Isamu yawned and opened her obsidian eyes to the world. She blinked multiple times and rolled on her tummy and then yawned once again; she was still sleepy. Well, it was her fault she kept up late. She spent so many hours smiling, blushing and thinking of Gaara. It was only when her eyelids can't hold it any longer did she let herself sleep.
She forced herself to crawl on her bed. She was on the edge of the mattress and she still closing her eyes. When Isamu opened her eyes, she almost gasped. On the floor was a bouquet of dessert roses. She bit her lip to keep herself from smiling. Her blush was already spreading across her cheek. She immediately stood up and got off her bed. She picked up the roses and saw a card within the green stalks. When she opened, it read:
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Dearest Isamu,
Good morning. Did you sleep well? I hope these flowers will help you through the day and… I hope you like them. I'm looking forward in seeing you again.
Gaara
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Isamu smiled and hugged the flowers closed to her chest. "Gaara-kun…" she must admit it, "I love you."
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She tucked a red rose on her still damp hair and jumped on her bed. Lying on her tummy, she held another rose and twirled it with her fingers. Soon, she began plucking its petals. "He loves me… He loves me not… He loves me… He loves me not…." She kept counting and chanting...until there are only very few petals left.
"He loves me…"
"He loves me not…"
"He loves me…"
"He loves me not…"
… only one petal left…
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"He loves me…"
Her eyes widened and threw the petal-less flower up and let out a giggle. "Gaara-kun loves me!"
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After awhile, a messenger hawk came to her bedroom thru the window. She called for the bird to settle on her arm and gently got the letter from its beak. The bird then flew away and left her wondering what's in the letter. Slowly unfolded it and read the message.
Dearest Isamu,
Good morning. I hope you slept well last night. By the way, I want to see you today in my office. I would like to talk with you.
Gaara
Isamu smiled and lay back to bed. She kissed the letter and threw it up the air. A slight blush showed on her face. Rolling on her belly, she rested her chin on her knuckles. All the memories of last night came flooding to her. Isamu bit her lower lip and closed her lips. She can't believe Gaara actually kissed her. The softness of his lips is still there. Then she remembered pulling his arm and kissing him before she went inside. She blushed harder. "Oh no… I… I made a complete fool out of myself!" she gasped. She then rolled to her back and sighed, "That was embarrassing…"
She then remembered what the letter said. "I think I should get ready and go there before he gets impatient," she thought.
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She felt nervous. What is he going to talk about? Is it about last night? She sighed and looked down at the floor. "Ohayo, Isamu-sama," greeted some ninjas she passed by. "Ohayo!" she answered with a smile. Soon, she came upon in front of the Kage's door.
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Knock. Knock. His teal eyes stared at the door. "Come in," he murmured. The shy form of Isamu greeted him. He almost stood up but he kept his self from doing so. "Hi… Gaara," she mumbled. "Take a seat," he ordered monotonously. "Arigatou," she whispered.
"I called you because," he paused when he saw that she was looking down her lap. "Isamu, are you listening?" he asked instead. "Hai," she answered, still looking down her lap. "Could you please look at me?" She shakingly looked at him and smiled nervously. This made him wonder if he had done something wrong. "Is there something wrong?" he asked. She shook her head. "Please continue," she said. He closed his eyes and sighed.
"As what I've said, I called you here because I would like to offer you a job," he said. She looked at him with a big question mark on her face. He almost sweatdropped but instead he continued. "You are going to be my personal assistant. Would you like that, Isamu?" She was still thinking of the proposal. "This job includes chores like..?" Gaara answered her question. "You will be with me at all times. As usual, you will still be making my meals, assist me in my office and," he paused for a while before continuing, "be staying with me all day." She nodded slowly. "But then, if I would be making you meals, for example lunch, I would have to be at home at 9 then go back at 12. That would be too troublesome," she said. But he already has a solution for this. "We have a kitchen in the Kazekage Tower. You won't have to go home every now and then." She pouted, "Is that so?" Then she smiled, "Then there won't be a problem!"
He was greatly pleased that she accepted the offer. He leaned on his chair slightly smiling. "About the salary, you will be paid weekly…" But Isamu wasn't listening anymore. She was already lost in her own world of fantasy. "At last! I have a work! Now I feel like a grown-up! Coool!" Gaara just stared at her. The job was just his idea.
His own idea of keeping her to himself.
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His eyes were fixed at her as she moved around his office. And when he senses that she would glance his way, he would break his gaze from her and would do something else. Her presence in his office was a big question but since he is the Kazekage and he stands for his own right, the elders can't do anything. The soft clicking of tea cups, the sound of flowing water and her constant humming prevented him from being bored. He looked away from her when she was about to glance at him. "Gaara-sama, here's your tea," she announced politely. He slightly cringed at the suffix but he didn't show it in his emotionless face. He can't let her call her like that. It was as if she forgot that night. It was like she forgot that their lips met…
A warm hand touched his forehead. Gaara looked at her and blinked. He just spaced out.
"Do you have a fever, Kazekage-sama?" she asked innocently. He almost nodded but he snapped back to reality. "No," he answered while looking away, "and please stop calling me that." Isamu placed her hand on her lips, "I'm sorry, but I'm at work so-" "I command you to call me by my given name," he cut her off. "And please," he added, "do not add any suffix." She smiled. "Okay but," she paused, "can I not call you Gaara-kun?"
This request caught him off-guard. But after awhile, a very, very small smile adorned his lips.
"You may."
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He watched her as she went out of the door. Gaara sighed mentally and looked out of the window in a twirl of his chair. "It should just take a few minutes," he thought. The room has been empty and silent once again.
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The door opened and she went in holding a tray of food. "Gaara-kun, lunch is ready!" she happily said. The emotionless-faced Kazekage stared at her and then watched her as she fixed his table. He looked at the menu. It was vegetables, fish and dumplings. The rice was colored yellow with herb bits. He split the chopsticks apart. "Uhm excuse me Gaara, I'll just be going out," she said. He stared at her and shook his head. She blinked at him multiple times with a question mark popping out of her head.
His straight poker face looked at her. Then he spoke in his velvety voice, "Stay here," he looked away before continuing, "…with me." Red roses dramatically bloomed around him. Isamu stared at him. Her surrounding became pink and cherry blossoms started fluttering around. "… Uh, o-okay Gaara…" she said nervously while scratching her head. "Sit down," he ordered, the cuteness disappearing. She sweatdropped and followed him. She sat in front of him and smiled but Gaara can see that she was wondering.
"Maybe, he wanted to have someone to be with him while he eats…" she thought. She watched her use the chopsticks and started picking a dumpling. She was waiting for his reaction. It was quite thrilling and exciting to see his reaction to her cooking. Suddenly, he picked a dumpling and put it near her mouth.
Isamu blinked in surprise, "H-Huh…?" Gaara looked at her with those teal eyes. "Eat," he commanded. She knitted her brows slightly, "B-But-" "Isamu," he said in a somewhat stern voice. She gulped and hesitatingly took it in her mouth. Chewing slowly, she tried not to meet his gaze. Then she noticed him picking another one and this time, he ate it. It took her enough self-restraint not to look up and see his reaction. But a sigh of contentment was heard from him. It made her smile inside. "Gaara-kun do you like-"Another dumpling was shoved in her mouth. She blushed and ate quietly.
After being able to speak, she spoke in a calm manner, "Gaara, I should leave you for awhile." She stood up and silently excused herself. "D-Did I do something wrong?" he asked himself. Instinctively, he grabbed her arm before standing up. "You're not going. I remember saying this clearly, Stay here with me," he said. She could've said a straight no but instead, "But Kazekage-sama, I don't want to disturb you during you lunch and-"She was stopped midway when she was pulled into his chest. Her face was only centimeters from his and his arm were securing her back. "I have made a decision," he murmured, "I would spend every meal with you." He leaned down and made sure his lips are just millimeters apart from hers. "And that means every day."