Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended. Naruto and all of its characters are owned by Masashi Kishimoto.
Androgny
"And… done!" Kakashi Hatake, the photo shoot director called, clapping his hands excitedly, and then putting away his camera. "You boys will be on the front cover, the newest edition of Vogue. Make sure you pick well." He winked, stepping toward the computer to pull up the pictures in a new window. "Whenever you're ready, boys. Now, I gotta fly 'cuz there's a new Icha movie out. Have fun and tell my assistant when you're done." Then, he breezed away like he had said nothing unusual.
Shikamaru rolled his dark eyes.
Shrugging out of his red vest so he just wore his bright blue long-sleeve, Naruto plopped down in the chair. "Let's get this over with; I'm starving!" As if to prove his point, the Uzumaki's stomach grumbled lowly. He really was a bottomless pit. Plus, the shoot had lasted longer than it was supposed to. The boys had been getting some real good shots, both individually and group-wise.
"Ichiraku after this, you guys?" Kiba tiredly suggested, waving away his yawn, as he perched himself up on a table in one of those model-like poses. The "paint me like one of your French girls" look.
Lee pumped his fist in the air. "Yosh!" He readily agreed with what he always claimed was the 'power of youth'. "Shino, Neji, you wanna?"
The Aburame pointed to one of his pictures on the lower screen. "I choose that one." He leaned back against a wall and went silent again. Shino had been the one wearing the most clothes, so he was hot and slightly irritable. He had even worn a thick, navy headband that covered the top of his ears.
Naruto sweat dropped. "I'll take that as a yes…" He took a turn scanning through his pictures and said, "Well, I'll have this one," pointing to one where he flashed a peace sign along with a big smile.
"God. That bandana is absurd," Neji complained, taking off the said grey offender and glaring at it, as he held it away from his body. "I mean, seriously, what were they thinking?" He thrust out his empty hand, motioning to all of his pictures. "The side ponytail, too."
The other genius smirked. "You're so androgynous, Neji. Even I don't look like a girl with a half ponytail," he teased, readjusting his hair back into his normal full one, after shaking it out and combing his tanned fingers through. "But I think your shots look good. You look proud. Like you own it all."
"Thanks, Shikamaru," he replied a bit sarcastically, softly hitting the Nara's chest with the back of his hand, all the while, not looking away from the computer screens.
As Neji bent over more, Shikamaru tried not to glance down at his rear. It was difficult not to when the pale teen was wearing such tight grey jeans. He was quite a looker with those on and the slightly western-looking shirt, beige over the chest and shoulders, while a lighter grey covered his stomach and arms.
The guys were well aware that the two were an item, including their shoot director. It was not really a secret. The Nara and Hyūga were both very confident in themselves. Nothing could hold either of them back if they set their mind to it, even if Shikamaru could be incredibly lazy at times.
But, the group could never tell who the dominant was, and it bothered the hell out of them.
Naruto and Lee figured it was Neji because he had a more prominent air about him. One that demanded attention.
But, Kiba on the other hand claimed it was Shikamaru not only because the Nara sometimes teased Neji causing him to blush, but also because the latter appeared more feminine.
Kakashi just sexually harassed the two whenever he could, including during a shoot.
Nobody really knew Shino's opinion.
Lee had curiously asked Neji one time, but the Hyūga had claimed their sex life was none of his business.
When Neji chose his picture, he stood back up and let Shikamaru choose, who easily selected one of the first few he saw. In the picture, and what he wore now, was a simple black v-neck that showed off his collarbones, with a pale red cardigan, along with a more vibrant red watch on his left wrist.
Next, Kiba and Lee selected theirs, but with more consideration than the young Nara. Kiba adorned a red v-neck with a black collar, an actual dog collar, and a black jacket with a grey hood over his head. Lee also wore red, but it was a polo with a popped collar. Underneath, there was a black long-sleeve with the sleeves scrunched up around his forearms.
After the two were done, the group went and told Kakashi's assistant, Anko what pictures they wanted and left the building.
On their way to the ramen shop, they encountered Sasuke, Naruto's best friend and rival who also modeled, but had not gone for the Vogue opening. He easily fell into their formation along the sidewalk, beside the now even more excited Uzumaki. The two walked in the front, followed by Kiba, Lee, and Shino, then Shikamaru and Neji who ambled along behind.
Neji took Shikamaru's hand in his own and knitted their fingers together and swung them slightly back and forth as they went on. He was in a pretty good mood today. He performed well at his job, was going out with his friends, but most importantly, he was with his boyfriend. They were going to have a fun night whether Shikamaru wanted to put in effort past his daily quota or not.
What Neji did not know was that the raven wanted to take him home, relax together and maybe watch a movie after dinner. Yes, they both still lived with guardians, but all they had to do was tell them where they were. Shikamaru's parents, Yoshino and Shikaku were very supportive and trusted their boy, and surprisingly Neji's uncle wholeheartedly supported the relationship as well, as long as they were not getting into trouble. It was a Saturday night too, so they did not have classes the next day.
"Hey, Neji," Shikamaru began, giving his partner's palm a small squeeze. "Wanna just come back to my place after were done eating?"
Normally, Shikamaru would tease him when talking about going to each other's houses, but Neji sensed no humor and smiled affectionately, placing his head on the other's shoulder. "Sure." He squeezed the hand back, happy to just spend time with him.
With college and all, the two were unable to see each other, except in psychology on Wednesday mornings and calculus in the afternoon on Fridays. The rest of their class schedules conflicted, but they tried to make time for study dates during the week and hung out on the weekends. Often times, they were able to get a modeling gig together too.
After a few more minutes, the group arrived and was seated at a large booth. Over the years, Ichiraku's had upgraded from just a shop to a full out family restaurant. Once settled in, the owner's daughter and waitress, Ayame distributed menus to everyone just in case. She was aware that normally, most of them ordered the same thing every time. Each of the teens gave Ayame their drink requests. Quickly memorizing them all, she bowed and went back to the kitchen after saying, "It's nice to see you guys again. Lemme get you all your drinks and I'll be right back for orders."
Naruto began indiscreetly ogling her as she walked away and was popped in the back of the head by Sasuke. "Dobe. Try to behave yourself for once."
The blonde sheepishly scratched his nape at being caught, quickly rebounding so he could punch Sasuke back. "Teme."
"How about you both behave and be more mature like me?" Kiba haughtily suggested while stacking some toothpicks in what appeared to be the foundation of a house.
Usually not one to act upon it, Shino saw the chance and took it, smirking all the while. "As you play with toothpicks, Kiba."
Naruto busted out laughing significantly louder than what would be acceptable, pointing at Kiba and clutching his stomach.
"Aw, Shino. You're supposed to be on my side," the Inuzuka complained, portraying his best kicked puppy look that his friend never did fall for.
Shikamaru, Neji, and Lee just looked on in amusement.
Ayame returned with their beverages as Naruto was finally regaining composure. She immediately gave him a censorious stare. "Naruto you need to keep it down," the girl scolded like a mother. "This isn't the first time I told you this either." After administering drinks and gathering food orders, she began her way back to the kitchen once again. "And stop staring at my butt." The waitress turned back to wink, although it was not flirtatious.
The table desperately attempted to stifle their laughter until Ayame was out of earshot and finally let loose, disregarding more reproachful looks.
"Ahaha! Naruto, haha, that's what you get," Kiba cried. Literally.
Shikamaru actually joined the banter. "Shot down. How sad."
"Like you're never gawking at Neji."
The Nara's eyes widened innocently, throwing his hand over his heart at the accusation. His boyfriend leaned in, "Do not even try to deny it." Displaying mock betrayal, Shikamaru snapped his head to the other side, crossing his arms over his chest in a pouting gesture. "Oh, please." Neji leaned in even more, blowing into Shikamaru's ear, causing a pleasant shiver to run down his spine in remembrance.
Noticing Shikamaru's reaction, Sasuke decided to curb the attention away from him. "So, how did the shoot go for everyone?" He asked as he lifted his arm over the back of the booth behind Naruto.
"It went really great, actually, right?" Naruto asked. If one were to really look closely, they could see the minute shift of the Uzumaki toward his friend and the twitch of the raven's fingers toward him. Although it was glaringly obvious to the group that the two boys had feelings worthy of more than friendship, the teens themselves were too blind to notice the other's intentions.
Lee nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah, I can't wait to see the final results after edit!"
Soon enough, the food arrived and everyone began to dig in after declaring, "Itadakimasu!" Naruto, Kiba, and Lee went at their food with the most haste, as if they were on a time limit.
Shikamaru and Neji ended up attempting to share some of their food, but Shikamaru could not handle how spicy the Hyūga's noodles had ended up. He coughed and sputtered, "Wh-What the hell are you—? How do, how do you even eat that!?"
Lee rushed in to save him, hitting him on the back. "Are you okay, my friend?"
"Ugh, yeah. Thanks, Lee," Shikamaru said, shooing his friend's helpful hand away.
Everyone was quietly chuckling as Shikamaru recovered, while Neji just smirked and raised a fist to cover his mouth. "Tastes fine to me. Sorry, I forgot you don't bode well with very spicy food."
The Nara then glared and stabbed Neji in the bicep with his chopsticks. "…Jerk," he muttered.
The brunette squeezed his knee in apology because he knew Shikamaru did not want him to make a spectacle out of his misfortune. His partner reached down and stroked his knuckles, knocking their knees together under the table, showing his acceptance of apology before going back to eating.
The group conversed more during the rest of dinner, which went off without a hitch.
When they all departed their separate ways, Neji and Shikamaru joined hands again and went on their way to the latter's house. The night air had a calming breeze that blew beautifully on the Hyūga's long chocolate strands that were tied at the end. Shikamaru gazed at him adoringly as they walked on, guiding them through a park to make the companionably silent trip last a bit longer.
Once they reached the Nara household, Shikamaru got out his key, entering with Neji behind him.
"Tadaima!" he called, hearing an, "Okaeri!" from Yoshino, who was at the breakfast table with her husband.
Neji walked in before Shikamaru while he locked the door back. He bowed briefly to them. "How are you all?" he asked politely.
"We're great. And Neji-kun, you don't have to do that every time. This house is just as much yours as it is ours," Yoshino chided him.
Her husband continued, nodding his head in agreement. "Oh yeah, Neji. You are always welcome here." Then he stage whispered as Shikamaru came in, "Even if our rotten son isn't here."
"Right here, jiji," Shikamaru rolled his eyes at his father. "Neji is going to stay over and watch a movie with me. Is that okay?"
"Of course. You boys have fun." Yoshino pinched his cheek just to embarrass him, before they went to the living room visible from the kitchen.
They both sat down next to each other on the couch—Neji unbuttoned and peeled off his shirt, leaving on the black one underneath and Shikamaru shrugged off his cardigan. After taking off both his and Shikamaru's shoes and tucking them under the sofa, Neji situated himself into a more comfortable position on the raven's left side. Then he pulled on the blanket that covered the back of the couch and settled it over them.
"What do you wanna watch, Nej?" the Nara boy inquired while leaning back with the remote in hand and switching through the movie channels, causing the other's mouth to turn up at the nickname that slipped out sometimes. Neji was one for those romantic chick flicks, Shikamaru really liked an action movie with bad guys, but they both thoroughly enjoyed a good thriller. And so, as they knew each other's likes and dislikes, they easily agreed on a movie that rolled across the guide that Neji pointed out about two married, professional assassin.
Soon enough, they were sucked into the movie. The Hyūga pushed his boyfriend over early on so he could perch on top of his chest. Shikamaru brought his right hand under his head, and left onto Neji's to pull him in for a chaste kiss, grinning into it because he could still taste some of the spice on the other's lips. Sighing contentedly, Neji pulled back and laid his head down onto the raven's chest. Caressing his hand down to the small of the other's back, Shikamaru settled down again to get back into the film.
About three quarters into the movie, Neji felt Shikamaru's breathing change at a slow part. He cherished these moments of serenity between them. Making sure to turn down the movie so Shikamaru would not awaken, he leaned up and pressed his lips to the other's forehead with a smile.
Neji forced himself to finish the rest of the movie and began to doze off when the credits came on, the thoughts of his partner and best friend relaxing him into deeper sleep.
Later that night, as the Nara parents were passing the living room on their way in from out on the patio, Yoshino stopped and smiled at her boys. She tiptoed over and lifted the remote control from the glass coffee table, turning off the TV. Yoshino placed a kiss on the top of both teen's heads, before pulling up the throw blanket on Neji's back to his shoulders. Before entering her bedroom with her husband, she called out a quiet, "Oyasuminasai," mentally noting to call Hiashi to tell him where his nephew was staying for the night.
Finished: 3/16/14
A/N: So um, I received this fic idea in September of last year and I was too lazy and had too much going on to actually do something with it. I am not a natural writer. It's hard for me to make my vocabulary into something good. So finally I am done. The original idea actually goes to the author Wistful Windswho wrote the very first part of the story, in a comment to a picture, which inspired me to continue. I'm sorry it took so long. (； _ ) I didn't forget you.
Credit goes to whoever made the cover picture, because it sure was not me. Thank you whoever you are.