January
By:The New Girl Of Lycanthropy
I couldn't believe that it was actually my birthday.
I mean, I knew and comprehended that it WAS, of course, but it just didn't feel that same. At least not until later in the day.
January 19. It's a day I didn't think much about until it came around. For once, I wasn't spending it in Suna, where I probably would've been wished a happy birthday by a few people, and Temari and Kankuro would've had a small celebration of sorts. I was actually in Konoha this time around.
Me, Temari and Kankuro- none of us had ever seen snow. The closest we got to it were sandstorms and the rare hurricane, which usually consisted of more sand with water mixed in. Nasty mix, at that. So for the season, when Rock Lee invited us to stay after visiting Tsunade, we thought it wouldn't be such a bad idea. There was excitement when the snow came; in fact, its still snowing. It made for some nice events; shoveling the snow turned into snowball fights, and the real excitement came when the news of Naruto and Hinata's engagement spread. I remember Naruto running through the town, shouting to anyone that would listen,"The girl wants to marry me people! The girl wants to marry me!". I grinned so wide, Kankuro nearly tripped over his feet when he saw me out of surprise.
That was her birthday; and it was a happy one. I knew that they were planning a celebration for mine as well. But that wasn't until this evening, and it was only 9 AM. I decided that, even though everyone else was bound to be inside, I wanted to go out.
Yes, I wanted to go out in the cold, 5 feet deep snow on my birthday. I'd probably be sick later on, but I didn't care. I just wanted to go visit someone.
My first step was opening the door. That failed.
I think a foot of snow came through the door, and I almost cursed at how cold it was. I missed being in the desert at that moment, and wished we had just gone back. I knew that I didn't really wish that, but still.
After get the snow away from the inside of the small house, I went swimming in the snow OUTSIDE of the house. I was smart enough to be puffed up with a huge winter jacket and ski pants, so I didn't get drenched. It was still cold thought. Only 5 minutes after stepping out, I started feeling like I had frostbite. I didn't really, so I kept on going. It is HORRIBLE, trying to walk- swim- in five foot deep snow. But I was doing it.
I actually saw people outside. Well, LOOKING outside. I saw Tekirai sticking her head out of her and Lee's apartment window. She was such a good acrobat she could've probably jumped down in to five foot deep snow, and manage to crawl out in no time. I grimaced, and kept swimming.
I was going to Ouka's house. She and her sibling were staying here to, and I hadn't seen her for a couple of days because no one else wanted to come out of their houses. But I missed her; we hadn't gotten the chance to talk much when we last saw each other, and I enjoyed talking to her.
Thankfully, her house wasn't that far away. It was a couple blocks down, which wasn't the worst. I had trudged a mile to get to the Hyuga compound and congratulate Hinata. Anyway, once I got there I knocked on there door. I heard someone shouting to someone else, but no one came. Again, I knocked on the door. I heard the words "nobody" and "snow".
.......
So they thought I was some crazy person. I took a breath, and shouted, "IT'S GAARA!!!"
I heard something fall, with a loud thump down the stairs near the door. "Shit" was shouted. Then finally, someone opened the door.
"Gaara, what the hell are you doing in this snow?" yelled Ouka's brother, Balmung, as he dodged the snow that spilled in his door. "Gah!" he shouted, then he quickly pulled me in and shut the door (well, he tried. It was hard to push against all that ice and water).
"Gaara!" exclaimed a cheery voice, and I felt someone hug me from behind. "You came! I was going to visit you, but I couldn't get out of the house fast enough before these two go me to stay."
I turned and saw her white-gray hair hang across her forehead. Ouka smiled a bright, toothy grin. Her teeth were still sharp as ever. That made me smile. "I know what you mean. Temari and Kankuro would never had let me go without a fight. They just weren't awake yet."
She laughed, and grabbed my hand to pull me upstairs. I went with her, and I heard Balmung yelling at both of us about "being weird" to want to go out in that "deathtrap". Then their other sister, Mirelle, promptly told him to shut up and let us be (even though we were still weird).
For the next hour or so, we talked, and talked, about everything. Not nothing, everything. We were both usually quiet people, but around each other we found conversation. I knew I would have to leave eventually, but I wanted to ask her something.
After she finished talking about her happiness of the engagement, I brought it up. "Ouka, we're good friends, yes?"
"Yes." She answered. She was smiling, but I could tell she was curious.
"Well, I like being your friend. We have for awhile. But I've started feeling..." I felt heat rise to my cheeks. She frowned, so I continued before she thought something was wrong. "different, about you. I..."
The words were stuck on my tongue. I was afraid of her reaction. I had a brief glimpse of what Naruto must have felt like.
She stared. Then she had a sudden look, a weird look. Like of realization. Then she blushed, and bent her head down. It was the quiet again.
I didn't want to be quiet though. "Ouka, I really like you. A lot. And I was wondering, if maybe, we could...be more then friends." She peered at me from behind her long bangs, so I guessed it was alright to continue. "Do you want to be my girlfriend, Ouka?"
She stared for a moment. Then she looked back down at the ground. It hit me.
She didn't feel the same way.
I had a weird emotion. Like....loss. I promptly stood up to leave, but then she looked up. "Wait!" she screeched, and tried to get up but managed tripped and toppling into me. We both just sat on the floor for a minute. I was still about to leave, but I saw something. Her face.
She was grinning.
Suddenly, she started laughing hysterically. She was on the ground trying to catch her breath, and holding her stomach. I was so confused.
"What are you laughing about?!" I nearly shouted. She kept giggling, but she sat up and looked at me.
"Gaara..." she tried to spit out in between giggles, "Gaara, you...l-look so...so FUNNY when you're nervous!" she started laughing again, but this time she gave me a hug. "Of course I feel the same way! I've had a crush on you for awhile now! So yes, I am officially your girlfriend!"
I processed what happened for a moment. The I grinned that wide grin Kankuro was always so surprised to see.
I stood up and gave her what my friend, Natasha (Note: Natasha is the AUTHOR) would refer to as a "bear hug".