Anime One-Shots

Love - Gaara

          "What is love?" Gaara asked.

          "Baby don't hurt me!" you sang.

          "What?"  He wore a look of confusion.  You weren't surprised he didn't get the reference.  No one in the Village Hidden in the Sand ever did.

          "Well, why do you want to know, Kazekage?"

          The two of you watched as a couple walked by, holding each other, kissing, and professing their love for each other until they turned to enter a flower shop.  Another pair five feet away from the first followed suit, blissfully unaware of your prying eyes.  Gaara was as uncomfortable as you were.  For some reason, this season, couples were springing up all over the Sand, like a raging epidemic.  You felt silly for asking.  You continued to walk together down the streets, bobbing and weaving between the men and women on the streets who were too preoccupied with each other to even notice that the Kazekage was walking by.

          You took a second to ponder.  Your father had said something to you awhile back when you asked him the same question.  What did he say again?  "Love is sacrificing your wants for another person's needs," you answered, proud you still remembered the exact quote.  Gaara's reaction communicated that your response was not enough; he still looked as baffled as before.

          "How do you know when you love someone?"  His head was turned toward a couple reciting romantic poetry to each other.  His curiosity surprised you.  Gaara didn't ask questions abut things that didn't have much to do with him.  After years of rehabilitation, he found it easier to simply ask questions about interactions he observed in real life and implement them than formally attend sessions for social skills.

          You paused again to construct a comprehensive response.  You didn't have much experience in the topic of love yourself, but you weren't the type to leave someone with a question without an answer.  "Dad told me you definitely know when you look at them and know you want to spend the rest of your life with them."  You checked again to see if the Kazekage was satisfied with that answer.  

          His brow was furrowed; it looked like he wasn't.  "I don't quite understand," he said.

          You sighed, then asked, "Kazekage, do you think you might love someone?"  After a short, rather considerate pause, he nodded.  A little bit of excitement welled up inside you.  You knew about Gaara's past -- everyone did, but you were still overjoyed that he was experiencing a complex matter of the heart.  "Well, I imagine you constantly find yourself wanting to be around that person.  Your heart beats a little faster, you might have trouble breathing, and it's hard to take your eyes off of them," you continued, "but married couples don't usually get those symptoms, even though they love each other.  Sorry, that doesn't help."  You neglected to admit that you had experienced those symptoms around him.

          "That's complicated."  The corners of his mouth turned down in confusion.  His hand was clasped over his heart.  The two of you continued to walk in silence until you reached your apartment complex.  Just before you went inside your room, he stopped you.  "I think --" he started, but he didn't finish his sentence.  "I'm sorry.  Good night."  You watched him as he walked out of the complex.

          "Love, huh?" the two of you whispered in unison.