>3rd POV<

The enter house was sullen and quiet. A week passed since the news of Marcus's passing, then another, and another. Nina had stayed in her room the entire time, and the akatsuki and her friends, who had moved in with her to comfort her, never heard a peep.

Inside the room that belonged to Nina Jentz, the dark girl sat in the middle of her floor, hugging her Kisame plushy tightly as she looked at all the texts and pictures she shared with her elder brother. She said nothing. Her skin had become even more pale from the lack of sunlight as she kept her curtains drawn and windows shut. She was even more thin from eating very little. She had black bags under her eyes from sleep deprivation.

The akatsuki, Jody, Alex, and Sam all sat in the living room, extremely worried for the depressed girl upstairs.

Then, a certain shark man stood, leaving the room without a word. He went upstairs and slowly turned the doorknob to Nina's room. The girl he saw was not the same cool, collected Nina he had first met. This Nina was weak, broken, vulnerable, and it made his heart wrench painfully.

"Nina, you should come out for a bit." He said, voice oddly soft considering the depth of his vocal cords.

"No..." Nina whispered back, uncharacteristically gentle as she shook her head.

"Everyone misses you..." Kisame continued, taking a step into he room. He saw her holding the plushy of him tightly, and felt a small amount of happiness in his heart before pushing the emotion away.

Nina simply hummed numbly.

Kisame crouched in front of her, waving his blue tinted hand before her grey eyes. She ignored him, glassy eyes transfixed on the virtual image of Marcus and herself at the Grand Canyon.

Kisame wondered what he could do, finally settling on taking the phone from her hands and scooping her up. He noticed that she no longer blushed when he picked her up or held her, and his heart twanged sadly. He carried her from the room and down the many halls before sliding open a door and throwing her into her own pool.

She resurfaced, sputtering and shocked, before her surprise was soon replaced with rage.

"What the hell was that for?!" She yelled angrily. "The water's freezing!"

"It's not nearly as cold as you're acting." He responded with a frown, making her freeze. "I understand you miss your brother, but getting all depressed about it isn't going to bring him back. You need to accept that he's gone, do something to remember him by, and move on. I'm not saying forget, but move on. The only thing you're accomplishing by acting this way is making everyone else feel so uncomfortable, no one can speak."

Nina blinked in surprise as she realized the large man before her was right.

"I'm... I'm sorry Kisame." She muttered, ashamed. "You're absolutely right."

He smiled softly and held out his hand, helping her out of the water before hugging her tightly. Before she looked away, he caught sight of the blush rising onto her face, which made him smile.

"It's fine, just cheer up." He grinned, ruffling her hair as he pulled away. She looked up at him and gave a smile of her own before wrapping her arms around his waist and hugging him, something she'd never done before.

Kisame mulled over the pros and cons of what he wanted to do, and decided that it was worth any bad outcome. So he pulled away, took her chin between his thumb and pointer finger, and tilted her head up to him before he bent down to kiss her. Her soft lips on his sent an incredible fluttering feeling shoot through his chest. He loved the feeling and didn't want it to stop.

Nina was shocked, incredibly so, but soon kissed back, lacing her fingers behind his neck and pulling him closer as he did the same, his arms around her waist.

"OH MY KAMI!" A high voice screamed, making the couple pull away to look at the very elated Sam in the doorway. "GUYS IT FINALLY HAPPENED! THEY FUCKING KISSED!" She screeched, bolting towards the living room.

"Guess that just made us official, huh?" Kisame grinned, pecking Nina on her nose.

"Yeah, I guess so." Nina smiled softly.

~•~

>Nina POV<

*ding ding*

A bell chimed as Kisame and I entered a tattoo parlor.

"Hello, what can I do for you?" Asked the pierced and inked boy at the counter.

"My name is Nina Jentz. I have an appointment with Robby." I replied stoically, holding Kisame's hand tightly.

"Ah!" Said a man with short black hair and snake bite Piercings as he came from the back. "Miss Jentz! Welcome to my shop! Just come in back and we'll get started!" He said, grinning at me. Kisame and I followed him through a curtain. "So you want a shark on your back, right?" He asked. I nodded.

"Shark?" Kisame questioned with a quirked eyebrow. I smirked up at him.

"It was Marcus's favorite animal. And don't forget I want it to be black and white." I added to the artist.

"Sure Kid just take off your shirt and lay down." He chuckled. I stripped off my tanktop, leaving me in a sports bra and my black jeans, before laying on my stomach. I noticed Kisame's face turn a bit purple as he sat beside me, holding my hand in a gentle grip.

"Are you blushing? You're looking a bit purple there." I teased, smirking at him. He snapped out of it and sent me a soft glare as his blush receded.

"Speaking of which." Began the man as he turned on his gun and began tracing the outline he just put on my back. I cringed and squeeze Kisame's hand tightly. "Your skin's a bit blue. Why's that man?"

"He.... Got a full body tattoo." I I ground out quickly.

"Really? Even... Down there?" The man asked, pausing in the tattoo.

"Eh... Yeah..." Kisame said awkwardly, sending me a dirty look to which I grinned cheekily.

"Wooh, you have my respect there brother. You can come hang with me and my gang anytime." The man said as he continued the tattoo.

"How ya doin'?" Kisame asked, smirking down at me. I stuck my tongue out at him before putting my tongue back, realizing that I'll bite it if I'm not careful.

"Don't be a douche, fish face." I grumbled.

All he did was chuckle at me.

~•~

"Later!" The man, Robby, called as Kisame and I left the shop. My new tattoo of a beautiful black and white shark was visible to the public, since I had to keep the tat uncovered for a while.

I was careful not to lean back in my seat as I drove us home, mentally reminding myself to teach the akatsuki to drive.

"OOH! Nina-chan! Can Tobi see your tattoo?!" Tobi screeched as soon as Kisame opened the door for me. I smiled at him before turning around. "SCARY!" I heard him shout before running off.

I bit back a laugh.

"I'm sure Marcus would have loved it." Jody said softly as I turned again.

"He's not the only one." Kisame said smoothly, draping his arm over my shoulders and kissing my temple.

"My ship got cannoned." Sam grinned in satisfaction, knowing full well that the akatsuki had know cousin hell what she was talking about.

"Oh go blow up a door!" I retorted, sticking my tongue out at hurt. Suddenly, something touched my back. I yelped loudly, biting my tongue hard in the process and automatically covering my mouth as I blinked back tears.

"Dammit Tobi!" I heard Kisame shout in annoyance.

"GAH! Tobi's sorry Nina-chan!"

"I'm fine." I sighed heavily. "That hurt like a bitch though."

"Remember when Marcus came back with his first tattoo?" Sam suddenly asked.

"Yeah..." I smiled softly. "He got a tombstone for his best friend that got killed..."

And for the rest of the day, Jody, Sam, Alex, and I shared stories about all the funny, weird, stupid, and memorable things Marcus did. And that day, I think I finally came to accept his Death.