"Eight months. Eight. Months. In case you've somehow missed it, that's almost an entire pregnancy."

That's one of the worst comparisons he's ever heard.

"And you kept giving me and Tori grief. Hypocrite."

Please. As if there are any similarities between them.

"I told you we were still exchanging notes."

She sounds far more defensive than she should. But that has more to do with her friends backing her in a corner than with the topic at hand.

The worst of her friends scoffs.

"Flirting is completely different from sleeping with him and you know it."

No it isn't.

"It wasn't any different from before. Just with added orgasms."

See.

"It really is. You don't do repeat performances. Ever. I can't believe you've been in a relationship for eight months. Ten if you count the flirting."

This is ridiculous. They aren't in a relationship. It was just sex.

"We're not in a relationship! It was just sex!"

Exactly.

"You've been going steady for eight months."

Kakashi rolls his eye. Her friends are being absurd.

She groans in a way that catches him off guard completely. That isn't a groan of frustration. It's one of realisation. She agrees?

"How did I miss this?"

She agrees. He never expected this kind of stupidity from her.

"You're oblivious to any and all romantic feelings not written down, your own included. It's one of your greatest talents."

Her blindspot for romantic feelings is irrelevant. There are no romantic feelings to miss. It's just lust. Maybe a certain fondness that comes from associating with someone long enough, but no more.

"Eight months."

The last of her friends has finally shaken off her stupor.

"Eight months! How could you keep this from us? For eight months!"

There was nothing to keep from them. It was just sex.

"It was just sex!"

Glad to see she hasn't lost all reason.

The silence that follows is meaningful. Her friends are giving her looks that say they disagree with her entirely correct assessment. Civilians.

"...It started out as just sex."

It still is. Was. It was just sex because they won't be having any more. He has no intention of turning this into something it's not.

Her friends respond with a sigh, groan, huff and scoff. Still not willing to see reason.

"Well. It's progress at least."

No it isn't.

"I swear, in the beginning it was just sex."

It still is. Was. Whatever.

She sighs, the sound tired and far too hurt. Kakashi ignores the part of him that wants to cheer her up. She's overreacting.

"It doesn't matter anyway. I think he broke up with me."

No he didn't. That would require them to be in a relationship. They aren't.

"Wait, what? What happened?"

Something incredibly unpleasant. He responded appropriately.

"He's ignoring me."

And she should ignore him back. It's better for everyone involved.

"And that means he broke up with you?"

A break up requires a relationship. By definition, they can't break up.

"I don't see how it could mean anything else."

It means he's lost all interest in continuing to associate with her. Nothing more.

"He's always let me know if he had a mission. He didn't do that this time. Just, poof. Radio silence."

Kakashi ignores how hurt she is. If she didn't want him to take off, she shouldn't have let her hormones get the best of her.

"Why? What happened?"

She chose to ruin everything. Honestly, they've been sleeping together for eight months and three days, and she chooses now to mistake lust for something more?

"I told him I love him."

Kakashi doesn't flinch. This is ridiculous, she doesn't love him. Her feelings are nothing but superficial infatuation inspired by lust. As evidenced, among other things, by her confessing her supposed feelings right after he made her see stars.

"Oh, Mari."

Naturally, her friends fail to see that this is nothing but superficial infatuation.

"You what? You-"

"Love? And you didn't say anything for eight months?"

"It's a recent development."

No it isn't. It's lust inspired infatuation, nothing more.

The worst of her friends lets out a strangled sound.

"So you just woke up one day and realised hey, you're in love with a person you've never even seen? Whose name you don't even know?"

Exactly. She doesn't love him. She doesn't even know him.

"Apparently."

She's being absurd. And allowing this whole thing to get to her far too much.

"Are you sure he doesn't just need some time and space?"

He's sure.

"I doubt it. He does feelings even less than I do."

Her knowing that means nothing. Everyone knows he doesn't do feelings. It's not like he tries to hide it. Much.

"But he loves you back?"

No.

"No."

See.

"Yes."

What?

"I don't know."

He most definitely doesn't. She's just an acquaintance, a random civilian, important only in how she relates to Minato's son. He doesn't love her. At all.

"After this long, I think it safe to say he has some feelings for you."

Because clearly it's impossible to keep sleeping with someone merely because you enjoy the act itself. Honestly, her friends need to grow up.

She sighs. Really, she's acting like this is something serious. It's - painful - annoying.

"Feelings, sure, but love? That's another matter."

She's blowing this entire thing out of proportion.

"Look, Mari. Sometimes people just can't admit that they're in love. Doesn't mean it isn't there."

In order to deny something is there, it has to be present first. It isn't.

"So you have to keep pestering him until it all blows up and comes bursting out."

Projecting their own relationship is idiotic. There are no similarities of any kind.

"Don't really see how I can do that. I don't have any way to contact him except for writing. If he wants to keep ignoring me, there's nothing I can do about it."

And he likes that very much.

"I can't help but notice you don't say he's left."

She scoffs. He's glad to have her anger return. Much better than her irrational hurt.

"That bastard's been stalking me for months, as if he's suddenly going to stop. I'm willing to wager he's out there right now, listening in. Bastard!"

The only reason he's still performing daily check-ups is for situations exactly like this one. She might reveal something incriminating about him. Not something he's had to worry about in a long time, but with how irrational she's being, the risk is back. She wouldn't do it on purpose of course, but she's a civilian. As evidenced by her talking about this so openly. Necessitating that he stays so he can keep patrols and off duty forces from overseeing the conversation. Seals take care of the sound, but he can't block the visual in the same way. That's why he's still here.

"That doesn't make you sound crazy at all."

She sighs again. She really needs to stop being so hurt. It's unpleasant. And ridiculous.

"I'll see what I can do."

Kakashi rolls his eye. She's acting like he's done something wrong. He hasn't. And even if he had, he doesn't owe her anything. They're - they were acquaintances with benefits. Nothing more. She doesn't love him.

He doesn't love her either.


NOTES: For all first time readers, hope this was intruiging enough to grab your attention x3 Don't worry, we'll be exploring Kakashi's mystery lover and how they met in the coming chapters. But I like throwing my readers into a fic and only explaining what's going on as the story progresses. So that's what I'm doing here.

As for readers who came here from A Stranger, hope you enjoy Kakashi's view! He's a lot of fun to write.

Reviews make my day :)