Ino blinked at the dark fabric covering her head. The jacket slipped off of her silky hair easily as she used the wall to pull herself up off the floor. The events that lead her to her position slowly crawled back to her. She gently turned her hazy head to the table and to the poker chips and cards, not to mention the bottles, scattered on it. That's right, she told herself, I held a poker game tonight. She looked at her living room, now dotted with the sleeping bodies of her friends, too drunk to go home but not drunk enough to throw up everywhere, thank god.
She leaned heavily against the wall and spotted Sakura on the loveseat. She smiled at her best friend and the pillow that she was using. Kankurou was too large for the chair; his head was using one armrest for support while his knees sloped over the other. Sakura was happily squished between the couch and her puppeteer. Ino was happy that Kankurou and Sakura found each other. Sakura deserved to be happy and, as Ino got to know him, she believed that Kankurou deserved to be happy too. They were Konoha's favorite couple. And as much as Ino's heart warmed each time she saw them together a part of her heart tugged, almost painfully. She wasn't afraid to admit that she was jealous of what Sakura had, not to herself, but she be damned if she ever said it out loud. She pulled her gaze to a very bundled up Hinata with Naruto's arms wrapped protectively around her legs, his face peacefully asleep in her lap.
Ino now remembered why she was sleeping against the wall in the first place…
"I'll raise you!"
Ino turned to her pinked haired friend. All the tells that she had learned when they were younger where of no use here. She turned to see Naruto's face the same as Sakura's. It was calm, relaxed, no hint of excitement or nervousness. Ino readily folded her hand. She had thought that having a sensei that covered most of his face behind a mask would leave them with a disadvantage not the ability to have a poker face that even Shikamaru couldn't read. Kankurou laughed at Ino's flustered face as Sakura dragged the winnings to her.
"Heh, how do you think I get stuck doing the laundry all the time."
Sakura kissed her boyfriend quickly before taking his cards and shuffling the deck.
"That's because you like to do the laundry."
Ino joined in Naruto's laughter even if Kankurou's hand to the back of the future Hokage's head stopped it. Ino stepped away from the game as Neji decided to raise Sakura and Naruto. The Hyuuga prodigy wouldn't give up until he saw at least one of their poker faces break before his, even if he wouldn't be able to eat for a month. She walked into her spacious kitchen to find Kiba, Shino, Chouji, and Tenten gathered around a huge pizza about to start in the demolishment of it. Temari handed her yet another plastic red cupful of her latest concoction. Ino new that the sickly sweet taste that coated her lips had probably more alcohol in it than she had in her whole apartment. Kiba gave her a once over as she leaned languidly into the counter to munch on some pizza.
"Maybe you should take it easy with that stuff Ino."
She looked at her cup and then back to the dog boy. She lost count of how many she had actually drunk. But if he was worrying about it… She put her drink down. Kiba smiled at her but she just rolled her eyes. Somehow when she wasn't looking Kiba had taken up a big part of her life. He seemed to show up one day when they were a man down for a mission and he just stuck around. Not that Ino minded really. It felt like he was always with her, like another member of team 10. He really was one of her closest friends especially now. Everyone had partnered up while Ino had her back turned. She was lucky Kiba had somehow evaded this couple bug. She looked at him as she ate her pizza. She was always curious as to why that was. He was a nice guy. Funny, smart, a little bit overprotective and stubborn, but he was kind. And like all ninja he had a fit body. You just had to like dogs, tattoos, and loud music on occasion. She narrowed her eyes at him as she tried once again to put a finger on just why he was still single. He gave her a goofy look. She returned his look as she turned back to the poker table and frowned at the glint in Sakura's eyes. Ino knew that this was probably heading in a horribly wrong direction.
"How about I stop taking all of your money Neji?"
The Jounin leaned forward, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at the medic, "what's the catch Sakura?"
She grinned evilly and Ino joined Kankurou in a disheartened sigh.
"I'll just take your clothes instead."
Everyone, even the shy Hinata agreed. By the fifth round however, pretty much everyone at the table except Sakura herself was regretting their choices. Ino was glad that she had left the game. She was the worst at poker and she'd probably be dressed like Neji right now. He was down only to his skivvies and it looked like Sakura was about to take those too. But at the last minute he folded his hand and stalked off to his own apartment down the hall, his money is hand.
Ino had the decency to hold her laughter until the door shut behind him. She was finally able to reel in her chuckles as she clung to Tenten to watch the last few rounds of the game. Ino was fairly impressed with Sakura. Naruto was down to his undershirt and boxers, Hinata still had on her dress after losing both shoes, a belt, and her sweater. Sakura didn't even hold back on her boyfriend's account. He had held his own though, only his shirt being taken into Sakura's growing pot. Ino had a flashback of the Chuunin exams. Tan skin, dripping wet, muscles, muscles everywhere for the eyes to see, except for- A none too gentle nudge from Tenten told her that she too had slipped down memory lane. Ino quickly sobered up from the drink Temari was mixing. The eldest sand sibling could rival the Hokage with her drinking.
"Hinata, I'll take your dress now."
The quiet heiress, now quite verbal due to the constant exposure to Naruto's boisterous character and not to mention the "punch" that Temari was steadily supplying her at every instance, looked at the medic and smiled, blushing slightly.
"I'm not wearing a bra."
The room was silent. A pen could drop a mile away and everyone would have heard it. Then Naruto showed that he really was faster than his sensei. Before anyone could blink he had wrapped Hinata up in her sweater as well as his jacket (twice). His blued eyed glare directed at every man whose eyes happened to have drifted. Ino could not hold in her laughter at his actions. It was too endearing to not laugh. Soon the whole room was laughing with her. She had slid down the wall clutching her stomach and then she must have fallen asleep. She smiled at Naruto still protecting Hinata in her sleep. But the simple action of standing on her own two feet made her head pound. The moon shining through her balcony door was like a sign from the heavens. Some fresh air would help her head and getting away from two annoyingly cute couples would help her heart.
As she was making her way toward the balcony she tripped over a foot. She quickly calculated who it belonged too as she regained her balance with some trouble. The spiky brown pony tail could only belong to her teammate Shikamaru. She almost laughed at him. He was sitting on the floor, his back against the sofa, as Temari slept soundly on it. He was holding her hand, somehow managing not to let go even though Temari was known for her tossing and turning. Suddenly Ino had that strange feeling in her heart again. As she made her way to the glass door she wished she could blame it on the sake she and Tenten shared earlier or Temari's concoction of hard liquor and sweet fruit juice.
Just as the fresh night air hit her Ino's feet hit the tipped over lamp inside her apartment. She knew that the impact on the smooth concrete would hurt and that she'd probably knock herself unconscious from it. She also knew that the glass sliding door was spring loaded and shut by itself is she didn't turn the handle down. She had left it up. She could hear the door sliding closed and she could see the gray unforgiving ground rising up to meet her. "Shit!"
She landed. On something warm.
"Ino? Are you okay?"
She opened her eyes to see the fly on someone's pants. Her cheeks burned red as she shot up. Then it seemed like her head decided to pound her cheeks into submission only that the signals got crossed.
"Gah!"
She fell again closing her eyes. She breathed evenly trying to ride out the thundering inside her head and in her ears and behind her eyelids. After a few minutes she was aware that the lap she had landed on before was the same lap she had landed on again. She cringed mentally as she opened her eyes slowly to see bright red tattoos leading up to worried brown eyes staring down at her. She tried not to blush at her position. She said the first thing that came to mind to get her head off of where her head had landed in the first place
"I fell."
He chuckled, still staring down at her, "Yeah, I kind of noticed."
Ino blushed madly, "Sorry."
"I rather you fall on me than you bashing your head in." He poked her gently and Ino winced. It's not like he hurt her, he just picked the very spot that on her head where a vein was pounding particularly hard.
"Shit! Sorry Ino."
She nodded weakly rubbing her head against his thigh. She immediately stopped and squeezed her eyes tight as another round of throbbing passed.
"I think I hate Temari."
Kiba gave her another hearty laugh that made her smile a little, the awkward landing already forgotten.
"Yeah, I could smell that rocket fuel all the way from Suna. I'm just glad I don't like alcohol that much."
She opened her eyes slowly to stare up at the Inuzuka. Now that she thought about it not once at all the parties she threw or went to did she ever see a drink in his hand. "Really? You don't drink?"
He frowned down at her, "Just because I'm a loud mouth, I wear a leather jacket, and like punk music doesn't mean I like to get drunk and mosh around."
Ino was about to spew out an apology when she caught Kiba's smile, a sharp canine peeking out in the moonlight. She frowned at him. He was just messing with her.
"I drink every once and a while but the aftereffects aren't worth it."
Ino grunted her agreement still looking up at him, "Tell me about it. I'm pretty sure I still can't get back up yet."
She got another laugh out of Kiba. "But you don't have a super sensitive nose, or ear, or eyes."
"Damn Kiba, I never thought about all that. Hangover's must suck for you."
She founded herself smiling along with his lopsided grin, "You have no idea. Imagine the smell of burnt popcorn amplified by 90%"
"Ew."
"Heh."
Ino could only lay on his lap as her head returned to normal. At least imagining the smell of burnt popcorn didn't make her stomach do summersaults. That meant that she'd have one stellar headache tomorrow but she wouldn't be puking her guts out. Kiba's hand however was giving her summersaults.
"Uh, Kiba?"
He looked down at her, "Yeah?"
"Why are you rubbing my stomach?"
His rough hands came to a twitching stop. "I'm sorry I didn't realize I was doing it. My mom always rubbed my belly when I didn't feel good as a kid."
"It's okay…I kind of like it."
Ino looked just as shocked as Kiba. What the hell did Temari put in that punch? Truth serum? Ino mentally kicked herself. She did really like it. Kiba started moving his hand again and Ino couldn't believe how good it felt. His nails were usually deadly sharp but the way he just used the slightest amount of pressure to gently caress her skin through her soft, sleeveless dress. Minutes of unbroken silence passed. And Ino could only think about Kiba's hands raking soothingly against her stomach.
"Why where you in such a hurry to come out here anyway?"
She tore her eyes away from the few stars she could make out in Konoha's light polluting dome.
"I just needed some fresh air."
Kiba lowered his face near hers and she forced herself not to bury her head further into his lap. She knew him well enough to know that his amazing nose could pick up on anything. Lies, anger, hatred, sadness, and he'd admitted once that he could tell when she was getting her visit from aunt flow. But she already knew that. Once a month he was especially nice to her. Once or twice he brought her ice cream while she was still curled up in bed with a heating pad. She saw his nose twitch ever so slightly. She knew she was caught.
"What's the real reason Ino?"
She felt her eyes scrunch together in anger that she was found out so easily. She jerked one hand to the balcony door.
"Can you stand being in there?"
Kiba leaned back against the wall and Ino was grateful for the space in between their faces. She had never realized that his eyes where that deep of a brown.
"Everyone just kind of paired off so I decided to come out here."
Ino felt her envy bubbling up. Knowing who she rested on, she hurriedly turned her head back to the railing of the balcony and counted the number of lights still on in the apartment complex on side of hers. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6-
"Ino, are you, are you jealous?"
She could hear the skepticism in his voice. She didn't turn to face him.
"What do you have to be jealous about?"
She couldn't help but watch him flinch as she glared up at him. "They have each other."
Kiba shook off his shock at her anger well enough. He narrowed his eyes right back at her. "What the hell is that suppose to mean?"
"It's exactly what it sounds like .They have each other. I have… no one."
"You have your friends, your family."
Her bitter laugh was shocking even to her own ears. "My family! My dad bought this apartment for me to get me out of his hair. He doesn't want anything to do with me as long as I keep the flower shop open to keep him in the dough."
She turned his head away from him trying to control all of the emotions from spilling over. This was something she didn't want anyone to know let alone admit herself. And yet here she was, pouring out her darkest secrets for him to hear.
"And my friends all have each other. Who do I have? No one."
"Ino I-"
She ignored him and turned her head back to the railing. All the lights she had counted earlier were already out. She tried to calm herself but anger and envy raged inside. Her lips moved of their own accord, fueled by liquor.
"I can't even get a stable boyfriend because everyone thinks I'm easy."
"Ino-"
"Don't try to deny something I already know Kiba. It's not like I give a crap about what they say. I made my bed. I'll lie in it. But I want something more now. Something more than a fling or a one night stand. And damn it I thought I had it with Genma but he said he couldn't. He, he said he couldn't ruin a good girl like me."
Genma was something Kiba knew about but not all the way. Genma had said he loved her all right. He said he loved her enough to leave her. He said that he was too jaded to let her into his life. That and his playboy ways would never cease. He did have her best interest at heart. She knew that after a month of moping around. Genma was the closest thing she had to a real relationship and that crumbled in the blink of an eye. Ino could feel the tears running down her cheeks and bit her lip hoping that Kiba couldn't smell them but she knew that he did.
"I'm jealous of what I can't have."
"Ino."
She refused to look at him. She kept her head turned to the railing even as she felt his fingers on her jaw. He pulled her head back to him. She closed her eyes willing the tears to stop. When they didn't she felt his fingers sliding gently across her cheek, smoothing them dry.
"You have me Ino."
That was something she expected to hear. But the way he said it wasn't. He whispered it like it was a well kept secret. She hadn't expected it to sound so truthful, so honest. Nervousness panged throughout her body. She tried to sit up and failed miserably. She ended up pressed against him, his arms around her, as she tried to regain some of her equilibrium back.
"Just stay here a bit longer and take it easy."
She stared at the collar of his jacket being blurred by her silent tears as his strong calloused fingers now rubbed soothing patterns into her back. Once again she was surprised how gentle his hands could be after seeing them rip so many people apart. It seemed like his hands were the only thing keeping her together right now.
"Kiba, do I really have you?"
His hands stilled and she steeled herself for what she thought was coming. He gently moved his arms so that she could lean back and look into his eyes.
"You always had me Ino."
Ino felt one finger wipe away the remaining tears from her face gently. Maybe he could read the confusion on her face or maybe hear her heart beat rising.
"After Sakura came back with Kankurou I was kind of bummed."
Ino raised an eyebrow. He just said that she had him and now he was talking about Sakura? He immediately rushed on.
"It's not liked I wanted to get back together with her! I was happy she found Kankurou, even though I didn't like him much at the time. She's like my sister and she was taken away. And she kind of put it into my head that you didn't have anyone either."
Now Kiba reared back at the glare Ino was sporting at the glass door. Some best friend Sakura was!
"She didn't say it like that! I just meant that she kind of pointed out that you needed a friend too."
She dropped her glare and turned back to stare at Kiba. She followed the lines of his tattoos in the moonlight as she thought about his response. He had come into her life quietly and somehow managed to overpower every part of it. The missions she had once partnered up with Shikamaru became missions that she partnered up with Kiba. If she needed help he was the first one she'd call. He knew how to read her better than anyone and she could read him almost better than Akimaru. It felt like he was never not a part of her life. He was there when she needed him even if she never asked. She wanted to smack herself for not noticing sooner. She was too busy wallowing in self pity to notice him. She looked down ashamed of her ignorance. Kiba lifted her face up to his. She could feel his breath, warmer than the cooling night air, on her skin.
"So Ino, the question is do you want me?"
She stared up at him, the boy that just basically offered himself to her on a silver platter. He was putting himself out on a ledge, something that the prideful Inuzuka Kiba never did. She wanted to say yes but she had to know.
"Why would you ever want me?"
He looked at her confusedly then anger took its place burning in his eyes.
"Who wouldn't! Genma is a moron for just letting you go like that. You're a strong Kunoichi. A great person-"
Ino looked down, "No, I'm not."
His hand tightened their hold on her arms forcing her to meet his gaze.
"Yes! You are! And screw what those gossips say about you. I don't care about any of that. You own up to your mistakes. You support your asshole father. I know you Ino. And I know that I like you."
She stared in to his still burning eyes in disbelief before doing what she thought was the right thing to do. She crushed her lips against his, letting her fingertips snare into his mesh shirt and scratch against his skin. Soon he was pulling her against him, his tongue eagerly matching hers. No one had ever told her that they didn't care about her reputation. No one had ever called her a good person. She gasped as his hands pulled at her hair as his lips moved along her jaw. She could only let her head fall back for him to continue the path his capable lips where on. She could feel her heart beating faster and she knew that he could hear it, feel it, taste it as her pulse raged under her skin. Her breathing was getting heavier as he raked a fang from the hollow of her throat where he was greedily exploring, up along the side of her neck, to the tender skin behind the very edge of her ear lobe. She shuddered under him and he immediately stopped and pulled his head away.
"Sorry. You barred your throat. It was submissive, sexy as hell, I couldn't stop myself."
"I liked it."
He kissed her again. She felt more than heard the rumble of a low growl in the back of his throat. It didn't scare her. It made her want to hear more. But Ino's mind finally caught up with her actions. She pulled away. Kiba seemed reluctant to stop. He followed her as she leaned back away from him. His hungry eyes following her motions until he seemed to come back to himself. He let himself fall gently against the cool wall as he caught his breath.
"You want to go slow?"
Ino was just out of breath as Kiba so she settled for nodding instead.
He smirked at her as he pulled her back into him. "I can do slow."
She furrowed her brows together, "I thought all you Inuzuka's were hot headed and horny?"
He cocked his head to the side and Ino found it quite endearing like a cute little puppy, until he opened his mouth. "You never play around do you?"
She blushed which cause him the chuckle. "I like that about you."
She smiled at him as he pulled her closer to him even still. Now she was pressed up against him, only a few inches from his face.
"I admit my clans a little bit aggressive but we take our time with our partners. My mom and dad were together for nine years before getting really serious and then they had to get married because of Hana."
Ino stared up at him and said the first thing that came to her mind, usually she was much more subtle but damn Temari's bartending skills.
"I half expected you to say mate."
He chuckled some more and Ino found herself smiling at him. "Just because we are close to our animals doesn't mean we treat our girlfriends like them."
She kissed him gently. She knew that already. Everything that Kiba had done for her tonight told her that. That and the fact that he denied himself from following his instincts. She knew that he was picking up on her pheromones and she knew how hard it must have been to stop himself when her body was calling out to him. She stopped this kiss this time and settled into the crook of his neck. This was the position she got into every time with a boy, but this time, with his arms around her, it felt right. Like the cards on the table finally fell into place.
"Kiba?"
"Hmm?"
"Where's Akimaru?"
He was quiet a few seconds, probably because everything that just happened had made him forget about his great white companion like it had made Ino forget about being drunk.
"He's with Shino."
"Where's Shino?"
"In your room."
She sat back up to stare questionably at Kiba.
"He tends to be more… free spirited when he's drunk. Akimaru is watching over him while he's sleeping it off."
Ino was about to settled back into her new found spot but something else occurred to her. "Why would Shino need to be watched?"
Kiba looked like he was preparing for a blow from Sakura. His words were fast and pushed out in a rush of air. "Because he tends to strip naked and streak. But this time he passed out before the streaking."
Ino blinked a few times before sighing and falling back into Kiba's warmth and settling down for a night outdoors.
"You're helping me burn the sheets in the morning."
Kiba chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her again, "no problem."
Meanwhile in the living room...
"Kiba made the first move. It seems like I won the bet."
Sakura opened her eyes and adjusted her head so that she could see Kankurou's smiling face. He gently pulled her on top of him as his hands found their way to his favorite part of his kunoichi's body. She giggled as his grasped her rear-end.
"Whatever will my punishment be?"
Kankurou gave her a deep throaty chuckle as Sakura spared a quick glance back to her blonde friend and the Inuzuka that had practicably became her brother. They had finally found each other with just a little prompting and a lot of patience. She turned back to her puppet master with a smile, catching his hands moving into the last seal before disappearing with him into thin air.