowly he tilted her chin upward and met her lips in a gentle kiss.
She remembered the first time he had kissed her. It was in a setting much like this: quiet, serene, away from the nosy crowd, away from their shinobi duties. They were just two souls reaching out to each other. When he had held her in his arms afterwards, it had been the first time in a long time that she had truly felt at home.
Kakashi might be right that not all first impressions last forever. But the memory of their first kiss and the feeling of simply being in his arms would remain within her forever until the day she died. It would permanently be etched on her soul, never to be forgotten through the passage of time.
They say that home is where the heart is. She knew then and now, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that her heart had found its home in him.
- The End -
Author's Note:
This was supposed to be a response to the week 14 challenge with the word 'First' from KakaSaku drabble community at LJ, but the word count is way past the maximum allowed.
