Kakashi honestly thought that when he reached eighteen years old he would continue to age. It wasn 't that he thought his soulmate was older than him. It was that he truly believed there could be no one out there for him. Surely he was too broken? Too bitter? Too stained? Surely the universe wouldn 't be cruel enough to bind anyone to

him

for the rest of their lives?

It was therefore a very large surprise when, at 3:26 PM on September 15th the year he turned eighteen, Kakashi stopped aging. He was training alone, hiding out from Gai, when he felt it happen. It was the oddest sensation of his internal body clock suddenly pausing, as if his entire being were holding its breath. His stance wobbled, ruining his kata, as it hit him. Then the only thing he could think of was:

what poor soul was waiting just to be disappointed by him?