Forbidden but Obvious

Many months had passed without much drama. The two had met with the Hokage and had proven that nothing was wrong. It was just a simple check-in, but of course, they did not disclose they relationship status to the Hokage. The duo went back to being their old selves again—inseparable, loud and over-enthusiastic—and people did not think much of it.

“You should move in with me,” suggested Gai on their way to the training ground… on their hands.

“What?” Lee nearly shrieked and fell over.

Gai gracefully came down from his handstand. “Yeah, I mean, you’re always there anyway.”

Lee stood up brushing himself off before he responded. “I guess you just shocked me. Sorry for my reaction.”

“Why did I shock you?” Gai asked, tilting his head to one side in confusion.

“Well, you always try to keep things so secret-“

“Yeah, Gai, this isn’t like you to be so public,” Kakashi interrupted from a tree branch. His infamous eye crease smile shown.

“My eternal rival! What are you doing following us?” exclaimed Gai. He had been so nervous asking Lee to move in with him that he did not notice the approaching jounin. Lee stopped to look around. He wanted to run in any direction away from Kakashi because he knew what was developing. Panic rose up in his belly.

Kakashi jumped down from the tree. “Sorry to interrupt you guys…” his voice wandered off as he sensed Lee’s growing anxiety. “Relax, Lee, you and Lee living together actually wouldn’t be all that weird. I think it’d odd that you guys haven’t already been living together since you two seem to never get tired of one another and are ALWAYS together.”

Lee took a step away from Kakashi. His mind raced with what he meant. Did he know? Were he and Gai far too close in public and Kakashi figured it out?

“Ummm, I’ve got to go,” he awkwardly said before turning to jump in the trees.

After he was gone, Gai turned to Kakashi. “Gee, thanks. You totally freaked him out. And I was the one who told him not to tell anyone. He’s gonna think everyone knows now.”

Kakashi just smiled beneath his mask. “Just tell him you told me. Problem solved.”

“It’s not that straightforward, Kakashi.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know. I mean… It’s just… Well, I just don’t know,” Gai thought aloud. “If it’s so straightforward, Kakashi, why don’t you just run around telling everyone your secret?”

“Oh, Gai, that’s not even CLOSE to the same thing!”

“How is it not? Former student/teacher relationship, jounin partnership… Sounds pretty much like the same thing to me,” Gai teased.
“Well, it’s not EXACTLY the same, ya know.”

“I know. It’s complicated… I get it. I get it,” Gai seceded.

Kakashi sighed deeply. His eye revealed slight apprehension. “I’m meeting with the Hokage tomorrow.”

“REALLY?! What are you going to say?”

“I’m just going to explain everything,” Kakashi shrugged.

“And by everything you mean EVERYTHING?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow.”

“I know.”

The two began walking in silence towards Kakashi’s apartment.

“I hope Lee moves in with me,” Gai admitted. “I’m worried that I may have overdone it when I told him to keep it a secret. It’s like he’s always on the verge of an anxiety attack whenever anything remotely romantic arises outside of my apartment. It’s frustrating.”

“Well, I mean, I get it though. It’s the unspoken understanding among ninja that we all have sex with each other when we’re on missions. I was even separately propositioned by Ino AND Kiba in the same mission once.”

Gai laughed. “Really? Seriously, the Rookie Nine have YET to stop having sex with anything that walks.”

“Well…”

“Okay, you know what I mean.”

“Anyway, guys hook up with one another all the time, but it’s just in passing. Nothing ever sticks. I think guys are really uncomfortable with the thought. We’re all supposed to get civilian wives and have a couple of kids. I guess we’re,” he said pointing back and forth between the two of them, “Just different.”

“I guess,” Gai shrugged.

“Well, I gotta get going. I have plans with destiny,” Kakashi said as he turned to jump back into the trees to run home. “Seriously, though, g’luck with Lee,” and jumped away into the trees.

Gai chuckled to himself. The only man he had ever been with, who never cared from him- just wished him “g’luck” with love. Gai couldn’t help but feel elated. He was in love and finally was becoming friends with someone he always wanted to be friends with. Things were really coming together for him.


Gai walked back to his apartment with his signature cheesy grin on his face. No one thought anything of it, but his happiness was so genuine that they did notice his extra pep in his step, which caused everyone to duck away into their homes to avoid him. Extra pep for Gai usually meant something odd like breaking something to prove his happiness.
When he reached his apartment, he could see Lee seeing on his couch, lost in thought. He unlocked the door and bounced through it with his enthusiasm.

“Lee, have you thought about moving in with me?” Gai nearly shouted with enthusiasm.

“Yeah, I have. Are you sure it’s the wisest idea? I mean, what if people start-“

“Lee, I totally don’t care if people find out.”

“Excuse me?”

“I totally don’t care if people find out,” he reached out for Lee’s face and gently ran his hand down Lee’s blushing cheek. “I’m so in love with you and I want you to feel comfortable to love me back the same way.”

“Wow…” Lee trailed off, never breaking eye contact with Gai. “Okay, then. I’ll move in, but I still don’t think we should start walking down the street making out or anything like that. That’d be weird no matter who the people are,” Lee finished with a smile.

“Agreed. Kakashi didn’t mean to freak you out-“ Gai started before he could stop. He didn’t want to bring up Kakashi because he did not want Lee to start asking questions about Kakashi’s level of knowledge.

“Oh, Kakashi-sempai… It’s hard to read him, ya know. With the mask and stuff,” Lee said furrowing his eyebrows in thought.

“Yeah, I guess after all these years I finally get him.” Whew, cleared that one.

“Does he know about us?”

Gai choked on his air because he had not been expecting such a forward question about the subject.

“Yeah, I told him, but only because he is my closest friend, besides you, and I know he would never tell anyway,” Gai said very quickly.

“You told someone?” Lee asked with a shocked look on his face.

Gai looked away in shame. “Yes, I’m sorry.”

“No, no, it’s okay,” Lee quickly replied waving his hands in the air. “I told Sakura and I’ve been feeling really guilty about it.”

“Did she tell you about-“

“Yeah, she did," Lee paused to digest the information Sakura had shared with him. "It’s really wild.”

Gai turned to look out the window in thought, “Yeah, I know. Kakashi… as a dad.”