Work Text:
Kakashi watched as Iruka ran frantic about the apartment. The younger man was late for work, and in lieu of a measured response, Iruka chose a scatter-brained approach to the situation that made for an amusing start to Kakashi’s day.
“I put all of the marked papers in my satchel, right? Wait! Where’s my marking pen?” The chūnin sensei was rifling through his bag at the counter as he tried to simultaneously locate his pen (under the table where it had been knocked the night before), and cram a slice of buttered toast into his mouth. Chewing absently, Iruka turned to the ‘fridge to find something for lunch while he straightened the strap of his bag around his shoulder. A small grunt of frustration made Kakashi want to laugh as Iruka slammed the mostly empty appliance door in resignation.
When the younger man pouted at him, Kakashi did break down and chuckle at the messy picture his lover made. Hair down, vest open, satchel drooping off his shoulder and half a slice of toast covering his fingers in crumbs. “You can’t be mean to me right now, you’re the reason I’m running late.” Iruka grumped at him.
Kakashi held his hands in surrender which just made Iruka huff and turn back to his satchel, rooting around for his pen. He certainly hadn’t been complaining earlier when Kakashi had snuggled close complaining of cold. Their lazy start to the day was precisely what Kakashi had been longing for ever since the season started turning towards the crisper weather of autumn.
Deciding to take pity on the other man, Kakashi stood from the couch and walked over to where Iruka was about to lose his patience. Leaning in to kiss his lover’s cheek, Kakashi placed the pen he had retrieved in Iruka’s now still hand. “I’ll bring you a bento at lunch time.” Then he reached up from the hand he had just placed the pen into to snap the hair band circling the man’s wrist. “You should get going.”
Iruka gave another huff, this time looking up at Kakashi with fondness clear in his dark eyes. “Thank you Kakashi.” Then, gracing Kakashi’s cheek with a kiss of his own, Iruka turned towards the door. “Right!” Not two seconds later the last few bites of toast were hanging comically from his mouth while Iruka tied his hair back and zipped up his vest. “I’m leaving!”
Kakashi muttered an, “I’ll see you,” as he watched Iruka run out into the brisk morning air. He couldn’t help the smile that stole across his face as silence descended in the wake of his lover leaving. Iruka was so full of life, so vibrant in his every action that even in his absence it was still more than enough to brighten Kakashi’s entire day. “Well,” he spoke aloud to himself, “let’s see what I have to work with!” Kakashi brushed away the crumbs Iruka had left on his mask and turned towards the woefully understocked kitchen to assess what he’d need to pick up to make an appropriately embarrassing bento.
Kakashi had delivered the bento to his lover for lunch, as promised, before heading out to train his team for a few hours. Once Kakashi was certain all three of his students could stalk quietly through the turning leaves, he decided they would pick up a D-rank mission for the remainder of the afternoon.
As Kakashi oversaw the teens repairing the storm shutters for a house in the southern end of the city his mind naturally drifted towards Iruka. Ever since he and the younger man had started seeing each other, it seemed as though Kakashi’s mind never strayed far from the academy sensei. The warmth of his smile and the joy with which he lived his life were addictive.
Kakashi hadn’t ever really imagined himself as the kind of man who would find love. He had assumed after reaching 30 (if he even would,) the council would have approached him about taking a bride and siring a few children for the sake of Konoha. He would have accepted that as his duty to the village, but he never expected to love whatever woman would have been deemed a suitable wife to the Hatake scion.
No one had ever truly been able to account for Umino Iruka, however – least of all Kakashi. He had always been in the peripheral of Kakashi’s life, in some fashion or another. Whether as an irrepressible prankster during Kakashi’s tenure as ANBU, as the protective sensei to his own sensei’s son, or even as the fearless, busybody chūnin from the mission desk who wouldn’t accept anything less than perfect when it came to paperwork. If Kakashi was a spiritual man, he could almost believe Iruka had been placed on the fringes of his life just waiting for fate or providence to open his eyes.
Well, his eyes were open now.
Even before his father’s death Kakashi had tried to keep people at a distance. Then afterwards, well… He’d certainly had his chances – Minato and Kushina’s unconditional acceptance; Rin’s quiet patience and even Obito’s relentless pursuit were all chances he’d had to open himself up to others, to live with the kinds of connections everyone around him seemed to take for granted. He simply couldn’t take that final step, not until his every chance was gone and Kakashi had genuinely believed he was never meant to love – only regret.
However, defying expectations is what Iruka does best.
Iruka had managed to somehow personify everyone he’d ever loved and break through Kakashi’s frozen walls to plant himself squarely in the copy-nin’s heart. While Kakashi had tried to distance himself from the physical embodiment of the Will of Fire, Iruka refused to take no for an answer. He barreled through Kakashi’s stoicism, crushed his resistance and, eventually, won him over through a stubborn persistence even Gai could appreciate.
Now Kakashi’s days were filled with more light than ever, and while he still maintained his cool guy persona, Kakashi was more than willing to admit to himself that he could understand more of Gai’s flowery prose than ever before. While Iruka would never be a delicate blossom (and he’d be more than happy to kick Kakashi’s ass if he ever made such a comparison,) he was certainly Kakashi’s soft spot.
Noticing his cute students were finishing up, Kakashi hopped down from the roof he’d been lazing on to ensure all of the tools were being stored correctly. It wouldn’t do for the kids to get sloppy, even when performing D-ranks. When everything was put away properly, and after Kakashi and the client had inspected their work, they all made their way towards the mission office.
Kakashi knew Iruka would be there. Actually, after glancing at the angle of sunlight peeking through the incoming storm clouds, he should be ready to leave in an hour or so. He handed a blank scroll to Sakura to fill out since training his students to write mission reports was a useful skill to cultivate, and a great excuse to not do it himself. She huffed but took it anyway, knowing how her sensei worked. Once they reached the tower, they made a brief stop so Sakura could complete the form, then headed towards the reporting desk.
When Iruka spotted them in line, a cheery smile was sent their way. After processing the few teams before them, Kakashi’s students stepped up to hand in their report and chat briefly. Kakashi watched as Iruka interacted with his former students. His eyes were shining and the grin that hadn’t left his face was genuine. Iruka was always pleased to see his kids. Oh, they might not be his students anymore, but Kakashi knew he would always consider them his.
Seeing Iruka here, happy and talking to his students, grinning at their typical complaints and taking the chance to pass on just another nugget of wisdom, Kakashi’s heart couldn’t be fuller. His precious people were here, together and safe. He was in love with a wonderful man, and Iruka’s joy was his own. Once the kids had moved off, mission complete and their time now their own, his gaze lingered on Iruka. The quiet, charming smile that was reserved for Kakashi alone was sent his way with a muttered, “I’ll be off in 55 minutes. See you then?”
Kakashi nodded and made his way to the standby station to wait for Iruka’s shift to end. After a short time, Iruka came by to collect him so they could head back to the apartment and spend a quiet evening together. However, as they were leaving the tower, a cold breeze rushed past them, making the sensei shudder at the clawing fingers of wind as they sought every inch of exposed skin they could.
Of course, in his rush this morning Iruka had forgotten to bring a scarf or mittens with him, despite the odds of the day turning chilly. Without thought, Kakashi unwound the scarf from his own neck to drape around Iruka’s.
“Woah! Wait Kakashi, you should keep that on, since I know you’re always cold.” Even now Kakashi’s heart was fit to burst at the care Iruka showed him, even in these small, unimportant ways.
“Maa, sensei. I could never be cold with you here to warm my heart.” Kakashi used the leverage from the scarf he had draped around Iruka to pull him close.
The younger man smiled at Kakashi’s claim as he drew himself closer. “Nice try, tough guy, but I know you’re a baby when it comes to the cold.” Kakashi couldn’t help but sulk – he was trying to be smooth, to sweep Iruka off his feet, but instead was being called a baby.
Chuckling at Kakashi’s masked pout, Iruka relented with, “Fine. Tell you what, how about we share? You’ll have to walk really close to me though, so we don’t pull on one another. How does that sound?”
“Lovely!” Kakashi was pleased at the compromise.
Huffing another small laugh at Kakashi’s ridiculousness, Iruka unwrapped the scarf from himself and instead wound it around the two of them. Then, so as to ensure they’d stay close on the walk back, he wrapped his arm around Kakashi. They started walking together, side by side, and Kakashi couldn’t help the slight flush to his cheeks.
He hadn’t been lying earlier, with Iruka by his side Kakashi didn’t think he’d even feel the cold, but he wasn’t about to turn down this opportunity to be closer to the younger man. Snuggling even closer as they headed for home, Kakashi was content in a way he’d never felt before. He loved, was loved in return, and nothing could ever compare to the simple joy of that truth.
