WANTED: Itachi Uchiha

Yonjuuichi

"Why can I smell bleach?" Sasuke asked, sniffing the air.

"I got rid of a dead body and needed to clean away the evidence." Reina replied casually as she put away the groceries.

Itachi and Sasuke froze, looking around the household warily for rogue spots of blood.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Reina asked, mid-shelf. "I didn't kill anyone." Reina snorted, rolling her eyes. "As much as I wanted to." She muttered under her breath, mentally going through her kill list. It was short, but it existed.

"Definitely like Tomo." Sasuke added, looking at Itachi with wide eyes; Itachi nodded in silent agreement, getting the rest of the groceries out the bags.

"I...Uh..." Reina leaned back against the counter, drumming her fingers along the edge. "I clean when I'm stressed or anxious."

The brothers stopped what they were doing, giving Reina their full attention. Reina tucked her hair behind her ears, fidgeting on the spot. "I came home that night and cleaned everywhere with a toothbrush." She smiled nervously. "After throwing up in a bush and having a panic attack in the bathroom and taking some sedatives." She shrugged. "I cleaned."

"We're such a bunch of fucking missfits." Sasuke pointed out out loud, opening his bag of tomato chips and tossing a few in his mouth. Itachi clipped him gently around the back of the head and frowned.

"Your language is fucking atrocious."

Sasuke and Reina burst out laughing, Itachi eyed them for a few moments before a rough, dusty sounding chuckle erupted past his mouth.

He was free.

•••

"If you need extra blankets they're in the cupboard next to the bathroom." Reina said, pointing at the door across the hallway. "And I put the toothbrushes we got in the bathroom already. Yours is the cute little fox patterned one, obviously."

Sasuke's response was an undignified flip of his middle finger as he disappeared into the spare room, shutting the door behind him.

"What one's mine?" Itachi asked, leaning against the wall.

"Yours? Hm?" Reina pouted her lips and tapped them in thought. "I think you'll find yours is the one with the dango shaped handle." Reina grinned. Itachi rolled his eyes but couldn't help the smirk that lined his lips.

"Do you need anything else before I turn in?" Reina asked, rubbing her eyes and stifling a yawn. Itachi scratched the back of his head and ignored the fact that his cheeks turned pink.

"Could I..." He began, only to shake his head and bow. "Nevermind. Goodnight Reina. I'll see you in the morning."

Reina frowned, cocking her to the side. She didn't miss the flush of his cheeks, or the way his lips parted to say something else but didn't.

"Do you...maybe...wanna stay with me?" Reina asked, smiling softly. "I really don't fancy you smothering Sasuke when he starts snoring. And I don't want to have to dissolve a body in the bathtub either."

Itachi looked at Reina nodded, huffing a laugh as  his ponytail bobbed about. Reina smiled and pushed herself off the wall jerking her chin towards her room. Itachi padded down the hall after her, pausing at the threshold of her bedroom.

"It's ok, you can come in. Just make sure you shut the door behind you. I can't cope with listening to Sasuke snore all night." Reina beckoned him in, switching on the bedside lamp and plonking herself on the bed with a sigh of relief.

Itachi crept inside, shutting the door behind him. He turned and couldn't help but let his eyes wander around the room. He'd never been in her room. When her and Sasuke had been babysitting him that time he basically lived between the spare room and the bathroom. Not that he ever imagined he would ever stay in her room.

Reina sprawled herself on the bed, propping her head up on her hand and watched as Itachi grazed his fingers over the spines of her books, tilting his head occasionally to read the titles. That lethal calm that had previously possessed him had long dissipated, his shoulders had sagged and his jaw was no longer clenched tightly.

He was calmer. Which made her calmer.

"Your peace lily is dying." Itachi motioned to the drooping plant on her desk, it's leaves sad and floppy. She chuckled, shaking her head.

"It's not dying, just thirsty."

"You sure?" Itachi asked, inspecting the saggy leaves and droopy white flowers.

"Ahmm. It's just dramatic. Watch, once I've watered it in the morning it'll be all springy and bouncy. It's just dramatic and sassy - Like Sasuke."

Itachi chuckled and nodded, running a hand through his hair before tentatively crawling onto the bed beside her. "Your bed is comfier than mine." He thought out loud, running his hands over the fabric of the quilt until his fingers grazed over Reina's. They linked their fingers together without prompt, he running his thumb over the knuckle of her thumb absentmindedly.

"It could be your bed too," Reina murmured quietly, chewing her lower lip. "if you wanted?"

Itachi whipped his head to the side, his eyes wide. "You want me to stay?"

Reina blushed, her usually pale cheeks bright red. She curled onto her side, curling her spare arm beneath her head, as Itachi mirrored her actions. "You need somewhere to live where you can get better." Reina smiled, her eyes glossing over. "I need you to get better. And you can't get better in the same environment that you got sick in."

"Reina~"

"Please, let me finish." Reina whispered. "I'm selfish, because I need you to get better so I can get better." Tears dribbled down her cheeks and down her chin. "I can't lose you - do you understand that? If I lose you, even to yourself? Then I don't have anyone? I'm all alone." She sniffled, staring into his eyes which glossed over. "And I'm tired, Itachi. I'm so tired."

"Reina." Itachi whispered, letting go of her hand to stroke her hair. Reina closed her eyes, savouring the feel of his fingers in her hair. Her lip wobbled and a quiet cry escaped.

"I need you. Do you understand that? I thought I could let you go and that you weren't my concern. But I got home and," She hiccuped, fighting to catch her breath. "I couldn't breathe. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think. I was alone and I didn't want to be alone."

"You're not alone." Itachi murmured softly as not to startle her. "I'm here." Carefully, he unthreaded his fingers from her hair and pulled her closer, their noses touching.

"Promise me you'll get better." Reina whispered, searching the depths of his eyes as she held onto his shirt. "Promise me, Itachi." He swallowed, his mouth dry, probably from the amount he had cried that day and the fact he was face to face with the woman he loved.

"I promise."

A whoosh of air passed Reina's lips, fanning onto his mouth. She smiled, her eyes sparkling with a mixture of relief and tears. Itachi gently wiped her cheeks of the tears; she closed her eyes to both stop more tears from falling and to savour the feel of his skin on hers.

"Reina," Itachi began, feeling his heart gallop in his chest. Reina could feel it too, his pulse thumping against the palm of her hand. "I'd like your consent to kiss you now. If that's alright with you?"

Reina kept her eyes closed, her own pulse hammering away against her rib cage as she nodded, her nose rubbing against his as she went. She kept still, focusing on the sound of their breaths, they soft and hushed with nerves. He didn't kiss her immediately. Not on her lips anyway.

At first Itachi kissed the tip of her nose, the gesture light and sweet. Next he kissed her forehead, equally as gentle as he had done earlier that day. Reina felt her stomach twist and her chest constrict; but this was a different type of nerves. This was excitement. She wanted to feel his lips on hers. She wanted to feel his hands on her bare skin.

And so did he. He'd wanted to touch her for so long but had been terrified to do so. He had been so scared of his own feelings in case she didn't feel the same way. But she did. It was evident in the way her body moulded to his and her fingers toyed with the locks of his hair idly.

So he lowered his lips to hers, and he saw stars.