Rouse
Itachi stirred just past midnight.
He'd always been a light sleeper. His eyes would snap open at the most subtle of movements or sounds. If a bird took off from a nearby tree, flapping its wings audibly, he'd wake. If Hinata rolled away from him in the middle of the night, he'd wake. If one of the wooden planks in the house creaked, again, he'd wake.
It was never a full awakening, but more a brief coming to awareness. A blinking of his eyes, a sigh from his lips, before he'd realize that there was no danger in the air, and he was free to return to the land of dreams. It was a good trait to have. Especially for a ninja. For a husband that simply wanted rest, however, there were more preferable sleeping habits.
But this time it was different.
Tonight, he awoke because his side was starting to go numb.
Itachi groaned slightly, turning to look at the cause of his discomfort. His wife slept, curled up beside him. Unaware of what she was doing. She didn't rouse like he did. But he attributed that to the fact that she simply felt secure in his presence because no ninja worth their grain of salt ever slept heavily. Not extremely anyway.
She trusted his ability to protect her—and that was that.
While a slumbering Hinata felt comfortable against him, it could get very tiring. Very quickly. She wasn't particularly heavy. Neither were the planes of her body as harsh or as protruding as his own, but after hours of her constant weight lying on top of him, even he reached his limit.
Itachi turned, arms circling her wide hips and carefully maneuvering her to turn with him, so that her back was half-pressed against his chest and half-pushed into the mattress. It couldn't be comfortable. He was about to move her more, but not a second later, and the woman in his arms shifted on her own, so that her shoulder was pressed away from him and she was lying flat on the bed.
"Itachi..." she murmured, confused, eyes open half-mast.
There was the light sleeping ninja he knew.
"Mmm..." he hummed, the sound vibrating in his chest. "Go back to sleep."
She obliged, gracing him with a dopey smile. But instead of curling against him like she was wont to, she simply inclined her head a bit more towards his own, keeping her position. He must've moved her for a reason after all. He could see in her eyes that she doubted he'd like it if she continued to cling to him.
Itachi silently appreciated her consideration.
This was why he adored her—she had a natural instinct to nurture, to see what another wanted and to adjust what she could for their comfort, to be kind for no other reason than for the sake of it, to give without limit, only expecting his loyalty and his affection in return. Both were things he was happy to give. Because he loved her for who she was; not the sterile standard of herself that the rest of the Hyuga wanted her to meet.
But his mind was running off with him again.
He laid on his side, busying himself with watching her breaths slowly even out. There were few things better than waking up next to the woman he loved. And he couldn't think of a single one at the moment.
If the world diminished to only this, he thought, watching her close her eyes; to her breaths, slow and even, enveloping him in warmth and fire and love, then he would never need anything else. He would never want anything else.
All that mattered was her, and that she existed here with him tonight.