FIND ME
A/N: Well, Ino and Shikamaru here are not really ninjas, they were sort of an actor and an actress or in short, ordinary people. Hope it applies.
Summary: Ino had always been a party girl and Shikamaru was just a lazy bum. Yes, they've been very god friends but will things change as days go on? InoXShika.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
The whole cast and crew had just finished taping the last season of Naruto and it means it's party time for the teen stars and it also means back to school in a couple of days. They missed a lot of lessons but it's easy coping up, and for Ino, party is her priority so she'll cope up later.
The house is filled with the smell of popcorn, pizzas, spilled drinks, lemonades, sodas, popcorn and more popcorn. The song Hey Mami by Fanny pack went wandering through the room. Most of the times, the house is owned by a student in the academy whose parents never cared if kids went wrecking or burning down the house, but as long as there's an overflowing of food and the music loud, no cared at all.
Seniors of the academy were having fun; Sakura is sitting on the couch and busy drowning her sorrows on popcorn. She had this sort of a "problem" in which she can't concentrate on her algebra with cute guys surrounding her. Well, it's been easy for Ino how to handle guys.
It's already midnight and most of the students had passed out with their full stomach. Ino, walking around, tried hard not to step on feet and hand of her co-students on the floor. She proceeded to the kitchen but on her way, she saw Shikamaru talking to Naruto and Sasuke, busy watching TV at the same time.
Even though Shikamaru is seldom-seen at night parties which he considered waste of time, he's still there just for only one girl. They've been very good friends since their first year at the academy. Ino and Shikamaru had grown so close to each other at the point that their closest friends had mistaken if there's something going on between them. Everyone sees the hugs, the light cheek-kisses they shared, and wondered if they really are friends and nothing more than that. But if they were with their group of friends, people can see nothing suspicious.
She sat beside Shikamaru. Naruto and Sasuke new that they must left the two alone. Many girls had tried to ask Shikamaru out but he only had eyes for Ino. She leaned her head on his shoulders, his arms wrapped around her and her hands were busy making circles on his chest.
"Had fun tonight?" She asked slowly.
"Yeah… but I bet not as much as you."
"I'm gonna miss this." She whispered into his shirt, while smelling the scent of his mint perfume. Graduation was a month away.
"Like these parties. It's not gonna be the same in college, especially without you."
He heard her soft giggle. Not a long time, both of them fell asleep on each other's arms.
The sound of the vacuum cleaner woke Ino up and what she didn't know is that, Naruto had taken a picture of them while they're sleeping. Shikamaru is still asleep beside her. She realized that he's not a boy anymore like when they first met at the academy. He had grown into a handsome man, but he's still the most caring by she knew. When she looked at him first thing at that day, she felt something different. She bent and was about to kiss him but good thing she regained her sanity in a split of seconds just for the right time when Shikamaru opened his eyes.
"Uh…too bright." Said Shikamaru covering his eyes with his arms.
"Uh…hey…Good Morning…" She said.
The frolicsome tone of her voice made him peek from his arm to smile at her. They stood up and walked out of the house that they really never knew who owned it. Shikamaru offered Ino home but they decided to drop by at Starbucks for a snack like they always do. Everything seemed unusual but Ino thought that maybe everything is just the same but one thing different is that their feelings for each other weren't the same like before.
Graduation is a week away and all seniors were invited to their last, night party at the academy. Everyone's having fun like they used to. Everything's the same. But to Shikamaru, he has a feeling that this night will be different from the other nights. As the party died down, Ino and Shikamaru found their way at a couch at the corner of the room. They have to talk some things over but when Shikamaru is about to tell Ino what he really feels, that he'd been hiding through all these years, Sakura and Sasuke came pulling them for their bonfire—the most awaited part of the night.
Shikamaru never had the chance of telling Ino what he really feels. Soon, everyone's leaving and Ino asked Shikamaru if he can walk her home. Of course, Shikamaru never had the guts to refuse her so there they go. They're having their small talk on the way to Ino's house.
"What's the best thing that ever happened to you in the academy?"
"It hadn't happened yet…" Said Shikamaru.
"What do you mean?" She asked him wearing the puzzled look on her face.
Without a second thought, Shikamaru kissed her tenderly on the lips. He never realized that he might earn a slap with what he'd done. He's not quite sure but he did feel her kissing back. As they broke the kiss, Shikamaru asked her—
"So…ummm…uhh…are we like girlfriends and boyfriends now?"
"Of course yes, Shikamaru!"
She embraced him and they kissed for the second time that night.
Sakura welcomed her for a new morning by saying, "Is it true that you and Shikamaru were together like boyfriends and girlfriends?" Sakura is so excited in hearing it from Ino herself.
"Well…yeah! We are…"
That's High school—news spread too fast and you won't have time to catch it. Well, people are happy for them. They've been waiting for this moment and they know they'll end up like this no matter what.
"Oh, here comes Shikamaru, bye bye…" Sakura ran off.
"Ooh, rough class today."
"Yeah, I guess…Wanna drown sorrows with sodas?"
"Uhm Ino, can I ask you out, like a real date? Since were boyfriends and girlfriends, y'know?"
"Well…okaaay…"
"Do you want me to pick you up?"
"No, no need…I can manage…"
"So at 8? I'll meet at Hard Rock café? What do you think?"
"Okay, see you soon!"
Shikamaru become so excited about his first real date with Ino. As Shikamaru opened the door to his room, he heard this somewhat wailing sound. Naruto visited Shikamaru and he somewhat left the door opened.
"Hey, are you okay?"
"Yeah, Maybe?"
"What happened?"
"That bucket hut my head when you opened the door!"
"Wait a minute, why is your bucket above my door?"
"And why is your door under my bucket?"
"Ok—…huh?"
"Never mind, okay…see you soon…"
Shikamaru went throwing suits, tux, pants and shirts on the bed. He can't decide what to wear. I should look handsome for Ino. In a few moments, he's done and ready to go. He took the taxi and he's on his way to the restaurant. Ino, on the other hand finally decided to wear her flowing black gown. When she arrived at the restaurant, the waiter showed her to the room upstairs, on the left door. The room is filled with the scent of roses and the floor is filled with rose petals. At the center of the room, a wooden table stood with two chairs at its opposite sides. Ino sat down and waited for Shikamaru. 'Where the hell is he, it's been 45 minutes. Oh Shika, you are so dead when you get here!' Ino thought losing patience.
She can't take it anymore, she left the restaurant irritated and promised herself that she will never had a date with Shikamaru again (of course, that might change) but with what Shikamaru did, no matter how hard she tried, it broke her heart. She went straight to her house and threw herself on the bed and hugged her pillows and then cried and cried. She kept crying and crying until she didn't realize that she had fallen asleep.
She woke up, still wearing her gown, with the make-up melting all over her face. She still didn't get her balance when someone knocked on the door. As she opened it, she felt her heart beat faster as if something went wrong. The door swung open and in came Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke, Tenten and her other friends with their eyes as red and sore as hell.
"Guys, why are crying? What's wrong?" Ino asked concerned.
"It's Shikamaru…" Said Sakura still trying to wipe her tears.
"What happened? Tell me?"
"He's involved in car accident…He was on his way to the restaurant to meet you but a raging truck came crushing his way…"
Ino's heart stopped beating, "He's going to be okay, right?"
"He died on impact, Ino…"
Sakura's words kept repeating through her mind as tears came rolling down her cheeks. She don't know what to do. She didn't hear her friends trying to comfort her, she didn't feel Sasuke trying to hold her up and sit her on her bed as her body touched the ground. It was all blank. All she could think off is her memories with Shikamaru, the few days they spent together, his caring voice, and most of all, his never ending love.
"All we could recover is this… We're sorry…" Sakura said.
Sakura handed her a red envelope and a small velvet box. She opened the box and picked a tiny circular-shaped object. It's very shiny, mostly because of the diamonds surrounding it. It's a ring. This ring is his gift for her as a sign of his love. She reached for the envelope. As she opened it, a mint scent perfume that she knew very well emanated from the envelope. It's Shikamaru's perfume. When she opened the letter, she realized that it was a song, dedicated to her by Shikamaru, including some words from Shikamaru himself.
Ino,
I've been very happy that we're together now. This one's for you.
The skies are not as blue when you're not with me
The stars they never seem to shine as bright
And the hours drag like days across the ages
And year to pass by with every night
It makes me know if I should ever leave this world before you do
When you follow you must promise
Cross your heart and promise to:
Find me, look hard and don't stop
I'll be waiting 'til then
Don't sleep; don't eat, 'til I'm back
Back in your arms again.
I don't want to have to spend all life forever without you
Just knowing that you're out there somewhere to
So darling, please I'm beggin' you on bended knee
Find me…
I've tried to tell this world how much I love you
But they don't understand how deep it goes
And I can't even find the words to tell you
So I'm the only one who really knows
And though we have our time together, I'm always wanting more
So if we get separated, won't you do just like before
And find me, look hard, and don't stop
I'll be waiting 'til then
Don't sleep; don't eat, 'til I'm back
Back in your arms again
Through a hundred million faces you will see me shining through
'Coz I'll glow when you come close, I always do
So darling, please I'm beggin' you on bended knee
We can share our love through all eternity
'Coz with you is all I ever wanna be…
Find me…
I love you Ino, you know that, and I always will…
Ino cried and cried as she read through the lines of Shikamaru's letter. She never expected that they'll end up like this. They all knew (Ino's friends) that she needed time for herself alone. At this point of time, she don't know what to believe. She can't believe that he's dead and he's gone forever but she knew that he'll be forever part of his life and there'll always be a place in her heart left for him.
It's been seven years since their graduation, Shika's death, and Shika's funeral. Ino had grown to be a beautiful and successful woman, but she still had the scar in her heart that had been left since her high school days. Many boys had tried to win Ino's heart but she's always turning them down. She still remembers Shika's love like it was only yesterday.
There's this one boy (they met at college) who didn't stop giving her flowers even though Ino dumped him a lot of times but there's something about him that reminds him of Shikamaru. Everyone she knew were already married and living happily. She said to herself—'Ino, you can't be a bride's maid forever!' So when Michael asked her out for the nth time, she finally decided to open her heart and give him a chance.
A year had passed since Ino and Michael's marriage. It's their first wedding anniversary. They've been very happy through all the days they shared. But even though they're already married, they still have their private life. There's one room in the house where she didn't let Michael in no matter what—her office. When she's all alone and she's feeling sad, she'll only reach for the second drawer to the left, at the far end of the drawer sat a wooden box. She'll only look for it for a second and she'll feel comforted.
Ino decided to surprise Michael. She got ready and headed to a store. She wanted to cook his favorite food. She's good in cooking but one thing she's not good at, driving. It was only six in the morning as she hurriedly stepped in the car. 'Clutch, gas, shift. Neutral to first or first to second? Release clutch' She repeated over and over in her head, the mantra offering little comfort and even less direction amid the screeching traffic. The little car bucked wildly twice before it lurched forward through the intersection. Her heart flip-flopped in her chest. Without warning, the lurching evened out and she began to pick up speed. Lots of speed. Ino glanced down to confirm visually that she was only in second gear, but the front end of a cab loomed so large in the windshield. She could do nothing but jam her foot on the brake pedal so hard but it didn't work. Her car crashed head-on with the cab. Ino's life didn't flash before her eyes. Instead, she only saw Shikamaru. She could feel him. At their house, Michael just woke up from sleep and noticed that Ino wasn't by her side when he heard the phone rang bangin' through his ears.
"Hello, Mr. Michael Smith, we would like to inform you that your wife was found dead at the intersection. It so happened that your wife crashed head-on with the cab and her head hit the steering wheels as well as the door mirror."
"What?"
"She had a severe blood clot which resulted to her death."
Michael left the phone dangling off the side of the kitchen counter.
The funeral was beautiful. The sun shone brightly all Ino's high school friends were present. The breeze was all over the cemetery. Michael noticed the tombstone beside the marked grave f Ino. It reads: Nara Shikamaru, June 27, 1898-February 7, 2007. 'He died at a very young age.' Michael thought.
They talked about Ino after the funeral.
"There was kid buried beside her who was only 17 when he died."
Everyone remained silent. Michael is the only one who didn't know Shikamaru. As they said their goodbyes, Sakura whispered to Michael, "You should go through some of Ino's things. I'm sure she… left something for you." She left him confused.
That night, Michael is sitting at Ino's desk in her office. He reached for the second drawer to the left. At the far end of the drawer sat a wooden box. He opened it. He saw a red envelope and as he opened it, a mint scent perfume emanated from the envelope. He saw Shikamaru's first love letter to Ino. Beside the red envelope is a small velvet box. He didn't further care to open it as he caught a glimpse of a white envelope with his name on it.
My dearest Michael,
I might be dead when you read this, of course! I wouldn't let you in my office if I'm still alive! I'm writing this in the time of my life where we were trying to start living our married life. To lose one person important to you feels very hard. I know. I had experienced it when the time Shikamaru had been involved in a car accident and died on impact. It's been had for me, until I met you. You gave me the reason to open my heart once more. He is the only secret I've kept ever since we got married, and I wanted you to know about him. Here are two pictures of me and Shikamaru. You can look over it despite the fact that it might hurt you. I'm still looking at these pictures often even though we already got married. I tried to keep memories of Shikamaru from you because I was ashamed. I should love no one else but you. I hope you'll understand me that Shikamaru will be forever part of my life. I love you so much Michael. That will never change.
Yamanaka Ino
He's crying for the first time since Ino's death. He's crying for so many reasons. Now he realized that the boy buried beside Ino is Shikamaru. That's why her parents insisted in burying her there. He opened the envelope again and gently took out the pictures. He saw a picture of a boy and Ino is cuddled in his arms. 'He might be Shikamaru,' he thought. The very photo Naruto taken back while they're sleeping during their second to the last night party. But the second picture he saw brought much pain to him—a snapshot of Ino and Shikamaru's first kiss. The most captivating part of the picture is how Shikamaru wrapped his arm around Ino and the way she embraced like they're inseparable. It's like forever they'll be together, and they are.