You stretched and peered at the brilliant full moon above you. You smiled with joy and thought about your recent elevation to Jounin rank. Hokage-sama gave you your exam mission this morning and you passed with flying colours. Basking in the light from the moon, you continued to walk to your house. With a light skip to your step and humming softly to yourself, you walked down the street and approached your door. Just before your hand reached the knob, you paused. Something didn't feel right.
Before you had time to further asses what was amiss, the door swung open and a chorus of congratulations broke out. "Huh?" Was all you could muster. "Congratulations on passing your Jounin exam." Sakura happily pulled you through your own door. "Oh, thanks…" You were still flustered by the group. Once you got into your home, you looked around at the group gathered in the house. Everyone was there. Your friends from the leaf village, the sand siblings, and even Sasuke lounged in your living room.
"Now that everyone's here, we should play this game I read about." Ino announced.
"Great, this'll be troublesome." Shikamaru sighed and you couldn't help but agree with him.
"What's the game?" Naruto asked full of curiosity.
"Well it's called 'Seven Minutes in Heaven'." Ino smiled.
"How do you play?" Tenten asked.
"When you have a party with guys and girls together you have the guys write their names, favorite animals, favorite colours, or something on a sheet of paper and put it in a bowl. The girls then draw the slips of paper out of the bowl and have to stay in a closet for seven minutes with the guy who wrote on the paper." Ino explained.
"What happens in the closet?" Kankuro asked.
"Ummm…the thing I read said the guy gets to do whatever he wanted with the girl." Ino answered. You looked around at everyone's faces and saw some people were excited while others looked like they dreaded the game
"I knew this would be troublesome." Shikamaru sighed.
"Let's play!" Naruto excitedly shouted. After some cheers mixed with a small amount of grumbling, you retrieved the materials needed to play. Ino passed the paper and pencils to the guys and told them to write the name of their favorite flower. Sakura passed the bowl around and the guys put their paper in it. "Since this party is for ______, she gets to draw the first name." Sakura smiled and handed you the bowl. You reached your hand into the bowl and pulled out a slip of paper with Poppy lightly written on it. "Poppy." You read from the slip of paper. You heard a sigh from someone to your left and saw Shikamaru stand up. "This is so troublesome." He said and walked to the closet door. You followed behind him and Ino closed the door. You walked to the back of the closet and sat down. 'He's probably just going to sleep.' You thought sadly to yourself. You heard Shikamaru mumble something and he sat down next to you. You smiled a little; at least he was sitting next to you. You knew he didn't really like girls too much or wasn't very interested in them, but you hoped maybe you could befriend him.
"Uhhhh…Shikamaru?" You quietly asked.
"What?" He replied with a bored tone of voice.
"What is it you want to do?" You asked him.
"Watch the clouds." He answered.
"Huh?" His comment caught you off guard.
"Clouds don't have a care in the world and are free." Came his unprompted reply. You looked at him and tried to figure out exactly what he was saying. You couldn't watch the clouds while sitting in a closet, and you didn't think they were all that free. After all, clouds had to go wherever the wind took them; the wind had more freedom.
"I think I know what this game is about." Shikamaru sighed.
"What?" You asked curiously.
"Getting a guy and a girl in a dark enclosed space can only mean a set up. Ino might not have known, but the game is supposed to be played so the guy kisses the girl while they are in the closet." Shikamaru explained.
"Oh…I guess that makes sense." You blushed. You liked Shikamaru and wouldn't mind playing the game the proper way, but…
"Do you want to play the game properly?" His voice interrupted your thoughts.
Your light blush deepened, "If you want. I mean we should play the game the way it was meant to be played right?" You were flustered and hoped your statement wasn't too bold. Before you had too much time to think about your situation, you felt Shikamaru lean close to you. You unconsciously looked up and saw his face very close to yours. Time slowed down as his lips lightly brushed yours and lingered for a few moments. His lips were soft and warm. All too soon, he broke the touch and you could see a blush across his face.
"There, now we just wait for them to open the door." He said returning to his original position. Your already flushed face must have turned a beautiful shade of crimson. Your heart was beating very loudly and you desperately hoped Shikamaru didn't hear it. The two of you spent the rest of the time silently lost in thought. Forever seemed to pass until Ino finally called to you.
"Time's up!" She shouted and opened the door. Shikamaru was the first to stand up, and he offered you his hand to help you. You accepted with a light blush and he led the way out of the closet.
"Awww…Shikamaru must have fallen asleep or something." Ino said with some disappointment. Ino's teasing brought a slight blush Shikamaru's face.
"Ho, ho looks like maybe something did happen." Kankuro teased and both Shikamaru and you blushed. The rest of the group caught on and whistled or giggled as the two of you took seats under one of the windows. Ino passed the bowl and you ignored the rest of the game. Instead, you spent the rest of the party sitting next to Shikamaru and sneaking glances at him while he slept.