Disclaimer: Nothing pertaining to the Naruto world can be credited to me.

This little piece was inspired by a picture drawn by tenshiyaki and submitted to the kakasaku community at LJ. For a link to the picture, please visit my profile.

"Why bother?" asked a distinctively male voice. Funny, how he was often able to casually voice the comments she could not.

The woman being questioned paused, and for a split-second, she looked at the wall and then down on the sweater she was still in the process of putting on. Her hesitation did not go unnoticed, she knew, but she calmly continued as if such moments of indecision did not matter.

'Do they matter? Is this really significant enough to think about right now?' she wondered to herself. It seemed as though, lately, all she ever did anymore was agonize over all the little individual moments and compare them with each other, scrutinizing over every movement, every sigh, every word…

She felt him first. Warm, confident hands settled on her bare arms, and she could feel herself melting into his touch. Each finger was a soothing, lulling presence on her skin. His grip was light, not restraining, and she knew that it was there to serve as a distraction more than anything else.

'Great,' she thought. 'There are all sorts of lewd jokes and things to say about people who can't keep their clothes on. What about when they can't put their clothes back on? Are they all like the same thing?!' Haruno Sakura closed her green eyes and willed the shirt to put itself on her. 'Or maybe my problem is that I can't keep my clothes off?' With her lover's hands making her skin tingle in only the way that Hatake Kakashi could, Sakura's arms refused to move. She thought about the time and slowly exhaled, feeling the weight of her indecision. 'Or maybe I just don't have the heart to?'

"Do you really like the sweater that much?" He was joking, she could tell, but she did not miss the other underlying question.

She opened her eyes and looked down at her lap, staring demurely at the shirt still occupying it. Sakura mentally chided herself, 'You only have to shove it down over your head really fast. You can do it!' With hands already partially into their sleeves, Sakura fingered the deep plum-colored material that reminded her of rich red wine. The same color of wine, even, that had been handed to her that day.

"This color," his deep voice had said while draping the unexpected gift over her shoulders, "makes you look like a woman." He had stood behind her, and their positions had brought back memories, had caused a choking metallic taste to seep into her mouth. Yet a soft familiar impulse had also surfaced, and she could neither refuse the gift nor feign innocence at its meaning. Was it just her luck to be drawn to men who communicated so cryptically?

Thoughts scattered as she felt the bed shift. The mood had suddenly changed. Without looking, she knew that Kakashi had closed his eyes and lowered his head. She could feel his hair now, barely brushing against her back. His inaudible sigh made her own body deflate. Then he spoke. This particular bedmate always seemed to have a way with words.

"Sakura," he said, softly rolling each syllable, "It isn't just up to you."

"I know." Sakura tilted her head up to stare at space and measure her strength. 'Never enough,' she decided. "I know he knows."

If there was any surprise, it was hiding itself well. His hair was tickling her back now, and she imagined the silver hair glowing in the dim moonlight, out-shining nature. "Well it's not like you're stupid."

The reply that sounded came out in a growl, "Is it just me, or did that sound like a suggestion?"

"Leave it for the morning."

"The morning?! What does the morning have to do with anything?"

"Everything?"

Green disappeared again behind closed lids and fingers resumed their play on fabric. Kakashi's hands remained on Sakura's upper arms, and her own hands were still being indecisive. The sound of their breathing filled her ears and smoothly rolled over their bodies in waves.

"In the morning," she whispered, slowly thinking over each individual word; they did matter, after all, "things will certainly look a certain way."

"Things will appear how people see them…Unless they know better."

The bed shifted again, and Kakashi's hands removed themselves from Sakura's arms only to entangle themselves around her waist. His voice echoed in her head, causing the velvet deep voice of reason to recede. Still feeling conflicted and still feeling indecisive, Sakura slowly nodded and opened her eyes. She shook her arms, forcing her worries to lie in wine-colored lump on the floor.

Kakashi's hold tightened in appreciation, and Sakura felt his smile on the back of her neck. A light ringing laughter filled the room, and Sakura was almost surprised when she realized it was her own. "You know," she teased, "I do have to get dressed eventually."

Kakashi shrugged, kissing the back of her neck and sending his signature tingles down through her body. "I know," he simply said, as if Sakura had just informed him that saury were related to mackerel. And to him, it was simple, and they were simple.

Even though she was still deciding, Sakura had already chosen.

It has been a long while since I've written any fiction like this, so please review and tell me what you think. Any and all criticsms and thoughts will be much appreciated!