Little Changes

by FlameOfArcana

Sometimes you meet people in really unpredictable ways. Sometimes its the best thing to ever happen to you. Kisame/Itachi, KisaIta

2. Chapter 2

A/N: I didn't know that page breaks in Word would dissapear when uploaded, which is why chapter one was so messy. Sorry :/ I also didn't know that you could edit documents...so...it's fixed now, haha!

Enjoy!

---

Itachi ran a patient hand through his hair. "Okay, let's move on." He shuffled through his notes. "If the body is getting too cold, what three things will it do to conserve energy?"

His student blinked at him.

"Involving blood, muscles, and glands…." Itachi prompted.

His student looked off to the side.

Itachi sighed a little. "At least take a guess."

His student grumbled something. "I don't know."

"You do know, you just need to remember. What do you do when you're cold?"

He shrugged. "Get a jacket?"

Itachi tensed the muscles in his foot to channel his frustration. "I mean what does your body do?"

The kid sighed, looking to the ceiling. "I shiver?"

"Not a question," Itachi corrected, "a correct answer. Be more confident in your answers, you'll do better on tests." He gave an encouraging smile. "What are the other two bodily responses?"

"I don't know," he groaned. "I can't remember any of this for shi—…for the life of me."

Itachi reached out and took his student's hand, stretching his arm out. "Do you see your veins under your skin?"

"Yeah," the kid muttered.

"When it's really hot outside, have you ever notice how they seem to pop out more? Your heart creates a lot of energy, which is partially carried through your blood. When it's hot, blood vessels vasodilate and push closer to the surface of the skin to release some of that heat. So if it was cold outside, what would happen?"

"They would go in?"

"Correct. Vasoconstriction occurs when your body is conserving energy. And the third thing?"

He shrugged listlessly.

Itachi pressed his lips together. "Sudoriferous glands halt sweat production."

"Oh."

"Hey, look at me."

The kid dragged his eyes up from the table.

"The things you do in temperature change: you shiver, your veins bulge, and you sweat. If you can remember those, you'll be able to recall the physiological correlation, okay?"

"Yeah."

Itachi drummed his fingers against his leg. "Do you…even want to do well in this class?

"I don't care."

"I see." Itachi ran a million different things through his head on what to say, but a knock on the door interrupted him.

His the student immediately jumped up, carelessly shoved his things into this bag, and ran to the door. Itachi followed, pushing away from the kitchen table and arriving at the door only to see the kid dashing down the stairs.

"How is Hunter doing?" The worried woman at the door asked, a frown on her face.

"I don't think your son cares much about being successful in this class, Mrs. Harrison," Itachi informed her.

The mother let out a breath. "I just don't know what to do with that boy. His father and I are trying so hard but nothing seems to motivate him…."

Itachi cleared his throat. "If you'd like, the next time he comes in for a session I can—"

"Mr. Uchiha," she interrupted, a sad expression in her eyes. "You have been nothing but helpful to my Hunter, but I can't foresee him taking this seriously any time soon. I don't want to waste your time with a son who doesn't appreciate how hard you work for him."

Itachi swallowed back the bile in his stomach. "Ah. That is understandable."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Uchiha, but I think I'll have to cancel our sessions for now."

He gave a quick smile. "You may call me Itachi," he clarified quietly. "I completely understand. If you do ever want to bring Hunter back, I'll make sure to reserve him a spot. Just call me."

"Of course. Thank you for how hard you have tried to help my son."

"Any time," Itachi answered, letting the dejection he was feeling seep into his voice as the woman descended the stairs out of earshot. He collapsed onto the couch when he got back inside his apartment, face pressed into the pillows.

He couldn't afford to lose income right now!

He groaned. The only silver lining was if he lost more students he could take up another shift at the restaurant.

He couldn't let Sasuke know about this, absolutely not. Sasuke would insist again that he should take a job to help with finances—and that was unacceptable. Itachi could do it. Itachi could take care all of it, he could take care of Sasuke. He could.

He could. Even if it killed him.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he rolled over to fish it out, thinking it was Sasuke.

Hey, Itachi.

Itachi blinked, and then quickly saved the number to his cell phone. Asking for that second date already?

Ha. No, not yet, I just wanted to say hi.

Itachi bit his lip. Hi.

He could almost see the grin that he knew Kisame was wearing. You're cute. How're you?

Itachi leaned back into the couch. His instinct was to lie—as always. Kisame didn't need to know how he really was doing, because that was heavy. Too heavy for Kisame, probably, and Itachi wasn't sure if he wanted Kisame to run away screaming at Itachi's insanity just yet.

But at the same time something just felt so wrong about lying to Kisame.

Honestly, kind of…bad.

Bad? Wanna tell me what's up?

Itachi pursed his lips. He wasn't used to this. Just trouble with one of the kids I tutor.

What happened?

Nothing happened, per say. This kid just refuses to study. Every session I've been teaching him the same things. Either nothing is sticking, or he's faking his forgetfulness.

I'm laughing, because that sucks for you, but that was literally me in highschool. My teachers all hated me. I was such a shit.

Itachi snorted, folding his legs. Why isn't that hard to believe? What about you. How was your day?

It's been fine. Work is slow.

You're texting me from work? Won't that get you in trouble?

Eh.

Itachi frowned. Don't get in trouble for my sake.

I won't get in trouble, don't worry. No one here really gives a shit. Besides, I have nothing to do right now.

Itachi tapped his thumb against the side of his phone. Wow, he wished he hadn't foregone human interaction for so many years. At least then maybe he would know what to say. Do you have a lot of friends at work?

Friends? Yeah, I guess. We hang out sometimes. They certainly aren't the most awful people I could be stuck working with, hah.

But you mostly hang out with Mangestu?

For some reason. Guy's such a joker.

You mentioned that Mangetsu and Suigetsu have visited their family in Norway extensively, how come you never have?

Do you know how cold it gets in Norway?!
'Sides, I'm much closer with my family in the Islands. Any break time I get, I go there.

Of course you would be a sucker to cold.

Of course. Hey, I was wondering, when do you have free?

What do you mean?

When's a good time to take you out on my next date?

Itachi chuckled to himself. I have most evenings free. Saturdays I have significantly more free time. Thursdays are usually the busiest days for me.

Fan-fucking-tastic, Saturdays are my off days. Does this Saturday sound good?

Itachi shifted on the couch, just barely smiling down at his phone. I thought you weren't hounding for that second date, yet?

I got carried away? I want to see you again. Soon.

Itachi shook his head. It's a mystery to me still, but alright. What are we doing?

It's a surprise, Itachi. Duh.

Duh. Itachi glanced up at the clock. My next student is going to be here in a few minutes.

No problem. I'll talk to you later, yeah?

Yeah.

And I'll see you Saturday.

I'll look forward to it. See you.

Itachi got up from the couch, stretching his arms behind his head. He had a significantly more…airy feeling in his stomach, like a bottle of bubbly got popped open. He didn't feel as overwhelmed and stuck in a hole as he knew he should feel.

He had something to look forward to, a light at the end of the tunnel, and he knew that Kisame would push all the worry out of his stomach and mind when he saw him on Saturday. It was strange, how someone so new already made him feel so…different.

His student came a few minutes later, a chipper girl who struggled with reading comprehension, which made the visit incredibly more stress free than his last no-longer-student. The hour flew by, and after her departure Itachi had to leave for work. The rest of the day was kind of a blur of endless plates of food and more dishes to clean than Itachi knew what to do with.

Kisame texted him goodnight again that night.

---

It was Friday morning, and Itachi was filing away the trigonometry notes from the student he had just worked with. Kisame had texted him good morning or good night a couple of times, but left the events of the next day a complete mystery. When Sasuke threw a fit a few months prior about how Itachi was working himself to death, Itachi agreed to let go of his Saturday evening shift. It gave him more time to be around Sasuke and Co. (ya know, Suigetsu and the bunch) anyways, so Itachi wasn't upset about it anymore.

The other, newfound bright side was that after his handful of students in the morning, he had the entire afternoon and evening free for whatever Kisame had planned.

The dryer beeped, and Itachi quickly stashed the folder in the filing cabinet in the hall closet—because there wasn't any room for it anywhere else—and went to rescue the clothes from getting wrinkled. He folded them on top of the old machine, the freshly cleaned fabrics warming his skinny hands.

As he put a folded stack of shirts away in his drawer, he felt a buzzing from his pocket.

Itachi picked up the phone. "Hey," he answered, pushing hair behind his ear and sitting down his old desk chair.

"Hey, Itachi, how are you?" Kisame sounded a little breathless.

"I'm fine," Itachi responded lightly, twisting in the chair.

"So remember how I said I was going to plan a great second date?"

"Something like that," Itachi murmured coyly.

"Well, work had other plans and I haven't had any time."

Itachi paused. "Oh," he said, shifting in the chair, feeling a veiny coldness in this stomach. "You're cancelling."

"Oh—fuck, no I'm not cancelling." He heard Kisame snort. "No, I just wanted to say that our third date will be the fantastic one."

"Who says you're getting a third one?" Itachi asked, but he was smiling.

"Aw, come on. Don't be cruel."

"I'm no such thing. So, if our third date is going to be the spectacular one, what are you implying about our second date?"

Kisame laughed a little. "I want to see you again soon, even if only for a little, so would you be too offended if I offered the oh-so-cliché dinner and a movie?"

Itachi chuckled. "No, that sounds fine. What movies are even playing?" He hadn't seen a sign in, who knows, ages.

"I was thinking maybe you wanted to see Everest?"

Itachi blinked. "…that's actually a pretty good choice."

"Thank god, I only spent like three hours scrolling through local theater listings last night."

Itachi raised an eyebrow and snorted out a laugh. "Have you considered that you are overthinking this, maybe? I'm honestly not that hard to please."

"I gotta be on my toes for someone like you."

Itachi's brows furrowed. "Someone like me?"

Kisame scoffed. "Play the humble card all you want, Itachi, I know that you have people begging for dates left and right."

"Why would you think that?"

"Because I've met you." Kisame answered like it was the simplest thing in the world.

"...I don't get it."

Kisame laughed loudly. "You're a riot."

"No, I really don't get it," Itachi insisted. But he was smiling again.

"I'll have to show you sometime. Like on our date?"

"You're smooth." Sarcasm.

"Right? Anyway—fuck—" Itachi heard shuffling on the other end.

"Are you…okay?"

"Yeah," Kisame muttered. "I'm cat sitting for my coworker and this thing is the devil."

"Don't say that," Itachi sniffed. "I love cats. I'm sure you're just scaring him."

"I'm not scaring him."

"You're too big and tall, I bet," Itachi joked, pressing his foot against the desk and using the leverage to swivel the chair. "Try getting on its level."

Kisame laughed. "What?"

"Yeah, animals don't like it when people tower over them. So like, lay down on the ground."

Kisame laughed even louder.

"Fine," Itachi huffed, fake offended. "Don't take my advice. You'll be sorry when you're covered in scratches."

"Anyways, enough about the damn cat. Since Saturday isn't going to work, is there another time you have free?"

Itachi tilted his head. "I'm free tonight."

"Tonight? Yeah?"

Itachi shrugged. "Unless you don't want to."

"No, no, I want to."

"I get off of work at 6," Itachi replied. "What time do you want to meet at the theater?"

"Maybe we should check what time the movie is playing," Kisame suggested with a snicker.

"Maybe I'll stay home."

Kisame laughed. "You're cute. Hold on, let me get my laptop going, and I'll check the time."

Itachi got up out of his chair, hearing a crash and curse from the other end of the line. "Why are you watching someone's cat again?"

"I owe my dumb coworker, Rhea. She's been holding onto this favor for so long and finally cashed it. I swear, she could have gotten her boyfriend to do it for her, but no she has to ask me just because she knows I'm shit with animals. Okay, uh—there's a showing at 6:15, does that sound good? Or is that too close?"

Itachi hummed. "No, it's fine. I'll only miss some of the trailers."

"Itachi, those are the best part of the movie theater experience."

"Oh, you're one of those."

Kisame snorted.

"You said dinner, too?" Itachi opened his wallet, thumbing through his tip money.

"Yeah, we can grab a bite afterwards if you're up to it? Have you been to the Mexican place across the street?"

"Can't say I have."

"You'll like it."

Itachi tucked his phone between his head and his shoulder, digging through his wallet for that movie theater gift card a student gave to him last Christmas. "Okay, that sounds fine. Like I said, I might be late, so just go into the theater without me and I'll meet you there."

"Yeah," Kisame sounded distracted. A sound of a tinkling bell made it across the line.

Itachi rolled his eyes. "I better let you go, before you accidentally kill the cat."

"Accidentally?"

"Goodbye, Kisame. Don't forget to save me a seat."

"See you in a few!" Kisame shouted before Itachi hit the end button.

Itachi exited his room and padded through the hall to Sasuke's room. Sasuke was bent over his desk working on an essay he was entering into a national scholarship program, headphones holding down his wayward hair.

Itachi approached him from the back and dug his fingers hard into Sasuke's knotted muscles.

"Ah, fuck!" Sasuke nearly yelped, back automatically arching away from the assault.

"Language," Itachi reminded lightly. "Do I need to buy you a better chair?" He asked, pushing his thumb against the tense muscles.

"You don't need to buy me anything," Sasuke grumbled, picked his headphones off of his lap, where they had been jolted from the jump.

"I don't want you developing back problems."

"Okay, mom."

Itachi hummed, squeezing Sasuke's shoulders. "Sit up straight."

Sasuke swiveled around in his chair. "Did you come here to nag at me for pointless things, or did you actually have a reason to interrupt me?"

"Your health and safety are not pointless."

Sasuke gave him a dead stare.

"But, yes, I did have a reason."

"Being…?"

Itachi rolled his eyes. "Kisame asked me out to a movie."

Sasuke paused for a second, raised an eyebrow, and then snorted. "A movie? That's the best he can do?"

Itachi frowned. "Don't be mean. He said that he hasn't had any time to plan something extravagant, but he still wants to see me again."

"Wants to see you, or wants to see your dick?"

Itachi sighed, sitting down on Sasuke's bed. "Otouto, not everyone is out to have sex with me."

Sasuke dramatically swung his arm out to an imaginary display next to him. "Aaaand, in exhibit A we have Ezra, the cocky and hilarious high school boyfriend whose soft side disappeared when you wouldn't fuck him after homecoming! In exhibit B we have Kyle, the silly, shy nice guy who went in to a rampage when you didn't have sex with him after the first date. Exhibit C showcases the oh so talented hockey player you dated, Mr. Aiden bitch-ass Martin, who contracted genital herpes from someone when you didn't put out soon enough for him. In exhibit D we have Elija—"

"I get the picture, Sasuke."

"Do you? Do you, actually?" Sasuke was starting to get angry. "Because even after all that, even after all of the other guys who tried to charm you into bed, you still dated Marcus."

Itachi retained a calm gaze. "Okay, so maybe I've had a couple of bad boyfriends—"

"Those were your only boyfriends."

Itachi pursed his lips. "Four isn't that many."

"It is when that's the grand total of everyone you've ever dated!" Sasuke groaned.

"Okay, well," Itachi looked up at the ceiling. "The first three weren't even that bad. And besides, Kisame doesn't seem like that."

"That's what you said about Blake."

Itachi cocked his head, face scrunching up. "Who's Blake?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "That's exactly how relevant he was."

Itachi folded his hand on his lap, looking down at the floor. "I…understand that you think I'm either an idiot for dating such people, or that I'm a magnet for trouble."

"I think you're both."

"But," Itachi continued, ignoring his brother, "it's been two years since Marcus. And I'm better. You know I'm better. None of that is going to happen again. A lot of that was my fault."

Sasuke's eyes flashed up practically glowing red. "Don't you dare say that—"

"I mean," Itachi corrected quickly, "that my mental state was messed up. It could have been anyone, the same outcomes would have happened. I didn't do anything wrong, but it wasn't solely Marcus' fault."

Sasuke glared at the floor.

"Besides, this really is different!"

"How?"

"Because, this isn't some random guy; Kisame's family to our…basically family," he said, referring to Suigetsu.

Sasuke looked up from the floor, blowing a clump of hair out of his face. He was pouting.

Itachi thought it was very cute.

"I'll be safe, Sasuke. And I'll be smarter. I promise."

Sasuke set his jaw. "If he hurts you, I'll literally kill him."

Itachi chuckled nervously, because Sasuke probably wasn't kidding.

"Duly noted." Itachi got up from the bed and leaned over to give Sasuke a kiss on the temple. He grumbled, but didn't refuse it. "I'm touched that you're so worried about me, but I can take care of myself, little brother."

"You can't, though," Sasuke replied tiredly. "You are absolute shit at taking care of yourself."

Itachi paused, tilting his head. "I'm learning. Don't discredit my progress." He laughed at the immediate glare Sasuke shot him. "I'm leaving soon for work. Be diligent while I'm gone."

Work was as usual. The bus took twenty minutes to drop him off at the closest stop from the theater, and the walk the rest of the way was short. It felt so good to use a gift card instead to pay for the ticket instead of pulling money out of his wallet, and so he was cheerful as he entered the theater and made his way back to the showing room.

A trailer for the umpteenth Mission Impossible movie cast flickering lights on the audience, giving Itachi enough light to find Kisame. He was sitting smack in the middle of the theater, big ass bag of popcorn balancing on his lap, one arm thrown across the empty seat next to him. Itachi made his way quickly across the row of chairs, frowning at the people who refused to move their feet so he could get by. Rude.

"Glad you could make it," Kisame murmured in his ear as he took a seat. "You missed a really great trailer for this movie based on the same story as Moby Dick."

Itachi snorted despite himself, raising an eyebrow. "Moby Dick? Are you trapped in the seventh grade?"

"Hey—it's a classic."

"Don't pretend to read."

Someone behind them made a shushing noise in a far louder voice than they were speaking in the first place.

Kisame would have flipped them off, but he figured Itachi might disapprove.

Itachi settled down in the chair, picking a piece of popcorn off the giant mound on Kisame's lap.

There were a couple more trailers to get through—all of which Kisame seemed completely entertained by.

"It's like watching a bunch of small little movies all in a row," he explained when he saw Itachi shake his head.

When the movie finally started, he stretched his legs out in front of him, exposing his bad posture through his ever slumped back. Every now and again, he snagged some buttery popcorn from Kisame, using his tongue to dislodge the flimsy kernel shells that got caught against his teeth.

There was something of a weird vibe between them in the darkness of the theater room. When the brightness of the onscreen snow produced sufficient light, Itachi took the opportunity to glance at Kisame. He looked tense, for some reason, and he clearly didn't know what to do with his hands, so he kept them on the popcorn bucket. Itachi didn't know if it would be appropriate to try to hold Kisame's hand, or encourage him to put his arm around him, or what.

He really didn't know what to do on dates, but he was fairly certain that a complete state of separation was a little odd.

The theater was a pretty nice one, and gave each chair their own set of armrests. Both of theirs were pushed down in the middle, so when Kisame propped his arm up, Itachi followed suit. They weren't holding hands, but there arms were pressed against each other's.

Itachi though it was good enough, and if the subtle relaxation in Kisame's muscles were anything to go by, he agreed.

Itachi got pretty wrapped up in the movie, and it flew by more or less. When the room lit back up at the end, Itachi had to rapidly blink to adjust his eyes. Kisame chuckled and gave him a cheery smile when they made eye contact. They followed the line of people exiting the room; Kisame tossed the now empty—spare for the layer of waxy butter and un-popped kernels—bag into the trashcan, nodding at the tired looking teenager with the broom who slipped past them to clean the theater before the next showing.

Itachi had a little bit of a skip in his step as they reemerged into the main lobby, the sides of the incredibly high ceiling room decorated in upcoming advertisements and character cutouts.

"So, for that spectacular third date should I be getting us plane tickets to Nepal?"

The sound that escaped from Itachi could only be described as a giggle-snort, and he muffled it into Kisame's shoulder, gripping onto his hand. Kisame's thick arm wrapped around his shoulders, squeezing him for a moment.

"Dinner?" he inquired, pushing the heavy doors open for Itachi, dropping his arm.

The air outside was cold, and there was a slight wind. It blew the hair around Itachi's face, tendrils of ink brushing against a porcelain canvas. Itachi's eyes were bright.

"We're splitting the cost," Itachi reminded, walking backwards so he could face Kisame.

Kisame grinned a little. "If you insist. I technically should still foot the bill, since I called you out here…."

Itachi raised an eyebrow at him.

"But we're splitting."

They only had to exit the parking lot and cross the street to get to the restaurant, so it didn't take long at all. Itachi's fingers stayed knotted in his coat the whole time—Sasuke would never let him hear the end of it if he came back with cold hands again. The restaurant was a little small, a very homey vibe to it. The wood of the chairs and booths were painted a dark blue that had faded over years of use. You could see long cracks split down the legs of the chairs, and the paint at the top of the high booth backs were chipping off. Kisame requested a booth in the back room, where it was quieter.

"Did you like the movie?" Kisame asked as they slid onto the laminated blue cushions across from each other.

"I've read a book on the same event," Itachi answered, redoing his ponytail. "But yes, I did. I've always found that sort of thing intriguing."

"You probably know way more than the producers of the movie even knew. Probably could point out everything they did wrong."

"Stop," Itachi laughed.

"Stop what?"

"Pretending I'm so smart, giving me too much credit, etcetera, etcetera."

"I call things as I see them," Kisame replied with that ever present grin. "And I'm not a liar."

"Not a liar? Earlier I recall you spouting something about reading Moby Dick."

"That was the utmost truth."

Itachi rolled his eyes. "At the sushi restaurant you confessed that you hate reading."

"I make exception for all things cetacean."

Itachi hummed. "That's right, you are very…of the ocean."

Kisame snorted at his description. "I was raised on an island. It's in my blood. People don't appreciate the ocean enough, too busy staring at their fancy canyons and face carved mountains."

"Hey," Itachi chided, "canyons are nothing to sneeze at."

Kisame leaned forward. "Okay, but have you ever seen an underwater canyon?"

"No."

Kisame shook his head. "Puts that fancy rock shit to shame."

Itachi rolled his eyes.

"You think I'm shitting you?" Kisame tapped his finger on the table. "That's it. For the third date I'm taking you scuba diving."

"You scuba dive?"

Kisame grinned, and reached down into his back pocket, pulling out his leather folded wallet. He retrieved a card and tossed it across the table.

"Padi?" Itachi asked, picking it up and cocking his head to the side.

"Professional Association of Diving Instructors."

Itachi raised both of his eyebrows. "You teach people how to scuba dive?"

"You're surprised?"

"I'm impressed!"

"Oh, well, in that case," Kisame said in a jokingly cocky voice, laughing at the end. "I also take people out in guide groups. Not through any company, just localized back home."

Itachi smiled a little bit. "That's really cool, Kisame, I mean it."

A waiter stopped by, then. She was a chipper girl, with layered brown hair up in a high ponytail and skinny jeans. Her deep green apron matched her eyeshadow.

"Welcome to Oscar's! My name is Amber and I'll be taking care of you tonight." She passed out floppy plastic menus, the lamp light above the table glinting off of her green nail polish. "How are to two of you doing?"

"We're doing well," Kisame responded with a grin.

"Fantastic! Can I get either of you anything to drink?"

Kisame gestured to Itachi.

"I'll just have water," he answered politely.

"I'll take a coke, no ice."

"I'll get that right to you!" She responded, before essentially bouncing out of the room.

When Itachi looked up from his menu, Kisame was staring at him with a…strange intensity in his gaze, though the trademarked grin still lingered on his lips.

"What?" Itachi asked.

"Nothing." Kisame looked down, an unusual smile on his face. "What were we talking about again?"

"I believe you were wooing me with your scuba diving skills."

"Yes, I was, wasn't I?" He laughed again. "I actually do think that you would enjoy it, although you I'm guessing you would prefer the warm Caribbean waters over anything on the American coast."

"Observant. I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that wasn't backhanded."

Kisame waved a dismissing hand. "Please, I'll go to Little Cayman or Turks and Caicos anytime. There's nothing wrong in wanting the very best."

"I'll take your word for it," Itachi responded lightly, feeling the corners of his lips relax into a slight smile.

Amber came back, perhaps with more energy this time, and set their drinks in front of them. "Ready to order?"

Itachi got a bowl of tortilla soup, to keep him warm. Kisame ordered some multi-layer wet burrito monstrosity, which Itachi was pretty sure he and Sasuke could share over a weeks' time.

"Please split the check," Itachi reminded the bubbly waitress as she left to put their orders into the kitchen.

Kisame grumbled something.

"Why are you complaining?" Itachi asked, taking a swallow of his water.

"Not complaining. Just feels wrong."

"Wrong?"

"I told you right? I treat the people I ask out. It feels wrong to ask someone out to a restaurant that I picked, on a date that I suggested…and then force them to pay for it." He scratched the back of his head, and Itachi's eyes flicked from Kisame's face to the tattoos that crept over his collar bone as they were exposed slightly from the movement.

"I don't mind," Itachi reassured gently. "After all, it's not like you forced me here." He pressed his lips together. "I was looking forward to this."

Kisame looked up, a softer grin replacing the slightly predatory one he usually wore. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," Itachi repeated, rolling his eyes. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to be."

Kisame laughed a little. "I know. You're right. Still, old habits die hard, right?"

Itachi nodded a little.

There was a moment of comfortable silence.

"Tell me, if you are so married to the sea, why did you decide to move to the States?"

Kisame shrugged a little. "I don't know, it felt like the right thing to do. Always loved architecture, came here to study for it and ended up landing a job I love. It just kind of happened, but I'm happy to be here."

Itachi tilted his head. "That's kind of…strange."

"Strange?"

"That you would so appreciate man made beauty…yet have in internal appreciation for nature."

Kisame shook his head. "Where do you think artists get their inspiration, Itachi? Natural things."

Itachi looked at him for a moment. "I guess you're right."

Kisame grinned.

"Still, and forgive me if this off puts you, but I find it hard to visualize you sitting behind a blueprinting desk sketching all day. I see you…deep sea crab fishing, like those guys on the Discovery Channel."

Kisame laughed surprising loudly at that. "Shit, I don't want to die, Itachi!" He chuckled. "But, yeah, I get that a lot. Don't really look like an office type, do it?" He shrugged. "That's alright. I wouldn't change anything about how I look."

"Me neither," Itachi murmured without thinking.

Kisame's eyes snapped to his, wide smile growing on his face. "What did you say?"

"Nothing," Itachi corrected quickly, internally blinking at what he just said. How the hell did he make a Freudian slip? He had perfect control. He always had perfect control.

Right?

Kisame looked very happy, to Itachi's annoyance.

Kisame practically teased him until Amber came back with their orders. When Itachi smelled the dishes, his stomach started to growl. She brought along the complementary chips and salsa, too, which Itachi didn't know if he would be able to eat or not. Kisame, on the other hand, looked delighted.

"How hot is that?" Itachi asked, nodding towards the stone bowl of salsa as he added the cheese, onions, and avocado to the top of the hot broth.

"Hot enough to be good," Kisame responded, using a crisp tortilla chip to scoop up a giant mound of salsa. The crunch as he bit into it seemed to fill the entire room.

Itachi raised a delicate eyebrow.

"It's so fuckin' good, Itachi," Kisame insisted around the mouthful.

"You eat like an animal," Itachi commented, delicately mixing in his soup.

"I'm hungry like an animal."

Itachi pursed his lips, reaching across the table to gingerly pick up a chip and dip it in salsa. He frowned at it for a moment before biting into it and chewing. Almost instantly his tongue began to glow with the spice from the peppers, and he found himself coughing as he tried to swallow.

"That's hot!"

Kisame was laughing, so Itachi stole his coke and took a giant couple of gulps to calm his mouth down.

Kisame was still laughing.

"Excuse me for not being able to handle spicy foods like you can."

"It's not even that spicy, Itachi."

Itachi rolled his eyes, spooning up some soup.

Kisame chuckled one more time before digging into his burrito.

"I don't get why anyone would order a burrito that you can't eat with your hands. What's the point?"

"The point?" Kisame shook his head, the movement causing reflections of light off of his earrings. "The point is that it's fucking delicious. Here," he said, practically sawing into his burrito, what with how big it was, and stabbing some onto his fork. "Try this."

Itachi blinked at it for a second, realizing that Kisame was asking him to eat off the fork. How…couple-y. Never the less, he leaned across the table and took a bite, licking the sauce off of his lips as he rested back into the cushion behind him.

"Well?"

"Not bad," Itachi conceded lightly. "But I don't know how you eat all that."

"I'm the eighth wonder of the natural world."

Itachi snorted with a small smirk, but—part of him agreed a little bit.

Dinner went on, and Kisame did miraculous job of keeping the conversation flowing while stuffing his face with an endless amount of food. He called for two more bowls of salsa, too, and Itachi decided he was best just accepting Kisame's habits instead of trying to understand them.

"Tell me a cool scuba diving story," Itachi suggested, poking a shredded piece of chicken in his soup with the metal spoon.

"A cool one? Hmm." Kisame chewed for a moment. "Well, all of them are pretty cool, if you think about it. But I guess one of the most memorable ones was when I was in Little Cayman over Christmas. I was with a couple of friends from back home, one of my childhood buddies, his brother, and his brother's girlfriend. There were only like two other people in the group, and originally I was just going to take them off on my own since I'm trained to, right? But the boat guide brings out a speargun to hunt lionfish."

"Lionfish?" Itachi asked incredulously. "Those are gorgeous, why would you hunt them?"

Kisame pointed his fork at Itachi. "The Caribbean has in infestation problem. Lionfish aren't indigenous to the reefs. They think that they were tossed over during hurricane Andrew, since people on the islands found them in their swimming pools and whatnot. Anyways, they eat everything. Everything. Adult fish, eggs, the coral itself. An adult male can clear 20 square feet of reef a day. They're destroying the reefs faster than conservationists know how to work with. Scuba divers regularly spear them as they see them, but it seems like a downhill battle. Go one hundred and some odd feet down the wall, you've got lions the size of dinner plates."

"Is the reef going to be okay?" Itachi asked, frowning.

"It better be. They're trying to train the grouper and snapper to naturally hunt the lions, so hopefully we'll have some way of slowing them down. But anyways, we get into the water and the guide starts spearing the fish. All the red snapper come out of and start eating at them, spines and all. The wall is beautiful, of course, so we're all having a good time. And then, these three big ole Caribbean reef sharks come out of nowhere and start snatching up the lionfish. Three of them, gliding through the water like they're made of silk." He leaned back, shaking his head. "I swear they're the most beautiful creatures on the planet." He looked at Itachi. "Well, second to you, of course."

Itachi ignored the comment. "They didn't hurt you?"

"Hurt? No. Thing about sharks is that they aren't blood crazed killers like people love to pretend. They're predators, of course, but they really don't want anything to do with humans. One of them, though, oh it was special. Gorgeous thing rubbed against me like a cat. I just nearly thought I would die of happiness."

"You love sharks," Itachi commented the obvious.

Kisame grinned. "What tipped you off?"

"Besides the shark tooth necklaces and earing?"

Kisame laughed. "Found these on the beach at my home village. Beautiful, aren't they? Had my sister in law create jewelry out of 'em for me. Never take em off."

"You really love sharks."

"Yeah," Kisame conceded with something of a goofy grin. "They're underappreciated."

"And endangered, correct?" Itachi tilted his head to the side. "Hasn't shark finning wiped out like ninety percent of most shark species?"

Kisame was almost vibrating. "Oh, fuck, fuck I knew there was a reason I liked you so much!" He leaned over the table a bit. "Did you know that humans annually cull over 100 million sharks a year? 100 million." He shook his head. "They're destroying the ocean. People don't understand how vital sharks are to a balanced oceanic ecosystem. And for what? A tasteless chunk of meat!"

"I thought shark fin soup was a delicacy?"

"It is, but not for the flavor of the shark meat. It has no flavor. They use pork and chicken and beef to make a broth to put it in." Kisame threw his hands up. "Just eat the fucking pig itself and leave the sharks alone, dammit!"

Itachi started laughing.

"It's not funny."

"I know, I know, you're just acting cute."

Kisame cracked a little smile. "Yeah? I get pretty heated over things I care about." He shook his head. "Don't even get me started on Seaworld."

Itachi raised an eyebrow.

Kisame's facial expression went blank for a moment. "Do you not know?"

"Should I?"

Kisame ran both of his hands through his hair. "That's it, it's decided. For the third date we're watching Blackfish."

Itachi laughed again, a little louder this time, and he pressed his wrist against his lips to stifle it. "You know, I almost think that you haven't planned anything for the spectacular date with how much youre changing it. Are you leading me on?"

Kisame grinned. "Obviously not. I just keep thinking of better plans."

Itachi rested his cheek against his hand, fiddling with a sugar packet.

"What's that smile?" Kisame asked, tilting his head.

"I like that about you," Itachi murmured in reply. "I like how passionate you are about it." He let his eyes flick up to meet Kisame's gaze.

Kisame rested his chin on his folded arms on the table. "I like you, too."

Itachi blinked, a little surprised, but Kisame just grinned. It was oddly reassuring, Itachi thought.

"So…what does this mean?" Itachi asked.

"Hm?"

"Like…what do we do with this."

Kisame snickered. "We don't have to 'do' anything with it, Itachi." He lifted his head up and looked at Itachi with a very honest gaze. "This is fine, slow is fine. We can just hang out. What happens, happens. I'm not pushing anything."

Itachi looked down at his hands. They fidgeted in his lap. Impersonating the butterflies dancing in his belly, he guessed.

"Besides, anything I get with you is special."

Itachi had a slight glare. "You're going to have to stop that."

"Stop what?"

"Talking about me like that. Referring to me like I'm something so important."

Kisame pursed his lips. "What if that's just what I think?"

Itachi look up at the ceiling. "I just don't like it when people act that way. I don't want people to treat me like I'm special or out of the ordinary. I'm not a prize."

Kisame wasn't wearing a smile for the first time all evening. "I think you're special," he said quietly. "Not because of your looks. Not because you're a prize. I genuinely think you're special."

Itachi closed his eyes and leaned his head back. "I literally do not understand."

Kisame cracked a small grin, but it didn't reach his eyes. "You're pretty bad at taking compliments, huh?"

Itachi opened one eye to glare. "I don't like being confused."

"I can work on that," Kisame joked.

Itachi shifted. "Sorry. Looks like I'm building a track record of making things awkward on our dates."

Kisame shook his head. "Don't apologize. It's a curious thing, though. Most everyone else I have ever met likes being complimented."

Itachi shrugged. "I'm not used to that type of behavior. It's never honest, I guess. Even Sasuke, though I know he doesn't think ill of me, masks his kindness through double edged bullying. Genuine compliments…make me really uncomfortable, to be completely honest."

Kisame laughed. "You might need to get used to it. I promise I won't be so bad." He winked, and Itachi smiled despite himself.

Looking down at his phone, Kisame said, "It's getting kind of late, yeah?"

Itachi nodded a bit reluctantly. "Yeah, I should take off." He had told Sasuke that he would be getting home late, so hopefully he wouldn't bombard him like last time.

They both paid, Itachi in cash and Kisame with a credit card. The few minutes they waited for her to return Kisame's card was soaked in a comfortable silence. It felt a little bit unreal to Itachi, that after so long he would find someone else he connected with, someone he felt attracted to. In all honesty, he had been more or less resigning to the fact that he would probably never date again. No, he wasn't melodramatic at all.

Itachi pulled his jacket tight around him as they exited the restaurant, feeling the cold bite into his cheeks and the tip of his nose.

"I'll walk you to your car?" Kisame suggested.

Itachi shook his head. "There were no more parking spaces when I got to the theater, and the entire street was lined with cars, so I had to park all the way over on Fifth."

"I don't mind walking, Itachi."

Itachi was going to have to start finding excuses for why he needed to take the bus, so he could avoid awkward situations like this. "It's not even a big deal. I'll walk by myself just fine." He sniffed. "My parents had me learn traditional Japanese martial arts from when I was a toddler to when they passed away when I was thirteen. I can put someone in their place if I need to."

"I believe you," Kisame grinned. "But maybe I just didn't want to say goodbye yet?"

Itachi rolled his eyes. But he was smiling.

Kisame's grin was utterly infectious.

"I'll talk to you later, Kisame."

Kisame gave him a little smile and a wave. It was decidedly awkward, Itachi thought as he turned away from his date, that neither of them really knew how to say goodbye. Most couples kissed, he knew, but he didn't think that they were there yet. There was something a little too platonic about hugging at this point, too, since they were far from amorous this early on.

He had to wait for the bus for a few minutes. There were a couple of other movie goers at the bench with him. One of them was smoking a cigarette, and Itachi's face nearly turned purple with how hard he was trying not to cough.

As he sat on the cold metal, which nearly sapped all the warmth out of his body, he thought about how Kisame made him feel. It was weird, more than anything, that they had only been around each other for a handful of hours, yet Itachi was almost entirely comfortable around him. Yeah, he was lying about his financial standing, just because it wasn't the right time to get into that, he felt. But there was something so unmistakably genuine about Kisame.

He was sure that he wasn't wasting his time for once. Kisame wasn't going to be like the others, Kisame wasn't going to treat him like an object and fuck him over for the bazilionth time.

He closed his eyes and let his head fall back, facing the sky.

God, he hoped he was right.

Sasuke would never let him out of the house again otherwise.

---

It had been almost a week since their last date. They texted regularly, now, and talked on the phone every so often. Kisame called him on lunch breaks to bother him, or bug him after work. Itachi couldn't remember half the stuff they talked about, but they never ran out of conversation, and it never got old.

He was quite enjoying Kisame's goodmorning and goodnight texts, too.

Friday afternoon he decided to have some fun. He dialed up Kisame's number, leaning against the freshly cleaned kitchen counter.

"Itachi?"

"Hey."

"Well, what a pleasant surprise." He chuckled. "What's up?"

"What are you doing tonight?"

"Tonight? Uh, proably dishes."

Itachi sighed. "I'm asking you out, Kisame."

There was a moment of silence. "I'm really town between flattered as hell and frustrated, because you know I was supposed to make our next date special…."

Itachi shrugged. "You've made me impatient." Mostly for Kisame's benefit, he added, "Besides, I really want to see you again."

"Heh, yeah. To be honest, I've been making excuses to try and see you again all week." Itachi twisted the end of his ponytail around his fingers. "What do you have planned?"

"Nothing much, honestly. There's a group of local indie artist who are performing down at The Grind. I've heard really great things about this one composer who's showing up. I know it's kind of low-key, but—"

"No, no, it sounds great. What time?"

"It starts at eight."

"Need me to pick you up?"

"No, thanks though. Suigetsu and Sasuke are going to a mall in Orangewalk, so I'm catching a ride with them to and from."

Kisame chuckled. "I'll see you soon, then."

The car ride over to The Grind was a riot. Suigetsu turned up the music so loud Itachi had to cover his ears. He yelled along with the lyrics, drumming the rythyms on his steering wheel. Sasuke seemed strangely passive about it; Itachi guessed he was used to it. They finally made it to the venue, a smaller section of a big brick building in the downtown. As Itachi left the car, Suigetsu called out profanities and innuendos to him. Sasuke smacked Itachi upside the head.

The Grind was mostly full when Itachi slipped through the doors. The small wooden stage in the corner was cluttered with instruments, lights, and microphones. Various people, both staff members and performers, were bustling around making sure everything was in order before it started. Itachi wormed his way through the crowd to some couches in the middle. There were little circular tables to the right of him and a pool table to the left. Lots of people were standing around, mingling as they drank their coffee or teas. Itachi felt awkward sitting alone.

Kisame saved him from himself. He looked especially big in the small room, large shoulders and chiseled face.

Itachi's whole mood skyrocket the moment he saw him.

"Hey," he breathed as Kisame sat down next to him, reaching a hand out towards him.

Kisame grinned, grabbing his hand and squeezing it. "Nice place; I've never been here before."

Itachi smiled sweetly, settling back into the cushions.

They talked for the few minutes before the show started, idle chit chat about their days and their upcoming plans. A man walked on stage, and acoustic guitar thrown over his back, and tapped the microphone, announcing the start of the show.

The lights were dimmed down to a calming blue color, different shades casting interesting shadows across the two of them. Itachi looked over under his lashes at Kisame. The lights blended beautifully with his hair, and they bounced a breathtaking contrast across his dark skin. Kisame felt his eyes on his face, and looked over with a grin.

Itachi grabbed Kisame's hand, which was laying on his knee, and pulled it around his shoulders so he could rest against his chest. Kisame was initially shocked, if the stiffening of his body was anything to go by, but he melted quickly against Itachi, giving him a tight squeeze of the shoulders. He took Kisame's other hand, holding it between both of his. There were rough calluses on the bottom of his hand, and a thick, old one on his right ring finger on the last knuckle—an indication that he held is pencil wrong. His nails were clean and trimmed, not a speck of dirt under the blunt edge.

Itachi closed his eyes as he relaxed to the music. The singers, for the most part, had salty voices and sang out throaty verses about life complexities and love itself. It was soothing, and Kisame's arm, heavy over his shoulders, made him feel warm and—safe.

The night went by at just the right speed. Kisame's other arm ended up wrapping around to hold onto Itachi's waist, his thumb rubbing absent patterns against him in the fabric there. They ordered hot chocolate, which delighted Itachi with childish glee, part way through the performances. Towards the end, they engaged in conversation with another couple there, a sweet girl with sporadic, curly hair and a stone faced man with just the right amount of facial hair. They were there on their anniversary; they had gotten married just the year before. He was an accountant for an engineering firm—and Itachi didn't know if he could think of any job that was more fitting for this man—and she worked at a high school.

Kisame got up to use the restroom, and the girl, Maria, scooted over to sit with Itachi.

"You know," she said matter-of-factly, "you two look like you have been dating for months, not just a few days."

"We're—not really dating," Itachi corrected.

She raised her eyebrows.

"We've been out a couple times but—he isn't my boyfriend, or anything like that."

She tilted her head back and forth, like she was weighing possibilities. "It'll happen," she said simply, pushing part of the curly mane behind her ear.

Itachi only shrugged.

"You should go for it!" Maria encouraged. "There's a connection, anyone can see that. Especially me, since I'm a guidance counselor."

Itachi thought that was pretty fitting. "I don't have the best luck with boyfriends, so I'm going slowly. Neither of us are rushing for anything."

Maria nodded. "I've had some back luck myself. The man I thought I was going to marry stole my car, credit cards, my dog—but don't worry, I got him back—and skipped town with my cousin. But then I found Alec," and she looked at her husband, "and I'd never been so sure of anything."

Itachi chuckled. "I don't suppose you're trying to guidance council me right now?"

She giggled, touching his knee quickly like they were sharing some marvelous joke. "Never!" More seriously, she added, "I can see it, you know, your hesitation."

Itachi blinked.

"The way you react every time he touches you, everything you say—it's molded with careful consideration. And that's okay. But don't let your fears ruin a good thing, ya know?" She smiled. "I thought I could never love again after my break up, but I can't see myself anywhere else than where I am now."

"I've never thought I couldn't love again." Just that maybe it would never happen.

Maria ran a hand through her hair. "Well, regardless, I'm rooting for you. Do you want my number? I know I'm only a high school counselor, but if you ever needed advice, I'd love to help!" She was so excited, bouncing in her seat as she was, that Itachi couldn't refuse.

Kisame came back, and Maria flounced back to her husband's side at the table. Kisame raised an eyebrow as he settled on the couch. "What was that about?" He asked.

"Nothing much," Itachi replied, smiling a little as Kisame automatically put his arm across his shoulders. "Just making friends."

Kisame chuckled. "She's kinda cute, huh?"

"Very energetic," Itachi added.

A few songs later and the show officially ended. People stayed and lingered around the artists, complimenting them on their music and buying their albums. As Kisame and Itachi made ready to leave, Maria bounced over and hugged them both excitedly.

"Don't forget, if you ever need me!" She whispered loudly in Itachi's ear. "We can go on a double date sometime!"

From a distance a few feet away, Alec nodded silently at both of them.

Itachi thought that they would get along pretty well.

They slipped out of the remaining crowd of people and onto the street by the building, walking side by side but not touching. They leaned against a bike rack railing, talking absently about what songs they like and who they thought had the best voices. Kisame had that husky chuckle in his voice, and kept grinning up at the black sky.

After a few minutes of idle chit chat, Suigetsu's familiar car honked from the curb.

"That's my ride," Itachi murmured, straightening.

Kisame grinned, running a hand over his hair. "I'll talk to you soon," he promised.

Itachi hesitated in front of him, wondering what he should do next, but Kisame made that call for him. He reached out and pulled Itachi against his chest, hugging him tightly for a few moments.

Suigetsu honked again, and Kisame released him. "Sheesh, when did my cousin get so impatient?"

"Probably that was Sasuke," Itachi replied sheepishly, imagining him reaching over the passenger seat to slam the horn.

Kisame snorted. "Okay, well, hurry up before he runs me over."

Itachi had really thought that Kisame would kiss him that night, and as he looked out at the blurring pavement as Suigetsu sped at least 20 miles an hour over the speed limit, he pondered what Maria had said.

His stomach was fluttery.

Sasuke twisted around in the passenger seat to look at him. "How was it?"

"Fun," Itachi answered, but his voice sounded off even to him.

Sasuke frowned. "Did something happen?"

"No, nothing like that."

"Promise?"

Itachi smiled at him, eyes soft. "I promise, baby brother. Nothing happened. I'm just thinking, is all."

Sasuke hummed, but let it drop.

Itachi took a really long shower that night; the warmth made his arms and legs feel like noodles, and his long we hair stuck to his back. Sasuke was feeling extra affectionate, and climbed into Itachi's bed to towel dry and brush Itachi's hair out. He asked Itachi about the date, about what Kisame did and how he acted. Itachi assured him he was nothing but sweet.

"You're going out again, I'm assuming?"

Itachi leaned back into Sasuke's chest. "He promised to call."

Sasuke hugged his brother, then, and though he didn't say anything, Itachi could feel it, as if it was vibrating out of Sasuke's tense arms and straight into Itachi's heart. All his worries, and hurts, and hopes.

"You deserve to be happy," he eventually whispered.

Itachi smiled, twisting back to make eye contact. "Who says I'm not happy?"

"I can see it," Sasuke replied. "You're content. You're complacent. But you aren't happy."

Itachi twisted his mouth to the side. "And are you?"

"Yeah," Sasuke replied honestly, voice gruff. "I really am. I know shit has happened," he took a breath, "but I have you, and all my friends, and I don't hurt over it anymore."

"And your boyfriend?"

Sasuke grinned. "Naruto is a work in progress."

Itachi chuckled, feeling the ball tipped bristles of the brush run over his scalp again, and then down his back.

"Do you even know what it feels like to be truly happy? Have you ever been truly happy?"

"You make me happy."

"No, I make you worried."

Itachi snorted. He didn't really know what Sasuke was getting at, didn't know what he was supposed to say. But he was too tired for a conversation like this right now.

Sasuke seemed to get it. He kissed the top of Itachi's head and left the room, setting the hair brush on the dresser.

Itachi collapsed into his pillows, too exhausted to think about anything else before he fell asleep.

---

There was a lot of build up for the fourth date. Itachi had been wondering what was in store, anxious both in excitement and worry. It had been put off more than once, on both their ends, but Kisame always acted like he was going to come out of nowhere towing a pyramid of Gyza behind him on a wagon as a surprise. Or something equally extravagant. How it ended up going down, however, was a drunken phone call where Kisame called him pretty a dozen or so times, and then another phone call a few days later in which Kisame tried to sloppily excuse his actions. He confessed that he had no idea what to do for their fourth date, and when Mangetsu came over to drink, he had a couple too many tequila shots, got some brilliant idea, and tried to ask him out right again right then and there.

It was a bit of floundering on Kisame's end, and though Itachi enjoyed every single minute of it, he took pity on him.

"Kisame," he had said patiently, "you don't need to prove anything to me with some over the top date. I'm fine just hanging out with you. You should know by now, I air on the side of low-key."

That only inflated Kisame's ego a little bit.

The made an agreement to meet at the Brookstone park just a mile or two down from Itachi's apartment complex. Kisame originally had wanted to pick him up, but Itachi still wasn't sure if he wanted to clue Kisame in on at all about where he lived or, ultimately, how he lived. It wasn't that he thought Kisame was transparent enough to dump him for a thin wallet—he was just a private person, and though it was beyond Sasuke, he had always been sensitive about his financial situation. Mostly because he felt like a failure for not being able to better provide for Sasuke.

And that was definitely a half-batshit demon of Itachi's head Kisame was not ready to quite yet meet.

So, Itachi made an excuse that he was already going to be out, and there was no point in driving all the way home only to retrace his steps. It was a waste of gas. Climate change, and all that. Anything that was an excuse. He had a feeling, the more and more he lied to Kisame, the more suspicious he became, but it didn't stop him. There was a very slight, slight possibility that Itachi had a problem with lying. Just a slight one.

Kisame left the contents of the date as a surprise. He was determined to make this special, and Itachi thought that was sweet but—ultimately, he didn't want it to be too big of a deal. Itachi felt little pustules of anxiety lining his stomach, because the bigger the build up, the bigger the crash if I was all a disappointment. For both of them.

Saturday afternoon found Itachi walking to Brookstone. He was about halfway there when he figured that, even though it was hot outside, especially under the glaring sun, he didn't know what Kisame had planned, or how late they would be out. And he hadn't brought a jacket along, specifically because of aforementioned heat. Alas, it was too late to turn around. Maybe if he starting rubbing his fingers now, they would be warm by the time he got home.

He only waited seven minutes, perched on the stone bench at the entrance of the park. A big, rust colored truck rolled up by the curb, and Itachi hopped up lithely from the bench and made his way towards the car.

"Hey, beautiful," Kisame said—grin in place, of course—as Itachi closed the car door behind him.

"Hi," he replied, buckling his seatbelt. "Do I need to be telling Sasuke not to press kidnapping charges? Or are you going to tell me where we're going."

Kisame laughed heartily, pulling away from the curb and merging into the light traffic of the street. "Already? I haven't even had time to ask how your morning has been."

Itachi sighed patiently. "Go ahead."

A chuckle. "How was your morning, Itachi?"

"It was fine. Slow, didn't do much. I watered all of my plants. My orchids are blooming."

"Orchids?" Kisame raised an eyebrow.

"A gift from a student. How was your morning?"

Kisame grinned. "Too slow. Far too slow."

"Because…?"

"Why do you think?" Kisame looked over at him as they approached a red light. "I've been anticipated this all day."

"Anticipating what, exactly?" Itachi proded lightly.

Kisame snorted. "Not that easy. I don't want you to know what we're doing until we arrive at the designated location."

Itachi sent him a pointed look. The light turned green.

"Fine," Kisame groaned, switching lanes so they could merge onto the freeway. "I'll tell you if you really need to know."

Itachi's brows furrowed, noticing the freeway sign. "Why are we going south?" There wasn't hardly anything south of their current town, at least until San Rose—but that was way far away. That was near the beach, there's no way….

"…Are we going to San Rose?" Itachi asked, eyebrows raising.

Kisame grinned. "Is that a problem?"

"No, it's just…far."

Kisame shrugged. "Only an hour. Forty minutes with how fast I drive."

Itachi frowned. "Don't go endangering my life yet. It's only our fourth date." And even saying that, it felt strange to Itachi. One, that he even managed to interest Kisame long enough or a fourth date, and two, that he felt so comfortable and attracted after only four dates.

"Are you taking to me to beach?" He asked, surprised.

"You'll see."

In the midst of the minor shock, Itachi looked down at what he was wearing. "I don't know if I'm dressed for what you have planned." He noted that Kisame had a hoodie thrown over the back seat, which also meant that it might be getting cold.

Kisame grinned, but there was a heavy look in his eyes. "Don't worry. You look…very good."

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that I would love to reserve a hotel room for us tonight," his grin was wicked, "but I'm guessing it's a little too early for that, yeah?"

Itachi rolled his eyes, settling more into the seat, since he had long car ride ahead of him. "Shut up," he muttered.

The ride to the mystery event didn't take as long as Itachi anticipated—time really lost meaning when he was with Kisame. Itachi had never been to this particular town before. It was about twenty minutes from San Rose, the most commonly visited beach city in the area, so it had plenty of nice restaurants and jewelry shops.

Kisame pulled into a gravel parking lot across the street from a large, brilliantly designed building.

"An art museum?" Itachi asked, a happy surprise filling him.

Kisame grinned. "Not quite. The museum is closed today."

Itachi cocked his head. "Then...?"

"You said on our first date that you liked going to art festivals. Well, apparently the Ridgeway arts festival and expo is kind of a big deal." He cranked back the emergency brake.

Itachi blinked, stiffening slightly. "You took me all the way out here...for an art festival?"

"I know, it doesn't seem to make sense, but I think it'll be worth it. I've never been, but when I found it online I called a couple friends and they all raved about it."

Itachi stayed limp in the seat. "You came all the way out here for me? Just so I could go to an art show?" His voice was nearly a whisper.

"Hey," Kisame said playfully, "it isn't all about you. We're going to my favorite fish restaurant in San Rose. You'll love it, I promise." When Itachi didn't move, he leaned over the seat. "Are you unhappy? We can do something else."

"No, no-" Itachi paused, eyes flashing to meet Kisame's for a brief moment. "No...I'm just shocked."

"Shocked? That I'm the world's best date planner? You should have known better after my last one." He winked, and Itachi felt his lips twitch into a smile despite himself. "Now c'mon, I tried really hard for this one, so at least try to enjoy it," Kisame teased.

"Of course," Itachi promised, voice incredibly sincere, however breathy it might still be.

"Then let's have a fucking great day, yeah?"

The art festival had almost everything imaginable. The stretches of displays weren't very fancy, usually just easy ups and those long white plastic folding tables everyone always uses, but the pieces adorning them were outstanding. There were countless paintings of every medium imaginable—oil, pastel, watercolor, acrylic. There were stations with wooden and stone sculptures, and tables decorated with wire art. They passed a man with a pottery wheel, wet clay sticking to his fingers and parts of his apron as he molded the spinning brim of a vase. In front of him was an array of his creations—pots, vases, figurines, ornaments—which were plucked up by a woman next to him who used a fine tip paintbrush to add details to the already intricate designs. There was a woman creating beautiful sketches with a myriad of pencils. Each stroke of the pencil seemed to move on the canvas even after her hand stopped, and she had a decent crowd watching her work. Itachi lingered at a photography booth, ogling images that ranged from abandoned, decrepit buildings to macro images of flowers and bugs, from incredible shots of tornadoes to simple pictures of a busy down town. What filled Itachi's heart up was a section dedicated solely to poetry, because writing was so often overlooked when people considered the arts. In the distance, perhaps on the other side of the museum, Itachi could hear live music playing. And of course, there were endless booths of jewelry.

"You can't possibly be enjoying yourself," Itachi murmured to his date, letting a gold necklace with a drop of Marahlago roll against his finger.

Kisame looked down at him, thinking about the little light in Itachi's eyes that sparked whenever he saw something particularly intriguing, how he got fidgety when he really like a piece, and the way he bit his bottom lip when he was trying not to smile. "You'd be surprised," he murmured, watching the wind dance in the fringes of Itachi's dark hair.

Itachi spent the majority of the day drinking in every piece of artwork he could, ogling pretty canvases and sculptures, touching anything the artist allowed—whether that was a smooth curve of a marbled rock, the dusty surface of fresh pottery, a faceted gemstone on a ring, or a line of dried ridges from a painting.

Kisame spent the majority of the day looking at Itachi.

After Itachi was thoroughly mesmerized by his surrounding, he relaxed enough to reach out and grab Kisame's hand. Once Kisame got over his initial shock, he was practically skipping as he walked next to him.

They rounded the bend of the festival grounds, heading towards the food section to grab something to eat. As the food carts and tents came into sight, the smell of fried dough and crystalized sugar wafting over them, a small building with an open door caught Itachi's attention.

"What's over there?" he asked, nodding.

Kisame squeezed his hand, just because he could. "Let's go find out."

They entered the room, which immediately took on the appearance of a workshop. To the left was what seemed to be a woodshop of some sort—there was sawdust and splinters on the ground and great big saws, and though no one was working there currently, it was clear that the area was still used regularly.

To the right was a small crowd of people gathered around a furnace. A man had along metal pole which he was poking into the fire, twisting it rhythmically. He brought it out of the fire and rolled a clear, goopy blob at the end of the pole across a metal sheet next to him, pressing one side down to shape it.

"Glass blowing," Itachi breathed.

"You know about this?" Kisame whispered, nodding towards the display.

"My grandfather," Itachi replied quietly. "My mother used to always tell me stories about how he was a glass blower in Japan, the best in their town. There's a couple of pieces I still have that were made by him."

As the watched the man mold liquid glass, Kisame rested his chin on top of Itachi's head.

The man made a vase or two, adding chips of color into them and creating intricate patterns by rolling the molten glass over pebble-like accents. At the end he used pliers to pull out the features of the horse, selling it to a young girl who was watching the show.

They had stayed and watched him create for over an hour, and by the time he was packing up shop, both of them were getting hungry.

"Want to head out to the restaurant now?"

Itachi nodded. He had moved his hand from Kisame's, now holding on to his entire arm.

It wasn't a far drive to San Rose, so Itachi didn't have to deal with a grumbly stomach thankfully. On the way over Kisame didn't even allow room for argument about how they would pay the bill; he was footing it, and that was that. When the restaurant came into view, Itachi realized it was a good thing, because there was no way in hell that he would be able to afford such a place.

Kisame had reserved a table on the patio because of the beautiful ocean view. Itachi shivered a little as they made their way to their seats, but thankfully there were overhead heater to keep him warm. Kisame tried to get Itachi to order drinks, but he insisted that he was fine with water.

Kisame grumbled something about making sure he got alcohol in him later.

There was mostly fish on the menu, and since Itachi was inexperience with most of the dishes, he let Kisame guide his hand. Kisame got the swordfish—"It's the best thing on the menu, and this restaurant doesn't serve shark under the name of swordfish like some other fuckers"—and Itachi ordered the salmon. Kisame promised him that it would be good.

And it was. Itachi didn't know if he had ever dined so expensively. Maybe back with his parents, when he was a kid—but even then, they never ate like this. He felt a little guilty, since he wasn't paying his own way, but Kisame acted like he blew money like this all the time.

The view was as amazing as the food. It was right across from the ocean, only a single street separating them from the water. There was no beach here, though, just a drop off from the cliffs, and the salty ocean air wafted up from the rocks and drifted by the restaurant in the breeze. Ancient palm trees stretched up towards the sky, framing the horizon on either side as the sun set. To make everything just that much more perfect, they even got to witness the green flash.

The company was of course the best part of the evening. Itachi was still slightly hung up on how easy and wonderful it was to talk to Kisame. He had never been so relaxed around anyone ever—at least, not counting Sasuke.

After dinner, Kisame wanted to see the ocean for just a minute before they left, and Itachi was so high off of the date he had no problem indulging him. They drove only a mile or so, and found a parking lot right at the edge of the boardwalk; it was getting late, so there weren't too many people out. Itachi was cold, so Kisame let him borrow his hoodie. They sat together on the half wall at the edge of the boardwalk, their feet on the sand. They listened to the sound of the crashing waves, the water hidden in the darkness.

"I still don't really understand," Itachi whispered, breaking the silence.

Kisame cocked his head to the side.

"Why…you did all this for me."

"Did you have fun?"

Itachi laughed a little, but it held no humor—it edged along the lines of overwhelmed. "Did I have fun? This was…more than I ever expected, Kisame." He looked over, feeling Kisame's fingers secure themselves between his. "Honestly, you deserve to reserve that hotel room, you've done so much for me."

Kisame shook his head slowly, lips pursed a little. "Nah, Itachi. Sex isn't something to be owed. I don't know who taught you that, but they're an asshole." He squeezed Itachi hand. "I am glad that you enjoyed yourself so much, though."

Itachi looked down at the sand. "I still don't understand."

Kisame chuckled. "Come here," he said, releasing Itachi's hand and holding his arm up. Itachi scooted over, letting Kisame pull him into his chest, the giant hoodie acting like a blanket. "I like you, Itachi. A lot. I've dated people for months and didn't like them even half as much as I like you now." He pressed his lips to Itachi's hair. "That's why I'm doing this for you." He slid his other hand down Itachi's arm to hold his hand.

And for a moment Itachi didn't want anything else in the world but for Kisame to keep holding him like that, because at the moment it felt like Kisame was holding him together, keeping him from falling apart. He could see them working out, actually being together, together, and more than anything, it scared him shitless. But he wanted it, some part of him. He wanted to come home to find Kisame laying on his couch, so that whenever he had a bad day he could hold Kisame's hand like this. He wanted to hang out during lunch breaks. He wanted to eat his fucking instant noodles with him when he was too broke to afford real food. But god—

"You're doing it again," Kisame whispered.

"Huh?" Itachi asked, purposefully making an effort to relax his muscles—which he didn't even realize were tensed up to begin with. He was stressing himself out too easily.

"You're over thinking things. I can feel it."

"Sorry," Itachi replied a little breathlessly. "I do that sometimes. How can you tell?"

"You got all stiff. And your eyebrows get crinkled in the middle."

Itachi consciously tried to smooth them out. He began to pull away from Kisame, so he could talk to him, because hell if he would be able to hold everything in for too much longer. As he leaned back, though, Kisame's arm stayed locked around his lower back like a warm bar on iron, and subsequently it kept Itachi pressed up against Kisame's side. His breath got stuck in his throat at how close it brought their faces together.

The look on Kisame's face let Itachi absolutely know that Kisame was going to kiss him. His fingers curled against Kisame's arm.

"…it's getting late," Kisame said gruffly, releasing Itachi and leaning back.

Itachi blinked at the sudden distance, almost falling off of the ledge without the support. He shivered in the cold, despite the hoody.

"And look how cold you are," Kisame continued, standing up with a quick smile.

Itachi got up, as well, resisting the urge to immediately press himself back into Kisame's side.

"You ready to take off?" Kisame asked, offering a hand.

Not until you kiss me, he thought. Yet he replied, "Yeah, let's go."

Kisame drove more slowly on the car ride home, which Itachi was thankful for, because he honestly wasn't ready to say goodbye. They had been together for a while, and he had enjoyed every single minute of it. The ride was also welcomed because Kisame lightened the mood incredibly. All the tension and heaviness weighing on Itachi's chest was gone entirely by the time they were halfway home, and Itachi found himself laughing and making jokes more than he had in a long time.

Kisame had him doing a lot of things he hadn't done in a long time.

At this point, Itachi didn't really care if Kisame saw his apartment complex—it didn't look that bad from the outside, anyways—so he gave him quick instruction on how to get there. Kisame voiced some surprise about how close it was to the park, but Itachi ignored the comment.

Kisame pulled into the parking lot of Itachi's apartment and parked his truck. He climbed out of the car, slamming the door and walking around and meeting Itachi at the front. They stood in front of each other for a moment, just looking at each other. Their goodbyes always were a little awkward.

"I had fun," Kisame murmured, a small smile playing at his lips.

"Yeah," Itachi echoed.

"Can I take you out again next weekend? Maybe it isn't too late for the special date."

Itachi look up underneath his lashes. "There's no reason to think that today wasn't special, Kisame. But, of course."

Kisame tapped his hand against his denim clad leg. "Alright, I'll take off then." He started to walk backwards, grinning. "Sleep well, Itachi, and—"

"Are you going to kiss me?" Itachi demanded.

Kisame blinked, freezing.

"Are you going to kiss me?" Itachi repeated.

"… Do you want me to?"

"Well, have we just been going out as friends?"

Kisame locked eyes with him for one very long second, and then his large hands were pressed against Itachi's pale skin, grasp firm.

Kisame's lips were rough.

Itachi let his hands grab onto Kisame's shoulders. From there they moved to his neck, to his face, to his hair. Eventually Kisame picked up Itachi completely—effortlessly, at that—and sat him on the hood of his truck. He even did it without breaking the kiss.

With the new position Itachi was able to angle his head better, lips almost desperately attached against Kisame's. Kisame was a really good kisser, too.

When Itachi finally realized that he couldn't breathe he pulled away, trying to act like he wasn't catching his breath. Kisame pressed his hands to the tops of Itachi's thighs, catching Itachi's bottom lip between both of his and tugging a little.

Itachi leaned back in for a few more kisses, these ones gentler. He was surprised by the intensity that had just taken place.

"So—its been years since anyone's kissed me. But what's your excuse?"

Kisame brushed his nose against Itachi's cheek. "I've been wanting to do that since our conversation at the club."

Itachi laughed a little, wrapping his arms around Kisame's shoulders. "That early?"

"I've told you, Itachi. There's something about you. It drives me crazy. You have no idea how many times I've wanted to kiss you over the past couple weeks."

Itachi leaned back a little, forcing Kisame to meet his gaze. "If you still want to kiss me, you can do it again."

Kisame didn't even hesitate before he closed the gap, connecting their lips again. It felt so good, having Kisame's strong hands on his back, his hard body against him. And his lips. Fuck, he should have done this a while before.

Itachi let the tip of his tongue press against Kisame's lower lip, and Kisame opened his mouth just a little, deepening the kiss only barely. Itachi knew he was trying to stay on the path of being slow, trying to be considerate and respectful, but at the moment it was only frustrating as hell.

Kisame pulled back abruptly, knocking his forehead against Itachi's. "Be my boyfriend."

"What?" Itachi asked, surprised.

Kisame let his head roll back, and ran a hand through his hair with a slight edge of frustration. "Fuck, Itachi…." He trailed off. "Be my boyfriend. Date me for real. Enough of the casual stuff, enough beating around the bush. I want you so bad I don't even know what to do with myself. Be…be my boyfriend." He leaned his head back in, kissing Itachi's cheek.

Itachi still wasn't used to hearing words like that, still wasn't completely grasping the idea of it even being true for someone.

Part of him told him to say no. A very large part, actually. He almost did, out of reflex. He almost shook his head and pushed Kisame back. 'Sorry, I don't think that's a good idea,' he would say. 'I don't think I'm really looking for a serious relationship right now.' And it would probably get pretty awkward, and Kisame would laugh it off and crack some joke he didn't really want to. And he might just leave right there, deciding that he was wasting his time and Itachi wasn't near worth the trouble. Or, he might stick around for a little while longer, though there would always be an uncomfortable air between them. There would always be the unspoken and unanswered questions of why Kisame was still playing along, or if it would ever turn into something worthwhile. And eventually there would be some clumsy not-break-up, because there was no graceful way to unstick them from the messy situation Itachi created.

Itachi could see it all play out, and every part of it made him sad. He didn't want Kisame to leave. He didn't want things to get weird between them. He really liked what they had, and the thought of it ending filled him with such an uncomfortable feeling he almost physically squirmed.

And so he had to decide if he was going to end the only thing that had made him happy in a long time.

Part of him, of course, told him that he didn't deserve to be happy. Another part of him said that Kisame would get bored with him soon and Itachi would have to go through that particular hurt all over again. Another part of him remembered all of his past boyfriends, and told him that someone like Kisame could do to him a lot of damage.

But Itachi wasn't one to be scared, and he had promised Sasuke he would work harder at getting better.

The loudest voice was the one that told him to stop trying to micromanage the future, and just let things be. It sounded a lot like Kisame's voice.

"…okay," he said, a little smile in his words.

Kisame looked up quickly, eyes bright. "Yeah?"

"That's what I said," Itachi hummed, moving his hands from Kisame's shoulders to press against both of his cheeks.

Kisame kissed him again.

Itachi pushed his fingers back into Kisame's hair, securing his now boyfriend's face against his. He pressed his teeth into Kisame's lower lip, causing Kisame to squeeze his hips. Kisame's mouth opened, and Itachi decided to be brave by slipping his tongue farther out, letting it brush against Kisame's. His legs somehow ended up pressing tightly to his side.

"Hey," Kisame breathed gruffly, pulling back enough so he could speak. Itachi licked his lips off and tried to keep his breathing even. "Remember how I said I've been wanting to kiss you for a while now?"

"Yeah," Itachi replied.

"Let's just say that's not the only thing I've wanted to do."

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "The hotel, right?"

Kisame cracked his signature grin, playfully squeezing Itachi's waist. "So maybe you shouldn't kiss me like that right now. I'm already too happy."

Itachi hummed. "Fine." He went back in, anyways, to press one more innocent peck against Kisame's mouth. He leaned back, letting out a breath. Kisame moved his hands to the tops of Itachi's thighs. "So…now what?"

Kisame chuckled. "You say that a lot." He shook his head. "Do you really gotta know everything step by step? Is planning that important to you?"

Itachi pressed his lips together.

"Sometimes you gotta live in the moment, babe."

Itachi's eyebrows shot up. "Babe?"

"You're my boyfriend now." Kisame grinned even wider, showing off all his teeth. "But, that's beside the point."

Itachi paused, letting his feet swing absently a couple of times, his heel bombing against the metal of the truck. The engine clicked underneath of him, still hot from the ride over. "I'm not good at that."

"Shit, really?"

Itachi glared a little.

Kisame laughed. "It's okay to not be good at it. I'm very good at it. So won't you try it with me?"

Kisame's grin was literally impossible to resist, and Itachi's smile appeared without permission. He shrugged a little.

"I already am a fish out of water in all this; guess I should just commit."

"You may be a fish out of water, babe, but I'm the ocean."

"….what?"

Kisame busted up in laughter.

"You aren't funny. Never say anything like that ever again." But he was laughing too, for some reason, and when Kisame met his eyes, he laughed even harder. "I'm serious, that was gross."

"How dare you call my romantic gestures gross!"

Itachi hopped off the truck and playfully shoved Kisame's chest. Kisame caught his hands. "I don't like you."

"Incorrect, you like me very much. That's why you're my boyfriend now."

"You want to say that a couple more times?" Itachi asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kisame grinned. "Maybe."

Itachi stretched up on his toes to kiss him one last time. "Okay, I should probably really go now."

"Can I still take you out again soon?"

Itachi shrugged. "I don't see why not. But you don't need to do anything elaborate. I'm already dating you, right? There's nothing you have to prove anymore."

"Just because you're officially mine doesn't mean I still don't want to treat you."

Itachi rolled his eyes. "Alright, whatever you say." He began to walk to the green metal staircase. "Text me, or call me, or whatever."

"Or whatever," Kisame quoted, his current grin possibly the biggest one yet.

"Here," Itachi said, gesturing to the hoody. "You want this back, right?"

Kisame shook his head. "Nah, keep it for now. You can give it back some other time. You look very comfortable in it."

Itachi rolled his eyes.

Kisame called a loud goodbye out to him and then climbed back into his truck. Itachi climbed the stairs quickly, pulling his key out of his pocket on the way up.

When he got inside of his little apartment, Sasuke was standing in the middle of the entrance room, arms crossed, glare set. Itachi noted that the blinds to the window facing the parking lot were open.

"Hello, little brother," Itachi said lightly, fiddling with his key in one hand.

Sasuke didn't move.

"I take it you saw that?"

Sasuke's glare increased, and he huffed

Itachi smiled, ruffling his hair as he walked past.

"Itachi."

"What? I've done nothing wrong."

"…you're in a really good mood."

Itachi hummed, moving to the sink to wash his hands.

"He fucked you, huh?"

Itachi blinked. "I beg your…what?" This conversation felt reminiscent.

"That's why you're in such a good mood. And him too. I can tell." He didn't at all look pleased.

Itachi laughed a little. "No, baby brother, we haven't had sex." He tilted his head. "You think I would so early?"

Sasuke shrugged. "It's been a few weeks. He must be getting impatient."

Itachi pressed his lips together, drying his hands with a towel. "Sasuke," he began. He crossed the room the cup his face. "Kisame really isn't like my old boyfriends. He isn't with me for the sex, okay? He cares about me. He likes me."

Sasuke didn't look impressed.

"Do you know how hard it is for me to believe that? To say that out loud without doubt?" Itachi whispered, eyebrows pinning together. "You know how unfathomable that is for me. How long did it take for me to accept any love from you?" He pushed a wad of thick, black hair behind Sasuke's ear. "If I can believe it, can't you try to do so, as well?"

Sasuke dethawed a bit at Itachi words.

"Can you trust me?" Itachi tried. He cracked a half smile. "I know neither of us are good at that, not with each other, but…we gotta start somewhere."

Sasuke didn't respond.

"If you promise to try, I swear that if he hurts me I'll help you bury the body after you kill him."

That got a humored snort out of Sasuke, and Itachi grinned. There was a soft moment of silence. "It's going to be okay, little brother."

"Yeah," Sasuke muttered. "I guess."

"It is," Itachi insisted with a kiss to Sasuke's forehead.

And, for the first time in a really long time, he actually felt that—just maybe it could be true.

---

A/N: This was really long, augh. Also, I should clarify. I have a bunch of this written, but none of it is chronological. I mean, if you want me to post chapter ten...

Anywyas, I would love to know what you have to say!