"Have you got everything?"
"Yes!"
"Ready for your first day at the Academy then?"
"Let's go already!"
Neji laughed and patted his son on the head ,who was about to enter the Academy and become a ninja just like his parents. He never thought the role as a parent would suit him, but ever since Raito was born, he just couldn't concentrate on anything else. Hinata always told him not to worry so much and let the child have some fun.
"Daddy!"
"Hm?"
"Are Yume-chan and Haru-chan also going to be at the Entrance Ceremony?"
"Well of course. All three of you will join the Academy. You're the same age."
"Then can I go and play after the Ceremony?"
Neji sighed and agreed to let him go meet his friends. He was happy that Raito was able to find friends before entering the Academy. He himself had no close companions until he graduated and became a genin, which was when he met Lee and TenTen. He didn't have a very close relationship with his family either, until the misunderstanding regarding the death of his father was cleared. After that, he trained with his uncle Hiashi, as well as with his first cousins, Hinata and Hanabi. After it was settled that he would be marrying Hinata, he wanted to meet all of her expectations and fulfill his duty as a husband of one of the core members of the Hyuga Clan. It was considered an honor for a branch family member. He loved his son more than anything on the world and the fact that Hinata accepted him as her husband made him even more happy.

"Oi, don't run so fast! The Ceremony hasn't even started!"
"I see Haru and Yume! I'm going ahead!" he yelled back as he was running straight ahead.
"That kid.. Sheesh.."
He rushed to meet his friends and left his father behind. Although it was still very early, a lot of parents had already arrived with their children. The Hokage was also present, as well as Sasuke, Sakura and all the others. Naruto was really excited about the Ceremony and was telling everyone what a cute little daughter he has, while Sasuke constantly tried to calm him down and told him to behave like a proper Hokage.
"You're always such a mood dragger, Sasuke! Maybe you're jealous because I have such an adorable little baby!"
"Oi, dobe! Maybe you forgot, but I also have a daughter!"
"Yeah, but mine is cuter!"
"CUT IT OUT YOU TWO!"
Sakura scolded them and that reminded him of the old days. He and Lee also used to fight a lot. Most of the times it was Lee who started the fight.. well.. all the times.
"Good Morning, everyone, Hokage-sama."
"Morning Neji! Oi, I told you to stop calling me like that. I'm really fucking proud that I'm Hokage now, but I don't want my friends to change their attitude towards me. Only my wife is aloud to call me like that because it turns me on sometimes."
"No-one wanted to know that, Naruto.."
Sakura punched him in the head and everyone started laughing.
"Just keep calling me Naruto, will ya Neji? Dattebayo!"
"If you insist, Hoka- I mean Naruto. Uh.. do you guys know where Lee and TenTen are?"
"I saw TenTen with Tomoe and Misaki a while ago. The twins are so adorable!"
Sakura was looking for her daughter, Ayame, who was one year younger than her big brother, Haru, and spotted her coming along with Ino and Sai. Sakura was pregnant again with her third child, while for Ino it was her second. Unlike them, Hinata was having difficulties with conceiving a child. Even her first born, Raito, was a miracle since she faced a lot of health problems during and after her pregnancy. She and Neji decided to leave it by one child as to not cause her body any more damage, but the truth is, they sure would have wanted more than one child running through the house and asking for mommy and daddy.

The Entrance Ceremony didn't take long and everyone was free to go home. Of course the children wanted to stay out and play.
"Yume-chan~! I'll pick you up in two hours! Don't get hurt and don't lose!"
"Lose at what, you dobe? They're just playing!"
"I DON'T CARE! MY LITTLE YUME AIN'T GONNA LOSE TO YOUR DOUCHEBAG!"
"DID YOU JUST CALL MY SON A DOUCHEBAG?!"
"OOOIII~!"
"S-Sakura-chan…"
"NA-RU-TOOOOO~! WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT MY ANGEL? I DARE YOU SAY IT AGAIN!"
"N-N-Nohing, I-I was just saying how super smart and talented and smart and.. talented he is!tehehe just like his old man, neh, Sasuke?!"
"Did you just call me old, you USURATONKACHI?"
"GUYS!"
Sakura pulled both of them by their shirts and held them apart.
"We're going home! You too, Naruto!"
"A-Aye!"
"Hmph… Haru-chan~! Mommy and daddy are going home. Be back before dinner time, you hear me?"
Haru turned around and smiled at his mother just before he left with the other kids who were heading to the play grounds.
"Neji, see you around."
"Hm?.. ah yes.. See you, Naruto!"
He saw his son walking away with the other kids and assumed he would be staying with them as well.
"I think I'll go home, too. Hinata-sama must be waiting."
He looked at the others who just left and then walked the other way towards the Hyuga Clan's residence.

"Hinata-sama, Raito stayed with the other kids from his class. He won't be coming home for a while."
He opened the door to her bedroom and found the young woman waiting for him.
"Neji, you don't have to refer to me as your superior. You're my husband, we're equal now."
"Yes, but-"
"You don't have to stay formal. In a few years, when Hanabi takes over the Hyuga's lead, I'll be a branch member as well."
"I know. I think it's out of habit. I used to call you 'sama' in our childhood so it's difficult for me to change that, even after we got married."
Hinata was laying in her bed. She was sick again. Her backbones and spinal cord were being damaged during her pregnancy and as a result her immune system had gotten weak and there were times when she couldn't move her legs and walk around. It was almost like she had a physical disorder. She hasn't been on a mission for more than seven years now.
"Do you need something? I can take care of you today, there are no missions for us Jonin."
"Don't say 'take care'. It sounds like I'm some old woman who needs someone else to look after her because she's become senile."
"I.. didn't mean it like that.."
Neji let out a tiny laughter and looked at her smiling face. It was clear that she didn't enjoy being stuck in bed for so many hours, but it couldn't be helped.
"Neji, could you sit next to me for a while?"
".. Sure.."
He smiled and walked to her bed. She held her hands up to reach out for him and he embraced her. She stroke his long brown hair with her finger tips and held him very tight. He smelled so nice. Being like this gave her a sense of security. She could rely on her husband and she could count on him whenever she had a problem. She felt bad that there was just a little number of things she could do in return.
"Neji?.. What.. are your feelings for me?.. Do you.. love me?"
They didn't break the embrace and her hand was still softly brushing his hair. He patted her back and closed his eyes for a bit.
"I do.."
Her heart started pounding faster after he spoke out those few words. She's always been unsure about how Neji truly felt about her. Back in his childhood, he used to hate the core members of the Hyuga family, but he changed his mind after finding out the truth.
Silence followed for a few seconds.
"Won't.. you ask me the same?"
Neji got surprised at Hinata's words. He didn't expect she would care about something like that. After all, Hinata used to be in love with Naruto.. or still is. He didn't know if her feelings for the current Hokage had changed during all these years, but he had noticed the intensity of her feelings back then. Naruto was the one who inspired Hinata to move on and believe in her abilities. She found her nindo only after meeting that boy. Of course, people's feelings change as time passes by..
"Well.. do you.. love me as well..?"
He hesitated for a bit, but he managed to drag the words out of his mouth. He wouldn't be surprised if the answer wasn't 'Yes'. Their marriage was arranged and although he felt happy that he could be near her, he couldn't know about her feelings.
"I do. I love you."
He gasped in surprise and lifted his head to face her. He had a puzzled look on his face as he stared into her white eyes. One of his bangs fell in his face and she gently brushed it to the side, while smiling. She looked at his pale skin and stroke his left cheek. Her finger stopped on his lips and she begun welling up tears. He has always been there for her. Training with her. Taking care of her while she was pregnant. She couldn't have wished for a better person to stand by her side. And yet, she felt ashamed that all these years she'd been treated like a princess by him without even being told so. He might have loved her.. for a long time. Long before she started feeling the same way for him.
"Hinata.. I.."
She shook her head to prevent him from speaking any further and closed her eyes while a single tear drop escaped from them. Placing her left palm on the back of his neck she opened her eyes again and looked at his. His thumb whipped away that one little tear and with both of his hands he stroke her soft skin and held up her head. Their faces came closer to each other and they slowly lowered their eye lids until the moment their lips met. Neji's lips were soft and tasted sweet.

When they parted lips, she embraced her husband and put her forehead against his chest while whispering softly:
"I love you.. I love you.. I love you.."
Her voice trembled and she started crying again. Her hands were holding his shirt very tight and her hair was getting tangled as she sank more into his warm embrace.
"Shh.."
He rested his chin on top of her head and stroke her back to calm her down. It was the first time she got so emotional while being with him. It was the first time he felt.. that she really meant it.. He realized that she really did have feelings for him, while all this time he thought she was just being nice to him because it was an arranged marriage. He felt immense happiness at that moment.
They stayed like this for a little while longer until she fell asleep.
He gently placed her head on her pillow and covered her with a blanket.
He left the room quietly and turned off the lights. As he was leaving, she opened her eyes for a brief second and looked at him with a smile.

—Thank you, for being part of my life, Neji. I love you.—