Flame of A Shinobi

(14- What Lies in the heart)

(Kakashi's point of View)

I figured at this point I must be getting soft. I lay on the couch all night, unable to sleep for most of it. After about five hours  passed out of a bit. With all that was weighing on my mind though, I was unable to sleep. A noise from the bedroom woke me and I got up to check on Shizuka. She was having yet another nightmare, unable to wake from the grip of the horrors that held her under.

Not knowing what else to do, I stretched next to her and placed a hand on her arm. Giving her comfort the only way I knew how, I made soft noises to let her know she wasn't alone, stroking her back softly to comfort her. Slowly, she quieted and stopped shaking, but somewhere in that time I also slowly fell asleep. It was a light, undisturbed sleep, for once not haunted by my own set of nightmares that usually plague me every night.

Some time later, I slowly become aware that time has passed and my eyes crack open. Bright light filters in through the bedroom window and I slowly sit up, looking at the clock. It was half past nine in the morning to my dismay. I look around me and realize that I fell asleep next to Shizuka in the process of comforting her last night, but she wasn't in the room. I jump out of bed and walk to the kitchen to see her sipping on a cup of coffee, trying to hide a terrible case of bedhead.

I chuckle internally and cross over to pour myself a cup. "It's hazelnut Mocha flavored," I tell her as I add a few cubes of sugar and some cream. She eyes me as I go through my routine and rolls her eyes. "Want any coffee with your sugar?" She asks me. I feign innocence. "Not at all, that would be an insult to the poor sugar." I joke. She cracks a smile and continues drinking her coffee. As if three cubes of sugar would ever be a lot. I glance at the book she has in her hand that she is staring intently at. "Huh, I haven't read that book in a while," I say as I try to remember when I bought it.

I had recently begun reading a book called Make-out Paradise. It was by my Sensei's Sensei. Not a bad series but a lot of drama and very addictive. I was not really into that sort of novel before I started reading it. Glancing at Shizuka I smile and turn around, finishing my cup and rinsing it. Shizuka stands and comes up behind me before tentatively wrapping her arms around me. I freeze, turning my head to look at her as she hugs me. A tender feeling melts my heart and I ruffle her hair. "What's with this all of a sudden?" I ask her softly, nearly choking on the unnamed feeling again.

"Thank you, Kakashi. For helping me last night. It was the best sleep I think I have ever had," She says quietly. I stop and look at her, turning to return her hug. After a few seconds, she straightens and nods to herself. "I am going to get dressed. I think you should too. I want to go visit my mother for a bit today," She tells me. "Sure. Whatever you want," I tell her as I grab a change of clothes and head to the bathroom. I change and by the time I come out, she is ready. Her hair is up in an elaborate bun today, some of it cascading from the bun down her shoulders and upper back in waves.

Her blue eyes stare into mine, causing shivers to ripple through my body. "Are you ready?" I ask her as I put on my shoes. She nods and we step out into the morning air. The crisp feeling of morning was slowly being replaced with the feeling of noon. As we get a block down, I have to stop immediately to avoid running into three very small children chasing each other in the streets. Their shrieks and giggles as they gave chase to one another made my eyes light up.

I looked at the children ages maybe 4-5 years old having so much fun and gave pause. 'I wonder what it would be like to have one of my own.' The thought pops into my head of its own accord as I look over at Shizuka. 'I swear I am going crazy. But maybe a family would be nice eventually.' I think as I try to clear my head. We reach Shizuka's home in no time, Shizuka checking in for a while. I sit outside, pulling  a few blades of grass up and braiding them together to form shapes. We were there for about two hours before Shizuka was ready to leave.