wrapped in smoke.

in the night, wrapped in smoke

   the sudden burst of lightening that crackled at the edge of his window and brought light to the inkiness of his apartment could have been caused by the raging thunderstorm that konoha had fallen victim to just hours prior, but tenzou knew better. that same lightening struck just moments after the first, followed by the passing of a shadow across the clouded glass, and then the disarming of the seals that the anbu member used to protect himself and his home.

   closing his book that he hadn't been reaching from much anyway and flicking off the lamp that resided on the table beside the couch, tenzou pushed himself to his feet and held his arms out.

   in a flash of electricity and the unmistakable smell of bitter smoke, tenzou suddenly had a chest full of a certain silver-haired shinobi, whom of which was shivering and soaking wet from head to toe. with a movement that was anything but graceful, the two men sank to the floor, tense muscles against plaint limbs as they sat messily intertwined.

   kakashi had no protests as tenzou's fingers moved to remove the porcelain anbu mask from his face, and tenzou kept quiet as a soft sob sounded from his captainsenpaiboyfriend's chest. as heartbreaking as the sound was, tenzou found himself even more devastated by the fact the he was used to it.

   he was used to having a sobbing kakashi in his lap in the dead of the night, used to the strangled cries and broken whimpers that struck against his eardrums and sent a fissure down his heart. he wound his arms around his lover, tightly, and rocked him in his arms, not batting a single eyelid at the fact that kakashi's tears were wetting the crook of his neck, his sniffles damp against his collarbone.

   ten minutes had passed and tenzou was sure that kakashi was beginning to calm, but then the silver-haired shinobi jerked away, ripping his hitai-ate off in the process. his exposed sharigan spun wildly as his gaze darted around the space they occupied, the glaring red nearly glowing in the darkness.

   "tenzou!" the copy ninja's tone was urgent, panicked, as he called out for his partner, his fingers trembling as he reached down on instinct to fish a kunai from his pouch. tenzou had long ago learned to disarm kakashi in swift and subtle manners whenever he was in this state, and this time around was no different. coming up empty, kakashi leapt to his feet in a defensive stance, only to let out out a frustrated cry when he lost balance on his most likely bruised legs, crashing down into tenzou's arms once again.

   "tenzou, they..they're after us..they-," his frantic words were suddenly cut short when tenzou's arms braced around him again, only this time he was being lowered to his back as well.

   "no one's here, honey. look at me," a slender finger beneath kakashi's chin brought his glazed over gaze to his partner once more."

   "you're safe, i promise. it's only you and me here. we're both fine, see?" tenzou slid his fingers into the spaces between kakashi's own, wrapping their hands together tightly before raising them up to press against his beating heart. kakashi's shoulders seemed to relax the slightest fraction before he shook his head in denial, ripping his arm away hard enough to injure both their shoulders; the younger man tried to hide his wince.

   "t-tenzou, no! i.i need.. i need.."

   "what do you need, 'kashi? whatever is it, i've got it." never in his life had tenzou regretted his choice of words more.

   "i..i need you to kill me," tenzou bit his lip to keep any sound from escaping, "please, i don't want you to hurt, tenzou. i hurt you."

   his kakashi was beautiful. his pale skin nearly glittered beneath the moonlight that shone in from the windows and his delicate features were one of a priceless porcelain doll, but he also looked haunted. beautifully, yet so heartbreakingly haunted as the raging storm in his single gray eye and the burning embers of his sharigan contrasted heavily against his glass-like face.

   those same eyes that usually held so much youthfulness and mirth whenever the two were in company, were suddenly staring up at tenzou with unbridled hurt as a response for his love got stuck in his chest; trapped somewhere between his ribcage and his tongue.

   tenzou swallowed, then his lips parted to assure kakashi that he had never ever hurt him, that tenzou was only alive because of him, but soon kakashi's fist was colliding with his chest. it wasn't anything that hurt, the blow was feeble even, but the surprise is what made tenzou tumble backwards with his partner on top of him, their positions now switched.

   "you're a liar," his voice warbled as if he was attempting to speak underwater, his hazy eyes steadily dripping with tears as his shaking fingers curled within the fabric of tenzou's sweater instead, tugging.

   "you lied. you told me you'd always give me everything i needed. why did you lie?"

   "darling," the younger man was quick to recover from his shock, his tone pillowy soft as if he were consoling an injured animal, as he grasped one of kakashi's dainty wrists.

   "darling," he repeated, loosening his lover's grip from his shirt and raising it to his mouth instead, pressing his lips against the man's pulse in a kiss. kakashi moved to look away, feeling undeserving, ashamed, but tenzou was swift, hooking a finger beneath the other's chin and guiding his gaze back to his once again,

   "because i need you. i need you. i can't give you what you need right now because i need you. i know i'm selfish, i'm sorry, but i love you, 'kashi."

   the next sob kakashi let out was swallowed down by tenzou, who had somehow tugged his lover's cloth mask down and halfway lifted his upper body to press an open-mouthed kiss to his parted lips.

   "you've never hurt me. you're the reason i'm here, 'kashi. the reason i'm alive and happy..here with you. you're not allowed to leave me, honey, not ever."

   tenzou's voice became choked with the emotions that raged within his own self, his shoulders loosening, but never sagging as he shared the weight that sat upon his lover's entire body. kakashi initiated the kiss then, his lips salty and wet as they pressed against tenzou's own, but the younger anbu didn't mind; never minded. kakashi stole breath from tenzou's lungs to fill the space of his own, and tenzou let him with his arms braced around kakashi's hips and their heartbeats slowing into a synchronized rhythm.

   eventually, they made it to the bed, clothes discarded before they slipped underneath the sheets. kakashi was in need of a shower, but he refused to pull away long enough for tenzou to do anything but hold him, and the younger anbu member didn't have the heart to urge him.

   a hand brushed through kakashi's matted silver hair as the other cupped around his jaw, thumb brushing against the beauty mark that lay just beneath his bottom lip. though the copy ninja's hysterics had calmed, there was still something urgent lying behind his filmy eyes, something vulnerable. tenzou smiled.

   "tenz..," a nod from the wood-style user had kakashi rolling over, his back now pressed flushed against tenzou's chest as his lover snaked an arm around his hips in order to grasp at intimacies that laid below.

   "i know, sweetheart. i've got you."