Chapter 1: How It Started

The last drop of rain fell from the sky and landed on the tip of her nose.

She flinched at the contact. Hastily, she reopened her umbrella. There was a heavy downpour when she stepped out from her house but it started to drizzle few minutes after. When she thought the rain had finally stopped, she closed her umbrella and that was when she felt something wet. She held out her left hand to feel if more drops were coming. There was none. She tucked her midnight blue locks behind her ear and closed her umbrella once again.

Brushing an imaginary dust off her uniform skirt, she continued her way to school on the wet pavement. The rain had stopped and the sun was already shining brightly. That had to mean something. She smiled.

Yes. Everything will turn out well. I can feel it!

The confident high-school girl thought as she joined the small group of civilians waiting patiently for the red no-crossing sign to turn green. It was yet another busy day in the beautiful city of Sapporo. Office workers rushing off to work, workers who did overtime tiredly head home and students heading to school; the girl being one of them.

She looked down at her brown bag and flipped the lock open. Her slender fingers reached inside and took out a pink envelope. Her cheeks went red as she looked at it longingly.

I can do this.

He never did notice her much. Well, she had herself to blame for that since she always remained behind the scene.

Hyuuga Hinata was a quiet and soft-spoken girl. Her hair was silky straight that reached below her waist. If it weren't for her dull looks, Hinata would have been really attractive with her dark-midnight hair that contrasted with her fair snow white skin. But she chose to be a plain 17-year-old who spends her weekends indoors, studying. It was bad enough that she did not socialize in school. All she does was pay attention during class and read books in the library at lunchtime.

To sum it all up, her everyday life was bland and boring. But all that will change today. Hopefully, I won't get rejected. Who was she kidding? It's a 1% chance that he might even want to go out with her. Heck, there might not be chance!

Just as the sign turned green, a strong gust of wind blew right past her. Her grip on the letter was not strong and thus, flew out from Hinata's fingers and across to the other side of the road. She gasped. Hinata rushed forward, her panic-stricken eyes never leaving the letter. She tried to squeeze past the people. But because of her small body frame, her shoves were something like that of a soft cushion.

"Excuse me…! Please, I need to…! Excuse me!" She grunted in frustration. No one was listening to her! Well, she did not say it out loud. It was more of a squeak. How she missed the countryside…

Desperately, she pushed aside a man and a woman in front of her a little too hard, which earned her a dirty look from both of them. She was not bothered by it. What was important was the letter. Speaking of which, it landed on the steps of a Café at the corner.

Hinata sighed with relieve. Once she reached to the other side, she jogged towards it. Besides, everything will definitely go well today. She nodded at the thought. Hinata had always believed in her women's intuition. Suddenly, her view of the letter was blocked.

"Hey, what's this?"

She stopped on her tracks. She recognized the uniform from the back as they were similar to the ones in her school. The voice sounded vaguely familiar to her. But because of the city's loud environment she could not quite place it.

"That's called litter, idiot." A guy, also wearing the same uniform, walked towards his friend holding a tomato juice box with the straw sticking out while eyeing his friend.

My letter! Hinata screamed in her head. She rushed towards them.

"That can't be it. It looks new and clean. Somebody must have dropped it." The one holding the letter looked left and right as he said it.

As she neared them, Hinata was about to grab her confession letter from the hands of whoever but she froze. Her beautiful pearl eyes widened when she saw the side of his face. There, in front of her, was the back of—

"Since when do you care about people's belongings, dobe."

"Teme!" the dobe, who goes by the name Uzumaki Naruto who was Hinata's dream boy, replied to his friend's name calling. He turned to his friend and started waving Hinata's love letter at the uninterested eyes of Uchiha Sasuke, who amazingly was his best and closest friend. Opposites do attract. "Don't you understand? It could be a confession letter that belonged to a sexy girl from a nearby school!"

"And that is an amazing fact because…?" Sasuke took a long sip of his juice, still looking at Naruto with unblinking eyes.

"Because when I return this letter to her, she'll realize that I'm the one she's been searching for her entire life." Naruto emphasized. "Pretty romantic, huh?"

The raven-haired just looked at him. "Nonsense." He tucked his free hand in his pocket and walked on.

"What? No it's not! Don't you ever watch Korean dramas? Oi, Sasuke-teme! Wait up!" Naruto dropped the letter on the ground and chased after his best friend who was speed walking.

Before the wind could carry the letter away again, feminine fingers reached down to pick it up. Hinata brought it to her chest as she looked at Naruto's figure before the people of Sapporo walked past her vision.

She had turned her back on them and stood next to a lamp post near the Café away from human traffic. What she heard made her think if it was even a good idea confessing to him. She turned to face her reflection at the Café's slightly dark tinted glass. She stared at herself for a minute before smiling seductively.

Is this sexy? Maybe I should have done my hair and put on make-up… Hinata thought regrettably. Am I even doing it right? She bit her bottom lip.

Just then a tap from the inside of the Café brought her out of her thoughts. She blinked and instead of her reflection she was looking at, it was an old man grinning at her toothily as he gave her the look.

Embarassed, Hinata bowed apologetically (even when she knew she had not done anything wrong and that the old man was being perverted) and rushed off to school, blushing furiously.

Her plan would have been ruined if she had written "to-and-from" on her letter. Luckily, she had not.

=w=

"…Norse joined Christian Europe, but their ways live on in parts of the former Viking dominion. On Vestmannaeyjar, Icelanders celebrate…"

Hinata chewed the tip of her pen. Not that she had any interest on History but, Kakashi-sensei just made it 10 times boring! She looked at the male teacher who dyed his hair grey sitting casually on his desk as he read the thick History textbook word for word. He did not bother explaining what he had read because everything you need to know and understand is already in the textbook.

"If you still don't get it, you're a complete idiot." Hinata recalling what Kakashi had said at the beginning of the year. Well, he did not say it to the class. It was actually directed to Naruto. She sighed.

Ever since Naruto appeared in her life, (which was, like, since 7th grade…) she always seemed to lose her concentration in class. His natural bright, blond spiked up hair and broad shoulders. Not to mention his perfectly tanned skin (Not that she can see much of it). Also the fact that she was just sitting right behind him did not help much. Everyday, she would lean forward slightly and sniff in his scent like someone who's addicted to glue.

Ah… Naruto always smells the same. Soap and lemon grass. Hinata thought as she put on a content smile. She brought her elbows up to her desk and rests her chin on her hands as she tilted her head sideways. Come to think of it, why does he smell like lemon grass? I don't think there's any cologne that smells like one.

At that moment, Naruto stretched his arm out and let out a contagious yawn, his knuckles nearly touching her head. The timid girl froze, knowing what's to come. She had been waiting for the long awaited accidental contact. Hinata eyed his knuckles which hovered slightly above her head as she unconsciously lean forward.

Almost… A little closer…

Ba-thump…

Ba-thump…

Nervous sweat trickled down between her eyebrows. Al… most! There!

Suddenly, pale eyes locked with sapphire ones.

"Uh…"

Hinata's face turned into different shades of red. She had been caught. "I… I'm sor—!" She did not get to complete her sentence, because Naruto had already turned away from her; his hand resting on his knees. She blinked. What had she done? He must think I'm weird now… Hinata thought sadly. She looked behind Naruto's head before glancing at her letter underneath her desk.

It had taken her several nights to write this. She had to crack her head to form the right words without making her sound like a stalker. And after that, she debated with herself whether to write her name on it. Before a minute was past, she decided to just leave it blank. Hinata shook her head and looked on with determined eyes. I'm not turning back!

Naruto scratched his head as he thought of what happened just now. Apparently he decided to stretch his body left and right. As he was doing a 180 turn, the girl sitting behind him was staring at him intently. She was always weird but when his eyes locked with hers, there was something inside him that wanted to know more of her. This was not the first time feeling it. It had happened on numerous occasions, him always looking at her when no one was seeing. They never really looked at each other in the eye… until now.

He clutched his head. What is wrong with me? This is not love… is it? No it can't be! The only love I have for is… Naruto's eyes slowly glanced at a girl with short pink hair sitting at the far front, paying attention. She flipped her hair. He blushed as he stared at her longingly. Sakura-chan… Just one look at her made him forget what had happened earlier.

At the far left corner, next to a window, a certain raven-haired had been watching with arms crossed. Clearly, he was not pleased.

=w=

If there was one class that Naruto had to choose, it would definitely be P.E. Not only do you get to break sweat but you could also shout however loud you want and not get punished. He hated sitting in one place and listen to all the boring topics. In P.E however, he gets to run around and go wild. Unfortunately, there won't be any running around or tripping someone today.

"I just love swimming class! It's so much better than any other sports."

"Totally agree with you! I hate the smell of sweat. It's disgusting…"

Naruto sighed as the two girls walked past him. It's not like he hated swimming, it's just that he can't swim well. He does know how to swim! He just sucks at it.

"Line up, kids! It's roll call!"

And their teacher just had to be Mitarashi Anko, nicknamed Iron Woman. Last year it was Maito Guy but this year he was the gym teacher… for first years. How he missed his energetic class, so much better than with Iron Woman. It's so military-like…

"Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto?" Anko brought her clipboard and pen up without looking at them, ready to mark them present.

"Here." Sasuke answered. He looked over at Naruto and nudged him.

"Wha—? Oh, yeah. Present!" The blonde let out a nervous laugh.

"Pay attention, Uzumaki." Anko grunted and moved on to the next pair.

"Tch, dobe. What got into your head?" Sasuke said with his hands on his hips. He did not want a partner who had his head up in the clouds, even if its his best friend.

"I miss Guy-sensei's class!" Naruto cried animatedly.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong with Anko-sensei?"

Naruto did not reply as he shuddered. The name itself gave him the chills. Her stern eyes and strict nature… I'm going to have to get used to this. He thought.

Sasuke just shook his head at his friend's cowardice. Truth was he preferred Anko's way of teaching then Guy's class. Hers was more disciplined and organized. He nodded to himself. Yes, better Anko then Guy. He did NOT miss his former gym teacher's lecturing on "youth" and "lotus" and "passion". Nope, he did not miss it one bit.

The Uchiha was so immersed in his thoughts that the sudden chill he felt surprised him. It took him only a second to realize why. You see, Naruto and him had many things in common. One of them was their dislike for swim class. Sasuke's reason was because—

"I like it that he doesn't have any chest hair…"

"Well, he does have fine hair. Look closer!"

"His skin looks so smooth. I wish my boyfriend had a skin like that."

"Kyaa! His butt looks tight!"

"So cute!"

"And his coc—"

Sasuke twitched. I can hear you, you know. Obsessed females are scary, especially when he was their main obsession. It certainly did not sit him well when he found out he had a fan club. His whole body froze at the memory.

Beside him, a boy with brown messy hair chuckled at the sight. An emo Naruto with a sad smile on his face next to a traumatized Sasuke made his day. His two childhood friends never fail to tickle his sides. He loved being with them. It had actually made life more fun… and bearable. Don't start thinking about home now, idiot! The brunette thought to himself angrily.

"Hyuuga Hinata and Inuzuka Kiba!" Anko shouted the latter's name.

"Here! Geez, you don't have to shout…" The brunette, Kiba, answered.

"I have every right to do so since I notice you did not take my advice and get rid of that ridiculous tattoo off your face." The teacher scowled.

"I can't help it! I'm just being a faithful fan of—"

"Inuzuka Kiba," Anko growled. "You are to see the headmistress after this class."

Kiba pouted. He was not at all bothered about that. After all, what kind of delinquent would he be if that scared him? He touched his face. He tattooed two red fang-like on both his cheeks. He had been a fan of Ghibli Studio's movies for as long as he can remember. One of his favorite was Princess Mononoke. That's where he got the idea of the tattoo. The tattoo actually made him feel more confident. Without it, he'd felt naked. Besides, it looked good on him.

"Inuzuka, your partner seems to be missing." His Spartan of a teacher hit him on the head with her clipboard.

Kiba nursed the bump on his head and glared at her. "How would I know? I hadn't seen her!"

"It is your duty as her partner to know her whereabouts." She hit him again. She seemed to enjoy tormenting the brunette.

Before he could make a fool out of himself and curse her, his partner arrived. Running towards them looking all flustered.

Once Hinata reached Kiba's side, she bowed and apologized profusely. "I'm so sorry that I'm late! I-It won't happen again, I promise!"

Anko nodded, knowing that the Hyuuga always kept her word. "You'll still have to be punished. After school, you'll be cleaning the floorboards at the music room all by yourself. Understood?"

"Y-Yes!"

Satisfied with her answer, the dango-lover shouted to the rest of the class. "Alright, everyone! Today we'll be doing 40 laps! Get ready with your partners!" Everyone grunted. This was going to be sore. "I don't want to see anyone idling! Uzumaki and Uchiha! Stop day dreaming and get over here!"

Hinata and Kiba walked in silence. The two never really converse much. Hinata did not know what to say and Kiba was just not interested.

The friendly delinquent looked over at his short partner. "What happened? You're always on time…" His voice holds a curious tone.

Hinata just gave him a nervous laugh. She did not want to lie but neither does she want to tell the truth, that she had entered the boy's locker room. "I just… need to get some things done."

=w=

KRIINGG

The school bell rang signifying that lunch break has started. Students burst out of their respective classroom to join with their friends from another class while some rushed to the cafeteria hoping that the best buns hasn't run out yet. The corridors were filled with students that Hinata had a hard time getting to the library.

After much dodging incoming boys running in the hallways and a bunch of females in groups with heavy make-up, she managed to reach her sacred territory in one piece. There was no one there aside from the librarian who was already familiar with her. She smiled at the woman behind the counter before strutting off to the end of the library, where all the old books and the school's archives were stashed.

I hope Naruto-kun would come… Hinata thought as she leaned against the dusty bookshelf.

She had chosen the library as their meeting place as there would be more privacy. After P.E, she cannot stop thinking about Naruto. Had he found the letter? Was he surprised? Would he even give her an answer? There were so many questions running in her head. Oh, she had never felt so nervous before!

"Alright, class, settle down! I am your homeroom teacher and I hope that we'll get along throughout this year. First, I want you all to introduce yourself. Let's start with…"

Hinata smiled at the memory five years ago. The day where she had known Naruto. She giggled. He hadn't changed much.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto! And one day, I'm gonna be famous!"

The class of 7th graders looked at the blonde with a bored expression. No one was really interested.

"O… kay. Well, that is a wonderful dream!" The homeroom teacher sweat dropped. "Next—"

Naruto banged his hands on his desk. "I'm serious, sensei! It's not just a dream! It's my goal and I'm going to make it come true!"

"Ahaha! Really? Good for you!" The teacher twitched. Really, they're not in kindergarten anymore! "Alright, Uzumaki, please sit so the next person can introduce himself."

Naruto huffed as he sat back down. Not bother to listen to rest of his classmates introductions; he looked around hoping to find anything or anyone that looked interesting. He stared at the back of a student wearing sunglasses. Naruto thought the Aburame guy was weird.

The blonde looked at everyone sitting at the front. Finding no one that's interesting, he turned back slightly. He saw Kiba, already vandalizing his desk with a black marker and Sasuke sitting silently with eyes closed, looking cool. When he was about to face the front his eyes drifted to the girl sitting on Sasuke's left.

Hinata blushed. Why was that boy staring at her? Was there something on her face? He was cute. And there was something about his eyes that attracted her so. Could this be… love at first sight? Maybe…

"Hey."

Hinata squeaked. She was so into her thoughts that she had not felt a presence in front of her. She looked up and was disappointed that it was not Naruto, but his best friend, Uchiha Sasuke. "Oh, h-hello there." She smiled.

He did not answer her. He was just looking at her with those onyx eyes of his. Hinata turned her head to the side and shifted. She had always felt so intimidated by him. He looking down at her and the silence in the library was making her feel awkward.

Hinata scratched her chin nervously. She had to get rid of this guy fast before Naruto comes in and he gets the wrong impression and…! "Um… is there—"

"I accept."

This caught her off-guard. What was he saying? "Accept… what?"

The raven-haired reached into his back pocket and took out what looked like…

Isn't…! Isn't that my…? Hinata thought frantically, already sweating even when there's A/C in the library.

The male showed her the slightly crumpled piece of paper. "Your letter. I read it," Sasuke paused. He looked at Hinata in the eye. "And I accept."

Hinata was beyond speechless. How had he got a hold on her letter? She had specifically placed it inside Naruto's locker. She had made sure that she was alone and that there was no one else! And she had asked Kiba for Naruto's locker number few months ago and last time she checked, there wasn't any renovation in the boy's locker room! She knew that Kiba did not lie to her because he had said that Naruto and he are "locker-mates".

Unless…

Seeing that Hinata was not saying anything, Sasuke decided to interrupt her thoughts. "Alright, I agree to couple with you so don't you forget this day. I always celebrate anniversaries." With that, he turned to go as he had club meeting in two minutes. As the president, he cannot afford to be late. He kept the letter in his back pocket and was about to walk away.

"Wait! What do you mean…? This is…? I don't understand…!" Hinata can't find the right words. It was hard since her brain was all muddled.

Sasuke blinked. She must be surprised. He thought. After all, I don't just accept any girl's confession. He smirked. "This means that I'm your boyfriend and you're my girlfriend. I'll meet you later. I have a club meeting to attend. See ya."

The school's heartthrob left Hyuuga Hinata, a.k.a his girlfriend all alone in the library. Said girl dropped to her knees and was still in stupor until lunch break ends.


Yesh! I finally posted it! XD

Honestly, I've been wanting to play Dragon Nest Online but I wanted to finish this too so it was really frustrating when I didn't know what to write. And I can't play and write at the same time. LOL. Anyways, am I going too fast? Please review your thoughts!

Oh, is anyone playing Dragon Nest SEA? It's an awesome online game. If you're playing it, I'd like to meet you! :'D