Disclaimer: Me no own...
-Times Like These-
Her cat was missing. He was old and very frail, so she locked him in her room when she had to leave for training. (with food, water, and a litter box, of course.) But today, in her rush to get to training, she had left her only window open.
"Okaa-san, where's Tsuichi?"
Her mother entered her room and noticed to open window. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Ino-chan!" she fretted. "I must have left it open when I came to put your clothes away! I'm so sorry, dear…"
"Okaa-san, we gotta go find him!" Ino cried.
"I'm sorry, sato, but I have to go man the store, and you need to do your chores. We'll look for him tomorrow." She left, and Ino collapsed on her bed, sobbing brokenly into her arms.
---
"Ano, Ino? Isn't that your cat?"
"Tsuichi!" Ino cried. She dashed to her cat, tears streaming down her face once again. She gathered her cat in her arms. "Shikamaru, he's dead! He's DEAD!"
Shikamaru stood helplessly, having no clue what to say or do.
She whirled around and threw herself onto Shikamaru, her dead cat still in hand. He awkwardly patted her on the head. "I-it's alright, Ino…Sometimes, when animals know they're gonna…uh…leave us, they go somewhere away from the one's they love…and, well, curl up and die."
She removed herself from Shikamaru and began to slowly walk in the direction of her house, cradling her cat in her arms.
Confused, Shikamaru called after her, "Uh, bye, Ino!" She waved back disinterestedly. "Curl up and die…That's a good one…"
---
Pounding on the door. Shikamaru's voice. "Ino! Can you hear me? Open the door! C'mon, Ino! Ino!"
"Heh. I don't care." Grinning crazily, she lightly traced her arm with the dangerously sharp tip of her kunai. "Don't give a fuck about them. The bastards; they don't care when my cat dies! This'll show them!"
"Ino! Dammit, Ino! Fuck this…" Her door flew open from the force of Shikamaru's kick. He rushed to her side, her mother close behind. They both saw the kunai, and Ino's mother gave a little scream. "Ino! W-what are you doing?!
Glaring at them, she replied scathingly, "Go away, you bastards! Can't you just leave me to curl up and die?"
Upon hearing this, Shikamaru knew he needed to get Ino's mother out of there. "Yamanaka-san, I think you better leave."
"But-" she started.
"GO!" Still looking dubious of his judgment, she backed away from Ino and out the door. He turned back to Ino. "Now, Ino, stop this! Ino, no!" She had begun to cut herself along her arm. Blood trickled onto her white coverlet, staining it a dark crimson.
Without hesitating, he threw his arms around Ino's neck. Holding her close, he whispered softly in her ear, "Come back, Ino. Don't leave me hanging here."
She blinked and she suddenly realized what she had been doing and, eyes widening, dropped the knife. "Oh my god, Shika…What have I done?"
Tears fell, and she sobbed into Shikamaru's shirt.
---
"Thanks for coming for me, Shika."
They were sitting on the front porch swing. I was the evening of Ino's failed suicide attempt. Her arm was bandaged, and they were talking in muted tones.
He blushed and stuttered, "I-it was nothing. You're mom called me, and she sounded really desperate, so I came over. No big!"
Quite suddenly, Shikamaru became aware of a weight on his shoulder: Ino had laid her head on it. She began to speak softly, so softly he had to strain to hear her. "It's for the times like these that I'm glad I'm alive. Aishiteru, Shika."
Shikamaru smiled softly, held her hand in his, and laid his head of hers. "Aishiteru, Ino-chan. Aishiteru."