Chapter Text
“Come on, play with us,” Sasuke demanded, tugging on his big brother's arm.
Itachi sighed, looking up from his book at the two sets of eyes pleading for his attention. Babysitting and studying didn’t mix well. They didn't understand that he really didn't have the time to play, and while Hinata might have taken ‘I can't’ as an answer, Sasuke wouldn't. “How about hide and seek?”
Sasuke made a face, but Hinata lit up and tugged on him. “Let's go.” She initiated.
Sasuke reluctantly let her pull him off to hide.
Itachi started counting aloud as he went back to his book. He trailed off as he heard a small fight break out.
“No, I am hiding here. Find somewhere else.” Sasuke snapped in a loud whisper. It sounded like he was in the laundry room.
“I don't want to hide alone.” Hinata's little voice whimpered. Aw.
Sasuke grumbled. “Okay, but you have to stay quiet.” The crinkle that followed told him they were probably in the linen basket his mother kept her clean sheets in.
How long would it take them to realize he wasn't looking for them?
Itachi put down his work aside. He expected them to come out at some point to complain he hadn’t found them. He had a good excuse ready, too: ‘He simply couldn’t find them. They were too good at hiding for him.’
Down the hall, to the laundry, he opened the top of the wicker basket and smiled. He almost just wanted to put the lid down on it and leave them be.
Inside, Hinata and Sasuke had fallen asleep, curled up together. He needed a camera. He wanted to tease Sasuke with this in a few years.
“We’re back.” His mother called from down the hall.
Itachi put the basket top back on with a smile. She needed to see this, too.
“Put it back. It’s hot.” Hinata complained.
“I have a hot pad.” Sasuke countered.
“No, use these as hot pads.” Hinata countered.
Sasuke grumbled at her.
Itachi peaked under the tablecloth and the mess they had under the dining room table. They had been under here for the last few hours. All of Hinata’s dolls had been dumped on one side, Sasuke's military action figures on the other, and in the middle was an elaborate set-up of house. “What is hot?” He wondered.
Hinata pointed at the tiny plastic grenade in the little plastic pot. “The potatoes.”
“Oh, yeah.” Itachi agreed with her. “You better use hot pads.”
Sasuke puffed at him. “Get out.”
Itachi chuckled and ducked his head back out of their space.
“You shouldn’t cook without a shirt on.” Hinata pointed out.
Sasuke sighed. “He’s got a shirt on.”
“It’s a jacket, not a shirt, and it’s not even closed. He’ll get burns.” Hinata argued. Only she would be worried about something like that.
“His chest is made of steel. It’s not going to burn him.” And only Sasuke would argue with her instead of just putting a shirt on the doll.
“Boys, Hinata is leaving, you want to come say goodbye?” Mikoto called.
Itachi came into the hallway where Hinata already had her coat on. “Are you excited about your first day of school?”
Hinata nodded. “My uncle is going to take me.” It was sort of relevant, but not quite what he was looking for. It was odd what about a topic was the most important to children.
“Good.” Itachi smiled. “Does he know where to go?”
“I hope so.” Hinata blinked with sudden worry.
Itachi chuckled. “He must know. He took Neji to school last year, right?”
Hinata's face softened as she nodded. Crisis averted.
“Sasuke?” Mikoto called again. “Come give Hinata a hug before she leaves.”
“I don’t want to!” Sasuke called back harshly.
Mikoto blinked, turning her confusion to Itachi, but he just shrugged. He wasn’t expecting that either. Sasuke always ran out to get his hug before she left. “Well, maybe he’s tired. You two played hard today. You will see him tomorrow at school, okay?” She assured Hinata.
Hinata nodded as she sat down to put on her shoes.
Sasuke crawled up on Itachi’s bed, making him look up from his book as he flattened himself out with a scowl on his face. “I don’t want Hinata to come over anymore.” He lamented.
“Huh?” Itachi tilted his head. “Why not?” He wasn’t sure where his grumpy attitude was coming from. It wasn’t like they had gotten into a fight before she went home. At least not one bigger than they usually did.
Sasuke rolled over and pointed to his belly. “She makes my stomach feel weird when she laughs and hugs me.” He shook his head with a decision on his face. “I think she makes me feel sick.”
Itachi stared back at him with the stoniest face he could manage, trying with all his might not to laugh at his description of his little crush. “I think I know what is happening.”
“You do?” Sasuke asked innocently.
It was too easy to tease him. “Unfortunately, it is a disease with simply no cure.” He shook his head grimly.
Sasuke's face fell in despair.
Itachi snorted. He was so damn cute.
Itachi adjusted Sasuke’s school bag as they got out of the car. He closed the door and waved at his mother as she pulled away.
Hinata spotted them from next to her cousin. Her face lit up, and she ran toward them with her little backpack bouncing behind her. She stopped in front of Sasuke, excited to see him. “I heard we can pick our seats. We should sit together.” She held out her hand to Sasuke.
Sasuke face soured, looking at her offered hand like it had mud in it. “I can’t with you.”
“Why not?” Hinata wondered, her lip pouted out.
“Because I’m allergic to you!” Sasuke shouted at her before he ran toward the door.
Itachi mouth fell open. Oh, dear. This was his fault, but in his defense, he didn’t think Sasuke would take what he said so seriously.
Hinata's lips quivered as she looked up at him. Itachi knelt to her in hopes he could keep her from crying. Aw. Poor thing. “He doesn’t mean that.” He assured her.
“But…” Hinata sniffled and rubbed at her eye. “I’m not a flower.”
Itachi hugged her to keep her from seeing the smile that he couldn’t hold off his face.
Ugh. Kid logic.
Itachi caught Sasuke as he came out of his first day of classes. From the slight slowness of Hinata's steps behind them, it was clear he was still avoiding her, and she was coming back to their house for the evening, so he needed to fix this before he got in the car. “Sasuke, come here.” He lowered himself down to his level. “Look, I can promise you that you are not allergic to Hinata.”
Sasuke face twisted in disbelief. “But you said it couldn’t cured, like mom’s fish allergies.” That’s how he got allergic?
“I said it was a disease, but I didn’t say Hinata caused it.” Itachi clarified. “She is the treatment.” He twisted. Sasuke eyes narrowed but Itachi knew that he didn’t want to avoid Hinata despite being a brat about it right now. He was going to take the excuse to keep his best friend even if the butterflies didn’t go away. “To treat the disease. You have to be nice to be really nice to her and hold her hand.”
Sasuke puffed his cheeks out, not liking what he was being told, but he looked back at Hinata. “Why do I have to hold her hand?”
“It’s going to make the belly ache go away.” He was either going to get used to feeling eventually.
Sasuke grumbled as Hinata caught up to them with her little head down, showing that her heart was broken.
“Sasuke! Hinata! Itachi!” Mikoto waved from her car. “How was your first day!”
Sasuke ran to their mother, and Hinata sped after him. Itachi got up and trailed behind their little legs. “Mom, they give out juice boxes before lunch!”
“And crackers,” Hinata added.
With the kids loaded in the car's back seat, Mikoto stopped to smile at him in the passenger seat. “How was your first day back?”
Itachi nodded. “Good.” Really, he was so focused on coming up with something to convince Sasuke that Hinata wasn’t an allergen he didn’t really think of much else.
Mikoto adjusted her mirror, and a squeak came out of her. She nudged at him and pointed behind her. Itachi turned his head to see Sasuke with a solid frown on his face, looking out the window as hard as he could, and Hinata, with the sweetest look of confusion, down at their held hands between them.
Well, that worked.
Mikoto started driving with a giddy little smile on her face. Itachi leaned his head on his window and wondered what other trouble he was going to cause in the budding puppy love.