A/N: Chapter 2! Enjoy.
He wished he had not asked. Suddenly, all eyes in the room were on him and though his mask hid it, he could feel his cheeks start to burn up.
"Well," Tsunade began, "We need someone to take care of him—"
"I—" Kakashi interrupted, but Tsunade shot him a glare that stopped him mid-word.
"—and we believe that since you understand what he has gone through…in terms of loss," she said the last four words in a guarded tone, "…you would be the best candidate for this important job."
Tsunade narrowed her eyebrows at Kakashi and he knew that "no" was not an answer she would accept. Before he could begin to argue, a little voice piped up.
"You must be old 'cause you have grey hair!" said Iruka.
Kakashi froze. Tsunade smiled.
"Iruka-kun, this is Kakashi-san. He's going to look after you for a while," Tsunade said sweetly.
"Where are my mommy and daddy?" Iruka asked through his thumb in his mouth.
Tsunade's brows furrowed.
"They're on a mission, but they'll be back soon!"
"Oh okay. So until then, I'm going to stay with this old man?"
"Yep!" Tsunade smiled, shooting Kakashi sideways glance.
'I see,' he thought, 'that's what they're going to tell him about his parents…'
Before Kakashi could finish his thoughts, an eager, little hand grabbed his and dragged him out the door. Kakashi looked behind him over his shoulder at Tsunade, who wore a smirk on her face.
Kakashi sighed and let himself be dragged out the building by the young Iruka.
"I can't wait to play with you even though you're old. Hey, why do you wear a mask anyway? Is it to hide all your wrinkles? It makes you look kinda scary, but I don't think you're scary. C'mon, let's go play already," Iruka tugged at Kakashi's hand.
Kakashi could feel a headache brewing. He knelt down to Iruka's level and spoke softly.
"My name is Kakashi and I expect you to call me that. Don't call me old again. Understood?!"
Iruka's eyes widened in fear and he nodded.
"Yes, Kakashi-san!"
"Good," said Kakashi and his eyes closed to show that he was smiling underneath his mask, "we're going shopping now"
Iruka wore a slight pout on his slips.
"But…I don't wanna go shopping!" His bottom lip wobbled a bit and a few crocodile tears brewed up in his eyes.
Kakashi thought quickly to console Iruka.
'Adult Iruka likes sweets,' he thought.
"You can pick out sweets," he said.
Iruka crossed his arms and continued to pout.
"And a toy," Kakashi continued.
At this Iruka wavered a bit, but he still held his pout.
"Two toys!"
"Fine. Two toys. Let's go," said Kakashi as he pulled Iruka with him to the store.
Within five minutes, Iruka had piled the cart to the tipping point with sweets. Kakashi sighed, but he did not argue with the boy. Iruka also picked out his two toys. A stuffed dolphin and a Shinobi action figure. Kakashi and Iruka walked to the checkout together. The total price made Kakashi's eyes bulge, but he did not hesitate to pay the bill, lest Iruka decide to throw a temper tantrum.
At the house, Kakashi began to unload all the groceries. His once empty fridge was filled to the brim with sweets. Iruka was already on his third piece of taffy and drinking a sugary juice drink.
"Hey! Don't eat too many sweets. You'll get a stomach ache!" Kakashi barked.
Iruka chose to ignore this. Kakashi got up and took the sweets away. Iruka stared at him with tears welling up in his eyes. Kakashi felt his stomach flip. Something about the stare Iruka gave him made his heart falter.
"Let's get some ramen from Ichiraku Ramen!" Kakashi exclaimed.
"Yay! Thank you, Kakashi-san!" Iruka cheered.
Iruka devoured his ramen while Kakashi observed silently. The warm November day had faded into a vibrant sunset. The air was chillier and Kakashi could feel that Iruka's hand was cold as they strolled down the cobblestone path.
At Kakashi's place, Kakashi ran some warm water into a bath. Kakashi helped the toddler into the bathtub. He realized he had no pajamas for the boy, but he saw a package out of the corner of his eye. He grabbed it.
'To help you out…signed Hokage Tsunade'
Kakashi closed his eyes and silently thanked Tsunade. The package had extra clothes, toiletries, and most importantly a fleecy pair of pajamas with a turtle design all over them. Kakashi had to admit that the pajamas were pretty cute. He dried Iruka off and put the pajamas on him.
The sight was almost too much for Kakashi to handle, as he imagined the adult Iruka in the same outfit. A smile flickered around his lips.
"Alright," said Kakashi, "brush your teeth and then I'll show you where your bedroom is."
Iruka followed Kakashi down the hallway into a small bedroom. He held his plush dolphin in one hand and reached for Kakashi's hand with his other hand.
"Kakashi-san…it dark in here" he said in a timid voice.
"I'll leave the light in the hallway on…" Kakashi said.
"Will you stay with me?" Iruka asked softly. He looked up at Kakashi with earnest eyes.
"Okay," Kakashi sighed. He sat on the side of Iruka's bed, still holding Iruka's small hand.
Iruka cuddled up in the covers and squeezed Kakashi's hand. Several minutes passed.
"Kakashi-san…will you sing me song?" Iruka asked. His eyes glowed like orbs in the darkness, reflecting only the light in the hallway.
Kakashi felt like the floor beneath him was falling. He remembered his own dad's soft singing when he was a child.
"No," said Kakashi.
"Please Kakashi-san?"
"No. Go to bed."
The door creaked as Kakashi pulled it shut, leaving it open just a crack.
In the bathroom, Kakashi splashed his face with water. Memories flashed beneath his eyelids. Kakashi's own father. Running his fingers through his hair. A pat on the back. A smile. A crinkle where smile lines marked his father's eyes.
Rainy nights when he couldn't sleep. When the thunder cracked overhead like gunshots. His hands trembling as he pulled the covers up like a shield. Hot tears in his eyes.
The door opened. He wiped the tears away quickly, but his father was not fooled. He sat on the side of Kakashi's bed, making a dip in the mattress. Kakashi looked at him in bewilderment. His father placed his hand on Kakashi's forehead. Lightning flashed followed by the low rolling of thunder. Kakashi winced.
"Shhh," his father said, stroking Kakashi's silvery hair.
In a deep voice, he sang.
"Rock a bye baby in the treetop…"
Another flash of lightning.
"When the wind blows the cradle will rock…"
The roar of the thunder.
"When the bough breaks the cradle will fall…"
Kakashi squeezed his eyes shut.
"And down will come baby, cradle and all…"
Kakashi looked at his eyes in the mirror. He was tired. Exhausted. He thought about the loss of his father. Pins danced in his chest, stabbing at his heart. He had been so numb for so long after so many losses, so why the sudden heartache?
Kakashi knew why.
A/N: Grammatical inaccuracies in Iruka's speech are intentional. I don't really like incorporating too much "toddler talk" into stories, but he can't be perfectly articulate. Thanks for reading.
