Shikamaru was a calm person since he could remember. It takes a lot to be even in his thoughts. So when a certain blond haired girl popped into his head repeatedly over the course of the day, he got worried.
He didn't even know what he liked about her. She was tough, older than him, tough, loud, tough....did he forget to mention tough?
You see, he's a laid back kind of guy. He thought that a girl would never plague his mind like Temari (mention blond tough girl). Yes, he thought, a girl would pop into his head when he decided to marry her. He wanted a normal, traditional girl. Somebody calm like him, a good cook, a woman who was not at all tough or loud. In other words, a girl taht was not like his mother, would do just fine.
The thing was, that Temari was like his mother. Loud, bossy, troublesome! He had asked his dad why he even married a woman like his mom and he had simply said "She has her moments" and then proceeded to explain to Shikamaru in great detail all that was good about his mother. It was all he could do not to barf at the thought of his mother through his father's eyes.
So, he made it his own personal goal to find out the things he liked about Temari. His father said that the smiles and the soft eyes were all it took for him to fall in love with Shikamaru's mother. Naturally, Shikamaru took this into consideration and discovered that Temari, indeed, had her moments.
Like how she would smile softly (when she thought nobody was looking) at the sky. Or when she got that "look" in her eyes every time she saw her anti-social little brother smile...it was so...motherly. And Shikamaru found this both frightening (Temari's supposed to be tough!) and...well, sweet (it took him a while to admit to himself that he was, in fact, describing Temari as sweet).
Yes. It was official. Shikamaru Nara was in love. He didn't speak a word about, either. He kept it to himself, and hoped for a miracle in which Temari would suddenly fall in love with him and they would get married, have two children (a boy and a girl), live a normal life, and die of old age. Yes, that was his brilliant plan.
One day, though, his plan was all shattered. He couldn't take it anymore. He had to tell her. He felt like his heart would convulse, and he would die without getting married to this troublesome woman, or have two children, or live a normal life and die of old age. So he told her.
It didn't work. She stared at him and finally said..."I'm too old for you kid. It's a crush. You'll get over it." And she walked away just like that.
But he didn't. Get over her, I mean. He was devastated. The first girl he had ever liked in his whole entire sixteen years of age had just broken his only heart and stepped on it repeatedly.
He would go over the whole scene over and over and wondered what he could have done wrong. She was nineteen. Only a three year difference. And he was well developed (mentally) for his age!
He decided he wasn't going to give up. He was in love with this girl and he would prove it!
So, he went to his mother. Bad idea.
"Oh my gosh! You like girls! I thought you were gay, or something of that sort!!" His mother had squealed.
He had responded, "I've always liked girls."
And she had retorted, "Well, honey, you've got a funny way of showing it."
He had rolled his eyes at that and proceeded to explain his situation. She had understood and had promised him that Temari was just afraid of him being to naive to be with her...or something like that. He had fallen asleep half way through her explanation of how the perfect guy behaves.
This time, when he went up to Temari, slouching as always, he had admitted calmly and clearly, "I'll be better when I'm older."
Temari stared at him an gave him one of her soft smiles, "Maybe you will. You listen to Edwin McCain?"
He had been confused by the question. Wasn't she supposed to be kissing the daylights out of him? "Come again..."
Temari nodded to herself and proceeded to do what had been in his mind just seconds before.