Author's Note:

So hello. It's been a while. ...Don't look at me like that, life happens! But I refused to give up on this story:) I hope it's not too late, and that I still have some wonderful readers willing to come back. This story's pretty much mapped out now, and I have a spin-off on the way about our beautiful blonde, Naruto. You'll see later how everything intertwines.

While this chapter is short, I just wanted to get back into the swing of things so that my future chapters don't suck in terms of writing. Feedback is appreciated.

Thanks for stickin' around.

-Arkashad

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Drifting between consciousness and sleep, Lee was vaguely aware of his sluggish heartbeat and the softness of the sheets that enveloped him. He sighed, snuggling further into one of the many pillows that adorned Gai's bed. Inhaling deeply, the smell of his sensei both invigorated him and made him all the more comfortable. He was smiling-- it didn't take much thought to know whose bed he was in.

Rolling onto his back, he sighed happily. The intimacy of him sleeping in Gai's bed made him believe that this was quite possibly one of the best ways to sleep. Of course, the dreams that accompanied the experience were, for lack of a better word, awesome. Well, at least he knew they were awesome from the feeling that they left within him. The only things he could actually recall from the dreams were endless touches, long embraces, and laughter that made his belly hurt.

He wanted to wake up feeling like this every day, he thought.

After lying in bed for what seemed like hours, Lee decided to get up and make himself some food, because only food could actually motivate him out of this bed of awesomeness. Removing the covers, he slid out and padded his way into the dimly lit kitchen. He glanced at the clock, nearly mortified at the time.

"Ten...Thirty?! Man, talk about letting yourself go," Lee chided himself. He never rose after 9; this was definitely a rarity for him.

Shrugging it off, he went to search the fridge, only to find that little to nothing was actually in it. Some eggs, leeks, and what looked like some kind of energy drink summed up his options, which Lee deemed as pretty pathetic. Deciding to make do with what he had, he started making an omelet, starting first by taking out the pans from one of the cabinets. He had watched Gai remove and put back things enough times to know where pretty much everything was located.

He set to work on his omelet and let his mind wander. Gai said he would be gone for the rest of the day, so that would mean he'd be back around dinner time. Lee smiled as an idea came to him. He could most definitely make him an awesome dinner to eat when he got back. He figured it was the least he could do for Gai considering he had let him spend the night, not to mention all of the other things he'd done for him that Lee hadn't given him thanks for. So, after he ate his breakfast, Lee was going to go to the market for some ingredients.

And fridge necessities. A barren fridge was of no use where Lee was concerned.

He watched his omelet cook, figuring it done, slid it onto a plate and sat down at the stove island to munch on his breakfast.

It felt strange eating alone in another person's house. Even if it was Gai's, a second home to him, the eerie quiet of the house was more deafening than that of his own. At least at his place no one else was supposed to be living there. The silence was expected.

Finishing his food, he quickly cleaned up his mess and ran for the door, eager to hear something other than the sounds of his own making.

The streets of Konoha's marketplace were animated and lively, full of the hustle and bustle that Lee felt so familiar with. Smiling to himself, he admitted he was happy to have had settled into such a cohesive, warm community.

Weaving through the crowd, Lee arrived at the vegetable stand. At the sight of the variety of colors and shapes of the vegetables, he realized that, well, he wasn't the greatest cook in the world. He didn't know what a majority of these vegetables were, let alone what to make with them. He decided to settle with what he knew.

Cautiously, he took a couple onions, another leek since just ate the last one, some tomatoes and whatever else he recognized and could function with. He was so absorbed in his task that he didn't recognize the masculine laughter coming from the butcher's stand beside him.

"Oi, Lee!" cried out an obnoxiously loud voice. Lee looked up from his vegetable dilemma to see Kiba waving to him with Shino standing solemnly by his side. Akamaru was busy happily chowing down on a raw steak at Kiba's feet.

"Hey guys!" he shouted back. Apparently finished with their errand, they walked over to Lee to converse with him.

Kiba patted him on the shoulder. "Hey man, how goes it with the veggies? I can't stand those damn things."

"That's because you're purely carnivorous. You don't even give them a chance," replied Lee with a grin. Kiba nodded like a little kid.

"Cooking for someone?" Asked the typically silent Shino. "Those are a lot of vegetables."

Caught off guard, Lee looked surprised from the boys to his armful of vegetables. Okay, so he took a few more than necessary. Well, maybe a lot more.

"Guess I got a little overzealous," said Lee, smiling as he began to put some back. The boys arched their eyebrows, ignoring the fact that he didn't really answer the question.

"So, are you feeling better? I haven't seen you since the party," stated Kiba as Lee's face took on a guilty look.

"Yeah, I'm better. Sorry for the drama," Lee replied.

Shino shifted. "I shouldn't have given you the alcohol. I didn't remember."

Lee looked to Shino, whose face was, as usual, shrouded in mystery. "It's fine, really. I was looking for an excuse, it's my fault."

Kiba smiled. "Well, either way, maybe next time there won't be so much alcohol. I don't think I can handle Sakura and Ino being that drunk for a long while."

They all laughed. Kiba patted Lee on the back again. "We've got to get going. Good luck with dinner."

"Thanks," said a shy Lee. With that, the boys waved and left.

Lee smiled as he continued with his shopping. He really adored his friends, he thought. It was great to have people like them around, even just to make him smile.

After browsing the stands for a few more minutes, Lee decided on curry for dinner. It was one of Gai's favorites, and he had made it a few times before for himself. It would be perfect, he thought.

Gathering all the necessary ingredients, Lee began walking back to Gai's place in the midday sun, happy to have a task on his hands to accomplish until Gai would get home.

As he approached the house, he noticed a man standing outside Gai's door on the second floor of the apartment building. Walking up the stairs, he realized that it was Raido, one of Gai's peers and supposed friends. He had only seen him from afar before, however.

Lee approached him. "Can I help you?"

Raido, who had been leaning on the railing across from the door, turned to Lee with a mildly surprised look on his face, sizing him up.

"I'm looking for Maito Gai. He around?" Raido questioned.

Lee shifted his bags his other hand, beginning to fumble with his key set in his pants. "He was sent on a mission yesterday evening, and he's supposed to get back sometime later tonight. Want me to tell him you came?"

Raido looked surprised, and a tad aggravated. "Sure," he said begrudgingly, "I mean, what are you, his neighbor or something?"

Lee chuckled. "No, I'm staying with him for now. He's my sensei."

"Sensei's don't typically let students stay in their house," Raido scathed. "How old are you, anyway?"

At this point, Lee paused, now irritated himself. "Fifteen, but what is it to you?"

Raido's eyes widened as he laughed. "Fifteen?! Damn, you're a young one. Well, whatever, tell him I dropped by. Later, kid."

With that, Raido left Lee standing by the door, bewildered. What the hell was he insinuating? What the hell did that guy know? And who the hell was he to Gai?

Irate, Lee opened the door to Gai's apartment, slammed it behind him and entered the kitchen, dropping the groceries on the counter. He grabbed a cup of water from the fridge, settled himself down and tried to push the incident from out of the forefront of his mind.

After gathering himself, he decided not to think to heavily on the subject, and began to cook dinner. Gai would be home soon, and he wanted to have everything done by the time he got back.

Losing himself in the preparation of the curry, Lee's thoughts began to fall back on the generally good trend his relationship with Gai seemed to be going on. Knowing this was giving him so much energy that he couldn't remove the smile from his face.

However, the typical doubts began to gnaw at him as well. He was young. Well, Raido also thought that as well. Raido basically was the mirror of society that Lee was trying so hard not see, for everything dictated that what he wanted was wrong, and what he felt was wrong. He had enough things wrong with him already, he thought. He couldn't do any type of jitsu other than taijitsu, and while that was what tied him and Gai together, it was a disability that ate at his mind constantly. He always felt inferior to everyone else in every category. Gai knew this, he had known it himself his whole life. But to have one more thing on both of their consciences for the community to frown upon was something that, while Lee would do much to escape, knew that he both could not and would not. Gai was too important to him.

Realizing that his mind had drifted to a place that he had been trying hard to avoid since the conflict with Raido, Lee derailed his thoughts. He looked at the clock, seeing that it was nearly dinner time. His stomach tightened in anticipation. As he stood over the stove, tending to his almost finished curry, his mind went back to where it usually did: Gai.

After about a half an hour, Lee was cleaning the pots when he heard the door open and tired footsteps rub themselves on the doormat. He couldn't stop himself from smiling excitedly.

"What is that wonderful smell?!" Yelled Gai from the hallway as he removed his gear. He walked into the kitchen, greeting Lee with a huge smile as he looked aroundat his student's work. A large pot of curry stood on the counter, with two plates set in front of it in front of the chairs. Gai was moved, and a little impressed.

"I made curry," said Lee with a smile as he dried his hands on a towel.

Gai walked over to him, embracing him suddenly and strongly. "You're so adorable! Thank you, Lee." He then abruptly broke the embrace and went to go serve the food for the both of them.

Lee stood there smiling softly. It was always going to be like this, he thought bittersweetly. Something halfway, something that he would always have to settle with. The embraces would never be as long as he'd like, and the exchanges would never be as intimate as he'd want. If it was with Gai, however, he could settle forever.

He went to go sit next to Gai on the island counter, and Gai served him some food. They both settled in to eat, and with a dramatic "Itadakimasu", they were delving into the curry.

"Wonderful," Gai said between bites. "You're cooking for me from now on, Lee."

Lee chuckled. He was surprised it came out as good as it did, and he was happy that Gai liked it so much. "Thanks, I'd be happy to. It's pretty therapeutic."

"So how was the mission?" Lee asked, attempting to start conversation.

"It went well," responded Gai. "I was teamed with two anbu who were also on stand-by. It wasn't a very complicated mission, just standard security of the northern region. I kicked some serious ass."

They both laughed. "Well," said Lee, "I'm glad it went well."

The conversation was getting stale. They were both excited and so happy to be in each other's company, but there was a lingering awkwardness. Gai didn't usually come home to someone, let alone a well-cooked meal. It was amazing, but at the same time a little disconcerting considering the circumstances.

"So what did you do while I was gone? Obviously you cooked up a storm, which I'm thankful for, by the way," said Gai.

"Well," said Lee thoughtfully, "I ran into Kiba and Shino at the market for a few minutes. That was fun, I always like seeing them." He paused. "Oh, and some guy was here to see you. Raido, I think. He was not friendly, to say the least."

Gai sighed deeply. "I forgot all about him. I was supposed to see him today. I'm sorry you had to deal with him, he can be a pain at times."

Lee was silent for a bit. "So, who is he? A friend?" He continued eating.

"Yeah, no one important, really," Gai responded a bit evasively.

"Hm," said Lee, trailing off. "He was surprised about my age for some reason. Said that teachers don't let students stay with them typically. He seemed irritated."

Lee eyed Gai after saying this, gaging his response. It was obvious what he was alluding to, and it was the first time it was alluded to so blatantly.

Gai's eyes went a bit unfocused ahead of him, deep in thought. He shifted and looked down to the counter. "Well," he began, "It's none of his business. He has other intentions in saying that, trust me. You're a dear student to me," he said thoughtfully. He turned to look at Lee, who glanced sideways at him. "Don't give it too much thought, Lee."

With the way Gai had physically responded, Lee knew that what was unspoken between them was also weighing down on Gai as much as it was on himself.

"Alright," Lee said softly. Gai looked at him, seeing that he was apparently a bit upset at the incident, and gently placed his hand on his student's head.

Lee looked to him, almost pleadingly. He wanted an answer, he wanted this to not be wrong, he wanted Gai to come closer, but he only seemed to push him away. He was shocked that Gai was even touching him at this point after what happened.

Gai smiled. "Honestly, Lee, don't worry," he said reassuringly as he ran his hand through his student's hair, only once and briefly. It was enough to make Lee want to melt.

Lee looked down at his plate, basking in the reassurance. Gai wasn't running away. This was something entirely new, something that he could work with.

They cleaned up their plates, chatting about pleasantries and nothingness, and decided that Lee should stay tonight on the couch again.

Gai had been more than just a little upset at Raido. Personally, he knew the man had no place speaking to Lee the way he did, especially with what he was vaguely alluding to. He didn't want Lee to feel unwanted, like he didn't have a place to go. He felt so much for the boy, there was no way he was going to be swayed or bothered by Raido's comments. However, he was bothered. He knew it was inappropriate, but he also knew that Lee was an exception. Truth was he couldn't help himself.

Raido's comments about Lee's age also sunk in a little more than they should have. Gai was well aware of Lee's age, and he knew perfectly well what Raido was insinuating. But in response, he really just wanted to tell Raido to shove it. Lee was going to stay with him. And Gai wasn't going to touch a damn hair on his head, no matter what. Lee was his student, and nothing was going to change about that until no one could say a word against Lee's age. And that, thought Gai sorrowfully, was going to be a long wait.

As he made up his bed on the couch, Lee smiled. He was closer to Gai this way, on the couch rather than at home, alone. He could wake up to Gai, though not in the same bed. And he could have someone to talk to when they were both in the house. That was something he could settle for, he thought with a sad smile.

Halfway, he thought, isn't so bad after all.