A/N: chapter inspired by 'if I'm gonna fall in love' by a rocket to the moon

Kakashi sighed as leaned back on his seat and massaged his temples in a futile attempt to pray the headache away. His assistant had been gone for four days and is not expected to return for another day or two.

Kakashi's lips stretched into a small smile at the thought of Shizune. In truth, he had been surprised by his actions that night, as well. But he doesn't regret it; in fact, he's glad that he gave her a parting gift before she left for her mission. He's not sure why he did that except for the reason that he wanted to. Shizune's absence made Kakashi realize that his feelings for her had been growing steadily every passing day.

A sharp pain behind his eyebrows jolted him and he closed his eyes tightly, his elbows resting on the desk and hands supporting his forehead. If he had to guess, his headache may come from his lack of sleep. He had not been able to sleep well last night. In fact, he hadn't been able to sleep most nights. He's being plagued by nightmares almost every night and he had to go to work with only an hour or two of sleep.

All of a sudden, he felt warm hands gently touching the sides of his head. He jerked and snapped his eyes open, only to meet the dark brown eyes of Shizune. Her eyebrows were knitted in concentration and her bottom lip drawn between her teeth. His hands dropped to his desk as he gazed at her, dumbfounded.

"Shizune…" he whispered. He didn't notice her enter nor walk closer to him.

"Shh…" she shushed him as her comforting chakra entered his body, "Are you dizzy?" she asked and he shook his head, words leaving him as he stared at her. She was still wearing her mission uniform: the green flak jacket of Konoha over a blue long sleeved shirt. She leaned over his desk, bending slightly at the waist to properly grasp his head.

Kakashi stared at her in bewilderment. They're supposed to be back in two days, at most, "You're back," he said dumbly.

Shizune smiled a little as her thumbs began to lightly massage his temples, "We managed to assist those infected with flu quickly with the help of medic nins from other villages. Thanks to your idea, we had the necessary help and the people of Ame are now safe."

"I see," he replied and closed his eyes as he reveled on the feel of her hands on his head. Every time she touched him, her fingers always felt warm and he wondered if every inch of her skin would also feel warm to the touch.

"I already sent Aoba and Raido home. I told them I'll handle the mission report for the three of us," she continued and he hummed absentmindedly.

He can no longer sense her chakra flowing and he soon felt her fingers pulling slowly away from him. In a haste, his hands clamped down on hers, pressing her hands flat against his cheeks, feeling the warmth from her palm seep through his mask and into his skin. He was entirely unaware of the redness creeping up the woman's neck and coloring her face.

"Good thing you're back. I was about to eat ramen again for tonight," he joked as he opened his eyes and saw the brightly blushing Shizune. His gaze locked with hers for a long moment when he realized that his 'growing feelings' for his assistant is affection. He was beginning to like her as more than a friend, way more than the professional relationship that they're keeping up. Kakashi smiled at her behind his mask and he wondered if he'll ever have the proper courage to ask her out without having to try numerous times.

He slowly let go of her hands and she straightened up, still blushing, "Oh! Uhm, yes – no! I mean – no. Don't eat ramen tonight. I guess you've been having them since I left for mission. I'll cook us some dinner. Does subuta and gohan sound good, Hokage-sama?" she exclaimed in a rush, her face still flaming.

Kakashi nodded approvingly, "That sounds good. Oh, and don't worry about the mission report. You can take the rest of the day off. Shikamaru's here, anyway."

"O-of course, Hokage-sama. Thank you," she muttered and turned back, nearly bumping on the door as she hurriedly made her exit.

Kakashi chuckled quietly at her retreating form. Why is it that he likes making her flustered?

Aside from his sleeping problems, the next few days passed by without a hitch for Kakashi. There are times where he would have nightmares about the death of his comrades but sometimes, he would have dreams involving a certain kunoichi. Ever since Shizune got back from her mission, Kakashi had been having… pleasant dreams about her. It seems that her return and his realization and acceptance of his growing feeling for her had made him see her in a rather… sensual way.

However, those dreams of his would sometimes be so vivid that, when he came to work in the morning, he could barely keep eye contact with her and he struggled to fight off his blush whenever she came in close proximity of him. She'd be shooting him odd looks, but he'll just brush her off with an uneasy grin.

He preferred those dreams about her than having nightmares about boulders, lightning and claws.

Tonight, he had another vivid dream about her. About warm, pale skin flushing red beneath his hands. Of battle scars littered across said skin. Dark hair and brown eyes darkened with lust. Warm hands touching his bare arms and back. His eyes roaming the luscious figure kept hidden under the dark yukata she always wore and his lips melding against her soft ones…

He jerked awake. He was breathing rather heavily as he came around from his dream. He looked down and saw the distinct tent of his arousal under the sheets.

He supposed it would be a normal thing. If him and Shizune had done it before his accident, then it had been more than three months since the last time he had sex. It's not… it's not like he's driven only by sex or something; but Kakashi's still a human who has needs. Jiraiya-sama is probably laughing at me right now, he thought to himself.

He glanced at the window and saw the sun already rising. He sighed. Perhaps an ice cold shower would be a good idea.

Kakashi subdued the victory cheer that almost went out of his mouth as he signed the last paper for the day. It was quiet late, his shoulders are sore from typing and writing all day and he was hungry and tired. All he wants to do right now is to eat the katsudon that Shizune brought for him, take a shower and crash on his bed.

Speaking of, the kunoichi herself entered his office, bearing the papers and scrolls that she took for herself to help him out with his work. Shizune insisted that she help him with his work even though she's working the night shift at the hospital tonight.

"Hokage-sama, here are the papers," she said as she set them down on his desk and she noticed the unopened bento box.

She raised an inquisitive eyebrow and he chuckled and gestured at the stack of finished papers, "I figured I'd get all these papers done first before digging in. Don't want any stains on them, do we?"

She smiled as she took half of the stack and put it on the floor next to his desk, "No, we don't, Hokage-sama. Please go ahead and eat. I'll just put the papers here," she said as she put the last stack on the floor.

"Do you need anything else, Hokage-sama?" she asked.

"I have a headache," he suddenly blurted out. He resisted the urge to slap himself. He doesn't have a headache! A slight pinching sensation on the left side of his head, sure, but a full blown headache?

Nonetheless, Shizune walked towards him and stood beside him, her hands automatically drifting to the sides of his head and her iryo chakra began to glow as she massaged his temple. Kakashi started to feel guilty; it's as if he's trying to keep her here.

"Shizune," he said, "It's alright. You have night shift at the hospital tonight, right? You can go, I'll just sleep on it" he said as her hands began to massage his head.

She leaned further down and leveled her face with his as she glared at him, "Don't say 'no' to me, Hokage-sama. Besides, if you're having a migraine, you better not sleep on it; it might get worse when you wake up," she warned as she continued her ministrations. Her face took on the look that he dubbed to himself as her 'concentration face': eyebrows knitted and bottom lip drawn between her teeth. Unbidden, his eyes were locked on her lips. Perhaps it was because of his dream last night or because of his growing affection for her, but he can't help but wonder if her lips were as soft as they appeared to be.

Without much thought, his hand rose from his lap and his fingers grasped her chin. She suddenly stopped what she was doing, obviously startled at his actions. His thumb drew her bottom lip from between her teeth, ignoring her quickly reddening face. He locked his gaze with hers, fingers still on her chin. His free hand settled on her shoulder and he felt her trembling under his touch.

"Shizune," he whispered as he drew his mask down, "Why are you so nervous?"

He expected her to pull away or to flee. Instead she answered, "Because of the way you're making me feel," her eyes were shining with indiscernible emotion. Kakashi stared deeply into her eyes and made up his mind.

Slowly, he moved his face closer to hers, giving her the time to decline and pull away. She didn't; she closed her eyes as she tilted her head to the side. Kakashi closed his eyes as well, wanting to savor the moment when it finally comes. Just a little more…

Loud knocks from the door suddenly filled the room and they both jumped. Their hands dropped away from each other and Shizune almost leapt away from him, giving them a distance of almost two meters. She was positively red from her neck up to her face and he wondered if her blush reaches her chest, down her…

Kakashi shook his head at his impure thoughts and quickly placed his mask back on, "Come in," he called out, his voice thick with emotion.

Naruto entered with Hinata, Sasuke and Sakura, "Kakashi-sensei! Sasuke's back in the village! You want to join us for a dinner out?" Naruto noticed Shizune standing off on the side, "Oh, Shizune-oneechan! You want to join us?"

The blush on her face managed to abate though there's still a bit of pink on her cheeks, "No, thank you, Naruto. I'll be working night shift at the hospital so I'll have to leave, anyway. I'll go now, Kakashi-sama," his assistant said as she hurriedly left the office.

Kakashi wanted to jump out of his office window in humiliation.

After flat out refusing the offer to dine out, Kakashi took his bento box and chamomile tea to his quarters in the Tower. He set down his food and the pot on the table, simply took off his flak jacket and forehead protector and plopped down on the chair. He ate his katsudon slowly, thinking about what happened in his office. He realized that what he did was outright wrong and despicable. It almost seemed to him that he's trying to take advantage of her feelings.

He sighed and slammed his chopsticks down. This was not how he planned this to be. He wanted to take things slowly, to experience the things that he did the way that he had the year before, but he can't seem to stop himself from wanting Shizune.

He took a quick shower and laid on his bed, staring at the ceiling blindly. He can't stop thinking about what he did and he felt guilt eating away at his heart. After two hours of wallowing in his guilt and self-pity, he concluded that he will not be able to sleep with this feeling anymore.

He put on his mask and dressed in his long sleeved mission shirt and pants. He decided to forego his forehead protector and rushed out of the Tower. He quickly made his way to the hospital, thankful of the late hour for the lack of villagers. When he got there, he quickly made his way to the window of her office, thankful that it's only on the first floor. He easily picked the latch of the window.

She was not there, however, and he sat behind her desk to wait for her. He removed his mask and looked around her office. It was much like the one at the Tower, her office in the hospital was simple, neat and sparsely decorated. Her desk was the only thing out of order, with various books, hospital papers and framed photographs. What caught his eye is one photograph where he's with her. He took it and looked closely. It was the of two of them, with his arm around her shoulders and hers around his waist. He stared at it for a long moment and wondered when they can have a photograph just like this again.

He heard the door knob to her office being turned and he quickly set the frame down, waiting with bated breath for her to finally enter.