"What's wrong, Kakashi-san?" Sakura said, still being dragged by her head. She swatted his arm away and righted herself.

"Nothing. I just want to go home. I'm hungry, but I already told you." He shoved his hands into his pockets and started walking. "Why do you keep asking? Are you paranoid?"

"No, are you? You're acting strange, Kakashi-san, and I worry about you. You avoid my questions and now you're pulling me away from my friends. Now, please, just answer the question. What's wrong?" Her tone was sweet, sincere, and made his heart sink that he was lying to her, until he remembered it was for a good reason.

He couldn't tell her who she'd seen. She'd freak out. And he definitely couldn't tell her where he'd seen him. "Nothing is wrong," he said finally. "I just ran into an old friend of mine. I owe him money. We're hiding now, so keep quiet or he'll find us. And I'll make you work for the money if it's your fault." He kept walking. She stopped.

"Kakashi-san..." she shook her head, deciding not to talk about it anymore. Instead, she put on a smile and went to catch up to him.

--

The man had already seen her. Who else could it be? Not many people in the world have bright pink hair. The sword he still had with him was tucked under his coat, and his hair was bound back. He kept it long, like a samurai, because that is the illusion of himself he had.

"Why?" he asked himself as he lit a cigarette. "Why have you become so obsessed with this?"

He had no real answer, but he couldn't stop himself from wanting it. He blew smoke out of his nose and headed off into the trees, the direction he'd seen her go not two hours before. Her tracks would be fresh, and there'd be no trouble in finding where she lived.

Or should he wait? Another week? Another month? Or should he act on impulse?

He sighed. What to do, what to do? He'd have to decide, before it was too late. He wasn't a patient one.

--

"Dinner's served, Kakashi-san" Sakura placed a steaming bowl of rice on the table in front of the man and rolled down her sleeves. She sat down at the table opposite him and took her own bowl.

"Just rice?" Kakashi asked, peering down at the meager meal. The girl looked up at him and nodded.

"That's all. Unless you tell me. And I'm not joking this time. Every meal will be rice until you tell me." Oh well. He'd deal. But he was hungry...

But think about it..., he told himself, you can't be the one to tell her. You can't be the one to make her world fall apart. She's the only one you have. Your only friend. Fuck that up and you're a bigger loser than anyone ever thought.

Yeah, he'd settled it with himself. No telling. Even if it meant starvation.

"Well, alright then." He slapped his rock hard abs jokingly. "I've been meaning to lose a few pounds anyway." Sakura stared in disbelief. She was sure that would make him talk, and now she was still hungry, as was he.

"Dammit!" She cried, slamming her fists on the table. Kakashi only watched her with curiosity. This was unlike her. "Why won't you just tell me!? Why is it so important to keep it from me? After all the time you've known me there are still things you have to keep a secret..."

"I've told you it's..."

"Don't tell me it's nothing, because if it was nothing you'd have no problem telling me! Don't treat me like a child, Kakashi!" She got up and scraped her rice back into the pot. "I'm sleeping outside." She stormed out without another word. He let her go. He'd see her later. He finished his dinner in silence.

But he couldn't help but notice that that was the first time she'd ever said his name without the suffix.

Sakura wrapped her coat around herself outside, bracing herself against the cold. Her breath was steamy and fogged her vision until it drifted away on the wind. She blinked away the snow that landed on her lashes and turned to face the house she lived in. Had lived in for ten years.

She looked down sadly as she realized Kakashi wasn't going to come out and apologize. She turned away and walked around the house, to the side, where the pile of firewood was kept. She climbed the wood like it was a staircase until she was on the roof. Just as she set foot on the snow-covered top of the house, her other foot slipped, making the makeshift steps fall apart.

How would she get down?

"Kakashi will come get me in the morning," she assured herself, and sat on a snowdrift stubbornly. "I just don't want to look at him..." she buried her face in her arms and turned up the collar of her coat against the wind. She lost feeling in her fingers and toes fairly quickly, but ignored in, rubbing her hands together for warmth. "So tired," she yawned. She'd forgotten a blanket.

It stopped snowing. She didn't realize it at first, only when she laid down to sleep. She opened her eyes and no longer saw little white sparkles falling down upon her. Then she let her mind drift to sleep.

--

Kakashi sneaked out late at night, once he was sure she was sleeping. He brought two blankets with him, thrown over his shoulder. He climbed the fallen pile of wood to the top of the house and threw them over the frozen Sakura. Wrapping them carefully around her, he lifted the girl and carried her back inside with him, putting her to bed where she was safe.

"Yell at me later," he said to her sleeping form, and them doused the fire, keeping only the embers barely lit,and tucked himself into bed.

A/N: Sorry this chapter kind of sucks, but in the relationship part, there was definitely some evolving going on. But there's gonna be some excitement in the next chapter for sure, as soon as I get around to writing it. It's almost the weekend, though, and I've got a zillion study halls.

We've just been having weird schedules at school, and it's annoying. That'll change soon enough, though, because there are three weeks left of school! Yay!