Chapter 3: Heartbreak

Itachi stormed back inside the room, his eyes filled with rage. "What did you just say?"

Kyuubi looked around nervously, trying to find the courage to repeat the words he had spoken just a few seconds ago. "I said your brother called."

Perhaps if he slipped in that word brother, it would do something to lessen the anger that was steadily manifesting on Itachi's face. The look in his eyes was frightening, an imminent threat of violence. Kyuubi was trembling where he stood.

Itachi ran a hand down his face as he began to pace back and forth. "How did he get my number?" He suddenly stopped and looked at Kyuubi.

Kyuubi shrugged his shoulders, looking around as if the answer was hidden somewhere inside the room. "I don't know. Your phone rang and I thought it was Deidara so I answered it."

"You didn't see the fucking caller ID?" Itachi asked with a look that mocked Kyuubi's intelligence.

"Obviously I did," Kyuubi said defiantly. "It was a random number. How was I supposed to know it was your brother?"

"What the fuck are you doing answering my fucking calls in the first place?!" Itachi yelled, his threatening demeanor causing Kyuubi to take a step back. "Are you fucking stupid?"

"I'm not stupid. Don't call me that."

Itachi breathed in deeply, and in a softer voice asked. "What did you say to him?"

"I told him you weren't home."

"Anything else?" His tone was accusing.

"No."

Itachi exhaled deeply as he grabbed his phone off the bed, and began searching through it. When he saw the foreign number, he felt all the years of rage and hatred suddenly rush back in that instant. He felt it clawing at his chest. He felt like he was on fire.

"Fuck!" he yelled, chucking the phone at the wall, the object just barely missing Kyuubi's head before crashing down to the floor. The impact was loud in Kyuubi's ear and he trembled as he glanced down at the broken phone beside his feet.

"Itachi, you need to calm down," Kyuubi said, fearful when Itachi stalked towards him. He winced as Itachi's hand came up and gripped his hair in a tight fist.

"Shut up! Don't tell me to calm down!" His grip was painfully tight as he violently shook Kyuubi. "This is all your fault!" He shoved Kyuubi back as if he was some piece of trash.

And like always, Kyuubi regretted going after Itachi, a stupid decision he was now being punished for. He's reminded once again why space was a necessity when Itachi got like this. It was also heartbreaking with how long they have been together, they couldn't communicate their feelings without it becoming something bigger than it needed to be. Kyuubi was tired of being disrespected, tired of constantly being the cause of every bad thing in Itachi's life, things he had no hand in, no control over, yet was somehow still his fault.

Kyuubi forced himself to stop trembling. "How's any of this my fault?" The look Itachi gave him was chilling, but Kyuubi wasn't backing down. "I didn't give him your number so how's this my fault?"

"You answered his call. On my phone! That's how. Or are you too fucking stupid to understand that?"

"Don't call me stupid, Itachi. Besides, if anyone here is being irrational, it's you."

It was dead silent in the room. Kyuubi could hear a pin drop. He expected a punch, a slap, something to shut him up for good. But Itachi didn't move an inch, completely still in a rigid stance as he stared at Kyuubi.

Kyuubi hasn't been this afraid in a long time. His legs felt like jelly, his heart felt like it was beating its way out of his chest. He took a step back, thankful when Itachi didn't make a move. He wanted to tell him to calm down but held his tongue, remembering a few minutes ago how saying those same words had played out. He could still feel the burning pain on his scalp. Itachi still hadn't moved and Kyuubi could see him fighting the urge to do something they wouldn't be able to recover from. He wanted to leave, he was not too far from the door, but Itachi's eyes watched him, like a lion to an antelope, and Kyuubi's afraid of the consequences if he doesn't make it fast enough.

"Itachi," Kyuubi said softly, suddenly cautious when Itachi balled his fists. "Itachi, please," he begged, his eyes pleading. "Please, just walk away." He reached out his hand to create a distance as Itachi neared him, his fingertips just barely brushing Itachi's chest.

There was a slight change in Itachi's eyes, something returning in those deep brown eyes that reminded Kyuubi of the man he had fallen in love with. A sense of relief fell over him as Itachi walked past him, grabbed his car keys and hurried out of the room.

Kyuubi took a moment to exhale the breath he didn't know he was holding. He ran his hands over his arms, the goosebumps still fresh from just how real the threat of violence had been. He wanted to collapse right there and then, have a moment to collect himself and push away the vivid memories from the last time he had been so close to Itachi's anger and how he had been at the receiving end of it.

Kyuubi began to replay the entire events of the night in his head. He had messed up, really bad. Itachi had every reason to be angry with him, yet somehow, he had managed to make himself the victim. He frowned. Itachi liked to go for a drive to cool off. But Kyuubi hasn't seen him that angry in a long time, and the sudden of thought of Itachi behind a wheel, has a newfound of fear clawing at Kyuubi's chest.

Kyuubi rushed out of the room, ran down the spiral staircase to meet Itachi at the bottom. "Itachi, please, I'm sorry."

Itachi continued towards the door, ignoring Kyuubi's pleads.

"Whatever you want me to do, I'll do it. Please just stop." Kyuubi felt the most helpless he's ever felt in his life. "For once, can you just fucking listen to me!"

The entire house had woken up by now. The three maids rushed out of their bedrooms in their pajamas. Hinata was the first to approach Kyuubi. She held him close in her arms, offering him comfort.

"Kyuubi, what on earth is going on?" Hinata asked him softly.

Kyuubi put on a brave face as he looked at her. He felt his lips pull up into a tight smile. "I'm sorry about the noise. We just had a little disagreement."

"Sweetheart, you're shaking."

Kyuubi gently removed himself from Hinata's arms. "I'm fine, Hinata."

"What did you do?" Ino asked, her tone condescending as she directed her gaze to Kyuubi. She was the youngest maid in the house. She had a stronger bond with Itachi than the rest of the maids. "Why is he so angry?"

Kyuubi looked at her, surprised that Ino was talking to him with that much hostility in her voice. Since he has been with Itachi, he can't remember a single time he has been rude to any of the housemaids, or had spoken impolitely to any of them. Hinata seemed the most motherly out of all them, and Kyuubi attributed that to her being the oldest out of the maids, even though she was just a couple of years older than him. He can't understand the bitterness behind Ino's eyes, the accusation in her words.

"I didn't do anything," Kyuubi told her calmly.

Ino shook her head and with a roll of her eyes chose to back down. Sakura on the other hand -the second oldest- was less fragile and felt the need to speak up and defend her friend.

"Obviously you did something. This is the second time this night he has stormed out of the house angry with you. When it was just the four of us here, we never had these kind of problems. So, as a guest in our house, please try to behave yourself."

Without thinking Kyuubi lunged at her and was quickly stopped by Hinata's strong grip on his arm. He's shocked by Hinata's strength and at the same time shocked by his impulsive reaction, his sudden anger fueled by his already high emotions. He would never hit a woman, yet here he was so close to doing it if Hinata had not stopped him.

Sakura folded her arms, staring daringly at Kyuubi. "Look at you. And we're supposed to believe you're innocent."

"Sakura, that's enough!" Hinata said in that fierce motherly tone.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Come on Ino, let's go."

The blonde maid smiled, laughing as she followed behind her friend down the hall back to their rooms.

Hinata finally let go of Kyuubi and dropped her arms by her sides. "Kyuubi, you shouldn't let them get to you like that."

Kyuubi looked at her with a mixture of anger and pity on his face. "She can't speak to me that way," he said.

Hinata grabbed his hands, trying to console him. "No, she can't. And believe me, I will talk to them both and have them apologize."

"I don't need their apologies," Kyuubi said, pulling his hands away. "I don't even need to be in this fucking house. So why am I still here?"

"Kyuubi, don't say that."

Hinata tried to reason with him but she could tell Kyuubi was already settled in his resolve, whatever it was. All she could do was watch sadly as he walked away from her, not interested in whatever counsil she had left to offer.

—

Itachi parked his Lamborghini outside of his grandfather's large estate. He had spent the night in his car, galavanting some of his favorite spots around the city. Before he knew it, the sun was rising and he was starting to feel the effect of the long hours without sleep. But he was much calmer now. Earlier, he had been scared of his own anger, afraid of what he would do. He had to be away from Kyuubi, otherwise it would've been a repeat of a night he and Kyuubi have decided to put behind them and never speak of again.

Exiting the car, Itachi walked through a beautiful flower garden, down a stone pathway, to the large front doors. The cold bottle of water he bought on his way to the estate chilled his hand as he twisted it open and took a sip. He rang the doorbell.

A young brunette woman answered the door, her hazel eyes vibrant as she welcomed him with a smile. "Itachi, long time no see."

Itachi brushed past her, walking inside to greet the familiar setting he remembered mostly from his childhood. "Where's Madara?" he asked flatly.

Mizu looked past his rudeness. She was aware of Itachi's dislike towards her, something she's been trying to change for some time now but to no avail. "Your grandfather is in his studies," she answered him stiffly. "I'll let him know you're here."

"No need. I'll do it myself."

Mizu quickly walked in front of him, stopping Itachi in his tracks. "Itachi," she said sternly as if talking to a child. "You stay here, and I'll go tell your grandfather you are here to see him. Would you like to have a seat at the lounge while you wait?"

"Just go call him."

Itachi watched her as she walked away. She was just a few years older than him, and as much as he wanted to speak his mind on what he really thought of her, he was also quite aware of the special position she held in his grandfather's life and as such, knew the level of respect he was required to give her, whether he wanted to or not.

It didn't take long until Mizu arrived with Madara by her side. She again offered Itachi refreshments, defeated when Itachi completely disregarded her.

"I'll have some coffee, Mizu," Madara said kindly.

Mizu bowed her head before quietly leaving the room.

Itachi frowned and waited until his grandfather's eyes moved from Mizu before he spoke. "Shouldn't your servant be in uniform?" He made sure to emphasize the term servant.

The elder man softly laughed as he shook his head. "What is it, Itachi? You didn't come all this way to throw around insults."

"It's not really an insult, more of an observation."

Madara silently turned around and began walking down the hall of his home. "Itachi, what do you want?"

As they entered the lavish family room, Itachi remained by the entrance while his grandfather walked over to a glass center table. He removed his glasses from his face and placed them down delicately over the glass surface.

"You only come to see me when you need something." Madara moved his hands inside his pockets. "So go on, what is it?"

Itachi leaned against the wall, his burning gaze on Madara. "Why'd you give him my number?"

"I'm going to need you to be a little bit more specific."

"Sasuke," Itachi spat out bitterly. "Why did you give him my number?"

Madara silently observed his grandson, saw the hatred fierce in his eyes. "Your quarrel isn't with me. You need to talk to Kagami."

Itachi clenched his jaw. "Kagami." He watched his grandfather's face for a reaction but found nothing but the truth. "Why would he do that?"

Madara, though in his mid sixties, still retained some of his youthful features so much that he could still pass for a man in his early forties. He sighed as he crossed his arms over his chest. "You're asking the wrong man."

Itachi frowned. "Then there's no reason for me to be here."

"Itachi, why don't you stay for a little longer? We got some catching up to do."

"Another time."

"How long are you going to keep turning your back on your family?"

Itachi silently walked away.

—

"Where is he?" Ino nibbled the tips of her fingernails as she paced back and forth. "Maybe we should call the police. Or big brother, Deidara."

"Will you calm down? You're making me nervous." Sakura stood up from her seat on the couch beside Hinata. "Maybe he rented a hotel for the night. He's done that before."

Ino dropped her hand to her side as she sat down in Sakura's previous spot. "Why does he keep torturing himself like this? He can be with anyone he wants. Why is he still with him if all they do is fight?"

"Our boss always did have eyes for pretty things. Even if they're not worth much."

"Sakura!" Hinata called out sternly. "You need to be careful."

Sakura rolled her eyes, a deep frown on her face. "Careful of what exactly? That he might hit me. You did see him try to hit me last night, didn't you?"

"Oh yeah, I saw that," Ino said in a whisper, her eyes wide with shock. "You think we should tell Itachi when he gets back?"

"No," Hinata said fiercely, shutting down Ino's excitement. "We're not involving ourselves in their problems. You two need to be careful of how you speak of Kyuubi. If Itachi was here, both of you wouldn't even dare mention Kyuubi's name in front of him."

"Oh please!" Sakura covered her mouth as she laughed. "We all know you're only defending him to get closer to him. What extra brownie points are you expecting to get from the boss by befriending his lover?"

"Watch your tone with me, Sakura."

"Or what?"

Ino quickly got between the two women before things could escalate. Suddenly, all three of them turned their eyes to the foyer when they heard the front door open. Itachi strode inside the room in one piece, startled when his housemaids excitedly rushed over to greet him, relief written all over their face.

"What's going on?" Itachi pulled Ino's arms from around his shoulders as he stepped back from her embrace.

Sakura was the first to speak up. "We're just happy you're home safe. We were all worried sick."

Itachi sighed as he rubbed his temples. "What's there to be worried about? I'm all right."

Sakura tucked some fallen strands of her hair behind her ears. "Are you hungry? I made breakfast. I can prepare a plate for you."

"No, thank you." Itachi looked around the living room. "Where's Kyuubi?"

The drastic change in Sakura's expression did not go unnoticed by Itachi and he made a mental note to address it later on.

"He hasn't come downstairs all morning," Hinata answered instead.

Upstairs, Itachi opened the door of his bedroom to find Kyuubi freshly showered with a towel wrapped around his waist. For a moment they shared a look, neither one of them wanting to be the first to break the ice. Kyuubi silently got dressed. He grabbed one of Itachi's larger size T-shirts to wear over a pair of shorts. On the other side of the room, Itachi untied his long hair from its ponytail, let out a deep breath as the hair fell down over his shoulders. He peeled off his shirt and the rest of his clothes and headed into the bathroom without so much of a glance towards Kyuubi.

Kyuubi was in the process of dressing the bed by the time Itachi was done. He watched silently as Itachi got dressed, sat on the bed and waited until Itachi was finished before quietly addressing him. He had a lot of time to come up with something to say, but he's still at a loss for words, especially when he wasn't entirely sure the kind of mood Itachi was in. Itachi continued to avoid his gaze, pretended as if he wasn't in the room and Kyuubi had just about enough of the silly childish game.

"Have you cooled off now?" Kyuubi waited until Itachi looked at him, a smile he wasn't expecting, a silent warning usually only he could read. "What's that look for?"

"Would you have rather I stayed?"

Kyuubi got the gist of what Itachi was implying and slowly shook his head. "No."

"Then shut the fuck up."

Kyuubi could hear the exhaustion in his voice. He looked it too, the bags beginning to form under his eyes. "I'm not your enemy, Itachi. You don't have to talk to me like one."

Itachi chuckled. "What are you then? My lover? Partner? The shit you pulled last night, if you were anyone else, I would've kicked your ass. You better be lucky you're not my fucking enemy."

Kyuubi stood up, walked over, and gently grabbed Itachi's hand. "Itachi, I said I'm sorry." He's startled when Itachi swiftly pulled his hand away, that frightening look from last night returning in his eyes.

"Doesn't matter," Itachi said indignantly. "I'm still pissed off."

"I don't know what I was thinking. I don't know why I did it. I was up all night trying to figure out why I did it and all I could come up with, was that I still don't trust you."

"I'm tired of this fucking conversation, Kyuubi," Itachi rasped out.

"I know." Kyuubi nodded, quickly wiping away the single tear that fell down his face. "But I'm still healing, and I need you to be patient with me. Like I've been patient with you countless times. If you can't be there for me when I screw up, then we just have to be honest with ourselves and decide whether what we have is something worth fighting for. I can't be the only one fighting, Itachi. You have to fight for me too. I can't always be perfect for you. You can't walk away every time I do something you don't like. You can't lash out at me everytime I say something you don't like. That's not how relationships work. I know I hurt you, and I'm so sorry for that."

"Stop apologizing." Itachi reached out and wiped the streaming tears from Kyuubi's face.

"I don't know what else to say," Kyuubi whispered.

"Stop crying," Itachi said softly, and Kyuubi nodded, forcing a smile on his face. A smile he wished Itachi would have returned to further console him. Itachi stood there with that familiar nonchalant stare, a mask Kyuubi can't see behind. "It's good for me to be away when I'm upset, Kyuubi. You know that."

"I want you to be able to communicate your feelings with me."

Itachi stepped back with a sigh. "I don't know how. But I'll keep trying." He smiled, a crack in the mask. "So where do we go from here?"

Kyuubi shrugged, chuckling softly. "I don't know. Do you want me to leave? I've been here for just a few days and we've managed to spend each one of those days fighting."

Itachi was silent for a moment. "No, I don't want you to leave. I want you trust me. And if that takes me a lifetime for me to earn back your trust, then I'll keep on fighting. I can't lose you, Kyuubi."

"Then stop pushing me away."

Itachi grabbed Kyuubi by the waist, leaned down and softly kissed him. Kyuubi leaned into the kiss, bringing up his arms to wrap around Itachi's neck as he pulled him closer. He felt Itachi's hands begin to move down his legs, slipping under his shirt, and he quickly pulled back.

"Can we just lie down and hold each other?"

Itachi sighed as he ran a hand down his face. He sat down on the bed, reached over the nightstand for his cellphone and began inspecting it. "I need to get a new phone."

Kyuubi climbed over the bed and made himself comfortable under the soft sheets. "I'll pay for it if you want."

Itachi looked at him, then laughed. "I can afford it. But you'll find another way to pay me back."

Kyuubi moved himself closer to Itachi, cuddled into him, and he smiled as Itachi's arms wrapped around him. He felt the safest he's ever felt in that moment.

"Where did you go?" Kyuubi asked softly.

"My grandfather's," Itachi answered in a whisper.

"You spend the night there?"

"No."

"Where did you go when you left last night?"

"Doesn't matter."

"How's Madara?"

"Just fine."

"Did you see Sasuke?"

"No."

"What about Kagami?" Kyuubi asked, and he felt Itachi's chest move as he sighed.

"No," Itachi answered tiredly. He gently tapped Kyuubi on the head, rolling his eyes when Kyuubi winced from the light tap. "Stop talking, baby. Go to sleep."

"Sorry." Within a few minutes, he was back to talking, too much on his mind to quietly lay still. "You had all of us really worried yesterday. It wasn't just me. A lot of people care about you, Tachi. You should've seen Sakura and Ino. They were blaming me. Would've brought out their pitch forks and torches and ran me out of the house if they could. Especially Sakura."

"Kyuubi…" Itachi drawled out tiredly.

"You're lucky to have them. Despite their rotten attitude, I can see they deeply care about—mm!"

Itachi clasped his hand firmly over Kyuubi's mouth. He held his hand down firmer as Kyuubi tried to pull his hand away.

Kyuubi plopped his arms down in defeat when Itachi's hand wouldn't budge. He closed his eyes, the sound of Itachi's steady heartbeat and gentle breathing finally luring him to sleep.

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Chapter 3 finished. Chapter 4 edited and posted soon. Thanks for reading and review.