Chapter 30

It was not long until almost everyone had arrived at the hospital. Asuma, Anko, Kakashi and I were in the room where Hidan lay. He appeared to be okay and the doctor told us that his confusion and somewhat lack of memory regarding the accident were completely normal. He only suffered limited damage. A concussion of moderate severity. Nothing too alarming.

I was a bit surprised when the doctor who called me asked if I would be able to call the other possible relatives that would want to know about his hospitalization. The only relatives I knew of were his cousin Shikamaru and his aunt and uncle, Yoshino and Shikaku Nara, but I was not sure of how to get in touch with them. Besides, I was not even sure if Hidan would want me to contact them. He and Shikamaru had not exactly been on good terms after what he did to me.

Eventually, the people called for ended up being the usual bunch. The people I knew he would want to see. Itachi and Zabuza had yet to arrive and it bothered me a little that Zabuza did not come right away. It was his best friend who was in the hospital, after all. But I guessed you could not expect someone like Zabuza to show up unless you were in serious trouble. He probably did not even consider a car accident a serious situation.

There was one more person, though, that I had called, who had not showed up. It was Kakuzu. He did not pick up when I called him so I only left him a message, briefing him about the situation at hand. Like Zabuza, I did not expect him to show up either. It was not like he actually had any obligations as a friend or partner to show up and check if Hidan was alright. At least not after their break up.

After everyone had spoken to Hidan who was in a weird state where he would suddenly lose consciousness for a few seconds and then wake back up all confused, the doctor came and talked to us about his condition. He was still debating on whether or not to keep Hidan at the hospital for observation. Normally, with a concussion as his, they would send the patient home if they were promised that someone would stay and look after him for the next few days. The effect of a concussion sometimes did not show until the 12th to 24th hour. It could even take days.

I told the doctor I would be around and would not mind looking after him, but that Orochimaru guy was not sure if he wanted to leave it all up to me. He kept reminding me that I would have to check him every hour, also during the night, asking him about his name, which date it was and where he was at. I thought it sounded like a simple task, but maybe I seemed irresponsible or something to him. At least he kept saying, "Well, maybe it's safer if we keep him here at the hospital for the night." I thought it was a pretty big insult, but it could just be that he was only looking out for his patient.

At last, the doctor excused himself, reminding us that he had other patients to attend to and he would be back soon with his final answer. I did not mind if they ended up giving me the responsibility for Hidan's well-being, but on the other hand, it would be easier if they just kept him at the hospital. Obviously, I could not say such a cruel thing out loud, but preventing myself from thinking it was an impossible task.

The atmosphere lightened a bit once the doctor was gone. Everyone went back to talking with Hidan because frankly, he was the funniest thing we had experienced in a while. Some of the things he said made absolutely no sense and as long as he could laugh about it himself, we did not think twice about using him as our personal jester.

That was until the door to his room cracked open and a person we did not expect to show up stepped inside.

Hidan immediately put his elbows on the bed so he could sort of get up into a sitting position. He was just as surprised as everyone else.

The tan doctor that entered clearly felt misplaced with all our eyes fixed on him, but when Kakashi suggested that we all went down to the cafeteria to catch some breakfast, Hidan told us not to leave. Which came as an even bigger surprise. It did not thrill Kakuzu either, but I guessed it made him happy in some way, knowing that Hidan did not want to separate him from us. It was a baby step to admitting that they were lovers, but at least he tried.

Kakashi, of course, suggested we left so the two of them could get some privacy, but after a few minutes, I started to suspect that it was also because he knew what kind of awkwardness that would await us if we would have to give them some privacy while still being in the same room as them. It was not a very comfortable position Hidan had put us in. What we would not do for that guy.

The four of us sat down by a table as far away from Hidan's bed as possible and started talking to distract ourselves from Kakuzu and Hidan's conversation. I tried to listen in on it anyway, but I could not and had to settle with glancing at them every now and then. They literally went through the entire chain of emotions. They looked hurt, angry, sad, disappointed, confused, surprised and happy. It really bothered me that I did not know what they were talking about. The conversation Asuma, Anko, Kakashi and I had was not nearly as exciting as Hidan and Kakuzu's appeared to be.

Other than that, I hated having to sit and converse with Anko and Kakashi. I was mad at the silver haired man and by then, you could call Anko my rival. So she was one of the last people I wanted to speak with. But it was not the time for fighting or being stuck up. I just had to get over myself and my problems because at the time, it was about Hidan and his condition.

"How does Hidan that dumb ass always get to be so damn lucky, huh? Finally something happens to him and then he gets out of it with a freaking concussion."

"Don't talk like that, Asuma!" Anko said, and we were all surprised to hear something like that coming from him.

"Come on, I'm only joking. But seriously, isn't it funny how his life can always be so perfect compared to ours?"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at that. I did not actually know if Kakashi knew the story of Hidan's life, but should not friends know those kinds of things? Either Asuma was the only one who did not know or else he just did not consider losing your parents and getting involved with some fucked up teenagers a big deal like most others did. Or maybe I just did not know Asuma very well. It would not be a huge surprise since he was the one who lived furthest away from all of us and so he did not participate in everything we did together.

To be honest, Asuma was not as interesting as I first thought he was. For starters, he was not anything like Kakashi, which was the first thing I thought when meeting him. He was the most normal and boring guy of all of them. Apparently, everyone needed to be in touch with reality once in a while. That was why they needed a down to earth guy like him. To stay in touch with the real world.

I directed my eyes towards Hidan and Kakuzu once again. They did not seem as tense or angry anymore. To my surprise, though, Hidan gently grabbed the back of Kakuzu's neck and placed a kiss on his lips. Kakuzu's cheeks immediately turned red and he nearly stumbled backward. When he looked over at us, I instantly looked the other way, acting innocent, like I had not seen anything. I probably ended up looking more guilty than anyone else. If I had started whistling that would have been the finishing touch.

I guessed that meant Hidan had officially come out to us. Could it mean that he and Kakuzu would find back together? At least that had been their only problem, right? That Hidan was being immature about them. Well, we were still the easiest ones for him to come out to. Zabuza was the real challenge and he knew nothing yet.

"Did you see that? Aww, that was so cute!" Anko squealed in a low voice.

"That's what we need. Someone like them to stir the fangirl in Anko." Asuma rolled his eyes and sat back in his seat.

"Give them some privacy, okay? It's none of our business," Kakashi stated and smiled at Anko, placing a calming hand on her shoulder.

It was nice to see that everyone was okay about it, even if Anko was the only one who wanted to comment on their relationship. I thought it showed just how good friends they all were. Even if someone changed, they still accepted the person. It was very reassuring to know. Then maybe if Kakashi and I ever... no, it was too soon to say something like that.

Kakuzu sat down on a chair beside Hidan and the albino soon took his tan hand in his own and I got the feeling that everything was going to be alright.

I was not going to hear the story about how Hidan had driven to an old jeweler's house who he had worked with in the past, in the middle of the night to buy something particular. He spent a lot of time talking to the man before he finally drove off again to pay his beloved doctor a visit. That was when the accident happened. Later, I was also to be told how Hidan asked Kakuzu to marry him right in the hospital bed with us next to them and without us even noticing. It was a sweet thought, but Kakuzu did the only right thing anddeclinedthe proposal. Sometimes you could easily tell that Hidan was the youngest person in our group. Who else besides him would think that marriage was the only way to gain back your loved one's trust and respect? Kakuzu obviously thought he was just being silly, but forgave him nonetheless and told Hidan he might be willing to give them another chance if he promised to get serious. Like the softhearted doctor would ever be able to deny his precious Hidan anything when he had just been in an accident. It was about then the kiss happened. That explained the stunned face Kakuzu had made. But finally, Hidan was stepping up his game.

I was happy for them, but a lot happened before I was even told any of that.

The door to the hospital room opened. It was not a doctor, but another visitor. Or should I say a few more visitors?

Itachi stepped inside the room with a child that seemed to be around seven years old in one hand and a very young child in the other. Not exactly your everyday image of that man.

"Hey, sorry I'm late. Mei could not get off work so I had to bring the kids with me." Itachi beamed everyone a smile before looking down at the oldest of his attendants that was tugging his arm.

"Nii-chan, stop calling me a kid!" The black haired boy did not look very pleased and it did not take more than that for me to decide that I already hated that child. He was definitely the annoying type.

Itachi looked at him apologetically. "Sorry, Sasuke."

"Whose kids are those?" I whispered to the busty woman beside me. She leaned closer to my ear.

"The big one is Itachi's younger brother. The little one there's his son."

The look I gave her gave me away.

"Yeah, when Kaka-chan told me Itachi was a father, I nearly choked on air."

"You don't say?" I raised an eyebrow at her before directing my eyes back to Itachi and the pouty boy with the spikey hair. The youngest of the boys did not say much. He only eyed us with a shy smile tugging at the side of his lip.

Itachi went over to talk with Hidan for a while until the annoying younger brother, Sasuke, got too impatient. He wanted to go home, but Itachi told him with the sweetest voice I had ever heard a man use that they had to stay there for a while. Then he suggested that Sasuke should read out loud to Hidan from the book he had in his backpack and then hell broke loose.

Sasuke sighed loudly as he found his book. Just your everyday child that tries to seem like what he is asked to do is going to be a burden while he actually does not mind being the center of attention.

"No, it's okay, Sasuke, you don't have to read if you don't want to!" Hidan said, seeming somewhat upset.

"Come on, let the boy read. It'll be very relaxing," Itachi insisted.

The argument went on, but eventually, Hidan had to lie and listen to a story about four teenage mutant ninja turtles while he was sending death glares to a smirking Itachi.

"Why won't he just listen to the boy? It can't be that bad, can it?" I turned to the group that looked at me like I was some kind of idiot.

"Are you kidding me? That kid is the devil himself, I swear. I've taken care of him enough times to know by now. We have all tried to take care of him at least once whenever Itachi has been too busy with work or the baby." Azuma glared in the direction of the boy.

"Taken care of him?"

"Yeah. We've all helped out with Sasuke once in a while. He's a handful and has practically been sitting on Itachi's lap from the day he was born. Believe me, being Itachi is no bed of roses. His parents were never there to take care of him, and when Sasuke came, they dumped the kid on him. And now he has his own family to worry about," the man with the beard shook his head lightly and sighed, "Taking Sasuke off his hands are the least we can do to help. It might only seem like a small deed, but believe me when I say, it means a hell of a lot to Itachi. I've never seen any siblings as close as the two of them are, but a man can only take so much, you know? Sometimes he just needs to let loose."

The story of Itachi Uchiha came as a pretty big surprise to me. Who would have known that the eternally stoned drug dealer actually had a family that he cared about and that loved him back? All of a sudden, his abuse was not such a huge mystery anymore. It all made sense. And somehow, I did not really blame him for being a bit fucked up. There was no doubt that I had not heard the entire tale, but what I had heard so far was enough for me to feel at least some sympathy. Or was it pity? I was not always able to tell the difference.

"I had no idea," was my curt reply, but even if I had wished to say anything further, an annoying, pity seeking voice would have pierced through my words like a poisoned needle.

"Nii-chan, can't you ask them to be quiet? I can't read when they make so much noise."

Itachi calmly placed his hand on Sasuke's head and nodded affirmatively towards us as if he was certain that we had heard and understood the pale boy's message loud and clear. When we did not say another word, Sasuke continued reading out loud to Hidan who seemed like he really needed us to keep talking so he would not have to listen to anymore of that overconfident boy's endless blabbering. At least he had Kakuzu by his side, but in my opinion, he did not look very pleased about the situation either.

Time went by pretty slowly for a while and I did my best to try and not look at Kakashi. Being called to the hospital and all had made me focus on more important things, but when the adrenalin from the shock was gone and everybody seemed to be as normal as could be considering the circumstances, I became more and more aware of the fact that I was in the same room as Kakashi... And his girlfriend.

I stole glances of him from time to time, but it seemed like he did not even care I was there. He even sat with Anko on his lap at one point. That made me feel kind of hurt and disrespected. How could he do that right in front of me after our most recent encounter? It was embarrassing to be rejected so flat out like that twice. It only got worse whenever I felt like Anko was purposefully waving the fact that he was her's and not mine right in front of my nose. I guess she did not because I figured Kakashi would not have told her about it. But in reality, nothing was actually holding him back from doing so. She could know every single detail about the day I confessed and got rejected for all I knew. My common sense told me not to think like that, but I could not help it. With her being a complete tease like that,how could not things like that cross my mind?

A relieved atmosphere spread through the entire room when Sasuke finally closed the book. If Hidan had been alone, he would probably have cried out of sheer happiness. Unlike him, I was feeling a small lump in my throat growing bigger as the Uchiha family approached our group.

"What's up?" Itachi greeted with a smile.

"Are you joining us?" Kakashi asked cheerfully.

"No, sorry. Gotta drop Sasuke off at school and I have some business to take care of."

We all nodded while our eyes were automatically led to Sasuke when he spoke with his nose all wrinkled up, "Why are Hidan holding hands with him?" It was said in such a way and so loudly that no one could have missed it nor misinterpreted it.

Kakuzu immediately slapped his hand over Hidan's mouth so he would not say something stupid. The albino was red in rage. Apparently, he did not mind getting into a fight no matter how young his challenger was.

"Well," Itachi started. "That's because they like each other. And if you're a good boy and study hard, you can be just like them when you grow up." The tone in Itachi's voice was overwhelmingly joyful and sarcastic at the same time.

"But I don't wanna be like them," the blackhead protested. "And Hidan is not very smart."

I had to bite my lips not to laugh and luckily, I was not the only one having troubles with hiding my amusement. Hidan, on the other hand, was not very pleased.

"Says the kid that still holds his brother's hand!" Hidan snapped, receiving a deadly glare from Sasuke and a furious: "do not!"

Itachi laughed wholeheartedly, "I'm not gonna argue with that, but don't be afraid to hold another man's hand. It's perfectly normal."

"You never hold hands with other boys."

"Oh, I do, Sasuke. Just not when you're looking. Kakashi and I do it all the time. And sometimes Asuma too. He's quite the stallion."

Asuma's face did not look right and the blush he got spread all the way to his ears. Who would have known Itachi was such a jokester? But still, I felt kind of sorry for Asuma. He was such an easy victim and the others always used that against him. Poor guy.

Kakashi was indifferent. He just thought it was funny and winked at Itachi with a sly smile playing on his lips.

Sasuke looked like he did not know what to think. His whole world must have been turned upside down.

The youngest of the black haired family started looking uneasy, shifting from one foot to another. Then he pulled the sleeve of his father's shirt.

"Hmm?" Itachi made eye contact with him.

"Daddy, go potty." The flushed cheeks made the boy seem very ashamed of his statement. He was so innocent, but I knew better than to fall for a cute face like that. Eventually, he was going to turn into a monster like his uncle. There was no exception when it came to those devilish creatures. They were pure evil.

"Sure, honey, we're leaving now. Say goodbye."

The boy smiled insecurely at us and next at Hidan and Kakuzu. He squeezed his father's hand. "G'bye." His small, childish speech was not probably developed yet. But his voice was as sweet as candy.

Itachi looked down at Sasuke. "Are you coming?"

Sasuke eyed the hand, which his brother stretched out to him, with great longing, but turned his head and slapped Itachi's hand away. "I can walk by myself."

Hidan grunted self-complacent when Sasuke answered that.

"Sure you can," Itachi answered and smiled. "See you later everybody!" then he waved and walked off with his kid and Sasuke right on his tail. The black haired boy displayed his superiority over Hidan by sticking his tongue out at him just before leaving.Unfortunately, Hidan felt there was nothing wrong with stooping to the boy's level. Kakuzu shook his head with embarrassment.

Just before the door closed, Itachi suddenly exclaimed, "Hey man, what's up?" but then the door shut and none of us could hear the answer.

Everything was cleared up only seconds after when the door went open again and the last person missing in the gathering stepped inside. Then something weird happen. It was probably one of the weirdest things I had witnessed in a long time.

Zabuza was still holding onto the door handle when he laid eyes on Hidan in the hospital bed. Then only a second went by before he turned around on his heels and walked right out of the room again.

Kakuzu sent Hidan an apologetic look, but Hidan's disappointed face could only focus on one thing. Their intertwined fingers.

I walked through something similar to a wood. It was not quite one, but it was a vigorous place filled with all kinds of trees.

The bus drive had been a drag. Actually, my spirits had dropped a good amount after the never ending talk with the bus driver. I was the only one on the bus and so he thought it would be okay to blabber about uninteresting things to me. After only five minutes, I was beating myself down mentally for not placing myself as far away from that annoying, cap wearing man. But he got me to where I felt I needed to be and that was the most important thing - when trying to look at it from the bright side.

And where was it I needed to be? The answer was simple. After everything Hidan had done for me, it was time for me to pay him back. I had to go and talk with Zabuza. It did not thrill me at all and as I approached his house, it became more and more clear to me just how big of a task I had taken upon myself. Zabuza was indirectly the reason why Kakuzu and Hidan had broken up. Unfortunately, it turned out Hidan's suspicion about Zabuza's way of dealing with him and Kakuzu being together was right. He and Zabuza were best friends. If he could not accept Hidan the way he was, then what the hell could I do to convince him otherwise?

But I had to try. I owed it to Hidan.

The usually cheerful geezer had seemed so distant and sad the day after he had come home from the hospital. The doctor decided to keep him over night, but he was discharged early the next morning. Kakuzu stayed longer than any of us, but in the end, he had gone home to his own place. I had actually expected him to go home with Hidan and take care of him so he would not have to stay at the hospital, but some time apart probably would not hurt them. Maybe Kakuzu even thought Hidan deserved it after their last fight. Life is just not a fairytale and problems will not disappear just because something disturbs the picture for a while. Hidan had a lot of things he needed to think through by himself anyway.

The woody path to the close-minded Zabuza's house was longer than expected. Finally, there was a building in sight and since it was a pretty deserted place, I figured that was his house.

There was only one problem and it was that I did not pay attention to anything else besides the ground when walking up to the house and therefore did not notice the other person standing by the front door until it was too late.

"Hey, who're you and what're you doing here?" was the hostile remark I got when I stood only a few meters away from the entrance.

"Uhm, I know the guy who lives here. I'm here to talk to him." I was not going to give some unknown person all the details. Who the hell did that girl think she was anyway when speaking to someone in that tone? How rude.

"Oh." The weary wrinkles on her forehead flattened out and she bowed. "I'm sorry. Zabuza isn't home at the moment, but you can stay here and wait if you please. I have a feeling he'll be home soon."

Her attitude had changed. Well, a little. She still made it sound like she owned the place or that she had the right to pick who could and could not see Zabuza. It was kind of weird given that I had never seen her before. Zabuza had driven his last girlfriend away just before I came into the group and he had not spoken of any new ones so I doubted that was her role. Besides, she was way out of his league anyway. But then who could she be?

"Thanks," I said even though I did not think it was right of her to give me permission to wait for him. If I wanted to wait, I was going to wait regardless of her opinion.

The short girl sat down on the porch and I took a seat a good distance away from her. But not so much that it would seem like I did not want to be close to her. That would just be rude.

Funny how I found manners important whenever someone was rude to me and then I was going to be all high and mighty by setting a good example. I did not think I had much poise unless I was in a situation like that.

After a short while, the girl started humming to herself. She was definitely a lot prettier when smiling.

Actually, I would describe her as nearly perfect. Even though she was short, she had long, shaved legs. Her hair was around waist length and black but with a twist of brown. The skin covering her slim body was pale, reflecting the sun's blinding rays. And it was flawless. Not one freckle or scar, pimple or anything. She was probably the kind of person to look younger than she actually was. Especially because of those long, black eyelashes that made her look so innocent. I guessed her to be a few years younger than me.

The kimono she wore was not as girly as you would expect someone like her to wear, but it served her well. The only thing she lacked were breasts and unfortunately, the kimono only made that more noticeable. She was as flat as a board. A shame, really, but that was not something a quick trip to the doctor's could not change. Otherwise, she was perfect. That heart shaped face with those feminine features were a definite winner. She would be insanely attractive to any man or woman with decent taste.

The girl noticed I was staring at her and it made her cheeks turn slightly pink as she looked away.

Awkward.

"So," I started. "When do you expect Zabuza back?" One of us needed to say something and since she was not going to begin a conversation, I was forced to take the initiative.

"I don't know."

That was not really the answer I was looking for. Was she kidding me? Did she actually mean what she had said earlier word for word? "I have a feeling he'll be back soon." She sure had made it sound like she knew at least something about his return. Apparently not. What a fine situation she had put me in. Then I could wait forever. I sure as hell would have gone home if it had not been for the confident way she had said it.

I sighed and looked down at my lap. It would be pointless to go back home if he was going to return any minute then.

"Excuse me."

I looked at her out of the corner of my eye before giving her an almost invincible nod.

"I was just wondering if maybe you as a friend of Zabuza knew if he's okay?" The hands in her lap became uneasy.

I looked at her doubtingly. "What exactly do you mean?" I did not like the fact that she used the word "friends" about me and Zabuza. I had actually been quite careful when only referring to us as someone who knew each other.

"I wanna know if he's okay. I'm afraid something's troubling him." She turned her attention to her feet that rested on one of the steps.

"Maybe. But I don't know if I should be giving you any details. You haven't even told me who you are yet?" I tried to catch her attention, but she was too far away mentally.

"I'm... just a worried family member."

I had not expected someone like her to be related to someone like Zabuza. They looked nothing like family. But at least that explained why she had acted so protective in the beginning.

"Then why don't you ask him yourself?"

The girl was still wrapped in a cloud of mystery. I was not sure if I could trust her.

Her hands stopped moving.

"He doesn't speak to me about his troubles. We... aren't exactly on good terms with each other. Not anymore. But yesterday, he showed up on my workplace late at night for the first time ever. But... he left before I got down from the stage. That's why I came to see him today. I want to make sure he's okay." She was frighteningly honest. I doubted she could have made something like that up. And what would she gain from it anyway? But those things were not for me to tell. Especially not when her character had not been verified on good authority.

All I could say was, "I don't think there's any reason to worry."

She finally looked at me and forced herself to smile. "I'm happy to hear that. But I still wanna talk to him to make sure. Even if I know he's not gonna say much anyway."

"Yeah, that's about the only point where Zabuza isn't much of a talker." That kind of just slipped. I did not even mean to say that out loud.

Unexpectedly, she began to chuckle. "No, he never was one to speak about his feelings or personal problems."

After exchanging a few giggles, the atmosphere suddenly did not seem as tense as before. Then the girl rose and extended me her hand.

"Are you up for a walk? Time passes quicker when you're not waiting for it to do so."

I looked at her in surprise for a second, but took her delicate hand at last.

Walking through the woods with her was cozy. It probably would not have been if I turned back time around half a year. I would not even have gone with her in the first place. In fact, I would probably have left the minute we met on the porch. Spending time with Kakashi and the gang really had helped me in some ways. Either it had provided me with some social skills that I did not possess before meeting them, or else that worried looking girl was just very easy to talk to.

"So, you mentioned something about a stage earlier. What is it you do for a living, if you don't mind me asking?"

She smiled and cocked her head a bit. "Not at all. I'm an entertainer. I sing and dance in a club down town."

I pointed in the direction of the village I lived in, but she shook her head.

"I don't live around here anymore."

So she was the artistic type. I never would have guessed. But a pretty face like her's could probably sell anything.

"What do you do?" she asked cheerfully, seeming genuinely interested.

I scratched the back of my neck and laughed awkwardly, "Well, I was fired from my last job and it kinda gave me a bad rumor in the village so it's hard to find someone who'll hire me. So I'm just running some errands and stuff for a friend of mine. I know it's embarrassing and pitiful, but there's not much else I can do at the moment."

Her smile only grew bigger - to my surprise. "I don't think it's embarrassing or pitiful at all. I know how those small communities can be so they left you with no other option, right? I'm sure your friend is only happy to help and he's probably happy that you can take a thing or two off his hands. Don't you think?"

"I suppose you could be right." I had never really seen my situation from that kind of perspective before. People did not exactly dream of being in the situation I was, but my life was not the worst one out there. I should probably start looking at things in a more positive light.

That girl sure was more than just silky hair and a face most would kill for. She was pretty wise as well.

We must have walked around the woods for at least an hour or two before we walked back to the house. During that period of time, our conversation only went dead twice, but the silence had not been as uncomfortable as you could imagine. It was nice to just walk around, looking at the swaying trees and tweeting birds.

Just as we returned to Zabuza's residence, we discovered that a surprise was waiting for us right there on the porch.

It was Zabuza who was in the middle of unlocking his door. What better timing could you ask for?

But as I could only expect, a cowardly knot in my stomach began to twist as we approached the tall muscleman.

"Hey, Zabuza!" the girl called out, making Zabuza spin around in surprise. When he gained back focus, he frowned.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked in that impolite way only he could do.

The smile on the girl's face slowly faded. "I came here to talk to you."

Zabuza scowled at her. "We have nothing to talk about." and with that he went inside. He did not even look back at us once. Actually, he had not even noticed me. At least he did not make as if he had.

I was not sure what to say so I stayed silent. But only until the girl walked determinedly towards the door.

"I'm not sure we should follow him."

She looked at me over her shoulder after opening the door slightly.

"It's okay. He didn't lock the door."

She had a point, but still, I thought he had made it very clear that he was not in the mood for a visit.

I followed her inside, wanting to see what was going to happen. Even though the situation frightened me a bit.

"Zabuza, I just wanna talk," she said carefully when entering the living room where Zabuza stood in the middle of the floor.

"Didn't I tell you to leave?" He did not look at us.

"Are you okay?"

He snorted, "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because I saw you."

Zabuza turned and looked at her with raised brows.

"You were at the club."

Zabuza did not answer her. It looked like he had not expected her to say that.

"I'm worried about you," she said quietly. "I wanna know how you're doing. But... We never speak. I'm not even sure if you've gotten any of my birthday presents."

He stayed silent. It was a very intense and strange situation she had put me in. She looked so sad and serious all at the same time. Why would not he talk to her?She could not have done something. Had he done something? What was wrong with them? I felt they were having this indirect conversation that there was no way I would ever be able to follow.

Suddenly, I was shoved back hard. I looked at Zabuza.

"Stop staring!" he shouted angrily, receiving a weird look from a very confused me.

"What?" I looked questioningly at the girl, hoping she knew what was going on, but she looked just as confused.

"I told you to stop staring!" He took a threatening step towards, making me step back and put my hands in front of myself. This was the first time he really noticed me, but what the hell was he talking about?

"Zabuza, I don't know wha-"

He pushed me again. "Don't give me that, you bastard. I know what they say about you! Why are you even here? Fuck off!"

"Calm down, Zabuza," the girl said and put a hand on the boiling man's arm. He only evaded her touch.

I looked at her again, only for Zabuza to step right into my personal space.

"Quit gawking at my brother, you freak!"

I paused. Seriously, everything stopped moving. For a second, there was not one single thought going through my mind. Words could not find their way over my lips. I could not even make myself look decent by closing my mouth that stood wide open.

I looked at the girl from the corner of my eye. That could not be a guy. It had to be a girl. Zabuza probably just said the wrong thing. But that was pretty much disproved when I saw the face Zabuza was wearing.

The broad shouldered man took a step back, not saying anything, just like the rest of us. The girl... Or guy was blushing, looking away from both of us. The tension had become even worse than before. Everyone was silent. No wonder with the embarrassment that hang over us like a dark cloud.

The youngest one was probably embarrassed to be confused with a girl and my reaction when finding out he was not probably did not make him feel better. Zabuza was also embarrassed because he had tried to pick a fight with me over such an awful misunderstanding while I was obviously embarrassed because I had not noticed. All of sudden, his lack of breasts made great sense.

We stood like that in what felt like an eternity. But eventually, Zabuza threw both of us out without further explanation. I guess I was only thankful for that. Another minute standing in that awkward position would have killed me.

To begin with, the guy and I did not say anything to each other, but when I felt it was okay to talk again, I said, "I'm sorry."

"About what?" he asked with a small smile. How he could find it in himself to smile like that after what had just happened was beyond my comprehension.

"It's my fault you couldn't get to speak with him properly. You gained nothing from this because of me."

"You think?" He tipped his head to the side, his smile growing wider. I still could not believe that face was a boy's face. It was impossible.

"Don't you?"

He shook his head very lightly, closing his eyes for a moment longer than normally. Then he stared into my eyes like there was no tomorrow. The intensity was sickening. But I noticed that something was different. The look in his eyes. They were not as devastating anymore.

"He defended me." The sentence was spoken with such happiness that it kept echoing in my head as I went home.

Later that day, I sat on the couch in the living room, trying to figure out what exactly it was I knew from the information I had gotten at Zabuza's.

He had a brother. A brother. A guy who looked a lot more like a chick than anything else. There was no way they could be siblings. They looked and acted nothing like each other. It was just too hard to believe. That bitter geezer and that young beauty were related? It was simply impossible.

Hidan had finally gotten out of bed and placed himself in front of the TV even though Kakuzu asked him to be careful with over straining himself. His concussion was still far from gone. At least his case was not that bad.

I watched him, wondering how to ask about that guy.

"You and Zabuza went to the same school, did not you?" I asked, trying to sound like I was not digging for something in particular.

He nodded. After the Zabuza incident in the hospital, Hidan had not been very talkative.

"Does he have any siblings?"

He looked at me and nodded again. "Why do you ask?"

Had he smelled the rat? "I've just always been wondering about that guy. He's kind of a mystery to me."

A sad smile tugged at the side of Hidan's lip. "Yeah, he's values privacy." He paused and turned his upper body in my direction. "Haku," he said and I looked at him with confusion. "That's the name of his brother. Well, step sibling. He's a brother from another mother, if you get what I mean."

"Sure." Surprisingly enough, it seemed like Zabuza was the right subject to make him talk. Who would have figured. Maybe he just missed him being around. Or at least the thought of never having him around anymore.

He leaned forward in his seat and placed his arms on his thighs. "Zabuza's parents got divorced when he was still young. His father soon remarried and with that woman, he got Haku. I always thought it funny how they could act just like they were real siblings. That fact never bothered them the slightest. But they aren't talking anymore."

"How come?" I loved how I could always count on Hidan passing any information to me. He was my Wikipedia. Truly poetic, right?

"Haku changed. At least that's what Zabuza claims. They used to be something like best friends. Zabuza enjoyed spending time with his little brother. But after high school, he found Haku had gotten a part time job as an entertainer at a gay club and it freaked him out. He cut all contact with him the moment he found out Haku had a special friend. Only because that special friend was not a girl." He looked down and stared into space for a moment.

So... Was that the reason why Hidan did not dare to tell Zabuza he was gay?

"I told him he was overreacting. That he was just mad that Haku had kept it from him." What Hidan was actually saying was that Zabuza felt betrayed. Was that even possible for someone as cold as him? "He did not listen, of course. He said he hated homosexuals and that they weren't human, but he had never claimed anything like that until he found out his brother was gay. Ever since his parents split up, he started pushing all the people away that betrayed him. He would never verify that, but I'm sure that's how he works."

Zabuza was even more complex than I thought. At least if Hidan's theory was right. Maybe it was not such a mystery why Hidan, Zabuza and the others had ganged up together. Everyone had their own ghosts to fight.

"So... What now?" I was not sure if I should ask. But it seemed like Hidan really needed to talk to someone. He had lost his best friend and almost lost his boyfriend in the process. He had to feel very lonely. Perhaps he felt just as lonely as I imagined Zabuza. What a pitiful life. Did Zabuza even have anyone left?

Hidan shrugged. "Life goes on," he said and smiled, but it was far from being genuine.

A week after, Kakuzu, Hidan and I were making everything ready for the big game that was going to play that night. I still was not very much into American football, but I did not really mind watching it anymore and I could easily tell that Hidan enjoyed it when we wanted to watch it together with him.

The door bell rung and Kakuzu went out to get it while Hidan and I kept discussing who was going to win that night. I always rooted for the opposite team of him just to make things more exciting. I did not know any of the teams that well anyway.

"Uhm..." Kakuzu cleared his throat and Hidan and I turned to look in his direction. My eyes widened. "We have a guest."

The uninvited walked over by the couch and sat down next to Hidan and me who was taken aback.

"Scoot over already," the deep voice growled in its usual way.

I looked at Kakuzu who slowly made his way back to his seat in the arm chair. He shrugged when I questioned him with a look.

Hidan had never looked more surprised.

"Here," the man said and held out a beer from the six-pack he had brought. Hidan took it with a hand that was clearly on the verge of shaking. But as soon as he opened it, it was taken away from him again. "Not you, you idiot. Like doc over there is ever gonna let you drink in that state. Pass it." The beer was given to the flabbergasted albino once again, but this time he passed it to Kakuzu who did not dare to do anything else than drink it even though he rarely drank beer and when he did, it had to be organic.

He actually addressed Kakuzu. That had to be the first time he had ever recognized him as an existing person. And what he said sounded so caring. Well, in its own twisted way it did.

None of us knew what to say. That person was the last one we had expected to show up.

During half time, the tall man sat back against the backrest and took the last sip of his beer before speaking. "I visited Haku yesterday. That's one shitty apartment that idiot has gotten himself. Know any good real estate agents?" He looked around and both Kakuzu and I shook our heads. Hidan looked like he could not believe what he had just heard. Honestly, I could not either. It was one surprise after another.

"I might know a few. How's he doing?" Hidan answered.

"He's still got that crappy job. I don't know how he can take living such a lousy life. It doesn't seem to bother him at all. "

"You don't say. But as long as he's happy with it, that's fine. Right, Zabuza?" Hidan picked up his glass of water.

"Maybe," he snorted as usually.

Hidan could not help but smirk when sipping of his water. I had to strain myself so I would not copy him.

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Hurray! Finally did another chapter. Hope it's satisfying :)