Well hello there readers. Thanks for stopping by! Sorry it's been a while. I'm working on a lot of stories. Hope you enjoy! Thanks again for your support. Please review.
I DO NOT OWN NARUTO
Chapter 14: Love and Shock
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Tenten stared at Ino in disbelief after hearing the words that escaped her mouth. "P-pregnant?!" Tenten exclaimed.
"Shhh!" Ino said as she covered Tenten's gaping mouth. "I don't want them to hear!"
Tenten and Ino hadn't known it, but Asuma and Kakashi had crept up to the door to hear the commotion. Curious as to what had them so stirred up. if you were to ask Asuma though, it was Kakashi's idea.
Upon hearing the news, Asuma's eyes widened and he took a step back from the door. You could see the color draining from his rugged face. "Pregnant?" He whispered. Kakashi took hold of Asuma's shoulders as he noticed his friend wobbling backward.
"Calm down." Kakashi whispered firmly, trying to console his friend. Suddenly, Asuma walked toward the door but was quickly redirected to the dining room and Kakashi violently forced him back into his chair. "No!" He scolded.
Asuma looked up at him surprised, obviously still in shock himself. He had no words, and he wasn't sure himself what emotion he was experiencing. It was clear that it was Ino who was pregnant, they had caught enough of the conversation via eavesdropping to know that much.
"You don't need to tell her you know, you'll only make her angry that you were eavesdropping in on her conversation. She needs to tell you in her own time." Kakashi assured as he looked at Asuma firmly.
Asuma leaned back in his chair, slouching a little as he thought. 'I guess he's right.' He thought to himself as he stroked his facial hair. He still wasn't sure how to take all of the information. He didn't know how he was going to hide the fact that he knew, unless she came right out and told him immediately, and he wasn't sure if he should be happy or irritated. Had she lied to him the whole time about not being pregnant in the first place, or did she really not know? He couldn't know at all.
Kakashi's ears perked when he heard the bedroom door click open, he knew that Ino and Asuma were going to need some time alone, so he planned to do the same with Tenten. He stood from the table and walked down the hallway as Tenten and Ino exited. It was clear that the two were downcast, probably a front making it seem as though Ino was still upset with Tenten. "Hey." Kakashi said to Tenten. "Could you help me with something outside?"
Tenten looked up at him, rather unsure what was up his sleeve, but she knew the look in his eye was not innocent. He was up to something, obviously. Before she could reply, though, Ino spoke up for her.
"Yeah, why don't you two go share more secrets!" She yelled. She was rather convincing, considering she really wasn't angry at Tenten in the least. But she didn't want Asuma to suspect anything. Tenten glared at Ino for acting so harsh and quickly, and reluctantly, exited the apartment with Kakashi.
Once Ino was sure they were gone, she walked up to the dinner table and returned to her place next to Asuma, who seemed to be zoning out a bit. She really didn't feel that now was the appropriate time to tell him, the question was though, when? She looked down at her plate and took hold of her fork.
"Everything okay?" Asuma asked suddenly, breaking through the barrier of silence that had cloaked the room.
"Y-Yeah. Everything's good. I was just angry that Tenten didn't tell me she was interested in Kakashi sooner. I don't know why she had to lie about it." Ino replied, still staring at her food.
'Yeah, except I know you're lying to me right now.' He thought to himself. Before he spoke again, he was reminded of Kakashi's advice to let her tell him in her own time and he did his best not to let it get to him. "Mm." He grunted in response.
She turned to him and narrowed her brows. Typically Asuma had verbal responses to her statements, rather than the lingo of a caveman. "What's wrong with you?" Ino asked, concerned and a bit concerned, agitation clearly evident in her tone.
Asuma faced her and placed his elbows on the table. He desperately wanted to confront her about the lies, and the lack of truth on her end, but he also didn't want to hurt her. She had to have a good reason as to why she wasn't disclosing the information to him just yet, and he cared for her deeply, so he wanted to trust her. "It's nothing. Just tired tonight." Now he was lying.
Ino gave him a small nod, rather tired herself. "Maybe we should go to bed then?"
"Yeah, sounds good."
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
"What the hell did you drag me out here for?!" Tenten exclaimed, angry that Kakashi had blown their secret, and that he had taken her out into the cold for now apparent reason. There was nothing he needed 'help' with at all.
Kakashi stuffed his hands in his pockets, leaned against the siding of the house and smirked. "Nothing." He began.
"Then I'm going inside! It's cold!" She shouted as she turned to go back inside to retreat from the nippy fall air.
"Asuma and I know." Kakashi blurted, still smirking, but it only intensified as Tenten looked back at him with a look of shock intermixed with anger and confusion.
"What!? Well I have to tell..."
"Don't tell Ino." He stated, cooly.
"You sound so confident, but this could cause major problems between them, Kakashi! Is that what you want?!" The brunette yelled.
"No, on the contrary, I think they could both use some growing. This is going to help them with that. And I think she needs to tell him in her own way. It probably wasn't the wisest thing for he and I to be snooping in on your conversation." He replied.
"No! You're right, it was really foolish! But... I guess they're both caught up in some spider webs now." Tenten paused before letting out a heavy sigh, you could see her breath in the cool air coming from her mouth. "Fine, I won't say anything. We'll leave it to them to solve it, but if they split up or if something bad happens, I'm blaming you and you have to fix it!" She exclaimed.
"You're so cute when you're angry." He stated.
"Oh shut up!"
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The following day, Ino rose at her usual time of 9 o' clock in the morning. She stretched out her body with her arms above her head and she let out a big yawn. A small smile spread across her face as she looked to her right at the sleeping form beside her. Asuma looked so peaceful and happy. Suddenly, Ino let out a gasp. "Asuma! You're late for school!"
"Hmmm" Asuma mumbled in reply, shifting in his sleep a bit.
Ino scooted over and shook his arm roughly. "Asuma!"
"What?" He asked, annoyed, opening his brown eyes.
"You're late for school!" She yelled, her good mood soured by his foul mood.
"No I'm not, there's no school today. They're on fall break. Go back to sleep." He ordered before plopping his head back onto his pillow and closing his eyes once more.
Ino shrugged and hopped out of bed. She really didn't feel like staying there. She wasn't tired, and Asuma seemed to be rather grouchy. This meant she had to spend the day with him unless she got out of the house. She really needed to figure out how to tell him, but she wasn't sure what to say, or how to word it. 'What would he say?' She wondered as she looked upon him. She let out a sigh and walked to the nightstand on his side and took hold of her cellphone. As she was unplugging it from it's charger chord, she felt a strong hand grip her wrist.
"Lay down with me." He asked, softly.
"Asuma, I'm not tired." She stated as she looked down at him. His eyes were still closed, but they slowly opened and looked up at her.
"Please?" He whispered.
'How can I say no to that?' She thought with a sigh. Before Ino had the chance to give him an answer, he had scooted over to the middle of the bed, leaving her enough room on his side to crawl in and she reluctantly did so, but his warm and strong arms soon wrapped around her, making it worth it. She snuggled into him and smiled happily, her previous annoyances dissolving as he snuggled her close. She could hear his heart beating steadily and his breathing was soft and slow. 'Maybe now's the time I tell him.' She pondered as she studied his face. He seemed at peace, relaxed and content. Suddenly without warning, he spoke.
"I know." He said, eyes still closed as he held fast to her small body.
"H-huh?" Ino's eyes widened and she looked at him head on. What did he mean by that? She thought as her heart rate accelerated. She soon became overwhelmingly nervous.
"I overheard you and Tenten last night." He admitted as his brown eyes slowly fluttered open. He gazed into her ocean colored orbs, feeling rather guilty for listening to Kakashi's advice. "I'm sorry. I should've told you, but I didn't want you to get mad. Kakashi really wanted to hear what you were saying about him, and dragged me along. We heard what we weren't supposed to and I'm sorry."
Ino gasped and scooted away from him in order to get a better look at his face. "I..." She thought for a moment. Really she wasn't angry, more a less she was just surprised. It was almost a relief that she didn't have to conjure up the best way to tell him if he already knew, now she just wanted to know what he thought about the matter. She placed a hand on her own stomach and looked at him curiously. "W..Well?"
"I'm actually really happy about it." He started. "Why didn't you tell me last night?"
"I was afraid." She said looking down.
"Why?" He asked as he raised her chin.
"Because I didn't want you to leave me."
"And why on earth would I do that?" Asuma questioned, as he looked upon her sorrowful expression.
"Because... I know things didn't work out with Riku's mom and..."
"But she's not you. And I don't ever want you to compare yourself with her, you hear me?" He scolded, but his tone remained soft. Ino's eyes twinkled as tears threatened to fall from them. "I love you, Ino."