It was a typical day at Yamanaka Flowers. Customers breezed in and out of the establishment, Hinata exchanged a few words with Ino every now and then, and Ino's dad dropped by once in the morning. And, as per usual, Sasuke was doing a piss poor job at his job. He seemed to have little interest in flowers if it didn't involve holding a rose in his mouth while posing in a ridiculous manner that was supposed to pass off as seductive, or if he was going to give a flower or bouquet away to some poor girl who didn't know any better than to just reject him.

Was he really that charming? Hinata didn't see it. Obnoxious was all she could come up with to describe him, at the moment. There were a countless number of things she could think of to say about the Uchiha.

It was a weekend, and it was nearing noon, and the shop had its few customers. Sasuke stood idly behind the counter, winking at the girls who passed by. He caught Hinata's stony gaze and winked at her as well, receiving only a harsh glare in return. She couldn't begin to fathom why he had been hired in the first place. Even more miraculous than Sasuke getting the job was the fact that he still hadn't been fired. Day by day, the Hyūga heiress waited, crossing her fingers and hoping they'd be rid of the nuisance of a pest. Perhaps Ino had felt bad for him, or perhaps it was because of him that more and more people came in than ever before, which of course benefited Ino and her family. Even still, if it was Hinata in their shoes instead, she wouldn't have cared what good the guy would have done. He was useless with all his flirting and poor work ethic.

A Sasuke-Free environment was a serene one. But, there were some days in the shop where it was quiet, and maybe just the two of them if Ino had to run out on an errand or a mission. On some days like that, the shop wouldn't be busy, and if she was truly lucky, it would be quiet. With no one coming by, Sasuke's chatter was less and less, although he still made his way over to her in attempt to flirt with her, although he knew just what the end result would be. Despite that, he remained persistent. He was persistent in his stupid pick-up lines, the offering of flowers that he plucked from bouquets (and he was forced to replace them and offer up a bit of his pay just in case he'd ruined anything), and his constant, feeble attempts to grab her attention.

On days like that, Hinata tried her best to convince him to leave the shop, telling him that she would cover his shift for him due to the shop not being busy in the least, telling him that she would manage on her own, telling him bluntly that she didn't want him around. And still, Sasuke stayed, and she just couldn't understand why.

Sasuke simply enjoyed her company and the attention he got, despite it being negative. He'd rather not get hit with a rolled up newspaper or scolded, and he'd rather not get kicked in the butt, but he'd take that any day if that was the alternative to not being noticed and acknowledged at all. Hyūga Hinata was a powerful, independent, formidable, and beautiful kunoichi. On the surface was a seemingly careless boy who only wanted to flirt with the world's women and have them all wrapped around his pale fingers, but beneath all that, he was still a shinobi. It was true, he was a carefree kind of guy, but again, he was still a shinobi. As a shinobi, he respected Hinata. Her resolve, her strength, and her "I don't take shit" attitude, he respected it all. From her physical appearance to her demeanor, Sasuke had been allured.

She was like a goddess that he just couldn't touch, and maybe the most he'd get from her was her attention. She had eyes for Menma, anyhow. Even so, getting to know her just a little more was his goal. One of these days, he'd get her to indulge in a conversation with him. It was why he had applied for this job when he learned that Hinata was working at Yamanaka Flowers and that there was another open position. He had seen it as an open opportunity that yearned for him and called his name, beckoning him over to join the establishment in order to get closer to the Hyūga - all to Hinata's dismay.

Her little world had seemed to crash and burn when she saw the raven-haired playboy walk into the shop, his signature smug smirk plastered to that stupid arrogant face of his. She remembered the day with the fullest clarity, as if it was a motion picture cinematic replaying right before her eyes.

"Yo, Hinata!" Sasuke had called out. "I got a job here! Glad to be workin' with you, babe~!"

She remembered groaning and roughly slamming a palm against her forehead, and stomping a foot against the ground afterward. Admittedly, she had glared at Ino, the poor girl, to which she might have later apologized for, though almost reluctantly.

For a while, Hinata had tried to ignore him, but the words that flowed from his mouth flowed like an endless stream. It didn't slow, it didn't stop, its flow like the rivers someone would go white water rafting on. His speech was like the quick rapids of those rivers, loud, fast, and ceaseless. But again, on those rare, quiet days, they were at peace, and again it was like a shallow stream that had stilled, the rippling currents gentle, bubbling quietly at the mouth and over rocks.

On those days while she was organizing flowers and he was mopping the floor, Hinata would occasionally spare a glance at him to make sure that he was doing his job properly, to make sure that he was working in the first place. Ino would have sneaked over to her and whispered in her ear for her to be a little easier on him, but Hinata would turn her nose and huff, folding her arms across her chest. She'd then pull out her hair and tie it up again, brushing her fringe out of her eyes. Sasuke would be oblivious to that all, concentrating, for once, on his work. Every now and then he would look back over at the heiress and flash a quick grin, hoping that she noticed him hard at work, and perhaps he would get a bit of praise. When their eyes met, however, Hinata would always avert her gaze right away, and Sasuke would get back to mopping. When he did, Hinata would look back over at him, and she'd mentally note that he wasn't half bad to look at.

On regular days when it was loud and rowdy, when she was busy yelling at him and getting him to hop off her back, she hardly noticed his face - not that she cared to look in the first place. Still, it was a pleasant one, and she started to see, if only by a little, why people would swoon over him; Sasuke was exceptionally good looking. Maybe that was the explanation for the terrible job he did at the little tasks he was assigned. She'd begun to assume that the pretty boys were no good at conventional tasks.

Hinata didn't know too much about him personally, but from what she did see of him - and most of that was from him chasing after her in his attempts to sweep her off her feet - she thought the only thing he was good at was flirting, and even at that, he couldn't manage to woo her. Granted, Hinata was stubborn, she was interested in someone else, and she did have standards.

Today, it was a typical day. After the influx of customers began to lessen, the Hyūga moved from behind the counter and went to grab a mist bottle, filling it with water. She returned and walked towards the potted plants, misting them lightly until their petals and leaves were shimmering beneath the room's bright lights from the sparkling droplets of water.

When she rose from her bent position and turned around, she was standing face to face with Sasuke. It took her a brief moment to register just how close he was before she sent an arm out swinging, delivering a hard blow to one of the Uchiha's arms. He flinched when he was hit, his other arm immediately shooting up, a calloused hand rubbing his arm.

"That hurt, Hinata," he whined, lips pushing out into a pout.

The glare never left the girl's face, a glimmer of annoyance still swimming around in the depths of her lavender eyes. "It was supposed to. Don't stand so close to me, especially without saying anything. That's just creepy."

The pain in his arm was quick to fade, and the other arm dropped back to his side. "Aw, c'mon, don't be like that, babe," he said, stepping forward and turning so that he stood at the Hyūga heiress's side. An arm snuck across her shoulders, resting lightly on one. "I just thought I'd like to see your breathtaking beauty up close. Super close. Have I told you how beautiful you are today?"

Hinata's glare only hardened at his poor efforts at flirting with her, her plump, pink lips thinning and pressing together. "Enough of that sweet talk. I don't get why you always try so damn hard," she finally responded, breathing out heavily. She had raised her arms halfway to the side, hands palm up, and shrugged in a gesture that expressed her inability to comprehend him. "You never get anywhere, and my replies and responses are always the same. You're an idiot, you know that, right?"

He never did reply, instead running off somewhere, returning moments later with a single rose in hand. Hinata's mouth opened in protest, and she was about to demand the he put the flower back because he's already toyed with too many in the past week, but she could hardly get a word out before the guy dropped down to one knee. Sasuke threw his right arm out to the side, and extended the rose in his left hand upward towards Hinata, his face gleaming.

"What the hell are you do-"

And then, he was serenading her.

Her face was quick to fall, washing over with a hint of annoyance, and later indifference. She counted the seconds as they passed by, waiting until she reached ten. Once she had counted up to the tenth second, she raised the arm that was still holding the squirt bottle, and sprayed the Uchiha in his face. She pulled the bottle's trigger several times until her co-worker's face was dripping with water, until his dark hair was slicked back from the wetness. A few strands were sticking to his forehead, and all he did was blink every now and then.

"Cut that out," Hinata snapped, "and get back to work. Put that rose back. Remember, that's coming out of your pay check. Again. Ino's going to hear about this, and I'll yell at you again for her sake because she's too damn nice to put you in line."

Sasuke really was a special case. Completely obnoxious. But, Hinata had to admit that she might've been bored everyday if it weren't for him. At least with Sasuke around, she could be entertained during the hours the shop wasn't busy by yelling at him. She was perpetually annoyed and irritated, true, but it did liven the shop up and she often found satisfaction in hitting him if he deserved to be hit.

Sasuke just grinned as he was shoved away, stumbling at first before regaining his balance. He looked somewhat satisfied as he went to return the flower and pick up the mop once more. He was dripping wet, but he didn't seem to care too much. Maybe he'd try that stunt again one day in the future when he's more acquainted with the girl and once he's convinced her that he wasn't all that bad, and that his sweet talk wasn't just sweet talk.

When it came down to it, he was genuinely interested and intrigued by Hinata. He just wanted a bit of her time, and for her to accept some of his.