I don't know if it ever gets cold in Konoha, but it was the perfect scenario. Lol. This chapter was inspired by my friend Fiona, coz she makes every party a an… even bigger party.

And Jillian because she has taught me how to go on non stop about random things.

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Chapter 12: Say Okay

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Hinata and Naruto were just dancing. It wasn't anything special, just her arms around him, and his hands on her waist. It was kind of cute.

"Naruto-kun… Do you like me?"

"Of course, I do."

"I mean, do you like me as a girl friend?"

"Yeah, sure. We're dancing, right? And we're going on a date after this like I promised, right? Then, you can be my girlfriend."

"Oi!" He tipped over and fainted, in his arms.

"Um, Hinata?" He kept her up, looked around, and sighed. "Not again."

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Temari sat outside in a bench, just listening to the music that was playing in the school gym. It was getting lonely just sitting there. When Temari starts feeling lonely, her mind starts to wander.

She started think about random things, like why Sakura's hair was pink, and how Shino's eyes looks under his glasses. How does Sasuke make his hair stick up? Why does Shikamaru have his hair in a ponytail?

Why does Shikamaru look so damn hot?

It wasn't long until Temari had realized her thoughts had wandered too far. She sighed and shivered. It was freezing out, and she was wearing short sleeves.

"Damnit."

She looked up as she heard people coming down the road. It was Choji and Shikamaru. She froze up even more as Shikamaru stopped in front of her. He turned to Choji.

"I'll stay outside. I can't stand the noise," he said.

Then, he sat down on the bench with Temari. For a few seconds, they just sat there. Then, he sighed. "So, what are you doing here?"

Her eyes scanned around, looking for something that would help her think of an excuse. There was a big rock next to a big tree next to a bush by the door.

"Um… I came to…"

Then, she just decided to tell the truth.

"Sakura, Ino, and Tenten made me go to the dance, but I was lucky enough to sneak out." She looked at him at last. "How about you?"

"Choji."

"Choji actually likes these things?"

"Food."

"Oh… Duh."

"Temari… Why are you shaking?"

"It's shivering."

"You're cold?"

"Isn't that obvious? It's freezing and I'm wearing short sleeves."

"You can use my jacket," he said. "I'm wearing a sweater underneath it anyway."

"Um…" She watched him take his brown jacket off and hand it to her. She took it, put it on and blushed. "Er, thanks."

She turned her face away so he wouldn't see how pink it was. He saw it anyway, but didn't feel like bringing it up. "So, you don't think these dances are worth anytime either?"

She shook her head. "No."

He nodded. "Yeah. If you're going to hang out with your friends, then mind as well do it on your own time."

She glanced at him. "Um… Have you by any chance talked to Temari in the past few hours?"

"No. I've almost never talked to her in my whole life. Why?"

"No reason. It's just that I had this conversation with her, and I used those exact words."

"Well… We both have free time now."

"Yeah, but I don't have anything to do."

"I… I 'm busy."

"What are you doing?"

"Um… You know what, why don't you go inside and talk to Ino. She's desperate."

He gave her a small but warm smile. "It's too loud."

"I have to go."

"Temari!"

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Ino was all alone, again, at a dance. This time, though, she wasn't the only lonely one. Kiba and Shino were with her in a small corner. "Maybe I should just give up," she said. "There's no hope. No one has ever really liked me to begin with."

"That's not true," Kiba said. "I'm sure someone has liked you."

"Yeah, as a friend."

"No, Hinata said that Sakura said that Sasuke said that Naruto said that Gaara said that Temari said that Shikamaru used to like you."

"He did?"

"That's what they say."

She smiled bright. Kiba and Shino looked at each other and groaned. We all know what Ino's smile meant…

"I may have lost the bet, but he's still mine!"

"Used to, Ino. He used to like you. Chances are, he doesn't anymore."

"Who else would he like?"

"Temari," Shino said. "That's the word that's going around."

"It better not be true, because I think Temari likes him too."

Kiba laughed. "Come on, Temari. It's not like he'll like you again."

"I can still try."

"Sometimes trying isn't enough. I should know."

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Naruto walked Hinata outside, away from all the music and talking. "Hey, I was just wondering… Why did you go out with me?"

She bit her lip. "Well, Naruto-kun, you mean a lot to me, and… I really admire you."

"But do you like me?" he asked. "If you don't though, I'm fine."

So many thoughts were going through her mind. Should she tell him the truth, the whole entire truth? What would it do to their friendship? She didn't know if it was worth risking everything she shared with him. After all, just the fact that he noticed her now was enough.

"I… don't know."

He smiled. "Well, I guess it is a hard question. I mean, I don't get this whole love thing either. I guess that's what makes me an idiot."

"You're not an idiot."

"Yeah, I am."

She shook her head. "No, you're not an idiot," she repeated. "You're Uzamaki Naruto."

He nodded. "Yes, that would be me. Bye, Hinata. Dancing with you was very peaceful."

"Um… Thanks?"

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The people had started to leave. Not once had Ino talked to anyone new. She dragged her feet across the gym floor. "Hey Choji," she said with no enthusiasm at all. "You're here by yourself?"

He shook his head. "I came with Shikamaru, but he stayed outside. Said he didn't like the noise. But since people are leaving, I guess we can go met him. That is, if he isn't talking with Temari anymore."

Her heart sank. "Temari?" she asked dryly. "What's he doing with her?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Beats me."

Ino looked at the gym. It was almost empty now. Someone poured soda on the floor so they could slide across it. Some of the committee members were already cleaning up. It was one of the biggest events of the year… and she had to spend it alone.

"This sucks."

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Shikamaru kicked the ground with his feet. It didn't make any sense. How come the one girl that doesn't annoy him, whom he actually gets along with, was always avoiding him? It was obvious that she liked him too. He saw how she blushes when they're together.

Most of all, he knew he liked her. "Just my luck."

Then, as if it couldn't get any worse, he saw Ino. He was used to her by now. She doesn't annoy him as much. What annoyed him was Ino when she was depressed.

Right now, she was depressed.

"This is so stupid," she said. "I went through so much trouble for today, and nothing came from it!"

''He sighed. "Okay, what to you want to do about it?"

"I don't know. It's not like I can go back in time to this dance. Of course, everyone's going to be talking about how much fun it was for them."

"Cheer up, Ino," said Choji. "There'll be more dances, I'm sure. He looked around. "By the way, Shikamaru, where's you're jacket?"

"My jacket?" He thought for a while. "Oh, my jacket… Yeah, I let Temari borrow it. She was cold."

Ino bit her lip. "So, did you have fun?"

"Not really, it was just talking."

"Oh, okay. That's great!"

"Great?"

"Wait, no! I mean…" She gave him a big bright smile. "You know, I went to the mall yesterday, and I like saw this really cute top… and it was violet. Violet is like totally my color, but it cost like forty dollars, so I didn't get it. Then, I went to this other store that did have a sale. There were these really awesome chucks, also violet, and I got them for twelve dollars… Oh, and gee! You know how on those commercials when they have people going nuts over cereal? Well, I tried some of that cereal, and I found out that they taste better with actual milk. But, I don't like milk, so I just had a bagel instead."

"Okay, take a deep breath and STOP TALKING!!!"

"Fine…" She took a deep breathe and held it for a few seconds. She held it for a little more… and a little more…and…

"You're supposed to breathe it out after," Shikamaru told her.

The breathed all the air out. "Geez, why didn't you tell me?"

He rolled his eyes and yawned. "It's common sense."

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Okay… Ino or Temari? Who looks cuter with Shikamaru? I say Temari, my friend says Ino, my sister says they both look cute with him. I am very, very lost.