Of course, there was the case of what to do about it.
Yes, Itachi now understood his feelings and knew where they were coming from, but that didn’t get rid of his feelings—not that he was going to try. It didn’t change the fact Imi was still there, and now he knew just what he felt towards her. Itachi had to make a decision as to what he was going to do with this new knowledge. But without experience, it wasn’t easy; especially when he wasn’t sure about Imi’s feelings. He didn’t want to change the friendship they had, and he didn’t want to hurt her. Only now Itachi knew…he didn’t think he’d be able to simply sit back in silence anymore. It had been hard enough without him understanding his emotions, let alone now.
But he had to do it—and soon.
Because there hadn’t been any outlet for his emotions, it had built up inside of Itachi and created those problems for him. If he did the same now, waiting and waiting, the same thing would happen all over again. Kisame couldn’t constantly be giving him guidance and tips on what to do—and to be honest, he didn’t want him to. He wasn’t a child, and he didn’t like feeling that other people knew his emotions better than he did. It just started bringing up a lot of questions. Had he known—at least on a subconscious level—how he felt towards Imi from the beginning? Itachi had to have had some recognition of it if he had kissed her when he left. And because of that, Itachi had to consider the possibility that it was because of what had happened in Konoha with his clan—with how he had to push away his emotions and remain distant from everyone—that he had never come to terms with what he felt.
But as the hideout appeared through the trees ahead of him, Itachi knew he had to talk to Imi, regardless of whether he confessed to his feelings tonight or not. It was only just occurring to him how he had been acting all day, and that he hadn’t talked to Imi the entire time. No doubt she was a little confused—and no doubt concerned about him, and Itachi sighed inwardly at the thought. He didn’t want to hurt her or make her worry about him. He would at least apologise for his behaviour and make that right. The dilemma as to what to do about his newly-understood feelings could come later; maybe talking to Imi would help out and give him the answer.
He just wasn’t about to sabotage their friendship, either way.
Yet as he entered through the doors and walked back through the corridor, Itachi felt strangely…lighter. Almost—freer, than before. Even when Kisame had told him his opinion and made him realise his feelings, Itachi had felt this was a big thing—that it was hard to deal with. But the closer he got to Imi, and the less he felt that. When it came down to it, why should he feel like that? He cared about Imi; he knew he did. There was no point denying it now. He finally understood what had been going on in his head all this time, and he would be able to accept it. Realising his feelings didn’t need to make him nervous around Imi or worried what to say—though Itachi doubted that would ever be a problem. Imi had an amazing way of making him feel at ease and calming him down in a way no one else could do. So overall…this would only make it easier.
It certainly made it easier as Itachi slipped back into his normal visage, not showing any of the signs of what he’d been going through earlier on the outside. Not that anyone really paid much attention; Itachi came and went as he pleased, and no one apart from Imi and Kisame knew him well enough to noticed anything had been different about him that day. So Itachi simply passed them by, heading straight over to Imi, who’d been watching the doorway to see if he’d come in or not. Generally she could tell the kind of things Itachi would do—how he would act in a certain situation. But even her sensing abilities hadn’t been much help today; it had been like a big ball of emotions was writhing around Itachi, and she couldn’t make out any details.
Now, however, and it was different. The storm seemed to have cleared, and though there was something that wasn’t quite right with Itachi, Imi could see he was feeling better than he had before. Calmer, and more in control. Nodding in greeting, Imi didn’t hesitate to agree as Itachi asked to speak to her, hiding her relief that he seemed okay with her again. She had been worried that he was going through the same concerns as before about her being in the Akatsuki; maybe if he had heard Pein say he was thinking of letting her join. But Imi hadn’t a clue what it was really about: she only knew that she didn’t want to lose Itachi again.
Once they were in his room, Itachi instantly apologised for how he’d acted. He’d had a lot to think about; to consider, but that had been no reason for him to take it out on her. He’d isolated her, not talking to her or spending any time with her; and he shouldn’t have. Imi quickly dismissed it, though. Itachi deserved a day to just be overwhelmed by his thoughts and feelings—in a way, he probably didn’t do it enough. Everyone needed to analyse themselves internally sometimes, and it was a job best done alone. She didn’t blame him, and would never have gotten angry. Sometimes you just need be on your own.
It was with Imi’s words, however, that brought everything back to Itachi. He was reminded ever more so by how understanding Imi had always been of him. She had always accepted him for who he was, making the effort to empathise with him on every matter. It was one of the reasons he connected with her so much; why he was feeling this way now. It may just have been the reason that pushed his feelings from friendship to love.
Only the moment that word appeared in his thoughts, Itachi couldn’t get it to go away. Love wasn’t exactly a rare concept to him; he loved Konoha, and he had loved his family, and he still loved Sasuke. But not in the way he loved Imi. This was something he hadn’t come across before, but Kisame had been right. It wasn’t bad; he felt…happy. That was why he had always been able to forget his problems when he was around Imi. Because when he was with her, she was the only thing that mattered. Right now…she still was. The memory of their goodbye in Konoha came back to him, and just like before, that impulsiveness came over Itachi, and he barely even noticed himself as he grabbed Imi and pulled her into a kiss.
But this time it was different. When they had said goodbye, it had been a short moment of intimacy that had faded after a few moments. But Itachi didn’t want it to end. Imi herself hadn’t been expecting it, but he was being so open with her; letting everything he felt come out in his actions, and there was no need to fight him—she didn’t want to. It felt right. She accepted it completely, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself closer, and in return Itachi placed his hands on her waist. But they didn’t stay still for long, starting to trace across the skin of her abdomen, running up her shirt and tracing patterns with his delicate fingers. Automatically Imi gasped in deliciousness, and Itachi's tongue instantaneously began to explore, wanting to taste more of Imi.
This kind of passion was half a surprise from Itachi, and yet at the same time, to be expected. Imi didn’t care either way, lost in the kiss, intertwining her tongue with his and entangling her hands in his hair, moaning softly into the kiss as Itachi's moans joined soon after. The only thing that did surprise her was how Itachi couldn’t seem to hold back. The moment Imi had to pull away for air and he was kissing down her neck, inching his hands up her shirt and pressing his pelvis against hers. It was this that made her pause—before Itachi sensed her hesitation and lifted his gaze back to hers once again, gently caressing her cheek as he rested his forehead on hers, whispering gently,
“Don’t be afraid. Sometimes we need to be alone…sometimes we need others.”
A smirk automatically flickered over Imi’s face as he spoke, and this time it was she who leaned in and instigated the kiss, not moving away as he started to lift up her shirt. But she wanted this.
She wanted to give everything to him.
