Chapter 16

By the time Gaara came to bed, I'd finally managed to fall asleep and groggily rolled over to cuddle against him. A sigh passed my lips when my warm skin met his cooler body, and he pulled me up against him, my head on his shoulder, so I wouldn't have to exert the energy. I fell asleep again before I could wait to see if he would say anything.

I felt awful in the morning when I woke up to my phone ringing on the nightstand. My skin was dusted with sweat, and a horrible pressure was throbbing at my temples, not to mention the severe dizziness that came over me when I opened my eyes and reached over to answer the phone.

My voice sounded awful, "Hello?"

Gaara groaned softly, and I glanced over to see he was still asleep and carefully sat up, wincing at the ache it caused my head, so I could go downstairs and not wake him.

"Good morning, gorgeous. Wanna get coffee?" It was Temari.

I opted to slip into the bathroom and close the door behind me rather than go downstairs, speaking a bit quieter than usual into the phone, "I don't know if-"

"Be ready in ten minutes. Bye!"

I sighed, clicking off the phone's screen before sitting it on the counter. My skin was washed out, except for my cheeks and the bridge of my nose, which were sickly greenish pink. Tsunade was right about me being susceptible to getting sick, that's for sure. All that stress yesterday must've really taken its toll on my body.

Glancing at the phone again, I grabbed my toothbrush and began getting ready. I should be alright enough to grab coffee real quick. I'll take it super easy the rest of the day when we get home afterward. Maybe I'll even go back to bed.

After quietly getting dressed to not wake Gaara, I wrote him a little note and placed it atop his cell phone on his nightstand, letting him know where I'm going, so he doesn't panic when he woke to an empty bed. Then I went downstairs just in time to hear a car honk out in front of the house. Gathering my keys, I slid them into the little purse Hinata picked out for me yesterday before heading out and getting into the backseat of Shikamaru's SUV.

Temari turned from the passenger seat as her boyfriend drove us out of the compound, "Oh! Are you okay?"

Not wanting to make her worry, I shook my head, "I'm just a little tired."

She gave me an irritated look but changed the subject as she looked over my appearance, "Aw, you look so cute in your new clothes! The girls did a good job."

I did my best to smile at her compliment. Shikamaru just silently acted like our chauffeur as the Subaku sister chatted with me, her carrying the majority of the conversation. When we got to the cafe, the smell of coffee made me feel nauseous, so I opted to get tea instead.

As we sat at one of the outdoor tables, I felt my resolve fading fast.

Do you remember the old Windows media player where those weird, funky designs would move on the screen while you played music? It was like a faded, blurry version that was warping my vision, where I could see clearly, and the movements of it were so close to being invisible, but not enough that I could ignore it. The constant movement began making me dizzy, and with each passing minute, the heat in my body left and rose to my face, so my limbs were cold, but I was sweating.

One moment I was staring down at my tea, trying to keep it together, and in the next, I was being picked up. My eyes fluttered open weakly, feeling heavier than before bed last night, "What's…?" I was outside. Someone shushed me, and I was too dizzy to argue, forced to close my eyes, or else I'd risk getting physically sick.

After many moments of falling in and out of consciousness, I heard Shikamaru's voice as the person carrying me's chest vibrated, "She has a fever." Then I was passed to someone else and no longer outdoors.

Another couple of moments passed before I suddenly regained my consciousness completely and realized it was Gaara by his familiar scent. He was carrying me upstairs, probably to bed, because they all realized I was sick. When he laid me down, I groaned at the uncomfortable churning in my stomach, chest, and throat.

A cold sensation came over my forehead, and I chanced to open my eyes to see it was his hand. He frowned with a concerned glint in his eye, making me feel guilty for causing him to worry again. Tears welled in my eyes because he looked like a less extreme version of how he was right after I woke up from my coma.

"I'm sorry," my voice was thin and light.

He shook his head, "Stay." Then he left.

I heard his footsteps briefly as he went back down the stairs. When I turned my head to look in that direction, though, the nausea I'd been feeling all morning suddenly flared up, and I knew I was about to throw up, so I struggled out of bed and into the bathroom just in time to not miss the toilet.

By the time I was finished, I was still almost gagging, but there wasn't anything left in my stomach, so I couldn't puke anymore. After flushing the toilet, I shakily managed to brush my teeth, but then it felt like I was somehow about to begin throwing up again, so I rushed down to my knees at the toilet again, tears running down my face. Nothing happened for a minute, and then my dizziness became overwhelming, and I felt myself fall to the side.

"Matsuri!" Cold skin pressed against my cheek before I could hit the ground.

I groaned as another wave of nausea came over me and struggled upright to face the toilet again, sniffling as I cried weakly, "I feel sick…."

The sound of Gaara moving right behind me had my eyes cracking open just in time to see his arms snake around my waist, one of his legs on either side of me. "You're alright. I've got you." I relaxed, and he quickly caught me, my back hitting his chest.

Somehow, he managed to keep me against him as he helped me out of stifling and warm clothes and into another one of his shirts. Then he pressed some form of a cold compress to my forehead and held it there as I sniffled and tried to figure out if I would puke again.

Dizzy, half-awake, and feverish, I tried apologizing again, "I'm sorry for everything, Gaara." He didn't say anything, likely realizing how out of it I was. "I'm sorry. Tsunade said to relax, and I didn't…this is all my fault. I'm sorry…." My lips kept on moving after that, but even I'm not one hundred percent sure of all that I may have said.

The next thing I knew, I was waking up in bed, and it was nighttime. The pressure and dizziness in my head had lessened substantially, and the deliria had all but faded, but I was still hot and stuffy, not to mention shaky. Strong hands helped me when I moved to sit up, and I rubbed my eyes before opening them to see Gaara sitting up next to me in bed, his lamp on and book open on the nightstand.

"Drink some water."

I nodded absently and picked up the tall glass on my own nightstand to follow instructions. It felt good going down my dry throat and likely took the edge off the heat in my body, too.

"You should eat something."

I shook my head, sitting the now empty glass back down before laying under the covers again and curling into a ball on my side, "...not hungry…." Then I fell asleep again.

In the morning, when I woke up, I was starving but otherwise much better. Sakura came to check on me, deducing that I only had a mild fever now, but should stay in bed for one more day to ensure I didn't get worse again.

After some arguing, I convinced Gaara to let me join him downstairs as he cooked breakfast so long as I stayed wrapped in a blanket and lying on the couch.

My eyes are on the television, but I'm not focusing on it. I'm too busy freaking out that Gaara might've seen me throw up. If he didn't, he saw me nearly faint right after, which is still humiliating. Sure, he's seen me throw up at least once before when we were fighting during the last day of The Program, but that was completely different because we weren't dating then, and we're not in battle right now.

I was snapped out of my mortified thoughts by a plate being handed to me. I accepted it with a shy smile, sitting up and scooting over so Gaara could join me on the sofa. We ate in silence, at least pretending to watch tv, but maybe ten minutes after he took the plates to the kitchen and washed them, Gaara came back to sit on the sofa, and I lay down with my head in his lap as he absently brushed his fingers through my hair and out of my face.

"I'll tell you who paid for everything if you promise not to do anything about it," his soft voice suddenly pulled me from my half-awake lull.

I sat up slowly just in case there was some lingering dizziness before meeting his gaze with wide eyes, "H-How did you-"

"You talked a lot yesterday."

Teal eyes studied my face, and I averted my gaze down to my hands, "I can't accept this kind of thing."

He didn't respond until after a long pause, "I understand, but I won't tell you if you don't."

My eyes narrowed as they rose, "Tell me, Gaara. I need to know so I can-"

"So you can stress out and get even sicker? No."

Tears welled up as I frowned at him, pulling away a bit, but I didn't know what else to say to convince him, so I just stared. He glared silently for a long time before sighing in defeat, "I'll tell you if you promise not to do anything about it until you're fully recovered next year. How about that? Deal?"

I searched his unhappy face. He's adamant about making me rest until January, more than three months away. Is he really that worried, or is there something special about the new year? Either way, I nodded because there might not be another chance to discover the truth.

"Hinata."

The moment he said it, I felt like a fool for not going with my gut. The Hyuuga woman was my first guess, and I was right all along. I covered my face with my hands as I cried.

How could she do something like that for me? I mean, I'd die for her, and I know she'd do the same for me, but that's different from this, at least in my opinion. If you're dead, you don't suffer anymore. If you're alive, you must live through your actions' consequences. Is she going to have financial issues because of this? Is she already having them? I have to pay her back, somehow.

Gaara guided me back down to rest my head in his lap, soothingly running his hand over my hair in an attempt to calm me down, and I let it. I told him I wouldn't do anything until January, so I have to try not to think about it until then, or else I'll keep getting sick like this and never fully recover.

~

The weekend soon arrived, and, luckily, my fever was gone by then, so I could attend the sleepover Ino's throwing. Apparently, the guys are taking advantage of all of us gathering in one house by having a little party of their own at Sakura and Sasuke's home.

I sat, a bit nervous, on the floor in the massive family room as everyone came to make a big circle. Present are Hinata, Tenten, Temari, Ino, Sakura, and me. Temari's on my left, Hinata's on my right, Tenten on Temari's other side, and Sakura on Hinata's other side, leaving Ino across from me between Sakura and Tenten.

Like the last time we were in a big circle like this, the alcohol's flowing freely, and I'm taking advantage of it eagerly to calm down and not bring up the hospital bill issue to the Hyuuga woman sitting right next to me.

"Woah, slow down, Matsu. The night's still young!" I sighed and handed the big bottle of vodka to Temari, who snickered and accepted it, tossing her head back as she took a big swig of it.

"So, Matsuri, give us all the details before you black out," Ino teased as she casually filed at her pretty nails. When I gave the woman a confused look, she held her hands out as though she couldn't understand why I didn't know what she was talking about, "How are things with Gaara going? Are you guys fucking yet?"

Temari coughed, leaning over to bury her face in the crook of her elbow as she tried to catch her breath. Sakura, Tenten, and Ino all laughed at her, but she all but yelled once she could speak again, "Oh hell no! I do not want to know any of that!" I nodded eagerly in agreement, not wanting to talk about it just as much as she didn't want to hear it.

Ino tutted, sternly pointing her nail file at me, "Tough shit. You owe us for making us worry for so long. Now spill."

My face paled in surprise at how nonchalant she was about bringing up my coma. Still, she achieved her goal of making me feel guilty, so I awkwardly snatched the vodka back from Temari and took a big drink before squeezing my eyes closed and admitting in defeat, "Y-Yes, but that's all I'm saying!"

Temari made a loud, disgusted sound while all the others let out varying noises of excitement and intrigue. Tenten leaned forward, smiling wildly, "He's your first, right? Did it hurt? Was he gentle? How big is his dick?"

Hinata, Temari, and I all made unhappy sounds at her string of embarrassing and inappropriate questions, Temari being the one to overshadow us, "That's enough! I'm gonna start beating asses if we don't change the subject!" The three women enjoying my humiliation laughed but, thankfully, didn't ask me anything else.

All six of us casually drank and chatted for a while, just hanging out in an exceedingly ordinary way compared to all we'd been through together. To our surprise, Hinata got drunk pretty quickly and ended up crying, which silenced the rest of us as we looked at her.

"Do you think Naruto actually loves me?"

Tenten scoffed, "You're joking, right?"

Sakura nodded, "He's obsessed with you, Dummy."

She sniffled, wiping cutely at her tears as she pouted, "Then why hasn't he proposed yet? All of you guys are getting engaged… I can't help but get jealous."

Ino shook her head and leaned across Sakura to grab Hinata's hand, "Temari and Matsuri aren't engaged yet, either, so you're not alone."

Temari frowned, "You're really pushing it tonight, bitch. Besides, Matsuri and Gaara are literally eighteen, so they don't count."

Sakura chimed in, "My parents got married at eighteen, though, and they're still together."

Tenten raised her hand like a student wanting to be called on by a teacher, "Mine, too!"

Hinata's tears picked up a bit, her face red as her shoulders slouched, "I knew it…."

Ino tried again to cheer her up, "Chin up, Hina! We all know Naruto's a big idiot. He's probably had the ring for months and just hasn't popped the question yet."

Sakura, who's also quite tipsy, nodded excitedly, "Want me to ask Sasuke to do some snooping? I can get him to do whatever I want. All I have to do is-"

"Ooh, girl, that's not rated E for everyone, and we're not drunk enough to forget about it in the morning yet." Tenten piped up, her hands raised in a "stop!" motion.

Sakura smiled almost mischievously, "I don't see the problem. If you guys learn from me, you can probably get whatever you want, too."

Ino cackled, "Remember when she was too scared to kiss a boy? Look at her now. I'm so proud!"

Temari mumbled under her breath, but not so quiet that everyone didn't hear, "I swear, if I ever learn that y'all are having foursomes with those Uchihas, I'm gonna puke."

Ino and Sakura looked at one another with wide eyes as though the idea's never occurred to them until now.

The Subaku woman noticed and groaned, "Oh god…."

Tenten brought us back on topic. Thank the lord. "Anyway, Hinata, just be patient. He loves you. We all know it. It's only a matter of time before he gets his head out of his ass."

Another hour or so passed, and everyone, me included, was thoroughly trashed. Drunkenly, Temari and I passed the vodka bottle back and forth. "So…do you wanna marry Shikamaru?" My words were slurred and wobbly, kind of like my vision.

The woman frowned, "Well, duh. His parents don't like me, though. I think that's why he hasn't said anything about it yet."

Tears welled in my eyes, and I reached over to grab her hand, fumbling to interlace our fingers as I turned to face her eagerly, "No way! That jerk! I'll…I'll kick his ass!"

She laughed loudly, making me giggle in response, "Yeah, let's kick his ass together, Matsu!" Then she was getting to her feet and pulling me upright with her.

"Where are you guys goin'?" Tenten slurred out from where she lay flat on her back as she watched the ceiling fan.

Temari raised her fist with a determined drunken look, "We're gonna go beat up Shikamaru. Wanna come?"

Tenten gasped loudly, drawing the attention of the remaining three women as well, "Uh, yeah. I've got a bone to pick with Naruto, too! How dare he leave Hinata hanging like this! Let's go!"

Our trashed party of six made its way outside and next door to the house where all the men were hanging out. Sakura dropped her keys three times before finally unlocking the front door. Then she turned back to put a finger to her lips, "Shh!" with a big smile before turning the handle and leading us all inside.

Ino had other plans, stormed past us all, and slurred, "Naruto Uzumaki! We've come for your head!"

When we made it to the family room, all the guys turned to look at us with a variety of expressions, everything from surprise to irritation to amusement. Their idea of partying differs significantly from ours because they're all playing a video game on the big television or watching whoever is as they casually drink beer.

Naruto appeared almost scared as he sat between Sasuke and Gaara on the sofa, "Huh? What'd I do?"

Tenten and Ino both went over and grabbed his arms to pull him away from the other men, where he stood before us with a look of utter confusion. I just giggled, holding Temari's hand.

"You made Hinata sad. That's what you did! Prepare to pay!"

Sakura's threat was barely understandable, but the moment she raised a fist like she was going to hit him, Sasuke got to his feet and came to pull her away from everyone else, "Hey, hey, hey! What the hell's wrong with you? You'll kill him!"

She glared at the taller man, "He hasn't proposed yet! Baby beat him up for me."

Understanding quickly came across every man's face in the room. Kankuro and Kiba laughed loudly from where they sat on the floor in front of the coffee table beside Shikamaru.

Naruto frowned when he located Hinata hiding behind Temari and me as she tried to stay upright and straight-faced. "Hina, come here." She stumbled around me, and I broke into a fit of giggles when Ino and Tenten turned to give her looks of utter disbelief, so I had to bend slightly toward Temari to muffle the sound of my laughter behind my free hand.

With one man seemingly confronted for his sins, we girls moved on to the next one. Temari herself walked toward the family room, pulling me along without regard for my state of being and making me stumble and trip to keep up with her firm stride.

Shikamaru took one look at his girlfriend's face and groaned, "God damn it…."

"Nara, cut to the chase: do you intend to string me along or what?"

Her sharp tone sobered up my giggles, and I struggled to stand resolutely by her side, "Yeah, what the fuck, man!"

The two men beside him began laughing loudly once again. Shikamaru brought a hand to his forehead and closed his eyes with a frown, "Tem, you're drunk."

She released me and put both hands on her hips, "What the hell's that gotta do with anything?"

Someone let out a happy squeal behind me, and I turned to see Ino had dove over the back of the sofa into Sai's arms to kiss him, and he happily accepted her drunken affection. Someone grabbed my hand, and my eyes fell lower, right in front of me, and landed on Gaara, who was struggling not to smile with a warm glint in his eye.

An unbelievable warmth came over me, and I took a page out of Ino's book and all but tackled him onto the couch, hugging his head to my chest as I straddled his hips, "Gaara…I love you, Babe."

Neji sighed loudly, distracting me, before getting up and grabbing his fiance's hand, "Let's go. You're trashed."

She whined, "But Neji! I have to beat up Naruto first!" He shook his head and simply pulled her along after waving casually to those sober enough to comprehend the gesture.

"We should probably go, too," Sai said as he pulled his lips from Ino's, who began kissing his neck instead.

Kankuro snickered, "Nah, bro, go ahead and stay. We don't mind." The Uchiha man smirked but shook his head as he stood, Ino in his arms, before following Neji's leave and heading out the front door.

"Do you wanna go, too?" Gaara spoke softly into my shirt, not seeming to mind my doting even though others were around.

I frowned, letting him pull back enough that our eyes could meet, "Are you gonna carry me?"

He tilted his head slightly, an amused grin on his lips, "Do you want me to?" I grinned, nodding. Shaking his head, he got to his feet, easily maneuvering me in his arms and making me feel all giddy inside.

"Wait, Matsu, what the hell! You're supposed to kick Shika's ass with me!"

I leaned back to see around Gaara's arm and giggled, "Sorry!"

When we left, Sasuke and Sakura were missing, likely having gone upstairs together, and Naruto and Hinata were talking with big smiles. The other four were still in the family room.

A soft sigh left me as the warm night breeze rustled my hair, making Gaara chuckle. I ran a hand up his chest to the side of his neck, "Mmm, you smell so good!" He simply smiled as he walked us back to our house, expertly getting the door open without much trouble.

As soon as he sat me down on the sofa so he could grab me a glass of water, I turned to look at his back. An idea popped into my head when a heavy wave of arousal came over me, and I stumbled to the stairs.

"Where are you going?" He called from the kitchen.

I giggled, "I just gotta pee. Be right back."

I don't have to pee. I lied.

No, I went straight to the dresser and fished out the sexy red lingerie Ino sneakily bought for me and locked myself in the bathroom so I could put them on. Then I put my regular clothes back on so Gaara wouldn't be able to automatically tell, put my other undergarments in the clothes basket, and headed back down the stairs. I nearly stumbled on the last few steps and grasped onto the banister with both hands, laughing to myself.

Gaara watched as I trekked into the kitchen to accept his glass of water, and I stared up at him as I drank it. "You called me "babe" earlier."

I smiled, sitting the now-empty glass on the counter and coming around so I could hold his hands in mine, "And? I'll do it again!"

The corner of his lips tugged, and a slight pink dusted his cheeks, "I like it."

His adorable, shy expression made my heart flutter, and I tugged on his hands until he came down so I could kiss him, wrapping my arms around his neck so he'd pick me up. He took the hint, and I wrapped my legs around his hips, slipping my tongue into his mouth.

Somehow, Gaara managed to shut all the lights off before climbing the stairs and didn't bother turning any on once we made it to our bedroom. Instead, he sat on the edge of the bed, hands moving to my hips, waist, breasts, and whatever else they could reach. Feeling quite impatient, I tugged his shirt up, and he let me pull it off over his head before doing the same to me.

His eyes widened when he saw the sexy lace piece that made the top of the lingerie set I'd put on. I eagerly moved to kiss his neck, pressing against him to feel his skin against mine.

"M-Matsuri, what is…." He trailed off, a hitch coming in his breath when I reached down to rub against the hard bulge beneath me.

A desperate timbre tugged at my voice as I spoke between kisses to his skin, "A gift from Ino. Do you like it?"

"Yes, very much."

A happy squeal passed my lips when he suddenly switched our positions, hands almost roughly caressing every part of me possible as he stole my lips again. I pressed against him, my legs crossed around his hips, and those oh-so-beautiful fingers unbuttoned my shorts. I released him so he could slide them off me, busying my hands and unbuckling his belt.

Teal eyes locked onto mine heatedly as he unbuttoned his jeans and slid them lower on his hips, "You get like this every time you're drunk."

I returned the hungry look, unzipping them for him, "Hurry, Babe."

That seemed to flip a switch in him because he slid my underwear to the side and shoved himself into me, pants lowered just enough for him to do so. A cry of surprise passed my lips, and my head fell back as he wrestled my hands to the bed and angled himself over me so my lower body was slightly off the bed as he pounded into me with all he had.

Gaara's gorgeous eyes bore into mine, and I couldn't look away even as sounds of pleasure dusted the air from us both. The only other sounds were the jingle of his belt, which came every so often with his hips' movement, and our heavy breathing. His name fell from my lips when he hit something inside me that he's never touched before, temporarily making my mind blank.

"Gaara, t-there! Right there, do it again!"

His fingers tightened around my hands as he obeyed, the fire in his eyes getting even hotter. Another thirty seconds couldn't pass before I was brought to a debilitating climax beneath him, my insides squeezing him desperately as unfamiliar moans all but bled from my lips.

Gaara didn't stop for a moment but released my hands once I came back down to Earth, and that's all I needed to roll over on top of him. Without missing a beat, my hips began moving.

It felt amazing, every moment of it, even after already climaxing.

Sweat dusted both of our skin. I mirrored his earlier action and interlaced our fingers on both hands, pinning him down to the bed as I adjusted the way I moved my hips to cater to the new angle. Rather than stare at him, though, I gave his neck and shoulder attention with my mouth.

His fingers wrapped around my hands as his chest vibrated with a moan, and then he spoke in a dangerously low and tantalizing voice, "You're so…hah…sexy…."

Then he was sitting up under me. I straightened my spine and altered my technique to a more up-and-down rhythm. His hands gripped the blanket slightly behind him as he used his arms to hold his weight and watched me like I was a piece of meat and he was a predator as I continued to ride him. The new angle allowed him to hit a different part of me each time I came down onto him, and it soon had me letting my head fall back as I gasped for breath, his name leaving my lips every so often to illustrate my obsession with him.

Once I became accustomed to withstanding the overwhelming sensation, I could meet his eye again and held his gaze firmly. The dark and dangerous expression on his features only made everything feel better, and soon he was getting close. I could feel him throbbing and flexing inside me.

Just as I was sure he was at his limit, he rolled over on top of me and pulled out, pumping himself in one hand while firmly holding one of my legs straight against the front of his body. I panted for breath, glancing between his face and his cock a few times before he finally released over my stomach.

Then he came down to kiss me, my leg bending so he could press my knee to my chest, and my foot was over his shoulder. Despite having exhausted much energy, he seemed equally as excited as before this all started. I drunkenly matched his aura.

A minute or two passed, and then he slid inside me again, hard as a rock. My brow furrowed as he brought my other foot over his shoulder. Another climax slowly began building within me since the angle with which he was recklessly thrusting into me allowed him to go deeper. A minute passed, and it became clear he wanted to switch positions.

When he pulled out, he stood to kick off the rest of his clothing, and I did the same, ditching the lingerie. Then he pulled me to the side of the bed and turned me around so I could stand in front of him and entered that way, pushing me forward to bend onto the bed with a hand flat on my back.

Each thrust of Gaara's hips brought a moan from me, and after a moment or two, he changed his mind. He pulled me up by my arms until my back hit his chest, and then one of his came down to hold my hip, so I couldn't pull away from him, and the other wrapped across my chest to hold the opposite shoulder, keeping me upright. I clung to the arm across my chest for dear life as he abused my insides as he saw fit. Pants of breath moved my hair and tickled my sweaty skin from behind.

"Close your legs."

Oh, God, it's that same voice he used the first time we had sex.

I obeyed instantly and somehow managed to gasp out, "Your voice…."

Usually, Gaara might be too bashful to do something like that on the fly without knowing it would be requested, but something was in the air tonight because he responded expertly. The hand on my shoulder fumbled to wrap around my neck, firm enough to pump my blood more quickly but not so much so that I couldn't breathe.

"You like it?"

A pleasured cry melted into the air, and he released his hold on me, allowing me to fall forward as he helped me onto my hands and knees on the bed. Then he was bent over me, lips brushing against the sensitive skin between my shoulder blades, "You're getting close, I can tell."

He's so good at this, and he's so right.

Strong hands held both of my hips as he continued to hit sweet spot after sweet spot, whispering little taunts against my skin as I got closer and closer to the edge. When I finally fell in, my arms gave out, and I gripped hands full of the blanket as I buried my face in it and pressed back against him.

The moment the incredible electricity faded, exhaustion truly hit me. Still, I didn't have to worry if I could hold out longer because then Gaara pulled out, and I felt his hot fluids against my middle and lower back.

Then he let himself fall to the bed beside me, his feet still on the floor. I rolled onto my side, facing him. It doesn't matter now if what's on my back gets on the bed. The fluids from the first round already had. Tomorrow, we're going to have to do some laundry.

We both gasped for breath in silence for a long time, but he turned his head to look at me after that, eyes dancing over my appearance, "Are you alright? I didn't hurt you, did I?"

I shook my head, "That was incredible." He nodded, gaze locking more firmly onto mine since I reassured him my body was fine.

For a minute or two, we just stared at one another before he spoke in a suddenly soft and emotional voice, very different from the frantic lust-charged sex we just had, "I'm so in love with you."

I reached over to wrap my hands around his arm and smiled sleepily, "And I'm in love with you. Let's stick together, okay? We make a good team."

He smiled, actually smiled, "Okay."