Today was the day he had waited for all of his life. Today was the day that all of his wishes would be granted, the day that the childhood dream he had always had - would become a reality.

Obito waited eagerly at the front of the church, overlooking the crowd of guests and family members sitting in the pews, chatting quietly amongst themselves as they waited for the wedding to start. He smiled as he looked at them all, but he was more eager for someone else to arrive….

Just then, the crowd stood as the doors opened and the flower girl made her way down the aisle, followed by the bride. Obito's smile grew wider as he caught sight of her. She looked beautiful in her dress, custom made from the company, that trailed behind her as she walked. Yes, today would be a day to remember.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join these two under holy matrimony…." The words of the priest were drowned out as Obito focused on his beautiful soon-to-be wife, taking in the gentle curve of her face and the softness in her gaze, the one and only-

"Do you, Obito Uchiha, take this woman to be your wife, to love, to care for, and to

aid in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"...I do," the Uchiha answered, a thoughtful smile spreading across his face as he did so.

"And do you, Rin Nohara, take this man to be your husband, to love, to care for, and to aid in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"...I…."

In Rin's hesitation, Obito leaned in closer and whispered, "Rin...what's wrong?"

"I can't," she started, looking Obito in the eyes, a sincere yet pained expression on her face, "...I don't love you."

The room fell silent as Rin's words were heard. Obito's expression fell to one of disbelief, looking around at the shocked crowd, "You...you what?"

"I'm sorry, Obito," Rin whispered, backing away toward the doors, "...goodbye…." Within a few steps she was gone, and once again silence fell over the room. Moments later, the guests rose from the pews and filed out of the room, leaving Obito to indulge and wallow in his rejection and sorrow.

The reception somehow still went on, even without the bride and groom present. The guests were chatting away with close relatives or friends that they saw and helping themselves to the tables of refreshments and food that had been provided for after the ceremony. As music played softly in the background, Obito sat hunched over in a foldable chair near the shaded part of the room, lost in his thoughts. His hand loosely gripped around the plastic cup of fruit cocktail it held, but tensed every time he thought about earlier. It was completely unbelievable - left at the altar! He was so sure that Rin loved him...he absolutely loved her. So what had happened over the course of the few years they had been together?

Among the dozens of guests that had attended the ceremony was one of Obito's long-time friends Kakashi Hatake, a tall and much more handsome man (at least that's what everyone seemed to think of him back in high school) than Obito had ever been. He was now a successful owner of a highly-known company and one of the nation's leaders in business trade. As he wandered through the crowd of others with their drinks in hand, his eyes caught sight of the single person over in the corner, confirming that it was Obito when he moved closer.

"Hey. I heard about what happened. I'm sorry," the man apologized, pulling up another chair to sit next to the Uchiha. He waited a few moments but received no response and decided to drop the issue. "...you know, if you needed some extra cash to help pay back all of these wedding costs, I could possibly help you out," Kakashi stated to try and break the awkward silence between the two, turning his head to see if Obito would say anything in return. The man only continued to sulk in the metal chair, the plastic cup he held nearly falling out of his hand. "...I don't see why you stayed, Obito - there's no point in you staying here and surrounding yourself in what reminds you of the incident. Come on, I'll take you home," the Hatake concluded, tugging on the other's arm lightly, leading him to the exit. Things would only decline from there.

It had been a few months since the wedding catastrophe, though that may be a severe understatement as it was closer to having been an entire year. Obito had seemed to disappear off of the face of the earth, but not much effort had been made to locate him. Kakashi had continued to create new business deals with other companies across the globe and increase his success. As for Rin, well...no one seemed to know much about her case. It had seemed like she had completely disappeared along with Obito until a strange occurrence….

The Uchiha sat quietly in his apartment, the dull hum of the television buzzing in his ears. The program was nothing of interest to him, only something to listen to, something to make the room feel less empty. It was quite lonely with only himself occupying the small space along with his few personal possessions, scattered in various locations. Clothes laid in nearly every place that was vacant, most of them in need of a good wash. Dishes were piled in the small sink, still sporting small particles of the cuisine they once held. For the most part, the place was not very well kept, and most of the fault could be placed on the owner. Obito still felt the emotional pain of that fateful day where his heart was broken, and his living space was a direct reflection of its lingering aftermath. Not only had the event affected his home, it had also taken a definite toll on the man's health. His nights were spent moping rather than sleeping, his days filled with similar actions. There was hardly anything of reasonable condition to eat in his kitchen, and if there was, it was left to sit and slowly grow spoiled.

It was a miracle that the man was still alive, though his current condition seemed to be closer to death more than anything. The speaker on the television screen continued to talk quietly when a sudden bang was heard behind the Uchiha, causing him to jump up briefly. Muffled shouts followed the bang that had hit the other side of the man's apartment wall, catching his interest for the time being. Caught up in his thoughts on a daily basis, he had paid little attention to the idea of having 'neighbors' who he could socialize with. Rising from his sofa, Obito padded over to the wall, pressing his ear against the rough dry wall, only to catch the muffled voices again. He then moved to the door and opened it, peeking his head out into the hallway and noticed that the door to his right was opened just a crack.

"I've told you a thousand times, I'm not doing this!" a man called, frustration and irritation evident in his voice, "I don't know why you keep coming here, the answer will still be no!"

"But we've been seeing each other for months and things have been going so well - I don't see why you're not ready to get married already!"

"I said no!"

"Why not?"

"Because as his friend, it's not fair to Obito! He loved you and you just left him, and now you expect me to marry you? You broke that man's heart that day you left him at the-"

Just then, pounding footsteps sounded down the hallway and Obito watched as the woman, as Rin, stormed by his doorway. His eyes grew wide with shock as he saw the woman again after months of absence, his mind screaming at him to move, to chase after her, but the command was ignored. Instead, his legs moved to the right, and he shuffled into the room next door, catching sight of Kakashi rubbing at his temples. The man had heard the footsteps and lifted his head, surprised to see Obito standing in his doorway.

"Obito...what happened to you? You looked awful…." he grimaced. The Uchiha's bloodshot eyes stared back at the Hatake with pain and wonder as he croaked out, "...does she...she…." Kakashi rushed over as he saw the Uchiha's legs give out under him, catching him before he could land on the floor. "Easy. Just sit down for a bit. I'll get you some water -" the taller man then made his way over to the sink, fumbling with the handle on the cabinet and the knob on the faucet as he filled a glass with water and brought it over to Obito. The older male glanced at the glass and tried to take it in his weak grip, having some assistance from Kakashi as he took a sip. Giving an approving nod, Kakashi placed the glass down and sat next to his companion, hardly able to fathom how he could have allowed himself to become so sickly. Just months ago he was perfectly well, but now...something must have happened over the course of those few months to make him turn into this. This wasn't just an overnight thing.

"...Kakashi…."

"Hm?" the silver-haired man lifted his gaze, "Yeah?"

"...does she...love me…?"

Kakashi frowned at him. Why would he be asking such a pointless question? She had been away from him for this long, and he still didn't get it. Perhaps the incident was so traumatizing for him that it had all gone to his head, but yet again he looked sickly - perhaps he was always losing it from what seemed like lack of a proper sleeping pattern and meals. Obito definitely could use some help getting back on his feet, and the only person who was still there for him was Kakashi. It would take quite some time, but he would be able to help the Uchiha get over Rin.

Sighing quietly, he met Obito's gaze, speaking in a calm tone, "...no, but...that's okay. You can find someone better. Someone who actually does love you, and I'll help you do just that." A genuine smile spread across the Uchiha's face at Kakashi's statement. "Thanks Kakashi," he whispered back.

From that point on, the two would expand on their long-term friendship through finding that perhaps the one person who actually cared about them for all of those years was the other.