Time passed by very slowly, each day became more and more agonizing. The little that had happened over the course of the last week was killing me. A new transfer student had been placed in the senior class that my man had his eye on.
"Okay, so maybe he isn't my guy, but come on, you've seen the way he looks at her right, Sakura? Its like she dropped from heaven into his lap" As I shook at that thought, I placed my books in my locker and then we walked to the cafeteria. She isn't the kind of girl any normal boy would have a crush on. She was simply average, but apparently that is exactly what he wanted.
You may be wondering who "he" is. The man that I've known ever since I was young. He used to say everything was troublesome and then drag his feet out to the backfield where he would proceed to lay on his back and watch the clouds float by.
However, he also knew that behind him was little old me, always curious as to the reason he came back to his favorite spot. I'd lie beside him and he'd place his hand on top of mine, flash me a smile then turn his sights back to the clouds.
After a while, or more precisely, about the time we entered jr. high, he'd chuck rocks at my window. I, of course, knew the reason he was there at such a late hour. I'd climb down the tree from my window and he'd drag me to the field and tell me about his lousy day as we star gazed, his hand always atop mine. I guess my advice and company were valuable to him then I thought cause almost every night the same thing would occur.
Now, ever since she had arrived about a month ago, I've felt like dead weight.
"Hey, I need you I.D number or you can't eat" the lunch lady barked at me. I turned red as I fiddled with my hair.
"11052" I told her then grabbed a lunch tray and stood in the sandwich line. I grabbed a turkey sub, some carrots and apple juice then searched for that pink haired billboard brow.
When I finally spotted her she was sitting next to her boyfriend feeding him grapes. 'Can't believe I actually liked that idiot,' I thought as I made my way to the table, eyebrows twitching. I sure was glad I had realized after they hooked up last year that the guy I set my sights on was way better then Mr. Transfers a lot. In the end he had decided to stay at this school till he graduated, but for some reason I wouldn't believe it till it happened.
Sadie Hawkins was the week after Miss "Angel" fell from heaven. Unfortunately that very night would be the night that Shikamaru first started to crush on her. You see, she had asked out a boy her own class, a computer nerd named Sai who hardly ever left his "cave." To make a long story short, he finally agreed saying something like "No one ever asks me out, so I think this will be a good learning experience and I might be able to collect some data on human behavior."
Any who, I wasn't really concerned about it, and since Shikamaru and I had a pre arranged deal made that he'd ask me to all the dances and prom, and I'd ask him to Sadie or on days where Sakura was to busy with Sasuke to hang out.
Well, this Sadie Hawkins dance was no ordinary one. The "happy couple" couldn't understand one another, in the end Sai ended up leaving her. So without a ride home, and being the kind of man that couldn't leave anyone behind, Shikamaru offered her a ride home. Well, as you probably could guess, or maybe not, I was shafted. Not only did they spend the rest of that night talking about who knows what But I got kicked to the backseat. Not only that but I also only got in one dance prior to leaving, by some fatty named Choji, and I would have never accepted his offer, but I was desperate at that point.
The next day I went out and got him a cell phone. Shikamaru was hard enough to catch with one, but dancing around him like a monkey wasn't going to cut it for me any longer. Plus, if they do end up going out on a date, I could always sabotage it by sending like a gazillion text messages.
As soon as a I reached the table Mr. Sloth comes slouching up behind me and sits on the bench to my left. He placed my dessert on my tray and scratched his head "Man, those dessert carts are always cluttered. You are too lucky Ino, that was the last brownie left." He explained, using his chicken leg as a prop.
I snatched it out of his hands, "Hmph, didn't your mother ever teach you not to play with your food?"
He sighed and took his chicken back, "Troublesome," he mumbled as he nibbled on it.
Well as soon as Naruto and Hinata arrived at the table I felt like a million bucks, ha ha, not. Being the only two of our group that had no boyfriend was mind boggling to me, especially since the guy I liked sat no more then two inches away from me. As they all pined for each other with their lovey dovey sayings and feeding each other, and what ever else they could come up with. I sighed as I munched on my last carrot.
"So Ino, when are you going to fess up to that guy you like?" Sakura teased. Up to this point I could handle it, but when I realized the guy I liked was sitting so close to me I felt like I was about to lose it. What's more is if he did happen to ask Temari out, I WOULD lose it.
"Ha ha," I sarcastically laughed, "You now very well why I don't ask him out, and you know how picky I am in the first place. So he'll have to make the first move."
"No guy would ever be good enough for you," Shikamaru blandly stated. This gave me a bit of trouble because I couldn't tell if he was being serious or making fun of me. Afraid to know the truth, I just shrugged it off.
"Well, then Shikamaru, Temari was talking about you in English today." Tenten giggled as she sat to my right, Neji following her.
"Oh great another couple," I thought, or so I believed anyway.
"Well Ino if you truly feel that way then go get yourself a boy friend. There are plenty of guys here that would die for a date with you," Tenten smiled at her with a nudge.
"I can't, you guys know why too, can't you just leave that alone. He doesn't like the kind of girl I am. And compared to him no other normal guy would do." I sighed, my glance shifted over to Shikamaru who was eating some applesauce.
In the end, the whole group ended up staring at the kid, yet, still oblivious to the facts, he simply muttered out "What? Do I have something on my face?"
I smacked my forehead, 'Guys, if its one thing not even a genius can figure out, its girls."
After lunch were electives and mine happened to be art and choir, unfortunately those were the only two classes I didn't have with Shikamaru. Not only that, but during that time Shikamaru had been paired with Temari in a class. I was never informed as to which period this was, so through out the last three hours I was always on edge. Man, sometimes I just HATED electives.
So as I sat through those last excruciating hours of art and choir I couldn't help but feel depressed. I knew something was wrong, almost like a sixth sense if you will, while I was in art that day. All I wanted to know is what?
What had happened that was so horrible that made me feel this uncomfortable. One minute I was in the mood to paint sunsets and rainbows and the next all I wanted to paint was cold dead things. So what had happened in those last thirty minutes that made me feel so uncomfortable.
After that my whole day was ruined, my painting turned out horrible, I forgot all the words to the songs in choir and on top of all this I was really off key.
'Wonder if Sakura and Sasuke got into a fight and they broke up? Or maybe its one of the other couples that had said argument? Maybe Tenten sprained her ankle again in P.E or Hinata finally found out that Kiba has a crush on her and now she feels trapped because he is her best friend."
Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. My stomach ached and my head started to spin. I knew I had figured it out in that moment.
Walking down the hall to my locker was difficult. Everything blurred by me as my eyes swelled. 'Maybe I am wrong.' I tried to reassure myself. 'Maybe it's not what I think.' But I couldn't even convince myself that was the case. I knew it was true without anyone even telling me. The only question that remained now was 'How long will I have to endure it?'