A Day for the Lonely
It rained on Valentine's Day in Konoha. Ino, Sakura, Temari, Neji, Kiba, Naruto, Shikamaru and a slightly sick Tenten were taking shelter from the torrential rain in one of the many coffee bars littered around the village, each of them sipping at tea, coffee, or hot cocoa with marshmallows and cream.
They had occupied one of the larger booths in the corner and were quietly talking amongst themselves, with the exception of Shikamaru who was snoring blissfully over his cup of congealing hot chocolate.
Tenten looked up from what she was writing, coughing slightly. Ino peered over her shoulder, and her eyes widened at what she saw written there.
"You hate Valentine's Day?" she shrieked. The couples sitting in the coffee shop looked up and glared in their direction. The eight shinobi glared back from the round table they were sitting at, and the customers grumbled and resumed their coffee drinking, or general canoodling.
Tenten shrugged and looked around the small, cosy café they sat in, with little bits of heart shaped confetti everywhere, hot pink banners hung up on the walls, roses in vases on each table and couples drinking coffee and hot chocolate with puffy pink heart shaped marshmallows. It made her feel more than a bit nauseated, and she resisted an urge to retch.
"Valentine's Day," said Temari from beside Tenten, "is simply a celebration for capitalists, who make money exploiting love."
Tenten laughed and smiled. She sipped at her tea, and wrote down a few words in her diary.
"Go scepticism." She said, and the other kunoichi smiled in response.
"What do you think of Valentine's Day?" Naruto, who was sitting nearby, asked.
Tenten thought for a few moments.
"I think Valentine's Day is overrated. It is just a day when people embrace commercial methods to express the little thing we like to call love, and use the word to bits on every occasion thereafter, thinking that we truly know what it is. Most of all, however, I think it's day for the lonely. It's rather when you realise who hasn't got anyone to care about them or whatever, rather than someone who actually does."
Sakura rolled her eyes, and Naruto let out a low whistle.
"Well, that's what I think," Tenten shrugged simply, and everyone leaned away when she sneezed.
"So… this all comes from some one who hasn't recently experienced…" Neji said.
"Never experienced," Tenten interjected, and blushed.
"Is that really true?" Neji looked at her curiously. Tenten had resumed her writing and was in her own world. He looked at Temari, as if waiting for an answer.
Temari glared at him. The two had engaged in a battle of wits yesterday, and Temari had lost to Neji's cunning. She hadn't gotten over it yet.
Tenten looked at Neji, and their eyes met in, what she hoped, was understanding.
"A day for the lonely indeed," she murmured inaudibly.
"This is the first Valentine's Day I've had a girlfriend." Kiba added, unhelpfully. "I mean there was my girlfriend, ex-girlfriend, who I had been going out for eight months, and you know, I sent her something…"
"Oh- eight months- that's a really long time, Kiba." Tenten said sarcastically.
"I haven't sent anything to anyone, ever, on Valentine's Day." Neji added.
"That's entirely helpful as to help me with what I am writing, Neji-kun." Tenten said, the cynicism in her tone barely concealed.
"Is that the book I gave you?" Temari asked. "Hey! I see my name in there!"
"What are you writing?" Naruto and Ino asked as they tried to look over Tenten's right shoulder and Tenten slapped the book shut.
"You'll see… well, actually, you won't because I don't plan on revealing my innermost thoughts. Oops, I guess I let the wrong thing slip." Tenten said sarcastically. She sighed and crawled out from under the table, then shouldered her pack.
"Wow, Tenten, I think we're just about drowning in your sarcasm. Thanks for making us depressed about this whole thing." Sakura muttered.
"You're welcome!" Tenten smiled and walked away, humming a tune to herself. Neji soon followed her, saying he wanted to go and train.
"It's still pouring out there." Ino muttered, rolling her eyes. She and her friends exchanged knowing glances, excluding –of course- Shikamaru.
The weapons expert and the Hyuuga left the coffee shop together, each of them clutching a foam cup of jasmine tea.
"So what's your reason?" Tenten asked after a while, her breath making small puffs of steam.
"Hn?" Neji stalled, even though they both knew what she'd say.
"What's your reason for not liking Valentine's Day?" Tenten sipped at the hot beverage.
Neji stopped walking in the middle of a deserted street. Tenten, who was sharing an umbrella with him, stopped walking as well, and waited for his reply.
"Hn." He said confidently.
Tenten was too smart, though, and caught the tension in his voice. She smiled warmly.
"Don't try get away with that," she said softly, and moved closer to him to share warmth, and get away from the rain. "No one can hear you." She whispered.
Neji sighed softly and looked down into her eyes- the same, sharp eyes that watched his back in battle. He said nothing for a few moments, and then lifted his head to stare at the shifting grey mass in the sky.
"So?" she shrugged. "Just give me an answer," she threatened, "Or I'll make one up for you, and everyone will find out your heart breaking secret." She grinned, but Neji's expression only darkened.
"Come on!" She said, poking him. "I'm sick of having one sided conversations! I command you to talk, Neji!"
Neji just shifted uncomfortably.
"Fine," Tenten said dismissively as she walked away with the umbrella. "I'll just go and confide everything in Sasuke-kun! I'm sure he'll want to listen!" she smirked. "At least he talks back."
Neji sighed as he took a leaf out of Shikamaru's book.
"Troublesome girl." He muttered to himself, and ran up to her, once again sharing the umbrella that technically belonged to him.
Tenten bit her bottom lip- but even that couldn't hide her smile as Neji whispered something in her ear.
"Oh," she said, nodding. "Well, I guess everyone's going to hear that terribly heartbreaking secret you've been concealing for all of these years!"
"Tenten." Neji said sombrely. "Stop yelling."
"Why?" she smiled cheekily. "It's a free country."
"GET A ROOM, YOU TWO!" Someone shouted from a doorway, and Tenten laughed.
"SHUT UP!" She yelled back. "YOU'RE JUST JEALOUS!" her moment of triumph was ruined as she coughed profusely for a few moments, then straightened, as Neji rubbed her back.
"Are you okay?" he asked, a hint of concern in his voice.
Tenten wiped her watery eyes and sniffed, then smiled.
"I'm fine… I just need to go home."
The pair continued on their walk in the rain.
I guess it's a 'to be continued' ; I've never really thought on expanding it until now…