Hinata's heart beat in her ears as the kettle continued to scream for her attention. She turned off the burner and cover her mouth. They almost… Could he? For all she knew, there was something silly rule like a reaper's kiss would kill you.

But she wasn't thinking that a moment ago.

Hinata felt all the blood rush to her head, and she crumbled to sit on the kitchen floor and bump her head back against the fridge. She felt so stupid for being so ready for it, and it seemed mutual, but if that was the case, why did he run?

Hinata rubbed her face and got up out of her wallow puddle on the floor to get her cup of tea and make another wallow puddle on the couch. She stared at the second cup of tea she made. She could lie and say she did it out of habit, but really she just wanted him to come back and act like it didn't happen, so she could stop feeling the burning embarrassment through her chest.

Would this be what would make him not come back? After saying something like that? Now that Itachi made a point to tell her that he knew what she wanted, would he keep it from her?

Hinata turned to bury her face into a pillow on the couch.

Kisame shoved him roughly. "Are you paying attention to me?"

"No," Itachi answered simply.

"What's gotten into you?" Kisame wondered. "You're quieter than usual."

Itachi looked out over the city. "I made a mistake."

Kisame eyebrows shot up. "With…"

"I got too close to her," Itachi admitted. "And despite that. I don't want to distance myself."

Kisame let out a deep sigh. "You and humans. It's like you like hurting yourself."

Itachi tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

Kisame made a face like he had said too much. "Never mind. What are you going to do?"

Itachi dismissed the look. Kisame made a lot of faces that didn't make much sense. "I haven't decided yet."

Kisame crossed his arms. "Yeah, you have."

Itachi didn't respond because he was right.

Hinata wandered out in the morning to collect her shoes and noticed the cups still on the coffee table. She groaned. If she didn't do it now, she would regret it later. She set her shoes back down and picked them up, the one a little too easily.

They were both empty. Itachi must have come back… and drank cold tea. Was this his way of telling her he wasn't gone, or was she reading too much into it? He could have just been there in the morning if that was what he wanted her to know.

Hinata took the cups to the sink and took a moment to wash them while she felt her face turn red again. She wasn't going to do well at hiding how much this affected her. She flicked off her hands and went back to her shoes. This time, she almost expected his coat to not be there. To make her heart drop into her stomach even if he didn't do it intentionally because, knowing him, he wouldn't think much of it, but it was there waiting for its owner to return, almost like a promise he would.

Or so she hoped.

Itachi kept his distance, he knew Hinata would be looking for him, and he didn't know what to say yet. Should he apologize? Would she believe him? He didn't believe himself. He didn't feel guilty. He stopped because realized he wasn't sure if she was only wasn't stopping him because she wasn't thinking. He clearly wasn't.

Hinata looked over her shoulder more than once on each street, to and from work, waiting to catch him lurking, or maybe she knew he was there because the frustrated pout could mean either. She got to her door and initiated her usual fight with it, only to whimper when the door refused to unlock. "Stupid…" Hinata sighed before she could further insult the lock, pressing her face against the door like he had seen her do before. Trying to bottle up her emotions as she continued on with her day.

If he reached out to help, it would end his avoidance of her, but if he didn't, he would have to watch her be miserable while she got it open herself.

"You know what?" Hinata huffed at the door in frustration, heading back down the stairs. Now where was she going?

Hinata sighed at the treat she bought to make herself feel better, but now that she had it and sat down to calm down, she didn't feel like she deserved it anymore. Her chest filled with a familiar pain of anxious discomfort.

Hinata breathed in the cool air with a deep breath that she expected to hurt, but her rib was nearly healed now. Now Itachi had no reason to stay with her at night. It was possible that was the only reason he was still hovering.

The park only had a few straggler passers-by as it got darker. Hinata pushed her treat container away and pulled up her knees to her chest on the bench, resting her head on top. It was supposed to snow today, maybe it would, and it could just bury her here, so the heat in her face would never come back.

The more Hinata thought about it, the deep of a hole she dug herself. She knew she would, and she let herself do it anyway because she deserved to feel this uncomfortable. Or that's at least what she was going to tell herself until proven otherwise.

Hinata tucked her nose down into her scarf. It was freezing. The cold seeped in through her layers, reminding her that the longer she stayed out here, the more miserable the walk back would be, but she didn't want to go home. Itachi's coat was still waiting by the door, mocking her, or gone to tell her he wasn't coming back.

Maybe she was just thinking too much.

A light post in the distance turned on to mock her. Hinata's mind wandered to her lamp post man, standing there, spiraling like she was, but she couldn't really imagine him doing that. So even in her imagination, he was ignoring her. She closed her eyes to get rid of the image.

A cold splotch hit her nose, and she looked up to realize it began snowing. It was beautiful, small puffs of snowflakes glittering in the light given off by streetlamps over her head but not past it. It looked like it was only snowing in the lit area around her.

Hinata closed her eyes to feel the snowflakes melt down her cheeks like tears, but after a few, they stopped coming. When she opened her eyes, she found a hand held over her face blocking the snow. Itachi stood there patiently, acting as her umbrella.

Itachi pulled his hand back to take the coat draped over his arm up over her head and shoulders to shield her from the snow. Hinata was surrounded by the faint smell of ash that made her heart speed up and gave her a rush of warmth to make her realize just how cold she was.

A shiver broke Hinata back into reality. "I should probably go home." She let her legs down and grabbed her container, but Itachi's out reached hand kept her from getting up and rushing past him.

Hinata considered not taking it, but she wanted to. When she slipped her hand into his, he pulled her up, and the cold wind disappeared as they reappeared in the dark of her unlit apartment. Itachi didn't step back out of the small area where she kept her shoes and coats, standing in the way of her getting into the main house.

"I want to test something." A question of consent was asked as silently as Hinata gave it by not turning away. They both knew the answer.

Itachi's hand ghosted the side of her face, feeling warmer than the skin of her cheeks was still from the freezing cold. Hinata's eyes closed before he could lower his face far, feeling the blood rush to heat her face further as his lips met hers.

It was simple and cold, and it made her heart pound in her ears.

Itachi's coat fell off of her head and shoulders as she tipped back to meet him fully. His hand tightened comfortably on the side of her face to keep her there for a moment longer. It felt like forever, and only a moment before he pulled back with a curious look on his face, looking unsure about his conclusion.

Maybe he needed more data.

Hinata collected the fabric of his shirt and pulled him back down to meet her again.

**Author's Note**

For updates and asks my tumblr: lavender-long-stories