AUTHORS NOTE: This is my second GaaHina one-shot and another of my favorite ones. Hope you'll enjoy this story:)
DISCLAIMER: I Do Not Own NARUTO
Someone To Love Crimson
Gaara sighed as he shifted, gazing off in wonder at the village, standing on the balcony that overlooked it. He looked across the desert terrain, people in cloaks or special types of clothing to cover themselves from any gusts of wind or flutters of sand. But otherwise, it was pretty...plain.
He sighed once more, gaze shifting upward to the slowly turning sky. It had gone from a bright yellow-orange, to a more hazy color, ranging from a dark crimson to light shades of white, made as light turn sharply in the air, almost like dizzy dials, then lengthened out into lines, which dipped downward before curving up slightly and ending there. Other parts consisted off the simplest forms or smudges. Truthfully, the white that marked the crimson sky upward had a few almost blotchy looks to head tilted to one side as he continued to examine it, taking note that the clouds were moving in quick. "Considering it's the rainy season," reasoned Gaara. "A storm must be approaching."
Turning, his red hair tousled, he slid over to the desk once more, sitting himself in the wooden chair which belonged to him, the Kazekage, and ruler of all Sunagakure. And, needless to say, he'd been quite surprised when he'd been nominated the Kazekage. He'd never expected anyone in Suna to trust him, care for him, and want to be there for him, as he'd become to be there for them...
Naruto had seemed to do a lot of that. But so did a certain girl he'd met in the Leaf Village. She was attractive and kind too, her hair was a dark, smooth navy blue with her eyes a pure white color, but if you looked close enough, you could see the lavender outline and the little specks in the white.
He sighed as he recalled her. "It's been too long since I've last seen her..."
With one lazy, but fluid, motion, he ran his fingers through his hair, aquamarine eyes skimming across the last bits of paperwork he had for the evening, which were scattered across the mahogany desk.
With one last sigh, the young seventeen year old boy returned to his work, disappointed he couldn't do anything interesting for his birthday.
Two Hours Later…
"Finally" he thought, leaning back in his seat, his eyes closing. "My work's done. Time to go home and relax." His eyes slowly reopened. Quietly, he rose to his feet, subconsciously brushing himself down a bit before neatly stacking his papers, then turning and heading for the door once he'd removed the Kazekage slip-over, folding it neatly, then proceeding to tuck it beneath his left arm.
After doing so, the young Kazekage left his office, flicking off the lights on his way out, being sure to lock the doors as well. Criminals had been more abundant lately, and Akatsuki was no better they'd been showing themselves more often, bothering Gaara and making him rather worried.
While, yes, he was admittedly strong, so were the criminals coming around. They hadn't shown their faces around Sunagakure lately so he wasn't too worried.
It was nothing to concern himself with at the moment, right? As long as he kept his people safe, and no one brought harm to the few friends he'd collected over the years, then he had no problems. As for his siblings...He wasn't worried for them. He knew his eldest, Temari, could hold her own, as well as the second eldest, Kankuro, his darling older brother who dealt with puppets.
His sister, as one would figure judging by the huge fan that she carried around on her back controlled wind. A very favorable technique for getting around or for blowing ones enemy backwards.
He ran his fingers through his hair once more, "Speaking of... Did they forget it's my birthday?" There was a slight pause in his thoughts. Perhaps they had. Family or not, it doesn't mean they loved him, right...?
"I AM the cause of mothers' death, after all... I wouldn't be surprised if they despised me..." Slowly, he lifted his gaze to the sky, looking it over, as if silently asking the question he desired to know the answer to more than anything. "Mother... Am I a true curse? Does no one really love me? Is this everything that the villagers say and do...Is it an act?" His lips curved into a frown as he readjusted himself, his eyes set forward once more.
"I suppose" Gaara mused to himself, while grasping the doorknob to his home. "That it doesn't matter either way. I am what I am." His fingers curled around the doorknob, which he only turned once before it opened up. He stepped inside, closing the door behind himself, then reached over, dropping the Kazekage robes onto the side table for a while, silently making his way through the dark house.
"Temari must be with that Lazy Shinobi again..." He murmured. "And Kankuro must be picking up girls." He shrugged, then flicked on the light to the kitchen, his heart pounding ten miles an hour when a loud chorus of, "SURPRISE!" rang through to his ears.
"Oh my God." He blinked a few times, but slowly, staring at everyone, who'd, scared the daylights out of the poor red head. Not that he'd tell them that of course.
"Happy Birthday, Gaara!" Temari cried delightedly, giving him a tight hug. He stood there, still absorbing what was going on.
She smiled warmly, pulling back as she gazed at her brother. While, yes, he was only around 5'5", she could still have no problem with it. She thought it was cute. Poor Gaara.
"Why the hell is everyone trying to break my eardrums?" He asked dully, now fully able to comprehend everyone was shouting "Happy Birthday" or some obscene thing that he'd decided to block out for now. Until one simple voice spoke up,
"Happy Birthday, Gaara."
He shifted his eyes from the others onto her small physique, blinking as he took in her form and appearance. She was glad in a purple yukata with blue dragons adorning it, her navy blue hair pinned up into a bun, a few simple strands hanging down by her face in a nice frame.
In her hands, which were partially covered due to the lengthy sleeves of her yukata, she held a light blue fan, with a white dragon on it, which had clouds wrapped around certain parts of its body, and a lining of lacquered black bamboo held all of this together.
Kankuro and Temari exchanged knowing looks when they realized he'd gone silent, the two locked with one another's eyes.
"Let's leave them be," Temari whispered, before grabbing Kankuro's arm and tearing him from the kitchen, then upstairs. A faint "WHAM" could be heard when the door was slammed. Or someone was slammed into a wall. But there was no muffled sounds, or sounds to begin with, so it was hard to tell.
Gaara slowly stepped over to Hinata, still staring, wondering, questioning. Hinata simply smiled behind the fan, which had been raised up to guard half of her face. "It's been a while, Gaara?" He inclined his head, as if giving her affirmation. "Yes, it has..." He murmured. "Two years," She smiled more, closing the fan up, and setting it aside. She slid off the table, dusting off some before sliding over to him, both now standing in front of one another.
Hinata raised her hand up, gently cupping Gaara's left cheek, her thumb caressing a patch of skin softly. "God... You've been through so much hurt," She murmured, her eyes not once leaving his. "I'm sorry for leaving when I did, sweetheart. I truly am. I…" Gaara shook his head side-to-side, placing a finger to Hinata's lips to shut her up.
"It's not your fault," He insisted. "It's your fathers' fault. He's the one that tore us apart, and ordered you to come back to the Leaf Village," Hinata smiled and nodded, nipping lightly at Gaara's finger. "Yes," lightly, she took his hand in hers, resting it on her chest, which made a light rosy color adorn Gaara's cheeks. "But he's of the past now. I ran away. From him, from my friends, from the people of the village..." Hinata, again, caressed his cheek. "All for you. I'm only here because you drew me back. It killed me, Gaara. To be without you...Even if we were just "friends"... I thought SO much more of you then, as I do now." Another smile, "Gaara, I love you. I love you so much you almost drove me nuts from not being around." He blinked at this, momentarily forgetting where his hand was. So, she loved him? "You've loved me...?" He asked, softly, Hinata nodded. "And still do." With a soft, carefree laugh, she drew back her arms and hands, before throwing them around his middle, nestling her face into his chest.
"Sabaku no Gaara, I love you." Her voice muffled out from his chest.
He chuckled, making Hinata's heart soar higher than the heavens themselves, his arms going about her own waist as he drew her into the embrace more tightly. "I'm glad to hear that, Hinata. I love you too."
"I'm glad." You smiled against him when he chuckled again.
"Hmm... Gaara, want cake?"
"Only if you made it," He returned. "Temari can't cook to save her life or ours for that matter." She nodded. "But wait, she can't even cook when it's pre-made in the box..? All she has to do is put the ingredients together, pop it in the oven, and voila?"
"No. Not in the least," He shook his head, "She could burn our house down with her hands, feet, and eyes either bound or covered. With the food FULLY cooked."
"Ouch," Hinata snickered. "That's cruel."
"The truth hurts," He drawled. "Now, let's get some and leave, hmm?"
"I don't think so," another voice called in a sing-song voice, making Gaara and Hinata look over. Temari, Kankuro, Sasuke,
Sakura, Naruto, Kakashi, Ino, Chouji, Shikamaru, Kiba, Shino, and all of the others were there.
"Let the festivities... Begin!!!" Naruto declared, grinning widely.
Hinata and Gaara looked at each other at once, blinking, both of them telling one another, they're out to get us.
Four Hours Later…
Gaara sank onto his bed, which he didn't do often, sighing to himself, his hands folded neatly in his lap. "Naruto is exhausting as hell." He muttered. He heard Hinata laugh slightly as she came in, running a brush through her hair, "Mmhmm. That's
Naruto-kun for you. Mr. Too Much Energy." He nodded in agreement.
Hinata grinned while sliding over beside him, the brush left on the night stand. Gaara glanced at her, and then froze, staring at Hinata in surprise, but also taking a "sneaky" look over her, seeming to approve of her choice of attire.
Actually, Gaara seemed more shameless about it than anything, as far as looking Hinata over went. She laughed a little and slipped onto the bed beside him, pulling him down on top of it, her arm going around his middle, holding him snugly to her. She nestled her head into the crook of his neck, inhaling his scent. "Gaara..." She giggled when he nuzzled back, lightly murmuring. "Yes, Hinata?" Hinata smiled against the skin of his neck, closing her eyes, "Happy Birthday. And, I love you."
Gaara chuckled softly, kissing her cheek before whispering back, "I love you too, Hinata." With one last smile, Hinata closed her eyes, snuggling closer to Gaara for the warmth that his body radiated.
Gaara looked down at her now sleeping form, a small smile implanted on her lips. Lightly, he brushed some hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. He cuddled her closer to his body, while grabbing the blankets and pulling them over the both of them. His eyes once more turned to Hinata. She looked very delicate, like a young goddess, in her position, her outfit, and the moonlight.
'So, this is what it's like...' He closed his eyes, nuzzling Hinata again, smiling to himself. '...to be loved.'
And so, for the first time in Gaara's life, he fell asleep, into a world of dreams, smiling. Happy with Hinata, the love of his life in his arms.
I hope you enjoyed this one-shot and there will be more to come in the future along with new stories.
Until Next Time, Seeya:)
