Another Damn Neurosis

Another Damn Neurosis

Summary- "They're for you, of course. I know that roses are a more romantic flower, but I thought you seemed like a lily kind of person."

AN- Since some of the Tripwire readers have requested more, I'm happy to comply in a sequel or two. Or three. A series of short stories is in order. Thank you all for reading. That was my first attempt at a short story and I'm glad you all liked it so much. In case you're interested, I have a multi chaptered work in progress called Rumor Has It (shameless self-promotion here) that might be worth your time. The style is vastly different but it'll hopefully give you a few chuckles.

Disclaimer- I don't own Naruto, nor am I making any money off of this. Reviews are my payment.


Another Damn Neurosis


Kakashi paced the street a few blocks away from the Konoha missions office, waiting for news of Genma's mission. He was scheduled to come back home today. Kakashi was more than anxious to see him, but he couldn't make himself stay in the office. He'd come close a few times, but it was too nerve-wracking. Distance, distance was good. Then he didn't have to see Raido come home alone if that was the case. Didn't want to, couldn't handle it.

He'd probably be okay. It was an escort mission, nothing serious. Then again, it was B-ranked, so they staffed for trouble.

No, it was fine. He had Raido with him and Genma was an assassin. They had each others' backs and Genma was a good shinobi. A chuunin could handle a B mission. Genma was a special jounin. There was no need for all this excessive worrying.

"You've been pacing in that spot for nearly twenty minutes," a deep voice said from across the street. The chakra signal and the smell of cigarette smoke identified the speaker as Asuma. "Something on your mind?"

Kakashi stopped his embarrassing pacing instantly and crossed the street to where Asuma was sitting at a table of a restaurant patio. His philosophy upon getting caught in something shameful (which seemed to be happening too much lately) involved acute denial. Never let them see you sweat. The table was set for two, so Kakashi could only conclude that Kurenai was in the bathroom. "How long have you been watching me?"

"Long enough to see you muttering to yourself. It's no wonder people think you're crazy." Asuma slouched in his chair, snuffing out the dwindling cigarette. "What's on you mind, Kakashi-san?"

"The usual. World peace, training, pornography. You?"

"The same, minus the world peace part. I don't have time to think about the impossible."

"Hnn." Asuma was dressed up for the evening, by which Kakashi meant he left the jounin vest at home and was looking dashing in a black on black ensemble. Just because Asuma was a big man didn't mean that Kakashi hadn't thought about the package under the wrapping. And Kurenai obviously didn't mind. In light of recent developments in his personal life (he refused to say love life) he was noticing even more similarities between himself and Asuma's predicament. Denial of what was there all along turns the possible into the impossible. "Waiting for your girlfriend?"

Asuma blushed deeply and hid behind a menu. "Kurenai is in the bathroom and she is *not* my fucking girlfriend." Not that he didn't wish it was different, of course, but all of the good love stories were fairy tales anyway. "How many times do I have to tell you all that?"

"Until you've convinced us with more than just words." They were a couple, and an adorable one at that. Whether they admitted it to everyone else or not. It was always Asuma and Kurenai invited to a shinobi get together, not one or the other. And they never failed to arrive together.

Asuma grunted in annoyance, deciding that it was high time to throw the bloodhound off of his scent and onto another, more interesting one. The source of Kakashi's pacing was far more interesting than the tired old rumors of he and Kurenai. "He's already back you know."

"Who?" Kakashi said in that lazy voice of his, slow-moving as molasses but as carefree and flippant as a spring breeze that played games with one's hair. Like he couldn't give a damn about anything. So nonchalant, so irritatingly collected that you just knew he was hiding something. This time, Asuma knew what he was hiding. This wasn't one of his ghosts, not yet.

*^*^*^*^*

*How long have they been doing this?” Kurenai asked in amusement. Kakashi had been staring at Genma for the past ten minutes and had finally, much to Asuma and Kurenai's delight, excused himself abruptly and gone over to interrupt his and Anko's flirt-fest. Kurenai loved Anko dearly but her best friend was the biggest whore she had or would ever meet.

The music in the bar was a little too loud. Asuma had to strain to hear his friend’s words. "I don't know about Genma, but Kakashi’s been pretty much exclusive with Genma for some time now. One of his old sex buddies told me that he hasn’t seen any of Kakashi in at least five months." Asuma took a careful sip of beer, not wanting to get too drunk since he had to walk Kurenai home. It was the polite thing to do.

"Genma's been as much of a whore as he ever was as far as I can tell. I don’t think he realizes how bad Kakashi's got it for him."

Asuma nodded, watching the exchange across the room, the look in Genma's eyes, Anko's jealousy, the predatory nature of Kakashi's stance. "I think it goes both ways," he said as Genma slid off the bar stool and walked off with Kakashi without so much as a backwards wave of goodbye to Anko. They had no idea they were so absorbed in each other because they were so absorbed in what they could lose. It was sad to see them so close yet so far away.

"It's been almost two years," Kurenai said sadly. "Hayate's death really took a toll on him, didn't it?"

"He'll be okay. It's Kakashi I'm worried about."

*^*^*^*^*

"You know damned well who. I saw Raido around the corner about twenty minutes ago." Asuma gave Kakashi a moment to absorb the meaning behind his observation. That yes, he was more transparent than he thought and no, Asuma was not going to buy any lame ass excuses about how horny he was. "You two still fucking?"

Kakashi nodded absently, mind somewhere else entirely. They were still fucking alright, and a little bit more than that. He'd gone into Genma's empty house last night. It had felt twice as lonely without the foul mouthed brunette there to fill the space with sake and skin and breath. He missed Genma now more than ever, feeling more vulnerable the longer the absence stretched. This is why he swore off relationships. The waiting would kill him, the uncertainty of it all. "Are you and Kurenai sleeping together yet or is the sexual tension between the two of you an illusion in my crazy head?"

"I'm sure that there are plenty of illusions in that fucked up head of yours, but if I told you, Kurenai would have my head."

That was a way of saying yes without saying yes. Kakashi could think of a hundred perverted comments to say in response to that, but Asuma might deck him and Kakashi didn't go looking for bodily injury. Besides, eventually his mind turned those dirty thoughts into all the things he could do with Genma since the special jounin seemed to have returned. If Raido was walking around town then nothing serious could be wrong with Genma. He'd be at the hospital in that case. "Kunoichi are deadly, aren't they?"

"Yeah. And thanks for keeping your mouth shut, by the way." Asuma laid down the menu in favor of looking the copy-nin in the uncovered eye. "One secret for another?"

"Depends on what you're asking," he cautioned cooly. Kakashi would admit it to himself and he would admit it to Genma but saying it aloud was a different story. Things became even more tangible when more people know about it. Kakashi wasn't ready for that. It was still too new for him to share when he was still trying to rationalize this relationship with himself. He wanted to keep things between he and Genma for now, until he felt stable, not so unbalanced by it all. As much as he liked Asuma, he wasn't ready.

Asuma chuckled lightly. He should have remembered that Kakashi was touchy with emotions. It was stop and go all the way, like colic. "Fine. I'll just tell you a secret." Glancing around to make sure Kurenai wasn't within hearing range, Asuma told Kakashi something he'd never told anyone before. "It's not me," he said with a tinge of regret. "It's her."

Kakashi nodded. He knew what it took to be convinced of something that should have been obvious. "Relationships suck, huh?"

"Nah," Asuma disagreed as he spotted Kurenai coming back. Kurenai wasn't in denial anymore than he was. They had bigger problems. The bottom line came down to the hopeless idea that want is not enough. "It's getting them started that sucks. But if you find the right one, it's worth it." His eyes flickered in Kurenai’s direction. "So I've heard anyway."

*>*>*>*>*>

"Slow down, Genma," Raido called out to his partner up ahead sprinting through the autumnal trees like there was no tomorrow. He must really be horny, Raido concluded. Not only had they been out of contact with everyone but the Daiymo's wife and daughter, but Genma had been expressly forbidden by a very brutal kick to the shin not to make a single move on the Daiymo's very pretty, very virgin daughter who Radio suspected was nowhere near as innocent as she made herself out to be. She kept batting her eyelashes and suggestively swaying her hips around Genma the entire trip.

In the man-whore's defense, Genma hadn't laid so much as a finger on the girl, although he did make quite a few dirty comments that Raido had to smack him for. He accepted his friend for the pervert he was, but sometimes he thought Genma could use a few lessons in tact *before* a dignitary decided to take up grievance for a 'misdemeanor.'

Genma's response was a complete halt of movement. He crouched on a tree limb to catch his breath and wipe sweat from his forehead. Grateful for the reprieve, he sprawled out on the branch, happy to disregard the rough bark digging into the skin of his neck. "Where is all of your energy coming from?" he inquired through soft pants. "I'm exhausted and we're only three miles from home. We could just walk."

"I wanted to get back before nightfall," Genma explained. Back to what they had left up in the air. Maybe he was thinking too much into this or maybe he was just thinking like a girl, but he wasn't sure exactly where he and Kakashi officially stood. Yes, he liked him and yes, her was willing to give a relationship a go but he'd left so abruptly that things felt too incomplete to be real. He needed solidity. "We can run three miles easy, right?"

"You can run if you want. I'm walking."

"Fucking wimp."

Raido propped himself up on his elbows, eying his friend critically. "Why are you in such pissy mood? You've been hell to deal with the whole mission."

Genma was quickly growing sick of the third degree. He didn't like being grilled, especially when he was actually trying to keep a secret. If things didn't work out with him and Kakashi he didn't want to have to explain his misery. Not even to Raido, who he would easily name his best friend. The usual excuse ought to do. "I'm horny as hell," he grumbled. "I haven't got laid in a fucking week and you wonder why I'm pissy. You should know better."

"Yeah." It was more than pissy, though. It was the distance between them that was off. Genma didn't tell him perverted jokes around the campfire, didn't come onto him to tick him off. He hadn't even touched the Daiymo's daughter. Raido had been prepared to beat him off with an iron rod if he sniffed out any funny stuff. Genma had been on good behavior, leaving Raido regretting the extra weaponry he'd packed just for him.

*^*^*^*^*

Raido watched from circle of fire light as the Daiymo's daughter, Hikari, sneaked out of the caravan with as much lady-like grace as girl slipping away from her parents in the dead of night could muster. Her pale yellow satin glowed in the dual lights of fire and moon, illuminating the pale skin of her face and highlighting the black sheen of her glossy hair, let down from the elaborate bun. She was a woman with a rendevous in mind.

He sighed, knowing exactly where she was heading. Genma was just off in the woods keeping watch for the next hour. She'd had her eye on him for the past three days. And Genma never could resist a pretty face.

Genma was whittling a stick with a sharp kunai, keeping his ears pealed and senses alert for foreign chakra all the while thinking that there were better people to send on a mission like this. He was an assassin, not an escort. He didn't need to be here. He needed to be home, with Kakashi, figuring out where they would go from there. He needed to get away from Hikari-san, who’d been making eyes at him. He needed time to think about everything that had happened.

He groaned inwardly when he heard the rustling of skirts. Hikari, of course. Exactly what he didn't need right now.

"Genma-san," she said quietly.

Genma granted her a brief hello out of politeness. Raido would be so proud to know that he'd actually listened during the etiquette talks. "Isn't it a bit late for you to be out, Hikari-san?"

Hikari blushed, quite the innocent maiden. Genma wasn't fooled, but an amateur might find her convincing. "Isn't it a bit cold for you to be out here alone?"

Genma snorted. "It won't get any warmer if we get naked, babe."

The blushing maiden nearly stamped her foot, reminding Genma of how young she still was, how close to being a child. "You were nowhere near this off-putting over the summer, Genma-san." And whining to boot. He remembered that night, the gentle hands on his back, the soft kisses on his neck. The touch of a girl who has everything. It was amazing how much he loathed that now, how transient it all was. There was nothing real about a woman like that. She probably didn't have a single blemish on her lily white skin. Nothing like him.

"Summer's gone."

*^*^*^*^*

It was kind of disappointing, actually, seeing Hikari-san stalk back to the caravan in a haughty huff. He liked hitting Genma. Maybe there was an inner BDSM freak waiting to be uncovered inside of him. "You whore."

"Well, it was a hands-off week. Besides, I'm saving up all my funny stuff for you, baby." A hand on his knee sent Raido scurrying away. Call him a homophobe, but he didn't like the touching. He could stand the dirty comments and the suggestive eyebrow raises. He did it all the time. Touching was a whole other story. "Come on, lets put that iron rod to good use."

Raido, as perturbing as it was, realized at that moment just how much he’d missed Genma's pervy comments during the week. It was a relief to see Genma behaving in front of royalty, but on a personal level he'd really missed it. The question was, what had him on such good behavior? The mere threat of a beating had never been enough to deter him before. Genma liked things up his ass. For him, though. . . "I'll pass, Genma. Maybe another time."

"Suit yourself, buddy." Genma stretched quickly and got to his feet. "Ready to go?"

"You call that a break?" He stood up anyway, knowing that Genma would only pester him until he complied. "You must have a seriously hot date."

He didn't know if he had a date waiting for him, but he did have a man and what could turn into dates in the future. If Kakashi was still willing to take whatever it was they had to the next level. He knew his friend, knew how skittish he was. Would things change between them when he returned? Would their relationship be completely different? Genma liked the idea of dating, but he liked Kakashi as a friend too. Was being a friend any different from being a boyfriend?

Then again, why was he worrying so much? They'd said it, right, on that morning that seemed so long ago? He had a boyfriend, and everything had been fine between them when he left. But then, that morning seemed so much like a good dream he'd never have again that Genma wasn't sure it had happened at all.

*^*^*^*^*

He tasted like rice and tea. Old. Familiar. His tongue probed Genma's mouth, finding familiar nerve endings and sweeping over every single one of them. He touched all the spots that had Genma gasping for the breath he lost somewhere, flung into the far corners of the room, drifting up to the ceiling.

"There weren't supposed to be any strings attached," he murmured against Genma's lips.

"It was a tripwire, I think," Genma murmured back. "We both missed it."

He pulled back a little, just enough to look down into Genma's golden brown eyes. Genma met his mismatched ones fervently, memorizing the way his eye lashed shrouded the red and grey. "Kissing is for boyfriends," he said as if he were crazy or the world, he wasn't sure. "Boyfriends kiss and cuddle. Friends drink and compare scars." That was how it had always worked. That was how it had never worked.

"No," Genma corrected with an ironic smile. "We've got it wrong. Boyfriends drink sake and fall asleep," he ghosted his lips over the scar on Kakashi's cheek, "after they’ve kissed their scars."

*^*^*^*^*

Boyfriends, not friends, not fuck buddies. Genma smiled into the forest, feeling better than he had in days. Kakashi wasn't going anywhere. He'd be there when Genma got back, mask down, scar barred for him to see. He loved that scar. He loved to feel the ridges in the dark and feather kisses down it whenever he could. Kakashi and his scar were home, waiting to call him a jackass and joke with his in the dark.

No, he couldn't guarantee that. Kakashi could have gone on a mission in his absence. He could be dead right that very moment. Then the scar would be gone. That little bit of humanity in Kakashi to which he clung would be gone and it would all be a dream he'd never have again.

Scared, always scared. He knew exactly where they stood. Genma had a boyfriend, a boyfriend who could easily die on him, just like Hayate did. That was the life of a shinobi. Relationships were more dangerous than a whole host of enemy ninja. They left emotional pain, the scars that you can't see unless you closed your eyes.

"Genma," Raido broke through his thoughts. "Are you ready to go?"

Go. Go home. Go home to his boyfriend who might or might not be dead. Genma didn't know if he could stand that yet he took a breath to collect himself for the inevitable. Might is a good word, he reminded himself. Might means that a yes is a potential. Might means there's a chance.

"Yeah, I'm ready," he said with a wry smile.

*>*>*>*>*

Kami, but hot water felt good after bathing once in the past week. It hardly compared to the Daiymo's personal hot springs in luxuriousness, but it felt damned near euphoric being home. That was the goal of every mission: make it home alive. He and Raido came back alive this time, but there would be other times where it would be harder, times where he came back so fucked up he would swear he'd seen a glimmer of the afterlife.

*^*^*^*^*

Raido bent over Genma's prone body, sweat pouring from his body in spite of the chilly rain misting from the sky. Chaos reigning around the pair, the scent of burned flesh and pine mixing like some horrible demonic potpourri from hell. Shizune was around somewhere, beating back the last two of the ten ninja who'd ambushed their squad. The screams a quarter mile away told him that Gai and Kakashi were still at work. The fire was caused by an enemy nin's jutsu gone wrong. Kakashi had managed to douse the fire, but not until it had killed most of the enemy in a backfire. Raido was pretty sure he'd done it on purpose.

The blood dripping from Genma's mouth was a dark, almost black as he gasped and wheezed. His entire body shuddered until he went limp, and all Raido could do was sit by and wait for Shizune, rubbing his body, holding back the vomit. The hole in his stomach was so damn large.

*^*^*^*^*

Then there would be a time where he didn't come back.

When all was said and done, he loved his small shower stall, the stained bathroom rug, the rusty sink that gave him hot water when he asked for cold. He loved the dent in the wall just down the hall from his bedroom, and the crack on the ceiling of his living room. He liked it when the loose spring on the couch dug into his back, beseeching him to buy a new one and he didn't mind when the electricity randomly decided that he should take a nap at seven o'clock in evening while trying to eat dinner and he was happy when the wind whistled through his the window that didn't close all the way in the dead of winter. Genma reveled in all the little idiosyncrasies of his house because they were his to come back to and his to curse til kingdom come. His house, in all of its imperfection, wasn’t going anywhere.

So when the temperature changed from scalding hot to bone-numbing cold, Genma screamed every obscenity know to man and then some, glad that he still could. Then he vowed to have someone look at the water heater because this was just getting out of hand. He didn’t deserve this kind of treatment from his water.

Toweling himself dry as he padded naked down the hall, Genma ran his free hand over the dent in the wall, flicked the light on and off, straightened a picture frame all because he still could. He opened and closed the window twice, the strong wind like a slap. He smelled his laundry, remembering the scent of his detergent. He pulled on a shirt and pants and threw the window open again. The room smelled musty.

Wait a second. His laundry was clean and folded and put away in his bureau? Last time he checked, his pants were in a basket on the kitchen table and strewn about the floor. Who the hell had been in here while he was gone? Thieves didn’t do favors for the people they robbed.

Cautiously, he stalked into the kitchen. As he suspected, the basket was gone and his floor was clean. Spotless. Smelled like lemon. Someone had cleaned. Kakashi? Genma lived in a village full of ninja, most of who were perfectly capable of disarming his security traps, but Kakashi was the only person he could think of who would want to break in for some reason. But to clean? He knew that Kakashi had his compulsions; he'd seen his apartment, white, nearly barren, and somewhat clinical. He just didn't expect the compulsion to carry into *his* apartment.

It was strange to not feel grit on the bottom of his feet, he concluded. Like a small consistency of his life was missing. Damn, Kakashi. It wasn't his floor to clean. Although, it was nice having clean laundry.

Speak of the devil. A familiar chakra signal made itself known nearby. Couldn't have been more than twenty feet away. Kakashi really wasn't dead. He was outside and he'd come to welcome Genma home. He didn't know whether he was more excited or apprehensive about seeing him again. Feeling him, not seeing him yet, gave him the impression that a ghost was just on the other side of the wall. Biting back nerves, Genma turned around just as the front door swung open to reveal Kakashi and . . .

Genma's mouth dropped to his stomach. As usual, Kakashi was in his ninja attire, black and green, the forehead protector shielding his Sharingan eye but there was something very, very wrong with the picture presented. In Kakashi's arms was nestled a stunning bouquet of gorgeous, snow-white lilies. If Genma were a woman, he might have swooned or squealed or something equally undignified. But as it were. . .

"What the hell are those?" Genma inquired with as much manly indignation. Sure they were dating, but flowers? Men don't bring other men flowers, it just isn't done. It was against decorum, he decided right then and there, completely inappropriate for the kind of relationship they had.

"A token of my undying affection," Kakashi dead-panned as he crossed the living room to join Genma in the kitchen. He tossed the bouquet of flowers unceremoniously onto the table, loosening a few petals in the process. They fluttered to the floor in abandonment. Genma stared at him blankly. Kakashi stared back, willing him to drop the subject. Genma just kept staring, willing him to take his 'token of affection' and shove it up his ass.

"What, you wanted roses?"

Genma snatched up the flowers and held them aloft, brandishing them like a deadly weapon. "If you are somehow implying that I'm the woman because I like to take it up the ass, then you can forget about having sex tonight unless *you're* the one bent over the arm of the sofa."

Bemused, Kakashi looked down on the bouquet, clearly unimpressed by his show of intimidation. No one fucked Hatake Kakashi. "First of all, you know that I'd do *not* do uke. Second, that's not a deadly weapon, that's a bouquet of very abused, harmless lilies, so put them down already. And third, I was actually hoping to fuck you in the bed, but if you want to do it over the couch, then I have no objections."

Genma lowered his weapon a fraction. "Okay wise-ass. First of all, your ass will be mine one day." Kakashi snorted and Genma glowered. "Second, you aren't supposed to break into people's houses to clean up after then and third, how could you have bought me this ridiculously romantic sentiment?"

"Not bought, just brought," Kakashi corrected righteously. "Those are actually from Gai. Happy early birthday, Genma-kun."

"Gai bought these?" Genma sniffed them tentatively. They smelled pleasant, but still. "Why would Gai buy me flowers?"

"They weren't for you originally."

*^*^*^*^*

An unforseen roadblock appeared on his journey to Genma's apartment, a spandex wearing, bowl-cut sporting roadblock he'd been fastidiously avoiding all week long. Gai knew his usual haunts, the memorial, the tree he liked to read in, the bench he liked to doze on, the restaurant he occasionally went for lunch. Everywhere he'd turned, there was Gai. This time Gai had found him in the middle of the road, surrounded by at least a dozen people. And he was cradling a bouquet of white lilies.

"I have been looking for you for days, Kakashi. Have you been ill?"

Kakashi chose to say nothing, instead eying the lilies warily. No snide remarks came to him, no cool comments that aggravated Gai so much. All he could think about was the lilies and Gai's strange idea of romance and how disturbingly sweet it all was even though he was itching to strangle him.

"Where are you heading this lovely day?"

"Who are those for?" he said abruptly, his voice finding the molasses quality even in his morbid fascination, the kind that compelled you to watch someone's head get dipped in hot wax. He knew they had to be for him. Gai had written him a letter a few days ago, a gushing letter full of all kind of romantic fantasies. Kakashi had burned it after he choked on his breakfast.

Gai beamed brightly. "They're for you, of course. I know that roses are a more romantic flower, but I thought you seemed like a lily kind of person."

Kakashi groaned inwardly as some passing civilians giggled into their hands. Gai was smiling widely, proud of himself for his deduction and holding out the bouquet for Kakashi to take. A few genin ambled past, gawking in wide-eyed wonder at the courtship unfolding right in the middle of the avenue. If Kakashi was capable of blushing, he was pretty sure he would be. Instead of taking the bouquet, he grabbed Gai by the arm and led him down a secluded alley, away from prying eyes and giggling girls, which only induced more giggles and stares.

And he was not a lily kind of person, dammit.

*^*^*^*^*

Genma peered down at the abused bouquet with a new expression, his discontent banished. It border-lined on amusement, Kakashi decided, but leaned significantly towards outright sadism. The beginning of a leer, or maybe it was a benign grin tugged at the corners of his lips. No, no that was undeniably a leer, and a gleeful one at that. "How embarrassing for you," Genma jibbed without remorse.

"Fuck you."

"No, no, really." Kakashi sensed he was holding back a snicker. Good thing too, or he would have had to deck him. "It was really sweet of Gai to think of you. Real thoughtful."

"Yeah, real fucking thoughtful. The man tried to woo me right in the middle of the street."

"Woo you?" Genma arched an eyebrow, wishing that he had a senbon to click in his teeth. He had an oral fixation, the compulsion resulting from a torture session in his ANBU days. Chewing, sucking, clicking, smoking, whatever he could do to make himself remember that the still had a functioning jaw. "Do people still do that?"

"Gai does." Kakashi pulled out a chair, legs scraping roughly on the floor as he indecorously plopped down, limbs askew yet somehow making it look as if he meant his limbs to land cockeyed. Maybe he did. "He's been stalking me, Genma. Flowers, chocolate, love letters. He thinks I'm a fucking woman."

Genma mused aloud. "If you and Gai were in a relationship, who would the woman be? You're domineering in bed, but Gai has his manly complex to consider. You wouldn't want to go and screw with his manhood, I’m guessing."

"Genma, the man wears a leotard. If that's not a sign, I don't know what is."

"Yeah, but no woman has eyebrows like *that.*"

"And no man wears a leotard. He's not a freaking ballerina."

"No, he's a jounin."

"Hmm," hummed Kakashi, settling into complacency. Any oddity, peculiar character trait, queer habit, or anal compunction could be waved away and forgiven by three words. He's a jounin. Enough said. No jonin is completely right in the head, and some are some fucked up, down, over, and upside down that there is no other rationale. He's a jounin. "Fine. I guess I have to forgive him, then."

Genma was still holding the bouquet, watching it for signs of trouble. "Why in the hell did you bring it to me? Does the word trash can mean anything to you?"

Kakashi shrugged. "They're nice flowers," was all he had to say. Genma could have laughed right then, but he knew better. Copy Ninja Kakashi, the former ANBU member who would slit a comrade's throat if it were for the good of the mission, felt bad about throwing away a bunch of lilies. Classic example of a jounin in action, a guilt complex of sorts. Hilarious in a humbling kind of way.

*^*^*^*^*

The Copy-nin just about slammed Gai into the wall, vainly hoping that a rendezvous with bricks would knock some sense into his thick skull. "What the hell do you think you are doing?" he hissed. Fuck nonchalance at this point, he needed to put an hasty end to this.

"You didn't respond to my letter or the chocolates, so I thought flowers might do the trick."

*Of course you did* "Gai, we have to straighten a few things out. I burned your little love letter, because as soon as I read the words 'my beloved Kakashi-kun' I choked on dango and came to the conclusion that you must be *trying* to kill me."

"Too heartfelt for you?" Gai bit his lip, put-off by the rejection of his passion. "I can do better."

"I don't want you to do better. I want you to leave me alone."

"But what about the night we spent together? That beautiful, amazing night."

Kakashi sighed in acceptance of just how naive Gai was to think that night was *amazing* by any stretch of the imagination. "That was one of the most awkward nights of my life. It was less sex and more of a train wreck to be honest."

Gai's eyes were downcast. "I thought it was nice," he murmured unhappily. Kakashi's momentum faltered and deflated. He didn't like hurting people. Sure, he was callous for the most part, but there were certain people who he just couldn't stand to see that look on. He was a bastard, but against his better judgement, he did care. He was damned near certain that it would come back and kill him one day, but he didn't like it when Gai slipped into that place past histrionics, past the melodramatic guard that he kept up so that he didn’t become afraid of feeling things, like he was.

"Look," he said in the gentlest tone he could manage, not soothing but not gruff either. "I gave you a nice night. But that was all, Gai. One night. There is nothing else between us."

"Never?"

"Never," he affirmed. Kakashi braced himself for what he was about to say, fighting of the oppressive feeling of weight on his chest. His heart raced unnaturally fast. *Name, no name. You don't have to say a name yet. Go slowly and breathe, dammit.* "The truth is I'm already involved with someone." There, that wasn't so difficult. Vague, noncommital, still distinctly insubstantial. Just someone.

"You are?" Kakashi expected the quizzical expression on Gai's face. Kakashi and a relationship did not seem plausible, even to him. But he wasn't expecting the enraged outburst that followed. "You disreputable charlatan," Gai said as he stepped into Kakashi, forcing him to take a hop-skip backwards. "How dare you sully the name of romance with your philandering ways?" Every word was punctuated with crisp poke to Kakashi's chest and a step forward until he was the one pinned against the wall. "I knew you were a man-whore, but cheating? That's low even for you."

To stunned to correct the time line error the only coherent thought that Kakashi could put together bubbled from him mouth. "Did you just call me a whore?"

"Darn right I did. And for the record, my eternal rival, I don't appreciate being used for your loose ways. For Kami's sake, keep it in you pants." He shoved the bouquet of lilies in Kakashi's limp arms. "Here. Take these and give them to your boyfriend by way of apology. I'm leaving. Good riddance."

The lilies seemed to bristle in indignation nestled there in his arms. Gai was stalking away in moral righteousness, chin high, arms swinging, unaware that he'd embarrassed himself more than he'd shamed Kakashi. He didn't know whether to laugh from the absurdity of it or catch up to Gai and explain things better. As it was, all he could do was feel glad that he hadn't told him what he'd done with the chocolate.

*^*^*^*^*

"You always have been a charlatan, you know," Genma concurred. "Gai was just the first to call you on it."

"I'm a charlatan? Genma, I'm ashamed to say that your reputation exceeds mine in that area."

"Yeah, I get around," he said proudly. Sex was Genma's forte. "And by the way, what *did* you do with the chocolate?"

"Oh that. I ate them," he stated simply. "I couldn't let good chocolate go to waste."

Genma cracked up laughing, leaning on the counter for support. "You're right," he said through chuckles. "Gai would have really been pissed then, huh?" He gestured to the flowers in his grasp. "You're reusing a gift, then?"

"Only if you want them. Since I hadn't been sleeping with anyone else for five months, I guess it was kind of like cheating."

"Me too, I guess." He scrutinized the lilies some more, weighing in whether or not they were harmless, to his pride, their relationship. To his pride, probably. To his relationship, he wasn't so sure. He'd been afraid that something would change between them, that Kakashi would be different when he returned., that he'd changed his mind. But here they were, bantering in the kitchen just like always. Nothing had changed, except for the constant fear that Kakashi would disappear every time he blinked. "Okay," he said finally. "I'll take your used gift on two conditions. One, never, *ever* bring me flowers again. And two, get your ass over here and kiss the hell out of me."

Kakashi chuckled, getting to his feet smooth as honey. Somehow, his long limbs went from relaxed and tangled to upright and stretched in on fluid motion. Genma felt his heart speed up as Kakashi came closer, hoping to god that he wasn't going to lose his breath every time Kakashi got close. That had to be some sort of hazard to his health. "I can do that," Kakashi murmured as he covered Genma's lips with his own.

Genma was pretty sure the world started spinning as Kakashi pushed his tongue into his mouth, sweeping his tongue over all the sensitive spots. Spinning, spinning and falling away and Genma clutched at Kakashi like he was the only anchor to this world. Kakashi was solid, smelling like oranges, salt, and safety, like home. Their kisses were slow and languid, both of them hoping it would never end. Kakashi pulled Genma closer for the fear that letting go would be forever. Even here, now, in the circle of his arms, Genma was as insubstantial as smoke. No matter how tightly he held him, he still felt like he was going to slip away.

Oh well. He supposed it was just one more damn neurosis he was going to have to battle.

"I missed you," Genma breathed into Kakashi's lips. "Babe."

"You want me to hurt you?"

"No," he wheedled, getting a firm, good grope in on Kakashi's semi-hard cock. "I want you to fuck me senseless."

"Beg for it."

"Fuck me." His voice demanded it, his body begged for it, rubbing up against him the way he was. "Or I'm throwing out the lilies."

Kakashi's visible eye twinkled at him. "Well, we wouldn't want perfectly good flowers to go to waste. They're so damn pretty."

As Kakashi discarded the mask and forehead protector and engulfed Genma's lips once more, Genma felt that for once, or maybe just for now, things were going to be okay. Nothing had been remotely weird between them, and they were both alive. All he wanted was to fuck and talk and smoke the night away. With his boyfriend.

All Kakashi wanted to do was catch the smoke.

Fin

***************************************************************


There we go, the second installation of the Tripwire series. Give me your thoughts, opinions, any kind of feedback is loved and cherished. If you want me to, I'll write at least four more in the series and as a special treat, I'll give you a sneak peek of the fourth one, Lie to Me.

-------------------------------

Kakashi stood over Sasuke, breathing heavily. Genma caught up to him seconds later, flanked by Tsunade, Gai, and a few ANBU members, solemn in their animal masks, swords brandished. The smell of wet leaves was heavy in the air, musty like old secrets. The battle sounds faded into the distance, the last of Orochimaru's minions putting up a courageous stands as Konoha and Suna nin struck them down.

Tsunade nodded to the ANBU members, who sheathed their katanas and disappeared to aid the remaining ninja in their fight against Orochimaru's followers. Turning to Gai, she issued a brusque command. "Assemble a squad of jounin and follow Itachi. We need to track him down as quickly as possible."

Gai nodded briskly and jumped into the trees, vanishing like smoke. To Genma, she ordered him to stay with Kakashi and take care of Sasuke. Then she left to take command of the Itachi search.

He was too quiet, Genma realized. Stunned into wordless oblivion by the sight of the ghost in front of him, a past caught up with him. He could feel the silence wrapping around them like a rope, slithering and rubbing like a raw wind. It was choking the life out of them.

Sasuke was choking the life out of them.

--------------------------------

Give me some love in the form of reviews. The next in the series is called Peeling Oranges. Be on the lookout for it.