Author Note - So, um, yeah.

Withered Flower

Chapter 1

"Oh, I'm so excited! I can't wait until we get there!" Tenten exclaimed as she looked around to see if anyone else was just as excited as her.

"Me neither," Ino replied, fixing her hair while looking into the rearview mirror, "Just imagine all the cute boys we'll see!"

"Are cute boys all that you think about?" Sakura giggled, while making sure to stay focused on the road as she drove.

"Probably," Grumbled Temari, who was looking at memes on her phone, "Damn bimbo."

"I am not a bimbo!" Ino turned around to stare daggers at the other blonde from where she sat shotgun.

"Guys, please," Hinata laughed at the banter of her friends and laid her head down on Tenten's shoulder.

The soft-spoken girl and her four best friends were currently on a roadtrip to Konoha, a moderately-sized city that was mostly known for its famous underground fights. Although, Hinata wasn't very interested in that, and there was something more concerning to her than finding where a group of people gathered to watch others pummel each other to death.

Looking out the window at the passing scenery, Hinata's smile slowly faded away as the girl thought about what, or more specifically, who, she could possibly encounter while in Konoha.

When Sakura first talked to her girlfriends about plans of staying in the city, Hinata was wary. Konoha, the place she originally came from, did not exactly hold the fondest of memories for her. Then, she resolved to not let her cowardliness of facing her past ruin a chance of having a good time with the best people she had ever met, so Hinata accepted the trip to the city.

Now, as she was riding straight to the place she had never thought of coming back to once, Hinata had felt a sense of unease gradually coming over her. She tried desperately to push down her feelings of internal struggle. The blue-haired girl mentally slapped herself. She should let herself have a little fun once in awhile without worrying what would happen.

Pursing her lips, Hinata allowed herself to think about the very embodiment of her nightmares.

How was he? What did he look like now? Was he still alive? Hinata knew the answer to the last question. Last she heard was that he was made the Ceo of the Hyuuga Company due to her father's unexpected death a few years after she had left. Though she didn't understand why he was made the Ceo, she did not delve further into it, nor did she want to.

Hinata sighed and shook her head. Whatever happened to out of sight, out of mind?

Anyway, the chances of her bumping into Neji Hibari were close to none.

... Right?

"Girls, we have to go check out the shopping center nearby!" An ecstatic Ino shouted from her place in the bathroom.

Both Temari and Tenten grumbled as they lounged on the two beds in the hotel room. Tenten rolled herself up like a burrito in one of the blankets, "Can we at least sleep first?"

"Are you just going to sleep the whole time we're here?" Ino popped her head out to give her friend a stern look.

"Ino, it's been a pretty tiring drive," Sakura replied in steed of Tenten, "I'm sure shopping can wait until we've all fully rested."

Hinata nodded in agreement with the pink-haired girl, though she herself was wide awake as a result of bad memories resurfacing.

The blond pouted, "I want to go shopping now, though. No one will come with me?"

Sympathizing with her friend, Hinata sighed and said, "I'll come with you."

"Really? Love you!" Ino cheered and whipped herself back into the bathroom.

Later, Hinata would later find herself being dragged from store to store by her fashion-crazed friend.

"We still haven't even bought anything yet!" Hinata whined as she followed closely behind Ino.

"Style doesn't come easy, Hinata!" Ino looked back at her and winked. Turning, she saw Modern Eye Wear and made a sound of wonder, "Hey, let's go check out their frames! I kind of want to change my reading glasses up a little."

For a quick moment, Hinata stiffened.

Modern Eye Wear was owned by the Hyuuga Company, and Hinata really didn't want to be affiliated with them concerning anything, but it wasn't really a life-changing thing to at least walked around in their eye wear store.

"Okay.." The soft-spoken girl said, and immediately after, Ino grabbed her hand and pulled her inside the store.

"Oh, where to start?" The blonde questioned no one in particular as she looked around at the store's shelves upon shelves holding different kinds of frames and glasses. Her gaze absentmindedly wandering, she spotted a cute clerk standing behind a desk and squealed, "I'll be right back Hinata! My cutie alert is sounding!"

Hinata giggled at her friend's typical antics and watched as Ino boldly sauntered up to the poor boy. Sighing, she thought she might as well find some things Ino would probably like as she would probably be busy for the next half hour.

Walking to the shelves on her right, she decided she would start there and looked at the different designs of frames. Hinata huffed as she noted the location of one frame with many tiny silver sparkles on it. Sparkles were a big yes for her blonde friend.

Moving on to the next shelves, Hinata rounded a table of colored contacts, her lavender eyes still scanning the frames.

Suddenly she felt something wrap around her wrist firmly, but gently. Turning her head, Hinata stared at the face of the one person she had hoped she wouldn't encounter in all of Konoha.

Neji Hibari.

Author Note - Well, at least I got this done? Don't know when the next update will be, though..