Kiba sighed entering his apartment. Akamaru whined next to him and he patted his K9 partners head lovingly. They had been together long before he became a K9 officer. Due to his mother being a trainer of the K9 officers and in his sister's case an officer, akamaru was trained when Kiba was younger and Kiba had been able to keep him when he became a cop and akamaru passed the test. He had spent his whole life surrounded by dogs and he felt like akamaru was family and he was connected deeply with his pup but he could squash the loneliness that had crept into his heart as of late. He wanted to have a conversation with someone. He wanted someone to come home to which was crazy. He had a playboy reputation because he was known to flirt with ladies but he was a gentleman to the core so he never really brought them home. Of course he broke down occasionally and fulfilled his needs for a few nights but he wasn't really one to commit to anything outside of his job. He usually like the solidarity but recently his loneliness had settled into a sort of depression that weighed on him. To make up for it he was working double shifts and overtime to keep himself from thinking about it. At least that was until today. Now he was on medical leave. He studied the cast on arm. He had never broken a bone or had a concussion until yesterday. He had also never been shot until yesterday. Thankfully he was on enough medication to keep the stinging out of his shoulder. The bullet had missed everything important and he was thankful but the double whammy was a bitch. It all happened in slow motion. He chased after some punk out onto the fire escape when the guy ran as they tried to arrest him. The guy ran up the stairs and when Kiba went to follow the guy turned and shot him in the shoulder causing him to fall back down the stairs. As he was falling back down the stairs he tried to catch himself but broke his arm in the process and then he hit his head and knocked himself out. Had they been on the ground akamaru would have been able to give chase but Kiba had told him to wait in the apartment as he went after the guy on the escape because there wouldn't be enough room for both him and his K9 to maneuver safely. Thankfully his human partner Shino was at the top waiting for the guy and took him into custody. He wasn't sure what else happened because he woke up in the hospital attached to wires with akamaru laying in the corner and Shino asleep in the chair. Kiba placed everything down on the counter of his kitchen and walked to the bathroom. He studied his face in the mirror. He looked rough. He sported one black eye and a busted cheek and lip. He peeled his shirt off gently so he could make sure the bandage on his shoulder was doing okay. He wanted to take a shower but settled for washing his hair and lower body parts without getting completely into the shower and then shaving. He had grown scruff and it was itching. The clean shaved look made his boyish charm a little more effective because it made him look younger than his 25 years. He heard the knocking on his door and threw on pants before going to answer it. He wasn't going to wear a shift until he absolutely had to because it was a pain in the ass to get on.
He opened the door to his old police academy team member, who was one of the girls he grew up with. She was another sister as far as he was concerned.
"I heard you were shot. I brought food." Hinata said shyly. She wasn't nearly as shy as she was back then. She had married a guy from their academy days and he was good for her.
"Come on in." He said walking into the kitchen. She followed placing an enormous amount of food on the counter as she did.
"The kids made cookies for you. Himawari's are the heart shaped ones and Boruto made the stars. They wanted to come but the last thing you need is Boruto running around and a worried Himawari trying to climb all over you to make sure 'uncle Kiba is okay.' She wants to be a doctor these days." Hinata said with a tender smile for her kids. "How are you?" Her pale eyes looked at him wanting the truth.
He smiled. "I feel as bad as I look. I honestly will probably eat, take 'maru out, and then sleep."
"Want me to take him out? It's getting cold early this year."
"Nah" he replied shaking his head slightly. "I've got it. The longer I wait the more time I have to sleep before he needs to go again and after dinner I like to take a mini walk to catch some fresh air."
"Okay I'm gonna go then, call us if you need anything Kiba, I mean it. Naruto is just as worried as I am and if he wasn't on shift he'd be here with me."
"Thanks Hinata but I'm fine." Kiba replied hugging her and helping her with her jacket on her way out.
After she left he scarfed down food and then got warm clothes on to take akamaru out. "Come on buddy, nighttime walk is gonna be slower tonight."
As Kiba stepped out of the apartment he bumped into a woman carrying a bag of groceries. He'd never seen her before and figured she was the new tenant that lived above him. "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention." He said flashing a smile as he caught her around the waist to keep her from falling back.
She stepped out of his embrace after a second of looking into his eyes and then glared at him.
"You should really watch where you're going." She said with ice in her tone.
"Like I said I'm sorry. Let me help you." He said extending his arms to try to take one of the bags from her.
"No!" She said harshly. "I thought they didn't let big dogs live here." She said eyeing Akamaru.
"Well he doesn't exactly fall into that category, he's different." Kiba said.
"Really because he looks like a pretty big dog to me..." She said sarcastically misunderstanding his version of different.
"Ma'am he's an officer of the law. He's not just a big dog, he's a K9 officer." Kiba said getting frustrated.
He was not in the mood and she was infuriating. She was also hot. He had noticed her body when he had grabbed her waist to stop her from falling. She had gorgeous deep green eyes, and dark brown hair that contrasted nicely with them and fell in loose curls down her shoulders and back. She was a little bigger and curvier but he liked a woman who was more than skin and bones. He liked a soft place to land so to speak. He realized she was still glaring at him and he spoke again. "Look I said I'm sorry. I'm going to go now. By the way I live right there" he said pointing to his apartment door, "and I offer the same thing to all my neighbors, if you need anything let me know. I work odd hours but I try to be quiet when I come in." With that he set off down the stairs in an annoyed state and began his walk with akamaru. Seriously, who does she think she is? He thought to himself.
