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You could only stare, unable to comprehend the scene before you. After so many years, you had thought you had seen every side of your best friend, yet you had never seen him react so violently. The boy you had known since you were in kindergarten pinned down your classmate, Sato Toshiro.
Whether from fear or sheer horror, his name came out in the form of a shout as he drew his arm back once more to punch Toshiro. "Uchiha Itachi!"
His fist froze in midair, his entire body stiffening. Toshiro gasped from beneath him, blood trailing from his busted lip. His eyes turned to you while Itachi refused to turn away from the boy he had beneath him. Despite this, you could feel a cold air coming from him. It was not something you associated with your childhood best friend.
"[Name]-chan," Toshiro said, forcing a grin even though it was obvious it hurt his lip. "It's nice to see you."
You felt your lips pull into a smile, but it didn't feel real. Your focus was trained too much on the dark haired Uchiha. "Itachi, what is going on here?"
Itachi still refused to look at you as he raised to his feet. He stepped away from Toshiro, but the cold atmosphere had not left him. Everything fell silent as Toshiro rose next to the boy, as if the gathered students were awaiting Itachi to start a fight once more.
Toshiro rubbed his neck and laughed nervously. "I'm sure this is all one big misunderstanding," he assured, though he didn't even sound certain. The way he fearfully eyed Itachi also took away any genuineness from his words.
"Itachi." Your voice shook as you demanded the answer. Something in your voice must have reached Itachi through whatever daze he was in because he finally raised his head to look at you.
Your breath caught. Never before had you seen such an expression on Itachi's face. Although his face was perfectly neutral, there was something in his eyes that made your heart squeeze. Why? After what you had just witnessed, why was it in his eyes you saw pain?
Toshiro hurried to your side, but whether because of the look on your face or because of his fear of Itachi, you could not tell. Regardless, feeling his arms wrap around you was comforting. You rested your head against Toshiro's chest.
"What happened?" you asked. Your emotions couldn't quite seem to develop. Every time a single emotion tried to form, you saw Itachi's eyes right before he walked away from you.
Toshiro squeezed you in a hug, his lips pulled down in a frown. Your heart hurt seeing the blood there knowing here it had come from. "I'm sure it was nothing. Itachi isn't the type to unreasonably hurt someone."
You nodded in agreement before sighing. You were going to get to the bottom of this, no matter what.
*~*~*~
Toshiro asked me on a date for my birthday >//<
What did you say?
I had to say yes! :3 I'm so happy!
You stared at these three simple texts on your phone. As soon as you'd told Itachi your answer, he had vanished. The next time you had seen him, he had been beating up your future date.
Biting your lip, you crossed your legs and eyed your phone. If you stared at it long enough, would it suddenly answer what all had happened? None of this made sense! Itachi only ever showed a very minimal amount of anger, and it was usually a silent rage when someone he cared about was in danger. Randomly attacking Toshiro was not like him.
Just as you were about to chuck your phone, [favorite song] began to play from it. The device had already been loose in your grip, so you had to juggle it to bring it back to you. Once you did, though, the text window was gone, replaced by a very familiar name. Feeling your heart in your throat, you pressed the Answer button.
"[Name]?"
Your response came out naturally despite the lump that felt like it would block your words. "Nope. I'm the family duck."
Itachi's chuckle met your dorky reply. "I'm glad you picked up." His voice was nonchalant, but you could hear the strain hidden below it. "I thought after what happened at school today, you'd be too mad."
The mere mention did cause a flicker of frustration. Your pursed your lips, though your cheeks poofed out, making it childish. "What was up with that?" you demanded. "And don't you dare just ignore me this time."
"Please forgive me, [Name]." Itachi's voice had significantly softened. Somehow it reminded you of the look on his face yesterday. You shook your head, attempting to rid yourself of that memory as Itachi continued. "Right after I saw your last text, I was dragged away to help a teacher. Then I heard this rumor that Sato-san was simply using you for sex..."
His words died away, leaving you gaping into nothingness. Regardless of the ridiculous thought, you felt your cheeks catch on fire. You began to ramble random words and phrases, trying to process what you had just been told. Regardless, part of you couldn't help but feel relieved. Itachi hadn't been mindlessly beating up Toshiro. In his mind, there had been a perfectly good reason. Of course, it was still a bit rash, but it was a severely bad possibility if it had been true.
As you continued to make up words to spew into the phone, Itachi laughed. "Don't worry, [Name]." He cut you off, leaving you heaving for breath as you'd lost it while attacking the phone with words. "I talked to Sato-san already, as well as the guy who told me the rumor."
"Phew," you breathed as you relaxed into the bed. "I'm glad everything is settled with that. I was really scared you didn't like Toshiro or something."
There was a pause on Itachi's side. You shifted around, getting comfortable in your bed. You gazed out in the starry night as you waited. It wasn't uncommon for him to randomly disappear. He did it at times if he was thinking deeply. You had grown accustomed to the act. It just gave you your own time to think.
The thoughts were broken as Itachi spoke. "How about I make it up to you?" he offered. "We can go out and shop. Since you'll be busy on your birthday now, it'll be my chance to celebrate with you."
His change in attitude took a great weight from you. "This will work! It's decided then," you exclaimed. "A birthday celebration. Just you and me tomorrow."
It was strange how quickly Itachi's voice changed once more. "Yeah. Just you and me tomorrow." There was a gentleness in his voice that made a gentle smile spread across your face. "I guess it's our own little form of a date, isn't it?"
You didn't expect your breath to hitch as you heard the sudden statement. You quickly changed that into a laugh though. "I guess so," you replied. "I can't wait until tomorrow."
"Same." Itachi could be heard moving, most likely readjusting his resting position as well. "I'll try to make sure that it's the best pre-birthday birthday ever. But to do that, I must go plan some. When do you want to meet?"
"Noon sound good?" you asked.
Itachi hummed a yes. "I'll meet you at your house at noon then," he said. "Night, [Name]."
"Night." Hearing the click of the call ending, you snapped your phone shut as well. You felt your stomach twist in excitement. Yet, as you stared a bit longer at your phone, you realized something strange - you were frowning.
You sighed, setting the phone on your side table and nestling into your bed. Itachi had simply been trying to defend you, right? He'd attacked Toshiro after hearing the rumor.
So why had his eyes looked like that? There had been so much pain. And a heart-wrenching hint of something else - betrayal.
With a frustrated groan, you flicked off your lamp and attempted to lose yourself to sleep.
*~*~*~
"Well, don't you look all pretty today."
You paused at the door, glancing over your shoulder to see Itachi leaning against your gate. You smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of your head. All you were wearing was a [favorite color] blouse and your favorite jeans. It wasn't much, but it was more than your usual. You'd also made sure to curl your hair just enough to make it cuter than normal.
"Well, it is my pre-birthday, right? May as well try a bit," you said as you made your way towards him. "What about you? You look nice today."
Itachi shrugged. He was in casual wear, but as usual, he made it look better than most. It was a simple red short sleeve button up left unbuttoned over a green shirt and faded blue jeans. With a slightly teasing grin, he remarked, "Well, maybe we both just decided to try a bit then."
"Speaking of trying," you said as the two of you began walking down the street, "what do you have planned today?"
A mischievous light glinted in his onyx eyes. "Well, I wouldn't really be setting the birthday mood if there were no surprises, now would I?" he teased.
Your childish side shone through as you pouted. "What if I don't like surprises?" you challenged.
The pout vanished instantly as Itachi playfully bumped into you. He couldn't keep the pout up with the gentle smile on his face. It just set too happy of a mood compared to yesterday. "We both know you enjoy surprises."
"Only if they're good."
"Which mine always are," Itachi retorted.
You laughed. "It's my pre-birthday. Can't you just let me win once?"
"You've won before."
Your eyebrows went up as you shot Itachi an incredulous look. "Oh really?" you said. "When was this?"
Rather than replying, Itachi poked your forehead. You swiped at his hand, which only made the Uchiha laugh.
"Stupid albino panda."
"Silly house duck," Itachi countered. Out of nowhere he stopped, placing a hand on your shoulder to make you do the same. He stepped forward, his face right beside your ear. "You see what's down there?"
You followed where his finger was pointing. When you saw where it lead, you felt a large grin spread across your face. "No way!" You instantly grabbed Itachi's hand, dragging him along as you jogged toward you destination. Once more Itachi laughed, and rather than resisting as he occasionally would, you could have sworn he actually squeezed your hand.
When you stepped into the building, you were overwhelmed by the noises and odors of the darkened room. An environment that would be considered in most cases disturbing from its greasy, sweaty smell and random noises was made significant by the simple fact of where it was.
"Arcade!" you exclaimed, earning a few random looks. You shrugged them off, turning to face Itachi again. "You know me way too well. It's been years since I've been here." After a moment, though, your face fell. "But I didn't think of bringing more than my card."
Itachi rolled his eyes. "Pre-birthday, remember? I'll pay for everything."
You gaped, but Itachi simply smiled and ruffled your [your hair color] hair. "No way. I'll definitely pay you back!"
"This is my penance for yesterday, and your birthday present," Itachi reminded you. "No price is too much to fulfill that."
Knowing no argument you made would succeed, you finally let it go. You'd just have to find a way to make it up later. For now you needed to enjoy every childhood-reminiscing second. "I'll make memories of beating you today if you still won't tell me," you declared before dragging Itachi today a pair of race cars, his hand still in yours.
The games all blurred together, yet remained crystallized moments of laughter and happiness, as well as the occasional false anger as Itachi continued to beat you at every game. By the sixth game you both started to compete to see who could get the most tickets.
By the time you reached the basketball game, you gave up and stopped your frustration. "You are cheating. Or my birthday magic just hasn't kicked in," you decided. Not once has you beat him. Every time you got closed, he'd suddenly speed ahead.
Chuckling at your reaction, Itachi shot his final basketball, furthering increasing the score difference. Once he plucked his tickets from the slot, he turned toward you, his hand extended. "Would you mind if I used your tickets? It was my money after all."
You snorted a laughter, but handed the tickets over regardless. He had mentioned previously that he would like to use them to get you a present, and you had agreed then. With the combined number of tickets, he made his way over to the exchange counter.
"[Last Name]-chan?"
Hearing your name, you turned to see a girl from your school walking toward you, a perplexed expression on her face. She was from the class beside yours - the one Itachi was in - though you didn't exactly know her. You believed her name was Mayuri though.
"Hello," you said hesitantly, giving a friendly smile.
Glancing around, Mayuri randomly grew close, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Since when have you been going out with Uchiha-san?" she questioned.
You blinked, staring in confusion at the other girl. "Going out with Itachi?" You sputtered out a strange, almost choked laughter. "Itachi and I are just friends."
It was Mayuri's turn to appear confused. "But I've seen you the way you both act around each other," she said. "You both act like an old married couple."
"Like I said, we're just friends. We have been since we were young, so maybe that is why," you reasoned. The very thought was still strange, though. You were so used to the way you acted around Itachi, it had never occurred to you that it was any different than most friends acted around each other. "Anyway," you continued, "I'm going on a date with Sato Toshiro tomorrow."
Before Mayuri could say anything, a small boy jogged over to her, pulling on her sleeve and demanding she come play. After assuring him she would in a moment, she examined you once more. "Really? You've known Itachi for that long and you've never even thought of that perfect guy as anything more than a friend?" she asked. "Either you're just completely blind, or Itachi must really not be your type."
As your schoolmate walked off to join the little boy, Itachi began to walking toward you again. When you saw what was in his hands, it nearly slipped your mind what had just occurred. He carried with him a giant panda, a random twig sticking from its mouth as it gave an adorable smile and winked. There was also a small bag of sweets in his other hands. You both must have earned more tickets and spent more money than you had been aware of.
"Itachi," you murmured, taking the large panda with care. Without your consent, a large smile spread across your face. "This is really amazing!"
The boy shrugged, burying his hands in his pockets. "Sorry it took me so long. I was trying to make sure that they didn't have any albino pandas."
"You're such a weirdo," you laughed. You hugged the panda to your chest, placing your chin upon its furry head. Although Itachi had only been holding it for a few moments, you noticed how his scent had managed to combine with the panda's arcade smell.
As he watched you, a soft, small smile graced his face. Without thinking, you watched him as well, leaving both of you standing there staring at each other. When Mayuri's words returned to your mind, you quickly glanced away, red blush dusting your cheeks.
"So," you began, trying to break the silence, "what now?"
Itachi nodded toward the door before walking toward it. You quickly followed behind him. Once they escaped the noisy building, Itachi finally spoke. "Well, you still have a date tomorrow, so I figured we'd go get you some clothes for it."
There was a strange tension in Itachi's voice as he spoke, though you couldn't quite place what. Instead you could only stare once more. "Oh? The great Uchiha Itachi is going to go shopping for girl's clothes?" you joshed.
"If it's with you, just about anything could be fun."
Maybe it was because of Mayuri's previous observation, but Itachi's words sparked a sense of shyness for the first time. You attempted to hide the momentary unease with a sarcastic, "Sure."
"We'll have to make sure to put you into an adorable dress for Sato-san."
Your face scrunched up from the mere mention of a dress, causing you to nearly miss the flash of pain in Itachi's eyes. At least, you believed you saw it. It was gone so quickly it could have very easily been imagined.
While Itachi continued to lead you toward whatever store he was planning, you once more buried your face in the soft fur of the panda. You never would have guessed your absurd nickname for him would ever lead to anything. You couldn't even remember where the nickname came from. You knew silly duck came from one time you'd randomly acted like you'd been turned into a duck to get out of cleaning as a kid, but the meaning behind albino panda was gone. The lack of memory sparked your curiosity. Before you could think of it, you spoke.
"Where did albino panda come from?"
The random question dragged a small chuckle from Itachi. "Oh? So you don't remember?" he asked.
You shook your head.
"Well, there was that one time you watched that really bad horror movie while at my house because you were trying to prove you could keep up with me, and you got really scared afterwards."
Itachi's words sparked the memory instantly. You could even remember the movie. It was the same one that took away your trust for toilets at night - The Ring. That movie was simply pure evil incarnated.
"Since you were spending the night, you came to my room so you wouldn't be alone. You said how you needed to be with someone, so we slept together that night. I said I would be your teddy bear, but you said I was too unique to be a mere teddy bear. Instead I had to be a panda."
With all of the information given, the memory finally returned at full force. "And I also said you couldn't even be a normal panda, so you said you'd be an albino panda." Once you supplied the ending to the story, you once more had to avert your gaze. You had basically spent that night cuddled with Itachi to sleep. Sure, you had both only been ten, but it still had a strange affect to think of now. Itachi was the only boy she'd ever been close to, so of course it was only normal.
Darn Mayuri and her tainting of your thoughts.
When you finally arrived at the clothing store, you stared. It was one of the more expensive ones, though it definitely had very cute clothing. "You are way too good at this," you said as you guys walked in.
Since it was only early evening, the store was relatively empty. You examined the variety of clothing types, shocked to see Itachi diligently looking around as well. He completely ignored prices on all of the clothing, both upsetting you as well as causing an odd flutter. Once you had collected about six different choices, you and Itachi headed toward the fitting room.
You tried each of them on, and then acted like a model and tried ridiculous struts to show off the clothing. Itachi tried to stifle his laughter behind his hands, but it always failed. Despite the silliness, he'd always analyze the clothing quite well. By the last outfit, though, he still seemed to be debating something.
"Stay here," he said. "I'll be right back." With that, he quickly vanished to find something.
You blinked, confused as to what happened. Then again, it was Itachi, so you may as well just trust him. You yawned, leaning against the wall as you waited. Glimpsing the panda resting on the seat beside the fitting room, you beamed and petted its head. Itachi sure had picked a wonderful prize.
Hearing footsteps approaching, you looked up, expecting to see Itachi there. However, instead of the familiar boy, you saw two random boys. Both of them bore smirks, their eyes directed toward you. You flinched, noticing the dark gleam in their eyes.
"Hello there, cutie," one of them said. He was dark haired and green eyed, the irises reminding you of acid. "You shopping so you can look good for us tonight?"
A shudder ran down your spine. You took a step back, but the other boy - this one blond with blue eyes - stepped forward, gripping your elbow to keep you from returning to the fitting room. "Uh, could you let go please?" you asked, keeping your eyes trained on his. You would not back down, even if you were well aware there were two well-built boys making moves on you that you definitely were not okay with.
"Oh, come on," the blond said, his grip tightening ever so slightly. "That would be no fun though."
You glowered, your [eye color] eyes burning with anger. "Release me. Right now."
This only egged on both boys as the black haired one stepped forward while the blond tried to pull you even farther out. "We're just trying to get to know you a bit," the black haired one sickeningly cooed, his smile a terrible excuse for sweet.
"When she says let her go, you let her go."
Once more a shiver ran down your spine, but it was no longer out of fear. It was simply hearing the tone that came from the new voice. The boys sensed it as well because they both went rigid.
Itachi stepped forward, placing a hand on the black haired boy's shoulder. Your eyes widened as you saw his entire hand was white from strain, making you realize just how tightly Itachi was gripping the boy's shoulder. The boy attempted to hide his pained expression, but all it took was a bit more pressure to get him to cry out.
"Now, I suggest you walk away and never even speak to her again." Itachi's voice was dangerously low, a murderous rage hidden in the calmness. "If I see you within a ten foot radius of her, this simple pain in your shoulder will be nothing." Itachi's focus shifted toward the boy still gripping your elbow. "Release her right now before my threat becomes reality today."
"Let her go!" The dark haired boy croaked out the demand, wincing as Itachi squeezed a bit tighter.
Instantly the blond released you, scampering away to put distance between himself and Itachi. With your release official, Itachi let go of the black haired boy and shoved him toward his friend.
"Now you leave."
The boys didn't argue - they left in a hurry.
You watched them leave, and then turned to Itachi. He was still watching to make sure that the boys were gone, but feeling your gaze, he turned to face you. The cold exterior melting away just as quickly as it had appeared, and instead his signature soft grin warmed up his features.
The previous events seemed to vanish from your mind as instead you felt a fluttering tingle throughout your body. It was something you had occasionally experienced during your early teen years around Itachi, but it wasn't until recently when he would either display full-blown happiness or give you his simple smile that you felt the feeling return.
"Let's get out of here," Itachi said, holding up a random bag. "I decided to pick one of the dresses myself so you wouldn't know which it was. Also so you couldn't try to buy it."
Your eyes narrowed as you pouted. "You stupid albino panda," you grumbled, but you couldn't help but grin as he laughed. "Where to now?"
Apparently deciding to simply surprise you once more, Itachi began to walk off. Rolling your eyes, you began to trail behind him. He spun the bag of clothes around in boredom, sending you side glances every once in a while as you cuddled with the panda. You shrugged, glancing away when he snickered.
"Idiot," you grumbled before looking around to try to figure out where you were heading. This time you realized before Itachi pointed it out. "Napori Nomi?" you shouted excitedly.
Once more Itachi's laughter rang out. He sure had been laughing a lot today. "Yup. I figured there was no better place than here for your pre-birthday food."
You found a seat while Itachi went off to order the ice cream. Napori Nomi had been your guys' favorite ice cream place since you were kids. You eyed the panda, remembering all the different memories you two had shared.
"Really? You've known Itachi for that long and you've never even thought of that perfect guy as anything more than a friend?"
Mayuri's words repeated in your head. It was such a strange concept to consider. A decade of being friends didn't mean that you had to like Itachi. After all, he had always been there for you, almost like a brother. Sure, maybe he was perfect in multiple ways, but that didn't mean you had to like him, right?
Even as you thought this, your mind strayed to all the things that had occurred today. From Itachi proving just how well he knew you at every turn to the way his mere smile made everything seem brighter. Your heart randomly skipped a beat as you remembered his laughter while you tried on the clothes.
Without thinking, you buried your face into the panda once more, trying to rid yourself of the thoughts. They were just ridiculous. You did not like Itachi. Both of you were just friends. It was impossible for you to truly fall for Itachi, or even having already fallen for hm. You closed your eyes, inhaling the scent of the panda. You just barely noticed the scent of Itachi still lingering.
"Getting tired?" Itachi asked, taking a seat across from you. He placed down a Neapolitan milkshake in front of you.
You jumped hearing his voice, but quickly shook your head. "No, I'm not. The panda is just really comfy," you said. It wasn't a complete lie. The panda was comfy.
Itachi smiled once more, but it twitched as if it was forced. He stirred his milkshake while you took a sip from yours. "So, Sato-san, huh?"
You raised your eyes to the boy across from you, shocked by the sudden subject change. Gulping down your milkshake, you nodded. "Yes, Toshiro. What about him?"
He only met your eyes for a moment before averting them, resting his chin on the palm of his hand. "What exactly do you like about him? I know you told me you thought he was cute, but that's about it."
You nibbled on your straw as you gradually drank from it, confused by the sudden change of subject. It was true Itachi knew little about Toshiro since they were in different classes, and you also hadn't talked much about him. "Well, I mean, he is really cute," you said, though it was half-hearted. "But he's also really nice and sweet. Plus [Best Friend's Name] says we'd be really cute together. She's been friends with him for a while, and she says that he's a great guy. We also have a lot of interests that are similar."
As you spoke, you noticed Itachi's jaw clenching and unclenching, his hand trembling ever so slightly. "Do you think you could actually love him though?"
The blood rushed to your face as you wiggled uncomfortably in your seat. "I mean, yeah, I like him. I'm sure if tomorrow goes well, I'll like him a lot more, though, and it may eventually become love."
Itachi ran a hand through the part of his hair that wasn't in his ponytail, suddenly appearing greatly disgruntled. "[Name], I may have to go after this."
You frowned. "Itachi, what's wrong?"
His jaw was still working, his milkshake basically untouched. With a sigh, he rose to his feet. "I'll be right back." Without another word, he turned on his heel and walked toward the alley near Napori Nomi.
You reacted upon instinct, raising to your feet and following after your friend. What you saw the moment you entered the mouth of the alley shocked you. As you were used to a calm Itachi, you had seen a number of angry outbursts today, such as how he angrily punched the alley wall.
"Itachi!" you exclaimed, rushing to his side.
He flinched upon hearing your voice, but he didn't stop you as you grabbed his hand. You examined it, feeling your face pale as you saw the blood dripping from his knuckles. You gulped, trying to rid yourself o the lump in your throat.
"Why did you do this?" you whispered. When he didn't answer, you dragged your eyes up to his. You froze when you saw his expression. It was like the one from the day before, but rather than just pain, something else burned within Itachi's onyx orbs. You couldn't figure out what it was. Pleading? Desperation? Longing?
Itachi's dropped his head, instead staring at your hands around his. "I cannot do it any longer, [Name]." Itachi's voice cracked. Every word shook as it came out. "I cannot just watch someone else try to take you."
Your back had already been to the wall, but Itachi suddenly lifted his hand, placing it against the wall, his other hand also resting upon the wall. If not for the fact it was Itachi, it would have seemed like you were being trapped. It was only because it was Itachi you didn't feel like you were in danger.
"I've tried to accept that I am only your friend, and I can live with that, as long as I am by your side," Itachi whispered, the tremble in his voice spreading to his body. "But I cannot stand back and watch someone try to take you from me."
You raised your eyes from his chest, feeling your heart jump suddenly when your eyes met. His eyes were so focused on you it was as if he saw nothing else. As much as the feeling was disorienting, it also caused a warmth to spread through you. "Please, explain to me."
To your surprise, Itachi rested his forehead against yours. "You are so oblivious, [Name]. For years now I've had these feelings, and you haven't even noticed. I tried to be mature about them, but when all you do is make me feel like you do, how can I resist?
"I was ready to break him yesterday, [Name]. The moment you told me he was trying to steal you from me, I wanted to make sure he never could. I knew it made you happy, but that just made it all hurt more. I tried to simply be here as your friend today, but realizing any second I could lose you, all I wanted to do was hold you and never let go."
"Itachi, you can't be saying..." Your voice trailed off, breathing becoming difficult as your heart raced. This couldn't be happening, could it?
Itachi pulled his head back just enough to set his piercing stare on you. "[Name], I love you. And I'm not strong enough to let you go to another. I can only be satisfied if you are mine." His arms still trembling, his arms dropped down to pull you into a tight embrace.
His words rang through your mind, circling your brain as you tried to truly comprehend them. It was hard with Itachi's scent invading your nose, his heartbeat racing right under your head, his arms clinging to you as if you were his lifeline. This was the same Itachi you had known her entire life. The same one that only moments before you'd thought you may be falling for. Now he was confessing. You had to be dreaming.
"This cannot be true," you whispered.
Itachi flinched, but his grip on you didn't falter. "It's not, [Name]. The heart you hear racing right now is trying to reach you." He placed his mouth in your hair, speaking into it. "I'm sorry for my selfishness, but I cannot lose you. To anyone."
You pulled your head back, though Itachi was obvious reluctant to relax his hold at all. To your surprise, you felt your lip trembling, and your eyes were tearing. Just what had been happening to your heart that you had not known about from every tiny action that your childhood friend performed?
"[Name]," he whispered, slumping as he saw your face. That instantly stopped when he heard your next words.
"Itachi, what if I'm falling for you, too?"
Itachi's eyes widened in shock, but then he laughed in obvious relief. That same gentle smile that tugged at your heart met your question. "[Name], would it be too quick if I asked to kiss you?"
Your heart started running a marathon upon hearing the question. Itachi kissing you? Previously you would have thought the reaction would be a scrunched up face, but instead you felt an agreeing tingle in your lips. "I think you've waited for long enough."
That was all the push Itachi needed. He brought his lips down, enveloping your lips your first kiss. You instantly responded, those feelings that had been so unknown to you bubbling forth to meet Itachi's.
When he pulled away, you were both gasping, having lost your breath in the tightness of your chests. He once more rested his forehead against yours. "So, am I forgiven for yesterday?"
You laughed. "Most definitely," you replied, hugging the boy before you.
The boy who had been childhood friend.
Just when had he become your childhood love?
You had a lot of explaining to do tomorrow when you had to cancel with Toshiro. Of course, the reason was definitely worth it.