Hinata was sure now he was in her head now. He showed up when she was at her worst after weeks of being nowhere to be seen. Maybe she just fell asleep outside and dreamed the whole thing.

Hinata pulled her hand into her chest. He felt real, but he wasn't warm, and she didn't feel a heart in his chest. It was like touching a mannequin.

Why wouldn't she have given him a heart? Hinata looked up at the picture sitting in the small, simple shrine. Maybe because Hinata didn't have one.

"I'm coming." Hinata ran to catch up with Kiba, being dragged by Akumaru.

"He's excited," Kiba called over his shoulder. "I think because you're coming."

"I think it's because you said the word park." Hinata huffed, flinching as she saw the man out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head, but he was gone again. Oh, he was back.

Kiba hauled Akumaru to a stop as they came to a crossroads. "You okay?"

He's in your head Hinata. She reminded herself. "Yeah."

The light turned green for them, and Akumaru dragged Kiba across the road like he was making up for the time the lost stopping. Hinata walked across the road, smiling at Kiba, stumbling to a jog to keep up.

Hinata heard a car engine before she saw it. The walk light was green, but the car wasn't slowing down. Her reaction time was too slow to do anything more than brace herself and wait for pain.

A crashing sound and the sound of a horn blared in her ears.

Air rushed out of her, and she found herself safely on the sidewalk, gripping for life to an arm wrapped in a black coat across her rib cage. The lamp-post-man held her flat to his chest at her waist, he waited until she took a breath before his hand released her, but she was holding on too tight to his arm for him to move away. He tried twice, but she couldn't let go. Her fingers dug further into the wool of his coat to calm her racing heart.

Maybe he wasn't a death omen, but he was definitely real.

She didn't dream that.

The car that ran the light smashed into a crossing car in the interaction. Both drivers got out and started arguing. Hinata couldn't hear them with her heart in her ears.

"Hinata!" Kiba finally looked behind him. "Hey, you okay?" He called too far away to see her face twisted in panic as he rushed back.

"Y… Yeah." Hinata called. "I'm fine." Her voice trailed off as she looked down. His arm was still there. Kiba couldn't see him, even when she was touching him. Hinata shakily let go of his arm, and he disappeared.

"Geez… did that guy even hit his brakes?" Kiba asked as he got back to her.

Akumaru nudged her hand, sensing her stress. "I'm okay," Hinata promised him.

Itachi watched the girl and her friend as she caught back up with him. Looking over her shoulder for him.

"We're not supposed to do that." Kisame appeared beside him.

Itachi shifted his gaze away from the girl. "Why were you watching me?"

"I wanted to see what you did when you disappeared." Kisame nodded his head toward the girl. "Who is she?"

"I don't know," Itachi admitted.

Kisame's face scrunched up. "You don't know? Why would you risk saving her then?"

"She keeps looking at me," Itachi thoughtfully walked forward to follow her.

Kisame shook his head. "What? Oh, the girl you thought saw us before?"

"Chased after you the other day." Itachi brushed the hole in his coat. "She hit me with something."

"Damn." Kisame leaned down to see the hole. "Why are you saving her if she attacked you."

"I don't think she meant to…" Itachi tilted his head. "I'm not sure that she knows what she did." She looked surprised.

Kisame raised an eyebrow at Itachi's curious face. "You're going to get yourself killed."

"Is that possible?" If they took human souls, who took theirs? Did they have souls?

"If she can cause you pain, it's not a stretch," Kisame concluded.

"Her hands are warm." Itachi thought aloud as he stepped forward and disappeared.

Kisame sighed. "It's rude to leave like that."

Hinata hesitated at the crosswalk. She should have asked Kiba to walk her home. It was late. The streets were sparse but illuminated by lights. The breeze dusted stray leaves across the gutters, making a dry dragging noise as they danced. She could almost hear it over her heart pounding in her ears.

She watched the walking light turn green three times. Each time felt longer than the last as it got angry with her for ignoring it.

How close was she to dying if her imaginary man had to save her? Why did he bother?

Hinata spent her time in the park with Kiba, still feeling his arm wrapped around her rib cage. She held on to that safe feeling to keep her from breaking down into a panicked mess in front of an unaware Kiba and Akurmaru, who just wanted to roll around and play fetch.

Akumaru knew, though, he could smell it on her. He made a vested effort to cheer her up, licking and bringing her his ball. But he wasn't here to lower her blood pressure now.

Would her father bury her next to her sister? Or chuck out the urn? Someone how the insignificance actually calmed her heart. Why worry about dying if even family didn't miss you?

Hinata heard the pole announce that it was green again as she stared at the concrete. Maybe if she called it all fate, she would be able to go this time.

A cold hand took hers and pulled her forward. Hinata stumbled, taking a moment to collect her feet before she followed the hand up to the dark coat of her lamp-post-man.

Hinata's hand tightened around his as he stopped on the other side and turned to her. Should she let go? "Thank you." She whispered.

He inclined his head and slipped his hand away, and he was gone. Hinata stared at where he was standing. Did he leave, or if he was still standing there?

Hinata's hand shot out to grab him, but when it caught nothing, her heart fell to her stomach but shot back up as her out-reached hand was propped up in his as he retook it. Watching her curiously like she was a puzzle. Just like she was studying him.

Hinata didn't think this through. "Do you have a name?"

"Itachi."

"I… I'm Hinata." Hinata rushed out. Itachi tilted his head. So he didn't know her name. "What…" Was asking outright what he was rude? "Are you a death omen?" Itachi eyebrow raised. "Or… an angel?"

"I don't believe we have a human name." Itachi's voice was softer than she was expecting. For some reason, she thought the man in the shadow man in a black coat, would have a dark voice. "Some call us grim reapers or angels of death."

Well, that was worse than a death omen. "Am I going to die?"

"I don't know." Itachi's face shifted curiously.

Hinata's heart hammered in her chest. As comfortable as she had become in him lurching in the background of her life, confirming her suspicions didn't make her feel secure. "Then why are you always here?"

"You're interesting," Itachi told her honestly like he was telling her the sky was blue.

Maybe it made more sense to him because he wasn't human. "Did… I hurt you?"

Itachi's eye fell on the hole in his coat. "Yes."

"I'm sorry," Hinata whispered.

As a car passed on the empty street, she realized she was in the middle of the sidewalk, with her hand out, talking to the air, and she jerked her hand out of his hand as she blushed. Then she realized that it was rude, and she reached back up, but he appeared beside her, knitting his fingers between hers and tucking their hand in her coat pocket. He pulled her forward in the direction of her house.

Itachi understood why she was embarrassed about talking to air in the street, but not that holding her hand like this was more personal than it needed to be to keep contact with him? "You didn't intend to?"

"No," Hinata admitted. "I'm not even sure how I did it."

"I'm not sure either." At least he didn't seem upset. The last thing anyone would want was to be on the bad end of a grim reaper. "How do you see me?"

"I… was going to ask you," Hinata admitted. Itachi nodded with an absent look on his face like he wasn't expecting an answer to her question. "Until today, I thought I made you up." Honestly, she was doubting herself now. This all felt too silly, walking along with a reaper holding her hand.

"Does it make you feel less alone?" Itachi asked curiously.

Hinata felt stripped. He could see right through her. Was that why he watched because she was miserable? "Yes." Her life felt hollow. It had the occasion bright character that served to brighten the edge of the clouds in her life, but having someone feel like they were always there, even if their motives weren't clear, was comforting.

Maybe confirming he was there, that he was real, that he was a being that could pass more judgment on her would take that away. Hinata hadn't considered what would happen if she caught him.

Itachi nodded, filing the information. He slipped his hand away as she realized that they made it to the stairs before her apartment. He walked her the whole way home.

"Hinata, do you have the business card?" Kiba dug through his own wallet as he walked in from the back room.

Hinata thought back. Did she have it last? To buy sewing supplies? "Maybe." She dug in the bag, pulled out her wallet, unlatched it, and out fell her mother's ring from the fold. "Oops." Hinata's hand followed it, but Kiba caught it, stopping it flat with his hand. He picked it up and held it out. "Sorry." Hinata closed it in her hand and continued digging into her wallet. "Here."

Kiba took the out reached card. "That's pretty." He nodded his head at her ring.

Hinata rolled it between her fingers, holding it up to the light. "My mother left it to me."

"Your mother's…?" Kiba asked carefully.

Oh, she slipped up. "She died when I was little."

Kiba nodded, not prodding, taking the card with him through the back. That was the only way that she kept friends when they didn't ask too much because if they asked, she would tell the truth, and then they would leave. Shino and Kiba didn't why. Was it cruel not to tell them, so they could fairly judge her?

Hinata replaced everything but the ring back in her purse and slid it back under the counter. She held her mother's ring up one more time using her nail to clean off an imperfection before putting it on.

The corner of her eye alerted her to Itachi standing in the corner of the shop, but he was still there when she looked. He stared back at her tilting his head as he looked at him directly. He was confused too.

Hinata slid the ring back off, and he disappeared. What kind of ring did her mother leave her?

Hinata waved at the guys as she made her way home. Once Itachi realized she could see him again, he made himself sparse, or maybe he just left. Surely he had something else to do, souls to reap? What did that even entail?

Hinata checked over her shoulder at every crosswalk. The terror had worn off, but catching sight of him would be comforting. Itachi was either not there or getting better at staying out of her view. Hinata looked up across the street. The blue man stood on the other side, idly looking up. Hinata crossed the street. He didn't he just stood there.

Hinata followed his eyes up to one of the buildings. She didn't see anything. The blue man looked down at her, then doubled took as her eyes went from what he was looking at to him. Hinata didn't know what else to do but put her hand up in the smallest wave.

His eyebrows knit together in horror, interrupted by a fire alarm blaring, followed by smoke coming out of a window of the building they were looking at. The blue man made a face at her as he stepped forward, disappearing.

Someone was going to die?

**Lavender-Long-Stories**
Not sure if anyone is interested, but I have been posting to my tumblr regularly, so I will drop it here. Lavender-Long-Stories