Forever Uchiha

Chapter 11

After the party had ended, Itachi swept me up in his arms, carrying me back to our room. Ever so often he'd brush his lips against mine, his eyes sparkling. But beneath the happiness, I could feel how tense he was, his eyes containing a hint of sorrow that I couldn't quite place. Itachi always seemed to have sorrow buried in his eyes, even though on the surface he seemed happy. My heart twisted, pain tearing my soul into pieces. So much had happened to Itachi that he hadn't deserved. He was so sweet and kind.......he didn't deserve to suffer through so much pain.

When we arrived in our room, Itachi placed me down gently on our bed, placing another kiss on my lips, a smile lighting up his face.

"I'm glad you like your birthday present." I whispered shyly.

"I like it very much." Itachi smiled, but there was no mistaking the sadness in his beautiful onyx eyes. "I am so blessed to be able to start a family with you." He sighed. "Even if only for a short time..."

My stomach clenched, tying itself up in knots. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"Oh....it's nothing." Itachi shook his head. "I--" Itachi was interrupted by a fit of coughing, blood splattering on his hand and chin.

"Itachi!" I gasped, taking his hand. "Are...are you alright?!"

Itachi tried to answer, but he fell to his knees, heaving up blood from his lungs. My heart clenched, as I slipped down off the bed, sitting next to him on the floor. I wrapped my arm around Itachi's shoulders, my fingers still intertwined with his. He looked exhausted, his breaths shallow and ragged as more blood slid out of his mouth. I could only imagine how much pain he must have been in. It wasn't beyond possibility that something really was gravely wrong with Itachi. Coughing up blood to such a point was no small thing, and I knew that Itachi wasn't one to say something when he was in pain.

"Please Itachi." I whispered. "If somethings wrong, you need to tell me."

Itachi shuddered, wiping the blood off his mouth with his sleeve. "I'm fine, Hinata." He rasped, his eyes not once meeting mine.

I knew for sure he was obviously lying.

"Itachi, do you know how silly you sound?!" I exclaimed, trying to keep my voice steady. "Someone who's coughing up blood isn't fine! And anyway, you barely sleep and you don't have much of an appetite. There's obviously something wrong!"

I let my gaze drop. "I'm not stupid. And I don't appreciate being lied to. That's.....that's what tore us apart in the first place."

Only then did Itachi look up at me. His eyes glassy with tears and devoid of the happiness that had shone bright in them earlier. He looked so broken, regret pooling in his dark eyes. Itachi obviously regretted what he had done, and I was beginning to realize that what I said had been completely out of line. I opened my mouth to take it back, but before I could, Itachi brought his hand to my cheek, brushing away tears I hadn't realized had escaped from my eyes. My voice died in my throat, my eyes widening.

"I'm so sorry, Hinata." Itachi smiled sadly. "Someone as sweet and kind as you shouldn't have to suffer through so much pain. And I am so sorry that it was by my own selfish desires that I broke your heart."

"No, Itachi--"

"Shh." Itachi hushed me softly, brushing his hand against my cheek. "You don't need to worry about me. I'm undeserving of such kindness."

Surprisingly, a hot flash of anger blazed through me. Hot tears filled my eyes, spilling down my cheeks in wet trails.

"So you just think that you're getting what you deserve?" I muttered, my voice shaking with anger and sorrow. I balled my hands into fists, my fingernails digging into my palms. "How dare you?" I hissed, smacking his hand away. Hurt flashed over Itachi's face but he said nothing.