Slip of the Tongue
A/N: I saw a picture online and I got to thinking of what would lead up to it. And since I'm not an artist, this is the best way to figure it out.
I am really doing this as a test of my romance ability. Please keep this in mind when you review. Thanks!
The water lapped on the soft sand, breaking the silence with soft crashes. The only other sounds were a few birdcalls and insect chirps, making the area very peaceful and calm.
Hinata gazed up at the moon. It was full and cast a white light over the nearly smooth lake. This was her favorite spot in the world. Here, on the lakeshore not far from the village, at the full moon. All other cares vanished as she relaxed in the moon's tranquil glow. She had missed it the past few months because of missions or weather, so lying there tonight felt especially warming.
A crunch of sand tore her to alertness. She twisted on the sands, rising to a knee and reaching for a kunai, but stopped when she saw the boy in the bright orange jacket. "N…Naruto?"
"Hey, Hinata."
"W…what are you doing here?"
"Well, to be honest, I'm looking for you."
Hinata's eyes flared for a moment. "Me? What for?"
Naruto eyed her hand. "Would you mind putting that away first?"
She looked down. She still clutched a kunai tightly in her fist. "Oh. Sorry." She put it back in the pouch. "So…what's up?"
Naruto walked across the sand, crunching footprints, and sat down next to her. "It's real romantic here, isn't it?"
Hinata jumped an inch. "R…romantic?"
"Yeah. It's so peaceful here. Do you come here often?" he asked as he looked at her.
She yelped lightly and instinctively looked down with a blush. "Yeah. Whenever I can." Naruto returned his gaze out to the water.
A long silence settled over the pair. Hinata's heart was pounding in her chest so loud she couldn't hear the waves. She desperately wanted to break the awkwardness, but she couldn't get her mouth to move. Oh, why did she have to be so shy?
Naruto finally broke the silence. "The reason I came here was to ask you a question."
"Oh? And what would that be?"
"It…it's about something you said the other day…on the mission."
"What did I say?"
"Well…"
-FLASHBACK-
Naruto lay on the ground, a tall bald man glaring down at him. He held a short sword an inch from Naruto's throat. "This is where you die," he said angrily.
Just as he drew the blade back, a flurry of kunai stuck him, pushing him back. Hinata appeared, landing directly in front of Naruto.
"Hinata?" he realized with a gasp. "What are you doing here? I thought you were with the others."
"Don't worry. I'm here for you, Naruto. I'm always here for you."
-END FLASHBACK-
Hinata suddenly wished the silence would come back. Anything would have been better than talking with him now.
"You said you'd always be there for me. At first, I didn't think much of it, but now that I look back at it, it seems you were talking about more than just the mission."
Hinata pulled her head in towards her shoulders, trying to hide. But inside, her mind screamed. "Tell him!"
"I might be slow sometimes, but I've noticed the way you act around me. If there's something going on, you should tell me."
Hinata started to get frightened. She wanted so desperately to tell him, but she couldn't. Her body shook and her face turned beet red.
"What's wrong Hinata?"
She could take it anymore. She twisted her body and threw her arms over him while burying her face into the base of his neck. "I love you, Naruto!"
Naruto froze in shock. He had expected something, but that was the last thing he expected. He was about to pull her away when he felt something wet flow down his shoulder. She was whimpering.
He gently put his arms around her shoulders, letting her cry. How long had she kept this?
Hinata tried to hold in the tears, to be strong for Naruto, but she just couldn't do it. She'd kept this for so long, and now that it was out she couldn't stop. But in a way, it almost felt good. She was in Naruto's arms, somewhere she'd only thought she'd be in dreams. It was all too much.
But…
"Say something, Naruto." She'd admitted her end, and he was holding her in his arms, but was it really love? Or was it just to comfort her? Either way, she had to know.
Naruto didn't move. His mind still couldn't really grasp what she was saying. And did he even feel the same? He'd always had a crush on Sakura. But…that was because she was pretty. Hinata was pretty too, but she had always been so quiet and shy. He'd never really known her.
His eyes returned to the water. The moon was perfectly reflected over its surface. He heard the water's crash, the animal's communion, Hinata's open emotions. And in that place, that time, it was…it was…
He didn't know what it was. But it was right. They simply seemed to connect and he almost knew her more than he knew herself. And for the rest of eternity, he knew that this is where he wanted to be.
"I'm sorry," he said softly.
Hinata froze. For a moment, her world stood on the verge of shattering.
"I love you too. I don't know why it took me this long."
"…Did he just say that? He couldn't have."
Naruto repositioned his arms and pulled her closer to him.
Her heart fluttered. He had said it. Her soul flew into the sky, experiencing for the first time what she had longed for ages to experience.
She twisted, moving her face back to the moonlight while keeping her arms around her hero and her head against his neck. Words wanted to fly from her lips, to proclaim her love.
But there was no more need to.
The touch they shared conveyed more than words ever could.
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