Serendipity

Chapter Sixteen:

"So, how was the date?"

Itachi looked up from where he was preparing food with a bored look on his face.

Kisame and Suigetsu were looking at him with enthusiasm that the raven haired demon couldn't fathom, mainly because it was he who had gone out on a date, not the other way around. It was weird that they were more excited about it than Itachi was, but then it was always like this.

They were also so irritating for some reason.

Both men were looking freshly dressed, ready for the day, and way too happy for so early in the morning that it had Itachi contemplating murder. There was nothing to be happy about this morning, not with work an hour or so away.

The looks on their faces bothered him.

Almost as if they were waiting for Itachi to tell them something good, and admittedly that something wasn't going to happen.

"It was alright," he muttered, turning back to the food he was cooking. He was done with the conversation already.

"Oh come on man, don't leave us hanging like that!" Kisame groaned, taking a seat at the table. He was practically begging Itachi to give him something good. Suigetsu raided the fridge for some water and a snack. "Please tell me what happened, in detail. What did you guys end up doing?"

Itachi took a deep breath.

"It was just a movie and dinner, nothing else happened." Itachi relented, giving as minimal information as possible.

"Not even a first date kiss?" Suigetsu asked as he took a seat next to Kisame, cracking open a water ebottle.

"No," Itachi said. "There's really nothing more to tell about the date,"

"Look, we know that you don't want to talk about it and that you hate that we pry into your love life and all, but we really feel like we need to check you or you'll never get anywhere," Kisame explained. "Your attitude towards dating isn't all that assuring and everyone is going to want to know details once we go in to work,"

Suigetsu was nodding beside him, "Poor Izumi, I feel for her having to date you,"

"If things are going to go that way, so be it, but I can only say what has happened and nothing more." Itachi narrowed his eyes at Kisame, "There will be a second date if that is any consolation to the lack of details based on the first date,"

What more could he say?

Izumi and he had really gone to get dinner and watch a movie, anything in between hadn't been earthshattering or life changing if Itachi was being honest.

"But no kiss?" Suigetsu made a sad face, "Come on Itachi you have to have made a move or something, wasn't she dressed pretty for you?"

Itachi wasn't sure how to respond to that, and it was clear by the way he took too long to answer. This time though, neither Kisame or Suigetsu pressed him for an answer, waiting for Itachi to say something instead.

"She looked cold," he deadpanned in the end, making Kisame and Suigetsu groan at how lacking Itachi was in the matter of being romantic.

Kitty jumped on the table, flicking his tail back and forth as he anticipated his meal. He was keeping silent for the most part, but he was annoyed at the fact that they were talking about Itachi's date so early in the morning.

He wished he could tell them to shut up and butt out.

He knew Itachi wouldn't, but fuck, he so would.

"Please tell me you didn't say that to her," Suigetsu practically begged, looking horrified.

"Okay, I'm not," Itachi said, finishing up what he had been cooking. He moved to serve the food into two different plates, one for kitty and one for himself.

Kisame laughed while Suigetsu blanched at the response. It was just like Itachi to be that way, and he was well aware of it. Kisame had told Suigetsu, but his boyfriend had not believed him.

"For someone so handsome, gawd…" Suigetsu muttered under his breath, taking a sip of his water.

"Well, we can't work miracles, but at least she agreed to a second date." Kisame said, grinning largely.

Itachi didn't say anything, opting to have his breakfast instead, signaling the end of the conversation. While there were implications for a second date, nothing had been fully decided. Izumi had said that she would be making the plans for the next date, so Itachi was waiting for what she would choose.

Itachi gently petted kitty, encouraging him to eat as well. The kitten was looking at him, more concerned with playing with Itachi's fingers than the meal being presented to him.

Kisame and Suigetsu knew there was no talking to Itachi once he was focusing on Kitty. Instead they turned to each other to talk about the latest mission Kisame would be going on. It would be today, and it would take hopefully just two days, but if it didn't they needed to have another plan. While Suigetsu wasn't fretting over what Kisame was taking this time, he was still worried every time Kisame went away for so long.

Itachi made sure Kitty had his meal and anything he might need throughout the day. Suigetsu had already assured him that he would return and take care of him, and knew how to prepare Kitty for every day. Once he was sure everything was in order, Itachi finished getting ready and then all three were out the door.

Kitty watched them all go, slowly licking through his fur.

He wasn't the happiest right now.

Sasuke grudgingly got up, knowing that it was time for him to go as well. He went back to Itachi's room, jumping into the dirty laundry to collect his bounty for the day. Once that was done he made his way to the window, unlocking it and opening it slightly. Sasuke dashed his way over to Chiyo's home.

The old woman was in the living room having some tea as he shifted, collecting his uniform and going to the bathroom for a shower.

It was almost time for school.

"After school we should go grocery shopping. I have a few things that I need," Chiyo said as they walked to school.

Sasuke might be ten and claim he was grown up, but he still held her hand at her insistence.

Chiyo didn't have much going for her anymore, not in her old age. There weren't many things that made her truly happy, but to know that he could at least offer her something she wanted Sasuke didn't mind holding her hand in that case.

It was so little compared to the fact that she was offering him so much and even keeping his secret, and in a sense taking care of him. That alone meant so much to him, more than words could say.

After hearing how she had never been able to have children of her own, and how her partner died before they could adopt had been heart breaking. Chiyo had not wanted to tell Sasuke about it, claiming that he was still too young to hear such stories. Children should play and make their own mistakes, not concern themselves with the stories of old folk.

Sasuke had pouted angrily, telling her that he could understand well enough anything that she told him, that her stories would be good to know.

That he wasn't such a child.

She had laughed, still saying that he was, but since he had kept his promise to be a good student she had relented and told him.

Now here they were.

She was like his grandmother and he was her grandkid.

"Alright, I will wait for you by the entrance," Sasuke said.

"Oh before we get ahead of ourselves, do you know at what time Itachi will be home?" She asked.

Sasuke shrugged. "He's out on another long mission so I'm left with Suigetsu. He won't care if I'm missing or not so long as it's not all day or he might panic and call Itachi," Sasuke said, a slight pout came through his words that weren't missed.

Chiyo smiled knowingly, "Already missing Itachi that much?" she teased.

Sasuke blushed but nodded his head. His eyes reflected sadness instead of that little reluctant anger he would get and deny that he missed the demon.

Chiyo grew concerned.

"What's wrong Sasuke?"

"I-Itachi's dating…" Sasuke muttered, not looking at her. "He's dating a woman name Izumi and I don't like it…I don't," Sasuke looked like he might tear up at his own words. The little boy was stubborn though, not allowing such a thing to happen.

"You're running out of time you know, Itachi doesn't know who you really are. How could he ever dare to wait or care for you in that way?" Chiyo said in a matter of fact way. "You have to tell him who you are for something magical to happen between you." her tone was teasing.

"What does that mean?" Sasuke asked, frowning as he glared at the floor in front of him. "I don't-" Sasuke gritted his teeth, glaring harshly at the floor because he didn't understand. He knew she was teasing him, but he wasn't sure on what.

Chiyo sighed, "You're a child," she muttered, more to herself than Sasuke, but she knew he heard her. Sasuke didn't say anything to it, for once. There was nothing that he could say anyways, because she was right.

He was nothing but a child.

"Don't worry too much about it, dating is normal and it happens. Why don't you focus on school and having a good day," she urged, pushing him towards the school. Sasuke groaned, and moodily made his way into the school.

Chiyo watched him with an exasperated look, and got to thinking. She should have a little talk with Itachi and see what things were going like between him and Izumi. She already had a hunch that it wasn't going to last anyways, it just suck that Sasuke had to deal with such a heartbreaking situation.

"Silly child," she muttered as she left.

The first time that he had set foot into school grounds, Sasuke had been a bit scared.

It was new to him, specially interacting with others in his demon form. Stiffly he had attended school the first few days, scared that they would find out that he was part creature. Now he was a bit more comfortable, taking in the scents of several plants that decorated the entrance, before being swallowed into the sea of other kids.

School was weird.

There were rules that you had to follow.

It was big, and fenced off at every corner. There were five different buildings, which held different grades. Sasuke was in fifth grade, and that meant the purple building. The hall way was already filled with kids lined next to their classroom door.

Sasuke was in the class 545.

On top of that, if they weren't inside the building, then they were outside in the field when it was their grades turn. That is where they learned to play different games, or they were forced to run a certain amount of laps that had to be accomplished in a noted amount of time.

For now though, he was going to be having his language arts class.

He could see that there were about two kids lined up so far, and he stood away from them, looking at the floor with a frown on his face. His hands fidgeted with the straps of his back pack while his mind went off to other things.

Sasuke mostly kept to himself and completed any task that was asked of him with no complaint. That didn't mean that his fellow classmates were the same. Some of them were troublemakers and others were more concerned with themselves to care about learning. Others were obsessed with picking on other kids because they were considered less or in other cases, a half breed.

Sasuke opted to ignore those kids completely.

He could agree that school was systematically boring, if not a bit unnerving. Many of the things teachers expected you to do were very performative. Chiyo had told him not to complain and that maintaining the schedule, classwork, homework, and lunch that were served would benefit and discipline him for when he chose a career.

Sasuke already had a career in mind, and that was being the same as Itachi.

Itachi was like a detective and officer, or the other, either way it was part of the criminal and law field. It required a lot of reading and physical exercise. Sasuke had to learn many things, but so far none of what he needed was being learned. Instead he was stuck dealing with math, science, history, and language arts so he could learn the general stuff before he could learn anything in his field.

It would be so long before he would be able to catch up to Itachi, it almost felt impossible. His dreams were so far away from him.

"Loser, I said move!"

Sasuke gasped when someone was knocked into him. He pushed the other kid away from him, sitting up with a groan.

Laughter followed.

"What's the matter dog boy, can't stay on your feet?" The kid taunted.

Sasuke glanced up to see to see that it was Hiroto, the main bully in their class that was causing trouble so early this morning. The one who had been knocked into him was Kiba, and the boy looked like he had been hurt when he was pushed.

Moving to get to his feet, Sasuke dusted himself off. He intended to ignore the situation when Hiroto and his gang snorted, jeering at Kiba once more.

"Hah even the girly boy doesn't want anything to do with you, dog boy, why don't you fucking go to hell and die," Hiroto gritted his teeth, anger flashing in his eyes, "Half breeds like you don't deserve to fucking live,"

Sasuke flinched the same as Kiba at that statement. Several of the other kids agreed with what Hiroto said, even those kids that weren't in their class.

Kids were mean, all of them wanting to see another suffer for entertainment. Like they had nothing better to do.

Sasuke turned to look at the boy with a glare, something in him flaring. He was sure Itachi wouldn't let such injustice stand.

"Shut the fuck up loser don't you have anything better to do then pick on your classmate?" He hissed before he could think better of it. The next second he wished he'd stayed out of it, because now everyone was making 'oohing' sounds, egging Hiroto to teach him his place.

"What, are you going to defend the half breed, he's fucking useless. An abomination! Creatures do nothing but destroy our world!" Hiroto snapped, "Are you a little pansy goody two shoes like that Sasuke, wanting to accept just anyone in our elite world?"

"Is it that or are you sore that he might be stronger than you?" Sasuke taunted right back. "Who ever said you were elite, you're trash!"

"Watch it Sasuke, or you're going to be at the end of my fist," Hiroto growled, showing off his fangs. He hated it whenever anyone questioned his abilities, or compared him to anyone that he considered less than himself. He hated being powerless, he wanted to be on top of the school, and be the best.

Sasuke growled right back, flashing his fangs as well. "Bring it, loser." Sasuke wasn't going to back off a challenge. He was ready to teach Hiroto his place.

The crowd erupted into chants of fight. Both boys got into fighting stances, ready to throw fists, when suddenly the crowd was broken up by several teachers.

"Enough!" Their teacher call, "We don't bully each other here, and we don't fight our friends," With that all students went to their lines, groans following them as their fun was cut short. There were glares thrown at different people as they went, Sasuke went back into line as well.

Hiroto scoffed, going into the line at the front.

"Thanks," Kiba breathed when he lined himself behind Sasuke.

Sasuke ignored him, closing his eyes as he followed the line into class. Every student had already forgotten the altercation and were ready to start learning. It was nothing different from the usual. Except that Kiba for some reason or the other kept glancing at Sasuke, curiosity clearly shinning in his eyes.

Fuck, Sasuke shouldn't have gotten involved.

The last thing he wanted was for this kids thinking they could approach him.

Sasuke was eating lunch alone, at his usual spot.

He never ate in the crowded lunch area. He always grabbed his food and made his way to the grassy field, where there were a few trees lined by the fence, and faced the street. Sasuke liked watching the different cars pass, finding calm in the little nature that the school provided.

He wasn't the only one who liked it, many of the girls sat around together with their lunch at the center of the field. Others stood around, simply chatting once they had finished their lunch, or they were skipping lunch.

Of course, today his peace was interrupted by the sight of Kiba and Shino.

Both boys didn't seem to care that they were encroaching in Sasuke's personal bubble. If anything they looked at him like they had something to say. Sasuke frowned, looking at them as he set his lunch aside, suddenly not feeling all that hungry. He wanted to get up and leave, but he remained seated, glaring and wishing that they leave.

"What?" he hissed at them.

"I…" Kiba swallowed. "You're like us, huh,"

Sasuke blinked, a bit perplexed by them having found out. There was no way that they knew. No, they had to be referring to something else.

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked.

"That," Kiba pointed towards Sasuke's neck, more specifically his collar. "I hadn't noticed it before, but that's a protection symbol from Neko-baa," he said, a grin taking over his face as he deducted what had given Sasuke away.

"I'm not like you," Sasuke hissed, much too fast and regretted it when he saw Kiba and Shino's eyes flash with hurt. They were here to represent that denying who you were was a big no-no. Sasuke mentally cursed at them, and then at Itachi for making him so soft towards others, because honestly he shouldn't care what they thought. "I mean I…"

"You don't have to hide it Sasuke," Shino softly said, shifting his sunglasses over his face. A nervous tic of his, "we both have tried to hide and try not to draw attention to ourselves because we're not accepted, so we get that you'd want to hide it. We made the decision to stop and be proud, it's not easy but It's also nice to know that we're not the only ones."

"I…"

"There's power in numbers you know, we won't out you if that is what you are worried about!" Shino cut in. "We wouldn't do that to you, you have to decide that,"

Sasuke snorted, crossing his arms.

"You hide it well though," Kiba said while taking a large bite of his food. Sasuke made a face as he watched him chew and talk at the same time, "You have to teach us how you do that,"

"I don't try hard, I really am not the same," Sasuke said, running a hand through his hair. How could he explain it to them?

"What do you mean?" Shino asked as he prepared to eat his food.

"Yeah, how can you not be a half breed like us?" Kiba asked, confused by what Sasuke said. "What's there to be different?"

"I'm not human if that's what you are trying to get at," Sasuke said. It had taken reading a book on different species for him to fully understand it, but Sasuke was relieved to learn more of what he was. "I am a demon,"

"That's impossible, the demon gene eradicates any other," Kiba frowned, "They are pure and all that bullshit,"

Sasuke scoffed, "That's what they want you to believe, the demon gene can't eradicate a creature gene, no matter how hard it tries," Sasuke said. "Only the human one due to similarities in their genetic makeup. A demon gene has no use for it, easily merging them together."

"A creature and a demon, that's something I haven't heard of before," Shino said, intrigued by Sasuke's gene pool. "It is rare for a demon to consider a creature for a mate after all, one would have to have set their pride aside."

"Not really, being human wouldn't even be the issue either," Sasuke said, "It's the creature part that all demons look down on. I know that they are a lower species and all, but…" Sasuke shrugged. Demons and creatures were different, drastically so, but they didn't mix all that well. That was why he was a half breed.

"Yeah," Kiba and Shino understood. The only reason they were in a demon school was because they prevailed, their creature forms of dog and insect respectably were more prominent and thus were considered a danger to humans. They didn't fit in with the humans and the demons couldn't stand creatures learning a long side them- leaving them in a strange gray area that was hard to understand.

It's what led to the large drop out numbers between them.

"What is your creature form?" Kiba asked, no longer wanting to talk about the whole gene nonsense. He wanted to believe he was an equal to other demons. Different, but equal.

Sasuke sighed, unsure of what this new development was as he said, "I'm part cat."

"Oh we got a kitty," Kiba gave a toothy grin, tail wagging behind him as it poofed in out of nowhere.

"Please be gentle with me," Shino said, with a slight blush.

Sasuke and Kiba jaw dropped at that.

"Dude," Kiba laughed. Shino gave a sheepish smile at his own joke. It was a cheap shot but he figured cats enjoyed toying with insects, so he might as well say it.

Sasuke was still gapping, "I wouldn't do that!" the little raven hissed, fangs flashing.

And more laughter ensued between them.

Maybe having friends wasn't going to be as bad as he initially thought.

Sasuke made his way to the gate when he spotted Chiyo already waiting for him outside.

Today had been an interesting day in school. He had somehow become friends with Kiba and Shino, both of them were weird but funny boys. Sasuke liked them well enough and despite the fact that Hiroto still wanted to pick on them, it was a good day.

Now that Sasuke was their friend, the other students were hesitant to pick on him. The girls apparently held some power, having scolded several boys after that mornings near fight. Sasuke wasn't all that sure what had happened, but as long as it meant the other boys stepped down, he was fine with it.

"How was school?" Chiyo asked the moment that he was standing in front of her.

Sasuke took her hand, glancing back towards the school where he saw Kiba running towards a familiar girl. He blinked, as he remember her, Tamaki. She was the weird cat girl that he had met with Itachi a few weeks ago.

Ah, so that was how Kiba knew about his collar.

"It was an okay day," he said, looking away from Tamaki and Kiba who were happily walking away with each other.

Chiyo turned to look to what Sasuke was looking at, but wasn't sure what it was that had made him smile. "What you got a crush on another boy now that Itachi isn't available." She asked, raising an eyebrow at him in question.

"What no!" Sasuke hissed, his hair standing up on end at the very idea. How dare she assume something so stupid! "Itachi's the only one for me, that boy over there is just a friend!" Sasuke gave her a glare. "Itachi is mine, mine, mine, only Itachi," he clicked his teeth in finality.

Chiyo stared at the huffy boy for a second, before she burst out laughing at how silly and adorable he was.

"Calm down, I was just wondering, you don't have to bite my head off," Chiyo said as she calmed down. She tugged at his hand so they could get going, "But it's nice that you are making friends," she added. "Lord knows that you need some."

"Yeah," Sasuke said, cheeks flushed with a bit of embarrassment over his outburst about Itachi. He was glad as well. He knew how great and important friends could be. Itachi after all, had many of them.

What sucked was that they, dreadfully, were sometimes annoying, especially when they were trying to set his demon up with someone else, when he already had him!

Oh well, he will set Itachi's friends straight once he revealed who he is.

It was just a matter of when…

Suigetsu was doing some online shopping when Sasuke came out of Itachi's room, back in his kitten form, later that night.

He had spent the rest of the day with Chiyo and ate dinner with her. He wasn't surprised when he saw that Suigetsu had filled his bowl with something odd that he wouldn't eat. He ignored his bowl in favor to see who the white haired male was talking to on the phone.

"The fuck, how old babe?" Suigetsu asked.

"Nine, the fucking little kid is nine and a half breed, human mixed with creature," Kisame responded from the video chat. The shark demon smiled when he caught sight of Kitty over his boyfriend's shoulder.

"What is even the protocol for someone that young?" Suigetsu asked.

"Well, counseling and some other help that deals with making sure that there is nothing wrong with him in the head is in order. We have to figure out his motives and the reason why he did it. Now that he's in our care we will make sure that he's well before he's released again," Kisame sighed, knowing the reports that would follow this case. "Itachi and I should get back home by late tomorrow,"

"Really, I'm so happy I thought for sure you'd be gone for longer," Suigetsu said, flashing a happy smile at his boyfriend. Sasuke perked up at this, slightly purring at the idea of having Itachi come back home soon.

"Well, it would have been longer if it had been an older demon or creature. We all thought it might be an older demon, but the kid wasn't that smart, just reckless." Kisame rolled his eyes, "Kids are very careless and clumsy,"

"Great," Suigetsu chuckled.

"Great for you, Itachi and I have to deal with taking him back in one piece. If he manages to escape it will complicate things, for now though, he's completely at Itachi's mercy, there's no escaping his eyes," Kisame winked.

"What's that supposed to mean," Suigetsu raised an eyebrow.

"Can't tell you or Itachi will kill me." Kisame teased. It was always better not to talk about Itachi's abilities. For now, they had nothing to worry about, and that was all that mattered.

"Uh-huh," Suigetsu shook his head. "Come home safely okay," he said as he tried to suppress a yawn. Kisame smiled softly at him. They decided to end the call there, for Suigetsu to get some rest and Kisame had to keep the first watch that night.

Sasuke watched as Suigetsu turned off his lap top and laid on the couch, looking a bit sad. There was no doubt that although he was tired, he as missing Kisame. The man wasn't going to be getting to bed anytime soon, worrying about his boyfriend.

Sasuke knew how that felt.

It was always harder to get to sleep when Itachi wasn't by his side.

Date number two came before Itachi knew it.

He was already on edge. Izumi not only had texted him where and when she wanted to have the date, but a whole list of instructions on what he should wear and what she expected him to do. Itachi actually had to go out and pick up some dressy clothes because honestly, he didn't own all that many. His job hardly required anything too fancy, even for events.

That kind of stuff was saved for Konan and Pain, who were the face of the company.

Now here he was, in a button up black shirt, a red tie, and black dress pants. He wasn't allowed to wear his sweater so he had to get a fancy dark red vest pull over to go with his clothes. Itachi looked at himself in the mirror, feeling like a dork. His fancy new loafers completed his look.

Kitty was watching him from the bed, his eyes looking wide like he hadn't looked at him before.

"It's alright, it's just for the date," he said, more for his benefit.

Itachi groaned, he hated what he was wearing. Taking a deep breath he collected his keys and wallet, petting Kitty on the head before leaving.

Sasuke sighed, laying down sadly as he watched Itachi go, dressed so nicely. He wanted to stop him so badly. The thing was that he wasn't sure how he was suppose to get Itachi to stop dating Izumi without yet revealing who he was. He was scared for so many reasons, although he was sure Chiyo was right and he should man up already but... no not yet.

Sasuke will figure it out, there had to be other ways to get rid of annoying unwanted girls. Maybe his new friends would have some ideas as to how to do that!

There was hope yet.

"You look super handsome Itachi," Izumi said once he walked towards her. She was waiting for him outside of her house, waving happily when she saw his jeep pull up. Itachi had shut off the car and made his way over when she was clearly waiting for him to go to her.

Itachi had come to pick her up again because she said it was the gentlemanly thing to do. He simply agreed. He flashed her a small smile and gave her thanks for the compliment, being sure to pay her one back. "You look nice as well," he said.

Izumi was dressed in a light white summery dress. She had a light blue jacket covering her shoulders, and a cute pair of Mary Janes completed her look.

"Thank you," she blushed, shifting where she stood.

"Ready to go?" Itachi asked, motioning towards the car.

Izumi nodded her head enthusiastically, walking over as Itachi opened the passenger door for her. She easily climbed in, settling herself. Itachi closed the door behind her and then moved to the driver side.

It was no surprise where they were going.

They were going to catch dinner at Amaterasu and then a show in the theatre, the one that held live, lengthy plays.

"So, what have you been up to since we last hung out?" she asked, looking at Itachi.

"Just work," Itachi said.

"Your mom did say that you worked a lot!" Izumi giggled, "We should plan a long trip so that you can take some time off," she suggested.

"Maybe when we get a bit more serious in our dating," Itachi chanced a glance at her, "I hope we can get to know each other a bit more tonight,"

"Yes for sure," Izumi said, "Wait until I show you the good parts of the Uchiha District. I want you to also taste my favorite food!" she started to tell Itachi about everything that she wanted to show him. All things he was sure he'd seen before, because his mother already dragged him there several times as a child.

"It all sounds great," he said, not wanting to kill her happy mood.

Once they got to the Uchiha District, he opened her door for her. Izumi and he held hands as they walked to Amaterasu. The restaurant required a reservation, one that Itachi had to make ahead of time once she had mentioned it.

They were seated in no time, and she was pointing things out for him on the menu. Nothing had a price, meaning that this dinner was going to be a surprise. Itachi wasn't hurting for money, he knew that, he just couldn't justify the amount he was paying for the amount of food he was going to get.

Kisame always wondered why he didn't eat all that much.

Truth be told, he grew up with his parents coming to these places and eating these tiny ridiculous amounts. There was a standard to when you had money. Expectations when you were rich and important.

Itachi had hated it so much that he left it all behind to get on his own, and play by his own rules.

Being dragged back here felt like he was back in that cage, that prison, his parents had kept him in all his childhood. Glancing at the happy girl in front of him he decided to set those uncomfortable thoughts aside, trying to concentrate on what she was saying.

"Good evening, I will be your waitress, can I get you anything to drink tonight?" the waitress asked, smiling at both of them.

"Yes, could I get some of this wine," Izumi pointed to the menu, asking for a full bottle. The waitress nodded and said she'd be back to get their order once she returned.

"What did you choose?" he asked.

"I don't know the name but it's my favorite, I'm sure you'll like it too!" Izumi said.

"Oh okay," Itachi said looking back at the menu.

Once the waitress returned with their wine, the waitress took their order. Itachi reached for his cup of water that came with the wine, and sipped it. He was going to avoid drinking since he was driving. Izumi was already drinking her wine, too happy to notice that Itachi wasn't sure how to strike a conversation with her.

"So Izumi, did you pursue interior designing?" Itachi asked. He hadn't talked to her since he graduated ahead of her in the academy. Izumi shook her head.

"Nope, I decided to go into something else," She tucked a stray lock behind her ear, "I went into being a lawyer instead. I wanted to be able to use my voice, be more confident, and defend those in need," she said.

Itachi smiled, "That's great," he said.

"You stayed on your path of being an officer right?" Izumi asked.

"Sort of, I don't work for my father, although I'm sure you know that,"

She nodded, giving him a sad look, "Your mom and dad didn't sound too happy about that, to be honest. But I think it's great that you are still doing what you like. You were always so kind hearted Itachi, it makes sense that you'd want to take a different approach to what the police force does now,"

"That and this new job allows me to do a bit more," Itachi said, "I don't think it's fair to persecute creatures just because many believe that they are lesser. They are pretty much a subdivision of demons that deserve to be treated differently,"

"Their eradication is still necessary though," Izumi said, "The ones that kidnap and destroy families,"

"I know that not all creatures are good, or are beyond saving but not all are like that. I think demons sometimes go rogue as well, and each should be judge accordingly," Itachi explained. He believed in fair treatment, not special treatment of one over the other.

"That makes sense, it just becomes difficult to defend creatures when they all do seem the same," Izumi admitted. She had heard a lot of cases, and some of the things just couldn't be justified, even when the creature wanted to claim innocence.

"This will forever be a divided war, it feels," Itachi said.

Izumi nodded, agreeing with him. "Well enough about work, what else are you in to?" She asked.

"Uh," Itachi didn't have much of a life outside of work. "I spend time with my friends, and kitty, my pet cat,"

"You have a pet?" she asked, looking a bit startled at that. Itachi figured that it was something his mother never mentioned, because she too had no idea he had Kitty. It felt nice to get in an element of surprise on her.

"Yeah, he's incredible," Itachi smiled softly, his fingers twisting into a napkin in front of him, "Kitty is so soft and helps ease me a lot. He purrs so much too and is super affectionate," Itachi went on to ramble about things that Kitty would do or get into. How he would cause mischief.

Izumi stared at Itachi with awe, never having seen that soft expression on his face, ever. It was a nice look on her, making her heart race and her face flush.

"He sounds so cute, I wish I could meet him," Izumi said.

"Yeah sure,"

The waitress came back with their food. The two of them ate in silence, enjoying their meal. Izumi commented on the food being so good. Itachi still felt hungry by the end of it, but Izumi looked like she had eaten well.

That was what mattered.

After that they went to join the play. The place was already getting filled up with people, the crowd huger than what Itachi remember it ever being.

"Over here Itachi, these are our seats!" Izumi called, signaling to a specific set of seats. Itachi sat down, taking the outer seat so she would be comfortable in the inner one. It took a while for the play to start, but Izumi was looking through the pamphlet, explaining to Itachi how the play was going to go.

When the lights dimmed, everything went quiet and Itachi was entertained for about the first ten minutes, before he grew bored.

By the end of it, he was struggling to stay awake.

The thing that woke him up was that everyone stood up to loudly clap and cheer as the actors came on stage for the final bows. Itachi straightened, pretending that he had been paying attention the whole time.

"That play always gets to me!" Izumi gushed as they walked back to the car, "Thank you for coming to see it with me Itachi, my friends and family have gotten so sick of it,"

"No problem," Itachi said. "Shall we get you home?" he asked.

"Yeah," Izumi happily said, getting into the car once Itachi opened the passanger door for her, Itachi climbed into the driver seat and started the drive back to her house. Izumi feeling more confident fiddled with the radio until she found a song that she liked.

She had taken some advice to just be herself and show Itachi what she liked, so there would be no confusion between them.

Itachi didn't react to the music she had put on, but she didn't worry as she enjoyed herself, singing along to the song. Itachi chuckled softly at that, picturing her as a female version of Kisame.

It wasn't until he was dropping her off at her house, and she might, or might not have given him a look like she wanted a kiss that he knew he fucked up. Izumi wasn't a female version of Kisame. She couldn't be, because she had to be more than just a friend.

She was supposed to be the girl he was interested in.

The girl he was dating.

The one he'd have to sometime soon ask to be his official girlfriend.

Instead he pretended that nothing happened. Hoped that nothing had transpired, and turned to leave once he bid her a good night. How was he supposed to see her as more, when his heart and soul weren't in it.

If not now, then when…

Maybe a few more dates?

Itachi couldn't be sure. He tried to ignore those thoughts as he got ready for bed, but it was eating at him. Churning in his gut like guilt.

"Dating is so fucking hard and confusing," Itachi muttered, feeling way too tired. He finally crawled into bed where Kitty was curled up. For once he didn't bother with pulling Kitty into his arms, to concerned about what he was supposed to do about Izumi.

Itachi had no experience, for one. The other was that maybe he should have some interest in someone already, but the truth of the matter was that he wasn't. He felt stuck, trapped, because he had no other choice.

This is what his family and friends wanted. They wanted him to date and be happy, two things that seemed impossible to do together. Itachi wasn't happy, he was frustrated. He didn't want to date, but he didn't want to disappoint the people he cared about.

His heart was in conflict, and he wasn't sure what to do about it.

It wasn't until Kitty came seeking him that Itachi's thoughts shut off. Kitty climbed over him, pressing his small face into his neck, purring softly. The tiny little creature delivered a few licks at his chin before curling against him to sleep.

Second later, Itachi joined him, as per routine.

Falling into sweet, uncomplicated dreams.