Masked Rivals /A Kakashi Fanfiction\

Chapter 8

Stupidly enough, I didn't know what to do or say after that kiss in the shower. My first kiss, and as far as he knew he was kissing air I thought wryly Although he can't really be blamed for that.

Like I said, I was stupid about it and so confused that I didn't even uncloak myself so he could actually look at the lips he was assuming he successfully kissed. I kept myself hidden from his sight and after a few seconds of silence in the shower he now looked to be alone in, he hung his head and quickly finished and left. I resumed my position, back facing him keeping to the opposite side of where he was until he exited.

After that, his responses towards me 'popping' up went back to the way they had been the first couple of days. I naturally fell back into place pestering him as originally intended. It's been just over a week now since the shower incident, and I now found myself perched on a branch next to Kakashi. He had an ear piece in to communicate with his team and observed them from afar while they completed their 'mission'; because apparently protecting little old Mrs. Akahna's clothes from being swept away with the wind as they dried out on the clothes line was quite important-cause of course she was certain to break a hip if she had to go after the run away clothes herself.

Since it didn't take all three of them to actually do this, Mrs. Akahna had taken Sakura prisoner and was now telling her her life's story as she went through every photo album in her house...which was about 20 judging by the pile at the window. And Sasuke decided to take the roof 'to be prepared in case they flew high', but really he was just practicing hand signs in private.

During this I would keep quiet, then right as he was saying something to communicate to the three I'd pipe back in next to him as if I was trying to say something to them as well. At first it startled him and without thinking-since no one was around to watch us interacting with each other-he tried to shush me. When Naruto started yelling back at Kakashi thinking he was shushing him, he finally remembered that only he could hear me. So now he was just getting annoyed with my antics.

I 'popped' out of sight when he looked back at me with a scowl on his face. You would think he should have relaxed after that, but his eye just gave a little 'twitch'. I guess him at least being able to see me and knowing where I was was becoming more assuring to him than me disappearing and not knowing where I'd pop up next.

But, I didn't move from the branch next to him. He started to stare off in the direction I was, but he wasn't trying to see me. He was lost in his thoughts and his scowl dropped and eye softened.

"Where were you last night?" He whispered, but I could tell it was mostly to himself.

Where was I last night? Why does he look so troubled about me not being there to pester him?

"If you're my conscious, why weren't you there with me like before?"

A little voice inside me warned not to stray from the plan again, but something told me this had to do with the night of his nightmare. I couldn't just sit in silence again like I did when I cowered away to the rooftop that morning.

When I dropped my cloak, my hand was already sitting gently on his shoulder to reassure him.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to ease your pain." I whispered like I was the one now worried his students would hear me through the head set. And before I thought of what I was saying, I put my foot in my mouth. "But I will be if it happens again."

I could feel Kakashi's shoulders relax at my words, but he gave a wry chuckle as well. Probably because he just sought comfort from this maddening 'imagination' of his.

I dropped my hand from his shoulder and clasped them together in my lap, just watching myself fiddle with my fingers now. I was trapped in my own nightmare I thought back to those dreams of my father chasing me. What was worse is now the dream changed, so as soon as the chase with my father ended, that moment with Pain in the interrogation room began

I hadn't noticed Kakashi's body still and turn to me, eying me curiously.

"What could you have a nightmare about?" I jumped when his voice suddenly broke my train of thought.

Did I say that aloud? I gulped

"Heh heh...heh." I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly, quickly trying to come up with something. "If you haven't noticed, you created me with quite the personality." I gave him a closed eye smile, "So should it be surprising I also act and think and have a 'life story' like you do? I told you you're quite imaginative." I finished hoping that would be enough.

It was enough for him to believe it, but it also just furthered his curiosity-especially when he reflected on how quiet I got and how I behaved when I was thinking about the nightmare.

"So what gives you nightmares?" He asked, his tone now softer and he looked at me with a tilt to his head.

And of course, why would his imagination have anything to hide. I sighed under my breath.

"See this" I said, sticking my tongue out at him. He looked at me like I was crazy at first, then noticed the deep line going across my tongue where I was pointing at it. "Took a bop to the chin when I was 5. Caused me to bite my tongue so hard it split open"

"This," I lowered the hem of the shorts just enough to reveal the hip bone. There were uneven dots and lines of pink scar tissue that formed a ring just to the side of the bone, "broken neck of a whiskey bottle. I 'shouldn't have stood there'." My father claimed he was trying to make it in the waste basket from his chair and it was my fault for getting hit and standing where I was."

"And this," I turned to him and pouted my lip, pointing at what was now the tiny dimple since it had been 16 years. It wasn't that visible because it was right at the edge where my upper lip covered it most times. It was centered right in the middle, " 'A father's love' is what he called it."

I knew what was to come the night I relived in my nightmares, because the night before he had done that. I had come to him after hearing him crying in his room and couldn't help but want to comfort my father, no matter what he had done before. He was sobbing drunkenly on his bed and when I crawled on to comfort him, he had wrapped his arms around me and held me tight to his chest and cried in my hair. It was after his tears subsided that he held me out to look at me, muttered something about me 'looking just like my mother', then said he wanted to show me his love for being such a sweet girl that night. I didn't get it until he kissed me -which I would never consider as a true first kiss. I thrashed and tried to scream against him which made him angry and in response he bit my lip hard to the point of bleeding and a small tear. I managed to squirm out of his grip and lock myself in my room after that, but it wasn't necessary because he passed out shortly after. The next morning he asked me what happened to my lip and seemed to forget everything until he picked up the drink again that night.

When I said 'a father's love' Kakashi's eyes darkened, realizing the full context of what I was telling him. I don't know why I was telling him so much. Pain and Orochimaru knew just of what happened the day I left to know how I ended up in the situation, but I had never truly told anyone about what else happened.

"He's my nightmare and all I can do is relive that night. I was only 7 when he tried to-"

Now it was Kakashi who placed a finger to my lips to quieten me. He didn't need me to say anything further to get what I was about to say and he didn't want to see my face continued to look so pained.

Then he grabbed my hands that had been nervously fiddling with the hem of my shirt and clasped them between his.

"Did I create this past so you would need me to?" He wondered, hanging his head to hide his darkened eye.

I had just said all of this to Kakashi because it felt good to finally share what I had hid for so long, and it had seemed so easy to tell it to someone who didn't think I was even real...I didn't think about what that would make him think of himself since I had just said that he 'created my life story'.

My heart ached a little thinking of what I just did. s**t, first you weren't there when he needed you during his nightmare then you lay this guilt on him I thought.

Trying to come up with something to turn this around, I pulled one of my hands from his and lifted his chin to look at me. "Wanting someone to need you is natural. And having someone that does is even better. It doesn't mean either of us are weak for it, but that we don't have to do it alone anymore. Let me share the weight that plagues you in your sleep and I'm sure you'll return the favor for me."

Kakashi didn't say anything, but cupped my cheeks pulling me towards him, then slipped his hands grasping my neck-repeating the same actions I had done to him previously until our foreheads were rested together.

We both took deep breaths and just let the calm and silence wash over us as we held close to each other.

And then Naruto messed it all up. "You need me to do what?" His voice came through the ear bud, having caught just the last part of what Kakashi said to me.

His shout brought Kakashi back to reality and he quickly retreated from me, leaving me feeling quite cold without his warmth. "I need you to pay attention." He said back in annoyance and snatched a blouse that had made it far enough passed Naruto that it was now up in the branches with us.

I came back to my senses too and just giggled and shook my head at the confused Naruto below whose head was now covered by the blouse Kakashi had threw back down at him.