Kisame felt like he was being set up for something. Hinata was at Itachi's apartment before he was, and he wasn't entirely sure why because their explanation didn't make much sense. He wasn't busy beforehand. He could have picked her up and come earlier if she wanted to show up earlier than they planned.
Would he have wanted to come earlier? No. He was tired, he worked late, and they were playing awful bass music last night, and he could still hear it. Even by the door, even outside it, he could physically feel it. He didn't know how people could hear their own thoughts in there. Maybe he should take up a quieter job in something like construction… no they had drills and jackhammers, and if something fell, he would be the first to get hit with it, but at least he wouldn't feel so sick after. There was something about the atmosphere of a bar that made you feel like shit the next day. Even if you didn't drink, the air was thick with smoke, and having to yell to have someone hear you didn't make your throat feel great. And then, on top of that, he usually took at least one swing, whether it landed well or not.
But all that was beside the point. Kisame would have picked Hinata up earlier if she wanted. He sat on the floor in the living room as Hinata brightly giggled at his sleepy look.
"I think you should give it took him now, so he can take a nap." Itachi nodded his head down the hall.
"Huh?" Kisame asked.
Hinata headed back down the hall, and after a few too many moments of struggling noise, she called down the hall. "Itachi-san, I think we should have planned this better." Itachi chuckled, heading after her coming back with a rolled-up plush mat, contained barely by a thick ribbon that was bigger than Hinata, and even Itachi struggled to get down the hall by himself. Hinata huffed with another smaller roll in her arms. "I don't know why I thought I could get that down the hall by myself."
Itachi tossed the massive roll at him. It hit Kisame's chest, and he was surprised at how heavy it was for looking like a massive pillow. "What is it?"
"Sasori-san and Deidara-san helped me make you a Kisame-san sized futon." Hinata bounced more excited about what she had in her hand. "And this blanket is big enough for two of you." She pulled off the ribbon and unfurled a massive blanket that had a bunch of colorful fish stitched together into an endless pattern. It was so big that when Hinata tried to unfurl it, it barely allowed her to, simply pooling at her feet.
This is what she had been working on for weeks? A bed set his size? Because of one comment at the mall?
Hinata tried to flick the blanket over him, and though she successfully got it over him, the center of it fell on his head, trapping him underneath. "Sorry." She lifted the edge to duck her head under until she could see him.
Kisame lifted his hand over her head to give her room under the blanket. His face was flat, not really the reaction she was hoping for, but she never did know if this project was going to be something he liked. She never wanted him to feel like she was patronizing him. "If you don't… !" Hinata wasn't able to finish her thought. Kisame's captured her, and she tumbled deep into the blanket into his chest. Hinata was trapped there while his arms tightened around her in the curtain of the blanket.
Hinata smiled into his chest. Maybe he did like it.
Kisame proudly sat in the sea of his big custom blanket with Hinata tucked in his crossed legs. The blanket wrapped around both of them comfortably, which was a marvel to him because most blankets were the size of towels to him and don't get him started on standard-sized towels.
Hinata looked straight up at him from inside the cocoon. "I can make you another if you like it." God, she looked cute, surrounded by the silly fish blanket. "It will take a little longer if I do it without help." Hinata ran her fingers over the fish. "I am a lot slower at pinning all of these together than Sasori-san is."
"I'll take ten." Kisame tucked the fluff around her.
"That's going to take me a while." Hinata giggled, tucking her head back down.
Kisame put his chin on top of her head. "I will wait."
"It's getting warm." Hinata tried to open the blanket, but Kisame tightened on her.
"No, you're stuck here now." Kisame brought his knees up to fully trap her on all sides.
Hinata struggled in vain, then gave up to pout up at him. Kisame couldn't deny the look, so he released her.
Hinata opened the blanket, crawled out, closed the blanket back up, and sat right back down like he was a comfy chair. Kisame moved his arm back to fold his trapped arms around her, effectively re-wrapping her.
Kisame laid out flat on the unfurled futon alone in his apartment. The mat was massive. It was a good thing he had nearly nothing in his place because this thing took up half the floor. He hadn't been able to sprawl out or even fully stretch his legs out on a futon since… before puberty? Now there was room for literally two of him.
He rolled over to look at all the empty space taken up by only his mouse plush staring back at him, and he could feel his face heat up.
Hinata did not make a bed for two. …Right?
Kisame rubbed his face aggressively to get rid of the blush. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.
She was really cute when she slept, though.
No. Stop it!
Hinata shook her head. "I really don't want to do costumes."
"But the cute girls in even the most mundane costumes make the booths more popular, yeah." Deidara pouted. Kisame kicked at his chair. "What? It's not like we are going to put her in a short skirt, uh."
Hinata snorted and covered her face as a ridiculous thought of not her in a short skirt but the boys in big poofy short skirts. She covered her face hoping that it would go away. They looked at her, confused by what she found funny. She just waved a hand. "I like the food-themed ideas."
"But would you want to cook all day?" Sasori lifted an eyebrow.
"I think I could." Hinata nodded. "But I don't think I really get a vote here. I haven't even been in the class the whole year."
"I don't think anyone cares who came up with the idea if enough people want to do it." Kisame shrugged.
Hinata hummed. "Maybe."
Hinata curled around her shark pillow and wondered if Kisame was in bed yet. Did he like his bed? She didn't want to prod him about it, but she hoped it was easier to sleep when he didn't have to worry about kicking his legs out of the blanket or even rolling off his mat. She buried her face in her plush to hide her smile from no one but her own heart as she thought about Kisame in a giant blanket burrito.
She tucked her face into her own new bed set to try to get the cute picture to go away, so she could go to sleep.
But all her brain wanted to show her was a shark burrito snoring.
Hinata blinked at Hidan. Maybe he was a lost cause. That was something that crossed her mind once in a while when helping him. His mind was directly connected to his mouth no matter how many times it got him in trouble or didn't really make sense. Hinata paused to reset her patience. "No, lets… go back a few steps. I am not sure how you came to the conclusion."
Kakazu side-eyed her knowingly. This was why he gave up a long time ago, but she still has some stamina, at least for now.
"Fuck…" Hidan face slammed down directly on the notebook, making a loud enough noise that Hinata jumped. Kakazu didn't even look up.
Didn't that hurt? "I think you will get it this time…" Hinata hoped she was right because she didn't want him banging his head on anything else. She pulled him back up. "If we get it this time without any more of that, we will…"
"Beef skewers," Hidan said automatically.
"There is a cart around the corner from the library. I will get you some beef skewers." Hinata promised.
Hidan huffed, scribbling out their previous work, determined to get his prize. Hopefully, it was enough because this test was in two days.
**Author's Note**
For updates and asks my tumblr: lavender-long-stories