AN: I'll be uploading these last two chapters today. Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed.

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3

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"Aniki," Sasuke held his cell phone in his hand as Shikamaru stood beside him. It was on speaker. "that's…the dumbest idea you've ever come up with. Ever."

There was silence on the other end before a small sigh came through."Nara-san, I am sure someone of your intellect can understand and appreciate my proposal."

Damn. He hated being put in the middle of disputes but he bit the bullet. He wasn't even going to ask how Uchiha Itachi knew about the fact that he was 'intelligent'. Whatever that was supposed to mean anymore. If he was so intelligent, he wouldn't have screwed up so badly with Neji's situation.

One thing at a time. Hinata first. Her safety meant Neji's safety; there was no getting around it.

"Actually," with a sigh – he really wasn't in the mood to deal with Sasuke's potential outburst – he put a hand in his pocket "that was the exact same idea I came up with." He couldn't believe he had guessed the situation with the Uchiha's and Hinata so clearly. "But what about your –"

"You need not worry about that." Itachi cut in "In any case the only issue with this would be Hinata herself."

Sasuke shrugged. "She might not like it but she'll do it for Neji. You know her, she won't even complain; that's how she is."

It was…weird seeing the Uchiha like this. It wasn't as if his attitude had shifted drastically or anything but him caring about a girl like Hinata – or any female – was beyond him. He guessed there were always exceptions to the rule.

"Indeed." Itachi sounded thoughtful "Otouto, do you understand your role in this little game of ours?"

"Yeah." He was frowning as he turned his gaze to the one standing beside him "You, Nara? Neither of us would be able to get through to him. He's got too much pride and we don't exactly…get along."

Why did that not surprise him? "I got it." He lied. He had absolutely no fucking clue what Neji would do when he found out everything although he was pretty sure he'd know how the guy would feel. Enraged would be one, possibly homicidal was another.

He'll probably never trust any of us again.

Then again, had he ever?

Gods, this is so fucked up.

Everything about who he was as a person felt highly uncomfortable with all of this. He was diving into some seriously deep shit; because it wasn't just about getting them to safety and locking away those sick bastards…on a personal level, it was much more than that.

He wanted to be with the Hyuuga; he wouldn't be doing all of this if his feelings weren't as deep as they were. There were only two problems with the scenario.

One, he had no idea what Neji actually felt for him. Shikamaru knew how he felt and had come to terms with that but Neji could be straight for all he knew. Hell, he had thought himself straight until he had met the other male and everything went to high hell. Neji could actually be extremely homophobic; it wasn't unlikely at all.

Two, if by some chance Neji did have feelings for him and something happened between them, Shikamaru's life would never be simple again. No matter how one sliced it, no matter how much Neji appeared to be fine; he was fucked up. No one would come out of the Hyuuga's situation not fucked up and did he really want to deal with that? Neji would have complexes and issues out the ass; any relationship he would involve himself in would be strained and emotionally complicated. Would he finally break down after realizing that he didn't have to fight anymore? That it was over? Would the mask shatter and reveal a completely different person than the one the Nara had fallen for?

There were too many variables and this – despite what Itachi said – wasn't a game. Dealing with Neji on an emotional level was not the same as playing a game of shogi. There was no right way to 'win'; if winning was even possible.

It wasn't going to stop him from going through with it, but it…made him feel all sorts of things he never even knew he could feel and he was truly torn. He couldn't even go to anyone for advice with the exception of Chouji and the last thing he was going to do was get him involved in…this.

That was when he realized his feelings went deeper than a crush or any sort of attraction. It scared the shit out of him. But he couldn't go back, the dice were rolling and the pieces were going to play their roles regardless.

"Nara." Shikamaru turned to Sasuke who had put his phone away. When had the conversation ended? Damn, he had been too lost in his thoughts. Not good. "I get why my brother is doing this and I have my own reasons but…why are you involved? You always struck me as the sort of guy that would rather turn the other cheek and walk away; not rush in head first."

"Usually, I am." He admitted and left it at that. Sasuke could take what he wanted out of it.

The Uchiha frowned, looking over him as if he were some sort of puzzle. It was highly uncomfortable. "Do you…like Hyuuga or something?" for a moment Shikamaru panicked until the Uchiha spoke up again "I mean, I've never even seen you look at her…"

"It's not like that." He shrugged "And she's got enough competition between the two of you." When Sasuke looked at him as if he had lost his mind Shikamaru dropped it. If that guy wanted to deny the love triangle going on with his brother and Hinata, whatever. That was a situation he absolutely was not getting involved in and did not want even to touch with a twenty foot pole. He had enough to worry about.

"It's not like that." Sasuke repeated as he had with Neji. "She likes the idiot and…" he shrugged "Whatever. Let me know now if you need my number; he's gonna want to know what the status is with Neji by tonight at least."

"I got it." He waved a hand dismissively and Sasuke snorted.

"Anyway; Neji goes to the lockers in the gym after practice because no one goes in there that late." He gave Shikamaru a side glance "Don't ask me how I know that."

He had held no such intention "Alright." He turned to leave.

"Oh yeah, did you start crushing on Neji when you two started hanging out?"

The fu- The Nara turned, a little stunned, and realized immediately the Uchiha had set him up.

Putting his hands in his pockets, he smirked at Shikamaru. "Gotcha." He turned his back to the Nara, waving. "Now we're even. See you."

And here he had almost allowed himself to think the guy wasn't a complete blowhard. Nope, Uchiha Sasuke was still an asshole and he still hated the guy. Good to know there was still some sort of consistency in his life.

xxxxx

It had been too difficult to find a good excuse as to why he would be at the guys locker room in the gym so late because anything that would have usually gotten him in trouble – sleeping during P.E. – were things he actually didn't get in trouble for anymore. So he couldn't claim that he was 'conveniently' there being stuck on clean up duty. After trying to go through dozens of other scenarios he decided to just say 'fuck it'. Neji wasn't stupid, he'd see right through all the bullshit so why waste the time and effort? The Nara was all about not putting forth any effort toward anything he didn't have to.

Since it was getting colder due to fall setting in, it was already dark by the time the karate club let out. This was good, because the less people saw him sneaking around like some sort of ninja to the locker rooms the better. It was really annoying and troublesome that both Uchiha and Neji had fanclubs because those chicks were all over the damn place discretely and he was trying not to be seen. Girls were stalkers; he was convinced of this now. He was glad he wasn't attractive in the slightest; he probably would have transferred to an all guy's school or something.

The locker room wasn't huge and it was – thankfully – empty with the exception of who he believed to be Neji in the shower. Well, if the running water he was hearing was what he thought it was anyway. Exploring the area had him eventually coming across what he was sure was Neji's bag and an open locker. The water could be clearly heard so he was indeed in the showers.

Should he wait? Stupid question; why the hell would he walk in on the guy taking a shower…

Something white caught his attention and he glanced at the small strip of white bandage hanging out of the trash bin nearby. It was lightly stained with blood and, considering that Neji did wear bandages because of his 'problem' – calling him a 'cutter' felt screwed up to him – he took a glance just out of idle curiosity. What he saw stunned him.

He wasn't a nurse or skilled in medicine but there was no way all of those bloody bandages were from two arms. Shikamaru couldn't believe how much was actually in there and something hard settled in his stomach. He felt ill all over again.

A pained gasp came from inside the showers and then heavy breathing. For a moment Shikamaru stood there, frozen, trying to force his brain to be quiet.

Don't go in there. If you go in there, you're not going to like what you see.

But the other half, the one that held feelings for the Hyuuga that he had gotten to know and respect for the past year, had to know. The part of him that was seriously contemplating having this complicated guy in his life – if he wasn't adverse to the idea and Shikamaru was sure he probably would be after this – needed to know fully what he was dealing with. All of it.

Why he was trying to be quiet when he knew he wouldn't be heard was beyond him but he did it anyway. Neji was in the far corner stall which also happened to be the largest and the one that all the guys tried to get to first after P.E. The noises were louder now, it definitely sounded as if he was in pain. Not crying, but in pain. He took a deep breath, wondered briefly how the hell he got himself into this huge mess and then rounded the corner of the open stall.

Holy shit.

The dozens upon dozens of white scars littering Neji's forearms had been expected. The fresh ones that were currently trailing thin rivulets of blood down his arms were bright red and looked angry. He had expected that.

He hadn't expected the cuts, scars, and gods only knew what else that littered Neji's back and thighs. One wickedly long cut along the Hyuuga's thigh was actually bleeding…along with the raw cuts he could see on his back.

That's why he never lets anyone touch his back. He had wondered, because he had thought it strange, but now he knew why. All of the injuries, he noticed, were in places that could be hidden. There were none on his calves, allowing him to wear shorts. His shoulders and neck, obviously, were untouched.

Why? That was the only thing that could come to mind because…gods, why? Why would someone do this to someone?

"I don't know."

His hands had been bracing against the wall, fingers bent in pain. Dark hair had been parted along his neck and tossed over his shoulder. Then abruptly he spun, eyes wide and wild as they landed on Shikamaru in surprise. What…? Damn, he must have said something out loud.

"Get out!" the Hyuuga roared at him and he actually turned and did just that; he walked out. His mind was reeling at what he had just witnessed.

Why was he even surprised? The guy had been beaten on and raped since he was ten; why was he surprised to see scars? Why should he have expected anything less when it was obvious that his father and uncle were fucking insane? They weren't just sick, they were deeply, deeply disturbed and gods what did he get himself into?

He didn't leave altogether; instead he found himself standing at the threshold of the shower room, leaning against the wall and staring blankly at nothing. His mind wasn't idle, he was truly and honestly trying to figure out how Neji was still alive because anyone else would have offed themselves years ago.

Not only was he still alive but he was able to execute the perfect illusion of himself. Strong, confident, self-assured. He acted so normal and Shikamaru didn't get how he was capable of doing such a thing. Was it truly because he wanted to protect his cousin? Was he hanging on because of her?

He's not hanging on to anything. The Nara suddenly realized. That's just who he is.

Neji's illusion wasn't an illusion; at least, not the deeper aspects of it. He was strong; there was absolutely no way someone with a weak will and lack of determination could have acted as perfectly as Neji had all these years. To have been Hinata's shield, he had to have been strong enough to do it to begin with. The only weakness he had developed was cutting himself but Shikamaru would bet his shogi board Neji never once thought about killing himself.

They didn't break him and that thought of that almost made him smile. The Nara had a feeling that those scars were the result of that, of them trying to break his will and failing.

"I might be out of my league but from here on out, Nara Shikamaru, any win you get from me you will have to earn."

He didn't know why but he wanted to laugh. When he started shaking his head in disbelief he knew that he wanted to laugh in relief. Shikamaru understood that when it was all said and done, the Hyuuga would be standing as tall and strong as he always did because he was without a doubt one stubborn son-of-a-bitch. He was going to have his hang-ups, he was going to be fucked up still; but he wouldn't give up.

Damn. He didn't want to admit it but he might have actually fallen in love with the guy. It was ridiculous.

"Why are you here?"

The cold note to Neji's voice brought him crashing back to reality and hard. Standing up straight, he took in Neji's damp hair along with the long sleeved shirt and pants he had obviously changed into while in the shower. He saw how the Hyuuga was trying to close himself off but he knew better.

"Yo." Was the greeting and the Hyuuga's response was to blink at him, slightly surprised, before turning away and walking over to his open locker. "Was just in the neighborhood, I guess."

Neji snorted but it didn't sound angry. That was good, right? "You're an idiot." He actually sounded amused "Why did you follow me here?"

Was he going to be able to play this off right? He had always sucked at saying the right thing when it came to personal issues. His intelligence was in strategy, not socializing. He scratched the back of his head, leaning against the wall again "You know why I'm here, Neji."

"Actually," he turned towards him slightly, pulling out his uniform jacket. "I don't. I thought I made it pretty clear that I no longer wished to continue," he waved his hand in the air dismissively and turned back to his locker "whatever it was we were."

Shikamaru decided he was going to read into that because Neji had left that too open ended. He didn't really know how it made him feel "Well, maybe I wanted to talk to you. Apologize for being a jerk or whatever." He wanted to put his hand over his face; he sounded like such an idiot right now.

The Hyuuga didn't immediately respond. Instead, he turned and fully faced Shikamaru, searching. When he could find nothing, he tried to trap the Nara "How much did she tell you?"

He didn't fall for it. Instead, he frowned "Who? And about what?"

White eyes narrowed "Don't feign ignorance."

He shrugged "Don't be vague." It was going to be a huge pain in the ass but he had to get Neji reacting; he wasn't going to reach him on an emotional level if Neji didn't show any emotion.

More silence. Then the Hyuuga shook his head "What do you get out of this, Nara? I gave you the out you needed, I had fully expected you to take it because that's the sort of person you are. You enjoy having a simplistic and stress free life, it is one of the reasons you are so incredibly lazy."

Damn he hated what he was about to do "Is that the reason you wanted to be around me so badly?" Neji's eyes widened briefly before narrowing again; answering the question with silence. He sighed. "I'm not getting anything out of this and yeah, you're right. Normally I would have turned tail and ditched this whole mess right when I realized you were doing…" he nodded his head towards Neji's arms "that. But I didn't."

This genuinely confused the other male "Why?" he couldn't help but to ask.

He waited until he had locked gazes with the Hyuuga before speaking "You know why."

One moment Neji was standing at his locker, the next he was in his face and Shikamaru found himself being slammed against the lockers. A fist slammed next to his head and he could see from his peripheral thin trails of blood at the massive dent the older male just made on the metal door with his fist. Slowly, his head raised and white eyes tinted with lavender bored into his dark.

I'm almost there.

A humorless smile emerged on the Hyuuga's face and he leaned forward "Don't fuck with me, Shikamaru." It was said low. "Do you take me for a fool? I know Hinata approached you, I know she told you everything so why are you here?" the smile spread and he had to admit it made him look…disturbing. "Come to see if I'm truly the sick fuck she described?"

His eyes narrowed at the Hyuuga. "No."

"Oh?" He took a couple of steps back. "So then she didn't tell you everything?" he feigned surprise.

Fuck. Damnit, this was…kind of what he wanted but that didn't make this easy. He didn't want to do this. Doing this…it wasn't him but he knew if he could just get the Hyuuga to..."Neji…"

He closed the distance between them and refused to allow the Nara to look away "Did she tell you what they do to me at night? What I have to do to them…what I've had to do for the past eight years?" He actually closed his eyes when Neji tilted his head and pressed their bodies together. Shikamaru could feel lips near his ear and fought down the urge to shudder when he felt a warm hand slip underneath his shirt. "Did she tell you, Nara? Is that why you're here? Come to see if I'm really the sick fag in the stories?"

That was it. No more, even he had limits and the Hyuuga had just pushed him over the edge. With a growl he grabbed the front of Neji's shirt and stood to his full height, making the other have to lean back a bit "Stop trying to fuck with me Hyuuga!" he never raised his voice and here he was practically shouting "I'm not that shallow and you're not that stupid. You know why I'm here!"

When lips slammed against his in a bruising kiss his hand actually delved into damp hair, gripping tightly. He had never even kissed someone before but it didn't take him terribly long to figure it out with the Hyuuga practically shoving his tongue down his throat. It was a hard and desperate kiss. One hand was gripping his shirt while the other was cupping the back of his head, keeping him from pulling away from the older male.

How long they were like that he had no idea because he was too busy feeling. The way Neji's lips felt against his, how it felt to have their bodies pressed together. Did he actually reach him? Did he actually not screw it up for once?

Neji began to pull away but Shikamaru, on autopilot, raised his hands, framing the Hyuuga's face. Looking into white eyes with his own hooded, he tilted his head and pulled the other back in. They went slow this time and it was easier for him to adjust and try to mimic Neji's actions. A soft sigh left one of them and when he wrapped an arm around his waist the Hyuuga pulled back.

He wrapped both arms around the Hyuuga and he in turn buried his face in Shikamaru's neck, sighing. "Neji," he paused as he tried to decide how to word himself "yeah, I know. I know everything. Even before I learned all of it I knew things weren't right but it wasn't my business – it still isn't – so I didn't say anything. It's not like I wanted to get involved...it happened because...because you happened. I know the truth and I'm here. You're not sick; they're the sick fucks and..." man, sappy scenes just weren't his thing.

Thankfully, Neji seemed to understand and silenced him with another kiss. He felt...a myriad of things and a lot of them didn't make sense to him because they were so unfamiliar. What he did know was that the nightmare was about to end for the Hyuuga and he actually wanted to be there for him. It was insane but he wanted Neji to let go because he needed to so badly and he wanted to be the person to hold him up.

His life would never be simple again but yet he felt good; because Neji deserved someone to be there for him and he didn't mind being that person. The revelation shocked him probably more than anything else ever would; but he couldn't find himself regretting it either.

Fingers began to undo the buttons to his shirt and before he could muster enough coherent thought to say something, the Hyuuga beat him to the punch. "Shikamaru," a chill went up his spine at the way Neji said his name "since that first day...I've held feelings for you. I never thought that I could or would and even though I had known I should have left you alone and walked away once I had realized, I didn't. You live life so simply and whenever I was around you I didn't think about anything but you. Us. Whatever it was we were doing at the time.

"I didn't think about what they were going to do to me that night, I didn't care. I didn't think about how I was going to save my cousin from them because I was the only thing keeping them from hurting her. For an hour or a few hours a day none of it mattered and gods, Shikamaru, you have no idea how much I had needed that."

It was time to tell him. Hinata was probably being taken care of and with Neji being eighteen, he'd never have to step foot in that house again. "Neji, I –"

The Hyuuga kissed him, effectively ending his sentence. The fingers that had been unbuttoning his shirt had finished their task and a hard noise escaped him when warm hands began to slide up his sides, chest, and back down to his abdomen. Parting, he tilted his head to give Neji better access to his neck, his breaths coming out shaky. He was beginning to feel a little out of control which probably had everything to do with how emotional everything was.

"Shikamaru." His voice was a whisper against his skin "Say no if you want but I –"

"Alright." He knew what the Hyuuga wanted...no, needed. It was probably all kinds of wrong and not a good idea but he didn't always make the best decisions. Sometimes that was okay. "But not here."

"The prefects room. I have the key."

Am I seriously openly talking about this? "Alright." He was beginning to feel really awkward and decided that the less talking he did the better in this case.

Surprisingly, the Hyuuga didn't pounce on him like he thought he would once they entered. The room – thankfully – had a door that couldn't be seen through. He didn't turn on the light but there wasn't a need, they could see well enough as their eyes adjusted and there was a bit of light coming in from the closed blinds.

Slender fingers slid into his hair and then his tie was gone; thick strands of hair falling down to the nape of his neck. Those same fingers continued to move through and Shikamaru closed his eyes because it actually felt pretty good. Lips pressed against his neck from behind.

"Shikamaru. Thank you."

He sighed "Yeah."

Hands moved from his shoulders down to his arms and then they were facing each other. Warm lips moved over his once more, fingers brushing along his cheek and jaw. Neji kissed him slowly, as if he were savoring something; which was probably not far from the truth. He let the other lead; some of it him being unsure of what to do and the other part too afraid to do something that would remind him of them.

His back hit the wall and they slid down to the floor, the Hyuuga practically straddling him. Shirt unbuttoned once more, he tilted his head back when the other teen began moving his hands over his skin. He could feel his body slowly beginning to react and it hit him then that he was about to do something irreversible. Shikamaru should be trying to talk some sense and reason into Neji; because this was going way too fast.

Then he thought about how tonight, after this, the last encounter the Hyuuga would remember having would be with someone he actually cared about. So he remained silent; because he needed that. They needed it; because this was it, they were stuck together.

He shrugged out of his shirt when Neji pushed the fabric over his shoulders, letting the other close the distance as hands continued to move over him and lips trailed down his neck. This was...intense. That was the only word he could think of for it and while he felt apprehensive; he was actually excited as well.

Suddenly, Neji pulled back and was staring at him in confusion. Shikamaru looked back at him – why was he stopping? – until he saw the Hyuuga begin to look unsure and uncomfortable. It took him a moment to realize that it was because he wasn't responding.

Gods, I suck at this. He hesitated for a moment, raising a hand to awkwardly cup the Hyuuga's cheek. "I've never done this before." Embarrassing but true.

Neji smiled, relaxing slightly. "I know."

Shikamaru wasn't sure whether he should have felt offended by that or not. "I don't want to do anything...wrong."

It took him only a second to realize what the Nara was truly saying and he fully relaxed to Shikamaru's relief.

It was so weird; Neji was so strong and yet so weak...but only around him. Was that good then, that he was allowing himself to let his guard down?

"If I do something you don't like, tell me." He leaned back in and Shikamaru was unable to bite back the low sound that came from him when Neji trailed his tongue up his neck. A hand gripped his wrist, guiding him to surprisingly soft skin underneath the older teen's shirt. "Just don't grab me." Was all he needed to say.

Mimicking Neji's actions, he slid hands up his sides. The Hyuuga gasped and bit down lightly on sensitive skin. Logical thought was beginning to take a back seat as lips moved lower, teeth trailing lightly over his collarbone; a light kiss on the shoulder.

Although he had been told he could touch the other male, Shikamaru didn't really know what he wanted to do. The most he had ever given someone outside of his family was a hug, and that had been forced out of him via Ino. Now he was in the prefects' room in school about to have sex with someone and he actually didn't even know where they stood at concerning...whatever this was between them.

He almost wanted to ask but then the Hyuuga's lips began to ghost down lower on his skin and he felt himself tensing. White eyes looked up at him and brows furrowed. Then came the slight bit of guilt. He started to pull back again.

Shikamaru reached out for him, not wanting him to get the wrong idea again "Neji, wait –" he cut himself off when he was given a warm and understanding smile. It was small, because Neji simply wasn't an overly expressive individual, but there nonetheless.

"I'm sorry. I over reacted because..." he looked away but thankfully didn't seem upset or sad. "When you confronted me I thought that was it, our time was over because I couldn't drag you into what was going on. I still don't want to; I only need one more year so..."

Shit. He really needed to tell Neji what was going on...but blurting it out wasn't going to cut it "Let's go to my house." Shikamaru grabbed his shirt to put it back on – their moment was over and he was glad yet not. It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to – not if the uncomfortable tightness in his pants meant anything – but it had felt incredibly awkward.

They both stood up at the same time and the Nara noticed that his...whatever he was to him, looked rather uncomfortable. Taking a few steps forward to close the distance, he somewhat stiffly put his hand on Neji's shoulder. Being affectionate was going to take some getting use to. "What's up?"

A hand went through chocolate brown hair and he looked even more uncomfortable "This is...going to sound...incredibly girly," the Hyuuga sighed "but do you...?" Now he was looking awkward as hell. "I told you I had feelings for you from the beginning. I don't have to tell you how deep those feelings go; I know you understand me enough. I just...I'm not expecting you to –"

His face felt as if it was on fire when he had walked up to Neji and kissed him. After a moment he pulled back, coughing and turning his head away "That good enough of an answer?" Because he wasn't going to say it; Neji was just shit out of luck on that one.

Man, this relationship stuff is already a pain in the ass.

There was something about Neji actually blushing and looking equally embarrassed that made him feel at ease. Or maybe it gave him hope, because while they had a long road ahead of them; he knew the Hyuuga would be able to handle it. Maybe he could even get him to stop cutting himself.

After a moment of awkward silence the Hyuuga decided to cough "Well, um...Hinata-sama texted me earlier saying that she would be staying over at a friend's tonight so I...suppose I could stop by your house for a little while before I go home."

You're not going back home...not if I can help it. "Alright then, let's go." He paused "But just so I have this straight...what are we anyway?" He actually was kind of curious since he had almost had sex with the guy. A title would be nice; he'd even take 'friends with benefits'.

Neji looked thoughtful "How about we skip the emotionally complicated and awkward bullshit and just say we're dating?"

"Works for me." Simple worked best for him anyway.