A/N: Due to popular demand, I've decided to add a second chapter. MAYBE a third if you beg enough ;)

Ice Cream And Sake

The young Uchiha leaned casually against the wall of Hana, watching with mild interest as Hinata made her way into the restaurant and took a table near the back. Her short, dark hair glinted in the warm light of the paper lanterns and in her hand, was a small bag; undoubtedly containing the ice cream he'd asked her to bring the day before. She was a few minutes early and looked in slightly better spirits than last night.

A ripple of thought went through him as he hid in the shadows outside the restaurant, watching her through the wooden blinds. Perhaps he'd let her wait a little longer. Knowing her, she probably had doubts about him coming and he was very interested to see how she would handle the situation.

The restaurant was built so that on all four sides, there were large, open windows and doorways, covered only by the wooden blinds that were used to keep the heat or rain out. The blinds to the doors were pulled up and it just so happened that there was one next to where she sat. With deft feet, he walked around the side of the restaurant until he stood near her table, looking in through the shadow of the doorway.

A tub of ice cream, almost identical to the one yesterday was in front of her as well as two wooden spoons, one being twiddled with in her hands. Sasuke could make out the uncertainty on her face, almost as if she didn't quite know what to do with herself.

He continued watching her for a few more minutes, noticing the way her eyes kept darting to the main entrance, before lowering down as if she was guilty. The tinge of redness never left her cheeks and he paid extra close attention when a young waiter came up to her, all grins and winks.

He smiled at her and served a cup of tea. "Waiting for someone?" he asked.

Redness rose up her neck to her cheeks and Hinata quickly looked down and nodded, not meeting his gaze. The waiter made a small sound of recognition and put down an extra cup, and then walked off after winking and telling her good naturedly,

"I hope he shows."

Sasuke snorted from his hiding spot. No you don't, but I'll let that one slide. It then struck him just how stupid he must seem, hiding out here and spying on the girl he was supposed to be meeting. What sort of idiot did that? Mulling over with how that sounded, dark eyes rolled and his own implications of being an idiot. Smooth, real smooth.

But he had a quick answer to the question of why he was spying and not meeting up with her; he was bored yet again. He knew last night that he was only using the Hyuuga girl for his own entertainment but seriously, could anyone really blame him? Boredom sucked. Big time.

But then so did standing out here in the cold night air. However, the need to see how Hinata would react to his lateness intrigued him. She had obviously doubted he'd come but now he would get to see first hand just how she felt about it if he didn't. A small, fleeting feeling of guilt crossed his mind but it was gone when he watched her lift the cup of tea to her lips a little too quickly – possibly to counteract boredom herself – and flinched, burning her lips and placing the cup down again.

She sighed and looked around, that look of deflation appearing in her eyes yet again, just as strong as last night. That fleeting feeling of guilt came back…only it wasn't so fleeting this time. What the heck was this? He wasn't supposed to be feeling guilt! This was supposed to be fun. Fun and exciting. He sighed and continued to watch as her fingers traced patterns onto the tabletop. Without realising it, Sasuke swore under his breath, cursing if she was thinking about his stupid idiot for a best friend.

What the hell was so wonderful about him anyway? Well, other than the fact that he was blond…and blue eyed…and the sun to his moon. Wait…where did all that poetry come from? Groaning in frustration, the dark haired boy banged his head against the wall. If he could come up with poetry at a time like this, he really had no life.

'No',he thought with conviction. 'I shall prevail.'

But there was a part of his mind that told him he was a lost cause. And to some extent, he thoroughly agreed.

'Damn.'

Looking up again, he visibly groaned and his expression melted to that of oh-shit-I-feel-like-an-ass. The girl had pulled out the big guns this time; tissues. From where she sat, the light reflected off the trail of tears that ran down her cheek and he felt sorry for her – unintentionally – all over again. Enter Sasuke, world-class jerk and maker-of-crying-women-who-he-ditches-but-doesn't-really.

Her fingers were already getting to work on opening the lid of the carton and her wooden spoon was at the ready. The girl was just about to lift a trembling spoonful up to her lips when he spoke.

"You are planning on sharing, aren't you?"

By the time she had looked up, red eyes as wide as they could in all their swollen glory, he was already seated opposite her, one elbow propped up and his hand fisted with his temple resting idly on it. He almost wanted to laugh at the look of surprise and something that seemed akin to admiration that appeared in her eyes.

"U-Uchiha-kun," she managed, catching herself in time, "y-you came."

His smooth reply was instant. "And you thought I'd ditch you. I'm hurt, Hyuuga Hinata."

She blushed and her eyes flashed with guilt. Whoops. Note to self: always make it seem as if the blame is on her; it's funny. With a considering look, he tilted his head forward and said evenly, "Kidding."

Lavender eyes looked up then and relief washed through them. She was so much like a child. No wonder he picked her as his object of entertainment. He averted his eyes to the spoon still mid-air in her hand. "I don't suppose you're going to eat that."

Blinking in surprise, Hinata finally realised that she was still holding the spoon and quickly put it into her mouth before a drop, that was threatening to spill, could fall onto the table. She cringed at the cold and then dropped the spoon into the carton before lifting the hot cup of tea to her lips. It reminded him of the way she had fed him her own tea the night before. Mildly bemused at her actions, Sasuke sat up and raised his hand, calling the waiter over.

Oh good, it's that smart-talker. Without looking at him, the boy ordered in a lazy tone, "Peach sake, two cups." He ignored the offended gaze he felt in the back of his neck and cut the girl off before she had the chance to thank him. "This time, you're drinking with me."

A look of utter confusion overcame her face then. "B-but I drank w-with you l-last n-night."

"No you didn't. I drank and then you drank and then I drank some more. We did it consecutively," he stated simply, making room when the waiter returned with the sake bottle and the two cups, glaring daggers at him all the while. The boy didn't bother thanking the man and just continued to look at the girl in front of him. She looked caught between confusion and laughter as her eyes blinked rapidly at him for a few moments before she spoke.

"So you want to do it…simultaneously?" she ventured, squinting her eyes slightly, in thought.

He thought about it and then nodded. "That is the nearest antonym."

He didn't know what exactly it was that made that strange warmth bubble in his chest. It felt like when you had a spoonful of honey or cough syrup. But he couldn't stop the feeling as he watched the unearthly pleased and happy look on her face. It was…endearing he realised. He nearly doubled over when he felt a smile tugging at the corners of his lips and busied himself with pouring the warm sake for the both of them to try and ease that feeling.

It smelled sweet and "peachy" just the way he liked it but even if it was flavoured, it was still sake and probably nothing she was much used to. Still, if she acted anything like she did last night, he was sure more of the contents of his cup would be either sprayed all over the table – should he give himself up to laughter – or he'd die choking on it. Either way, it was better than sitting at home sharpening his kunai.

The boy pushed the cup over her cup and raised a brow when she just stared at him blankly. Her eyes lit up in recognition and she picked the cup up, eyeing the clear liquid cautiously and swirling it around before looking up at him silently, a hesitant look in her eyes. Sasuke made a small, considering motion, raised his cup slightly, waiting for her to do the same.

"Cheers," was all he said, before raising the cup to his lips, watching her carefully all the while. The girl lifted the cup to her lips and took a small taste, the displeasure she experienced clearly witnessed on her face by the grimace her lips curled into and the awkward way she looked at him.

"It's…better t-than yesterdays'?" she ventured, offering a shaky smile as she put the cup down.

'Obviously it's not but you'll drink it anyway, that stuff's not cheap,' he wanted to say but settled for a curt nod and finished off his cup, pouring himself another. "It's not that bad. Try it again. Like how we did it yesterday."

'Yes, yesterday when you had one cup and then burst into tears on me. Please don't do that again.'

She shot him a sceptical look, confirming that she too was on the same train of thought as he but Hinata nodded and then swirled her cup once more before placing it down gently in front of her. Her fingers then went to work on the strawberry ice cream, which, luckily enough, was still fairly frozen.

"I brought an e-extra spoon…i-if you want some…" Her voice was soft if not slightly hopeful and she showed him the two wooden spoons she'd brought. "Y-you said you wanted a d-different flavour s-so I…it's strawberry…uhm…"

One dark brow twitched slightly at her stuttering. It was getting better, much better in comparison to yesterday but it needed a lot of work in his opinion. Without waiting for her to offer him the spoon, he leaned over casually and plucked it out of her hand, pulling the white and pink coloured ice cream – and to his delight with bits of real strawberry – and scooped out a large spoonful, being mindful not to take too much and suffer another brain freeze.

He didn't fail to notice Hinata's apprehensive lavender gaze on him as he put the spoon in his mouth. When he caught her staring, with a quirk of his brow, she blushed and looked down at the table with feigned interest. Well, she didn't need to be that worried about whether he liked it or not. He had to admit that it tasted pretty damn good considering it was sweet.

To affirm, he said calmly, "It's good."

Looking up with bright eyes, she beamed demurely, "I'm glad you like it."

Holy crap, did she have to work at being so endearing? Sasuke mentally smacked himself and continued to eat the ice cream, nearly choking when Hinata took his advice and downed the entire contents of her cup in one go. He paused, mid-chew, and watched her, blankly. Putting the glass down swiftly, with a sigh of relief and a red face, she blinked a few times, stunned.

"Hm," was all she said.

Sasuke raised a brow. "Hm?"

"I-it does taste better than yesterday's."

The boy snorted and took another spoonful. Figures she'd like the sweeter stuff. Then again, he wasn't one to talk considering the fact that he was actually eating ice cream, by her recommendation at that. His thoughts once again went to his best friend, wondering what exactly it was that made him dump Hinata. Well, from the start, he'd always thought it wasn't exactly a very good combination. The girl had idolised him – Sasuke had no idea why – for years and he didn't actually think there was anything more to her feelings other than that.

Even now, he suspected that she was suffering less of heartbreak and more of worry about not being able to stay friends with the person she looked up to. Again, he had to wonder what the heck she was looking up to anyway. He was an idiot with whiskers for crying out loud! Okay, so maybe he did have some funky fox demon and it did kind of give him more of a bad-boy image…but other than that there wasn't anything that exciting.

At this point, Sasuke knew he was pulling at straws, trying to find as many flaws in Naruto as possible. Unfortunately, even he had to admit that the dobe was blessed with many a talent and a lot of qualities, which seemed to draw people to him more recently than they used to. Groaning in defeat, the boy poured more sake down his throat, sulking and glaring at the innocent piece of ceramic.

Noticing that her cup of tea was still steaming, unlike his, the boy reached over and downed her hot tea, the ice cream earlier making the heat much more bearable. Hinata gaped and opened her mouth to say something but closed it abruptly at the look on his face. She frowned and sat back down, concerned.

"Ano…is something….wrong Uchiha…kun?" she asked, spooning some ice cream out of the carton which he'd put between them.

Having being glowering at the cup in his hands, he looked up and met shocked orbs and allowed his expression to soften slightly. With an exaggerated sigh, he propped his elbow up again and rested his head on it, pouring more sake for the both of them with his free hand.

"I have an inferiority complex towards Naruto." The words left his mouth before he could stop them. Damn. He knew the sake was going to backstab him! Oh how cruel thou art.

Hinata blinked. Once, twice, three times. And then her lips twitched, itching to smile but it seemed she was managing fairly well to keep it under control. This only annoyed Sasuke even more. Great; he let his tongue slip and now he was going to get teased or be the object of internal teasing considering it was Hinata. Perfect.

'If you laugh, I'll finish that ice cream and I won't let you have any!'

"Everyone does."

'That's it! No ice cream for you!...Wait…what?'

Confused, he looked at her. "What?" he voiced his thoughts.

She smiled shyly then, averting her eyes to the side and scratching her head nervously. "Uh…w-well that is to say…most p-people d-do b-because h-h-he tries so hard. He makes p-people hopeful and optimistic. A-and h-he's accomplished so much when no one thought he could. S-so…I suppose people find it…intimidating?"

He listened carefully to what she was saying, only bothering to filter half of it through. But the parts that he did get, he understood completely. She was right. And it made him lighten up a little knowing that he wasn't the only one who felt that way, even if he felt it more so than most. The thing he liked most about it all though, was that Naruto didn't even realise. Excellent, so he'd never know.

But he could see that the subject of the blond idiot had dampened the mood after she'd stopped talking. He watched the smile slowly slip from her lips until what was left seemed forced. Cursing again, he lifted his cup up. When she looked at him, it took her a moment before understanding and doing the same, though still a little bewildered at the notion.

He thought for a second before nodding. "To Dobe," he said gravely. "May he never realise that people actually like him."

That actually cracked a reluctant yet humoured grin from the girl who fought back a giggle and raised the cup to her lips, simultaneously, as he would have it. She squeezed her eyes shut as she gulped it down and banged the cup down just a little too loudly.

He almost smirked. 'Perhaps I underestimated you, my young kunoichi. I do believe that with more training, you will be able to hold your own quite finely.' He cheered internally at his brilliant teachings and ordered another jug and to his surprise, she didn't say a word and simply offered a small 'thank you' to the still sulking waiter when he came by.

"So," he began, spooning out more ice cream, "why strawberry?" He tilted the carton towards her, allowing her to take her own spoonful. This was surprisingly not accompanied by unstoppable blushing but rather by a short shrug.

"I-it j-just seemed th-the next likely choice…I sup-suppose." She tapped the spoon to her lips as she allowed the ice cream to melt in her mouth and stared at a corner in the ceiling. "Perhaps next time I'll try raspberry…" she said softly and it took Sasuke a moment to realise that she wasn't talking to him, but to herself. Well this was interesting. He wanted to laugh but as usual, refrained from doing so. She certainly was a funny one. And this was a chance he couldn't let slip.

"Are you asking me out?" he asked suddenly, breaking her out of her stupor. His expression was dry, but there was a little mischievous twinkle in his eye that betrayed his true intentions. Unfortunately for Hinata, she hardly noticed for having blushed so hard, he swore he could see steam coming out of her ears.

She squeaked and fisted her fingers at her lip, looking at him wide-eyed. "N-no I was just…uh…I-I m-mean…th-that's not t-to s-say I w-wouldn't b-but…I oh," she stumbled helplessly, tears of embarrassment coming into her eyes as Sasuke struggled his hardest to keep himself in check.

"So you're not asking me out?" he asked again, curtly.

"No! B-but I d-don't mean…I m-mean if y-you wanted t-to…" again she stumbled over her words, not quite knowing what to say and he could tell he was making her feel guilty but couldn't for the life of him, stop. He looked forward to her reactions to his teasing and tonight only proved that she'd never fail to entertain him in that department. Her lavender eyes where everywhere but on him and he had to release a short chuckle.

He lowered his gaze and cracked a small smile, ceasing her incessant fussing. "Either way, I accept."

She froze and simply stared as he poured himself some sake and drank, looking at her as he did so. "If you don't believe me, come back here tomorrow night, same time," he commented wryly only to have her jump in her seat and make a sound that was strangely halfway between a squeak and a laugh. The awkward smile she gave him related that she was quite pleased. Perhaps she liked meeting him as much as he did? Well, he certainly didn't mind. He couldn't help but grow quite fond of her and her silliness and awkwardness.

'Ugh, I'm growing soft. Somebody stop me. Well, at least the ice cream's free.'

"O-okay."

He looked up.

"What?"

She bit her lip.

"Okay, I-I'll b-be here tomorrow n-night…if y-you were s-serious," she added, flushed.

He snorted. "I was serious, I didn't expect you to agree though."

The dark haired girl shrugged again and admitted with a small smile, "I d-don't have a-anything on…so…"

"Hn, me neither."

They scooped up ice cream at the same time then, and he caught the surprised and shy smile on her lips when they did so.

'Hm…strawberry ice cream is really good…please be kinder than that damned sake and NOT conspire against me.'

They continued sharing the dessert and drinking their sake until the second bottle was finished. Sasuke had to admit that while he was beginning to feel the effects of the alcohol, he was a little worried that Hinata seemed to be turning redder by the moment as well as swaying dangerously from side to side with a sloppy smile on her face.

He cleared his throat and commented wryly, "Perhaps you've had enough?"

She nodded distractedly and raised the cup to her lips again. "Mm…I think so too…" she hiccoughed and swallowed the drink again. Sasuke raised his brow in amusement and fought against the tugging at the corner of his lips.

"Right…Maybe I should take you home."

'Before your cousin comes after me with an axe?'

She looked up then. "B-but we haven't f-fin-finished the ice…cream…" she said innocently, wide eyed.

'Curse you bubblegum innocence!'

He sighed and nodded. "Alright, we'll finish the ice cream. And then I'm taking you home." The heavy note of authority in his tone wasn't missed by either of them.

"M-maybe I sh-should order tea first." He looked up, a disbelieving frown on his forehead and was about to say 'hell no!' when she interrupted him with a dangerously sweet voice, "I d-don't think m-my father…or Neji-niisan f-for that matter w-would like me coming h-home l-like…like this." Lavender eyes met his then and he wanted to strangle her and applaud her at the same time. She had that twinkle in her eyes.

'Holy shit. She's…bribing me…Damn, she's good.'

He had a twitch in his left eye and gave her a half smirk. "Not bad."

But the girl simply cocked her head to the side, feigning unawares about what had just transpired, before smiling brightly and bringing the ice cream to her mouth again. Hell, she was probably saving his own skin because he definitely didn't want to bring her home tipsy and then have her tell everyone that it was he who fed her sake.

'Thanks, I suppose,' were the words he should have said but couldn't deplete his pride low enough to allow it to happen. He was, after all, an Uchiha. Not to mention a Sasuke. Well at least they weren't on the topic of a certain blond ex anymore, even when he wasn't here, the Kyuubi vessel still managed to tire him out. When their tea arrived, the entire contents of the ice cream had been emptied thanks to the both of them. The boy could already feel the sugar and alcohol working through his body but today he was ready. Without a second thought, he quickly brought his fresh cup of tea to his lips and gulped it down in one go.

Lavender eyes went wide and it seemed that Hinata was a lot more sober. "Uchiha-kun!" she cried as she took in the pained grimace at the heat surging down his throat.

Okay, perhaps he wasn't that ready. He gladly accepted the cold glass of water that she fed him, for the second time that week, and sighed in relief at the clarity in her eyes.

'Shit, that stuff is hot!'

After regaining composure, he dug in his pocket and threw a small packet at her. "Here, clean your breath." He only slightly regretted his words as a crimson blush came surging up her face and she covered her mouth with her hands and proceeded to try and sniff her own breath. "I meant to mask what you've been drinking," he added pointedly.

Realisation dawned on her then and she released a soft giggle and proceeded to open and eat the minty gum he handed her. She seemed a lot calmer now, Sasuke noticed, with a small content smile on her face as she gazed modestly into her lap.

"Ah…Uchiha-kun?" she squeaked.

He stared boredly at the wall. "Sasuke's fine."

It took her a moment to say it though. "S-Sasuke-kun?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

Dark eyes met pale orbs then, interested. "For?"

She looked for the right words, tapping her finger to her chin in thought before settling for, "For n-not…ditching me." Using his earlier choice of words, the boy couldn't help but let out a small, short, breath of laughter, revelling in the wide-eyed look of rosiness he received.

He held up his cup of tea.

"Tomorrow night, dinner's on me."

They clinked their glasses.

A/N: Well, I didn't expect so many people to like this, so I just had to post a second chapter! Thank you reviewers! You're all wonderful people! :D If you'd like me to add a third and final chapter, PLEASE review and tell me what you think :) I know there hasn't been much "action" if you know what I mean but there are hints and traces of it and I don't really want them to suddenly fall in love and all that because that's just lame and silly and…just doesn't sound right. So yes! PLEASE REVIEW and NO FLAMES! Flames are a waste of my time and yours so all you flamers go flame somebody else! I mean seriously, if you don't like SasuHina then why the hell are you reading it?? ANYWAYS, yes I love reviews so keep them coming! All who reviewed or faved this story gets a GREAT BIG STICKY cookie!

Peace out!
Rex