Welcome back! Chapter 1 had some minor edits, so please feel free to re-read and revise!
Again, this story was loosely inspired by The Proposal, but the only real element from the movie is the immigration. ;)
Sakura grinned at the immigration agent as the idea began to settle in her mind. Oh yes, this could be good.
Kakashi's grip tightened on her shoulder, hard, but he remained quiet. She leaned forward over the desk to whisper conspiratorially to the man. "We've been keeping things hush, for his sake, but it's been getting harder to keep it a secret." Kakashi's grip now felt like it was going to break her collarbone, but Sakura ignored it. What was a little pain?
She turned in her seat to look up at him, grinning, and batted her eyelashes. "It was going to come out sooner or later, but we want to keep his name out of the tabloids, for privacy. I don't wish my lifestyle on my love," Sakura implored Kakashi with her eyes before turning back around. She lifted a hand to grip his, 100% the loving finance.
The man peered at them and smiled hesitantly. "And when's the wedding?" he asked, jotting something down on his notepad.
"It's the Sunday after Halloween," Kakashi suddenly spoke from behind her. She stiffened in surprise, but quickly hid it. His voice was rich and deep. Maybe he should talk more often, as long as he curbed the attitude. "We wanted it to be small and intimate." He moved his hand to lace his gloved fingers with hers, her arm crossed over her chest and their laced hands on her shoulder.
The agent nodded and wrote it down. "Well, I'll have to make some new appointments with you both, and of course there will be lots of paperwork. And the interview."
"Interview?" Sakura asked. She knew all about interviews, so surely what he was talking about she could handle.
"Yes, one to see if your relationship is a sham. You know, we see how much you know about each other, see if you're really a couple. The government is particular about fraud." On second thought.
She laughed and hoped it didn't sound too nervous. "A sham? Is that a thing? People fake marriage for a green card?" She made it sound like a ridiculous notion, as best as she could. Sakura could sell snail face masks to slugs—she could sell this.
"Oh, you wouldn't believe what some people do to avoid being deported or to get citizenship. Now, how old are you again, Miss Haruno?" He paused to look up at the two of them, trying to discern their difference.
"I'm twenty-one," She answered immediately.
"And you, Mr. Hatake?" Sakura herself was curious. What she had seen of his face was young, and she was suddenly afraid he might be a minor. But with those muscles? What if he was ancient? She couldn't begin to guess.
"I'm 35," he provided, his voice steady and calm. The agent's eyes widened, and Sakura hid her surprise behind a demur smile. "I know, I know. I tried to stay away, really I did, but this one is very persistent. She wouldn't take no for an answer." Kakashi laughed at the end, and it was very convincing. She was an idol, so what did age matter to her? And she certainly wasn't the kind of woman people said no to. "Besides, we've been together nearly every day for three years. It was inevitable." He added like an afterthought.
"That'll do for now. I'll see you in a week for that interview, if that works for your busy schedule, and then we'll start the paperwork. We'll also set a date to meet after the wedding." He clapped his hands together, satisfied. After pulling out her day planner-outdated, but she preferred it over her phone's calendar-she managed to set a time in exactly a week for the interview, sandwiched between television appearances, recording sessions, photo shoots, and the like. God, she was exhausted.
Sakura stood on wobbly legs, and nearly ate it as Kakashi tucked her against his side. Sakura was constantly being touched; makeup artists, costuming directors, fan meets, acting, her friends. But nothing intimate. Nothing like this. Even her brief stint with Sasuke had not entailed much physical contact. She would ordinarily never allow anyone but her friends to hold her like this. The only times her guards ever made contact with her was in the course of their duties.
She said nothing, knowing this would look more convincing to the agent.
His warmth radiated off of him and on to her as he escorted her out. Genma gave him a confused look as they passed by, and Kakashi made several movements with his free hand. Sakura assumed it meant something like "Tell you later," or "you're never going to fucking believe this,"
When they were back in the car together, Kakashi spoke first.
"You're lucky I'm single," it sounded like he was smirking, even though Sakura knew smirks didn't have a sound.
"I will double your salary and give you whatever you want if you marry me." Her voice was steel, less an offering and more an order. "I'll pay your rent so that you don't have to break your lease to move in with me. Unless you have a house. Whatever. We can wait a year or two and then get a quickie divorce. But I need to be married in two weeks." And everything going smoothly, she would be.
He narrowed his eyes, considering her. "Anything?" he asked, stroking his masked chin in consideration. She nodded. Very slowly, his eyes began to crinkle, as though a smile was widening on his mouth. He leaned forward, across the space separating their seats, until his nose brushed hers. Then he skimmed his nose lightly along her jaw, down her neck. Sakura shivered. "What if my price is you?" She heard the insinuation in his tone, and heat spread through her. She opened her mouth, but he pulled back and chuckled quietly. Cold air whispered over the skin he had just heated.
"No, I won't touch you. Except for what's necessary for this scam. But, I'll pocket that offer for when I decide I want it." Sakura frowned.
"What the fuck," She glowered at the masked man. Her insides were rolling around-excitement, confusion, and indignance mashing together.
"You should really be more careful with offers like that one. If I were a worse man, you could be in a bad position." He said gruffly, but then sighed, his posture relaxing. "This is a five-year contract and maybe this will get the guys off my back about being single."
"Okay. Whateves," She wondered what he hid under that mask as she considered him. He had acquiesced without much resistance, but Sakura wasn't in a position to worry about it.
"Now, about the interview. We need to learn absolutely everything about each other in a week." She finally remembered her inky hand as she spoke, so she drew some wet wipes from her emergency stash in her purse to wipe it off, calming herself as she did so.
Today was Wednesday, the Infinite Dream Corporation Halloween Ball was on the following Friday, and she'd get married the Sunday after. So, she had a week and a half, eleven days, to pull together a wedding, and an entire relationship. No big deal, she told herself. She'd planned stellar events in less time. She'd once thrown an impromptu charity beach party, and it had been the talk of the internet for weeks.
"I already know everything about you." Kakashi said calmly. She whipped her head up.
"Sure you do. Just like every fan knows everything about me," She rolled her eyes. "The entire world knows my favorite color is-"
"Blue" He said at the same time she said "Pink."
Sakura's cheeks heated again.
"I know what you said in that tabloid interview, and I also know it's a lie devised by your publicist. Pink, to match your hair. Pink, because it's soft, and lovely, like you." She narrowed her eyes, put off by his accuracy. He had been paying closer attention to her all this time than she would have guessed. "But your real favorite color is blue. And not just any blue, but midnight blue. All of your travel mugs are that color, the blanket you take on road trips, your nails when you're not on tour, your personal microphone, your bass guitar. All the same midnight blue." Now she was certain he was smirking. "Mine is green, so you know."
She picked up her phone and opened the notes app to write it down.
"And how do I take my coffee?" She asked, but she knew that this one he already had down.
"With as much cream and sugar as possible. Because you're already a bitter enough person." That made her laugh out loud. He was dead-on. She had said those exact words to Sasuke a number of times when he had commented on her 'girly' drinks.
"I like mine black," She rolled her eyes again. "with a splash of milk." He finished, and she bit her lip, feeling just a little bad for mocking him over assuming he liked the stereotypical black coffee.
"My favorite food?"
"Sashimi." he said, unperturbed. "Mine is pork katsu."
"Do I have any tattoos?" She challenged him.
"I think it's a swirl of stars, on your right shoulder blade. They're just dots, almost like freckles, but they happen to line up exactly like the Andromeda constellation." He gave her a knowing look. The princess offered up to the sea monster.
"And you?" She asked, shoving down the urge to blush under his knowing gaze.
This time, he paused. A beat went by, then two. Very slowly, he took his left arm out of the sleeve of his jacket, then pushed up the sleeve on his long sleeved t-shirt, showing her the red swirl on his upper bicep.
"What's it mean?" She raised a single pink eyebrow and tried not to ogle the defined muscles of his arm.
"That I was in special forces," He said very quietly. "That's why Tsunade hired me." Sakura's eyebrow remained raised.
"So, you're just, like, a gun for hire now?" His eyes shuddered, and she hadn't realized they'd been lit up before.
"Yes, like a gun for hire," He repeated back to her flatly. She shrugged.
"Okay, pause the interview for a minute. Let me break down some other things for you," She clasped her hands together, and leaned forwards. It was Kakashi's turn to raise a brow. "So, this fake engagement and marriage will solve a lot of problems for me. First, immigration, obviously. But also security. If we're together, then that allows you to protect me 24 hours, and maybe I won't need to let three strangers in my private space at night." She paused, but he just kept looking at her, so she went on. "Plus, you can teach me self-defense, like the boss wants. Last, we can get in that publicity she wanted as well. All will be right with the world." She gave him a saccharine smile.
"With your world, maybe," He muttered. Her smile dropped and she glared at him. He waved a dismissive hand. "Yeah yeah, that's all well and good. One condition,"
"What?" She unclasped her hands and instead crossed her arms.
"I'd like to remain as anonymous as possible. No interviews. No truly public appearances." He leveled her with a serious look that made her want to squirm. And others weren't allowed to make her squirm. She made them squirm. "I'm sure eventually they'll find out it's your guard. But I do want to try to keep that private as long as possible. I don't have any social media, and all of my information, my background, is classified. So I pretty much don't exist. And I like it that way." She respected that more than he could possibly know.
"Deal. I won't tell them your name." She offered him her hand to shake. He gripped her soft, small hand in his large, calloused one. She already knew the internet didn't know his name as her guard, either. His good looks had earned him a little attention online when he'd taken up his job with her, but his name had never been uncovered. Sakura understood the need for privacy. There were plenty of famous people who kept their spouses safe from the limelight. "And we'll keep you hidden as best as possible." She grinned at him with all of her white teeth showing, like a pitbull.
"Deal." And while she should've been relaxed that all was taken care of, she felt strangely like she was standing on the event horizon, and beginning to tip over.