Smile and Cry
Temari loves watching people smile, even if it's just a slight quirk of the lips or a large toothy grin. It warms her heart, not that she would ever say it does, to watch children grin cheekily up at their parents with three or more of their teeth missing.
He calls them "King" or some rubbish like that, and she can see the gleam of a smile in his eyes.
She calls him out on it one day, when they're picking at their lunches. Why he hardly ever smiles. He grumbles out a quick complaint and tells her he hates smiling. Temari punched him gently in the shoulder and proceeds to ask why. He says he has an ugly smile! She barked a quick laugh, and coaxed him to grin for her. No. Do it. No. Do it for me. Now. Fine.
He gives her an overemphasised toothy smirk that could eat babies. She laughs at him, because it's the funniest expression she's seen on his face. He grimaces and picks at his lunch again, stains of blush on his cheeks.
Then she asks him why he doesn't really smile. He shakes his head. She doesn't ask again, but taps his shoulder when Kurenai and her daughter stroll past, with the girls hand clutched in Kurenai's. He jumps up there in a second and greats them both with a fondness she doesn't recognise. The girl wants to be picked up, and Shikamaru scoops her up in his arms.
When he turns to her Temari sees the kindest grin on his face, eyes turning to her full of love. She feels her heart burn.
Then he asks her out.
(...)
He noticed a while back that he's never seen her cry. Of course he's seen her sad or even depressed, but never to the point of tears. He asks why. She tells him it's because he cries so much, that if she cried there wouldn't be any more water for the rest of the world. He kicks her under the breakfast table.
Then he asks her why she doesn't really cry, and she shakes her head, eyes dulling slightly. He never asks again. He guesses that he does cry enough for both of them, but not as much as she says. Maybe when they had their first kid, and when his mother died, but that's normal right?
Temari has an iron heart, he figures. She doesn't need to cry. Her smile is too beautiful anyway.
She finds out about her brother's death, goes to the funeral and comes home; back from Suna to her family. Dinner is waiting for her, all of her favourite foods, and the meal is eaten in silence. Even the children know to keep their mouths shut. She picks at it.
Later that night he comes to bed after the day's work is done and lies next to her. She doesn't react. He puts his arm around her.
"I'm not in the mood Shikamaru." she says flatly. He rolls her over, so her ear grazes his lips and murmurs very softly.
"Let it all out."
She stares blankly at him for a while, and then slowly lowers her head. She presses into his chest and stays there. She doesn't sob. She just presses into him, like a child does to their mother.
They stay like that all night, and he hugs the way he wishes someone did all those nights ago.
(...)
She makes one of his vows that he has to smile for her at least once a day. He tries to make her vow to cry at his funeral. She punches him in the shoulder and tells him he has to cry at his own funeral, because she'll be too busy smiling.
They both laugh.