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Iruka smiled to himself as he strolled through the village. It was the end of the day, and one of the rare instances that the sun was still up to celebrate the time off - being the vice principal of the academy meant he no longer got to leave the same time as everyone else; and he was looking forward to having that bit of extra time to relax. Or at least, that was the plan - he would more than likely find something else to do when he got home, like doing the dishes or catching up on laundry…
As Iruka continued along, he looked around at his surroundings, enjoying the view of the sparkling river that flowed through the village; and as he took it in, he noticed someone lying down on the grass mounds by the bank, gazing up at the sky.
At first, he thought it was Shikamaru, since cloud-gazing was one of his favourite pass-times; but a shock of messy sliver-grey hair told him it was Kakashi, instead; and he slowed his pace, wondering if he should go over to him and say hi. When was the last time he'd been able to do that, and just chat with him, anyway?
Iruka stopped walking, and studied Kakashi. From a distance, it looked like he was just lying around and relaxing, but he couldn't be sure, because he knew that Kakashi often did that when he was having trouble resolving major problems, too, and needed to process them more.
If that was the case, Iruka knew he should leave him alone - Kakashi was the Hokage, and had things to do, after all; but if he was being honest with himself, he missed talking to him and wanted to catch up; so he changed course and made his way over to him, hoping that he wasn't interrupting anything important.
As Iruka approached, he saw that Kakashi had his eyes closed, with one arm draped lazily over his head to block out the sun; and he was breathing slowly and steadily, as though he was asleep. But the years of knowing Kakashi told him that he wouldn't really be asleep, or at least hadn't been since he'd sensed someone approaching him.
"Afternoon, Kakashi." He greeted pleasantly.
"Iruka?"
Kakashi opened his eyes and glanced up at him curiously. Iruka normally addressed him formally, despite his many complaints about it; and he was interested to find out why he'd chosen to be more casual and friendly.
"A-Are you busy right now?" Iruka asked hesitantly.
"Right now? Why? Is something wrong?" Kakashi asked in concern, sitting up as he studied him carefully.
"N-No, everything is okay!" Iruka assured. "It's just, I was on my way home from work, when I saw you lying in the grass; and it got me thinking about how we haven't seen each other for a while, so I wanted to say hi. But I mean, i-if you're busy, -"
"I'm free." Kakashi interrupted. He smiled warmly. "Come and join me."
He pat the grass beside him, indicating for Iruka to sit next there; and Iruka came over and joined him on the mound.
He took a moment to take in the area, enjoying the way the sun's warm blanket contrasted the coolness of the soft grass, and how the gentle breeze was caressing him and helping the river lap up the bank; and he took a deep breath, indulging in the freshness of blooming trees and plants, telling him that spring was just around the corner. It was very soothing; and he quickly understood why Kakashi was out here.
"It's a nice afternoon, isn't it…?" He commented. "I wouldn't be surprised if you were sleeping before I found you - it's easy to doze off when the weather is like this."
"Yeah. It's very peaceful." Kakashi agreed. "I wish I could come here more, but there always seems to be something to do, these days…"
"I'm sure there is." Iruka replied. "I see you working very hard all the time. Too hard, I'd say…"
"Too hard, huh? You can talk." Kakashi grinned. "I've seen how late your office lights stay on sometimes."
"I guess you're right." Iruka chuckled sheepishly. "We both need to remember to take breaks every now and again."
"How about we take tonight off, then?" Kakashi suggested.
"Tonight?"
"Yeah." Kakashi said. "We're already here together, and I don't have any work that can't wait until tomorrow…"
"Sure, that sounds nice." Iruka replied warmly. "Do you want to get dinner, like we used to? Ichiraku?"
"I was just going to suggest that, myself." Kakashi replied, his eyes crinkling happily. "It's a little early for food right now, though - tell me what you've been up to lately. I hear Naruto's got some ah, fans at the academy, who have been keeping you on your feet?"
"Oh, yes!" Iruka laughed heartily. "There's certainly quite a few troublemakers this year!"
As he launched into a bunch of stories about all the students he's had to deal with, Kakashi listened on fondly, indulging in the melodic sound of his voice, and the way his face lit up at as he recounted the tales. He was also very interested in the cute blush that kissed Iruka's cheeks whenever he glanced towards him and realised he was being studied so intently. God, he couldn't get enough of him.
Time passed quickly as Kakashi and Iruka got caught up in one another, and before they knew it, the sun had almost set, the street lamps had turned on, and they were on their way to Ichiraku, their appetites whet by delicious smells wafting in their direction from nearby food stalls.
As they strolled through the village, they fell into a comfortable silence, which was occasionally interrupted when other villagers saw them and said hello. Iruka was used to this kind of thing, since parents and students stopped him to chat all the time, but he could see that although Kakashi had been Hokage for about a year or so, he still wasn't used to it, and seemed to be getting more flustered the more he was stopped.
Just as Kakashi finished talking to more people who had approached, Iruka spotted an empty side alley, and subtly took Kakashi's hand and guided him towards the area.
Kakashi followed along, his heart pounding wildly; and he felt his face grow hot as the pleasant tingle on his hand from Iruka's touch seemed to travel across his entire body, making him want more. God, maybe it had been longer than he'd thought since he'd last been with someone if simply holding hands made him feel like this…
When Kakashi and Iruka were away from the public eye, Iruka slowed the pace and slowly let go of Kakashi's hand, a gentle blush creeping on his face as he did so.
"Sorry for the sudden detour." He apologised. "I ah, just thought you might like a break from everyone coming up to you."
"Thank you." Kakashi smiled, allowing his fingers to brush against Iruka's, chasing his touch, as they walked together.
Iruka's heart fluttered when he felt the contact. He hadn't really thought about what he'd been doing when he'd taken Kakashi's hand before, but if he was being honest with himself, he had liked how it'd felt; and he was wishing he hadn't let go.
Iruka's face grew even hotter, and he shook his head. What was he thinking?! Kakashi was his friend - he wouldn't think of him like this. What were his preferences, anyway? Kakashi, the Hokage, would look better with a wife… right?
"Maa, is it me, or does there seem to be a lot of couples out tonight?" Kakashi suddenly asked.
"C-Couples?" Iruka sputtered in surprise.
"Yeah. It feels like the entire village chose to have date night all at once…" Kakashi mused.
"I-Is that so…? I haven't been paying attention." Iruka chuckled nervously.
Kakashi turned to Iruka.
"Are you okay?" He asked in concern. "You don't quite seem yourself right now…"
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine." Iruka blushed. "I guess it's just a little chillier tonight than I thought."
"Maa, you should have said something." Kakashi replied softly, wrapping an arm around his waist and pulling him a little closer. "We'll be at Ichiraku soon - you'll be able to warm up properly there."
"T-Thank you."
Iruka felt his face grow even hotter. What was going on with him?! Why was Kakashi making him feel so nervous? Why did he want to lean closer and feel more of him against his body so badly? Why was his scent soothing him and making him feel warm and tingly all over? Why did he want his friend so much? This was weird, right, to be crushing on him?
As Iruka got lost in thoughts, he barely even registered that they had made their way back onto a busy street again. It was only when he started smelling something really familiar and delicious that he looked around; and when he saw that Ichiraku was in sight, he perked right up again.
"Ahh, it smells so good!" He smiled, inhaling deeply as they approached. "I didn't know how hungry I was until now!"
"You didn't skip lunch again, did you?" Kakashi frowned.
"Ah…" Iruka laughed sheepishly.
"Let's get you fed, then." Kakashi replied softly.
He lifted one of the loose flaps of Ichiraku's sign and stepped aside.
"After you." He smiled.
"Thanks." Iruka replied, his cheeks flushed.
As he entered and chose somewhere to sit, Kakashi followed along; and as he took the stool beside him, Ayame appeared to greet them.
"Kakashi-sama, Iruka-sensei, it's good to see you!" She said warmly. "Are you here together tonight?"
"Yes, we are." Iruka smiled.
"Ah, wonderful!" She squealed excitedly. "I'm glad to hear that you're not alone. We were wondering how long it would be before it happened, and I was beginning to worry that it wouldn't! And to see you together on a night like this... It's perfect!"
Iruka glanced at Kakashi in confusion; and he shrugged, also not sure what Ayame was talking about.
"Yeah, I guess it's been a while…" Iruka replied sheepishly. Ayame had to be talking about how long it had been since they had last eaten together… right?
"I'm glad you came tonight, because we have a two for one ramen special going, that I'm sure you'd like to take advantage of!"
"Two for one? I wish you'd had that special when Naruto was younger!" Iruka grinned.
Warm, hearty laughter rang through the stall as everyone reminisced those days. Naruto still ate a lot of ramen now, but he was much worse when it was at someone else's expense; and there'd been plenty of times where Kakashi and Iruka had gone home with empty wallets, and Ayame had to run off to do the stall's grocery shopping earlier than usual because Naruto had eaten much more than expected.
"So what can I get you tonight?" Ayame asked when the laughter died down. "The usual?"
"Yes, please." Kakashi and Iruka replied warmly.
As Ayame walked off to give her father their order and work on other tasks, Kakashi and Iruka focused back on one another, and quickly got lost in conversation, reverting to one of their favourite topics, Naruto. He might have saved the world, and worked his way up to becoming a well-loved hero, and would definitely become a great Hokage when Kakashi retired; but no matter how old he was, and how mature he had become, Naruto was still… well, Naruto; and the two of them still had plenty of fresh stories about him to share.
Time passed quickly as Kakashi and Iruka chat; and before they knew it, there were two piping hot bowls of ramen set in front of them.
"Thank you very much!" Iruka said. "This looks - oh! There's a heart in the naruto pieces instead of the spiral! Did you make it, Ayame? It looks great!"
"You think so?" Ayame asked happily. "I spent hours trying to get them into the right shape!"
"You did a wonderful job." Iruka complimented.
"Yeah." Kakashi agreed. "The hearts are quite sweet."
"Thank you, Kakashi-sama and Iruka-sensei." Ayame blushed. "I'll leave you to it."
With that, Kakashi and Iruka were alone again; and they each grabbed a set of chopsticks and dug into their meal, falling into a comfortable silence once more.
Kakashi normally liked Ichiraku, but somehow, the ramen seemed even more delicious that evening; and he decided to take the time to savour it rather than quickly eat like he usually did when he was out. After all, besides himself, it was only Ayame, Teuchi, and Iruka in the stall; and all three of them had seen his face before.
Kakashi smiled to himself as he recalled the first time Iruka had seen it. He'd been disguised as Sukea for the day; and when he was alone, sitting down, going through the pictures he had taken, Iruka had called out to him. He'd turned around to greet him; and when he'd seen the confirmation in Iruka's eyes, that was when he'd realised his mistake - Iruka had called for Kakashi, not Sukea; and he'd finally had to come clean. He had been so careful about slipping up and revealing who he was - he'd even managed to fool Gai, his best friend, with his disguise; but somehow, Iruka had figured it out, and been the first to do so. He really was incredible.
Suddenly some movement in Kakashi's peripheral vision distracted him from his thoughts, and when he looked up, his eyes widened in surprise when he saw Teuchi setting a small bottle of sake and some cups down in front of himself and Iruka.
"Ah, we didn't order sake." He said politely.
"I know." Teuchi smiled. "It's on the house."
"Huh? Really?" Iruka asked in confusion.
"Of course." Teuchi answered warmly. "Please enjoy yourselves tonight, Hokage-sama, Iruka-sensei."
"Thank you." Iruka and Kakashi replied.
When Teuchi left, the two of them shared confused glances with one another.
"Is it me, or they acting a little… strange tonight?" Iruka asked Kakashi quietly.
"Yeah." Kakashi agreed. "Since I've been Hokage, vendors often give me discounts and free stuff, but I have a feeling it's not about that tonight… Nevertheless, shall we drink? A couple of servings shouldn't cause any problems for tomorrow."
"Sure, why not?" Iruka replied, reaching for the bottle. "It's been a while since I've had anything to drink."
After he poured the sake into his and Kakashi's cups, the two of them continued on with their evening, finishing their ramen, sipping away at sake, and chatting with one another; and again, time seemed to slip away.
As the night drew on, Kakashi and Iruka finally began getting ready to leave; and as Iruka pulled a bill out of his wallet to pay for their meal, he found Kakashi already putting his wallet away, and Ayame walking off with a handful of coins.
"Kakashi, why did you do that?!" Iruka lightly scolded. "I told you I was going to pay!"
"I appreciate that, but I get treated all the time." Kakashi replied. He glanced at Iruka. "You work just as hard as me and do a lot for the village, too, so I thought it was your turn to get treated."
"W-Well, thank you." Iruka blushed.
When Iruka had put his wallet away, he and Kakashi left Ichiraku, and took another stroll through the village. There were still quite a few people out, but this time, they didn't get stopped - most of the people who were out were couples that were too invested in each other to notice them, and those who weren't seemed to want to give them space; and they were both appreciating the privacy.
Suddenly, Iruka felt a warm arm around his waist, and he glanced at Kakashi in surprise, his face quickly growing hot.
"You, ah, said you were cold before; and it's even cooler now." Kakashi explained sheepishly, a warm blush seeping through his cheeks. "I don't want you to freeze again."
Iruka's heart fluttered, and he bravely leaned into Kakashi.
"I won't, with you beside me." He murmured.
Kakashi tightened his grip, as though trying to keep Iruka even closer; and they continued on in a comfortable silence, their hearts racing as they rode the high of taking a step out of friendship territory and exploring the new road ahead.
It was exhilarating. Iruka thought he'd only ever considered Kakashi a friend before, hence his hesitancy with the feelings that had sparked earlier that evening; but feeling so relaxed and at ease with him like this, he knew he'd had to have had feelings for him for quite some time… Everything just felt so right, like this was the way they'd always been.
As Kakashi and Iruka continued to stroll around the village, their feet eventually led them to Iruka's neighbourhood, where they decided they should probably call it a night; and Kakashi walked Iruka back to his house, insistent on making sure he got home safely. Not that he thought something would happen to Iruka - he just wanted to spend that bit of extra time with him.
Before long, they had entered the gate and were walking up to the door; and when they reached it, Kakashi and Iruka turned to one another.
"Thank you for finding me earlier." Kakashi smiled. "I had a really good time tonight."
"I should be the one thanking you." Iruka blushed. "You were the one who suggested we go out. And you paid for dinner."
"Maa, t-there's no need to thank me for that!" Kakashi replied, his face feeling as hot as Iruka's looked. He glanced away shyly; and the two of them fell into an awkward silence, wondering how they were going to end the night.
Iruka had truly enjoyed himself, being in Kakashi's company, though it felt different to all the other times they had hung out together. In fact, hanging out didn't feel like the right words to use at all. That night, it had felt a lot more like a…
"Oh my god!" He suddenly gasped.
"What?" Kakashi asked, becoming more alert of his surroundings, trying to sense if there was anything wrong.
"Do you know what day it is today?"
"What day it is?" Kakashi frowned. "Mnn… Tuesday?"
"Well, yes, but… I just realised it's Valentine's Day." Iruka said. "All those couples out tonight, the hearts instead of spirals in the naruto, the two for one deal… It's all because it's Valentine's Day."
"Already? Wow. I didn't realise." Kakashi replied, his cheeks growing flushed.
"Oh my god, I bet Ayame and Teuchi thought we were on a date," Iruka continued, blushing deeply, "and that's what Ayame was talking about when we got there, and why Teuchi gave us that sake."
"Maa, i-it was a date, though, wasn't it?" Kakashi asked nervously, carefully reaching for Iruka's hands. "That's what our evening turned into… right?"
His heart was pounding wildly. He wanted so badly for Iruka to say yes, that it was a date, that he has feelings for him, and wants to do this again sometime. But more than that, he wanted the night to continue on, for Iruka to invite him inside so they could get to know each other better. He wanted him, no, needed him, more than anything.
So please…, He prayed, please feel the same way…
"A date, huh…" Iruka murmured.
He gently pulled his hands from Kakashi's grip, and slowly slid them up his arms, only stopping when they were resting on his shoulders; and he gazed fondly into his eyes, his face burning hotter than it had ever been before, as a migration of butterflies fluttered about in his stomach. Kakashi had never looked so desirable before…
"Yes. Yes it was a date…" He breathed. "A wonderful one."
Kakashi swallowed nervously as Iruka reached up and put a hand on his cheek, carefully digging his fingers behind his mask.
"I'm sure you know what happens at the end of a good date." Iruka murmured as he carefully slid Kakashi's mask away.
Kakashi nodded, unable to speak, afraid that if he said anything, the moment would disappear in a flash, and he'd realise this was all a dream.
Iruka's heart fluttered wildly as he saw Kakashi's complete face, so vulnerable and full of need, like he'd been dreaming of this day for a while, and couldn't believe what was happening; and, knowing he had permission to continue, he gently brushed his thumb against Kakashi's lips, and leaned in to steal a deep, tender kiss.
When their lips connected, Kakashi stood frozen for a moment, but as the sparks flickering through him finally restarted his short-circuiting brain, he pressed back into the kiss, and slipped his arms around Iruka's waist, wanting him closer against him.
His sparks exploded into full-blown fireworks as Iruka relaxed into him and hooked his arms tighter around him, one around his back, the other around the back of his head; and he parted his mouth further, eager to taste Iruka, and explore him more.
Iruka gladly accepted Kakashi's tongue in his mouth; and as Kakashi did things that set his body on fire, he laced his fingers through his hair, getting lost in the sensation of being entwined with him.
Then all of a sudden, everything stopped as Kakashi carefully pulled away to catch his breath, something Iruka realised he needed to do, too - when had he stopped breathing?; and as he gazed into Kakashi's eyes, he became enchanted by the lustful gaze burning through them, telling him everything that Kakashi wanted to do to him, that it was only him he wanted to do those things to.
Suddenly, somehow, Kakashi's expression became even fonder; and he leaned in to plant a chaste kiss on his lips.
"Happy Valentine's Day, Ru." He murmured.
"Happy Valentine's Day, 'Kashi." Iruka hummed. "Would you like to come in?"
"More than anything."
He had been wanting this for a very long time.
How did he get so lucky?