Here is it, chapter 4, I thought I would have next chapter sooner but unfortunately I just lost half of what I had written, thankfully I was able to retrieve some of it thanks to a backup.

Naruto lay on his livingroom's couch, his knees on his chest and his arms around his legs, he was staring at the flatscreen in front of him, the words from the news anchor coming as a string of uncompressible blabbering, his mind blank, he was focused on his own breathing.

The room around him looked like a war-zone, dirty clothes and empty takeout packages and other kind of trash strewn around at random, a large half-empty bottle of sake on the coffee table in front of him with a small ceramic glass beside it and several empty cans of beer dripping some of its contents on to the floor.

The news anchor was replaced by a commercial of a dark-eyed punk-looking girl drinking soda, her hair was bubblegum pink and clearly dyed.

Naruto felt a sharp pain in his chest, as his throat started to tighten, and his eyes started to feel moist. He reached for the remote control and turned off the television, he laid there staring at his reflection on the dark surface of the screen.

He felt as he looked.

His hair was in even more disarray than usual, it was mated and pale instead of his normal bright shiny blond, it had grown a little bit more than he was comfortable, and a short uneven stubble was forming on his face, there was gunk on the corner of his eyes and he was sure he smelled like a hobo. Maybe he should take a bath, he hadn't left his apartment since— he narrowed his eyes what day was today? He grabbed his cellphone, which he had decided to charge before blocking Sakura's number.

Friday, June 15 8:14 AM

Friday… Friday, there was something he had to do that day, he ran a hand through his scrubby hair, cringing at how oily it felt, and heard a tinkling sound, today was the day he was going to meet his fiance, Hyuga Hinata, he jumped out of the couch and shook his whole body, the least he could do was to look presentable.

When he looked himself in the mirror he shuddered, yeah he wasn't going to steal any hearts looking like war refuge. The first thing he did was prepare himself a nice cup of black coffee, then he took a really long bath, after that he cleaned his apartment and thrown all the thrash that had been accumulating the past weeks, he went to the barbershop to have his hair fixed. It was past three when he returned home, took another bath and started choosing his clothes, he decided for a modern blue suit. When he was about to grab a dark blue tie he stopped.

Once when going to the hospital's Christmas party Naruto had bought a bright orange tie with red swirls, he had liked that tie, Sakura had said it looked ridiculous, and that she won't go with him to the party if he wore it, he ended up using the same boring dark blue tie he had in his hands now, he frowned.

Well, fuck that.

He started looking for his tie as it wasn't with the rest, when he didn't find it and he was about to give up, he realized he hadn't searched his bedroom.

As he stood in front of the closed door he had to clench his hands to make them stop shaking, he hadn't entered his bedroom since that day, for some reason he didn't want to enter, he didn't want to remember, he didn't want to be hurt again. But before he could stop himself he opened the door and took a step forward.

Inside the room he tried to ignore the immaculate bed and went straight to the bedside table, he froze when he found the small velvet case holding the ring he had brought that night.

He had thought of returning it, even throwing it out, it hadn't even been that expensive, but he decided to simply shove it at the bottom of the drawer, there he found the 'ridiculous' orange tie, for the first time in a week he let something akin to a smile set on his face.

After he finished getting ready he looked at his cellphone noticing the blinking light that indicated he had new LINE messages. There was one from Shikamaru, reminding him that he still owed him money for the jail fiasco, there was another from Tsunade-sensei telling him that if he didn't show his face tomorrow he could say goodbye to passing her class, he grimaced.

The last was a message from his dad with the time and place where he was to met his fiance, the restaurant wasn't far from home, he still had time so he rested his head on the couch's backrest and closed his eyes.

He dreamt of a small girl bringing him cake, he couldn't see her face but just as he tried to focus on her she disappeared, suddenly he was again in his bedroom looking at Sakura having sex with Sasuke, he yelled at them but his voice didn't come out, and his body refused to move, then he slowly he opened his eyes and let out a tired sigh.

What was wrong with him?

He looked at his watch and realized he was already late, he jumped out of his couch and ran out of his apartment and into his car, the drive to the restaurant was uneventful and gave Naruto time to think.

He was meeting his fiance, a woman he probably would need to mary whether he liked her or not, well after what happened he wasn't really interested in falling in love again, the only thing he hoped was that she was at least bearable and that she didn't look anything like Sakura.

When he entered the restaurant he looked around and saw the characteristic red hair of his mother and the bright blond hair of his father, they were sitting at a table next to the windows, It seemed that Hyuga Hiashi and Hinata and Neji were already there, Naruto took a moment to observe them before they noticed him.

He looked at Hinata and he didn't like her at all, her expression was disdainful as she looked around as if she was being forced to be there, the way she looked at his mom and dad didn't sit well with Naruto at all, she gave the impression of a rich spoiled girl that would rather be shopping with her friends than here.

Although he had to admit that she was beautiful with her pale skin, the fine lines of her face, and her pearly eyes, maybe if she smiled instead of having a frown. Naruto also noticed that she seemed awfully short.

Well, the least he could do was meet her and if he couldn't totally tolerate her he was sure his dad would find another solution.

As he approached the table the first to notice him was Neji who glared at him. Neji had been in the Youth Olympic Games and had lost the semifinals against Naruto who at the time had been representing England, in the finals Naruto lost against Sasuke.

He shook his head, he didn't really need to think about them now.

When his mom and dad noticed Neji glaring they turned to look at Naruto, when he saw their expressions he almost laughed, he wondered if they thought he wasn't going to show up, he walked beside his mom and gave her a kiss on the cheek and a curt nod to his father, he sat on one of the two empty chairs next to his mom and in front of Hinata. Who, thinking about it, seemed extremely young.

"Hiashi-san It's been a while" Naruto lied, he was pretty sure he didn't remember the man "I'm sorry for being late," he said, not offering an explanation, Hinata just looked down her nose at Naruto as she narrowed her eyes

Yes, he didn't like her at all.

"It's fine Naruto," said Hiashi for the first time, "Hinata will be a little late too" Naruto snapped his head to look at the girl in front of him, Hiashi seemed to notice because he continued "This my youngest daughter, Hanabi" Naruto tried not to sigh in relief that she wasn't his fiance.

"Hanabi?" he asked dumbfounded "Nice to meet you," Naruto thought he had been able to hide his relief, but when Hanabi looked unimpressed he wasn't sure anymore.

"Nice to meet you Uzumaki-san" Hanabi offered her hand in that position that indicated you should kiss it, Naruto just shook it. The tension seemed to tighten at the table when Hiashi spoke again

"And I'm sure you already met Neji" Naruto grimaced

"Yes," said Neji with tight voice "We met before…" Naruto laughed nervously, Hiashi, again, seemed to try to break the ice by speaking.

"You will have to forgive Hinata, she had a last minute commitment, but she will be here any minute now," Naruto let out a sigh of relief, it was good that the bratty girl wasn't his fiance. Naruto looked at Hanabi now that he looked at her, he realized that she was really young, like early teens at least. He also realized the dislike was mutual. Naruto smiled at her and the girl simply put on a bored face.

"It's ok, don't worry Hiashi-san, I was late too"

There was a long awkward silence that was broken when his mother clapped her hands

"Should we order already?" by the tension of her voice and the expression of both Hanabi and Neji Naruto deduced that the real Hinata was probably furious at being saddled with an arranged marriage, and the whole 'another appointment' was probably a lie and someone else was trying to coax the girl to come. Well if she really was like her sister, Naruto would have to decline.

After they all had ordered –Naruto was sad the Italian restaurant didn't serve any ramen— Naruto saw how both Neji's and Hanabi's face transformed from frowning and hostile to relaxed and smiling.

"Oh, seems that she is already here" Said Hiashi looking over Naruto's shoulder, He turned around and looked at the restaurant's entrance.

Time stopped when he saw the girl speaking with the greeter, unbidden memories came rushing into his mind, and he remembered the birthday party when he had met her, the gift he gave her and the lie he had told her so she had the courage to play with the other kids.

Naruto couldn't notice any of her physical features because he was captivated by the smile she was giving to the greeter and how she bowed when she gave her thanks, as she walked towards their table Naruto realized he had been staring too much with his mouth open, He closed it with an audible click and turned to look at his plate, he could see the blush reflected in the empty plate.

"Good evening, I'm sorry to be late" she said in a soft voice but loud enough to be heard clearly, Hanabi was starry eyed looking at her sister while Hinata went and greeted her father with a kiss on his forehead "Neji-niisan, Hanabi" she greeted both of them with a nod, it wasn't until Hinata sat that Naruto realized she wasn't dressed for the occasion, instead of a luxurious dress, a fancy suit or a cute outfit, Hinata was wearing a pair of navy blue sweetpants with a matching zip-up jacket with the Hibiya Highschool logo, she was also carrying a sports bag of the same color and with the same logo on the side "I'm sorry to show up looking like this," she said to everyone in the table "but one of our new members had a twisted ankle and they asked me to cover for her on the competition" Naruto was surprised to see how happy she looked talking about whatever sport she did. He was, for a moment, tempted to ask her about it.

"Neesama how did it go? Did you win?" Said Hanabi, gone was the unpleasant bratty girl and its place was a little girl with nothing but admiration for her older sister, Naruto was sure Hanabi had completely forgotten he was there. He smiled as he watched the sisters interact, Hinata gave Hanabi a mischievous smile

"What do you think?" she reached to the zipper of her jacket and unzipped it until a large golden medal was visible, Naruto stared dumbly not at the medal but what laid behind.

"Neesama you are the best!" Hanabi gave her sister a hug that Hinata reciprocated. When Hanabi let her go Hinata's eyes finally looked at his direction

Both of them held their breaths, and Naruto saw how her pale-purple eyes widened a tiny bit, and he wondered if she remembered him. Naruto felt how the tension started to grow to unbearable levels around him, they weren't the only ones holding their breaths. His parents and Hiashi hoping that he and Hinata didn't hate each other right away and Hanabi and Neji probably wishing the contrary.

Naruto found the girl cute, he remembered the timid little girl he had met that many years ago and remembered how he had thought of her a weird but cute.

He wondered if she was still weird.

The young woman she had become had the same delicate features as a porcelain doll and her eyes seemed even brighter than he could remember, her hair was longer now than what he remembered, but she still maintained that look of youthfulness and innocence on her face, but it was clear that puberty had been good for her, despite wearing baggy clothes Naruto could clearly see that she had a curves in all the right places.

Not to mention what was hiding behind the zipper of her jacket beside that gold medal she had shown her sister.

Naruto couldn't help but blush a little, which was kind of ridiculous he wasn't an hormonal teenager anymore, neither a virgin for that matter.

If someone asked him if he liked Hinata, he would say that he didn't hate her.

"Hinata" Naruto jumped a little when his father spoke "Let me introduce you to Naruto, my son" he cleared his throat "well, although I think you had already met"

"That was a long time ago," Said Naruto waving his hand in a dismissive gesture, for some reason Naruto wanted her to know he remembered her, even if he had just remembered about her just now "I'm glad to meet you again Hinata" Hinata's cheeks pinked a bit, Naruto felt something on his chest.

"Me too, Naruto-kun" the smile that she gave him was as genuine as it was charming, Naruto stared at her rosy lips for longer than he had intended.

When the waiter arrived with their orders they all ate, with small talk between everyone but Hinata and Naruto, he didn't know why he had started to feel nervous, as the evening continued, the ambient started to fell heavier, everyone knew why they were there and while it was clear that Hinata didn't hate him right away and Naruto found her pleasant enough there was still the shadow of the arranged marriage, as the conversation waned Naruto got tired of waiting.

To hell with it!

"So, Hinata," everyone stopped moving and all the eyes on the table shifted to Naruto "what sport do you practice" there it was, a simple conversation starter, nothing serious. Hinata's face seemed to brighten even more and graced Naruto with a kind smile

"Oh, I— I do Gymnastics and—"

"Y-Yes! And she is really good at it!" said Hiashi his voice a little bit higher than normal, Hinata glared at her father, and Naruto was glad to see that the girl could get mad "She is so good that her trainers tell her she could even make it to the nationals, but Hinata doesn't want to take it that far, right Hinata?" Hinata gave her father a nervous smile while nodding her head, she seemed uncomfortable, to be honest, Naruto felt the same. There was a pause in the conversation before Hinata spoke.

"And you Naruto-kun you practice any sport?" it seemed like Hinata wanted, like Naruto, to start a conversation

"Yeah, I did a bit of—"

"He practiced Karate back in high school, he ended up second place in the Junior Olympic Games," said his father not hiding the proud tone from his voice, Naruto glared at his father as Hinata seemed to shrink in her chair, her shoulders slumped.

"I— I see" she mumbled and although she was smiling it was clear how uncomfortable the situation was for her, Naruto huffed and tried again to start a conversation with his fiance

"Hibiya Highschool, right? What grade are you on?" Hinata opened her mouth to answer but her father interrupted again

"She is in second grade, top of her class," Hiashi seemed proud at least, but Hinata seemed to shrink even more in her chair, for his part Naruto's temper had started to rise, did the man thought her incapable of answering a simple question by herself? Hinata was playing with her food and without looking up she mumbled

"Fa… father told me that you are studying medicine, do you plan to join the Konoha hospitals?" she seemed to be deflated with her shoulders hanging and her eyes on her food. Even her voice that had been up to that point, if calm and soft, clear was so low that Naruto had to strain his ears to hear her.

"Of course," this time it was his mother who spoke "ever since he was little he always said he wanted to be a doctor as good as Minato" Naruto's left eye twitched, apparently his parents also thought him incapable of maintaining a conversation on his own, he heard Hinata mumble an inaudible 'I see' as he continued to play with her food, Naruto huffed

"And what about you Hinata?" Naruto asked, his own stubbornness made him try again to keep a conversation with his fiance "are you going to study medicine?"

The girl looked at Naruto quizzically, she tilted her head for a moment then opened her mouth

"Of course she is going to go into medicine" Said Hiashi, "she will take my place at the hospitals, with you, of course, Right Minato?" both men shared a little nervous laugh like as if what he had said was pure comedic gold, Hinata let out a repressed huff and crossed her arms clearly embarrassed by her father's behaviour. Naruto didn't feel embarrassed, he was fucking pissed off, so he stood abruptly slamming his palms on the table making the silverware clatter. The silence that continued was deafening and everyone stared at him with wide eyes.

"Naruto?" asked his mom, in her voice was concern and the realization that her son was livid "is something wrong?"

"No, mom, everything is fine" his voice was cold and heavy as an iceberg "it's just that I felt a little bit warm and I would like to take a little walk to refresh myself" while he was saying this he walked around the table until he was standing beside Hinata, she looked at him like if he was a going to eat her. Naruto offered his hand "would you like to accompany me, Hinata?" Hinata looked at his hand then at his eyes and smiled, she took his hand and Naruto pulled her up softly, and without letting her hand go they started to walk towards the restaurant's exit.

"Naruto?" said his father "What are you doing?" Naruto turned around to look at his father trying to ignore how right Hinata's small and soft hand felt warped around his

"What I was supposed to do," he said more brusquely than he intended "To met my fiance" He saw how Hanabi stood up and opened her mouth but Neji put a hand on her shoulder and made her sit again "and I mean really met her, not whatever version you want present to me"

"Naruto!" said his mom with a tone, that in the past, when he was younger, would have made him apologize instantly, now it had zero effect.

"And I want her to met me, the real me!" Naruto turned and continued his way towards the exit with Hinata's hand still in his.

If anyone at the table said anything Naruto didn't hear them.

Next chapter is Hinata's and Naruto first date, I hope you are ready for some fluff.