Possible

Possible

Chapter Eight: Awake

Author's Note: The title says it all!

Ichiro was only awake for a few minutes before he heard a whisper in the silence of the night.

"Ichiro…" He only thought it was his imagination, and stirred slightly. He was far too tired to raise his head to check. As he drifted off to sleep again, the whisper came again. "Ichiro…" He sat bolt upright, and saw that Ino was looking straight back at him with tired eyes. Was it a dream? Was it merely a hallucination? Ichiro didn't care.

He looked at her silently, not knowing what to say. The hospital definitely still had their nurses and doctors busying around, as it wasn't even midnight yet. But still, Ichiro didn't want to leave her side. There was this look in her eyes that made him stay. He was glad to see a smile stretch slowly across Ino's face as he whispered back, "Finally awake?" Ino nodded, and wordlessly took his hand. "I heard you," she said. "I heard what you said when you slept." Ichiro turned a light shade of pink when he realized that he had been talking in his sleep again. "That's the second time already," he murmured, brushing her hair away from her face. Those two pale blue eyes looked right into his brown ones, and if it wasn't for the moonlight, Ichiro would have thought that her eyes were filled with tears.

He let out a tiny chuckle, and said softly, "How could you do this to me?" Ino looked at him with a bewildered expression. Had she done something wrong before passing out? "You left me alone for almost two months now… and frankly, I think it was pure torture," he said, smiling warmly at her. Ino was surprised; had her absence changed this guy inside out? She squeezed his hand and replied, "I didn't think you'd be the first person I'd see. I thought it'd be Shikamaru or Chouji…" Ichiro couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Perhaps it was his attitude in the past that made Ino feel that he was far too emotionless to visit her.

"I've been here every single day," said Ichiro. "You can ask Shikamaru, or Naruto, even." Ino didn't respond, though. She was far too deep in thought. She closed her eyes and pretended to rest for a while, feeling slightly embarrassed and awkward in this moment. What do I say? I can't believe I'm totally speechless in front of this guy! He's usually the one who doesn't say a word when I was with him… and now, he's looking at me… smiling at me… HOLDING MY HAND!

"Ino?" he whispered again. She opened her eyes and smiled nervously. "You're really something. Jumping in front of me that night," he continued, stroking the top of her hand with his thumb. He bit his lower lip, as if he had forgotten what he wanted to say next. "And I thank you for that. I've never met anyone like you." Ino blushed wildly. No one had ever said that to her before and actually meant it. Ichiro hesitated slightly, before continuing, "I'd give anything to repay that… I guess."

"Again with your guessing," she teased. Ino sat upright now, so that she could lean against Ichiro, who was sitting next to her in the chair. He lifted her head so that she was looking directly up at him, and murmured, "I promise you, I'll never put you in harm's way ever again." Ino was surprised at his sudden statement, to the extent of turning even redder.

She laughed nervously, and replied, "I-It's okay. I'm a shinobi… and I can fight too." Ichiro still had his hand under Ino's chin, and they didn't move from that position for about five minutes. Ino assumed he was going to kiss her, so she closed her eyes and braced herself for the fireworks. Ichiro stoned there, however. He suddenly felt extremely nervous, embarrassed, awkward, shy, anything you can think of that made someone stop completely. He even stopped breathing.

Ino sensed his nervousness, and opened her eyes. "Well if you won't do it, I will," she said suddenly, her usual attitude returning to her. Ichiro felt his heart racing as she wrapped her arms around his neck and brought her lips closer to his. She stopped abruptly, and smirked at Ichiro, causing him to turn even redder than she was now. Beneath that smirk, however, she was panicking.

Before they could do anything else, however, other than stare deeply into each other's eyes, the doctor noticed the two from outside and rushed in. "Ah, Ino! You're awake! I – uh, did I interrupt… anything?" said the doctor, scratching his head with a sheepish smile on his face. Ichiro and Ino immediately let go of each other, reproaching themselves for not making the first move. "It… it was n-n-nothing," stuttered Ino, staring at her own hands. The doctor had a slightly confused and embarrassed look on his face, having interrupted the couple's moment together. "I'll… go get the – uh – things… files I mean, to get you ready for your discharge, after the uh, checkup."

"Oh, okay," said Ino, not daring to turn to look around at Ichiro, who was extremely zoned out in his seat. The doctor smiled nervously and quickly rushed out of the ward, probably cursing under his breath for barging in on the couple. Ichiro bit his lower lip again and couldn't believe what he had just done. Had he just felt like kissing her just because he felt that he was already in love with her? Why had he stopped himself at the very last minute? Was it because he knew that he was leaving soon, once Sai comes back, and he didn't want her to hold on so tightly to this almost impossible relationship? He didn't know. He probably was trying not to care, from the look on his face. Ino turned around and looked at him with an unsure look on her face. Was she thinking the same thing as he was now? Ino didn't want him to leave, though. She knew he belonged somewhere else, but she was determined to make this work. She just didn't know how he felt now. What do you mean you don't know? He practically tried to kiss you! Ino sighed.

Five more days… or less… before I go back. What do I say? I had so much to say a few minutes ago!

Ichiro scratched his head and said, "I'll… go get the – uh – doctor. Yeah." As soon as Ino heard him getting out of his seat, she turned around and said, "No! Just stay here. He'll be back sooner than we think. Please?" Ichiro turned around from the door and Ino swore that he had smiled a little before returning to his seat. "Alright," replied Ichiro. He didn't go back to his chair, though. This time, he headed for the bed and sat down next to Ino, as if he had been waiting for the chance to move to a different sitting location. He tried to get rid of the nervousness inside of him and said, "Let's… go for dinner later, s-shall we?" Ino jumped slightly and turned her head to Ichiro. The two stared at each other for a moment before Ichiro continued, "Well?"

"Sure… why not?" Ino sounded quite indecisive, really. She was playing with her fingers, a habit that had belonged to Hyuuga Hinata. Hinata had done that whenever she felt shy, or was around the blonde named Uzumaki Naruto. Now Ino was looking down at her hands, as if she was so engrossed in playing with her fingers, and tried to distract herself from the awkward situation. "So, what do you wanna eat?" asked Ichiro, moving closer to her. "I don't know… I'm fine with anything really," she answered, trying to let him make the decision. Ichiro frowned. "Okay. We'll go for ramen, how about that?" Ino couldn't help but to smile in amusement. She turned away to hide her smile from Ichiro, lest he started asking her questions she didn't really want to answer. She knew that Naruto had gotten Ichiro addicted to ramen, but she didn't mind. As long as she was with him… she could eat anything in the world.

"Uh, we are ready!" yelled the doctor from outside, his back facing the door, afraid that he would interrupt another crucial moment in the two's lives. Ino looked to the door and sighed. It was time for that horrible checkup.

They had an undisturbed, silent dinner. Ichiro thought that she would have stopped being so tense when they left the hospital, but she certainly didn't look at ease the whole time. He suggested a walk around the village, and she agreed almost eagerly. Did she have something important to say to him? He took her to the more quiet part of Konoha, where not many people were out of their houses. They were probably eating their home-cooked dinner at home, with all of their family members. Ichiro wondered if he would actually have a chance to experience that kind of dinner, but he decided that a dinner with Ino was good enough for him. While walking, at one point, Ichiro had tried to hold her hand, but he restrained himself from doing so, as he was afraid that he might give her some foolish hope that he wanted to be with her badly, which was true, but Ichiro didn't want to return to the Demon Country with her on his mind, and it would certainly drive him crazy.

Surprisingly, he didn't manage to grab hold of her hand, but she did. Ino held on quite tightly, and Ichiro knew that she didn't want to let go of his hand at all. He felt a little better, knowing that she would return the feeling if he had told her how he felt. I love you, he had wanted to say so badly. All that stood in the way of his feelings now was his loyalty to his home country and the Priestess. Maybe he would return years later, only to find Ino married with children… and she would have completely forgotten him by then—

"Ichiro?" Her voice brought him back down to earth. He looked at her with calming eyes and smiled. "What?" asked Ichiro, feeling her grip on his hand soften. Ino seemed to be contemplating something depressing, but she suddenly switched back to her normal expression. "I was just thinking… is it a must for you to go back to your home?" She thought it was a question with an obvious answer, but she tried to hope for the best. Ichiro sighed and tugged her hand lightly as he said, "You would have to do the same if you were in my position, Ino. I can't just quit the whole thing and abandon my home like that." Ino's expression softened to sadness and disappointment, as if she had been hoping that he'd leave his village for her. Stop being so wishful!

"But still," said Ichiro, turning back to face the path that they were now treading, "I could always come back to visit you."

Ino looked appreciative of what Ichiro was trying to say, but she knew that unless he stayed with her, it wasn't going to work at all. "No, I don't think you should trouble yourself over me," she said with a smile, as she let go of his hand reluctantly. Ichiro seemed to frown slightly, before changing his expression almost immediately. Trouble myself? Ino, I love you! He felt quite foolish for screaming his answers in his own head, but he didn't want to hurt her, or make her wait for a long time before he could actually come back. Deciding that he would worry about that later, he tried to look for other things to concentrate on. Ichiro's eyes seemed to be drawn to the bright silvery moon that was hovering directly above them, as Ookami said, "A full moon. I haven't felt its energy in ages…"

Ichiro couldn't help but to love the warm feeling that the moon gave him, but he doubted that Ino could feel anything he did. He reached for her hand again, and as he did that, Ino avoided his hand carefully, as if trying to tell him to back off for a while. "Ino," he said, staring at her in the eyes, "Are you angry at me?" He thought it was a dumb question to ask her now, when he should have been pouring out his feelings to her. Ino looked at him with a curious look on her face and shook her head. "Why do you ask?"

"Nothing," he replied hastily, before keeping his hands to himself. "I'm just… tense."

Ino! How could you not let him take your hand? I know you wanted him to hold you, even! She sighed and suddenly stopped. Ichiro stopped as well, and looked at her with a serious look on his face. Was he going to kiss her now? Was he just going to walk away? I'd let you know I wouldn't mind if you left for a century and would still love you… but I don't think you'd listen. Ichiro didn't say anything, nor make any move. After a few minutes of waiting, Ino finally grew impatient. "I'm going home," she said finally, her tone serious. Ichiro seemed shocked at her sudden change of attitude towards him.

"No, wait a minute…"

"I have to go home, Ichiro. It's getting late."

"I'll bring you back—"

"No." She stared intensely at Ichiro for a second, as if she had wanted to kiss him first instead. Ichiro bit his lip and knew that he had made her angry now. He had never seen her seriously angry, excluding the times that she had scolded him every time he annoyed her in the past, and he was honestly intimidated. "Wait. Just… wait." The tone of his voice seemed to remove the anger and sadness that Ino had held for him. "How can I?" she muttered, walking closer to him, until their lips were just inches away. "How can I live… how can I survive without you here?" she whispered. Ichiro reached for her hand again and caught it this time. "Because…" he said calmly, "…you should know that I can't live without you either." Ino seemed to turn red immediately after he had said that, and turned even redder, if possible, when he leaned in for the supposedly breathtaking kiss, she imagined. As soon as Ichiro kissed her, she had started to feel as if she was floating. There. I said it. Now I'm going to hate myself for this. I even kissed her now! How can I leave without wanting to stay with her?!

Ichiro pulled her closer, and held her free hand with his other hand. He opened his mouth slightly and licked her lower lip, and tasted something sweet. Interesting, he thought, as he let his tongue travel into her mouth, like he never had before. Believe it or not, this was his first kiss. It felt so right and warm at the same time. Ino had her left arm around his neck as she pulled him down slightly, still having her lips locked with his. As soon as they pulled away, which took a long time, because they were reluctant to stop, Ino looked up at him with a sad smile and said, "It's okay. I understand. You have to go, right? I understand." Ichiro cupped her chin and looked at her with a heartbroken look on his face. "I don't want to go. You know I don't want to."

"I know. I promise… I'll never beg you to stay. I'll wait."

"Promise?"

"Yeah," replied Ino, running her hand through his hair gently. "I'll wait."

Finally, chapter 8! :D Emotional rollercoaster… hawhaw!