Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!
Summary: What do you do when you find a girl who's wallclimbing the side of your apartment? Shikamaru is about to find out.
Pineapple Blossoms
Prologue
Hurried footsteps made echoed in the pattering rain, where a pair of small feet in high-heels were running over potholes and pools of trickling water. The distant clap of thunder only made the feet move faster, as if the owner was fleeing from a pack of hounds. The victim was nearly sprinting down an old alleyway, in an obvious attempt to create a reasonable amount of distance from the attacker, who was slowly catching up. A bolt of lightning illuminated the road, and a startled heart-shaped face with long, black hair had an unmistakeable expression: fear.
She was frantic, and she knew it was only a matter of time before he caught up with her. It wasn't always like this, she consoled herself. I'll find a better life. And yet, as she ran past pawnshops and peepshows, she had to wonder if this was how her life was going to end up. A police car whizzed by, red lights flashing, and she started screaming for help. But it was useless, since it was quite obvious that the car was speeding, catching an elusive driver. Clutching a stitch in her side, she continued on.
"Come back here!" roared a masculine voice. She shrieked, and sprinted as fast as she could down another alleyway. She knew that if he caught up with her, it was game over, and she'd fall into the pit of misery once more. She tripped, and kept on running, even though her fall had caused her a great injury. Blood was trickling down her leg, and she prayed to God that he'd help her just this once.
Who knew that a smart, talented high-school girl would end up in this type of situation? But she knew it was useless to ponder on the past. In the haze of the rain, another bolt of lightning aided her by shining a light on the one thing that would help her out of this. It was a ladder attached to an apartment building, common for architects to make in the '50s.
"Hey!" She spun around. Her attacker was just three metres away, holding a knife. "Don't make me do this, girlie!" he said, purring seductively. She shuddered, recalling how old this guy was. He merely gave her an incentive to climb the ladder.
Taking off her heels, she flung them at the man, who swatteed them away as if they were flies. He started running towards her. She squealed in fright, and started climbing the ladder as fast as she could. "Oh no you don't!" he said maliciously, and she could see that he was gaining on her. So she did the only thing she remembered in self defense class: she kicked his head and he fell down, hitting the pavement with a dull clunking noise.
She stayed there, quite still, knowing full well in her heart that the man was only unconscious. It was as if the rainclouds changed temperature. Warm rain was hitting her like pellets, and she felt so relieved, so ... empowered.
"HEY! WHAT'RE YOU DOING??" She yelped as though scalded, and turned to look for the speaker. "Your butt's in my face." said a bored voice.
It was a boy her age who was looking up at her from the apartment she was currently 'wallclimbing' on. He had his hair in a spiky ponytail, he had dark-rimmed glasses on, and a cigarette was leisurely dangling from his mouth. At that moment, he looked amused. His head was poking out of his apartment window.
Taking off his glasses he said, "You're gonna catch a cold, miss." The girl stared. He wasn't like other guys she had seen in her life. Behind that bored look was something else ... confusion, perhaps?
"Hello? Do you hear me?" A hand was moving back and forth in her face. She gave a startled cry, clutching the rim of the ladder. He chuckled humorlessly. "Well, I might as well be a gentleman, even though I'm talking to a mute girl who just happened to land on the side of my apartment ... one of these days my shrink's gonna go crazy ..." He started walking away from the window.
"I-I-I'm ... n-not mute ... my n-name ... is Hinata ... Hyuuga ..." she spoke, barely more than a whisper.
The boy turned around as soon as she stopped speaking. "Umm, yeah ... sorry. My name is Shikamaru Nara." He held out a hand for her, opening the window a little more.
Hinata looked around the apartment. It was cozy and comfortable, all except for the lingering smell of tobacco and sake. She knew that she shouldn't even be in this house, that it could turn out badly, and that the guy called Shikamaru could easily take advantage of her.
And yet...
She felt safe here. It was a hard feeling to describe. The dark mahogany walls looked so comforting and open, that and the welcoming smell of lobster pasta that was billowing from the kitchen. "Sh-Sh-Shikamaru-s-san ... um ..." He quietly burst through from the kitchen, eyeing her carefully.
"What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" he asked. Hinata looked down at her feet. " ... do you ha-have ... - achoo! - ... spare c-c-clothes?" She was startled when Shikamaru slapped his hand to his forehead. "I forgot it was raining!" he exclaimed. "Wait here, Hinata-chan!"
Finally he came back with fresh clothes, and handed them wordlessly to Hinata. "I'm not sure if they fit you, but it'll do." He smiled genuinely at her, and she looked at him wide-eyed, fearful. She disappeared into his washroom. Her facial expression made him frown, and he wondered what happened to her to make her act like that.
"Oh well. I'm only keeping her here till tomorrow. It's not like I'll be seeing much of her after this." he said to himself.
Little did he know how dreadfully wrong he was.
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