Author's Note: First of all, I'd like to say that revision is a bitch. Second, for all of you who are caught up with the story and wondering why it has 2 new chapters when you only see 1 - I've added a new chapter into the mix; chapter 16 is new, trust me. Instead of being the chapter where Kisame moves in with Itachi, it's a chapter where Itachi visits his parents' graves alone. Please read it (either before or after you read this chapter, which is new; it makes no difference to the plot of the story) it's well worth the read, I promise!
After a week of living with Itachi, Kisame learned three things about his new roommate.
Firstly, Itachi was not a morning person.
He first learned of Itachi's sleeping habits when his alarm sounded at 7:30 Wednesday morning. Groggy after working until midnight at the convenience store the previous night, he wanted to catch as many Z's as possible before having to show up for his morning shift at Hozuki's at nine. He had just swiped the "snooze" button on his phone and buried his head into his pillow when he heard a faint noise coming from outside his room.
Lifting his head up, he listened more closely and figured that it must have been Itachi's alarm going off and attempted to get another ten or fifteen minutes of shuteye before getting up and getting ready for the day.
When he finally lifted himself out of bed at 7:45, he was surprised to find Itachi darting out the door, slamming it on his way out. At the time, Kisame simply shrugged his shoulders and headed for the bathroom to shower. It wasn't any of his business so he wasn't going to make a big deal about it.
Two days later, after returning from graveyard shift at the convenience store, he entered the apartment at 7:15 to find Itachi's alarm sounding again, loudly enough to permeate the walls of his bedroom and emanate throughout the rest of the unit. Again, it wasn't any of Kisame's business, and after a long morning of work, all Kisame wanted to do was pass out in bed until he needed to get ready for his second job later that afternoon.
After five minutes, Itachi's alarm stopped and Kisame had stripped out of his uniform, ready to collapse onto his bed.
On the edge of consciousness, he could have sworn he heard Itachi's alarm going off fifteen minutes later in the far distance before he succumbed to his fatigue.
Second, Kisame noticed that Itachi was not a social person.
Sure, Kisame could've reached that conclusion the first day that he met Itachi. The man was straight forward and didn't play games. The questions he asked Kisame were straight to the point and indicative of his profession in the business world; a world where men and women alike didn't care for the reason behind the circumstances that led you to where you were, or promises that you'll do whatever it took to achieve your goal. The only thing that mattered to people like Itachi was definitive answers and solid proof and nothing in between.
But Kisame was never one to judge other people upon first meeting them. After all, Itachi might have had a long day at work and simply wanted to make dinner and relax for the rest of the night. Who wouldn't? Kisame knew he had his fair share of those days working at the shop and in the end, the man had given Kisame a second chance so Kisame would do the same.
Since moving in, however, Kisame never saw much of his roommate. Granted, Itachi had a steady job from eight to five Monday through Friday whereas Kisame worked two odd jobs with fluctuating hours; it stood to reason that the two wouldn't cross paths very often. There were times, however, that Kisame had some spare time between jobs in the evening when he knew Itachi had returned home from work, but hadn't seen him to know if he was still there.
"You're home?" Kisame once asked from the kitchen when Itachi appeared from his bedroom.
"Yes. Why? Do you need something?" Itachi answered as he passed Kisame by.
Kisame quickly shook his head. He could count the number of times he and Itachi had spoken face-to-face using both – maybe even one – hand, which made conversation between them awkward. "I just didn't hear you, so I assumed you went out or something."
Itachi shook his head as he fetched a ceramic mug from one of the overhead cupboards. "I'm doing some work in my bedroom. That's all."
This meant that there were times when Itachi was in the apartment, but made so little noise that Kisame was unaware of his presence. Why he didn't conduct his work at the breakfast nook or on the couch in the living room, Kisame did not know. He liked to think that he was quiet enough for Itachi to get on with his work with him in the room, but maybe the presence of another person distracted him.
In the end, Kisame simply dismissed it as Itachi being less-social than he and left it at that.
Lastly, the man rarely ate, a fact Kisame stumbled across purely on accident through a random act of kindness bundled up in a Hozuki sub.
"Is that your lunch?" Itachi asked him when he arrived home one day with a sub in hand. He was leaning against the kitchen counter while his coffee machine whirred to life.
"Yeah, why? Did you want some? I can split it." Kisame offered, holding the sub out to his roommate.
Itachi shook his head, retrieving the steaming mug from its chamber in the machine. "No thank you."
"Are you sure?" Kisame asked him. "I don't mind shari—"
"I already ate." He explained.
Kisame stayed put, watching Itachi retreat into his bedroom where he spent all of his free time and glanced down at the sub in his hand. I'll eat half of it anyways in case he changes his mind. Kisame decided and opened up the wrapping.
He picked up half of the sub and started to retreat to his own bedroom before deciding to watch TV instead. Although he brought his old TV set from Suikazan's, Itachi owned a HD flat screen and he'd be a fool not to take advantage of the opportunity since Itachi never watched it. In this way, he could catch Itachi if he re-emerged from his bedroom and tell him that he left half a sub for him.
By 11pm, it was clear that his roommate wasn't going to make another appearance tonight, leaving Kisame to get ready for his graveyard shift at the convenience store. He dressed himself quickly as he had showered before leaving for his shift at Hozuki's earlier and longingly glanced at the sub still lying out on counter.
I told myself I'd save this for him if he changed his mind, Kisame thought, glancing at the door to Itachi's bedroom, but he said he wasn't hungry and I need something to eat before I go to work again…
Unwrapping the remainder of the sub, Kisame brought it up to his face and sunk his teeth in, deciding at that moment that he would bring Itachi a sub the next opportunity he was given.
Said opportunity arose Sunday afternoon when Kisame returned from Hozuki's at 2:14pm. It was a stretch to assume that Itachi hadn't eaten anything yet. However, given Itachi's sleep schedule, it was safe to say that the man ate a late breakfast upon waking up this morning and would probably be hungry later on in the day. If not, he could always eat it for dinner.
I just hope he likes it. Kisame thought to himself as waited for the elevator to reach their floor. He requested a simple club sandwich since he didn't know what Itachi liked. That was a safe bet, right? Who didn't like turkey sandwiches with tomatoes and lettuce?
As per usual, Itachi was nowhere to be seen when Kisame stepped inside the unit. He's probably in his bedroom. He dismissed, placing the sandwich on the countertop for Itachi to see. Kisame could've just as easily knocked on his roommate's door, alerting him to the fact that there was a sandwich waiting for him. He did not out of respect for the man's privacy. Besides, if Itachi was hungry, he'd reemerge from his room at some point or another, right?
"I brought you a sandwich." Kisame told him when he exited his bedroom three hours later.
Itachi turned his head in the direction of the counter where the abandoned sandwich sat and replied "No thank you, I'm not very hungry at the moment."
Do you ever eat? "Take it anyways. I got it for free."
Itachi shook his head as he opened one of the overhead cupboards. "That's okay." He refused.
"Then refrigerate it." He said matter-of-factly. "It's a cold sub. Eat it for dinner later or take it to work with you tomorrow and eat it for lunch or something."
"That's nice of you to offer, Kisame, but I d—"
"Just take it." Kisame said, cutting him off. "You're always so busy working in your bedroom that I never see you eat anything." He said. "So I thought I'd bring you something quick to eat while you work. You don't have to eat it tonight; bring it to work with you tomorrow or eat it for dinner tomorrow night." He didn't really know what Itachi usually ate for breakfast in his haste to get to work on time or even what he ate for lunch while he was at work.
If he works just as hard as he does when he's here, I can imagine that he doesn't really eat lunch either. Kisame thought, thankful he wasn't a part of the corporate business world like Itachi. Kisame valued food far too much to pursue such a career.
"Alright." Itachi sighed in resignation, placing the sub on the middle shelf of the fridge. "I'll take it with me to work tomorrow."
Kisame rose from his seat on the couch and turned the corner to his bedroom, concealing a winning smile. I finally did something right.
And so concludes chapter 19...I wrote this chapter in a bit of a rush because I've been working tirelessly on it for a week now and was finally struck with the inspiration I needed to continue it last night!
I expect chapter 20 to be updated within the very near future (hopefully tomorrow; I've already started it and probably could've finished if I didn't have to get ready for work). I promise the next chapter will be an Itachi chapter! (I'm so excited, because the plot is beginning to thicken~)
Until next time!
~Sasori33-001
AN ADDITIONAL REMINDER: Chapter 16 is new, causing the old chapters 16 and 17 become chapters 17 and 18. If you haven't already, I strongly encourage y'all to go back and read it; Itachi visits his parents' graves alone and comes to terms with some of the problems he's been dealing with concerning Sasuke.