"I'm not going," Neji mumbled angrily.
There was no way Neji was going to go to some stupid party out in the middle of Konoha, especially not when he and his team had a mission two days after. There was too much to prepare for and too little time. There was no need to waste an evening by going to some event that night.
Rock Lee, however, was having none of that. "But there will be sharing of memories and laughter with comrades! And dancing!"
Neji all but glared at the other boy, his pale eyes narrowing. "Even more reason not to go."
"But we have to!" Lee insisted, his dark eyes wide and pleading.
"Just go without me."
Rock Lee shook his head, his dark hair rustling because of it. "I cannot go without you. Please, Neji? It will be so much fun!"
And after about twenty minutes of going back and forth, Neji finally complied. If only to shut the other up. Maybe he'd get a moment of peace now-
"Great! Let us go join the festivities!"
Before Neji could argue, he was pulled away by the arm and just about dragged off to who knows where.
It was already dark outside when Lee took Neji away. They were both dressed casually since they had a scheduled mission in two days' time. Lee wore jeans and a black long sleeved button-down shirt, and Neji himself wore black pants and a white shirt. The Hyuuga wore his hair up, the tie just at the crown of his head. It was strange for him to be outside, and with Lee, dressed like this. He usually was less casual whenever he intended to go anywhere.
Eventually, Neji angrily took back his arm from Lee's grasp. "Don't touch me," he said, following Lee half willingly towards the center of Konoha. Lee simply grinned at him and continued to tell him what a fun time they would have. Neji just sighed once he began to hear obviously loud music, a frown returning to his lips. He wished he had never agreed to going.
The pale eyed male was surprised, however, to suddenly hear all the music stop. He glanced at Lee with a quirked eyebrow, and the other just shook his head, his eyes wide. "We better go take a look."
The two instantly fell into a defensive mode, their stances going from casual to ready to fight. They jumped into the trees and continued their journey to where the party should be. "It's about fifty yards away, north east." Neji nodded at this piece of information, the two now on the ground, and they both continued to slowly approach the-
"SURPRISE!"
Neji inhaled sharply when everyone, and he quite possibly meant everyone, screamed the word. It seemed everyone his age was there, along with Gai and a few other teachers, and a couple of his family members. He blinked, looking at Lee for an explanation.
The boy smiled at him, his eyes soft. "We knew you would probably be spending your birthday on our mission, so we thought we should celebrate tonight."
Sakura stepped forward and nodded, confirming Lee's words. "Rock Lee planned everything."
"So, Neji," Naruto began, smiling, "you think you're ready for a party?"
Neji was honestly taken aback by all of this, and his eyes went back to Lee's soft smile. "...You did all of this?"
Rock Lee smiled a little more and nodded. "I wanted you to bye happy."
Neji smiled small, then stepped to him and gave Lee a hug. The embrace left everyone a little stunned, Lee being the most surprised, but it was returned with a tight squeeze and a soft laugh.
"Happy birthday, Neji," Lee said once the other male hd pulled back, his eyes bright.
"Thank you, Lee..."
