When Minato woke, the morning seemed brighter than any morning had for him since his wife had passed away twelve years ago. When the mother of his child had died giving birth he'd thought he might never love another. He was absolutely floored to wake up one day almost nine years later to realize that his own student was a grown man that had somehow crept in to his heart and set up camp. Kakashi had been there for him right from the start, helping with Naruto, fitting in to their little family as if he belonged. The silver haired jōnin didn't have any family of his own and Minato had only been too happy to let him in.
When he realized that his love for the younger man had changed from a semi-familial bond to something more romantic he had at first felt like a lecherous old pervert. Kakashi was his student, twelve years his junior! He'd hidden his feelings and buried them deep for the next year, praying no one would ever know his most secret shame. He felt disgusting for getting covert thrills every time they touched, brushing together while tackling his paperwork or rough housing while cooking dinner. It had taken almost twelve months for him to open his eyes and realize something that thoroughly shocked him – Kakashi was flirting back. It was subtle, but then Kakashi never did anything too out there. He preferred to make others look 'underneath the underneath' and figure him out.
It had become a game, almost. The touches began to linger, the looks became heated or challenging. Suddenly all sorts of innuendos colored their speech. They spent a few more months dancing around the issue, neither brave enough to make the final leap of faith, until That Night. He couldn't even remember whose birthday it had been but there had been sake – lots of it – and both of them had imbibed generously. They'd fallen in to bed without any sort of conversation about the possible ramifications.
The next morning he'd tried to start that conversation, but Kakashi had distracted him with a dark suggestive look and a tongue that seemed determined to map every muscle on his abdomen. He'd taken it to signify that Kakashi didn't want this to mean anything and quickly decided that he would take what he could get. Having fantastic sex with the man of his dreams seemed at least a good consolation prize for not being able to have a true relationship with him.
Things had been fine actually. Sometimes Minato was almost able to pretend that they really were in a relationship. Kakashi still came over and helped with Naruto and they were all still as close as a true family. He'd managed to convince himself he was alright with the way things were. Until almost two years later when the younger man had shown up and out of the blue told him that they could not continue with this.
It had been incredibly difficult to keep the pain off of his face as Kakashi stood there and calmly took away the illusions he had been blinding himself with, all without his face so much as twitching from that cold, dispassionate expression he was so famous for. In retrospect that should have been a clue that his words hadn't been entirely genuine. Kakashi might present an uncaring front to the rest of the world but he'd always been himself with Minato. It had simply never occurred to the blonde that Kakashi hadn't been trying to put him off that first time because he hadn't wanted the same things. It hadn't occurred to him that the younger man was afraid of that conversation for the same reasons.
So he had accepted the words at face value and when the other had left he'd stumbled through explaining to Naruto that Kakashi might not be coming around anymore. He had went through the motions that day with a sense of being disconnected with reality and then gone to bed alone, staring at the ceiling and wondering how much heartbreak one heart could stand in a lifetime.
The next day he had been in a meeting with the Daimyo for hours and just wanted to curl in to a ball to pout when suddenly his son had burst in to the room, trailed by the three guards trying to catch him. Seeing as how the meeting was taking place an hour away from Konoha and Naruto was supposed to be at home, he was understandably surprised to see his son. He was even more surprised to see tears streaming down his face as he blubbered and reached for his father, incoherent in his panic. All he'd been able to understand was Kakashi's name over and over.
The story had come out in patches, interrupted by hiccups, but eventually he'd understood that Kakashi was very sick and he'd said some very interesting things to the Hokage's son. Choosing to ignore the fact that his ANBU guards were now privy to some extremely private information about himself and Kakashi, Minato had begged forgiveness from the Daimyo, thrown Naruto across his back, and headed for home. His mind was in such a whirl that he barely even noticed his guards straining to catch up as the Yellow Flash darted through the forest back towards Konoha.
His mind was awhirl with the idea that they could finally have the conversation he'd been wanting them to have for two years. He hadn't quite processed that the younger man was sick enough to literally worry Naruto to tears – until he had actually arrived at the apartment. Kakashi had been both adorable and pathetic when he'd found him and he'd been forced to admit that their conversation could wait another day. His love had barely seemed to register when Minato had picked him up and tucked him in to bed.
His heart had almost stopped when he heard the jōnin whisper a certain three little words he'd been longing to hear and it had taken him quite some time to stop smiling long enough to finally fall asleep, telling himself that the words had been quiet and mumbled and he might have heard wrong. He knew he shouldn't get ahead of himself in this situation.
Now, as the sunlight poured across his face and turned the inside of his eyelids a deep rose color, he smiled in contentment. He was looking forward to starting the day. Kakashi was a pleasant weight in his arms, head resting on his chest just below his chin. Without opening his eyes he was able to tilt his face down and press a kiss to the mop of silver hair that always seemed to be trying to fly away.
The hair under his kiss was soaking wet.
Eyes snapping open, Minato forced the rest of his senses to come awake as well as he looked down. Kakashi's entire body was soaked in sweat, creating wet patches on Minato's clothes where they pressed together. There was a low murmuring sound emanating from him. The blonde very gently rolled Kakashi off of him and sat up to look him over. What he saw make his chest clench in fear.
Kakashi's pale skin was flushed and sweating all over his body. He was shivering and his hands were clenching spasmodically. His eyes were open but glazed with fever, staring sightlessly above him, and he was murmuring to himself fitfully. His voice was too low to even make out any words but he sounded almost as distressed as he looked.
"Kakashi? Kakashi can you hear me?" Worry rose and rapidly started to feel like panic as he realized that the younger man was staring straight through him and his skin was so hot it almost hurt to touch him. Without thought Minato repeated his actions from the night before, gathering Kakashi in his arms and lifting him up, blanket and all. It didn't occur to him what it would look like to anyone else, the Hokage appearing in the emergency room of the hospital in naught but his pants and undershirt, holding his former student in a blanket and lounge pants and nothing else, but the impressions he made on the world were not what was important to him right then.
"Hokage-sama? What on earth?" Only seconds after he transported in the closest medi-nin came scurrying over to see what was causing such a commotion. She visibly paused when met with an unmasked Hatake Kakashi wrapped in a duvet, both eyes wide and staring.
"I don't know, he's not responding!" Minato exclaimed in a rush. "He's got a fever and he's sweating but he seems cold and he won't answer me and it wasn't this bad last night I thought he'd be fine-"
"Hokage-sama!" The medi-nin cut across his frantic ramblings, bringing him up short with soft reassuring tones. "It's good that you brought him in. He needs treatment right away. But you're going to have to put him down."
Instinctively, he clutched his precious burden closer to his chest. And only when she raised both eyebrows in surprise did he look away and notice three other medi-nins had arrived to help, two of them pushing a gurney which awaited its passenger. Trying to swallow past the lump blocking his throat, Minato carefully laid his former student down on the mobile bed. The moment he did the bed was rolling and Kakashi was being whisked away from him. He barely managed not to voice a pointless protest, although he wasn't able to stop his hand from reaching out after the retreating party, his fingers longing for Kakashi.
It seemed like a long time that he simply stood there, unsure of what to do. He felt lost and still slightly panicky not knowing if his – Lover? Boyfriend? – was going to be okay. He was getting some pretty strange looks. The Hokage was standing in the emergency room of the hospital all rumpled from sleep, not moving or speaking, just staring straight ahead with wide eyes. Some part of him told him he should move, he had responsibilities and the world wasn't going to stop for him just because the man he was in love with might be dying at this very –
He stopped that line of thought immediately. It didn't bear thinking about.
Minato jumped when gentle hands guided him across the room towards a line of chairs. Pressure on his shoulders encouraged him to sink down in to one of them and then he found his head being pressed down between his knees. It was this motion which made him realize that he was hyperventilating, his breaths coming in short panicky gasps. He hadn't even noticed the lack of air in his lungs or the galloping of his heartbeat.
"Someone go to the Hokage's home and fetch the boy," he heard a voice say just above his head. He was busy twisting his fingers in to his own hair and hanging on as if clenching tight enough would somehow calm him down. It didn't. It just made him think about how soaked with sweat Kakashi's hair had been and worry about how long the younger man had been in that state before he himself had woken up. While he had been lazily slumbering the morning away Kakashi had been burning up from the inside out. What if he had slept longer? What if he had already slept too long?
It felt like only a few seconds had passed before suddenly there were smaller hands tugging at his clothing and a familiar voice saying his name, colored with worry. Loosening his fingers, his lifted his head. Naruto was looking back at him with those baby blues that were so like his own – even now they mirrored his fear. Wordlessly he gathered his son in to his arms and held him close. The twelve year old pre-genin was frowning in to his neck and asking him questions but he just needed the comfort of holding the boy close for a minute first. Feeling the tiny heart beating against his own was incredibly grounding and he found his emotions soothed quickly. Although everyone in the village was important to him, Minato only had two precious people in his life. Holding at least one of them calmed his fears enough that he could sit back and breathe easier.
"Dad? What's going on? Why are you in your pajamas? Is it Kakashi? IS HE DYING?" The young boy spouted questions one after the other without waiting for answers, working himself up as he went. Forcing himself to breathe, Minato drew his son in again and fought to keep his voice steady as he replied.
"You were right, Naruto. Kakashi is very sick. But there are a lot of talented medical ninja in this hospital and they're going to do everything they can for him." For a moment the two of them simply stared at each other, both worried but trying not to look it. Minato thought again about the duties that were waiting for him in his office; he quickly came to a different decision. "And you and I are going to stay right here until they tell us he's going to be okay. Sound good?"
Naruto nodded enthusiastically and clambered up on to the chair next to him. There wasn't much to do in a hospital waiting room however. To distract themselves from the fear of why they were here they started out by talking about anything that came to mind. Naruto filled his father in on all the social struggles of being twelve years old. Minato shared a couple stories from his own school days. When the Hokage's assistants finally found him and hesitantly tried to suggest some paperwork be done, he instead requested that they bring some hot drinks and a change of clothes. Izumo and Kotetsu did as they were asked and kept any comments to themselves.
Once he was dressed in his usual uniform and haori with a cup of steaming coffee in his belly Minato felt a lot closer to a rational human being. He played I Spy and other silly games with his son to keep them occupied, doing his best to make time go by faster. The clock on the wall seemed to be mocking him, chiming happily every time the hour hand returned to its starting position. At the mark of the third hour he began to wonder if Kakashi had needed surgery or if his healing was really taking this long. At the fourth hour he began to chew on one of his fingernails, blushing when his twelve year old boy pulled his hand away from his mouth with a reproving look.
At long last, four and half hours after arriving, he received news of Kakashi. Naruto was standing on the seat of his chair, wearing his father's haori and pretending that he was the Hokage, and Minato was smiling indulgently, bowing and scraping and asking how he could serve. The clearing of a throat had them both falling silent. When they saw the medi-nin that had wheeled their precious person away earlier they were both rapt with attention.
"How is he?" Minato was proud that his voice didn't even crack. His heart almost leapt up in to his throat when he saw the woman smile tiredly.
"He's going to be fine." She had to pause and wait as the pair of blonds whooped, the younger leaping in to his parent's arms and letting out a triumphant war cry. When she could be heard again over the noise she continued. "It was a good thing you brought him in to emergency when you did, Hokage-sama. It seems Hatake-san picked up a little something extra on his mission to River Country last week. There's been an epidemic there recently."
Minato felt something in his chest loosen and suddenly breathing was so much easier. "Can we see him?" he asked. She smiled at him again, a warm light of understanding in her eyes.
"He's not likely to wake up until tomorrow, but yes. We've just settled him in to room 319. I must caution you to use no chakra while in the room, however. If your chakra disturbs his it could throw his system out of balance and he needs as much rest as possible right now."
"I understand! Thank you so much!" The words were thrown back over his shoulder as he took off down the hallway, not even bothering to put Naruto down. It would be faster if he just carried the boy. Using the speed he was so famous for, Minato dashed up to the third floor and practically threw himself through the doorway of room 319. The missing piece of his heart slotted in to place and the last bit of tension in his body drained away at the sight of Kakashi.
The silver haired nin was asleep as expected. His chest was rising and falling gently under the blankets, undisturbed by the obligatory monitors beeping softly next to his head. His face bore a surgical mask and a length of bandaging had been wound around his head to secure the Sharingan eye. Setting Naruto on his feet, Minato crept across the room to run his fingers through the soft hair splayed across the pillowcase. This time, the strands were dry and clean, and he felt like everything was going to be okay.
Evening had long since wrapped its fingers around the sky and put the world to bed. Naruto had fallen asleep some time ago, curled in to a ball at the foot of Kakashi's bed and still wearing the Fourth Hokage's haori. Minato supposed he should relocate the little ball of sunshine but refrained; the image they made was simply too cute to disturb. The Yondaime stretched his arms above his head and arched his back, wincing as several joints popped loudly in protest. Then he shook out his limbs and settled himself back down in to the chair he had spent most of the day in. It had been pulled up close to the bed so that he could hold Kakashi's hand, weaving their fingers together in a reassuring grip.
His free hand spent a lot of its time running through Kakashi's hair or tracing nonsensical shapes on his skin. Now that Naruto was asleep, Minato leaned forward and cupped the side of the young man's face, smiling at the picture of innocence he made. Kakashi hadn't often stayed the night, even during the two years they had been sleeping together. When he had, however, Minato had always enjoyed watching him sleep. It always gave him an air of relaxation that he never quite achieved in consciousness. He was too much a shinobi, too much always ready for an attack even at his safest and happiest. Feeling daring with no one here to stop him, Minato tugged the surgical mask down so he could appreciate the image as a whole.
"You really are beautiful," he murmured quietly, leaning over to place a feather-light kiss on the corner of those pale pink lips that no one else was allowed to see. He almost jumped out of his skin when they parted under his kiss, emitting a confused mewling noise. He pulled away a few inches, looking down anxiously. "Kakashi?"
The silver haired man huffed sleepily and turned his head. The hand that was being held slowly flexed, gripping back for a few seconds before returning to a relaxed state. Without the mask covering his face Minato was able to see a tiny pink tongue poke out to wet lips, then those lips parted in what had to be the world's cutest yawn. The image was ruined, however, was the yawn was interrupted by a cough.
"Kakashi?" he called the young man's name again hopefully. A moment passed, then a single black eye slowly blinked open to look up at him in confusion.
"Minato? Wha-?"
"Hey you." The Yondaime stroked his love's hair away from his face. "How do you feel?"
He received an adorable frown. "What – where am I? What are you doing here?"
"You're in the hospital. What's the last thing you remember?" He could see Kakashi trying to shrink away from his petting hand but refused to stop as he watched the jōnin try to walk back through the previous day. If he was asking why Minato was here it was obvious he'd been even more out of it than he had seemed.
"I wasn't feeling well. I think…Naruto was there? I don't remember what we talked about." His frown deepened as he tried to fight harder for his hazy memories, so Minato squeezed his fingers to bring him back to the present. Kakashi glanced down at the embrace, looking surprised to see them holding hands. When he brought his gaze back up his single eye looked so lost and confused that the Hokage could not help but smile at him, adoration welling up in his chest.
"Yes Naruto was there," The blonde confirmed. "So was I, I stayed the night. And a good thing too because I had to bring you to the hospital this morning. We almost lost you." His voice cracked embarrassingly on the last few words and he had to clear his throat. "The medic said you weren't supposed to wake up until tomorrow. You always have been precocious." His smile widened in to a grin.
Kakashi tilted his head on the pillow, the same way he always did when he just didn't understand some facet of human interactions. "Why were you…" His eye slid away as his expression slowly faded away to the feigned blank disinterest he was so famous for. "Why were you there?"
He definitely didn't remember a thing if he was trying to close himself off like this. Minato resisted shaking his head at how silly the both of them were. Instead he cupped his palm against Kakashi's face again, forcing that pale countenance to turn back to him so that they could look each other in the eye. He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to the jōnin's forehead.
"If you don't remember I'll have to say it again: Kakashi, I always cared. I've always wanted us to be more than we were. From the way you dodged the subject I always got the impression that it was you who wanted us to be nothing to each other. I'm really hoping it wasn't just the fever talking when you said you wanted to be…'everything'." A flush rose on his cheeks and his confidence waned but he made himself finish the sentence. There was a heartbeat of stillness, then he grinned as Kakashi's face broke out in a raging blush that completely overshadowed his.
"I did not say that!" the silver nin protested hotly, his words ended in another cough.
"You did!" Minato laughed. "You said you wanted to date and that you wanted to be eeeeverythiiiiing!" Drawing the last word out in a sing-song tone earned him a scowl but he wasn't all that intimidated. To make up for it he kissed the pout that was starting to form. That drew Kakashi up short and the scowl turned in to a look of surprise. "Don't be embarrassed. I want everything too."
Emotions flitted across Kakashi's face until slowly, tentatively, a shy smile bloomed. The two men grinned foolishly at each other, neither saying anything even though they knew that there was so much more that they would need to talk about. That could all wait a few seconds while they stared at each other like two characters in a cheesy movie. The elder of the two wasn't sure if it felt like time was flying by or slowing down but either way he wouldn't have traded this for the world.
The instant was broken by a loud whoop and both of them jumped at the noise. Their heads whipped around as one motion to see Naruto sitting up on the foot of the bed, wide awake with his hands thrown up in the air. The younger blonde was grinning his special extra-wide smile.
"Kakashi!"
His tiny body launched across the length of the bed and landed squarely on the hospitalized man's stomach, forcing all the air from his lungs. Naruto just squeezed him tighter and babbled about how worried he had been and how great it was that everything was going to be okay now. Kakashi tried to answer but it came out as a cough instead and the wet phlegmy sound made Naruto scramble back again, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
"Thanks, I needed a hug," Kakashi wheezed when he was finally able to suck a bit of air back in to his chest. Father and son shared a quick look before – much more gently this time – the Copy Nin found himself surrounded by four arms in what was arguably the nicest hug he had ever received. He wasn't sure if it was the recent blow to the ribs or the emotions welling up that made it hard to breathe but quickly decided that he didn't care. The man he'd been in love with for years had just admitted to feeling the same. The two people he was closest to had waited by his bedside just to wrap him up and hold him close.
This moment right here was the happiest he could remember being in his entire life.
I had planned for a third chapter but could never get it quite right. So I decided that this is a nice end as well. Maybe some day I'll get another chapter up that I'm satisfied with but for now it's complete.