This is a little brain child of mine that came from listening to the song Fever by Peggy Lee.
I don't own Naruto, but I do claim the main character of this story, though she isn't named. I guess you could count this as a reader insert?
Anyway, enjoy.
Five, six… five, six, seven, eight…
Sway, sway, dip, body roll.
She counted out each step, minding every movement of her arms and legs as she kept time to the sultry jazz song that played in her ears. It didn't matter that the sun bore down on her shoulders, burning the exposed skin as she sweated off the sunscreen. It didn't matter that she was thirsty, and tired after three hours of repetitious motions. It didn't matter that she didn't feel that she had made any progress at all in those three hours.
All that mattered was that she be the one thing she never gave a damn about.
All that mattered was that she be sexy.
"You might need to sit this one out."
The tentative warning from her best friend drove her to improve.
"You just aren't moving as fluidly as this routine calls for. You come off like a robot."
The feedback that gave her absolutely no direction as to how she could drove her to frustration.
Try to seduce someone in her mind, the coach had suggested. That would be helpful, if she had ever thought of anyone she wanted to seduce. With that option dead, she studied technique on the internet, watched videos of the sexiest types of dance in the world, even tried to focus more on the bodies of her male friends, just so she could understand what the point of it all was. Nothing worked.
She had two days left before she had to report back to her coach and show that she could perform the dance satisfactorily, and the only thing she could do was run it over and over and over, forcing herself to move in a different way than she normally did.
Only when the sun was at its highest and most dangerous did she allow herself to take a break, though it was a reluctant one. As she stood in the kitchen, sipping at a glass of ice cold lemonade, she still ran everything over in her head. So involved in her own thoughts, she was startled by the appearance of the young man whose family housed her.
"What are you doing?" He asked.
Her cheeks were red, but she couldn't feel embarrassed at the insinuation that he saw her making a fool of herself in the backyard.
"Practicing."
"What for? It looks like you have everything down."
She sighed and set her glass down on the marble counter top, leaning against the kitchen island and crossing her arms.
"I have the steps down, but not the feel of the dance."
"What does that even mean?"
She may not have been embarrassed that he saw her, but she couldn't push it by voicing her problem.
"I don't know. I'm trying to figure it out," she answered honestly.
He hummed in acknowledgment as he went to the fridge and took out a bottle of water. As he passed her, that low hum carried through did something to her physically, and she found it strange.
Her eyes followed him, watching his actions intently, and it happened again, this time when a drop of the water slid down his chin. It followed the lines of his neck to his chest and disappeared beneath the collar of his shirt. He finished and tossed the empty plastic into the recycle bin, and it all clicked in her head.
"What are you doing now?" He questioned upon seeing her satisfied smile.
"Nothing," she chirped, heading for her room. She paused at the doorway and sent a glance back at him. "Thanks, Shikamaru."
"Why?"
"You just unintentionally helped me figure this dance out."
Before he could inquire further, she was sauntering away, a new swing in her stride that had him suddenly feeling a little warm.
A few minutes later, the song she was dancing to before filled the whole house.
…Fever, if you live and learn. Fever, 'til you sizzle, what a lovely way to burn…
I hope you all liked this. If not, feel free to tell me why. If you did, also feel free to tell me why.
Best wishes,
ChLyRi