Shikamaru silently ate his lunch, thinking about what he should do. He saw how the other boys looked at Temari and his conversation with Neji and confirmed his suspicions. Shikamaru wasn't the only one to notice Temari's striking beauty, and he didn't like the idea of some other guy taking up their time together. He had in a way already rejected Temari but that was just because he didn't want all the troubles and responsibilities of being in a relationship. Things were great as it was. Sure, they argued now and then, but they got along well. Shikamaru enjoyed her company and the freedom he felt to look at her as much as he wanted. Why did he have to tell her how he felt? Didn't she already know? They were already practically dating, but the key point was that they were not dating. Shikamaru liked it that way. But how could he ask her to not date him? Finishing his food, Shikamaru closed his eyes and put his hands together.
Temari looked over to her side and saw that Shikamaru was in his thinking position.
"Hey lazy ass." She said. "What are you thinking about?"
Shikamaru blew out a frustrated sigh. "Temari." He said.
Temari rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, don't talk to you while you're thinking. I know." She finished for him. 'Jerk.' She thought to herself. 'Although, the way he said my name wasn't really in a warning manner, more like as a statement. 'Wait.' Temari's face began to flush. 'Was he answering my question about what he was thinking about? Did he mean to say that he was thinking about me?' She wondered. 'No, that couldn't be it. He was probably just trying to get me to shut up like usual.' Temari's own thought bubble popped when Shikamaru began to talk.
"I have a proposal to make." Shikamaru said, finally shifting positions.
Temari's heart pounded. What was this about? "Yes?" She managed to say without letting her voice waver.
"Well I was thinking…" Shikamaru continued.
Temari rolled her eyes. "Well that part was obvious."
"Let me finish woman." Shikamaru sighed. "How about I'll stay single for you, which will be really easy cause I'm me, and you stay single for me, which will be a bit harder because you're you."
Temari's face went red with anger as she thought about what it meant to be bad at staying single. "What are you calling me, easy? You thing I'm a fucking slut?" She yelled, standing up and towering over Shikamaru.
"No! No! Not that at all!" Shikamaru stammered cowering under Temari's deadly glare. "I just meant that I know some guys out there who really like you and can be very persistent."
Temari slowly sat back down. "Shikamaru…are you… are you asking me out?" She asked, incredulous.
"What? No!" Shikamaru said waving his hands in front of him.
"Well then what the hell are you doing?" Temari asked, putting her hands on her hips.
"I'm asking if we can stay what we are now." Shikamaru answered.
"And that would be what?" Temari prodded further.
Shikamaru sighed. "We're single friends together."
Temari stared at him blankly. "So we're nothing." She said. This conversation was a total waste of time.
"I guess you could call it that…" Shikamaru muttered, "I just think it would be nice to be, um exclusively nothing."
Temari crossed her arms. "Let me get this straight. You want me to turn down every other guy so I can do nothing with you?" She asked.
"Uh, Yes?" Shikamaru answered more as a question.
"Fuck no you lazy asshole!" Temari screamed, pulling out her fan and blowing Shikamaru four meters away.
"Geeze woman!" Shikamaru complained once he had picked himself out of the dirt. "A simple 'no' would have been fine."
(Inspired by KuyaNR Powers of Silence and da drawing How to tell her… by messy)
