Sweet Dispositions

-Chapter 4-
Talking

"UH... HI," HINATA WHISPERED AGAIN, LOUDER THIS TIME.

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and smiled down at her. "It's nice tuh see you too, Hinata. I know that I've been gone for a while. Sakura-chan talked about you, Ino and Konoha non-stop. So... it's refreshing to see you all," he grinned. "Honeymoons are awesome but it's nice to be back in Konoha..."

Hinata didn't pay attention to his words, she was lost in the blue of his eyes. It was easy in this blue. His eyes had the same startling clarity as a mountain stream... The curves of his lips and his sharp jawline were fascinating.

Hinata missed most of the words he said. Hinata was captivated by his face and his words and his mouth. Thankfully, her brain finally concentrated on his words rather than his lips.

"Sakura-chan has been looking for you. She says that she has some cooking books for you to use- since you like 'em and cooking and such..." Naruto smiled.

Naruto examined Hinata's face with squinted eyes.

Naruto suddenly looked absolutely shocked. "Hinata!" Naruto cried in an alarmingly confused tone. "Are you alright?"

Hinata nervously snapped back to reality. Did she do something wrong? She didn't know where to put her hands or how to stand properly around him. Wait, was it her outfit? Was it the way she parted her hair? She was confused... Was he asking about her well being?

As he did a slow- once-over, his gaze paused on her midsection then her legs then back to her face. He was astonished.

"Naruto-kun? What do you mean?" Hinata asked him as he blinked at her. "Is... everything alright?"

Naruto's eyebrows went up as he stepped back. "You're different..." stated Naruto in a low, wondering tone.

"D-different?" Hinata stammered. "How?"

Hinata blushed, loving how his eyes were scanning her body. She felt like an exhibit that he was trying to do research with his eyes. He jumped back because of how close he was. He rubbed the back of his neck and gave a smile.

"It's the good different. You know when you get a different type of ramen flavor and it tastes good?" he supplied. "That kind of different."

Naruto laughed. Hinata decided -not for the first time- that his laughter was her most favorite sound in the world.

Hinata looked up at him, beaming. She bowed slightly. "Thank you...Naruto-kun."

He looked confused by this. Argh. Is she acting weird? Probably! Why did she bow?!

Hinata floats on cloud nine while around him. Hinata and Naruto stood there in this cloud of good, cool feelings until Hinata felt the worst burning on the side of her face. It was the heat someone got when being stared at.

Hinata turned to find the angry gaze of Keisuke. Guilt rushed through her veins. Keusike scowled, not at her but at the situation.

Jealousy?

Naruto followed Hinata's gaze then looked back at her, eyebrows furrowed. "Hinata-chan," Naruto announced while backing away.

Melancholia came back as Naruto was leaving. It was taking all the good feelings she had. She wanted to reach for Naruto then hold him close. Naruto cleared his throat and looked in between Keisuke and Hinata.

"I have to get back to Sakura-chan... She's waiting for me," Naruto finished.

I'm waiting for you too, Naruto-kun, Hinata thought.

Naruto shot Hinata one last cheeky, mile-wide smile and did another slow once-over.

"Congrats, Hinata," Naruto said. "I didn't know it would be him, that lucky teme," Naruto put his hands in his pockets then rocked on the back of his heels.

Naruto gave one look to Keisuke then turned to go to his wife.

Wait, what? Congratulations? Why on earth did he say that?! Naruto thought that Hinata and Keisuke were courting. That was worse than the taste of coffee. He referred to Keisuke as 'teme' or bastard... Keisuke wasn't a teme nor was he her boyfriend.

"Naruto-kun," said Hinata impulsively.

He turned around, grinning. "Yea?"

"Truthfully... Uhm... He's not a bad guy..." Hinata shrugged.

That made Naruto happier. He left after that. Hinata hated looking at Naruto's back. She didn't want to see him go.

August 20th. Morning.

Hinata thought about Neji and all the fallen Hyuuga when she brushed her hair.

Hinata's hair was one of the darkest hues of blue. When she was a child, she stuck out like a sore thumb in a crowd of Hyuuga. Everyone had dark umber brown to coal black colored locks yet she was the misfit of the clan with blue hair. Even her appearance set her apart from others.

She brushed her blue strands methodically and slowly. Hinata's hair was really long. It reached her lower waist, just above her tailbone, but she never cut it.

Neji said her hair looked nice while long... before the war. Just a small conversation started when they ran towards Naruto. She blushed and said she thought of cutting it but he shrugged, saying it was nice as it was... that she should keep it like that.

After the war, that changed. Everything changed. Everything he had said meant the world to her. He said he liked her hair long so it would stay long. She had a piece of Neji's opinion with her at all times. Even when it got tangled or when split ends were extremely troublesome, she kept it long.

Later on, Hinata brushed her hair enough for one day, tied it back in a simple braid, clipped her overgrown bangs from her face then moved from her mirror. She didn't need any makeup whatsoever. She lived, breathed and slept in the hospital. She wasn't in need of any pampering.

As she looked at herself in the mirror, she did notice that her cheeks were much puffier. She poked her cheek, noticing the extra fat. Her cheek was chubbier. She didn't want to look so big, especially when people saw her like this every day.

She hasn't put on weight, has she?

Has she gotten fatter? It was a silly thing to ask because she had never cared about her weight... but something. Something was different.

She turned to the side and observed her stomach. It wasn't her stomach or her thighs or her arms that got any bigger... Was it just her cheeks and her chest?

Were they getting bigger? She frowned. She never liked her chest. It drew too much attention to her. Men had a hard time looking at her face, woman hated looking at her because of her chest. It was a struggle.

She was nauseous, her breasts were tender, she vomited sometimes. She was bloated and she felt moody and impulsive... She expected some stupid acne... about now. How could she not have seen it before?

Her period was soon. It has been a month since her period. She better start preparing for it-

And oh Kami! She was late!

She grabbed stuff, forgot about breakfast and her supposed period. She, of course, thought that she was only late for work.

August 20th. Near evening.

Hinata sat in one of the many hallways in the pediactrics section of the hospital. She was on her second apple as her brain took in as much information as possible. She did research for a surgery scheduled that afternoon. She was completely focused until she heard a voice call out to her.

"Hinata? You're always studying outside in the hallways. It's dumb. Why don't you just study in my office? It's more comfortable and I've bought some seat cushions."

Sakura. Hinata looked up, mid-chew.

Sakura looked so happy, a pocket of sunshine. Being married to Naruto probably did that. Sakura's knee-length lab coat was so white. She wore a light rosy pink blouse with dark black pants that reached her mid-calves.

She was determined to work.

"Sakura," Hinata said with a smile. She moved her binder away from her lap and bounced up to hug Sakura.

Sakura hugged Hinata back just as enthusiastically. "Hinata! Damn, I haven't seen you in a while. Where have you been?" Sakura asked excitedly.

Hinata released Sakura, looking bashful. "I've been trying to get better... improving my skills. I am in the hospital so much that I don't know if it's day or nighttime," Hinata said while giggling. "It's been stressful."

Sakura nodded then smiled at the ground. "Is it weird that I miss that? You know, the exhaustion after work...?" she asked.

Hinata winced. "Partially."

Sakura gave a short little laugh. "That's it; I'm insane. I might as well check myself in the psyche ward. Naruto-kun's been worried that I'm a workaholic. I'm not, if anything, he's one."

"You love what you do, that's all anyone wants," Hinata reassured her.

All smiles aside, Sakura was a workaholic. Sakura worked more than she was supposed to all the time. She freed up her personal schedule to do more work. Sakura was only twenty years old... Was Sakura allowed to be a workaholic?

Sakura didn't look convinced but she smiled as if remembering a distant memory. "I've been happy during the honeymoon and away from work," Sakura laughed. "Don't get me wrong, I loved being away from Konohagakure and my job as a shinobi. It was so peaceful in Cha no Kuni. Naruto-kun planned the whole thing! We did so many things like-"

"I know what you have been doing," Hinata said, hiding her face.

"Hinata!" Sakura smacked Hinata's arm. "Yes... We did that. Actually, a lot of that. I think I wore him out. Oh, Kami, with him... the future looked bright-"

"Wait, Sakura, uhm," Hinata interrupted, her voice an octave higher. "Can we talk about those things later when there aren't any young ears listening in?"

Hinata was alluding to all the children on the pediatric floor.

Sakura blushed. "Yeah. Talking about sex... around kids. You're right."

They were on their way to Sakura's office. Sakura was the only one in her age group to have such a big office. Being trained by Tsunade had perks. Hinata had to share a room with three other doctors at her rank.

Hinata wanted her own personal office. Soon. Yosh, Hinata will have one.

Sakura looked at the hospital hallways. "I haven't seen you in weeks. I have so much to talk to you about," she said, smiling brightly in that Sakura way of hers.

"I wanted to talk to you as well, Sakura," Hinata said. It was quite weird and lonely without Sakura around or without Ino.

"You could've seen me yesterday or the day before that." Sakura intoned. "Why didn't you show up at the first ever Uzumaki clan barbeque? Choji was grilling and Naruto-kun was having a damn good time. Ino planned it with me, why weren't you there? It wasn't fun without you there."

"Sakura..." Hinata paused. She couldn't tell the truth but lying wouldn't help anyone. She winced, debating what to say. "I was sick and-"

"I've heard things about that... Give me your trusted diagnosis, Hinata-san," Sakuea ordered, "or else I'll have you quarantined."

QUARANTINED? Hinata nodded then obliged to what the pinkette wanted. "It's... that time of the month," Hinata blushed.

"Sorry for putting you on the spot like that," Sakura rolled her eyes. "Chief Junko has asked me if I could do a full check up on you. She has been worried about your health and how you're a hazard to the patients... yadda yadda... the usual annoying shit... like always," she grumbled.

Sakura's fingers waved in front of Hinata's face, near to her eyes. That was when Hinata saw Sakura's ring.

It was sparkly. Naruto gave that to her. It was beautiful. Wow, if she had a ring like that... she would be dreaming or something near to that. Hinata briefly looked at the ring, fantasizing that it was her own before turning her attention to Sakura.

"What? Why were you looking at me like that? Hinata, wha- wait, what was that look for?" Sakura asked.

"Hmm?" Hinata said, not understanding.

"You were staring at my ring then you looked- how do I put it? Really freakin' jealous..." Sakura said wonderingly, giving Hinata a suspicious side-glance. "Do you have something to tell me?"

"I... was jealous."

"Every woman in Konoha should be jealous of it. Look at it; it's gorgeous," Sakura jutted her ring out. "Did you know that my husband, Naruto-kun, has been saving up for it for his entire life? His entire life. He knew that he would marry me. It's so romantic. He knew all along. Ha! Ino-pig can't beat that. Sai can't ever do that for Ino," Sakura added smugly.

How long has Sakura been in Naruto's plans? Just how long was Naruto thinking of her? Has Naruto saved up money for his entire life? Hinata's bitterness came out of the blue, uninvited.

"Yeah. I... don't think that anyone would save up for a... ring like that... For me." Hinata said, realizing her situation.

Sakura smiled, knowing that Hinata was without a partner. Her gaze got all soft with sincere sympathy and hope. "You'll find someone, Hinata," Sakura snaked an arm over Hinata's shoulders, pulling Hinata in for a side hug. "You'll knock 'em dead if you just get out there."

Sakura... I already found someone... you just took him, Hinata thought.

Hinata felt the color of red, hot, burning shame. It was a blazing hot iron stamp melting through her dignity. Jealousy was unbecoming of her. The green of envy wasn't a flattering color. Shame was a better color opposed to envy.

Hinata had to be a better friend. Friendship did not revolve around feelings like these... especially not friendships that lasted.

"Perhaps I will," Hinata shrugged.

Hinata forcefully put away all of her hefty guilt, and smiled. It was back to the dramatics and the whole script regarding Naruto.

Hinata cleared her throat. "Back to your wedding and your ring and your honeymoon."

If Sakura knew Hinata's thoughts... Sakura would never want to talk to Hinata again. Hinata can't lose a friend because she lost a lover. She'll end up with platonic nothingness and loneliness.

Well, I've got to be better. For Sakura. For Naruto-kun, Hinata thought. Even if it kills me, I'll do better.

"I want to hear all about it," Hinata whispered and gave a smile. "Tell me everything."

Then Sakura talked... and talked... talked and talked... and talked about it.

August 23rd. Lunch.

They met up outside, near to the training grounds. Hiashi drank his tea with Hinata at a low wooden table. Hinata hadn't spoken to him in a while. With the workload building up, Hinata was a ghost in the house. She, of course, had time for Hanabi.

Hinata couldn't stand the look on his face. Finally, after all these years... Hiashi didn't seem cold or passive or distant... he seemed peaceful. It was one of the scariest things for Hinata.

Hinata didn't let her guard down although her father was in front of her. She felt so weak around such a presence like her father's. His crippling words, his actions, and his strict rules reminded her of how different she was. She pressed her nails into her palms, just wanting to escape.

"I am aware that you have obtained a habit of forgetting the importance of representing the Hyuuga clan. You may not be the heir but you constantly betoken the Hyuuga as well. Our public presence defines the respect we receive from lesser clans," he said.

Hinata nodded.

"Speaking of public appearances and the Hyuuga preservation, that leads us to your betrothal. During the Bara festival, you will meet one of the suitors who I believe will produce capable Hyuuga offsprings," he said.

"Otou-sama, I... I... have work during the Bara festival."

"I expect you to cancel and reschedule those events. The future of the Hyuuga clan is much more important than your temporary career, Hinata, is it not? The Hyuuga clan is your first and foremost priority. Do you understand?" asked Hiashi, expecting her to say something.

Hinata nodded, wondering why she always heard Hyuuga clan this and Hyuuga clan that. Hinata knew of the pressure and the stares she received from the village. Hinata's name, Hyuuga, was known across the lands and feared just as much. She knew that they had a reputation to withhold.

As Hiashi's daughter, it was her duty to save the Hyuuga along with him. She hated the thought.

"Have you abandoned ninjustu to be a medical-nin? I saw your training this morning; you let yourself fall behind in your training schedule... It seems as though you lack the proper technique that you have gained just a few years ago, have you not?" Hiashi demanded.

He was right... Hinata has let up as Kiba would complain on loud, drunken nights. Hinata thought about giving up ninjustu altogether if it meant working during long, sleepless nights at the hospital.

Hinata ducked her head. "Uhm, Otou-sama, I... haven't found the time... to train."

"Hinata, you are making excuses," complained Hiashi. He was a bit less peaceful, tone passive. "Excuses are for the weak."

She bowed, hoping not to catch the scowl on his face. "I apologize, Otou-sama..."

"Only the determined earn their talents through work and dedication. You must find the necessary time to be well-versed in the byakugan's optometrist techniques or all the work will be undone," Hiashi raised his voice.

"Yes, Otou-sama," Hinata said quietly but surely. Submissive.

Hinata knew why he was mad; she wasted the kami-given gift like the byakugan eye. He thought that the eyes could have been given to anyone else who could've made better use of it.

Hinata makes an amazing use out of it! She used it for surgeries, to catch diseases, to check up on the states of all of her patient's organs. Hinata may be a walking x-ray machine. She wasn't wasting her talent, she wasn't using it properly by his standards...

Hinata wouldn't tell these facts to the likes of him... He would make her a Hyuuga district medical-nin and she would be stuck in the district, two doors down from her father at all times.

"Only the auspicious and the determined gain success with the byakugan, Hinata. I realize that for you to appeal to other suitors, you must go on more missions to prove yourself as a shinobi. You must be able to protect the household, keep the Hyuuga honor and take care of the children. Do you understand?"

She nodded then was dismissed.

She thought about it. Why would she have to go on missions? She couldn't go on missions all too often because of the busy schedule she juggled. She was completely dedicated to working as a medical-nin... not a shinobi. She couldn't split her time as evenly as Sakura did. She wasn't as good as Sakura either.

She could go on missions just to please her father and miss out on the suitor hunt. The longer the mission, the more time she doesn't see her the clan's decision for her life partner.

She wanted to stay in the village. She wanted to improve herself in the medical field. Hinata made it one of her personal goals to get noticed by her officials and higher-ups. With all of her new achievements, she came back later than usual. It's been exhaustive and it extinguished all the energy she had to spare. For some reason, her levels of fatigue was high and her stamina wasn't as good either.

And the Bara festival was soon, why did she have to go on a mission when it was so close?! She saw civilians preparing the streets and their houses for the festival that was in three weeks. The Bara festival lasted for half a fortnight.

When she thought about festivals, she thought of the Bara festival in Konohagakure. It was her favorite. Everyone seemed to walk with a bounce in their step because of it. The Rokudaime allowed civilians and shinobi from other parts of the five great nations to visit Konohagakure for the festival. She loved how the decorations, the effort and all of the creative elements made the event come alive.

People were like smooth pebbles in the stream-like streets of Konoha, piling on top of one another to get by. Everything was crowded and happy. She liked the overall atmosphere The games were amusing, the children had fun, both shinobi and civilians saw fights transpire. It was more of an excitement than the chunin exams for the young ones all around.

She also liked the Bara festival because of the celebration of flowers. Everything smells like jasmine and... freshly picked roses, of course. She liked to think jasmine was the scent of the perfume her mother wore when she hugged Hinata. She caught whiffs of it in the dining room, on her old baby yukatas, and in the library.

She didn't want to be at the Bara festival with a man she didn't know.

September 2nd. Late. Near midnight-ish.

A few days after she talked to Hiashi, Hinata got a mission.

Hinata had to visit a nearby village to do some espionage. She had to track a dangerous enemy that betrayed Konoha by treason. She was given a mission to complete. She did it.

Hinata got one hundred and eighty thousand yen for the B-rank mission. It took more less than two weeks. She got to be away from her father, she wasn't in the Hyuuga compound either, and she got to see nature up close again, so it was okay.

When she came back, however, she wasn't given another mission. She expected that. In the old days, she would have another mission lined up soon afterward.

She reported back to the Rokudaime, got her payment put into her bank account and split off from her comrades. She went home, late at night. The stars were out, looking like bleached freckles on the night's face. The streetlights were on as she walked under them, back towards the Hyuuga district.

Hinata walked in a slow way, just hoping for a shower. She felt the dirt in her shoes and the blisters on her feet. She felt dirty. She couldn't be as sanitary on the mission as she would have liked to. She wanted to wear clean, clean clothes that weren't wrinkled or muddy.

The mission was quite satisfying. She thinks that she performed to the best of her ability which wasn't very good. She felt slow, anxious and faint. Her pulse was too fast and her chakra didn't seem the same. She had to pause often because her fatigue was like no other.

Her teammates must have been annoyed with her physical slowness. She would be vexed if she had a lagging team member. Since she was the underperforming one, she asked for sympathy... a bit of understanding.

She shook these thoughts away and enjoyed the fresh night-time air. Something lurked around in the dark shadows. She felt it.

The chakra signature was familiar but nobody she knew would stalk her in such a fashion. Once she felt movement, she threw a kunai in the person's direction. The kunai remained in the brick wall. She knew that she aimed for the head as she activated her byakugan. Someome emerged from the shadows as she identified the guy.

It was him.

"Uchiha... Sasuke," Hinata stammered, not wanting to believe him.

Sasuke didn't look any different as he moved away from the dark. Sasuke lowered his distinctive stripped brown poncho's hood down. His black hair was a bit longer under his navy blue headband. His form was hidden under his poncho but she could see his shoes and his ninja tools.

Seeing him again was too much. His eyes were still intense. He was still tall. His jaw line was still strong. He didn't have bedroom hair anymore, though.

Sasuke's build was solid and powerful. His shoulders were muscular and broad. He held his head high. He stood tall and his posture was stiff. He still seemed confident. His strides were smart with a firm step. His cheekbones were subtle and sculptured. His jaw was set. His cheeks were rouged and unshaven. His eyebrows were arched thin but jet-black. His prominent face and well made.

But... why was he here? Fear slid into her body like a knife entering her skin.

It was surreal to see him again. She never thought she would have to. She buried him in her memories, locking him away. Why did she have to dig this up?

He never wanted to see her again... He made that incredibly clear. He left Konoha on his own accord. He wouldn't be back... For her. Who was she kidding? He probably was in Konoha for his own personal reasons, not to seek her out. Why did she assume that this was about her?

Sasuke observed her from head to toe. Slowly. It was in the way that Naruto did but she was much happier when Naruto did it. She liked Naruto's attention... She didn't enjoy Sasuke's. If anything, she wanted to run in the other direction.

Hinata stepped back and felt incredibly awkward, just standing there. She felt self-conscious. She wore her standard mission outfit but her clothes were dirty.

She wore a light lavender purple kimono shirt with vertical lines with a black obi wrapped around her waist. Her dark purple shorts were short. She wore mid-thigh-high mesh fishnet stocking with knee-high shinobi boots. Sasuke has only seen her in a skimpy dress and now her less conservative outfit that she had on.

They stood in an eerily silent way a little. She gulped, not being much of a talker.

"You're rusty," he stated.

There wasn't a change in his chakra pathway. He wasn't preparing for a fight. No sharingan nor was he prepared for anything... No taijutsu, no ninjutsu, no Kekkei Genkai. He didn't want a fight. She wasn't rusty and he didn't want to fight.

"I'm damned," he said then laughed. "For life..."

His laughter didn't have any humor. Instead, it had empty happiness. It chilled her to the bone. Suddenly, Hinata remembered what he said all those days ago; "If I meet you again, I'll be damned," or something like that.

Hinata didn't need this. She needed a shower. She didn't need one Uchiha laughing at her and calling her 'rusty'... She wanted to go home and pretend her bathtub was an A-class onsen.

In a moment of vision, Hinata shook her head, deactivated her byakugan and walked away. Her feet moved in the direction of her home. Her bath. Food. She wanted food. She was so hungry.

Sasuke's laughter stopped abruptly. "Where are you going?" he scoffed.

Hinata stopped turned slightly to look at him. "Home."

Sasuke raised his dark, slim eyebrows, mouth in a hard-line. He didn't accept the answer.

"We need to talk," declared Sasuke in a low voice. "When were you planning on telling me?"

She fell through the cracks of a very unexplained situation.

Huh? Talk? Telling him what?

Sasuke didn't offer any elaboration. He was distant and cool but now he seemed a bit angry.

Should she go home and ignore the still extant Sasuke? Or should she stay and make away the confusion? She was at a crossroad, deciding where she wanted to move along to.

Sasuke low out a low sigh after a wave of seventeen emotions were displayed on his face, different than his usual poker face.

Confusion was in every one of her movements when Sasuke moved with such clarity. It threw her off.

She avoided his searching, heavy gaze. "Uchiha-san... I'm curious... tell... you what?" she asked.

Sasuke's eyebrows pulled together and he blinked. His face was blurred by the shadows from the building's darkness but she could still see his glare, throwing daggers.

He narrowed his eyes at her, scowling. "I don't have time for games, Hyuuga girl. Not at a time like this," snapped Sasuke.

Hinata tilted her head, completely unimpressed. What was this attack for?

Sasuke closed his eyes. "Don't tell me you're this moronic."

Rude. That was really rude. Why was she drunk enough to sleep with him? While sober, he was intolerable.

The disdain he had for her tasted bitter. It was too late to be challenged like this.

He cursed under his breath. "You can't deny the Uchiha once you are apart of them. Seriously. You can't walk away from the Uchiha kid you're pregnant with," Sasuke called out to her.

She was transfixed by his words. She turned around to look at him. It was implausible. Around her, everything was in fast-forward while she was motionless in the middle of it all. Like a tree rooted in place during a hurricane.

She was carrying a child? His child. All of the worst things built themselves up like a tower and she was watching the inevitable collapse.

She was pregnant? Sauske talked to her seldom. Hinata believed him even less than that. No, she would know that she was pregnant. She would know. She would know. She had to know.

Then she remembered the subtle indicators and hints... She couldn't believe she hadn't... It couldn't... She wasn't... It made sense but she didn't want to believe it. She closed her eyes, feeling tense.

She wasn't pregnant. Oh, but she was. The symptoms of pregnancy were there. Nausea. The bloating. The cravings. The vomiting. The weight gain. The weight loss. The loss of appetite. The breast tenderness. The fatigue. The anxiety. The skipped period.

Her memories attacked her and it was a stab in the back. The truth was so loud. She couldn't ignore it. Hinata could be wrong. There always was a small chance of being wrong with medicine. Sasuke wasn't medicine so he didn't know he truth.

Hinata had to have blood tests then she had to have a doctor check her. She also had to do a pregnancy test. She would triple check her triple checks... She wasn't pregnant-

"Hyuuga girl. Why hadn't you told me?" beckoned Sasuke from far away

Hinata hadn't talk to him in weeks. It was September now. They haven't spoken since August second... the day of Sakura's and Naruto's wedding. She also hadn't gotten her period since two weeks before that. She was supposed to have her period weeks ago.

Her grip on the straps of her carry-on bag cut the circulation off from her fingers. The tingling feeling wasn't only in her hand. She felt this dread in all of her cells.

"Hyuuga... You didn't know?" Sasuke inquired.

Her words were stuck in her throat.

"How the hell don't you know? You're pregnant with one of the Uchiha's last survivor's kid and you hadn't known?" Sasuke hissed.

Footsteps approached Hinata. She turned away.

"You're the incubator to such a child, how did it go over your head?!" Sasuke yelled.

"I am... not, Uchiha-san."

"Don't women know when they're knocked up?" Sasuke lashed out. "You should be well aware that you're having a child or did that seem to go unnoticed as well?"

"I am not," Hinata said certainly, not turning to look at him.

She heard him suck in a low hiss of air before he spoke. "It's unheard of, the man telling the woman that she's having the kid. You've got to know," he snarled.

"It isn't true!"

"You didn't abort the child, right? Oh, Kami help me if you did-"

Hinata looked at her feet, willing them to move. "I did..n't abort. There is nothing to abort," Hinata insisted.

"Didn't you sense the difference in your chakra nature? My chakra signature is circulating within you and the Uchiha child you are carrying."

While he said all these things... It drew a blank and she didn't respond.

"In other words... We need to fucking talk," he said.

"No. I don't... want to... talk," Hinata said. She didn't need to complicate anything and their time was short. And she wasn't pregnant.

"You haven't heard the conditions and terms I have for this child!"

"I do not wish to talk to you. Uchiha-san... please understand." she said as evenly as she could muster. Hinata took her first shaky step away from him. "Goodbye... Uchiha Sasuke."

Seconds later... she was in close proximity with Uchiha Sasuke.

Hinata hadn't heard him move or felt the slightest change in the air. When had he decided to move so close to her back? He was about an inch away from her. His aura enveloped her own.

He stood right behind her. She felt his breaths on the back of her head. Here comes a feeling she thought she had forgotten; his essence and familiarity and coldness. He wasn't cold like Sakura said he was. At least not now.

"Hyuuga... Go to sleep," Sasuke said softly. It sounded so much different while he was closer. His tangible warmth was there, so close.

Her body reacted before she realized what happened. She almost twisted around the cut off his tenketsus but she couldn't she hadn't seen it coming.

"Uchiha Sasuke!" she managed to yell at him before a heavyweight that felt something akin to fatigue hit her. It made her mouth go numb and her words sloppy. "I like... us better when ... wasted. I-I... don't li...ke y-y..ou- while... sober."

The last thing she saw while conscious was the most exquisite pale lavender, patterned eye.

End Chapter