One never knows how to start things like this. Where to start the story so that it makes sense, what to include, what to leave out? What is too much information, what is essential? I'd like to say I will start from the beginning, but I don't quite know where that is because to know the beginning you need to know the end right?

I graduated from one of the best schools in the village, I worked hard to become a painfully average ninja, I made the ANBU team, not too early, not too late, I dated, I got dumped, I traveled, I came back. I'm not beautiful. I'm not smart.

But none of that ever mattered to him. It baffled me. He was beautiful, talented, smart, a genius really. He was far from average in every respect. He was one of the top ANBU, he became ANBU at the age of 16. He was respected by the elders for his flawless tracking skills; he was ogled by all the girls for his flawless body. I would be lying if I said I wasn't one of those girls.

He and I were like day and night, which is why I found myself in perfect shock when things took a turn to where they are now.

At the age of 22 I was still single. As academy klutz and unintentional troublemaker I didn't expect much else. I wasn't always single, I had dated a few guys in the past… I would like to put an emphasis on 'a few'. But they never lasted longer then a few months, usually when they got tired of spilt milkshakes and trips to the first aid offices. At age 23, I found myself inexplicably in love.

Like many things in my life, I met him by accident.

"MOEGI! Would you stop catching flies with your mouth?" Konohamaru yelled at me irritably.

No I was not in love with that loud mouth; he along with Udon, just happened to be my team mate and childhood friend. It's funny at even at 23, things still felt like when we were 13. I guess we still kept that childlike quality, which makes it even harder to believe my current state of un-singleness. At least I think that's what it was, nothing was official, but according to all the girls, he and I were an item.

"Your ice cream is melting." Udon said calmly as he sniffed at the loose mucus that seemed to collect at the base of his nose. That poor kid seemed to be perpetually sick. There was always some reason for having the sniffles, right now its because of pollen allergy; in fall, it will have something to do with the decaying leaves, in winter… snow mould. That kid was a walking encyclopaedia of allergies.

I felt a soft, cold wet trail go down my right hand. I registered what Udon said about my ice cream and licked the offending trail of cream so I did not waste one bit of the sweet taste. I heard Konohamaru sigh.

"Moegi, you are hopeless."

I looked up at him wondering why he would say such a thing, but it didn't take long to realise what brought about his comment. In licking my hand I managed to jam my ice cream cone into my hair and it now sat in my hand looking awfully sad in its smushed state with strands of red hair stringing from the white mess to my head. This was going to suck.

I began to pull my hair out of the melting sticky substance. I couldn't help think that I would need to go home and shower again to get it all out. It was going to be a hot day and come noon this wasn't going to smell too good. I was so concentrated on getting as much cream out of my hair that I didn't noticed when a perfectly shaped hand handed me a tissue. When the white lifeless sheet was gently shoved into my view I looked up slowly to see a perfect face smiling down at me. His perfect lips warm and inviting, his perfect pale eyes friendly, his perfect cheekbones high on his perfectly pale face which was framed with perfect shiny black hair that hung straight down past his perfect shoulders. He was heavenly; an angel walking this village, and he was smiling at me. I stared at him awestricken. He was smiling at me. He was always smiling at me. So why was it that I still felt my heart stop like some crazy fan girl whenever he looked at me? I knew my jaw was open again, catching flies as Konohamaru would say. I just couldn't take my eyes off this perfection.

My pathetic ice cream cone melted some more and a wayward drop of cream landed on my bare leg jolting me back into reality. I heard soft laughter. The young man before me took the tissue and gently wiped my leg and took the cone from my hand, tossing it into a near by trash bin. I watched with a saddened expression as my favourite treat was so easily tossed away. I guess my expression did not go unnoticed because I heard a sweet voice comfort me on my loss.

"Moegi, we will get you another one." Maero smiled as he closed the distance between us so he could continue to clean up the mess I seemed to have created.

Just like the ice cream I had just lost, I melted into some unidentifiable pile of goo around him. Completely useless, how he found the will to continue in my company was beyond me.

"But first perhaps we should get you home so that you can get yourself cleaned up?" He helped me up.

"Sheesh Moegi, what is wrong with you?" Konohamaru sneered at me.

"Umm… catch you later?" I called back at him as Maero lead me in the direction of my apartment.

I heard Konohamaru continue his annoyed conversation with Udon, trying to figure me out. I do hope when he does he could explain it to me, because I could hardly explain it myself.

At my apartment Maero made himself comfortable as I made my way to the bathroom. We had been friends; or should I say together, for about six months. I don't know what it is about him that just affects me so badly. He took it in his stride though, never acting like it was out of place. Like a perfect gentleman… or should I say like a trained film star, he treated me like a normal girl as if I never went about around him like some star struck fan, though it was always the worst when we were in public. When we were alone, things were different. I still looked at him far too much, how could I not? He was gorgeous; it should be illegal to be that good looking. But at least I was a little more coordinated and less of the babbling fan girl I was when we were out in the public eye.

The first time we met was completely by accident and completely different. Udon and I were on a simple ANBU mission, well as simple as an ANBU mission could be. Usually on ANBU assignments we do not run into other ANBU members, it was a safety precaution, like the masks and the codenames. To give up ones ANBU identity in the field could turn deadly.

Udon and I had just set up camp. We had managed to secure our perimeter with Udon's traps. We were taking turns for night watch. On my shift I heard a crack in the forest, my senses alerted, I searched the dark with my eyes for the source of the sound. It didn't take long before I heard one of Udon's traps go off. I jumped to my feet; knowing exactly which trap it was, but I was not prepared for what I saw next. Hanging upside down unceremoniously from a tree branch was the man that was now sitting in my living room. He looked angry, his ANBU mask on the ground revealing his identity. I had seen him before at the academy but I didn't know his name. All I knew was that he was a Hyuuga. This knowledge only made me even more baffled. Shouldn't he have been able to see past the traps? What was he doing sneaking around our camp? Why was he alone? Was he a spy? Why was he so handsome? My thoughts were cut short by his angry words.

"Would you stop staring and get me out of this?" he snarled at me.

I eyed him suspiciously, "How do I know you aren't the enemy?"

"Do I LOOK like the enemy?" he snapped back at me.

"You look like someone who got caught in our trap, therefore you fall under speculation." I retorted.

"Look girl, as you can clearly see, I am wearing the official Konoha uniform, my mask is on the ground and if you look in my front pocket you will find my tags." His voice carried a bit of an edge. Yup, definitely a Hyuuga.

"May I?" I asked him indicating that I wanted to see his tags.

"Please do." He sighed, evidently wanting to finish this exchange as soon as possible.

I reached into his breast pocket and I could feel his breath starting to even out. I found his tags and performed the hand seals that revealed the information I sought. 'Hyuuga Maero, ANBU, FIRE COUNTRY' complete with the Hokage's seal. He was the real deal. I cut him from the trap; he fell with a thud onto the soft forest floor.

"What are you doing out here?" I asked him, still a little suspicious.

"I was on my way back from a mission." He stated.

"Why were you spying on us?" I demanded.

"I wasn't spying." He said rolling his eyes.

I raised my eyebrows and deliberately looked at the set off trap.

He let out a defeated sigh. "I wasn't spying on your team, I was just curious."

"A curious Hyuuga wouldn't get caught in a low rate ninja trap. Why weren't you using your skills more carefully?" I stated perhaps a little too bitterly. He wasn't providing the answers I wanted.

"Because I didn't feel a threat." He said confidently.

Oh that was low, below the belt even, Udon and I were not a threat? He must have picked up on my anger.

"I knew we were from the same village, I didn't think you would retaliate."

"Were you sleeping through Ninja Basics 101? Attack first, ask questions later!" I was getting more impatient by the minute.

"Look, I'm sorry. I just wanted to see who was setting up camp so close to my own ok? I'm sorry can we forget this?" he growled through his teeth.

"We are going to have to; if word gets out that you revealed your identity while on mission you're toast." I tossed his ANBU mask back at him; he caught it gracefully and disappeared into the woods.

I went back to my camp, Udon had woken up. "What did you find?"

"A rat" I said venomously. I didn't like keeping secrets, especially when it was to cover up for some arrogant ninja.

I would say that was about 10 months ago… or so. Had you told me then that I would have that same arrogant man relaxing in my living room flipping through channels on the TV. while I washed ice cream from my hair I would have told you to lay off of the mind numbing poisons.

I stepped out of my bathroom and into the living room still drying my hair. I flopped down next to Maero on the couch; he turned off the TV and looked at me with a big smile.

"What? Did I miss a spot?"

"You're beautiful." He reached to touch a loose curl that hung on my shoulder. Seriously he must be a dream.