Category: Romantic Fluff

Characters: Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga

Hinata stood over the bubbling pot of chocolate, frowning deeply as she gazed down at the instructions of the back of the homemade chocolate kit box and stirred the thick liquid slowly. I hope I'm doing this right, she thought as she read over the recipe instructions for the hundredth time. I've been making chocolate for Naruto for a few years now, but… I still get unnerved, she thought with a small sigh and set the box down, continuing to stir the mixture to ensure it didn't burn. It was Valentine's Day, after all, and she wanted the day to go perfectly.

She cried out in alarm as the it suddenly began to bubble faster, and one of them burst and splashed all over her unprotected hand. Her skin burned with a fierce fire as the boiling-hot chocolate seared her skin, sending tendrils of pain writhing up her arm. Tears stinging her eyes, she hardly dialed down the heat before running to the sink to run cold water over her hand, whimpering at the intense pain. When she withdrew her hand, her knuckles and the top of her hand were burning red.

"Ow," she whined and gingerly rubbed the skin, wincing when it flared with intense pain. "Oh, the chocolate!" she cried in alarm and rushed back to the stove to grab the wooden spoon and churn the chocolate furiously. It had thickened, even in the short amount of time, but thankfully it had not burned yet. Phew. It's almost ready! She thought and switched off the heat. She carried the pot over to the counter and began gingerly pouring it into the molds, using the spoon to scoop it into the plastic divets. The heat rising from the molten chocolate made her hand burn all the more terribly, and she held back tears as she finished up scooping out the chocolate and set the dirty pot in the sink. She retrieved the filled molds and set them in the freezer, sighing at the momentary relief of the cool air on her hand.

While she waiting for the chocolates to cool and solidify, she gingerly wrapped her burned hand in small bandages. The feeling of the wrappings on her sensitive skin just made it burn worse, but there was little she could do about it. She tried to find things to do to distract herself from the pain, like reading a book and cleaning up a little, but it always crept back like some kind of insistent puppy begging for attention. By the time she was taking the chocolates out of the freezer and preparing them on a plate for her husband, she was on the borderline of tears.

"Hinata! I'm home!" Naruto's voice floated in through the entryway and into the kitchen. She hastily hid her burned hand in her jacket sleeve, and for once she was grateful that she preferred loose sweaters. As soon as she did, her husband's cheerful face popped into view as he walked through the entrance of the kitchen. "Ooh! Smells good. Chocolate?" he grinned widely, blushing as he recalled what day it was. "Hinata, you didn't have to do this for me," he smiled shyly as he walked around the table to kiss her on the forehead.

"I wanted to, Naruto…" she flushed in slight embarrassment, casting her gaze down so that he wouldn't see the moisture in her eyes. My hand hurts so much… she thought as he plopped down into a chair and licked his lips as he eyed the chocolates hungrily. He then blushed and looked up at her like a begging puppy, seemingly asking her permission. "Go ahead!" she laughed. "I made them for you."

"All right!" he cried happily and grabbed one in each hand, shoving them into his mouth. Hinata couldn't help but chuckle. Naruto was a grown man now, but he still acted the same as when they were children. It was like part of him never had grown up. Hinata eased herself down into the chair beside him, careful to keep her hand out of sight as they talked about his day at work. It didn't take him long to scarf down the chocolates, and as he chewed on the last one he leaned back in the chair and exhaled happily.

"Man, that was awesome. You're too good to me," he mused, pulling her by the back of her head to kiss her temple. His gratitude made her flush with happiness. "Oh! I almost forgot!" he cried abruptly and began fishing around in his pockets. Snickering proudly, he procured a long jewelry box. "Here, give me your hand, Hinata," he commanded eagerly, reaching for her injured hand. She stiffened and scooted away, making him raise an eyebrow. Oh no! Now he's suspicious! She thought in panic. Before she could react, Naruto snatched her by the wrist and jerked up her jacket sleeve. "Hey… What's wrong with your hand?" he asked quietly, the grip on her relaxing when he saw the bandages around her fingers. His rough movement had caused the pain to flare brightly, and she couldn't stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks.

"I… I burned myself," she admitted quietly. He must think I'm so clumsy… she thought as he stared sadly down at the bandages. She gasped as he abruptly lifted her hand to his mouth to softly kiss the injured areas of her hands. "Naruto!"

"Hinata… Even with your burned hand, you made these chocolates for me?" he asked quietly, lifting his face slightly so that his blue eyes gazed into her own. She nodded, struck silent by his passionate stare. "As much as I love the chocolate, Hinata, I wish you wouldn't hurt yourself like this…" he murmured, kissing her hand again. Strangely, she found the burning pain beginning to subside. "It makes me sad…" he whispered against her skin.

"I'm sorry, Naruto… I was just so worried that they wouldn't come out right that I got careless," she sighed deeply. He ran his thumb slowly across the top of her hand in rhythmic circles and she was surprised to find that it soothed the pain further. It doesn't burn anymore…

"You don't have to worry about things like that. As long as you made it, Hinata, I don't care how it comes out. I'll eat it," he told her with a big smile. "Because I know that it's made with your love, and nothing in this world could be better than that." Naruto! She thought, her heart nearly full to bursting with love. She nodded vigorously, unable to answer from the overflow of emotion. He seemed to understand, though, and kissed her hand one more time before opening the jewelry box and placing a glittery bracelet around her wrist. "Happy Valentine's Day, Hinata," he smiled gently as he fastened the bracelet.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Naruto," she answered quietly. She admired the pretty accessory, knowing she would treasure it until the end of her days. She glanced up as she felt Naruto move, and then his lips were against her own. Her heart swelling, she closed her eyes and abandoned herself to the feeling of his kiss.

I love you, more than anything in the world. I would gladly take a burned hand, over and over again, if it means I can spend all my Valentine's Days with you.