Now and Forever

What is love?  I sometimes wonder.  Can you see it?  Would you know what love was if you could only see it, not feel it?  Whenever I look around, wondering who might understand me, my eyes always come to rest on Sakura Haruno.  
And I see love in the air.
Love sitting and standing everywhere I look.
Around her, this is all I see.
But how do you explain this to a girl who's barely an adult, and yet not a girl?  How can you explain to her that her beautiful smile makes your heart pound with desire?  How can you explain how you fantasize about the touch of her soft lips against your's?
These are the thoughts that are haunting me like a lonely ghost when Sakura walks up to me and asks, "Are you alright?"  "What?  Yes, fine," I mumble.  "Are you sure?"  Sakura looks concerned.  "Do you have a fever?  You've looked so pale lately."  She spreads her hand over my forehead.
My cheeks burn.
My heart pounds.
I see love hovering over Sakura's head, almost transparent, yet beautiful and true.  "Your face is red," Sakura says, looking even more concerned.  "Are you sick?  You poor thing."  Her hand brushes my cheek.  "You poor thing," she repeats softly.
The love hovering above Sakura's head is so solid I feel that I could reach out and touch it.  "I'm fine," I force myself to say.  I wish I wasn't fine.  I wish I was sick, so Sakura could.....
A picture of Sakura in a nurse's outfit comes to my mind.
Then something else, but I don't dare think about it for more than a second.
"Are you sure?"  Sakura asks.  "I don't want you to be sick.....you'll have to miss training......"  She bites her lip.  I stare.
Is that a hint of pink I detect in her cheeks?
Could it be.....?
I put a hand on her shoulder and smile my most reassuring smile.  "I'm not sick," I tell her.  "Just......tired.  I haven't been sleeping too well lately."  "Oh?"  Sakura looks interested.  "Any particular reason?"
Another picture flashes into my mind, causing color to flood to my cheeks.
"Er, I don't really know," I say quickly.  "These things happen, don't they?"  I laugh nervously.  "Yes, they do," Sakura agrees.  She stares at me for a few seconds.  And then she speaks again, her voice just above a whisper.
"You need me, don't you?"
I stare at her stupidly for a few seconds before the question connects with something in my mind.
Is she......?
No.
Impossible.
Right?
"Yes, I need you," I say slowly.  "Without you, Team 7 really isn't much of a team.  It's nice to have a pretty, organized female on the team.  And you're really a good fighter."  Sakura leans forward, putting her nose inches from mine.
"You need me."
She's so close......so close......
"Yes," I admit.  "I do."
And then her arms are around my neck and our lips are pressed together, and I feel happier than I've ever felt in my entire life and she's so WARM.....
Ten minutes pass.
Sakura gently pushes me away.  "Oh, Kakashi," she whispers.  
No "sensei".
Just Kakashi.
I hold her close and whisper my desires into her ear.  And I'm not afraid of what she'll think of them.  Because now we have what we've both been desiring.
Each other.
And a love so solid that I reach out my hand to touch it, knowing how warm it will feel.
Sakura leaves a few seconds later.
But the love stays with me.
I know that it will never leave me.  And I'll never be sad again.
Nothing matters anymore.
Except for Sakura.
Because I know that I'll have her with me, now and forever.  She'll always be there, warming my bed and waiting to sing me to sleep.