I know I'm supposed to be on hiatus, but this popped into my head. I'm surprised I've written something non-Hinata-centric...

Title: Seeing Is Believing
Pairing: Asuma/Kurenai
Word Count: 100


Her red eyes are dull and unfocused; her lungs burn as she lets out a shaky breath she's held for too long. The lingering silence is deafening. She sits at her table and rubs her stomach out of habit, observing the small package Shikamaru has left behind.

It's well past midnight; she won't sleep until she greets Asuma at her front door.

'He's not gone,' Kurenai tells herself. 'He wouldn't leave us.'

She reaches for the parcel. She hesitantly peels back layers of brown paper, revealing a familiar white cloth.

She clutches his sash to her chest and weeps.


I'll be experimenting with drabbles, so if you've been following some of my chaptered fics, I won't be updating those for quite a while. My sincerest apologies, but my brain is frazzled for ideas.

Until then, thank you for reading, review if you can.