A/N: Sorry For The Wait, I Know This Chapter Took Me Longer Than Usual But I Just Got A Waitressing Job And I've Been Pretty Busy. From Now On, Chapters Will Probably Be More Spaced Out, But I'll Be Sure To Post As Often As I Can. I Hope You're All Enjoying The Story so Far And Plz R&R!

Caged, Chapter 6: Closer

"What are you two up to?" Sasuke raised his brow as Itachi and I exited the garage. His eyes shifted to the paper in my hands. "And what do we have here?" he moved to snatch it from me.

I quickly blocked the attempt. "None of your business," I headed toward Amaya's room, throwing Itachi a smile over my shoulder. "Thanks, Itachi."

I wasn't half way down the hall when Sasuke came completely undone.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Sasuke roared in sheer rage. I could almost imagine fire spewing from his mouth as he spoke.

"What are you-"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" Sasuke intercepted. "She has no right to be here and you're treating her like-"

"Like what?" Itachi challenged. "Like a human being? Like she should be treated? She's been through more than you know and you've been treating her like shit for no reason!"

"Oh, and like we haven't been through enough?" Sasuke countered. "You've completely forgotten about mine and Amaya's feelings about bringing strangers into our lives!"

"Amaya loves Shi!"

"She's gaining your trust so she can manipulate you!"

"To do what?" I could picture Itachi's eyes rolling. "What could she possibly want from us?"

"I don't know, but I'm not going to sit and wait to find out!" Sasuke growled, his heavy footsteps rapidly coming closer.

I slipped into Amaya's room just before Sasuke tore down the hall, slamming the door to his room in his wake. I leaned against the door and stared down at Itachi's painting. How could he know everything about me?

I spent the rest of the day being entertained by Amaya. We played house for what seemed like forever, had a tea party, and played an endless game of Monopoly.

"You can't go to sleep yet!" Amaya whined when I headed for the door, tugging on my hand so I couldn't leave.

"Amaya, it's eleven o'clock," I sighed. "I'm tired and I'm sure it's past your bedtime. We can play more tomorrow, okay?"

"Fine," she said in a huff, finally letting me go and flopping back onto her bed.

"Good night," I laid a sift kiss on her forehead and made my way to the bathroom.

I changed into my pajamas and pulled my knife out of my bag, turning it over in my hands. I wanted so badly to give in to its siren song and allow it to bite into my skin, but a small part of me fought back for the first time. I took a breath and ran my fingertips over the serrated edge, each sharp point calling out to me. Do it, the weaker half of my will whispered enticingly. You know you want to. I chewed on my bottom lip and put the blade to my arm.

Don't, a quiet, weak voice squeaked in the back of my mind. This isn't the way to deal with it.

I narrowed my eyes as I waged a war against myself for a few very long minutes. I finally found the strength to uncurl my fingers and drop the knife back into my bag. "Damn it," I sighed airily. I leaned back against the tub and tilted my head back; everything felt like it was spinning.

"You okay?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin. "Holy shit, Itachi. Did you want to give me a heart attack?"

He chuckled and leaned against the door frame. "Sorry, just thought I'd make sure you're okay."

"You mean make sure I didn't slice my arm open and bleed out of your floor?" I laughed dryly. "Don't worry, I'm fine."

"I didn't mean it like that," Itachi sighed. He gazed thoughtfully at me for a moment before taking a seat on the floor next to me.

We were silent for a while. "You don't have to sleep in here, you know," he said, looking up at the ceiling.

"I scream whenever I close my eyes," I said as if he didn't already know. "I don't want to be more of a burden than I already am."

"You're not a burden,"

"Sasuke would disagree,"

"Sasuke's a selfish bastard," he ground his teeth together at the mere mention of his brother. "You're not anywhere near a burden for Amaya - or me."

I smiled. "You don't have to lie to me. I know I've made things more than tense around here, especially between you and Sasuke."

"Sasuke and I never really got along to begin with," Itachi sighed heavily. For a second, I could've sworn I saw a flicker of what looked like regret flash across his face. "At least not after…"

"After what?" I wondered when he didn't continue. The air between us suddenly felt unbearably heavy, almost as if the molecules had filled up with lead; I was treading on unstable ground.

Itachi swallowed hard and turned his gaze downward. "Our parents died last year," he began slowly. It was obvious the wounds were still very fresh. "in a fire that took our whole house and leveled it. Sasuke and I were at a friend's and Amaya was caught inside with our parents. They got to her, but she was badly burned. They couldn't reach our parents."

"Oh my God," I choked out, unable to think of what else to say.

"So, for the past year I've been doing my best for them," he paused for a second. "I didn't want us to get split up in foster care, so I got this shit hole and made it our home. Ever since then, Sasuke's been moody and out of control. He thinks no one understands and that he's alone, but he's not. He forgets that Amaya and I went through the same thing and that there are other people who have gone through terrible things like we have. All of us damaged kids, we have to stick together." a smile broke across his stoic expression then, making my heart flutter a little.

"I'm so sorry," I squeaked, still in shock. "I had no idea."

Itachi chuckled humorlessly and waved. "How could you have known? Sasuke never gives anyone a chance and it's not like we go around telling people we're orphans. He just doesn't want anyone to pity us, so he pushes everyone away. It's sort of tragic, really."

I nodded in understanding. "You didn't have to tell me if you didn't want to,"

"I wanted to," he smiled warmly. "and maybe one day, you'll want to, too."

I bit my lip as the urge to tell him everything washed over me again. Not yet. We sat on the bathroom floor for an immeasurable amount of time, the pale glow of the fluorescent lights making my eyes ache.

"You don't have to sleep in here," Itachi repeated. A soft blush painted his cheeks. "You can sleep in my room, if you want."

I nodded a little too eagerly, not entirely comprehending what he was proposing. "Sure, it's better than the tub."

Itachi laughed and helped me to my feet. "If you're not comfortable-"

"I am," I cut him off - and I was. A lot could happen in Itachi's room, but I knew that whatever happened or didn't happen would be entirely different from any of my past sexual experiences.

Itachi nodded and led me down the hall to his room. It was average sized with the same nondescript gray carpet as in the living room. A full sized bed sat against the far wall on a broken bed frame and the walls were the same plaster white as the rest of the house. I flopped down on his bed and snuggled under the blankets while he grabbed a pillow and blanket and placed them on the floor.

"Wait," I whispered, sounding like a scared child. "Come up here with me. Please?"

Itachi flushed crimson in the most endearing way as he complied, wrapping me up in his arms and holding me close. "Better?"

"Mhm," I hummed, almost instantly falling asleep. For the first time since I left home, I didn't dream a thing.